The Ronettes
Be My Baby
Baby I Love You
vs
Roberta Flack
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
Killing Me Softly With Your Song
The Ronettes against Roberta Flack—like many of these contests—is a battle not just of artist against artist, but of era against era—or is music timeless enough that era doesn’t matter? A few artists in this Scarriet March Madness tournament dominated in more than one era, but the only rule here is: Two Songs and it’s on.
Roberta Flack is the only solo artist to win back-to-back Grammy Record of the Year—for “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” (1973) and “Killing Me Softly With Your Song” (1974). She won a full music scholarship to Howard University in classical piano. She tutored and taught junior HS before she was discovered at a night club. Her performance on both songs is informed by a classical and ‘selfless teacher’ sensibility—she is neither inhibited by genre, nor a desire to “rock the crowd;” as if to say, ‘Here, children, listen to this song,’ she gives us the miraculous.
The Ronettes, who had 5 Top 40 Hits, were two sisters and a cousin from Spanish Harlem—lead singer Veronica Bennett would marry Phil Spector (he made her a prisoner) when the group broke up in 1967. The Stones opened for them and the Beatles wanted them to join their 1964 tour of America, but Spector said no—the Ronettes visited England (Spector met Lennon at this time) in 1963 after “Be My Baby” made them famous. “Baby I Love You” and “Be My Baby” feature Phil Spector’s churning wall-of-sound—the arrangement, the tune, and the vocals, especially of “Be My Baby” is nothing short of a religious experience. Did Love itself make the recording? Whether it is the innocent, natural-sounding vocals, the chord structure, or the fullness of the sound which brings about the effect, it is impossible to say.
Winner The Ronettes
Don McLean
American Pie
Vincent
vs.
The Who
I Can See For Miles
Christmas (from Tommy)
Both of these contestants mention Jesus in their songs. Don McLean, the singer-songwriter who wrote about popular music and God (he calls Mick Jagger satanic apparently without irony) in his monster hit “American Pie,” and Pete Townsend, songwriter for The Who, both stress morality (‘why don’t you people see?’) in their songs. There’s a danger when you lecture too much in art (or popular music) but McLean and Townsend had no trouble attracting an audience. And anyway, morality (one way or the other) is embedded in everything.
“I Can See For Miles” (1967) is The Who cranking on all cylinders, sneering at an unfaithful chick—this was their only Top Ten hit. “Christmas” is the 7th track on Tommy (1970) and one of its best.
And Tommy doesn’t know what day it is
He doesn’t know who Jesus was
Or what praying is
How can he be saved
From the eternal grave?
Don McLean’s voice is well-suited for his sensitive songs. Paul Griffin, a session pianist, is great on “American Pie,” which is a lyrical wonder, an homage to Buddy Holly—with some puzzles in it. “Vincent” is a tender ballad to Vincent Van Gogh.
Now, I understand, what you tried to say to me
How you suffered for your sanity
How you tried to set them free
They would not listen, they did not know how
Perhaps they’ll listen now.
The aesthetic challenge is different for McLean and The Who. The former looks to avoid a certain ‘folk-y preciousness’ and the latter a kind of ‘prog-rock over-kill.’
Both McLean and The Who achieved iconic status with a self-conscious mastery of their medium; the biggest question is probably, “how important as a social comment is American Pie?” It certainly is unique.
Winner Don McLean
Stevie Wonder
My Cherie Amour
Joy Inside My Tears
vs
The Zombies
She’s Not There
Tell Her No
Both of these artists win you with their melodic songs first—everything after that is how well the song is inhabited by the voices and the instruments.
“She’s Not There” (1964) by the Zombies has everything: haunting lyrics, haunting music in which major teases minor, great vocals, a cool, intense, organ solo, a nice rhythm. The Zombies spent a long time searching for hits (they had three major ones, including “Tell Her No”) as their perfection has a certain fragility.
“My Cherie Amour” (1969) almost sounds like a Zombie song, but in a major key—it happens to be one of the prettiest songs ever made, lyric and music-wise. Its arrangement is also fuller than a Zombie song. The sweetest Stevie Wonder songs have a sadness which touches joy—“Joy Inside My Tears,” from the 1976 double album “Songs From The Key Of Life” is a grateful paean to joy tinged with an unshakeable melancholy. Wonder’s talent (22 Grammys) is such that his music has an almost insouciant, effortless quality, even when it is robust, and this is probably because he writes, sings, plays, and produces.
“She’s Not There” achieves the highest delicate and desperate moments in the contest.
Winner The Zombies
Elton John
Rocket Man
Benny And The Jets
vs
Adele
Someone Like You
Rolling In The Deep
“Someone Like You” is sung by Adele to a rather simple piano part and yet it’s one of the greatest recordings of the 21st century—a love song about saying something when there is nothing left to say; music can comfort us when it comforts nobody else is what Adele’s performance aptly demonstrates. “Rolling In The Deep” is also a bitter expression of love; it’s a vengeful and rousing song, a counter to the simple, tender poignancy of “Someone Like You.”
“Rocket Man” has it all—lyrics, hooks, sound-effects, a top-notch arrangement, and it packs an emotional punch without a shred of sentimentality. (It even has some wry humor: “Mars ain’t the kind of place to raise your kids). “Rocket Man” works perfectly on two levels—a journey by an astronaut and a trip into drugs/loneliness.
If “Rocket Man” isn’t Elton John’s best song, then “Benny And The Jets” is—like “Rocket Man,” it makes a great song better with theatrical effects; the lyrics, again, are about something which is clearly about something else: “Benny And The Jets” creates a rowdy R&B concert setting where one act is singing about another act—or so it seems. It’s a song which creates a world which you don’t want to leave—so as you enjoy the song you almost forget it’s a song. Thanks to acts like Elton John, the British invasion did not stop in the 70s—a decade which was pretty incredible for popular music.
But of course music does not finally need special effects.
Winner Adele
She upsets Elton John, and will advance with The Zombies, Don McLean, and The Ronettes.