Tuesday, November 18, 2014

They Sang THAT?

I recently discovered that I have musical blind spots.

Maybe not that bad, but still. WHAT??
Most of you probably have them, too. You know, like when you've been hearing a song for years, and you either thought you knew who recorded it or never gave it much thought at all. And then one day you happen to discover whose song it actually is, and it's nobody you ever would have connected with it. And you're all "Well, that certainly is a surprise to me. I did not realize that artist was responsible for this audio recording!"

David Castillo Dominici/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Or more likely, "Dafuq? Are you shittin' me?"
My mental music catalog is pretty extensive - it takes up brain space that might otherwise by occupied by tact and social skills - so I'm always surprised when I realize that X song is by Y group, and I had no clue. I usually feel a little betrayed, as well. I mean, how dare a band not be so predictable and one-dimensional that I can instantly identify any of its songs?

Come to think of it, maybe I should call it a deaf spot rather than a blind spot, hmmm?

Beethoven would not be amused if he heard that. HA!
Whatever you call it, it's happened to me several times just in the last couple of weeks. Here's what I mean.

Although I'm a huge fan of cheesy 70s pop, I've always thought this particular song crossed the line into schlocky crap (or crappy schlock, if you will). I had no idea that it was by freaking Alice Cooper.



I didn't know that this awesome song was by Fleetwood Mac. Late-60s, bluesy Fleetwood Mac, not Buckingham-Nicks Fleetwood Mac, granted. But still - I always figured it was Bad Company or Foghat or something. Nope.




And finally, I always thought that goofy-looking Ric Ocasek was the lead singer of all the Cars' hits, possibly because I OD'd on that "You Might Think" video in the 80s. I just recently discovered that most of my favorite Cars songs were actually sung by the absolutely gorgeous (and, sadly, now deceased) Ben Orr.




I could go on, but I want to hear from you. Are there any songs you've listened to forever and then were blown away when you learned who sang them? Let me know in the comments.

Or I can give you a lengthy dissertation on the differences between the Paper Lace rendition of 1974's "Billy, Don't Be a Hero" and the better known but inferior version by Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods. Don't think I won't.

2 comments:

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  2. Most embarrassing musical moment: I heard "I Would Do Anything For Love" and thought it was sung by Rod Stewart. Aside from the fact that Stewart and Meatloaf look nothing alike (even if you covered them both with ketchup) they don't even sound remotely similar. I know diddly about music and even I'm pretty sure Meatloaf's voice is lower than Stewart's.

    Second worst moment: thinking Rick Astley was black. That probably should take the top spot.

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