R. Dean Taylor – “Candy Apple Red” 1971 available on The Essential Collection. (Trigger warning: suicide.) Not every song I choose to feature is actually good. Sometimes, I get fascinated by something that’s just plain weird. You may not remember R. Dean Taylor’s name, but you probably remember his hit single “Indiana Wants Me,” one of the champion bathos singles of that time period. Taylor had actually been a Motown recording artist and staff writer for a number of years in the 60s – he was part of the team that wrote “Love Child” for the Supremes, which makes sense when you think about the way he came up with songs about life on the edge of desperation. “Candy Apple Red” is a little more similar to the kind of stuff Neil Diamond was doing at the time, an earnest plea for sympathy because he has lost the woman with the candy apple red lips he used to worship. (It’s possible he worshipped the whole woman, but he specifically focuses on those lips.) The man who took her from him “became a part of you,” which, I guess, beats out the good times Taylor and the woman used to have flying kites on a hill. There are a lot of religious references here, as Taylor asks listeners to pray for him. On the bridge, there are exposions like gunshots and we are left to figure he killed himself, as he sings “Candy apple red, the color of my life as it slips away.” Then it ends, after one more chorus, with half of the Lord’s prayer. All with a jaunty horn-driven arrangement.
Warren Smith – “Rock ‘n’ Roll Ruby” 1956 available on Real Memphis Rock & Roll. Was this song written by Johnny Cash, or was it written by George Jones? Stories differ, at least in Wikipedia but it’s hard to imagine either of those guys coming up with such a prototypical rockabilly classic. (Althugh in some ways this song is closer to “Get Rhythm” than it is to “The Race Is On.”) Smith is better known for “Ubangi Stomp,” but this little record was an early Sun Records hit. Over a driving thumping backbeat, Smith tells the story of his girl Ruby, who just can’t stop dancing. The first three verses are similar to “Reelin’ and Rockin’” by Chuck Berry, as the clock marches on, but Ruby won’t stop even when she looks at the clock. But the last verse jumps to another evening, when the singer can’t find Ruby until around midnight he stops calling her on the telephone and just goes to the juke joint where of course he finds her rockin’. Smith had a strong, highly percussive vocal approach that fit the rockabilly sound at Sun just perfectly.
Merle Haggard – “I’ll Be a Hero (When I Strike)” recorded 1971 released in 1996 on Down Every Road (1962-1994). This tautly coiled little number is full of threats and anger and pride. It’s sort of a less aggressive “Fighting Side of Me,” in that it’s sung from the point of view of a patriot confused by the turmoil of his time. But instead of naming the things he dislikes, he points out that he stands ready to perform what he perceives as a heroic act when the time comes, and makes sure we know that act will be confrontational. It’s just this side of threatening terrorism, I guess, but the performance is too light, too energetic to be heard entirely that way. The band is cooking on all burners here, and Haggard sings with a matter-of-fact braggadocio that almost sounds as if he’s talking himself into believing what he says. It’s probably not a major Haggard song, but I find it’s inner-directed build-up much more entertaining than the outward-directed attack of “Fighting Side.”
John Lee Hooker – “Boom Boom” 1961 available on any halfway decent John Lee Hooker and/or 60s blues compilation. I will follow John Lee Hooker just about anywhere, as his entire career was filled with his delightfully idiosyncratic approach to the blues. That said, I have an extra soft spot in my heart for his early 60s recordings on the Vee Jay label. This particular cut found him backed up by the Detroit musicians who were just beginning to spend all their time at Motown (though this is on Vee Jay), including James Jamerson on bass and Benny Benjamin on drums. It’s one of the most familiar blues records ever made (and even more familiar when you add in the multiple versions he later recorded, and the fabulous cover version by the Animals). That stop-time guitar slashing rhythm is so insistent. Hooker purrs and occasionally growls his delight in the woman that makes him go “Boom boom boom boom.” Second guitarist Larry Veeder plays somewhat conventional but exciting licks, and then Hooker explodes for a short trademark solo of his own. It’s 2:38 of perfection.
The Yardbirds – “Evil Hearted You” 1965 available on most decent Yardbirds compilations. It has long puzzled me why the Yardbirds weren’t more popular than they were, because their singles – and most of their album cuts – are pretty magnificent. Take this one, for example. Written by Graham Gouldman (later of 10CC), it’s a moody, minor-key melody with lyrics about how terrible a woman is to the male singer, but then there’s this rave-up bridge wherein he proclaims his love forever. Oh, and then there’s Jeff Beck’s incredible and short guitar solo, which hugs the simple notes of the melody until it suddenly takes off for the stratosphere, going way up high while the chords go down. Keith Relf was one of my fave singers, and possibly the most underrated of the whole British Invasion world. Listen to his combination of anger and melancholy, and then the snarl of his declaration of love. He was masterful, as was every member of this band ever.
I like to think "I'll be a hero when I strike" refers to labor protests, but I think he probably means "strike" like a snake, not like a union worker.
Keith Relf is great.