Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones

Redheads were the rage for a couple posts and I had more halfway written in my head but then I got lost in Tori Amosland for a while. Now I've been diverted onto the Rolling Stones highway so redheads are off for a bit.

I love the Stones. Wait, let me clarify. I love the Stones from Tattoo You and before. Anything since then has been utter crap they've done solely for the purpose of adding more money to their already overfilled coffers. Of course, to be fair, Mick does need a steady income to pay for all of his legitimate and illegitimate children, Ronnie has major alcoholism issues and alimony payments and Charlie really should look into getting smile implants.

Of their impressive catalogue, my favorite Stones song is Gimme Shelter.



The real impact of this song for me isn't so much the lyrics, which are simple yet compelling. What gets me every time I hear it is the secondary vocal provided by Merry Clayton. She truly is the focus of the song and Mick seems to understand it as his vocal, while great in true Mick fashion, often takes the backseat to Merry's amazing voice. Their voices in this duet, and this song truly is a duet, complement each other wonderfully.

War, children it's just a shot away
It's just a shot away
Oooh see the fire is sweepin'
Our very street today
Burns like a red coal carpet
Mad bull lost its way

Even hearing the intro, with Keith Richards' rhythm guitar and the swelling of the music as the song gains steam, it gives me chills sometimes. There's a very distinct vibe to this song, which hits me as being eerily compelling. It's been used in several feature films, almost all of them having to do with the Vietnam War, about which this song was written.

I also love how the lyric optimistically and hopefully goes from war, rape and murder to how love is only a kiss away. If only it were that simple.

Little Earthquakes - Tori Amos

Give me life, give me pain, give me myself again

Next up in the redhead parade is Tori Amos. Little Earthquakes is such a great album. Every song is bizarre, quirky, emotionally intense, idiosyncratic, eccentric and just plain brilliant. The way she uses the piano to do everything from soothe to bash in one's skull truly amazes me. I admit I've been remiss in not listening to much of her later work and I really need to fix that. However, I love this album. I love this song.

Every element of Little Earthquakes truly blows me away. From the range of her voice, her master use of the piano, the thunder like percussion sounds - this song really gets to me.

These little earthquakes
Doesn't take much to rip us into pieces

These lyrics, especially the bit at the top "give me myself again", resonate so strongly with me. I've had depression issues at times. Whenever these instances manifest, I eventually get to a point where I realize what's going on and know I have to kick myself in the ass to get on with life and not wallow anymore, to get back to being the me I like, the me I want to be. Perhaps that's why this song is a favorite of mine. Or maybe I just like it. :-)

Something to Talk About - Bonnie Raitt

This week I decided to write about redheads. For most of my life I've wanted to be a redhead or at least auburn. I blame Lucille Ball since she was the first redhead I ever found to be amazingly awesome. :-) Hell, my mom and grandma used to call me Lucy because I'd watch I Love Lucy twice every day in second grade. In fact, back then Lucy was my way of knowing when to leave for school - once the show was over in the morning, it was time to go. Of course, I think my obsession with having red hair might have been different had I Love Lucy been in color instead of black and white (that henna rinse kinda made Lucy's hair more of a Bozo the Clown red as opposed to Maureen O'Hara red). :-)

Anywho, first up is Bonnie Raitt. When this song first was released, I remember thinking the song was okay but nothing that really grabbed me.



Cut to a couple weeks ago and the song came on the radio. I've always known Bonnie Raitt is an incredibly respected slide guitar player, considered by many to be one of the best. However, it was her voice that grabbed me this time. After giving Bonnie's voice the attention it deserves, I was seriously impressed. She's got a really lovely, bluesy voice. I can't say that her music is anything that I'll ever immerse myself in but I won't be changing the station if I hear her on the radio again either (yes, I've been guilty of that a time or two). It's good to revisit songs and artists from time to time. Who knows what maturity and a little life experience will do to your perspective.

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - The Movie

Time for something fun today. I saw this movie long, long ago (but in this galaxy) and absolutely loved it. It's probably one of the absolute worst movies ever made but it's got the Bee Gees! And George Burns! And Aerosmith! And Billy Preston! And so many other people! All singing Beatles songs! How can you go wrong with that? Apparently, there was dialogue originally but they edited it out because Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees couldn't act. But who cares?! It's Barry Gibb in tight, white pants and satin! My youthful heart just about gave out. I rented this movie over and over and over (I know, I could have said repeatedly but I didn't want to. So there!). By now, I could have bought it but I just wait for it to turn up on cable (which it does fairly regularly without fail) and then sit through it, enraptured even now as I was then. It's pure campy, goofy fun and it's one of my favorite movies of all time. And I'm not even a Peter Frampton fan (his hair was too frizzy, unlike Barry's perfectly feathered and shellacked beautiful brown locks).



Yes, I was totally in love with Barry Gibb. This would have been after I broke Donny Osmond's heart by not wearing my purple socks anymore. Barry was my true love until his younger brother Andy shadow danced his way into my heart. Oh Andy, how I miss you.