People Have the Power – We Need to Wrestle the World from Fools. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #PattiSmith #FredSonicSmith

To begin I will send Happy 34th Anniversary wishes to Heather.

Thank You!

For about two weeks now I have been dealing with a severe case of writer’s block. Paralyzed by a form of self-editing from an inner voice that is telling me;

“Just stop. You’ve said it all.”

Staring at a blank page with the music playing in my ear buds I find myself speaking to themes I have shared countless times while lamenting the fact that so little has changed.

My mind hovers between frustration and outright rage as headline after headline points to overt corruption at virtually every turn.

Show me the good news.

It’s out there. It is actually a dominant force in our lives but in our own sadistic way we all turn to the pessimistic side as though negative reinforcement is the fuel that drives humanity.

Help me! I need a change.

I have a desire to fly high, but I know in order to fulfill any semblance of purpose I need to take one step, then another, and so on. Some days it is the first step that is the biggest challenge. Surrounded by a cynical perception and seemingly insurmountable barriers, I struggle to even move.

I need a push.

In the form of shinin’ valleys
Where the pure air recognized
Oh, and my senses newly opened
And I awakened to the cry”

This may come across as surprising coming from someone who has written exactly 1952 Ted Tocks Covers features over what including today adds up to eight full years of writing. This doesn’t include the daily reposts I share to more social media sites than I care to count. On January 1, 2018 I set forth on the mission that became Ted Tocks Covers, and I had no idea where it would take me. Eight years later I am faced with a challenge.

So much music.

So little time.

So many thoughts racing through my mind and a dearth of original ways to connect them to our daily existence. Maybe I think too much, but I can’t be alone. The world is a shit show right now and as always, I turn to music to make sense of things.

And the people have the power
To redeem the work of fools
From the meek the graces shower
It’s decreed the people rule”

Over the past few months, in order to improve my focus, I have gone on a reading binge. At first, this was challenging because my mind began wandering almost immediately so I wasn’t absorbing the content. Gradually, I was able to concentrate and take it all in which has provided a degree of personal satisfaction.

A major catalyst in the commitment to reading more came from Heather, who sought out some new ways for us to get out more. She went on our local library website and discovered several events hosted by our library. Among the offerings were a series of book readings featuring some acclaimed authors, all sponsored by a local bookstore. We jumped in with both feet, coming away from each reading with at least one book and in the case of one of my favourite authors ever…four.

After one event, Heather and I noticed a poster on a bulletin board advertising a Literary Festival and as my eyes scanned the series of speakers, I noticed Miriam Toews was coming. I immediately pointed to that date and said we definitely need to go to that one. The next day Heather went online and reserved us a couple of seats. To no one’s surprise the public demand for Miriam was high, and the library had to shift the venue from a small meeting room at their central location to the full seating space at a local church. The irony of listening to Miriam Toews in a church was not lost on me because religious themes frequently come up in her writing. She grew up in a strict Mennonite community and in a desire to explore, she left the church in her teens. Through both her fictional offerings and her very open true-life pieces she writes extensively about religious faith, doubt, and the struggle with dogma. Coming from a Catholic upbringing, I had gathered some form of identification with her irreverent observation. Far from preaching Toews only suggested a departure from traditional belief towards a more secular or questioning perspective. Her open-mindedness allows her to still engage deeply with themes of spirituality and the divine in her work, but she chooses to focus on human experience rather than strict doctrine in her works. This is what makes the characters in her stories so endearing.

This is how I came to be near the front of a line to greet Miriam Toews at a book signing, armed with copies of ‘Swing Low: A Life’, ‘A Boy of Good Breeding’ and two copies of her latest release ‘A Truce That is Not Peace’; one for me and one for my son Sebastian who is also a fan. I resisted the urge to go on and on about how much I enjoyed her writing. I actually said something to the effect of “I really enjoy your writing but I won’t start gushing.” She smiled and said “Please don’t.” which I took as a sign to keep things to a minimum. I had already willed myself to comply with based on the more than 200 people who were waiting behind me. She graciously signed:

To Ted: With love and solidarity. Miriam Toews”

What I said, and what I wanted to say were definitely two different things, but I would have taken the conversation in a completely different direction. During the conversation with her moderator the question of what she reads arose, and her immediate response was Patti Smith’s recent autobiography ‘Bread of Angels’. I found this intriguing because I had long detected a similarity between Smith and Toews in general demeanour, themes within their writing and even in style.

Maybe I should have said that?

Or, maybe I should have let her know that I was turned on to her writing by one of my other writing heroes, Neil Peart. The impossibly talented drummer, lyricist and author used to share a feature on his website called ‘Bubba’s Book Club’. In one edition of his ‘what have I been reading space’ he offered this assessment of ‘A Complicated Kindness’.

Short version: this is a wonderful, lovable, hilarious, brilliant novel.”

Here is the link to his full review which shows Neil at his genuine and sensitive best.

Issue 6

Part three of my musical connection would have addressed this powerful moment on CBC’s ‘Q’ a decade ago, where Tom Wilson discusses how Miriam’s novel ‘All My Puny Sorrows’ inspired him to write the song ‘Beautiful Scars’.

The tears speak volumes.

For writers and musicians, where does influence come from?

The answer is everywhere if you approach life with your eyes wide open.

People have the power”

In essence, Miriam Toews is a writer deeply shaped by her upbringing. Religion is a significant force, and she is critically engaged with it, yet she is able to take this influence beyond simple belief or disbelief. 

It’s the intersection of tragedy and beauty that lies within the writing of Miriam Toews, and the music of Tom Wilson and back to today’s feature song ‘People Have the Power’ which gives rise to the constant theme that carries Ted Tocks Covers.

#MusicisLife

In life we are often energized by our dreams and when we are awakened, we act. We need to embrace the power we all possess in an effort to redeem the work of the fools.

Vengeful aspects became suspect
And bending low as if to hear
Well, and the armies ceased advancin’
Because the people had their ear”

We have the power to turn the world around and change the revolution. It’s the people who have the power and if you say you want a revolution, I say it’s gonna be alright.

People have the power.”

Patti Smith wrote ‘People Have the Power’ along with her husband Fred ‘Sonic’ Smith in 1986.

We had both protested the Vietnam War when we were young. We had been part of the ’60s, where our cultural voice was really strong, and we were trying to write a song that would reintroduce that kind of energy. It’s sad for me but quite beautiful. It was really Fred’s song – even though I wrote the words, he wrote the music; the concept was his, and he wanted it to be a song that people sang all over the world to inspire them for different causes. And he didn’t live to see that happen, but I have. I’ve seen people. I’ve walked in marches all over the world where people spontaneously started singing it, you know, whether it’s been in Paris or with the Palestinians or, you know, in Spain or New York City, Washington D.C. – and it’s so moving for me to see his dream realized.”

Fred approached Patti with the idea while she was peeling potatoes. She could not have been further away from the concept in the moment.

I remember I was in a bad mood because I had, you know, I was making dinner and washing the clothes and peeling potatoes. And in the middle of it, Fred came in and said, ‘Tricia, people have the power, write it.’ And I was standing there with a potato peeler thinking I’d like to have the power to make him peel these potatoes, that’s what I’d like… but I kept him.”

As the lyrics unfolded, Fred’s one line carried the verses and the theme spoke to a combination of our role as individuals and the ultimate power we all possess when we rise as one against destructive forces, or as Patti Smith stated; ‘the fools’.

Fred was very political, and we talked about it, what we wanted to do with this line, which was Fred’s. And what we wanted to do was remind the listener of their individual power but also of the collective power of the people, how we can do anything. That’s why at the end it goes, ‘I believe everything we dream can come to pass, through our union we can turn the world around, we can turn the earth’s revolution.’ We wrote it consciously together to inspire people, to inspire people to come together.”

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth. Meek is often misunderstood for weak. The carefully chosen words speak to those who are humble, gentle and kind. We should not be driven by force. We need to let controlled strength and righteousness guide our existence. The message is clear.

And the shepherds and the soldiers
And they laid among the stars
Exchanging visions, layin’ arms
To waste in the dust”

‘People Have the Power’ was released in 1988 on ‘Dreams of Life’ which was Smith’s first album following the demise of the Patti Smith Group. Sadly, Fred Smith did not live to see the global anthem that ‘People Have the Power’ became, but he did get a taste of it in 1990 during the Arista Records 15^th anniversary celebration at Radio City Music Hall.

In the form of shinin’ valleys
Where the pure air recognized
And my senses newly opened
And I awakened to the cry”

This is poetry and an invitation to dream. The vision unites us all and it has done so for many years. This video takes us back 35 years. It’s nice to see Whoopi Goldberg introducing Patti and Fred.

There is a moment in this powerful delivery where Patti Smith takes the message to another level.

Where there were deserts, I saw fountains
Like cream the waters rise
And we strolled there together
With none to laugh or criticize”

It is in this passage where one senses the galvanizing force of the song. Fred Smith’s asked ‘Tricia’ to ‘write it’ and she did.

There is no leopard and the lamb
And lay together truly bound
Well I was hopin’ in my hopin’
To recall what I had found”

Over the years ‘People Have the Power’ has become a set standard in virtually every Patti Smith performance.

In the form of shinin’ valleys
Where the pure air recognized
And my senses newly opened
And I awakened to the cry”

Were senses awakened?

I think the answer is clear. By virtue of the song’s enduring theme, it has evolved into a crowd favourite when a concert calls for a unifying message. In a way ‘People Have the Power’ was a love letter to each other delivered as a proclamation to their fans.

Well I was dreamin’ in my dreamin’
God knows a pure view
As I lay down into my sleepin’
And I commit my dream with you”

Before we move on to a series of memorable Patti Smith concert presentations, we go back to 2000 on the occasion of her Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction. The way she acts out the verses following the second chorus make my senses tingle. Every time I hear this song, I stop everything to zero in on her delivery.

It’s election year. Use your voice.”

…and we got George Junior…

How does the saying go?

Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.”

Apparently, we still had a lot of work to do.  

We have now come to the Michael Stipe portion of today’s program. Seriously! Clearly, this song speaks to him, and on a handful of occasions he participated in some meaningful presentations. Each of his contributions are connected to a message of hope or a strong desire for people to use their democratic right to vote.

The power to dream, to rule
To wrestle the earth from fools
But it’s decreed the people rule
But it’s decreed the people rule”

In 2004, Michael Stipe leads a group that includes some other industry giants including, Eddie Vedder, Dave Matthews, Bruce Springsteen, John Fogerty, John Mellencamp, Bonnie Raitt. The Dixie Chicks and Babyface. Sadly, the energy created by this rousing version of ‘People Have the Power’ did not carry John Kerry to victory over George Bush Jr. and his startlingly corrupt government.

Here is Michael Stipe along with Sheryl Crow and of course Patti Smith playing to the Dali Lama in 2012.

Four years later, about a month after a nation sold out to a conman Patti Smith delivered this message for Democracy Now.

Make it so.”

Michael Stipe joins in on the second chorus and the crowd rises in unison for Patti Smith’s delivery.

Jumping back to 2003, enjoy Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam.

Listen, I believe everythin’ we dream
Can come to pass through our union
We can turn the world around
We can turn the earth’s revolution”

A dream with a vision becomes a mission when it is accompanied with the resolve to see it through. Eddie Vedder is a true voice of the people. Right there with Michael Stipe, he embodies Patti Smith and Fred ‘Sonic’ Smith’s initial intent.

Next on the list of prominent voices to accept the gospel according to Patti is U2. This famous collaboration turned heads in 2015. Live from Paris, U2 captures the mood with a rendition of ‘Bad’ on the night that saw this iconic band perform in the city, less than a month after the terror attacks ravaged an Eagles of Death Metal concert at Bataclan, killing 90 fans.

This show represented the continuation of U2’s ‘Innocence and Experience Tour’ which saw the band perform four shows in Paris. They were performing the second show on the night of the Bataclan attack. In an act of solidarity the band postponed their series of Paris shows, and on this night they brought Patti Smith on stage to share this beautiful medley of ‘Bad’ and ‘Gloria’ before literally jumping into one of the most emotional versions of ‘People Have the Power’ you will ever witness. Patti’s appreciation of the moment is palpable.

The power to dream, to rule
To wrestle the earth from fools
But it’s decreed the people rule
But it’s decreed the people rule”

We just need to believe.

During the same stand, U2 were joined by Eagles of Death Metal for this version of ‘People Have the Power’. Emotions rise, and so do the people.

A few years later in 2018, Taylor Mac joined Stephen Colbert on ‘The Late Show’. This may be the best of all the covers shared in today’s feature. This is captivating.

Listen…Stephen’s going to come out and take this all to commercial in a little bit. Maybe you’re going to sleep. Maybe you’re going to turn the news on when the show is over; hear of the horrors of the world, and maybe you will start to think of yourself. Maybe the people have the power. Maybe the commercials have the power. Maybe the mattress has the power, and you think maybe the N.R.A. has the power. Maybe that ‘Orange’ thing has the power. You’re going to say, I can’t hear that man singing that song anymore, and I just want you to know, no matter how loud the world gets we are going to sing this song until we get the greedy mongrels out of office.”

Momentarily we wrestled the fools away, but…

Just two more versions and we can go and celebrate the end of a horrific year in world history. In 2019, Patti Smith collaborated with Choir! Choir! Choir! and Stewart Copeland for this rousing rendition of ‘People Have the Power’. She literally took her song to the people and the result was truly inspiring.

What happened was pure magic and we’re still pinching ourselves”

Believe it.

Finally, earlier this year 50 years of Patti Smith was celebrated at Carnegie Hall, and the grand finale featured every artist who shared in the evening doing a rousing rendition of ‘People Have the Power.

What a way to end.

How can we not be inspired?

Use your voice but, pray it’s not too late.

May 2026 be better than 2025.

Clampdown – In These Days of Evil Presidents. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheClash #JoeStrummer

On this day in 2003 Joe Strummer was laid to rest.

What a term. ‘Laid to rest’.  A voice that was this strong and provocative will never be silent.

The question becomes, what are we going to do now?

‘Clampdown’ is anti-establishment and there is an urgency to the message because the consequences of inaction have never been more severe.

Yes, the kingdom has been ransacked and all that was good has been strewn about the lawn. Part of the building has been torn down. 

The kingdom is ransacked
the jewels all taken back
and the chopper descends
they’re hidden in the back
with a message on a half-baked tape
with the spool going round
saying I’m back here in this place
and I could cry
and there’s smoke you could click on”

I am thinking back to June of 2020 during the Black Lives Matter riots in solidarity and outrage against the police killing of George Floyd. Instead of being a true leader who brings people together in times of strife the fake leader first added fuel to the fire and then he ran away and hid.

The man who would be King’s S.S. agents rushed him to a White House bunker as hundreds of protesters gathered outside the ‘peoples house’, some of them throwing rocks and testing the boundaries of police barricades.

The cowardly ‘Chief’ spent nearly an hour in the bunker, which technically was designed for use in emergencies like terrorist attacks. Just one of numerous examples of the fact he is, and always has been pathetic and weak.

The kneejerk decision by the agents reflected the mood inside the White House. Angry chants from protesters in Lafayette Park could be heard not only in close proximity to his home, but nationwide. Secret Service agents and law enforcement officers struggled to contain the crowds and the nation was teetering.

Approaching six years later and once again, his grip on leadership is weakening. We are living in a pressure cooker of seemingly unending scandal and political violence. A man who is clearly both mentally and physically challenged only seems capable of unleashing paranoid and demented posts on something he calls ‘Truth Social’.

The ‘pig’ is on the spit and the fire below him is raging.

What are we gonna do now?

‘Clampdown’ is about suppression. It is initiated by the establishment and it only works with compliance. Millions of willfully ignorant fools merrily follow instead of raging against the system. Presently, a small percent is doing everything they can to hold onto their control.

Everything is unravelling.

As we witness the endless sequence of corrupt action and desperate acts to maintain power and control ‘Clampdown’ exists as an anti-capitalist anthem

It is begging people to break away from the brainwashing. The powers that be want you to buy into the idea that anyone who resides one tier below you on the socio-economic scale is to blame for society’s ills. They perpetuate the idea that they are coming for you wherever you live. Flooding over the border of your nation, and into your cities and towns. Fear them, because they are the threat to everything you hold near and dear.

‘Clampdown’ is a plea for people to join forces. It was a warning. It was a continuation, coming off the heels of ‘White Riot’ which was the band’s first single from their 1977 self-titled debut album.

White Riot – Love music hate racism #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheClash #Cracker #DropkickMurphys

They were a voice against overt racism in British society. Joe Strummer and Mick Jones were warning of danger on the horizon.

Today, far right policy and the prevailing mistrust of foreign people is once again at a fever pitch. Efforts to build their numbers focus on the lowest common denominator. Indoctrinate white males, who are feeling vulnerable due to their unemployed status and lack of education. Somebody must be to blame. Join ICE. Sign on the dotted line. Get your $50K.

Instruments of fascism in our time.

Taking off his turban, they said, is this man a Jew?
‘Cause they’re working for the clampdown
They put up a poster saying we earn more than you!
When we’re working for the clampdown
We will teach our twisted speech
To the young believers
We will train our blue-eyed men
To be young believers”

Resist the urge. The message is clear in the final two lines of this verse.

The judge said five to ten, but I say double that again
I’m not working for the clampdown
No man born with a living soul
Can be working for the clampdown
Kick over the wall ’cause government’s to fall
How can you refuse it?
Let fury have the hour, anger can be power
D’you know that you can use it?”

The idea that the Mandarin Mussolini is any sort of savior is absolutely absurd. It’s a fool’s errand. The greedy old white men in government and at the head of corporations are only manipulating the gullible pawns in their game.

The voices in your head are calling
Stop wasting your time, there’s nothing coming
Only a fool would think someone could save you
The men at the factory are old and cunning
You don’t owe nothing, so boy get running
It’s the best years of your life they want to steal”

In 2025, the blue and brown is traded in for a red hat, military fatigues and a mask in an attempt to hide their identity.

You grow up and you calm down
You’re working for the clampdown
You start wearing the blue and brown
You’re working for the clampdown
So you got someone to boss around
It makes you feel big now
You drift until you brutalize
You made your first kill now”

It was no coincidence that in 1930s Ireland the fascists wore blue and in the early days of Nazi Germany, Hitler’s paramilitary wore brown and became colloquially known as Brownshirts.

Are we watching history repeat itself?

When it’s all over, hopefully all of the guilty parties will pay a price for this wanton crime spree.

In these days of evil presidentes
Working for the clampdown
But lately one or two has fully paid their due
For working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong!
Working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong!
Working for the clampdown

When Joe Strummer began writing ‘Clampdown’ he was enraged over the Three Mile Island nuclear meltdown, a theme that also came through in his writing for the title track of ‘London Calling’.

Yeah I’m working hard in Harrisburg
Working hard in Petersburg
Working for the clampdown
Working for the clampdown
Ha! Gitalong! Gitalong
Begging to be melted down
Gitalong, gitalong”

Again…What are we gonna do now?

This line was strategically placed. It was an allusion to Spike Milligan and the catchphrase from his show Q5 which was seen as the forerunner that gave way to British comedy shows like ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’. It ran from 1969 through 1982.

It is all a call to action. We need to work together.

As an album track, ‘Clampdown’ was shortened from ‘Working for the Clampdown’. This working title had evolved from ‘Working and Waiting’. Here is an early demo that is presented with the premise that if you work hard, good things will happen.

Going back through the lore related to ‘Clampdown’ there was another working title. Joe Strummer wanted to call the song, ‘For Fucks Sake’.

Well said Joe.

From this day forward, every time I utter this phrase I will think of Joe.

Before I move on to the cover versions of ‘Clampdown’ here is the famous high energy live recording from Lewisham in February of 1980.

Everyone in the audience stood in anticipation. They understood the message. People need to wake up. They need to pay attention to every element of the world around them. He was talking politically, socially and all things in between. The warning was clear. If you don’t, the powers that be will take everything away from you. It will be death by a thousand cuts. Within two years The Clash was being flagged by conservative groups and radio stations as a subversive act for its critical stance against the Cold War tensions and the emerging political theocracy that laid out the blueprint for the present-day regime.

The first cover of today’s feature comes from a raucous collection called ‘Backlash: A Tribute to the Clash’. Here is a rockin’ collection by The Sinisters.

Based on its provocative lyrics and urgent message it wasn’t long before ‘Clampdown’ became a favourite for many acts who stood up for the fact that music was an essential means of standing up against a flawed system. Among the first to cover ‘Clampdown’ was the Indigo Girls who released their tribute to The Clash on ‘Burning London: The Clash Tribute’ in 1999. This important cover had positive social implications because portions of the proceeds benefited the High Risk Youth Program of the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

In 2003, The National offered this much more subdued cover. It was offered as a statement against the evils of the Bush administration.

Speaking of a voice against the establishment, few have done it better than Rage Against the Machine. This line really resonates;

No man born with a living soul
Can be working for the clampdown”

The live delivery only reinforces the authenticity as Zach de la Rocha rages against the evil president, and invites him to “git along, git along.

Remaining with the live setting, here is a special performance featuring The Clash co-founder and lead guitarist, Mick Jones along with James Dean Bradfield of the Manic Street Preachers. This is from Justice Tonight: A Concert in Aid of The Hillsborough Justice Campaign. This was the first gig of a six-night tour that also featured members of The Farm, Primal Scream and Glasvegas. The Hillsborough disaster goes back to the collapse of a set of standing room only pens designed to hold an overflow of Liverpool football fans during and FA Cup semi-final game between host Nottingham Forest and the Liverpool side. The Hillsborough Justice Campaign is the decades-long, family-led movement for truth and accountability after the 1989 Hillsborough disaster. This culminated in advocacy for the Hillsborough Law – Public Interest and Accountability Bill. The goal was to prevent future cover-ups by imposing a legal duty of candor on public servants and providing legal aid for victims’ families. The bill was driven by the families of the 97 victims who faced lies and cover-ups emanating from the investigation. Ultimately, the campaign sought justice and accountability for authorities, as well as systemic reform to ensure such injustice never occurs again.  

Enjoy this dynamic collaboration featuring Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine along with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. Morello famously toured with Springsteen using his political folk alter ego; The Nightwatchman. Here they are powering through an emphatic ‘Clampdown’ in Sunrise, Florida.

As far back as 2004, The Strokes have been performing ‘Clampdown’ in studio and as part of their live set. They first released it as a live single called ‘The End Has No End’ live from Alexandra Palace in London. This live version from 2016 harkens back to their early days.

Still in 2016, here is Metallica performing at what became the final Bridge School Benefit concert. This was the 30^th annual Bridge School concert event. What a a run.

For the final cover we will flip genres and share a quality folk version by Folk Clash from 2022. This is awesome. Listen to the Foot stomp. The banjos and violins add an intriguing layer. The result is a version of this song that would have made Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie proud.

Through the years the legend and legacy of Joe Strummer has only continued to grow. Books have been written and songs have been sung. Above it all, the most important contribution of The Clash is the musical influence that has extended through parts of six decades. Here is one example.

Listen to Green Day and ask yourself where they would be without The Clash.

Bringing on the fury”

Here is ‘Do You Know the Enemy’ from ‘Saviour’.  

Watch this interview from Otis Gibbs where he is joined by Jon Dee Graham. Here Graham goes back to 1980 and talks about jamming with Joe Strummer and Mick Jones after opening for The Clash at The Armadillo World Headquarters.in Austin, Texas.

He marvelled at how The Clash brought everyone together. The punks, the hippies and the cowboys.

I will leave the closing remarks to Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day.

When you get desperate, and you start to feel like you’re not being heard, that’s a great time to scream out anyway.”

Agreed.

As I scream, I ask myself, how is this even possible?

Surely no man with a living soul could be working for the clampdown?

We have our answer.

Fast Car – We gotta make a decision. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers

In a candid moment Tracy Chapman recalled her earliest performances of ‘Fast Car’.

She played it to an audience of one.

Her dog…a miniature dachshund took immediate notice.

She seemed to be more perked up than usual. I don’t know if she was responding to my energy or if she was just not as tired as she normally was, but it was kind of funny to have her there for the process of the beginning of writing that song.”

Tracy Chapman

Tracy received a standing ovation. The first of many.

The roots of Tracy Chapman’s success speak to a storybook origin. She made a demo tape while working on a degree in Anthropology and African Studies at Tufts University. A friend of hers named Brian Koppelman liked what he heard. He mentioned to Tracy that his father worked for SBK Publishing. He took a tape to Charles Koppelman who soon signed Chapman to a management deal, which evolved into a recording contract with Elektra Records.

The true beauty of what Elektra did for Tracy resides in the fact that they allowed her to be herself. Producer David Kershenbaum who had done work with Joe Jackson and Joan Baez focused on Tracy’s coffee house appeal. Treatments were kept to a minimum and her backing band consisted of three players; Larry Klein on bass, Denny Fongheiser on drums and Ed Black on guitar.

Bringing the focus back to ‘Fast Car’, Tracy Chapman used this song writing session as an exercise in understanding her personal experience to some extent, but not literally.

It very generally represents the world that I saw when I was growing up and Cleveland, Ohio, coming from a working-class background, being raised by a single mom and being in a community of people who were struggling. Everyone was working hard and hoping that things would get better.”

Tracy Chapman

As you can see, the story she tells becomes relatable because it reflected what she saw all around her. As is so often the case, the best songwriters have the ability to draw from a sense of empathy and translate the story of the audience through their words and music.

In this quote, Tracy Chapman articulates the fact that everything presented in ‘Fast Car’ exists as an amalgam of the people she saw while experiencing life as a youth in Cleveland.

It wasn’t directly autobiographical.  I never had a fast car. It’s a story about a couple and how they are trying to make a life together and they face various challenges.”

Tracy Chapman

The ‘Fast Car’ becomes a lyrical device symbolizing escape.

It’s not really about a car at all… basically it’s about a relationship that doesn’t work out because it’s starting from the wrong place.”

Tracy Chapman

The couple is seemingly in a downward spiral. Written from the woman’s perspective, the lyrics offer a portrait that allows people to sympathize. Her partner is unemployed, drinks too much, is lazy and has no apparent direction. Chapman balances this with a chorus that speaks to a time when the relationship was full of potential.

It is through the chorus that Chapman offers a glimmer of hope…

Someday she is going to be someone.

But the change must happen soon.

You got a fast car
I want a ticket to anywhere
Maybe we make a deal
Maybe together we can get somewhere
Any place is better
Starting from zero got nothing to lose
Maybe we’ll make something
Me, myself, I got nothing to prove

You got a fast car
I got a plan to get us outta here
I been working at the convenience store
Managed to save just a little bit of money
Won’t have to drive too far
Just ‘cross the border and into the city
You and I can both get jobs
And finally see what it means to be living

See, my old man’s got a problem
He live with the bottle, that’s the way it is
He says his body’s too old for working
His body’s too young to look like his
My mama went off and left him
She wanted more from life than he could give
I said somebody’s got to take care of him
So I quit school and that’s what I did

You got a fast car
Is it fast enough so we can fly away?
We gotta make a decision
Leave tonight or live and die this way

So I remember when we were driving, driving in your car
Speed so fast it felt like I was drunk
City lights lay out before us
And your arm felt nice wrapped ’round my shoulder
And I-I had a feeling that I belonged
I-I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone

You got a fast car
We go cruising, entertain ourselves
You still ain’t got a job
And I work in the market as a checkout girl
I know things will get better
You’ll find work and I’ll get promoted
We’ll move out of the shelter
Buy a bigger house and live in the suburbs

So I remember when we were driving, driving in your car
Speed so fast it felt like I was drunk
City lights lay out before us
And your arm felt nice wrapped ’round my shoulder
And I-I had a feeling that I belonged
I-I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone

You got a fast car
I got a job that pays all our bills
You stay out drinking late at the bar
See more of your friends than you do of your kids
I’d always hoped for better
Thought maybe together you and me’d find it
I got no plans, I ain’t going nowhere
Take your fast car and keep on driving

So I remember when we were driving, driving in your car
Speed so fast it felt like I was drunk
City lights lay out before us
And your arm felt nice wrapped ’round my shoulder
And I-I had a feeling that I belonged
I-I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone

You got a fast car
Is it fast enough so you can fly away?
You gotta make a decision
Leave tonight or live and die this way”

Tracy Chapman

When ‘Fast Car’ was released 35 years ago, in April of 1988, it definitely bucked a lot of trends. It was extremely rare for a song that depicted a sense of hopelessness to capture a broad audience. The fact that Chapman was relatively unknown only added to the barriers she faced. It was a combination of circumstances that catapulted Tracy Chapman to prominence.

Clearly, she had backing from her team at Elektra. The label wisely added Tracy Chapman to 10,000 Maniacs tour as an opening act, and her accessible style quickly endeared her to a lucrative audience. By early June, ‘Fast Car’ hit the charts in North America and the U.K.

One other major boost occurred on June 11, 1988 when she was added to the star-studded lineup celebrating the 70th birthday of Nelson Mandela at Wembley Stadium. As the story goes, Chapman performed a well-received three song set during the afternoon. Due to the nature of the event Tracy opted not to perform ‘Fast Car’. This demonstrates the fact she is the model of integrity. Instead, she performed material from her debut album that reflected the theme of the day. This allowed her to share ‘Talkin ‘Bout a Revolution’ which would become the follow up to ‘Fast Car’.

Talking about a Revolution – A look back on a theme as we celebrate #John Lennon’s 79th birthday. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheBeatles #TracyChapman #StoneTemplePilots #TheStereophonics #LivingColour #ArtNapoleon #JacindaArdern

As fate would have it, karma offered a positive twist. Just before Stevie Wonder was about to take the Wembley stage he discovered that a floppy disk that was required for his keyboard had gone missing. He left the backstage area with his handler, in a panic.

While they went searching for the lost disk, the organizers sought out Tracy Chapman and asked her to take her guitar on stage and play just one song.

She obliged, and this was the scene. You can actually hear the stage crew doing a soundcheck for Stevie Wonder in the background.

Yet, Tracy Chapman tells the story.

They are going to find a job, get a promotion, move out of the shelter, buy a house and move to the suburbs.

Look at the sea of people. This still sends chills.

The acclaim didn’t stop there.

Tracy Chapman won three Grammys in 1989. They included Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Best Contemporary Folk Album and Best New Artist.

From a demo to this in less than two years.

Here is another beautiful live version that offers ‘Fast Car’ with her complimentary backup band.

Now let’s enter the highway that takes us to the cover versions. This will be an interesting ride, and it will take us to the present day.

Let’s ease our way into it with this abbreviated version by Justin Bieber.

While ‘the Biebs’ can be a little divisive this isn’t bad, and you can tell by the delivery that he connects with the song. It speaks to a maturity. For several years now I have grown to like Justin and what he is doing.

For a complete version that will make your spine tingle, check out Sam Smith. This outstanding cover is brought to you from BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge. This performance came at a time where Smith had become a global musical sensation and he is still riding that wave. This demonstrates why Sam Smith is one of the essential acts of our time.

About the same time, Jonas Blue released this evocative cover featuring Dakota on vocals. The piano/vocal combination offers yet another view of the song. It inspires contemplation.

Here is Jonas Blue recalling what the song meant to him as he was growing up.

 It was a good song in London [during] that time when I was growing up, so it was always on the radio, and it just kind of stuck with me. It was that song on the long journeys, and I loved it.”

Jonas Blue

Let’s head back to the BBC Live Lounge with Khalid in 2018. I love the way he narrates this piece. He is telling Tracy’s story from his own perspective. I featured Khalid as part of a post about Chester Bennington and ‘In the End’ back in July.

Ted Tocks Cover loves the work of Boyce Avenue. This acts’ covers have been shared on a handful of occasions. (See ‘Wonderwall’, ‘Dream On’, ‘Dust in the Wind’ and ‘Superman’.

Now let’s head to the streets of Dublin, Ireland in 2020 and watch a street musician named Jacob Koopman entertain those who wandered by. Suffice to say, he manages to grab their attention. I love what he does here as he seamlessly connects ‘Blackbird’ by The Beatles to ‘Fast Car’. The gathered crowd seem riveted to his rendition. Love it! It needed to be shared.

This 2021 home studio performance by Luke Combs has evolved to stratospheric heights.

For Combs, ‘Fast Car’ was his first favourite song. As he was a young boy learning to play guitar his ear was captured by Chapman’s hypnotic acoustic riff and passionate delivery. In his cover version Combs’ stays true to Tracy.

It wasn’t until April of 2023 that Luke opted to release ‘Fast Car’ on his album ‘Gettin’ Old’. ‘Gettin’ Old’ is the companion album to his 2022 recording, ‘Growin’ Up’. It should be noted here, that Luke is 33 years old. He seems to have miles to go. An interesting thing about Luke’s ascension to the peak of the Country charts is the fact that he quit Appalachian State University just as he was about to complete his degree. The goal was to pursue his love of music.

It paid off.

By the time summer rolled around ‘Fast Car’ and ‘Last Night’ by Morgan Wallen were #1/#2 on the Hot 100.  This was the first time for a pair of Country acts since 1981 when Eddie Rabbit and Dolly Parton did it with ‘I Love a Rainy Night’ and ‘9 to 5’. They were soon joined by the insipid and mind-bogglingly simple ‘Try that In a Small Town’ by the poser Jason Aldean at 1-2-3. This is the first time three Country songs have enjoyed this level of crossover status.

Success is complicated and the tastes of a mass audience is always intriguing.

Back to Tracy Chapman; she is elated that her message still resonates with audiences 35 years later.

I never expected to find myself on the country charts, but I’m honored to be there. I’m happy for Luke and his success and grateful that new fans have found and embraced ‘Fast Car.'”

Tracy Chapman

Be happy for Luke.

Be happier for Tracy.

I urge you to focus mainly on the positive but just know that according to a Washington Post article by Emily Yahr, Tracy Chapman’s space at the top is a rare achievement that borders on impossible.

Data collected by journalist Jan Diehm and musicologist Jada Watson have determined that less than 0.5 percent of songs played on country radio in 2022 were credited to women of colour or LGBTQ+ artists.

The point is, while Tracy Chapman’s renewed success is exciting and richly deserved it would not be happening unless it was served up by a successful white artist.

Sadder still is the fact that 30% (likely more) of Luke Comb’s audience likely see Tracy Chapman as some sort of threat because she is a woman of colour and openly gay. It says here, that the true meaning and intention of Tracy’s composition is likely lost on many. When you consider the political bent of this audience you can’t help but question this phenomenon.

I point to the success of Jason Aldean. This is the kind of tripe that passes as a hit in the heart of modern country. The sheep follow because when it comes down to it, the fascists who are trying to take over America have little in the way of talent to turn to. When Kid Rock and Ted Nugent carry the flag, you are definitely scraping the bottom of the moonshine barrel.

I stand with Tracy Chapman and any other artist who represent an audience through a message that focuses on empathy and compassion. In short a better society.

That’s where hope for a positive future truly resides.

You gotta make a decision
Leave tonight or live and die this way”

Tracy Chapman

Together we can get somewhere.

Six months after Ted Tocks Covers featured ‘Fast Car’ the story took us all to the 2024 Grammys. This performance summarizes everything. Enjoy Luke Combs and Tracy Chapman doing a stunning duet 35 years after Chapman won three Grammys during the 1989 Grammys.

In 35 years so much has changed, and so little has changed.

I know things will get better.

Rise – Let’s Go Into the Wild with Eddie Vedder. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #EddieVedder

Through the words of Ted Tocks Covers I have often equated music to a gift that needs to be shared. It must have been about sixteen years ago that my son Sebastian handed me a CD and suggested that I listen. It was Eddie Vedder’s ‘Into the Wild’, which was the soundtrack to Sean Penn’s film.

“Father, you should listen to this”

He calls me father in a loving and respectful way that reflects his independence and unwavering focus.

Sebastian and I have bonded through music for the better part of his 32 years, so his endorsement is always crucial. I was blown away. It was a transformative. It came to me during one of my periodic, disgruntled phases. I couldn’t stop listening to it. Every song was like a staggering jab to my soul. Eddie Vedder was channeling something much bigger and in his inimitable way he made it relatable.

As always, I needed to know more about the inspiration and Sebastian filled me in. To this day, I can turn to this album for a sense of solace, or understanding. It occurs to me that with music you never have to go wherever ‘there’ is to find its meaning, because at its best music always meets you where you are.

In the case of ‘Into the Wild’ it’s all about the voice in Chris McCandless’s head. When Sean Penn was finished filming this epic theatrical presentation, he felt it was missing something. He needed to reinforce the sense of purpose within Chris McCandless.

More and more as we were shooting, I started to hear the voice of Eddie Vedder as the soul of Chris McCandless” 

Sean Penn had worked together previously on the soundtrack for ‘Dead Men Walking’ and in 2001, Eddie contributed a passionate cover of The Beatles track ‘You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away’ to the ‘I Am Sam’ soundtrack.

The pair swiftly moved from collaborators to friends so in the case of ‘Into the Wild’ all it took was one phone call.

Eddie is someone I have in mind for music every day. I didn’t even talk to him about it until I was back and done with the movie. He was not familiar with the book. But two days later he was reading it, and he called me up and said, ‘I got to do this.’”

Penn invited Eddie to view the film and almost out of the ether he just showed up and they watched it together, barely exchanging a word.

Sean very casually showed up at the house a couple days later — at my door, as if he lived down the street and just walked down — and we watched it together. It was beautiful, and I wept, and it was tremendous. I didn’t know what he needed me for, cause it was great. I remember watching it the first time — it was just me and Sean sitting on the floor watching, you know, with a pack of smokes — and I just wanted to say, like, How’d you get that shot? Wait, did that really happen? Were those wild horses? That grizzly bear, how’d you do that? So it was really difficult to not say a word. The whole thing to me was incredibly moving. And getting into [McCandless’] head, it’s very blatant that this is the last kid that would ever want a movie made about him, and how dangerous that would be to who he was and how he led his life, to be commercialized or trivialized. Thank God it was Sean who did this.”

Eddie and Sean disagreed on only one thing. Initially, Vedder felt he was seeing a finished product and Sean Penn shared his contention that he needed something more in order to convey Chris’s state of mind. Here Eddie explains his role.

 I thought it was great and there didn’t seem to be anything missing. It already had lots of good music, but Sean said ‘just go with it and see what happens.’ So, we spent three days in the studio and I sent him about a half-hour’s worth of music. Then, he said, ‘if I could get some more of this stuff you could become the interior voice of the character.’ He saw the music as becoming almost what’s inside the kid’s head.”

Without being flakey, it appears that in the end, Eddie Vedder truly felt Chris McCandless was with him. He gave Sean Penn 25 minutes of music and words. For good measure they added  ‘Hard Sun’ by Gordon Peterson. Peterson released the song under the name Indio in 1989.  

Hard Sun – Into the wild with #Indio and #EddieVedder. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers

If ‘Hard Sun’ is specifically about the sun being our celestial guide, ‘Society’ is about our place in the universe and the absurdity of our existence. Written by Jerry Hannan, ‘Society was the perfect complement to the soundtrack. Coincidently, Hannan and Sean Penn were also friends through music. Penn struck up a conversation with the singer, songwriter in a San Francisco area café following a performance and the pair hit it off. He actually used Hannan’s song ‘DaDaDa’ for the soundtrack to the film, ‘The Pledge’. Much like his discussion with Eddie Vedder, Penn shared the script for ‘Into the Wild’ with the song writer, and a short time later he handed the acclaimed actor and director the astute lyrics.

Society – Crazy indeed. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JerryHannan #EddieVedder

All of this speaks to a theme which Eddie Vedder captures concisely during this stage banter back in 2011 during this clip from ‘Water on the Road’.

He was out there trying to find the truth or a kind of essence that’s beyond normal, or what we consider normal…and they call him insane. Sometimes I think what sometimes people consider normal…that could be insane.”

Out of all this contemplation where we find ourselves living in a nation ‘drunk and high’, Eddie conceived songs like ‘Rise’. Short and sweet. ‘Rise’ says so much. I could write about these lyrics every day and give you something different, but the underlying current would connect us all.

Such is the way of the world
You can never know
Just where to put all your faith
And how will it grow?
Gonna rise up
Burning black holes in dark memories
Gonna rise up
Turning mistakes into gold

Such is the passage of time
Too fast to fold
Suddenly swallowed by signs
Lo and behold
Gonna rise up
Find my direction magnetically
Gonna rise up
Throw down my ace in the hole”

For Eddie Vedder it was a matter of assessing his own life and determining his priorities. Setting forth in a universe. Looking inside ourselves and asking some tough questions.

It wasn’t hard for me to understand this kid. I still feel so connected and have such strong memories of being at that age where you see the bullshit in the world and want to know how to address it, how can you maintain some idealism, and how to not become the same authority fiqures that you’re growing up around. This was an opportunity to kind of revisit that stuff. I think it takes real guts to do what Chris did and even if there was recklessness involved, it’s the kind of reckless we miss later when we’re settled in and wonder what we could have done with our lives.”

If the other option is to ignore our inner voice, we do so at our own peril. 

A lesser-known fact about Eddie Vedder during this period is that at the very same time he was writing for ‘Into the Wild’ his younger brother, who coincidentally is also named Chris, had taken off to South Africa on a spiritual journey of his own.

No one had heard from him for about 2 months and suddenly I felt like Carine (Chris McCandless’s mother). There were things happening in real life that were really parallel to the story.”

Eddie had many true to life inspirations while writing. Musically speaking he channelled his song writing mentor Pete Townshend. Through the years Townshend has been forthright about how his songs evolved from demos to classic tracks from either The Who or his solo work. For song writers and music fans alike, the process is fascinating and Eddie Vedder has always been a student of Townshend’s approach. Standing back from his writing, Eddie Vedder recognized the fact that his words needed a scaled back delivery. It was more emotional. As a result, he seamlessly shifts from the mandolin, to the pump organ, to the guitar, as the wings to propel his words. 

Because he was writing songs to scenes Eddie knew each piece needed to be concise. They were a snapshot that would ultimately hold an integral place within the panorama that was the entire film.

This was really different for me because it’s so streamlined. You had a lot of parameters to work with- you know, this song has to be two minutes long and it’s at this point in his journey and there has to be instrumental music half-way through because the voice-over comes in. Ultimately, it really came down to serving Sean and serving Chris McCandless, whom I felt a real responsibility to as well.”

The connection between Sean Penn’s script, Eddie’s words and how the soundtrack fit so perfectly within the context of the film contributed to the consensus that ‘Into the Wild’ captured the spirit of Chris McCandless’s journey. Viewers could identify. It gave rise to personal reflection.

 There was something in the air, you couldn’t deny something was going on. The writing was so easy and the music came together in strange ways where beats would land on a shutting car door or the pump organ would mesh with the way Emile’s shoulders were going up and down. It was almost as if someone was helping from a non-tangible dimension. There (were) some really strange and quite beautiful elements that helped us along.”

In the end, through the film and the soundtrack both Sean Penn and Eddie Vedder wanted people to take some time and contemplate their place in the bigger picture that drew the ire of someone like Chris McCandless. It’s about escape. This is not a revelation, but people tend not to escape from personal situations they are comfortable with, so in the grand scheme there are lessons to be learned. Scaling it all back during his ‘Water on the Road’ tour Eddie just said;

It’s about a kid hitchhiking.”

Hitchhiking has become somewhat of a lost art but the analogy is effective because there is a mystery inherent in every ride. You don’t know who is going to take you to your next stop or the depth of the conversation that will be shared as the vehicle carries you along the road. It is the randomness of that momentary connection within the vastness of the universe that seems so remarkable. If we are paying attention, occasionally something life altering occurs.

Like Sean Penn said when summarizing the importance of ‘Into the Wild’, this is the legacy of Chris McCandless.

Having lived, he still lives in us.”

‘Into the Wild’ carries his spirit on the wind and songs like ‘Rise’ have the ability to take us to new heights.

Ask yourself; if you are not looking for something more, are you really living?

Admittedly, I sampled many covers of ‘Rise’ for today’s feature and I landed on two. It is not surprising that the big-name artists have essentially left this Eddie Vedder album to Eddie so the coves are shared by fans who have been moved by Eddie’s passionate song writing and delivery. It is appropriate that the first cover is an instrumental delivered high on top of Mt. Olševa in Slovenia, near the Austrian border. It just goes to show that vocals are not needed when you choose the perfect setting. Enjoy this piece by Luke Prelesnik.

Next up is Jordan Christensen who adds a dash of harmonica to his tribute to Eddie Vedder. The thing I love about this is that I hear a dash of ‘Nebraska’ era Bruce Springsteen. Count me in on this type of delivery every time. It comes across as humble and understated while exuding his reverence for the songwriter. Everything you want in a good cover version.

For today’s conclusion I turn to a performance that takes me back to about the time ‘Into the Wild’ and ‘Rise’ was shared with me. In 2009, Eddie Vedder and Ben Harper participated in the ‘Changes Begin Within’ concert at Radio City Music Hall. Eddie’s version of ‘Rise’ is emphatic but when he crosses over to join forces with Ben Harper and the Relentless 7, they somehow take everything to another level.

The cover of the Queen and David Bowie masterpiece ‘Under Pressure’ emphasizes the timelessness of the lyrics. Today, this is more apparent than ever. 

You can “sit on the fence, but it don’t work.”

We need to ‘Rise’ up.

There are people on streets. More than ever. Eddie Vedder has been an advocate for the homeless and a strong voice in support of helping people with mental health issues. Especially those who served their country in a war effort that was built on lies.

In 2025, mass murderer Dick Cheney finally lies six feet under, and George W. Bush is fingerpainting; holding onto the knowledge that he is no longer the worst President in a once proud nation’s history.

Meanwhile one of the worst human beings to ever inhabit this planet continues his lifelong crime spree, supported by a global cabal of self-serving billionaires; fascist scum at his side.

No wonder Chris McCandless journeyed into the wild. He could see it coming and he wanted no part of it all. Any form of acceptance was compliance and that did not rest well.

So, Eddie Vedder is asking, what would it take for us to rise?

Consider your response carefully and pray that tomorrow takes us higher.

Joe’s Garage – Don’t You Boys Know Any Nice Songs? #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #FrankZappa

Yes folks! Frank Zappa warned us, yet here we are. Years ago, Frank was asked to pontificate about the composition of the universe and he offered this thought.

Some scientists claim that hydrogen, because it is so plentiful, is the basic building block of the universe. I dispute that. I say there is more stupidity than hydrogen, and that is the basic building block of the universe.”

Today’s feature is brought to you by the memory of Frank Vincent Zappa who would have turned 85 years old today. There is more truth in the quote shared above than in every ignorant statement and calculated lie uttered over the past decade by the disgusting ingrate who currently occupies 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. As they say, a lie is half way around the world before the truth gets its boots on. In the world today, power is too often seized by people who thrive on deluding the gullible masses.

In exasperation Frank once said;

I think we need more idiot control”

That would be a good start.

Based on Frank’s premise that music is a commentary on society; a proclamation that I agree with so wholeheartedly that I have written 1950 blogs to support this thesis, today’s feature will take us all back to 1979 and the release of the three-part rock opera known as ‘Joe’s Garage’. Through music, Frank Zappa was aiming to not only educate the willing, he was trying to bring people together for the common good. This is why his philosophies were able to come through in his presentation. On occasion it was shocking because it had to be, in order to wake people up. The reality is, the more shocked you were revealed where you were on the spectrum known as the ‘lost scale’.

Frank was laying it all down but he had no illusions of changing anyone’s mind. He just felt it was important to expose the people behind the curtain who were pulling the levers of control.

Everybody believes in something and everybody, by virtue of the fact that they believe in something, uses that something to support their own existence.”

To summarize using the present day as an example this is why you tell a lot about a person by the music they listen to. Some recognize the value of creativity and see the best of all artists are making a difference by exposing the evils of our leadership, and the atrocities of present political systems. Others are still listening to Ted Nugent, Kid Rock and KISS.

It’s wake up time. The keepers of the zombie zoo have unlocked the cages. From Capitol Hill they were let loose and now they are domestic terrorists doing the work of a fascist regime.

Again, I say…

Frank predicted this.

People who are artistic have always been a threatening force to people who are dictators”

Using this logic, bands that align themselves with dictators, and wannabe kings, and lifelong criminals, and rapists are not artists. They are frauds. They are posers. Nothing more than useful tools for duping millions of willfully ignorant morons. This interview is circa 1990.

Turning the time machine back to 1979, ‘Joe’s Garage’ begins with the Central Scrutinizer’s narration. Ultimately, the triple album depicts society in all its forms. The band represents all that would be deemed as subversive while the angry neighbour is the establishment. The end goal is total conformity.

Eventually it was discovered, that God did not want us to be all the same. This was Bad News for the Governments of The World, as it seemed contrary to the doctrine of Portion Controlled Servings. Mankind must be made more uniformly if The Future was going to work. Various ways were sought to bind us all together, but, alas, same-ness was unenforceable. It was about this time, that someone came up with the idea of Total Criminalization. Based on the principle, that if we were all crooks, we could at last be uniform to some degree in the eyes of The Law. […] Total Criminalization was the greatest idea of its time and was vastly popular except with those people, who didn’t want to be crooks or outlaws, so, of course, they had to be Tricked into It… which is one of the reasons, why music was eventually made Illegal.”

It will never happen.

We take you now
To a garage in Canoga Park

(It makes it’s own sauce if you care to look)

It wasn’t very large
There was just enough room to cram the drums
In the corner over by the Dodge
It was a fifty-four
With a mashed up door
And a cheesy, little amp
With a sign on the front said, “Fender Champ”
And a second hand guitar
It was a Stratocaster with a whammy bar

We could jam in Joe’s garage
His mama was screamin’
His dad was mad
We was playin’ the same old song
In the afternoon and sometimes we would
Play it all night long
It was all we knew and easy too
So, we wouldn’t get it wrong
All we did was bend the string like

Hey!
Down in Joe’s garage
We didn’t have no dope or LSD
But a couple a-quarts a-beer
Would fix it so the intonation
Would not offend your ear
And the same old chords goin’ over and over
Became a symphony
We could play it again and again and again
‘Cause it sounded good to me
One more time

We could jam in Joe’s garage
His mama was screamin’
“Turn it down!”
We was playing the same old song
In the afternoon and sometimes we would
Play it all night long
It was all we knew and easy too
So, we wouldn’t get it wrong
Even if you played it on a saxophone

We thought we was pretty good
We talked about keepin’ the band together
And we figured that we should
‘Cause about this time we was gettin’ the eye
From the girls in the neighborhood
They’d all come over and dance around like

So, we picked out a stupid name
Had some cards printed up for a couple a-bucks
And we was on our way to fame
Got matching suits and Beatle boots
And a sign on the back of the car
And we was ready to work in a go-go bar

1, 2, 3, 4
Let’s see if you’ve got some more

People seemed to like our song
They got up and danced and made a lotta noise
And it wasn’t ‘fore very long
A guy from a company we can’t name

Said we oughta take his pen
And sign on the line for a real good time
But he didn’t tell us when
These good times would be somethin’

That was really happenin’
So, the band broke up
And it looks like
We will never play again

Guess you only get one chance in life
To play a song that goes like

Turn it down!
Turn it down!
I have children sleeping here
Don’t you boys know any nice songs?

Well, the years was rollin’ by, yeah
Heavy metal and glitter rock
Had caught the public eye, yeah
Snotty boys with lipstick on

Was really flyin’ high, yeah
And then they got that disco thing
And new wave came along
And all of a sudden I thought the time

Had come for that old song
We used to play in Joe’s garage
And if I am not wrong
You will soon be dancin’ to the

(The white zone is for loading)
(And unloading only)
(If you gotta load or unload)
(Go to the white zone)

I said, “The years was rollin’ by”, yeah
The years was rollin’ by
(I am calling the police!)
So, those years are rollin’ by
(I did it, they’ll be here shortly!)
Those years was rollin’ by, yeah
(This is the police)
Those years are rollin’ by
(I’m not joking around anymore)
(Come out, we have the garage surrounded)
Those years are rollin’ by
(Give yourselves up)
(We will not harm you)
I said, “Those years are rollin’ by”
(Or hurt you neither)
(You’ll see them; there they are, they’re coming)
(This is the police)
(Give yourself up)
Those years are rollin’ by
(We will not harm you)
(Listen to that mess, would you?)
(This is the police)
(Give yourself up)
(We have the garage surrounded)
(Everyday this goes on around here!)
Those years are rollin’ by
(We will not harm you)
(Or maim you)
(SWAT team four, move in!)
I said, “Those years are slidin’ by”
(He used cut my grass, he was a very nice boy)
(This is the police)
(Come out with your hands up)

This is the central scrutinizer
That was Joe’s first confrontation with the law
Naturally, we are easy on him
One of our friendly counsellors gave him
A do-nut
And told him to
Stick closer to church-oriented social activities

None of this is a revelation to anyone with the ability to think for themselves. All these years later the problem is apparent in how easily people allow themselves to be duped.

American sexual attitudes are controlled as a necessary tool of business and government in order to perpetuate themselves. Unless people begin to see through that, to see past it to what sex is really all about, they’re always going to have the same neurotic attitudes. It’s very neatly packaged.”

From his earliest days in the Mothers of Invention, Frank Zappa was known for his strong opposition to institutions like religion, government, and commercialism. Cleverly, he used ‘Joe’s Garage’ to parody many subjects. The album makes fun of organized religion, including parodies like ‘The First Church of Appliantology’ where the subject bears a startling resemblance to L. Ron Hubbard if the Church of Scientology.

 He’s gonna go to this club on
the other side of town, it’s called THE CLOSET…”

Enjoy yet another Zappa masterpiece.

Hello Lady Bug Lindsey and all you Grindr loving Republicans living a double life at conventions all over the U.S. Grindr’s CEO George Arison confirmed elements of this well-known fact in an interview clarifying that while there was a series of viral Tweets indicating that the site crashed,

There was a tweetstorm last summer […] we didn’t actually crash (but there was) “a definite spike in usage”.

They are all hypocrites.

It’s a way of life.”

Exposed at every turn. RepubliCONs everywhere should know….

So you don’t forget, call before midnite tonite
The boys in the crew
Are just waiting for you
You never to get move around
You never go nowhere
I know yer prob’ly gettin’ tired
Of all the guys out there
You always wondered what it’s like
To go from place to place
So, darlin’, take a little ride
On the mixer’s face

Be like George Santos and follow the magic footprints to the ‘Grindr Superbow’. His words, not mine.

As I type the King of all deviants is in an Adderall infused rage, shouting at clouds and typing crazed posts on ‘Lies Social’ trying to distract people from the fact he used to sexually assault 14- year-old girls who reminded him of his daughter.

Release the real files. We all know the truth.

Throughout ‘Joe’s Garage’ Frank Zappa turns to the “Central Scrutinizer,” a character similar to Big Brother from George Orwell’s 1984, which represents government censorship.

A central idea in the album’s story is a government policy called “Total Criminalization,” which makes music illegal. This policy is based on the philosophy that “all humans are inherently criminals,” giving the government an excuse to constantly create new laws and jail everyone.

The overall theme of the album cannot be narrowed down to one issue; instead, it is Zappa’s general mockery of the entire system of capitalism, industry, military, and religion. Zappa’s reference to Iran served as a warning about how government overreach could happen in the United States, too. The passage notes that the album came out before Zappa was targeted for obscenity in lyrics, suggesting he was almost prophetic in anticipating future censorship issues that are still relevant today when discussing free speech and government control. Meanwhile, the present-day U.S. bears more of a resemblance to 1979 Iran than ever, under the tutelage of a dementia ridden Russian asset.

Weaving Frank Zappa quotes through this piece serves to reinforce everything he was trying to do and say, not only during the time he was recording ‘Joe’s Garage’ but throughout his career. This quote summarizes his career in just two short sentences.

Music, in performance, is a type of sculpture. The air in the performance is sculpted into something.”

Everything Frank Zappa ‘sculpted’ from his earliest recordings in the late ‘50s reflected this vision. It’s no accident that like a magician; from something invisible, he conjured material that has left an indelible impression.

‘Joe’s Garage’ exists as just one example.

Well, the years are rollin’ by, and we lost Frank Zappa in 1993, but fortunately there is barely a day that goes by where I don’t see any of his wisdom shared on some of my social feeds. Millions of people use Frank’s philosophies as an example of  the fact that ‘Frank warned us’.

While writing this feature I spent a lot of time listening to the ‘Joe’s Garage’ album and a variety of other songs from over the years. Obviously, this was fun in its own right but what was also interesting was the exploration of cover versions. Based on the esoteric nature of Frank Zappa’s art I suspect that he is among the least covered artists of the rock and roll era. This unscientific assessment aside, I was pleasantly surprised by the handful of quality covers I gathered.

We will begin with Widespread Panic in 2001. This is a ton of fun, especially as they shift into ‘Wild Thing’ with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band.

Yes, you only get one chance in life to play a song that goes like…”

They are mirroring the garage band experience. This is a perfect combination to reinforce the sentiment. The video is poor but it doesn’t matter. It’s all about the music.

Skipping ahead to 2018, here is Frank Zappa’s son Dweezil in a live performance with a very tight band. Remarkably, they found enough intelligent people in Fort Lauderdale, Florid’uh to play this gig.

Stop everything. What a discovery this was. Enjoy former Frank Zappa vocalist, Ike Willis along with his friend Walkin’ Cane Mark on harmonica and Jeries Alfreih on guitar.

Ike and Mark were putting together a world class tour of Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart’s greatest hits and blues material. Covid cancelled all the planned shows and tour. “

This video was shot in one take following a couple of days of rehearsals back in 2019. It was released in honour of their bandmate Walkin’ Cane Mark who passed in June of 2020.

One more live take from Maureen’s Jazz Cellar in New Jersey. Here is a band called MOHAB who manage to share their love of the Frank Zappa style in an intimate environment. The live setting is a positive way to share these covers because you get an immediate sense of the audience appreciation. That speaks volumes.

Paying homage to Frank Zappa on this day using ‘Joe’s Garage’ as the focus almost feels like cheating. Is it too obvious? I suspect Frank Zappa super fans would say yes. However, it is not necessarily for them.

If the purpose of writing is to challenge people’s thinking and allow them to shift a little bit outside of their comfort zone, it makes sense to move them along in increments rather than full immersion. This makes ‘Joe’s Garage’ an ideal vehicle because it captures the essence of his stance. As the song unfolds it turns into a warning that music is a force to fight back against government control and a disturbing trend toward theocracy.

This is the central scrutinizer
That was Joe’s first confrontation with the law
Naturally, we are easy on him
One of our friendly counsellors gave him
A do-nut
And told him to
Stick closer to church-oriented social activities”

In this final passage alone. the listener is treated to a glimpse of authoritarianism, mind control. materialism and the dubious premise that there is ‘one nation under God’ with some form of exceptional status chosen over all others.

Frank Zappa was clear.

It was all built by people aiming to amass unimaginable wealth. They managed to get there by pitting society against each other, and dutifully millions complied. It was all built on a house of cards. It is all going to come crashing down.

‘God’ bless them all.

Insert eye roll here or better yet, TURN THE MUSIC UP.

Midnight Rambler – Blues on the loose with the Rolling Stones. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheRollingStones

Keith Richards once joked about his collection of (get this) approximately 3000 guitars; if you gave him five-minutes he could make them all sound the same.

Okay, so clearly Keith is exaggerating. He has always been candid in his interviews and it is this kind of engaging dialogues that has made him one of the most beloved performers of our lifetime. Perhaps his style does override the distinct sound to any particular guitar, but there is one guitar that was used on ‘Let it Bleed’ that has such a foreboding sound that over 55 years later as we listen, there is a sense that Armageddon is nigh, or we are being hunted down by a merciless serial killer.

It was a Maton EG240 Extreme that an Australian friend left behind after a short stay at Keith’s home in Cheyne Walk, Chelsea. Here is a quote from Keith taken from his autobiography ‘Life’.

That was done on a full-bodied, Australian electric-acoustic, f-hole guitar. It kind of looked like an Australian copy of the Gibson model that Chuck Berry used. I played it on ‘Gimmie Shelter’ too… It had all been revarnished and painted out, but it sounded great. It made a great record… (I got it from some guy who stayed at my pad. He crashed out for a couple of days and suddenly left in a hurry, leaving that guitar behind. You know, Take care of this for me. I certainly did! But it served me well through the album.”

The Maton EG240 that revolutionized guitar sound enjoyed only a cameo appearance in The Rolling Stones catalogue because as the recording sessions were winding down, the guitar literally fell apart in Keith’s hands.

Bow your heads and listen to ‘Gimme Shelter’. It only seems appropriate.

Oh, a storm is threat’ning
My very life today
If I don’t get some shelter
Oh yeah, I’m gonna fade away”

Batten down the hatches because the storm is raging. This song defines ominous.

That pretty much sums up what is known about that guitar. Just like his Aussie friend, the guitar came and it went, but it left its mark on The Rolling Stones library of message.

From here we will shift seamlessly into ‘Midnight Rambler’. This raunchy blues classic was the second of two songs where Keith employed the Maton EG240. Read the passage from Mick Jagger below and you will detect an approach that may have foreshadowed the song writing style that made ‘Exile on Main Street’ so effective. In 1968, they spent a period of time in Italy in order to retreat from the chaos surrounding the Redland’s drug bust and subsequent court proceedings.

That’s a song Keith and I really wrote together. We were on a holiday in Italy. In this very beautiful hill town, Positano, for a few nights. Why we should write such a dark song in this beautiful, sunny place, I really don’t know. We wrote everything there – the tempo changes, everything. And I’m playing the harmonica in these little cafés, and there’s Keith with the guitar.”

Once again, you can imagine the scene. They had found tranquility. Doing what they do best.

Elements of the ‘Midnight Rambler’ direction had been laid down earlier in 1968 when an impressive combination of musicians had gathered for an impromptu blues jam. A little known piece called ‘The Boudoir Stomp’ emerged from the session that included Rolling Stones’ brethren  Mick Jagger, Bill Wyman and Charlie Watts. The musical surprise was the great Ry Cooder on guitar and the legendary Nicky Hopkins on piano. The session has been dubbed ‘Jamming with Edward’. If you listen closely, you can hear traces of ‘Midnight Rambler’.

Another piece that teases the jam-based blues that was to come was ‘Edward’s Thrump Up’.

No doubt this groove set Mick’s mind whirling with lyrical possibilities and clearly the boys listened to this playback with Keith and he must have nodded his head with approval. Queue the scene in Italy. This is a reflection from Mick Jagger twenty-five years later.

Keith and I went to Italy, and Keith had this idea for Midnight Rambler, so we just started changing the tempos within the tune. Melodically it remains the same thing, it’s just a lot of tempo changes. We worked on it with acoustic guitar and harmonica, just jammed it, went through the tempo changes and had it all organized by the time we had to record it for Let It Bleed.”

From that jam and the resulting acoustic guitar and harmonica song writing session the concept for what they determined to be a mini blues opera unfolded. Here is Keith presenting the songs embryonic journey in different terms during the interviews that gave rise to his autobiography, ‘Life’.

When we did Midnight Rambler, nobody went in there with the idea of doing a blues opera, basically. Or a blues in four parts. That’s just the way it turned out. I think that’s the strength of the Stones or any good band. You can give them a song half raw and they’ll cook it.”

Every story concept needs some type of canvas to draw the storyline, and it was here that  Mick, and to some degree Keith devised the lyrics.  They have suggested that ‘Midnight Rambler’ was loosely based on the story about the Boston Strangler. Between 1962 and 1964, 13 murders were attributed to Albert DeSalvo but there are contentions that the Boston killing spree was the work of two or more depraved individuals. Media sensationalism being what it is, the intrigue surrounding the horrific crimes sold papers and it was these headlines that served as the source for the Stones marauding tale.

The title, the subject, was just one of those phrases taken out of sensationalist headlines that only exist for a day. You just happen to be looking at a newspaper, Midnight Rambler on the loose again. Oh, I’ll have him.”

In this quote from closer to the time of ‘Let it Bleed’s release in December of 1969 Keith zeroes in on the fact that the tension created by violent themes were often instrumental in their song writing sessions. This is from an interview with Robert Greenfield of Rolling Stone magazine published in 1971.

(Violence, it’s) just something that’s there, that’s always been there. Some kind of chemistry. Mick and I can really get it on together. It’s one way to channel it out. I’d rather play it out than shoot it out.”

As much as the dark underbelly of humanity inspired ideas for Mick and Keith, it was the blues that had always served as the vehicle for its delivery. That was their safe space and for 63 years and counting it has been more reliable than Uber.

Midnight Rambler is a Chicago blues. The chord sequence isn’t, but the sound is pure Chicago. I knew how the rhythm should go. It was in the tightness of the chord sequence, the D’s and the A’s and the E’s. It wasn’t a blues sequence, but it came out like heavy-duty blues.”

Once again, here is Keith from the Rolling Stone interview where he responds to criticisms surrounding Mick Jagger’s vocals on ‘Midnight Rambler’. From this writer’s perspective the delivery works because it conjures the lack of clarity within the song. A merciless killer lurking in the shadows, keeping the world on edge.

Usually when you write you just kick Mick off on something and let him fly on it. Just let it roll out and listen to it and start to pick up on certain words that are coming through and (Midnight Rambler’s) built up on that. A lot of people still complain they can’t hear the voice properly. If the words come through it’s fine, if they don’t, that’s all right too because anyway they can mean a thousand different things to anybody.”

All of this has been said and I haven’t even got to my favourite part. I may have teased it when I was talking about the ‘Jamming with Edward’ sessions. ‘Midnight Rambler’ is all about the jam. In this quote from 1988, Keith speaks to how easy the music flows out of the opening tunings.

(The middle section is) straight concert tuning. What’s always fascinated me is just to have no hand on it (motions with his left hand, indicating a guitar neck). Just to go… as if to just strike the guitar with one hand. (It’s just a straight E to D, hammering it off to straight open across and down the way.”

Much like ‘Can’t You Hear Me Knocking’ from ‘Sticky Fingers’, ‘Midnight Rambler became both a band favourite because it allowed them to expand on the three-to-four minute verse, chorus, bridge, verse, chorus and out style that defined their first decade. For anywhere from six to fifteen minutes the Rolling Stones got lost in the music. I’ll give Keith the final word on this contention.

I believe things like Midnight Rambler come through better live, because we’ve extended it more. Sometimes when you record something you go off half-cocked because maybe you haven’t ever played it live. You’ve just written it and you record it. From then on you take it and keep on playing it and it gets different. I remember I was into 12-string bottlenecks then.”

It was a rock and roll show that The Rolling Stones had not performed before. It was a perfect way to begin chapter two of their journey.

Did you hear about the midnight rambler?
Everybody got to go
Did you hear about the midnight rambler?
The one that shut the kitchen door

He don’t give a hoot of warning
Wrapped up in a black cat cloak
He don’t go in the light of the morning
He split the time the cock’rel crows

Talkin’ about the midnight gambler
The one you never seen before
Yeah, talkin’ about the midnight gambler
Did you see him jump the garden wall?

Sighin’ down the wind so sadly
Listen and you’ll hear him moan
Yeah, well I’m talkin’ about the midnight gambler
Everybody got to go

Yes

Did you hear about the midnight rambler?
Well, honey, it’s no rock ‘n’ roll show
Well, I’m talkin’ about the midnight gambler
Yeah, the one you never seen before

Well you heard about the Boston
It’s not one of those
Well, talkin’ ’bout the midnight…sh
The one that closed the bedroom door

I’m called the hit-and-run raper in anger
The knife-sharpened tippie-toe
Or just the shoot ’em dead, brainbell jangler
You know, the one you never seen before

So if you ever meet the midnight rambler
Coming down your marble hall
Well he’s pouncing like a proud black panther
Well, you can say I, I told you so

Well, don’t you listen for the midnight rambler
Play it easy, as you go
I’m gonna smash down all your plate glass windows
Put a fist, put a fist through your steel-plated door

Did you hear about the midnight rambler?
He’ll leave his footprints up and down your hall
And did you hear about the midnight gambler?
And did you see me make my midnight call?

And if you ever catch the midnight rambler
I’ll steal your mistress from under your nose
I’ll go easy with your cold fanged anger
I’ll stick my knife right down your throat, baby
And it hurts!

Before moving on to a few live versions of ‘Midnight Rambler’ enjoy the mono or alternate version. How does this sound so good?

As the saying goes, the best place to start is the beginning. Check out The Rolling Stones at their famous Hyde Park concert on July 5, 1969. On this day, they unveiled ‘Midnight Rambler’ to the world. Brain Jones had died just two days previous. He had been fired on June 8 which gave Mick Taylor less than a month to learn all the material for what would be his first public gig with the band.

Back to the vault we go for this unbelievable performance from the Marquee Club in 1971. In late March the band was preparing to head out and support ‘Sticky Fingers’. In order to rehearse their new setlist the Stones hosted this invitation only club event. Fortunately, they filmed it, and all these years later we can see this vintage footage. According to Melody Maker, some of the people invited were Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Rich Grech of Blind Faith and former manager Andrew ‘Loog’ Oldham who had departed as the band’s business guide in late 1967 in the midst of a storm of chaos that threatened to destroy the band.

Let’s jump ahead half a decade where by 1976, Mick Taylor had departed and been replaced by Ron Wood who has been with The Rolling Stones ever since. This performance from Earl’s Court Exhibition Centre in London was one of three shows planned for this famous venue which held approximately 20,000 people. Mail order demand exceeded one million requests, so the group added three more dates. While both Billy Preston and Ian Stewart were both prominent during this tour, each taking the spotlight for chosen songs, the raw, bluesy “Midnight Rambler” featured Ian Stewart’s signature style and preferences. 

We’ve had all this fun and we haven’t even left London yet. Let’s head across the pond and check out The Rolling Stones in The Big Apple. Here they are in 2003 at Madison Square Gardens.  By this time, Chuck Leavell had taken on the role of touring keyboardist and musical director.

Just one more because it is important. In 2012, The Rolling Stones embarked upon their ’50 and Counting Tour. This cavalcade of music history began in October of 2012 and ended at Hyde Park in London in July of 2013. In between they played two surprise club gigs in Paris and for good measure they recorded a show at the Prudential Center in Newark New Jersey on December 15, 2012. All of this being said, the big draw on this version is the return of Mick Taylor to share the stage with Ron Wood and Keith Richards. This is awesome.

Now that we have shared over 55 years of live versions of ‘Midnight Rambler, we can safely move on to a couple of cover versions that represent divergent approaches. We begin with this phenomenal cover by The Black Crowes. In 2011 this incredible rock and blues band recorded a live set of Rolling Stones covers called ‘Crowing Stones’. Love it! Here is an 11-minute version that will peel the paint off your walls.

Enter the new generation of musicians. During COVID-19, I discovered Colt Clark and the Quarantine Kids while exploring cover versions for Ted Tocks. Since 2020 I have included them in at least five Ted Tocks Covers features including:

Give Peace a Chance – We have a right to have a say in the future. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers

A Monumental Day in the History of The Beatles – 12 Songs on the Billboard Top 100 #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheBeatles

Hello Goodbye – Reality consists of two fundamental and often opposing forces or principles. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheBeatles #PaulMcCartney

Kodachrome – There goes rhymin’ Simon #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #PaulSimon #ArtGarfunkel #TheSwampers #TheStapleSingers #Beelzebubs #TheMuppets #ReinaDelCid #ColtClarkandtheQuarantineKids #JoshuaLeeTurner

What a Feeling – Getting in touch with our feelings #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #IreneCara #KeithForsey #GiorgioMoroder #CarolineCosta #Crowbar #905Band #Boston #IngramHill #TheBeatles #ColtClarkandtheQuarantineKids #DonnaSummer #JoshTurner #DaveMason #TheBlackCrowes

Here they are in 2024. They are growing up on video and the talent is as evident as their love of music. Kudos to Colt and his wife, Aubree for instilling their love of music. A huge shout out to the ‘Kids’. You have been making me smile for five years. I will let Colt Clark share his assessment here;

Guys…this one might be in my top three favorite songs we’ve done! There are so many nuances in this song, and they played every part so well. And OH, THE FUN THEY HAD! Hahaha! If this doesn’t start your weekend off right, I don’t know what will.”

As I was listening, I was thinking the same thing. They absolutely nail it. Best of all, they never stop smiling. They personify the Ted Tocks Covers credo…

#MusicisLife

What is the best way to conclude a quality jam song that people have been rocking to since 1969?

It may be best to hand it back to the Glimmer Twins, Mick and Keith.

As far back as 1971, Keith Richards was enthused by ‘Midnight Rambler’.

That song’s a gas, and I dig to play it. It’s when the audience decides to join, that’s when it really knocks you out.”

Based on that statement alone it is no surprise that ‘Midnight Rambler’ remains a setlist standard to this day. It’s blues to the end. As it was in the beginning so shall it be until they play their final note. Here is Mick Jagger commenting on this Rolling Stones classic in a 2014 interview.

It is an interesting song to do. A three-part blues piece with different tempos. With the blues you don’t normally get any changes, you know, so it’s quite an original idea.”

All of this talk about the blues makes me recall the time in 2021 where Paul McCartney made this observation when asked to compare The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.

 I’m not sure I should say it, but they’re a blues cover band, that’s sort of what the Stones are. … I think our net was cast a bit wider than theirs.”

Mick Jagger took it all in stride. A short time later he teased an audience by telling them;

Paul McCartney is here. He’s going to help – he’s going to join us in a blues cover later on.”

Keith immediately recognized that what Paul had said was either taken completely out of context, or edited in order to generate a reaction.

So, what happened when The Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney got together in 2023?

Naturally, the 80-year-olds took it all in a different direction. They went punk.

Well, life can be a riot
I can be the pilot
Provided that it’s private
I got the world to worry about
What? Come on
Now you got me drinkin’
Started to stop thinkin’
The whole fuckin’ ship is sinkin’, sinkin’
I’m lookin’ for a quick way out”

Here is ‘Bite My Head Off’ from ‘Hackney Diamonds’

Because over sixty years later, when the Stones take centre stage they stick that proverbial knife right down your throat.

And it doesn’t have to hurt.

London Calling – A Brief Reflection on a Revolutionary Album. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheClash

I approach this brief refection with a degree of regret. Looking back, I wish I had been more receptive to what The Clash was doing in the moment. Let me explain.

Revolution rock, it is a brand new rock
A bad, bad rock, this here revolution rock”

My memories of middle school and high school are associated with the music that was popular at the time. Name me a song, and I could likely tell you the grade I was in, and share a vivid memory of the scene. When ‘London Calling’ was released on this day in 1979 I was 13. Just dipping my foot into the vast world of music. Through many Ted Tocks of the past, I have revealed that my interest began with the explosion of sound that was Rush, and a deep love of everything that flowed out of the ‘60s British invasion. My go to radio station was Q107 in Toronto with a dash of CHUM FM before I wrote them off for ‘going soft’.

You see…Right there. That was me between the age of 12 right up ‘til about the early 2000s.

The point is, I waded into my love of music with the strange idea that in order to love music one had to subscribe to the idea that the enjoyment required joining a particular camp. As a lover of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, The Who, Led Zeppelin and Rush I felt I needed to pledge allegiance to all things related to a genre that is now deemed to be classic rock.

It didn’t help that some friends mocked me for my love of Pink Floyd, calling it ‘stoner rock’.

What?

Even the pre-adolescent Ted was blown away by the musical magic and poetry of ‘Dark Side of the Moon’; an album that I first heard at my grandparent’s house. My Uncle John left behind a battered and abused copy of an original release of this monumental album. It was so scratched up that any less enthusiastic listener would have given up, but I persevered.  I held true to my convictions.

To this day, I take abuse for my love of Rush. All the usual tropes.

Can’t stand Geddy Lee’s voice, or a nice place to go if you want to hang out with 15,000 nerdy men. Through the years, I feel I have been vindicated.

Getting back to The Clash…They were just different.

They emerged during a period of time where a new generation of performers were disenchanted with the political system and fighting against the rock and roll establishment. Their perception was that the rebellious nature of the music during the ‘60s and early ‘70s had become too complacent. In short, they had shed any semblance of rebellion and turned into shills for their labels. An argument could be made against this, because virtually every act worth discussing has a story of how hard they had to fight against their record company and management team in order to release their creativity.

Personally, one vivid memory takes me back to being an awkward and somewhat lost first year high school student. An older guy who would have been classified as a punk rocker opened up his locker, and taped to the inside door was a full-page magazine article about The Clash where they stated that Led Zeppelin sucks. These words were big and bold. I look this as a personal affront.

Careful how you move Mac, you dig me in me back and I’m so pilled up that I rattle
I have got the sharpest knife, so I cut the biggest slice, I’ve got no time to do battle
Everybody smash up your seats and rock to this brand new beat
This here music mash up the nation
This here music cause a sensation
Tell your ma, tell your pa everything’s gonna be all right
Can’t you feel it? Don’t ignore it
Gonna be alright
Revolution rock, I am in a state of shock
So bad, bad rock, this here revolution rock”

The 13-year-old version of me was intimidated by this guy. From my perspective he knew how to express himself. I lacked that confidence, or maybe he was as insecure as me and this was his way of expressing his inner angst. Who knows? The music and artists we love are often a reflection of the inner selves we struggle to release. My internal dial set me to this decision…

If The Clash doesn’t like Led Zeppelin, then they have betrayed me. So, for much of two decades, I kept their music at an arms-length.

I know…

…I missed an opportunity because I approached everything with such narrow mindedness and trepidation in these formative days.

Careful how you slide Clyde, all you did was glide, you poured your beer in me hat
Keep my good eye on the beat, living on fixation street, I ain’t got no time for that
Everybody smash up your seats and rock to this brand-new beat
This here music mash up the nation
This here music cause a sensation
Tell your mamma, tell your pa everything’s gonna be all right
Can’t you feel it? Don’t ignore it
Gonna be alright
Revolution rock”

A common theme within Ted Tocks Covers speaks to my closed-mindedness for what amounts to about half of my time as a ‘music lover’. I missed out on so much when it was actually happening.

In all fairness, those who know me well will understand that I would possibly have been the most pretentious of all punk-rockers, but I digress.

Through the years, I went from British Invasion, to hard rock, to psychedelic, to folk, to blues before agreeing to forgive the punk/new wave movement for challenging the system and making such brash declarations.

Hey so get that cheese grater going against the grain
Wearing me down
Pressure inquiries
Everybody
Everybody smash up your seats and rock to this brand new beat
This here music mash up nations
This here music cause a sensation
Tell your mamma, ? forget? your papa everything’s gonna be all right
Can’t you feel it? Don’t ignore it
It’s gonna be alright
Revolution rock”

As I look back about a quarter century, it was a combination of the internet and the streaming services that made music so much more accessible. It opened the doors that I had previously closed and locked.

To the coolest Mobsters in Kingstown
With the hardest eyes and the coolest tongue
Is your heart so made of rock that the blood must flow ’round the clock
Are you listening mobsters
Hey, all people crawl are gonna die
What carnal? booth? goes rolling by
It’s food for thought mobsters
Young people shoot their days away
I’ve seen salad thrown away
Are you a loan shark?
The organ play and they’re dancing to the brand new beat
This here music mash up the nation
This here music cause a sensation”

I don’t think it was Napster, but it was something like that. I downloaded a mountain of music and burned countless albums. I created way too many playlists and compilation CDs. Within this age of discovery two things happened. First, I actually listened to early albums by The Clash and determined that they represented everything I loved about music.

There’s that old cheese grater
Rubbing me down
This must be the way out
Here’s the cheap bit

Any song you want
Playing requests now on the bandstand
El Clash combo
Paid fifteen dollars a day
Weddings, parties, anything
And Bongo Jazz a speciality”

They were bold, brash, versatile and they challenged the system, taking me to the edge of subversiveness. They defined the rock and roll spirit. They were difference makers. The next thing that happened is something I still struggle with.

Joe Strummer died in 2002.

It was while lamenting all of my wasted time that I absorbed so much of the great music he created for parts of four decades.

Count Joe Strummer among the many incredible artists that are sorely missed today while we watch evil monsters systematically dismantle society.

Like quality journalism, the best musicians and lyricists hold the powers that be to account. In free societies true freedom of expression makes it possible for people to take on a range of thought and opinion, and then determine where they stand based on research and access to information. This is crucial. In many ways it has also become a lost art. Too often, people have accepted the idea that their flow of news and social awareness needs to be shared to them in silos.

During my formative years I made that mistake. I am still digging my way out, but as they say, the first step to addressing you have a character flaw is admitting to the problem. This is what ‘London Calling’ by The Clash’ means to me. It’s all about personal growth, delivered to me by Joe Strummer and his bold bandmates.

All I needed to do is actually listen.

Looking back through Ted Tocks Covers, there have been three posts where I have made reference to The Clash and their ‘London Calling’ album.

Here is the title track

London Calling – Celebrating 40 years of a classic from #TheClash. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JoeStrummer #BruceSpringsteen #DaveGrohl #StevenVanZant #ElvisCostello#Smith&Myers

Using another popular song from ‘London Calling’ I took myself back to my time growing up in Acton. This was a fun post to write.

Lost in the Supermarket – A classic song from #LondonCalling and some reflections on my hometown and the modern day shopping experience. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheClash #TheAfghanWhigs #BenFolds #Acton

From here we move on to the Manic Street Preachers who were heavily influenced by The Clash. This song emanated from ‘Spanish Bombs’. A warning shot across the bow of society, and still people are oblivious.

If You Tolerate this Your Children Will Be Next – A warning from #ManicStreetPreachers. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheClash #DavidUsher

Music at its best is a reflection of society, and when it is done right through both sound and the message contained in the lyrics, it inspires change. In an era where mainstream media has essentially abandoned any semblance of social responsibility in order to maximize profits, it is the power of persuasion inherent in the arts that people should turn to in order to understand the world around us. Among many others, this is the message that The Clash was trying to convey all the way back to the late ‘70s. It was ‘Revolution Rock’ at its finest.

And it is still as vibrant today as the day it was released.

Tell your ma-ma-ma, tell your pa-pa-pa everything’s gonna be all right
Can’t you feel it? Don’t ignore it
Everything’s gonna be alright
I say, “Revolution rocks”

So, once again here I sit. Railing on about a quality album that I embraced long after its release. Looking back, I should have taken notice. In 1982 when Pete Townshend announced the first of many ‘farewell tours’, the man who wrote “I hope I die before I get old” saw The Clash as the new guard. He invited them to open a handful of shows. I took notice, but still resisted. Keeping them at an arm’s length, I did spend some time listening to ‘Combat Rock’.

Enjoy ‘Rock the Casbah’.

Rock the Casbah – The king told the boogie men you gotta let that raga drop. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheClash #JoeStrummer #SomethingforKate #MyMorningJacket #TheArkells

And the riff rock anthem ‘Should I Stay or Should I Go’.

Should I Stay or Should I Go – A classic from a legend. Celebrating #JoeStrummer. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheClash #MickJones #JoeEly #Weezer #TomPettyandtheHeartbreakers

For me, the best part of Ted Tocks Covers is taking the time to look back at how important music has been in my life. The power of music is so deeply ingrained in me that I can sit down to write about songs that I never liked, but as I actually listen, and write I can convince myself that it is not so bad after all.

All of this makes me think how much better the world could be if we just took the time to find common ground in all of our interactions. From there we build on the consensus.

I think the term is, we need to build way more bridges. We need to tear down walls

What’s Up /Beez in the Trap – Trying to get up that great big hill of hope. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #4NonBlondes #LindaPerry #NickiMinaj

I have often been accused of not knowing what’s going on.

No one would ever describe me as being trendy, but I am curious. So, when a song comes to my attention with lyrics that make me wonder what inspired the artist to write, it becomes full immersion time.

Of course, I didn’t discover the TikTok mashup of ‘What’s Up’ by 4 Non Blondes and ‘Beez in the Trap’ by Nicki Minaj on my own. The truth is, if ever it appears as though I am up on things, it is strictly due to the fact that Heather has dropped several reels or memes before me in such a relentless flow that I finally take notice. Even then I am late to the party, and most often left scratching my head. This would explain why throughout October, I thought I was being really observant when I noted that Heather was listening to ‘The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald’ quite frequently. This was when she pointed out the 472 reels in my Instagram message folder. The TikTok trend featured many creative people doing their own videos that juxtaposed the Gordon Lightfoot classic with any number of mock tragedies, often with hilarious results. You gotta love the power of people’s imagination. Fortunately, I have Heather to send me only the best. This trend fizzled out by mid-November, and seemingly it was immediately replaced by the Nicki Minaj/4 Non Blondes combination. To my credit, I was only about two to three weeks behind on this trend. Through my amazing powers of observation, I was hearing the voice of Linda Perry emanating from Heather’s laptop, or cell phone several times an hour.

Is that another one of those reels?” I asked, thinking I had reached the pinnacle of all that is current.

“Check your messages,” was all she said. I thought the eye roll was a little much.

Frantically searching for justification, I responded with, “Facebook Messenger, Threads, Email, Text or Instagram?”

“You’ll find them…” she uttered, before scrolling through several pieces of breaking news that I may learn about in January and write about in 2030.

So how did this most recent phenomena start?

From what I gather, a popular TikTok creator who goes by @dj.auxford posted their clever piece in August. It showed two people standing back-to-back. Queue the music and as the camera zooms in, the person facing the camera is lip-synching ‘What’s Up’. Then the camera shifts to the other person who lip synchs the ‘Beez in the Trap’ part. Clearly the attraction is the polarity between the two song styles. Amazingly, it works.

Unofficially, there may be as many as one million simulations of this original creation and the numbers are staggering. There is one by Miss Trunchbull and Bruce Bogtrotter that has over 124 million views and 20.3 million likes.

The one Heather introduced me to featured Benson Boone and none other than Brian May of Queen. What really grabbed my attention was how much fun they appeared to be having.

@bensonboone

guess who’s back

♬ original sound – dj auxlord

There is one with Khloe Kardashian and Kylie Jenner, but they get enough unwarranted attention so I won’t share it here.

Before I went on a rant about how all these people were co-opting artists protected work, blah, blah blah, Heather shared this TikTok with me.

@jlo

Had to do it twice. #fyp #FourNonBlondes #WhatsGoingOn @Linda Perry @Nicki Minaj

♬ original sound – dj auxlord

Yes, Linda Perry and J-Lo were in on the fun. Momentarily, all was right with the world. I slept well that night.

Here are the lyrics to the full mashup. I will see you on the other side with some interesting thoughts and some of the implications that come through in this intriguing mashup.

And so I wake in the

morning and I step outside

And I take a deep breath

and I get real high

And I scream from the top of my lungs

“What’s going on?”

And I say, hey-ey-ey! Hey-ey-ey

Bitches ain’t shit and

they ain’t sayin’ nothing

A hundred motherfuckers

can’t tell me nothing

I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

And I say, hey-ey-ey! Hey-ey-ey

Bitches ain’t shit and

they ain’t sayin’ nothing

A hundred motherfuckers

can’t tell me nothing

I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

Uh, man, I been did that,

Man, I been popped off

And if she ain’t tryin’ to give

it up, she get dropped off

Let me bust that U-ie,

Bitch, bust that open

Might spend a couple thou’

Just to bust that open

Rip it off, no joking,

like your name Hulk Hogan

Niggas move weight in the South,

but live in Hoboken

Bitch, I spit that crack,

like I’m in that trap

So if you need a hit,

then I’m with that bat

And I try

Oh my God, do I try

I try all the time

In this institution

And I pray

Oh my God, do I pray

I pray every single day

For revolution

And so I cry sometimes

when I’m lying in bed

Just to get it all out

what’s in my head

And I, I am feeling a little peculiar

And so I wake in the

morning and I step outside

And I take a deep breath

and I get real high and I

scream from the top of my lungs

“What’s going on?”

And I say, hey-ey-ey! Hey-ey-ey

Bitches ain’t shit and

they ain’t sayin’ nothing

A hundred motherfuckers

can’t tell me nothing

I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

And I say, hey-ey-ey! Hey-ey-ey

Bitches ain’t shit and

they ain’t sayin’ nothing

A hundred motherfuckers

can’t tell me nothing

I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

I beez in the trap, bee-beez in the trap

And I say, hey-ey-ey! Hey-ey-ey

Uh, man, I been did that,

Man, I been popped off

And if she ain’t tryin’ to give

it up, she get dropped off

I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”

Let me bust that U-ie,

Bitch, bust that open

Might spend a couple thou’

Just to bust that open

And I say hey-ey-ey Hey-ey YEAHYEAHYEAH

Rip it off, no joking,

like your name Hulk Hogan

Niggas move weight in the South,

but live in Hoboken

I said “Hey, a-what’s going on?”

Bitch, I spit that crack,

like I’m in that trap

So if you need a hit,

then I’m with that bat”

At a glance the merging of these two songs appeared like an unlikely combination, but upon closer inspection both are encouraging their audience to get out there and chase their dreams.

The theme of women’s empowerment is apparent and that is what has continued to drive the TikTok views and participation to another stratosphere.

Starting with ‘What’s Up’ which, if you can believe it, is now 32 years old, Linda Perry is clearly writing about rising up to the daily challenges she faces in her world.

What’s Up – Let’s pray for a revolution. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #4NonBlondes #LadyGaga

The magic is in its eternal relatable.

25 years and my life is still
Tryin’ to get up that great big hill of hope
For a destination

I realized quickly when I knew I should
That the world was made up of this brotherhood of man
For whatever that means”

Looking back on this hit, it is easy to recall that even the recording we know emanated from a struggle between a defiant young woman who knew what he wanted , and a man who thought he knew everything. Fortunately, back in 1993, Linda Perry of 4 Non Blondes had the fortitude to re-write the song and convince legendary producer Jimmy Iovine (Stevie Nicks) to go with her interpretation.

The producer (David Tickle) had no sense of what the song was. I went to the label and said “This song sucks. This is not the song I wrote.” They didn’t support me. They said it sounded fine. I did not agree. I grabbed the band during a break and we went to The Record Plant in Sausalito. … I started moving things around. The engineer there helped me a lot. I would tell him what I wanted, and if he didn’t get it I would move the microphone around. Then I’d go, “Yes, that’s it. That’s the sound.” I did that with everything. Then we got the tempo, and we got the recording of it, the base of it, done. I re-did my acoustics. I was in the middle of vocals when David Tickle showed up. I’d laid down three vocals. I was annoyed he showed up. We were already done with the frigging song. We comped the vocal and mixed it that night, and it made mastering the next day. That is the version that blew up all over the world. […] I’ve told the story enough that people know that David Tickle did not produce that song. It was me.”

It became an anthem. Perry has been a transparent LGBTQ+ advocate throughout her career, seeing her sexuality as a fundamental part of her identity, not something to hide. It is this background that gave rise to her resolve. Through ‘What’s Up’ Linda Perry is challenging the world to look inward and come out stronger.

And so I cry sometimes when I’m lying in bed
Just to get it all out what’s in my head
And I, I am feeling a little peculiar

And so I wake in the morning and I step outside
And I take a deep breath and I get real high
And I scream from the top of my lungs
“What’s going on?”

Over 2 billion views on YouTube don’t lie.

Meanwhile in 2012, although the message Nicki Minaj is presenting in ‘Beez in the Trap’ is similar, it comes across as even more brash.

Nicki comes out swinging and she doesn’t stop for four and a half minutes.

Bitches ain’t shit and they ain’t saying nothing
A hundred mothafuckas can’t tell me nothing”

 There is also no doubt that ‘Beez in the Trap’ is overtly materialistic. The song title is a variation on Southern slang for working hard, and the trap is her place of work. For the wildly successful Minaj, this means the studio or concert stage.

That is just one interpretation.

As the song develops, it turns into a modicum of self defense. She is justifying her success against the jealous catcalls of her detractors. 2 Chainz’s contribution to the song lays it all out.

Okay now Nicki, Nicki, Nicki, put it in your kidney”

In this line he is telling Minaj that although she doesn’t like it, the criticism is inevitable.

Her rationalization is that if not for her hard work she would be struggling with the ‘bitches’ who are trying to tear her down and when she looks in the mirror, she sees no comparison.

Got a new LS 450, ain’t no keys in this do-hicky
If I weren’t rappin’ I’d be trappin’
If I weren’t trappin’ I’d be pimpin’
If I weren’t pimpin’ I’d be gettin’ it, period
I don’t smoke no Bobby, but my denim be from Ricky (Ricky)
Got your girl on Molly and we smokin’ loud and drinkin’ (drinkin’)
Got my top back so you can see what I been thinkin’ (thinkin’)
And if you know me then you know I’ve been thinking Franklin (Franklin)
Money (money), thousands (thousands), True Religion trousers (tell ’em)
Got a private home, started from them public houses (damn)
Hair weave killer (killer), ‘causing her arousal (true)
Audi A8, told them, “Outtie 5000, “

Mic drop…

In the end, she lays down the fact that she is too awesome to care.

Damn, damn what they say about me?
I don’t know man, fuck is on your biscuit
If I get hit, swinging on a big bitch
I don’t know, man, I’m shittin’ on your whole life
Damn, damn what they say about me?
I don’t know man, fuck is on your biscuit
If I get hit, swinging on a big bitch
I don’t know, man, I’m shittin’ on your whole life”

Through the years, themes of resilience and defiance have often come through in song lyrics. Throughout the same period the words and phrasings have become increasingly clever.

And that’s a good thing, because it opens the door to a broader understanding of both generations and cultures. Perhaps more importantly it shapes learning opportunities and deeper perceptions of social class.

All I can say is, song lyrics are fun to interpret, and with this TikTok craze, the presentation shines through so vividly that one absolutely needs to sit up and take notice.

Even me, the guy who is still spinning vinyl version of ‘Living in the Past’ by Jethro Tull on the turntable. Yes, I am old school in many ways but I did poke my head out every once in a while.

Speaking to the Ted Tocks Covers mission of offering original songs and cover versions, the question becomes; is the Beez in the Trap/What’s Up’ mashup in itself a cover, or is it actually an original?

Hmmm

Just to cover all the bases I will throw out a cover version for each.

Admittedly, I was surprised to find so little in the way of covers of Nicki Minaj and ‘Beez in the Trap’ beyond the TikToks.

Let me know your thoughts on this one. John Prine fans will understand why this cover caught my attention. Here is Sam Stone doing a quality acoustic cover.

Moving on to ‘What’s Up’, P!nk once said,

If God is the DJ, then Life is the dance floor. Love is the rhythm and You are the music.”

That is a perfect lead in to this cover version of ‘What’s Up’. Admittedly, the Ted Tocks feature that I wrote back in March of 2018 was awful, so hopefully today’s piece makes up for that to some degree.

In many ways, today’s Ted Tocks is about solidarity. It speaks to finding consensus in what we can agree on, and then building from a firm foundation instead of a crumbling infrastructure. We are not all the same and there is definitely value in being able to celebrate our differences. So. everyone, raise your glass if you are wrong in all the right ways.

Or, like John Lewis once said,

Find yourself some good necessary trouble.”

…and fight like hell.

For about ten years now, Heather and I have found ourselves lamenting the state of virtually everything around us. Quite literally, we pray every day for a revolution.

We take solace in knowing we are not alone.

If you are not with us, we simply ask one question.

Bitch! What’s goin’ on.”

There is something soothing about following that inner voice that guides you. We call it our conscience, or our moral compass. It doesn’t matter. It just exists. In all the years that I have known Heather, this is what has served us so well. Admittedly, it is not as strong for me. Many times, I have had to be brought over. Many times. Heather gave me the latitude to figure things out, and eventually I got there.

This is why today’s feature is mostly for her.

When she wakes up to the world and steps outside, she should know that everything that greets in that moment that she perceives to be right, is just the universe wishing her a happy birthday.

Happy Birthday Heather!

Things can only get better. They always do.

The Inner Light – How a broken sitar string led to a monumental musical friendship. MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #GeorgeHarrison #RaviShankar

Admittedly, today’s feature song is a relative rarity, but what it lacks in the way of commercial appeal or immediate recognition it makes up for in significance.

So, here I sit cross-legged on the floor, embracing the most rudimentary elements of Transcendental Meditation through the music of George Harrison and The Beatles. For George Harrison, ‘The Inner Light’ was the third track that saw him write specifically using the sitar. The first was ‘Love to You’ from ’Revolver’.

“A lifetime is so short
A new one can’t be bought
But what you’ve got means such a lot to me”

George Harrison described the impact of the sitar on him as eternally fulfilling and he immersed himself in the musical stylings, and philosophies that contributed so much to the discipline.

Then came his hypnotizing track from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, ‘Within You Without You’.

When you’ve seen beyond yourself then you may find
Peace of mind is waiting there
And the time will come when you see we’re all one
And life flows on within you and without you”

Truthfully, it was this one that truly captured the essence of the teachings of both Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and the extraordinary sitar player, Ravi Shankar.

Within You, Without You – With our love, we could save the world, if they only knew. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheBeatles #GeorgeHarrison #SonicYouth #PattiSmith #Firefall #FlamingLips #CheapTrick #TheAnalogues

George Harrison immersed himself in the teachings, and from there everything became a gateway to an expanded universe. He met Juan Mascaró during a discussion about Transcendental Meditation on the ‘The Frost Programme’ in October of 1967. The show expanded on the fact that both George and John had become recent devotees to the teachings of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.  Impressed by Harrison’s genuine devotion to the Maharishi, Mascaró sent The Beatles guitarist a copy of ‘Lamps of Fire’. Here is George Harrison’s heartfelt nod to the kindness he demonstrated.

The song was written especially for Juan Mascaró because he sent me the book ‘Lamps of Fire’ and is a sweet old man. It was nice, the words said everything. Amen”

Upon presentation of the book Mascaró suggested that George might focus on the poetry of Lao-Tzu. One line captured his imagination.

Arrive without travelling.”

It became the catalyst for his journey and solidified his commitment to meditation as a source of genuine understanding. On more than one occasion he alluded to humility as a guiding force, because in the grand scheme of everything we are small, and we truly know very little.

The more you learn, the more you know that you don’t know anything at all.”

It was this premise that led to ‘The Inner Light’. Whether through meditation or hours of learning to play the sitar, George Harrison explored the galaxies, but never left the space he occupied in the moment.

Without going out of my door
I can know all things on Earth
Without looking out of my window
I could know the ways of Heaven

The farther one travels
The less one knows
The less one really knows

Without going out of your door
You can know all things on Earth
Without looking out of your window
You could know the ways of Heaven

The farther one travels
The less one knows
The less one really knows

Arrive without travelling
See all without looking
Do all without doing”

On one side of the bridge was Transcendental Meditation, and on the other side was the combination of instruments that enabled his mind to delve deeper into the mystical teachings. George Harrison gravitated to the sitar. Famously, it was ‘Norwegian Wood’ that did so much to change his artistic approach. This happened somewhat organically, but it was a matter of circumstance that took everything to a much deeper level.

Please read on.

George Harrison met Ravi Shankar at a dinner party hosted by a hospitable couple from the Finchley area of London.They were Ayana Deva Angadi, and his wife, Patricia Angadi. Over five decades later their daughter Chandrika Angadi (Casali) shared the story. This is fascinating glimpse at some behind the scenes circumstances that changed the direction of western music. Here is Chandrika’s vivid recollection through personal quotes, and the writing of Mae Losasso who wrote an article for ‘Why Now’. Here is short excerpt.

I overheard my father on the telephone,” she recalls, “saying, ‘did you say your name was Bingo?’ And then: ‘Oh, I’m sorry, Ringo!’.” Chandrika’s father, Ayana Deva Angadi, had just received a phone call from Ringo Starr. George Harrison had snapped a sitar string during the recording of ‘Norwegian Wood’, and did Ayana have a spare that he could bring to Abbey Road Studios? “I just started going mad,” Chandrika told me, “making frantic signals to him. And then [my father] said ‘yes we do have a sitar string’. So we all got into the car – my mother, my father, and I.” Inside the studio, her mother, Patricia, sat down to sketch Paul and John, who were playing chess, while Ayana, “got down all their phone numbers and said: ‘We live in Finchley, and we often have musicians and dancers stopping by, we have concerts at our house […] do drop by anytime you like, and you can listen to some music, or play some music, or do whatever’. He was very charismatic.”

It was this connection that may have saved ‘Norwegian Wood’, but the friendship continued. A few weeks later George and his girlfriend, Pattie Boyd called and were invited over for dinner. Here, Chandrika recalls the evening George Harrison met Ravi Shankar.

I remember them standing opposite one another in our hall at the bottom of the stairs,” she says, “and George had brought his own sitar in a wooden case, and he was standing there, very casually, with one foot on the sitar case and Ravi Shankar said: ‘Well if you want me to teach you the sitar, the first thing I’ll teach you is to take your foot off the case.’”

Read the full article here. It provides a ton of detail of how an unlikely couple managed to facilitate the friendship between George Harrison and the most famous of all sitarists.

‘George Harrison is coming to dinner’: The Family Who Introduced the Beatles to Indian Music

Here is Ravi Shankar’s vivid recollection of meeting George Harrison. Note the somewhat bemused assessment of ‘Norwegian Wood’.

From the moment we met, George was asking questions, and I felt he was genuinely interested in Indian music and religion. He appeared to be a sweet, straightforward young man. I said I had been told he had used the sitar, although I had not heard the song ‘Norwegian Wood’. He seemed quite embarrassed, and it transpired that he had only had a few sittings with an Indian chap who was in London to see how the instrument should be held and to learn the basics of playing. ‘Norwegian Wood’ was supposedly causing so much brouhaha, but when I eventually heard the song, I thought it was a strange sound that had been produced on the sitar.”

What struck Ravi Shankar was George Harrison’s genuine devotion.

Norwegian Wood – This bird has flown. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #TheBeatles #JohnLennon #GeorgeHarrison #PaulMcCartney #HourGlass #FrankMarinoandMahogonyRush #HerbieHancock #PeterFrampton #AllmanBettsBand

Shankar accepted with a few caveats, and some carefully chosen words of advice.

Then George expressed his desire to learn the sitar from me. I told him that to play sitar is like learning Western classical music on the violin or the cello. It is not merely a matter of learning how to hold the instrument and play a few strokes and chords, after which (with sufficient talent) you can prosper on your own, as is common with the guitar in western pop music.”

Assured by George’s commitment Shankar invited him to India. This insight is gold. Clearly, this relationship transcended their mutual love of music.

We fixed it that he would come to India to learn in more depth. I felt strongly that there was a beautiful soul in him, and recognised one quality which I always have valued enormously and which is considered the principal one in our culture—humility. Considering that he was so famous—part of the most popular group in the world ever!—he was nevertheless quite humble, with a childlike quality that he has retained to this day…Used to teaching students with far greater technical skill and experience with the sitar, the veteran musician realized after the first few lessons with his new pupil that it would take great patience and effort on his part to make him a proper sitarist. George was also unaware of basic etiquette in Hindustani classical music. Once he horrified his teacher by casually stepping over his sitar to answer the phone and promptly got a sharp whack on his leg for not showing enough respect for his instrument—a fundamental creed of all Indian musicians, unlike in the West.

Although he obsessively practised the sitar, while trying to follow the instructions of his idol, George must have realized the enormity of the task. This is clear from his account of his early days with Ravi Shankar, indicating that it was the latter’s powerful appeal and the spiritual connect with him that was far more fulfilling than the sitar lessons themselves.”

George was struck by Ravi Shankar’s humility, and by virtue of his own personality he easily adapted to the teachings. Here is a quote from George Harrison where he marvels at not only Ravi Shankar’s ability, but his focus and above all, his general demeanour.

The moment we started, the feelings I got were of his patience, compassion and humility. The fact that he could do one of his five-hour concerts, but at the same time he could sit down and teach somebody from scratch the very basics: how to hold the sitar, how to sit in the correct position, how to wear the pick on your finger, how to begin playing. We did that and he started me going on the scales. And he enjoyed it, he wasn’t grudging at all, and he wasn’t flash about it either.”

In the end, it seems the most important lesson of all was the fact that Ravi Shankar encouraged George Harrison to stick to his musical roots. While he admired George’s zeal for learning the basics of Indian music, Shankar made sure he understood that the finest players in India had been playing for hours a day since they were very young children.

Once again, humility won the day, but not before The Beatles became instrumental in bringing this captivating sound to Western culture.

‘The Inner Light’ is a significant song in The Beatles catalogue for a few other reasons. First, it is the first George Harrison song to be included on a Beatles single. It was released as the B-side to ‘Lady Madonna’. The essence of the track was recorded in January of 1968 while George was in Bombay working on a solo project called ‘Wonderwall Music’. His efforts at going solo was also a first within The Beatles which was no doubt borne out of the frustration he felt in relation to the fact his creativity was somewhat under-utilized. The rest of the Beatles only contributed backing vocals.

True to the teachings of Lao-Tzu we must look into ourselves for enlightenment.

Speaking of the inner light driving us to all things better, enjoy this beautiful mashup of three George Harrison compositions. This is known as the Cirque de Soleil mix. Combining the Beatles music with re-produced and re-imagined versions of Beatles music to be played while the cirque actors interpret the sound through their magnificent performance, this was a testament to the vision of George Martin and his son Giles.  It was released in 2006 and its run carried on through July of 2024.

For the cover versions of ‘The Inner Light’ I gravitated to the instrumentals. The first cover version is by The Soulful Strings. This soul-jazz group consisted of a combination of quality performers led by Richard Evans of Chess Records. Their cover of ‘The Inner Light’ appeared on the ensemble’s 1968 release, ‘Another Exposure’. It was one of three Beatles covers on the album.

Next up is this soul-searching recording by Jimmy McGriff and Junior Parker. Listen to the Hammond B3 organ by Jimmy McGriff and the way it compliments Parker’s vocals. This was released on their 1970 collaboration called ‘The Dudes Doin’ Business’. In 2024, it was re-released as a package called ‘Good Things Don’t Happen Every Day’. Enjoy, because this will help make good things for you today.

One of George Harrison’s most important musical friendships was his bond with Jeff Lynne. You can feel the love in this stunning performance from the 2002 ‘Concert for George’ at London’s Albert Hall.  Jeff Lynne performs alongside Ravi Shankar’s daughter Anoushka Shankar. George’s son, Dhani joins in on keyboards and the trio is accompanied by percussionist Tanmoy Bose, Rajendra Prasanna on shehnai, and Sunil Gupta on flute. What a tribute.

Continuing with the Ravi Shankar connection, here is Anoushka Shankar in 2021 along with renowned Indian-American tabla player Karsh Kale. This is a cornerstone recording on their album ‘The Beatles and India’. One more in a long line of stunning tributes to the music of George Harrison and the important influence of Ravi Shankar who died on this day in 2012.

Before concluding today’s feature, it seemed appropriate that I share this alternate take that was recorded in 1968, and released in 2014 as part of a special version of George Harrison’s ‘Wonderwall Music’. Pay close to the discussion between George and the talented collection or performers who contributed to this piece of music. The mutual respect almost comes through the speakers.

It is the theme of respect that emanates through this feature. All semblance of ego seems to have been set aside with every piece of music that is introduced. It is about the spirit of sound and the way everything is connected as it flows through time and space. Somehow a composition inspired by the poetry of Lao-Tzu and the sitar stylings of Ravi Shankar sixty years ago is still carried on the wind. This speaks to the meaning of the message and how important it will continue to be as we move forward.  George Harrison had an uncanny ability to connect with people on a spiritual plane. He alludes to such inner qualities in this observation.

Ravi was my link into the Vedic world. Ravi plugged me into the whole of reality. I mean, I met Elvis—Elvis impressed me when I was a kid, and impressed me when I met him because of the buzz of meeting Elvis, but you couldn’t later on go round to him and say, ‘Elvis, what’s happening in the universe?”

Yes, George was seeking something much deeper and he found it with Ravi Shankar. Two people from very different worlds, yet they connected in a space that we may only comprehend if we allow ourselves to go there.

The farther one travels
The less one knows
The less one really knows
Arrive without travelling
See all without looking
Do all without doing”

If not for George Harrison’s ability to recognize some degree of limitation, he may have become irritated by Ravi Shankar’s suggestion that his desire to immerse himself in every aspect of Indian music was unrealistic.  Instead, he summoned the sound sparingly, but effectively over the remainder of his career.

A sound that for George Harrison began in 1965 with ‘Norwegian Wood’ was last conjured on this Traveling Wilburys recording. Here is ‘The Devil’s Been Busy’ from ‘Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3’ which was recorded in 1990.

This ironically titled album (there was no volume 2) was dedicated to the memory of their friend Roy (Left Wilbury) Orbison.

As always, the carefully crafted lyrics offer a subtle message to the people who live their life in the material world.

Sometimes you think you’re crazy
But you know you’re only mad
Sometimes you’re better off not knowing
How much you’ve been had”

All of this brings us back around to the message contained within ‘The Inner Light’. Back in 2020 when COVID-19 was wreaking havoc on the globally, Olivia and Dhani Harrison through George Harrison’s Material World Foundation orchestrated The Inner Light Challenge. The goal was to raise funds for the MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund as well as Save the Children and the French faction of Doctors Without Borders known as ‘Medecins Sans Frontieres’. This was all in response to the COVID pandemic.

Here is Olivia Harrison’s plea.

These lyrics sung by George are a positive reminder to all of us who are isolating, in quarantine or respecting the request to shelter in place. Let’s get and stay connected at this difficult time. There are things we can do to help and we invite you to share your Inner Light.”

Words like respect and phrases like stay connected, combined with an invocation to share your inner light was a broad appeal to humanity to rise above the usual day to day routine, and be there for someone.

As the teachings instill, humility is a driving force and they serve as a reminder that we are all travelling the same interstellar highway.

But like George Harrison said, if you don’t know where you are going, any road will take you there.

Don’t wait until you get there to finally begin your journey.

Power to the People – Let the working class become its own hero. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JohnLennon

It has now been 45 years since John Lennon was assassinated.

Yes, it was an assassination.

Some call it a premeditated murder or just a murder.

It was senseless. It was brutal. Emotionally speaking, it was painful for millions of music fans all over the world because a musician who had spoken both to them, and for them for two decades was gone in an act of violence that people are still trying to comprehend four-and-a-half-decades later.

An assassination is the murder of a public figure, typically for political or ideological reasons, whereas murder is the unlawful killing of any person. The key difference is the victim’s status and the motive. An assassination targets a prominent individual for a political or symbolic purpose, whereas murder can stem from any motive, ranging from a personal dispute to greed. 

Typically, the act may intend to have a broader political impact. In the case of the killing of John Lennon, a mentally impaired individual was hoping to gain publicity for what he perceived to be, a just cause. 

In truth, this individual was a religious zealot who exists as a harbinger of so much of what was to come in a nation that so easily accepts the fact that people who fall through society’s cracks just aren’t trying hard enough.

It was ‘God’ from the album, ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ released  55 years ago this week that sent this troubled individual from his Hawaii home to New York City.

The dream is over
What can I say?
The Dream is over
Yesterday
I was the Dreamweaver
But now I’m reborn
I was the walrus
But now I’m John
And so, dear friends
You’ll just have to carry on
The dream is over”

Here is a quote from a book by Jack Jones called ‘Let Me Take You Down: Inside the Mind of Mark David Chapman, the Man Who Killed John Lennon’.  

I would listen to this music and I would get angry at him, for saying [in the song ’God’] that he didn’t believe in God, that he just believed in him and Yoko, and that he didn’t believe in the Beatles. This was another thing that angered me, even though this record had been done at least ten years previously. I just wanted to scream out loud, “Who does he think he is, saying these things about God and heaven and the Beatles?” Saying that he doesn’t believe in Jesus and things like that. At that point, my mind was going through a total blackness of anger and rage. So, I brought the Lennon book home, into this ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ milieu where my mindset is Holden Caulfield and anti-phoniness.”

So, one man felt he was the judge, the jury and the executioner. As a result, a poet, a visionary, a father, a husband, a friend to many, and a symbol of an era, lay dying on the sidewalk.

Soon after, Howard Cosell of all people broke the news of John Lennon’s death to the world at the end of a meaningless football game.

An unspeakable tragedy.”

As Howard said, it is difficult to go back to a game after that.

From a personal perspective, my clock radio woke me up to the news the next morning. Strangely, it began with the piano intro to ‘Imagine’ before the broadcaster shared the news of John Lennon’s death. I was shocked, but the magnitude of it all did not hit me until I got to school. Teachers who had grown up with John Lennon and The Beatles were hugging each other and crying. It was here that I understood. As I type, it occurs to me that this may have been the moment in my life that I understood the power of music. How it truly serves as a galvanizing force on a global level.

Upon reflection, there may only be one other death of an entertainment icon that I remember so vividly. I think of David Bowie and the sheer impact and shock. The reaction was based on the suddenness, but it lacks the senselessness and violence. While researching anecdotes for today’s feature I learned of this startling connection between John Lennon, David Bowie and the killer’s quest. Here is a revelation from David Bowie.

I was second on his list. Chapman had a front-row ticket to ‘The Elephant Man’ the next night. John and Yoko were supposed to sit front-row for that show too. So, the night after John was killed there were three empty seats in the front row. I can’t tell you how difficult that was to go on. I almost didn’t make it through the performance.”

The lunatic fringe is out there, and we carry on, never knowing what awaits around the next corner.

When John Lennon wrote ‘Power to the People’ he was picking up on a cultural uprising. People were tuned into the idea that there was strength in numbers and their voice mattered. Peaceful protest was a powerful tool in any democracy. As much as people sought John Lennon’s commentary when it came to discussing global affairs, he knew that his most effective means of getting his ideas across was through his song writing.

 I wrote ‘Power to the People’ the same way I wrote ‘Give Peace a Chance’ as something for the people to sing. I make singles like broadsheets. It was another quickie.”

Here is ‘Give Peace a Chance’.

Give Peace a Chance – We have a right to have a say in the future. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers

Through ‘Power to the People’ Lennon was reconciling his massive success with The Beatles with his working-class upbringing. He admits to feeling guilty.

(British Pakistani activist and writer) Tariq Ali kept coming round wanting money for ‘Red Mole’ or some magazine or other. I was thinking, Well I’m working class and I am not one of them, but I am rich and therefore I have to. So, any time anybody said something like that, I would fork out. He was hustling for whatever he was hustling for and I wrote ‘Power to The People’ as a sort of guilt song. It’s like a newspaper song, where you write about something instant that’s going on right now. It’s the news headlines with misprints and everything.”

Lennon wrote ‘Power to the People’ the day after he gave this famous interview to ‘Red Mole’. Here is a passage.

I’ve always been politically minded, you know, and against the status quo. It’s pretty basic when you’re brought up, like I was, to hate and fear the police as a natural enemy and to despise the army as something that takes everybody away and leaves them dead somewhere. I mean, it’s just a basic working-class thing, though it begins to wear off when you get older, get a family and get swallowed up in the system.”

Here is the full interview. For fans of John Lennon, this is essential reading.

http://www.beatlesinterviews.org/db1971.0121.beatles.html

You can feel his creative wheels turning as he responds to the questions.

He broadcasts his ideas in a series of headlines and commands. Imagine how prolific he would have been in the world of memes and reels we live in today. He was inspiring an uprising and a change in public conscience through songs like ‘Power to the People’ and ‘Imagine.

Imagine – A global anthem. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JohnLennon #YokoOno #LadyGaga

and Working Class Hero

Working Class Hero – Aspire to be something more. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JohnLennon #ThePlasticOnoBand #GreenDay

Worthy causes were appealing to him everywhere and the expectation was that he would give, or be perceived as a hypocrite. The public demand weighed heavily on him, and he channeled that into songs that shifted the call to action onto those who were listening to his message.

Free yourself. Whatever the cause. The message is obvious. It is as deep as you want it to be. He was on a crusade for the truth, but the truth is not the same for any two people.

Gimme Some Truth – The more I see, the less I know for sure. #MusicisLife #TedTocksCovers #JohnLennon #GenerationX #PearlJam #TheWallflowers #JakobDylan #DhaniHarrison #CheapTrick #BillieJoeArmstrong

Existentially speaking, we are all on our own quest and when we share in a common purpose our journeys merge.

Collectively, we have the power.

Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on

Say you want a revolution
We better get on right away
Well you get on your feet
And out on the street

Singing power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on

A million workers working for nothing
You better give ’em what they really own
We got to put you down
When we come into town

Singing power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on

I gotta ask you comrades and brothers
How do you treat your own woman back home
She got to be herself
So she can free herself

Singing power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on
Now, now, now, now

Oh well, power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on

Yeah, power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on

Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on”

Famously, for all his efforts John Lennon was seen as a divisive force. He was perceived as a voice of the people by music fans and as a subversive to the political powers of the day. To some degree, John Lennon lamented this reality.

I don’t wanna be a soldier mama, I don’t wanna die”

During the early 1970s, President Richard Nixon and his administration viewed John Lennon not merely as a celebrity but as a major political threat. The primary concern for the Nixon White House was Lennon’s potential to motivate young people to protest the Vietnam War and vote against the President in the upcoming 1972 election, especially since the national voting age had recently been lowered to 18. This is a crucial point. Because of Lennon’s immense fame and charisma, the administration feared his influence on this new group of voters. To neutralize this perceived threat, the Nixon administration, encouraged by Republican Senator Strom Thurmond, used federal agencies like the FBI and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to target Lennon. This campaign included extensive FBI surveillance, where Lennon’s phones were wiretapped and detailed files were kept on his activities and his associations with American activists. More aggressively, the administration tried to deport Lennon, using his 1968 conviction for hashish possession in the UK as the legal grounds. Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, fought this deportation order in court for several years, eventually winning their case in 1976. The overall goal of the surveillance and deportation attempts was to disrupt Lennon’s high-profile anti-Nixon and anti-war campaigns, which the administration considered a “huge threat.” Following Nixon’s successful re-election in November 1972, the intense government surveillance largely stopped, although the immigration fight continued. The public only learned the full details of the government’s efforts to silence Lennon years later when FBI files were released under the Freedom of Information Act.

Tell me more about the U.S.A. being the land of the free and the home of the brave?

In a 1975 ‘Rolling Stone’ interview John Lennon explained how his arrival in the U.S. illustrated some of the trappings of fame. Everyone wanted a piece of him, especially when it came to furthering a cause.

I’ll tell you what happened literally. I got off the boat, only it was an airplane, and landed in New York, and the first people who got in touch with me was Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman. It’s as simple as that. And the next thing you know, I’m doin’ John Sinclair benefits and one thing and another. I’m pretty movable, as an artist, you know.”

It’s that last line that foreshadows his half decade hiatus from music following a tumultuous five-year period that saw the following life altering events take place.

• Breakup of The Beatles who debatably were the biggest act in music history.
• An unimaginable series of legal wranglings between bandmates and management companies.
• The release of six solo albums that began with ‘John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band’ in 1970 and ended with ‘Rock n Roll’ in 1975.
• His relocation from England to New York City in 1971.
• Perceived by the Nixon administration as a proponent of anti-war and anti-Nixon propaganda.
• Denied permanent residency until 1976.
• Separated from Yoko Ono for 18 months between 1973 and 1975, famously known as ‘the lost weekend’.
• Reunited with Yoko.
• Birth of son, Sean Ono Lennon in 1975 on his 35^th birthday.

Looking back, it still seems crazy that all of this happened from the time he turned 30 years old.

No wonder he needed a break. As I write, I take a moment to reflect on these lyrics from ‘Watching the Wheels’ which came out on ‘Double Fantasy’ in October of 1980.

When I tell them that I’m doin’ fine
Watchin’ shadows on the wall
Don’t you miss the big time, boy?
You’re no longer on the ball

I’m just sittin’ here watchin’ the wheels go round and round
I really love to watch them roll
No longer ridin’ on the merry-go-round
I just had to let it go”

He needed an escape from the big time.

Before moving on to the cover versions for today’s feature, the quality cast of players that contributed to ‘Power to the People’ needs to be mentioned. This list includes the ever-present Klaus Voorman on bass guitar. To many, the fifth Beatle, Billy Preston lent his talents on piano and keyboards. The one and only Bobby Keys contributed his distinct saxophone sound. Just after ascending to rock and roll glory through his role as drummer for Derek and the Dominos, Jim Gordon played drums for Lennon. This also followed his contribution to George Harrison’s ‘All Things Must Pass’ recording. The backing vocals were provided by a quality combination of singers that included; Rosetta Hightower, Madeline Bell, Lesley Duncan, Kay Garner, Liza Strike, Sue Glover and Sunny Leslie. It was all produced by Phil Spector.

Typical to anything recorded by The Beatles or any of the solo projects released by the  fabulous members, the cover versions of ‘Power to the People’ is an intriguing list made all the more important by the fact that each one is connected to a cause.

We will begin with Al Green and his contribution to ‘The World’s Greatest Artists Sing Lennon – A Tribute’ which was recorded on May 5, 1990 at the Pier Head in Liverpool and released in 1991. This is simply uplifting. Soul personified.

In 2000 Eric Burdon and Billy Preston collaborated on a cover of ‘Power to the People’ as part of the soundtrack for ‘Steal this Movie’. This film chronicled the life of radical activist Abbie Hoffman and his wife Anita. It was based on the book, ‘Abbie Hoffman: American Rebel’. The movie title was a take on Hoffman’s roadmap to being a subversive thorn in the side of the establishment. To add to the cool factor of this incredible cover version is the fact that Ringo Starr contributes the drum track and backing vocals. Listen to Billy Preston on the piano. The energy is contagious. Amazing stuff.

Here is another fascinating take. This time from Black Eyed Peas and their contribution to   the quality compilation known as ‘Instant Karma: The Amnesty International Campaign to Save Darfur’ which was released in 2005.

To conclude, we will jump all the way ahead to 2019 and a memorable moment from Tom Morello during a live performance in San Diego. He introduces it as;

An old gospel standard”

The gospel according to John.

Spending so much time with John Lennon’s music will inevitably allow one’s mind to wander. Mine went back to a time when he declared that The Beatles were more popular than Jesus Christ.

Christianity will go. It will vanish and shrink … We’re more popular than Jesus now – I don’t know which will go first, rock and roll or Christianity.”

This occurred at the height of the band’s popularity. Despite the fact that this quote went virtually unnoticed in the U.K., at the time of its release, the article by Maureen Cleave was a bridge too far for the hypocrites in the U.S. bible belt who ended up finding themselves aligned with the Ku Klux Klan. Here is John Lennon’s reflection on this period of his life.

 But you’ve got to remember that I’d always felt repressed. We were all so pressurised that there was hardly any chance of expressing ourselves, especially working at that rate, touring continually and always kept in a cocoon of myths and dreams. It’s pretty hard when you are Caesar and everyone is saying how wonderful you are and they are giving you all the goodies and the girls, it’s pretty hard to break out of that, to say ‘Well, I don’t want to be king, I want to be real.’ So, in its way the second political thing I did was to say ‘The Beatles are bigger than Jesus. That really broke the scene, I nearly got shot in America for that. It was a big trauma for all the kids that were following us. Up to then there was this unspoken policy of not answering delicate questions, though I always read the papers, you know, the political bits.”

He was being treated like a King, or a rock and roll messiah, much to his own discomfort. When he brought up this allegorical reference in the form of Jesus, a faction of society turned against him.

Isn’t it ironic? A half century later a man with a fraction of John Lennon’s intelligence, charisma and wisdom was offered up as God’s chosen leader and heralded by the same ilk, as an imperfect vessel to deliver the concept of American exceptionalism to citizens who struggle with the ability to think for themselves. Despite every warning sign imaginable including a multitude of bankruptcies, embezzlements, grifts, adultery, rape allegations and connections to trafficking teenage girls in addition to a stunning degree of traits which reflect borderline IQ, millions of gullible sheep elected him as President…twice.

Meanwhile, on this day 45 years ago John Lennon was killed by a sick man who perceived him to be ‘phoney’.

That mentally ill individual would fit in well with the disgusting array of ingrates who are holding onto power by their fingernails this very moment.

In ‘The Tempest’ William Shakespeare wrote;

Hell is empty and all the devils are here.”

In other words, evil and suffering are not confined to the great literary works of the past. Horrors exist in the human world, and presently it resides in the chaos and cruelty caused by people. Monster regimes are at the helm in Russia, Israel and the United States, just to name a few.

We need change.

You say you want a revolution? Let’s get on it right away. If you are opposed to fascist rule fed by greedy, self-serving oligarchs bent on dismantling the democratic process, it’s time to get on your feet, and go out into the street and say, NO!

Power to the people! Right on!