Browsing: Music

A Brief History Our radio waves and video channels are often assaulted by hit songs that are anything but upbeat, exciting or rollicking.  Some of these songs are either tear jerkers or so sickeningly sweet you want to gag when you hear them.  Some are just hokey girlie songs (no problem if you like them, as long as you are a girl), while others belong in a fairy tale.  Here we list 10 of the worst offenders, and, of course, since they were hit songs we realize there will be outraged defenders of each one.  Feel free to vent and…

A Brief History On March 7, 1994, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that song parodies are “fair use” and that the original artist or writer of the song cannot prevent the parody from being recorded and aired. This settled any disputes, and the likes of “Weird Al” Yankovic were given a green light to continue amusing the public.  Earlier this year, we featured lists of great novelty songs (including parodies), and today we feature 10 more such great hits that amuse and entertain us.  Thank you, Supreme Court! Digging Deeper 10. “Pretty Woman,” 2 Live Crew, 1992. A parody…

A Brief History On March 3, 1951, music history was made when the first song deemed to be “rock and roll” was recorded.  Called “Rocket 88,”  the lively song was recorded by Chess Records at Sam Phillip’s studio in Memphis and is credited to Jackie Brenston and the Delta Cats who were actually Ike Turners’s band, the Kings of Rhythm.  In fact, the song was written by Brenston and Turner, though Turner was not originally credited.  Digging Deeper Based on the 1947 hit “Cadillac Boogie” and influenced by the instrumental hits “Rocket 88 Boogie” parts 1 and 2,” “Rocket 88” was also about the popular Oldsmobile model,  the…

A Brief History In February 2014, the headlines were of censorship, the enemy of free people.   Digging Deeper In Australia, censors had banned the Swedish film Children’s Island because it contains scenes of naked children.  Far from pornographic, the film was first released back in 1980 and had won the most prestigious Swedish movie awards and was even submitted for consideration at the Academy Awards.  The threat of 10 years imprisonment for anyone showing or selling the film sparked animated debate in Australia. On the Internet, Muslims applied enough pressure to have the YouTube video of Katy Perry’s song “Dark Horse” edited to remove…

This Just In! In February 2015, news broke that singer-songwriter and comedian Rolf Harris would be stripped of his Order of Australia honors amidst revelations that he is still under investigation for alleged sexual offenses.  He has also had his two honorary doctorates rescinded, and he has been removed from the Australian Recording Industry Association Hall of Fame.  These are just some of multiple honors he has been stripped of in the past year. Digging Deeper Just a week ago, we ranked Harris third on our list of “10 More Fantastic Novelty Songs” for his memorable “Tie Me Kangaroo Down…