Let’s Hear It For The Girls!

It’s no secret that some of the greatest popular music ever made will never make Top Hundred lists of Rolling Stone or Uncut. There are a number of reasons for this but the most important is that much of it was released on singles rather than albums. Furthermore, rock ‘n’ roll music is very male dominated and so some extremely good music has been criminally overlooked and undervalued, for instance; the girl group genre of music.

Mr Lee– The Bobbettes (1957)

The Bobbettes were the first girl group to make it into the charts with this, a doo-wop ode to a teacher they despised. In fact they disliked this particular teacher so much that the original title of the song was ‘I Shot Mr. Lee’, and those sentiments were reflected in the lyrics of the original recording. Although Atlantic Records sensed they might have a hit on their hands, the murderous element of the song made them a tad nervous and so they asked the group to record this more sanitised version.

Maybe – The Chantels (1958)

The Chantays were the first to craft something that more noticeably all the hallmarks of what the girl group became . The pain and longing in Arlene Smith’s vocal is so audible that teenagers everywhere must have instantly been able to relate to it and they bought the record in droves. It sold over a million copies when it was first released. Lead singer, Arlene Smith, also wrote the song.

Be My Baby – The Ronnettes (1965)

By the mid-60s , this was released. Be My Baby is perhaps the most legendary girl-group record of all time – some say the greatest pop record ever made. Phil Spector may be more notorious than famous now, but in the mid-60s he was at the peak of his powers. Even so, the lyrics of Be My Baby are rather disturbing; ‘So won’t you say you love me, I’ll make you so proud of me, we’ll make them turn their heads every place we go…’ The words almost suggest that the singer is happy to be the object of her love’s possession – quite ominous in retrospect.

Don’t Say Nothing Bad About My Baby – The Cookies (1963)

The Cookies were a prolific girl group who recorded under several different names, including; The Pasilades, The Stepping Stones and The Honey Bees; usually with Dorothy Jones on lead vocals. They were a very successful session group too and can be heard supplying backing vocals on many of Neil Sedaka singles, Little Eva’s ‘Locomotion’ and its follow-up hit, plus Mel Torme’s ‘Comin’ Home Baby’. They were Goffin and King’s demo group of choice and recorded some of their songs as singles, including ‘Don’t Say Nothing Bad About My Baby’, which became The Cookies’ biggest hit. Check out the way Dorothy Jones says, ‘So girl, you better shut your mouth,’ they were the epitome of cool.

Tell Him – The Exciters (1963)

Produced by the legendary Leiber and Stoller, The Exciters were quite different from the girl-groups who preceded them. They were noted for having a ‘tougher’ sound and a more aggressive variety of femininity. Fronted by Brenda Reid, this was their first hit:

Nowhere To Run – Martha & The Vandellas (1965)

Another record from 1965, this is a far more up-tempo R&B number and Martha Reeves had the vocal chords to carry a song like this off. Before The Supremes arrived on the scene, Martha & The Vandellas were one of Tamla Motown’s most commercial acts and they hit after hit, most of which haven’t dated one jot. Vandellas records were typically dancey, R&B powerhouse numbers, which went on to be covered by many of mod bands, such as; The Who, The Kinks, etc. None of those cover-versions surpassed the originals though.

Baby Love – The Supremes (1964)

According to Supremes mythology it was Florence Ballard who had the vocal talent, but whatever the truth is, Diana Ross went on to front the band and there’s no denying her charisma. However, the hit-making team placed with The Supremes (Holland, Dozier and Holland) realised that Ms Ross’ voice was not remotely in the category of a powerful singer like Martha Reeves and so they had to take a different approach to accommodate it. The Supremes wanted to record Vandellas style records but instead were presented with more subtle songs like ‘Where Did Our Love Go’ and ‘Baby Love’. The young Diana Ross’ breathy, kitten-like voice suited the syncopated style of those records in a way that Martha Reeves’ would have been too powerful.

Baby It’s You – The Shirelles (1961)

The Shirelles were one of John Lennon’s favourite groups and The Beatles even went on to record a version of this on the first album. The Shirelles’ version of ‘Baby It’s You’ has a unique, weird sound all of its own though, and that’s why I’ve included it here. The record has a disconcerting atmosphere and this is quite typical of the Shirelles, whose imperfect harmonies add depth to all of their recordings. Even their most famous single, ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow’, shares this quality.

Out In The Streets – The Shangri-Las (1964)

Some of The Shangri-Las’ records are, quite simply, masterpieces. The Shangri-Las’ producer, George ‘Shadow’ Morton was heavily influenced by Phil Spector, but unlike Spector was less overbearing and temperamental. Although The Shangri-Las’ quickly became associated with a short 60s phenomena known as ‘the death ballad’, their records always had a sense of humour and fun about them and the group embodied streetwise glamour.

Nobody Knows What’s Going On In My Mind – The Chiffons (1965)

The Chiffons were one of the most successful girl groups of the 1960s and they had many hits, most of which were pop at its purest form (‘He’s So Fine’, ‘Sweet Talking Guy’, and ‘One Fine Day’, etc). Their records were very stylish and had a great deal of natural poise and elegance. This record is no exception but it has far more in common with R&B than their earlier pop hits. In fact, it’s very easy to imagine this being a hit in Northern Soul clubs.

Attack – The Toys (1966)

The Toys scored a Number One single in the US with ‘Lover’s Concerto’ in 1965 – they only managed to get to Number Eighteen with this, but I like it. Again, it has a Northern Soul style quality and should be heard more often.

The Hunter Gets Captured By The Game – The Marvelettes (1967)

The Marvelettes are one of the great girl groups but perhaps owing to the fact that they shared the Tamla Motown label with The Supremes, they have been too often overshadowed. They recorded the original version of ‘Please Mr Postman’ and took it to Number One in the Billboard Charts and recorded many equally memorable singles. In fact, they were Motown’s most successful girl-group for a short time.

Bad Boy – The Donays (1962)

‘Bad Boy’ was the A-side of ‘Devil In His Heart’, which went on to become a vehicle for an early George Harrison vocal performance (as ‘Devil In Her Heart’, of course). As far I can make out, it was sadly the only single The Donays ever released.

He Was Really Saying Something – The Velvelettes (1964)

This was the original version of the song Bananarama and FunBoy 3 had a hit with in 1982. The Velvelettes were another first-class Tamla Motown girl-group and they specialised in street-wise anthems like this (another was ‘Needle In The Haystack’). The Velvelettes were unfortunately another great girl-group who suffered as a consequence of Motown’s relentless cash-generating machine.

Nothing But A Heartache – The Flirtations (1968)

Play this record to most people and they will immediately think that is one of the best Supremes songs they’ve never heard or will at least imagine that it’s a Tamla Motown single. Not so, this was a group of US émigrés recording for British record-label, Deram (which was Decca’s more ‘with it’ younger brother). This was the best record The Flirtations ever managed to release though as they were never quite able to find the right producers or material to match their potential. This is an undeniable masterpiece though.

Mama Didn’t Lie – The Orions (1963)

The Orions were primarily renowned for realeasing dance-craze singles like ‘The Wah Watusi’, but the foursome had far more range, as this early Curtis Mayfield composition demonstrates. Rosetta Hightower was their lead singer and they were one of the forerunners of the early Philadelphia Soul sound.

I Wanna Love Him So Bad – The Jelly Beans (1964)

The Jelly Beans were signed by Leiber and Stoller and placed with production and songwriting team, Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich. This was their debt single and it peaked at Number Nine in the Billboard Charts. Apparently the group did a lot of recording but much of it was remained unreleased. Two further singles came out with little interest being generated at the time and so their label Red Bird didn’t put out an album, despite ample material being available. The group split up in 1965.

Does Politics Belong In Popular Music?

While writing the John Lennon piece yesterday I was reminded of his song ‘Working Class Hero’, which in turn made me think of songs with a political slant. Working Class Hero is an often misunderstood song, I think. Most people assume that it celebrates the idea of being a ‘working class hero’, but closer examination of the lyrics reveals that it was actually a critique of the entire concept. This is often the case with ‘protest songs’ since they are often taken at face-value rather than studied properly.

So does politics actually belong in popular music? Can music really change anything? It could be argued that everything is political and so the very act of making music is a political act. Elvis Presley was famously apolitical; he never recorded an overtly political song, but his very existence changed American society for ever. The fact that Elvis performed rhythm and blues songs ensured that young American teenagers would become aware of Afro-American culture, which in turn helped lead to desegregation. Anything cultural becomes political eventually.

What about political songs though? Do they have a function in themselves or are they really just about egocentric singer-songwriters thinking that their opinions are more important than other people’s? I think there may be some truth in either of these views. We’ve all become a bit tired of rock stars like Bono making grandiose pseudo-political pronouncements but a good protest song can be a strong rallying cry and can help give voice to real life concerns. There are many examples of this; the songs of Woody Guthrie; Gospel songs being adapted for protest marches (We Shall Not Be Moved, for example); early Bob Dylan songs; Billy Bragg songs during the Miner’s Strike; The Special AKA’s ‘Free Nelson Mandela’; the list goes on.
I have made a list here of ten of the political songs I like. They’re not in any particular order and I’ve tried to pick the less obvious ones. If you are reading this and think I’ve left out your favourite, please feel free to add it in the comments section below.

1) ‘All You Fascists Bound To Lose’ – Woody Guthrie

Wow,, this is a really hard to find Woody Guthrie song. Well certainly I’ve never been able to find it on any collection and we have a lot of his records in our house. I dread to think of what Guthrie would have thought of the world nowadays, with its neoliberal fundamentalism, but then again he might be heartened by the internet and how much free information can be shared on it. Who knows? This is a fine example of Guthrie’s talent for writing simple, optimistic sing-alongs that can serve to unite people to a common purpose. And he was right, there’s still time left to defeat the fascists and we will in the end!

2) ‘Love Me I’m A Liberal’ – Phil Ochs (from ‘In Concert’ – 1966)

Much more than his contemporary Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs followed in the tradition laid down by Woody Guthrie. The occasionally mean-spirited Dylan famously told Ochs that he considered him to a ‘journalist’ rather than a songwriter – he was palpably wrong, of course, but there was a journalistic quality to many of Och’s songs. There was much more than that though and on occasion Ochs could be just as poetic as Dylan, if not quite as blessed in terms of popularity and sixties mystique. Ochs could be extremely witty too and his humour took absolutely no prisoners. On this song he even satirised people who would have made up most of his fan-base in very savage style. Not even his own middle-class, liberal audience were safe from Ochs, he seemingly had no time for weekend activists who took on fashionable causes. Ochs knew the revolution demanded full-time commitment and he lived that way all the way through his tragically short life.

3) ‘Universal Soldier’ – Buffy Sainte Maria (from ‘It’s My Way’ – 1964)

Although Donovan is associated with this song it was Buffy Sainte Maria who wrote and recorded her original version in 1964 for her debut album. The album became a favourite on the British folk music scene and that’s how Donovan heard it. Buffy Sainte Maria’s version is still the best though; there is much more commitment in her performance and her voice gives the lyrics a chilling resonance lacking in Donovan’s. Perhaps it’s because she had some direct experience of the legacy of war, having grown up on the Piapot Cree First Nations Reserve in the Qu’Appelle Valley – whatever the case, her version of the song is the most powerful.

4) ‘Fortunate Son’ – Creedence Clearwater Revival (from ‘Willy And The Poor Boys’ – 1969)

Staying on the subject of anti-war songs, this is one of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s best songs. This is different from most of the anti-war songs of the period in that it brings class into the equation; asking the question why a disproportionate number of those being drafted for the Vietnam War were from blue-colour backgrounds. John Fogerty’s vocal performance on this track was particularly passionate and the band were equally hot.

5) ‘Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler) – Marvin Gaye (from ‘What’s Going On’ – 1971)

Marvin Gaye had to fight to get ‘What’s Going On’ released and it was testament to his strength of character that it was it came out at all. Tamla Motown had no faith in the album and were put off by the political nature of the songs, but Gaye was right, the album resonated with the public and became the label’s biggest selling album until his next release (the sexed up ‘Let’s Get It On’). The early seventies were a period of political consciousness in soul music and ‘What’s Going On’ is one of the era’s key albums. In fact it is still one of most important records ever recorded. Inner City Blues is the climactic track of ‘What’s Going On’ and the single version made number nine in the Billboard charts. The song has a low-key funk groove and is very dark, listing a litany of the social troubles familiar to Afro-American in the inner-cities of the time (and probably even today). Marvin Gaye’s singing adds huge weight to the lyrics; it is an incredibly moving performance – heartbreaking, in fact.

6) ‘(Don’t Worry) If There’s A Hell Below, We’re All Going To Go’ – Curtis Mayfield (from ‘Curtis’ – 1970)

Perhaps Gaye was inspired to record ‘What’s Going On’ by hearing the work of Curtis Mayfield, particularly the album this song was from. Mayfield had previously been the main man in The Impressions and his writing had always had an element of social consciousness in it, even the group’s biggest his ‘People Get Ready’ was as political as it was gospel. ‘Curtis’, the album, was released and it was brimming with songs about race relations, Watergate, social unrest, drug addiction, teenage pregnancy and much more. This particular track is almost apocalyptic and Mayfield’s keening falsetto in this context is practically chilling.

7) ‘The Bottle’ – Gil Scott Heron (Single – 1974)

Gil Scott Heron was one of the finest lyricists of any genre and this is one of his best and most well-known songs. It may not be political per se but its vivid descriptions of the social deprivation that alcohol addiction can cause are magnificent. This song also highlights some of the causes of such addiction, how people living in difficult circumstances attempt to use alcohol (or other substances) as an attempt to escape. Heron was a man who battled many demons during his life and so he knew all about what he was describing – or at least, came to know.

8) ‘Have You Ever Been Away’ – The Beautiful South (‘Welcome To The Beautiful South’ – 1989)

This is another anti-war song but it’s a rather more nasty than the previous ones I’ve included. In many ways it shares some of sentiments of the Creedence Clearwater Revival song, in that it focuses on class and the fact that the poor are usually sent to fight wars for the wealthy and privileged, but this song uses irony to get its point across. Paul Heaton’s lyrics often have this feature and most of The Beautiful South’s songs tend to have a bitter-sweet flavour as a consequence. Even the band’s name is a put-on, since they were famously based in the North of England. ‘Have You Ever Been Away’ targets jingoism, nationalism, classism, Remembrance Day and a whole lot more – nothing is safe. Lyrics like; ‘/ Any last requests / Before you join the dead? / I’ll crap into your Union Jack / And wrap it ’round your head /’ are not exactly subtle.

9) ‘Career Opportunities’ – The Clash (from ‘The Clash’ – 1977)

The Clash were well-known for being a highly political band, even if they were signed to one of the most established labels in the world; CBS/Columbia. This song is from their first album and the lyrics are focussed on not wanting to be tied down to a traditional job – particularly not one in the military or civil service – and wanting to do something more individual instead. Joe Strummer’s vocal performance goes off like a Molotov cocktail and even though the whole track sounds defiant and aggressive there is something amiss. Strummer was a very clever lyric writer; this occasionally gets overlooked partly because of The Clash’s noisy swagger but also owing to Strummer’s hard-to-read voice (apparently this had a lot to do the pitiful state of his teeth, which was not helped by his prodigious intake of cheap speed). Strummer’s lyrics often acknowledged that were most ordinary people were concerned personal rebellion was often doomed to failure and so he wrote this for the final verse; ‘ / They’re gonna have to introduce conscription / They’re gonna have to take away my prescription / If they wanna get me making toys/ If they wanna get me, well I got no choice / ‘ Despite the fact that Strummer was very comfortably middle-class, he had a lot of insight into the reality of working people’s lives.

10) ‘Sound Of Da Police’ – KRS One (from ‘Return Of The Boom Bap’ – 1993)

Being a very politically conscious rapper, KRS One has written a lot of protest songs but this is probably his most famous, since it was practically the law that it was played at every club gathering of the 1990s. The lyrics are extraordinarily clever and KRS One’s flow is magnificently literate, associating the word ‘officer’ (as in police) with ‘over-seer’ (as in overseeing slaves) to point out the similarity of the two occupations in respect to Afro-Americans from the cotton-fields to the ghetto. This is a landmark rap record.