Groovy, Sexy And Soulful Part 5

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Times have changed. Nowadays it would be totally inappropriate to sing about ‘little girls’, but in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s songs about teenage girls didn’t raise any eyebrows, even when the singers, like Ringo Starr and Chuck Berry, were in their (late) thirties. Being in love with school girls seemed to be quite normal. Alex Chilton (Big Star) sang on top of that about his love for a thirteen year old girl ('Thirteen') and Jerry Lee Lewis even married one! Bruce Springsteen sang about his little girl (‘I’m on fire’) in 1984 and Billy Idol claimed that he was in love with his ‘sweet sixteen’ three years later, but songs about teenage love were fading away in the 1980s. After the legal problems that R. Kelly and Gary Glitter faced in the 1990s and 2000s the openly teenage adorations seem to have disappeared for good in 2011, just like the word ‘teenager’ in songs. But that’s from the male perspective. Female vocalists like Katy Perry, on the other hand, still sing about ‘teenage dreams’.

Choirboy Aaron Neville almost sounds like a creepy maniac, but ‘Arianne’ from the Neville Brothers is one of the best love songs ever: ‘Arianne is mama's crystal bread that's nearly finished baking’. The song is from their self-titled album that came out in 1978 in the midst of the disco heyday. It takes courage to make a country soul album at that time! I believe the original version of ‘Arianne’ is from Johnny Mathis. It appeared on his ‘Killing me softly with her song’ album that was released in 1973, although Rod McKuen, who recorded the song in 1975, tells on his official site that the original is a French poem. The version of Rod McKuen is not available on cd yet, but it will appear on ‘McKuen: The Warner Bros. Years’ that will be released on Bear Family Records hopefully this year.

I wanted to include a track from the wonderful new Maysa Leak (Incognito) album, but I couldn't pick one, because they're all so good! Check it out, it's called 'Motions of love'. Anyway, enjoy part 5 of Groovy, sexy & soulful!

Tracklist:

Chocolate Milk – Time Machine (1975)
Al Wilson – I’m Out To Get You (1973)
Boz Scaggs – Love Me Tomorrow (1976)
Jean Carn – Little Bit Of Your Love (1980s)
Marvin Gaye – I Met A Little Girl [Professor Eddy’s Downtempo Rework] (2009)
Icehouse – Hey Little Girl [Eddy’s Extended Edit] (1982)
One Way – If Only You Knew (1984)
The Neville Brothers – Arianne (1978)
Johnny Bristol – So Good (1993)
Ronnie McNeir – Young Girl (1972)
Joss Stone – Young At Heart (2004)
Selah Sue – Explanations (2011)
Tower of Power Feat. Sam Moore – Mr. Pitiful (2009)
Martha Reeves – Baby (Don’t You Leave Me) (1973)
Nicola Conte Feat. Jos̩ James РDo You Feel Like I Feel (2011)
Aaron Neville – Wrong Number (1962)
Sly Stone – Get Away (2011)
Alicia Keys Feat. Nas – A Woman’s Worth [Remix] (2001)
Puff Johnson – Love Between Me & You (1996)


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