01 March 2009
Vonda Shepard "Baby, Don't You Break My Heart Slow"
Vonda Shepard (born July 7, 1963) is a rock singer. She appeared regularly in the television show Ally McBeal in which she played a resident performer at the bar where the show's characters drank after work. She plays piano, guitar, and bass. [Wikipedia]
Elton John "Nikita"
"Nikita" is a song by English singer Elton John about the Cold War from his 1985 album Ice on Fire. Released in late 1985, the song achieved success in many countries, becoming a top ten hit in almost all of them. In the song, Elton John describes his crush on a GDR borderguard whom he cannot meet because he is not allowed into the country. It features George Michael and Nik Kershaw on backing vocals. [1] The song charted at #3 on the UK singles chart and also made the Top 10 in the US, charting at #7. [Wikipedia]
Led Zepelin "Stairway to Heaven"
"Stairway to Heaven" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was composed by guitarist Jimmy Page and vocalist Robert Plant for the band's fourth studio album, Led Zeppelin IV (1971). It was voted #3 in 2000 by VH1 on their list of the 100 Greatest Rock Songs. It is the most requested and most played song on FM radio stations in the United States, despite never having been released as a single there. In November 2007, through download sales promoting Led Zeppelin's Mothership release, the song hit #37 on the UK Singles Chart. [Wikipedia]
ABBA "Dancing Queen"
Dancing Queen" is a hit single recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was the follow-up single to the massive hit "Fernando". Dancing Queen was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson and is considered by many to be their signature song. Recorded in 1975 for the group's album Arrival, and released as a single the following year with "That's Me" as the B-side. It reached the No.1 position on the popular music charts in 13 countries. "Dancing Queen" features the shared lead vocal performance by Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. Its opening keyboard glissando is one of the most instantly recognizable intros in pop music. [Wikipedia]
ABBA "Money Money"
"Money, Money, Money" is the name of a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA in 1976, and is included on the group's album Arrival. The song also features on the ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits compilation, and in the musical Mamma Mia!. "Money, Money, Money" was the second worldwide hit from the Arrival album. It continued the mass hysteria in Australia, staying at No.1 for six weeks (ABBA's sixth and final chart-topper in that country). The track also topped the charts in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, West Germany, Mexico and New Zealand, and reached the Top 3 in Norway, Ireland, Switzerland, Austria and the UK. Together with Pink Floyd's track "Money", ABBA's "Money, Money, Money" is often used as background music on TV news programmes discussing financial issues. [Wikipedia]
ABBA "Waterloo"
"Waterloo", first called "Honey Pie", was the first single from Swedish pop group ABBA's second album Waterloo, their first for Epic & Atlantic. This was also the first single to be credited as "ABBA". The Swedish version was the song that won ABBA the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest on 6 April, and began their path to worldwide fame. The Swedish version single was coupled with "Honey, Honey" (Swedish Version), the English with "Watch Out" as the B-side. The single became their first #1 hit in several countries, and also reached the US Top 10. [Wikipedia]
Zeljko Joksimovic "Lane Moje"
"Lane moje" (English translation: "My sweetheart") is the name of the song by Serbian singer Željko Joksimović. Lane moje was an Award-Winning song from the Eurovision Song Contest 2004 by Zeljko Joksimovic and Ad Hoc Orchestra. After qualifying from the semi-final the song endured a close battle all night with Ukrainian singer Ruslana's energetic song Wild Dances. The song ended up coming second, despite having won in the semi-final, and was inspired by ethno elements and traditional Serbian music style. [Wikipedia]
Lordi "Hard Rock Hallelujah"
"Hard Rock Hallelujah" is a song by the Finnish heavy metal band Lordi, which won the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest with 292 points, a record in the history of Eurovision. It was also Finland's first placement in the top five. It was voted as the most popular Finnish Eurovision entry in the forty years the country has participated. "Hard Rock Hallelujah" was also released as a single in 2006, reaching the #1 spot in Finland and also peaking in the UK Top 40 at #25. The song preaches of the impending 'arockalypse', and that we should be ready for the day of 'rockoning'. [Wikipedia]
Jimi Hendrix "Hey Joe"
"Hey Joe" is an American popular song from the 1960s that has become a rock standard, and as such has been performed in a multitude of musical styles. Diverse credits and claims have led to confusion as to its authorship and genesis. It tells the story of a man on the run after shooting his wife. The earliest known commercial recording, and the first hit version, is the late 1965 recording by the Los Angeles garage band, The Leaves, although currently the best-known version is the The Jimi Hendrix Experience's 1966 recording, their debut single. The song title is sometimes given as "Hey Joe, Where You Gonna Go?" or similar variations.[Wikipedia]
Janis Joplin "Piece of My Heart"
"Piece of My Heart" is a song written by Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns and originally recorded by Erma Franklin in 1967. The song came to greater mainstream attention when Janis Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company covered the song in 1968 on their album Cheap Thrills and had a hit with it. The song has since been remade by several singers, including hit versions by Faith Hill in 1994 and Beverley Knight in 2006. In 2004, the Big Brother and the Holding Company version of this song was ranked #344 on Rolling Stones list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song is also included among The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. [Wikipedia]
Aretha Franklin "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman"
"(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" is a 1967 single released by American soul singer Aretha Franklin on the Atlantic label. The record was a big hit for Franklin, reaching number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, and became a standard song for her. [Wikipedia]
Boney M "Daddy Cool"
"Daddy Cool" is a song recorded by disco band Boney M. and included on their debut album Take The Heat Off Me. It was a 1976 hit and a staple in disco music and Boney M.'s first UK hit. It reached #6 in the UK charts and #65 in the United States Billboard Hot 100. The single also topped the German charts. [Wikipedia]
Amorphis "Silent Waters"
Amorphis is a Finnish metal band started by Jan Rechberger, Tomi Koivusaari, and Esa Holopainen in 1990. Initially, the band was a straightforward death metal act, but on later albums they evolved into playing other types of genres. Noteworthy is their frequent use of the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala, as a source for their lyrics. [Wikipedia]
Nightwish "Sleeping Sun [Old Vid]"
Sleeping Sun" is a power ballad by Nightwish. The song was originally written by Tuomas Holopainen and dedicated to the solar eclipse that arose on the European sky in 1999. This version was released on CD and DVD Single in late October/early November 2005. In 2005, Nightwish announced that they were busy recording a new version of this song for a compilation album, entitled Highest Hopes. Tarja Turunen sang lead vocals on the re-recorded version, this becoming her final studio contribution to the band before being replaced by Anette Olzon. [Wikipedia]
Modern Talking "You're My Heart, You're My Soul"
Modern Talking was a German electronic music duo consisting of singer Thomas Anders and composer/producer Dieter Bohlen. Genre-wise they were often classified under euro disco. By sales, it is the single most successful pop group in Germany. [Wikipedia]
The Trammps "Disco Inferno"
"Disco Inferno" is a song by The Trammps from the album of the same name. It was also notably covered by Cyndi Lauper on the A Night at the Roxbury soundtrack and Tina Turner on the What's Love Got To Do With It? soundtrack. The song was originally performed by the Trammps in 1976 and released as a single. Although it topped the U.S. Disco chart, it was not a significant success at pop radio, peaking at number fifty-three on the Billboard Hot 100. According to famed mixer Tom Moulton (who mixed the record), the levels had been set wrong during the mixdown of the tracks, resulting in a much wider dynamic than was commonly accepted at the time. Due to this the record seems to "jump out" at the listener. "Disco Inferno" gained much greater recognition once it was included on the soundtrack to the 1977 film Saturday Night Fever. Re-released by Atlantic Records, the track peaked at number eleven in the U.S. during the spring of 1978, becoming the Trammps' biggest and most-recognized single. Later, it was included in the Saturday Night Fever musical, interpreted by the 'DJ Monty' in the "Odissey 2001" discotheque. On September 19, 2005, "Disco Inferno" was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame. [Wikipedia]
Nena "99 Luft Balloons"
"99 Luftballons" is a Cold War-era protest song by the German singer Nena. Originally sung in German, it was later re-recorded in English as "99 Red Balloons". "99 Luftballons" reached #1 in West Germany in 1983. In 1984, the original German version also peaked at #2 on the American Billboard Hot 100 chart and the English-language version topped the UK Singles Chart. The German version topped the Australian charts for five weeks and the New Zealand charts for one week. When it made the charts in the United States, most US radio DJs incorrectly assumed that "99 Luftballons" translated to English as "99 Red Balloons" and spoke the number 99 in English, saying "Ninety-nine Luftballoons." The original name of "99 Luftballons" is "Neunundneunzig Luftballons." The translation of the title is sometimes given as "Ninety-Nine Air Balloons", however "Ninety-Nine Balloons" is correct. A Luftballon is a colourful toy balloon, rather than a balloon for transport or research. The name is derived from Luft, German for air, but the meaning of Luft does not qualify the type of balloon. The title "99 RED Balloons" scans correctly with the syllables falling in the right places within the rhythm of the first lines of lyrics, with "red" replacing "Luft". While at a Rolling Stones concert in Berlin, Nena's guitarist Carlo Karges noticed that balloons were being released. As he watched them move toward the horizon, he noticed them shifting and changing shapes, where they looked nothing like a mass of balloons but some strange spacecraft. (The word in the German lyrics "UFO") He thought about what might happen if they floated over the Berlin Wall to the Soviet sector. Both the English and German versions of the song tell a story of ninety-nine balloons floating into the air, triggering an apocalyptic overreaction by military forces. [Wikipedia]
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