Paul McCartney Tosses Off A “G” Gem!
Just a guy at a piano, but what came from the mind of Paul McCartney was genius and a great way to begin my look at songs that begin with “G”!
You’ve got Beatles, Bond, Genesis and Gaucho too! Let’s go!
These Guys Messing About In The Studio!
Yes, take four Beatles and a collection of songs, and what do you get? Another of their masterpieces, including this great song from Paul!
“Got To Get You Into My Life” by The Beatles
This is one of Paul’s great slices of upbeat pop, from the “Revolver” album – many know it as a huge hit for Earth, Wind & Fire – but it was a Beatles original!
Here is a terrific live performance by Paul at The White House for then-President Obama!
The Beatles released the greatest music of all time, and the “Revolver” album is an amazing collection of great pop hits, ballads and experimentation…see more about the 50th anniversary of this masterpiece here:
Next up, a band made of of these members:
Here is one of my favorite songs from Gorillaz, a British “Virtual Band” started in 1998 by Damon Albarn from Blur – and all of the band members are animated!
Here is their incredible video for “Feed Good, Inc.”:
Next up is a band that hasn’t been given as much credit as they deserve – perhaps because they posed like this for an album cover:
Grand Funk Railroad – “We’re An American Band”
They had a pretty good collection of rock hits, but this song is the classic – life on the road for “an american band”:
“We’re coming to your town
We’ll help you party down
We’re An American Band”
Here’s a great live performance from 1974:
One of my favorite Artists, Todd Rundgren, produced this album – click here for a closer look, and also see how The Simpsons celebrated the music of Grand Funk Railroad as well!
And here’s a wild story for you – courtesy of an iconic pop/punk band:
First, Green Day has had a long and successful career – including a few songs that are now considered classics. Here’s one of their most famous songs, “Wake Me Up When September Ends”:
What I love is how the band chose their name!
Hav you seen this film?
I love this story – click here to see more about this sci-fi classic and the visual clue as to the band’s name!
The biggest selling duo in music history is getting the acclaim they deserve now as well:
“Go Solo” – Daryl Hall and John Oates
Daryl Hall and John Oates have so many mega-hits, like “She’s Gone”, “Kiss On My List” and “Sara Smile”, but in the early 80’s, this song turned up as an album cut on their big hit “H2O” – here is the video:
Here is a look at some other album tracks from their great body of work – fun music videos as well!
Next up, a look at some of the greatest James Bond 007 theme songs, like this one:
“Goldfinger” by Shirley Bassey
The third film in the 007 series started off with a big, bold and brassy theme song that cemented James Bond as the coolest guy in the world…and Bassey as one of our greatest vocalists…here she is performing the song live:
“Goldfinger” is considered one of the greatest Bond films, and themes as well, but what is the best? Well, here is my list of the “best” and “worst” Bond songs of all:
Next up, a band that lost its lead vocalist, and then became one of the biggest selling groups…welcome to the world of Genesis:
Genesis – “Turn It On Again”
At the dawn of the 80’s, a new Genesis, now with lead vocals by Drummer Phil Collins, arrived with a song that begins with a catchy guitar riff and explodes into the sound that would make them one of the best-selling groups of the decade…here is the music video:
A great new documentary brought the entire band back together, including original lead singer Peter Gabriel, for a candid look at the band…see more here:
Finally, another band refined its sound in the 80’s:
“Gaucho” by Steely Dan
After the phenomenal success of “Aja” at the end of the 70’s, Steely Dan cemented their new blues/jazz funk on their next album from 1980, and the title track is a great example of their sound.
Here’s a video from youtube by “Steely Ben”, showing lyrics and images over the audio of the song:
Fans of the band were stunned to lose Walter Becker – here is a look at the band he founded with Donald Fagen:
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Let me know what great “G” songs or bands I missed!
Categories: 70's Music, Art, Classic Rock, Music, Pop Culture, The Beatles
johnrieber 
Ah Genesis, I’ve often been to their concerts. Great band. Such a shame that Phil can’t play the drums anymore.
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Yes, a sad end to an amazing career…and known to be one of the nicest people in music too!
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I’m in heaven! I still have my Revolver album, Green Day is on my play list, Goldfinger was my first Bond movie at the theater (35 cents, plus 15 cents for popcorn), and Hall and Oates. I did see Soylent Green at the theater when it came out… ‘nuf said on that movie.
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Some great stuff here, John. For us in the UK the big hit version of Got To Get You Into My Life wasn’t EW&F, who limped into our top forty. Here it was Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers: produced by Macca, released on the same day as Revolver, it got to #6.
As well as Genesis you could always go for that recently departed lead singer – Peter Gabriel – who has made some great music since going solo.
I didn’t know the Green Day story, but was pleased you gave us one of their best songs. For me, that one ranks alongside Good Riddance and Boulevard of Broken Dreams.
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That’s interesting! The EW&F is the one everyone knows here! Thanks for your comments on the other Artists as well – happy holidays!
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It barely saw the light of day here! Funny how that happens, but I’d guess they generally did better there than here anyway.
Happy Christmas to you too 😉
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Gorillaz were great. Damon Albarn is something of a British musical genius. ‘Feel Good’ is a true anthem, and his work with Blur is timeless indeed.
Steely Dan is my favourite American band, and I listened to ‘Gaucho’ on vinyl until I wore it out.
I also agree that Grand Funk Railroad are very underrated.
Best wishes, Pete.
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