R. Kelly really took off with this inspirational space jam. He composed 'I Believe I Can Fly' for the film 'Space Jam' featuring Michael Jordan with Looney Tunes characters. Kelly was given an advance copy of the movie: "I studied it and I prayed over it because I wanted the best thing to come out of it." The song was more of a sucess than the film, going to number one in Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the UK. In the US, it peaked at number two on the pop chart; but held the number one position on the R&B chart for six weeks. 'I Believe I Can Fly' also won three Grammy Awards for Rhythm-and-Blues Song, Male Rhythm-and-Blues Vocalist, and Film or Television Song.
I used to think that I could not go on And life was nothing but an awful song But now I know the meanin' of true love I'm leanin' on the everlasting arms
If I can see it then I can do it If I just believe it, there's nothing to it
I believe I can fly I believe I can touch the sky I think about it every night and day Spread my wings and fly away I believe I can soar I see me running through that open door I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly I believe I can fly
See I was on the verge of breakin' down Sometimes silence can seem so loud There are miracles in life I must achieve But first I know it starts inside of me oh
If I can see it then I can be it If I just believe it, there's nothing to it
I believe I can fly I believe I can touch the sky I think about it every night and day Spread my wings and fly away I believe I can soar I see me runnin' through that open door I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly I believe I can fly
Hey 'cuz I believe in me If I can see it then I can do it If I just believe it, there's nothing to it
I believe I can fly I believe I can touch the sky I think about it every night and day Spread my wings and fly away I believe I can soar I see me runnin' through that open door I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly I believe I can fly
Hey if I just spread my wings I can fly I can fly I can fly, hey If I just spread my wings I can fly Fly
DJ Shadow changed the world of hip hop with this plunderphonic magnum opus. Josh Davis created his debut album 'Endtroducing' completely out of samples, a first according to 'Guinness World Records'. Showing off his record collection and bringing together such diverse sources as jazz, soul, metal, alternative, rap, new age, folk, rock, horror movies, documentaries, and just about anything that struck his fancy; Davis meticulously transformed his obscure samples into an amazingly cohesive sonic dreamscape using an Akai MPC60 (Musical Instrument Digital Interface Production Center 60). Davis says: "All of the music I’ve ever been drawn to has been really immediate and raw. And at the same time, it’s usually well-arranged and conceived. That doesn’t mean hiring a 50-piece orchestra and all of that pretentious shit. It could be one person and a guitar, and be amazing in the same way. I like work that’s unapologetically audacious; everything from productions by people like Trevor Horn to albums that I name-drop all the time, like '3 Feet High and Rising', 'a Nation of Millions', Dr. Dre’s production for N.W.A. None of that stuff is just tossed together, and let’s hope for the best. You never perceive mistakes of bad decisions. You just nod your head and it builds inside of you."
'Building Steam with a Grain of Salt' samples: * "I Worship You" by Lexia * "I Need You" by H.P. Riot * "I Feel a New Shadow" by Jeremy Storch * "Soul Food" by Frankie Seay and the Soul Riders * "Planetary Motivations (Cancer)" by Mort Garson * "George Marsh on Drums: Interviewed by Terry McGovern" from the LP Music Makers Percussion, released by the Chevron/Standard Oil Company of California
'The Number Song'
samples: * "아름다운 인형(Get Ready)" by He 6 * "Orion" by Metallica * "Breakdown" by T La Rock * "AJ Scratch" by Kurtis Blow * "Quit Jive'in" by Pearly Queen * "Baby Don't Cry" by The Third Guitar * "Sexy Coffee Pot" by Tony Alvon and the Belairs * "Back to the Hip-Hop" by The Troubleneck Brothers * "Bad Luck" by Don Covayand the Lemon Blues Band * "Can I Kick It?(Spirit Mix)" by A Tribe Called Quest * "Who Got the Number" by Pigmeat Markhamand the B.Y. * "Fantastic Freaks at the Dixie" by DJ Grand Wizard Theodoreand the Fantastic Five * "Corruption is the Thing" by Creations Unlimited * "Flash It to the Beat" by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five * "Freelance" by Grandmaster Flash * "Been Had" by Sapo * "8 Counts for Rita" by Jimmy Smith
'Changeling/Transmission 1'
samples: * "Soft Shell" by Motherlode * "Klondyke Netti" by Embryo * "Invisible Limits" by Tangerine Dream * "Imagination Flight" by the Chaffey College Jazz Ensemble * "Touching Souls" and "Inner Mood I" by Kay Gardner * "The Man Who Couldn't Cry" by Loudon Wainwright III * "Here Comes the Meterman" by The Meters
'Stem/Long Stem/Transmission 2'
samples: * "Love Suite" by Nirvana * "Tears" by Giorgio Moroder * "Linde Manor" by Dennis Linde * "Freedom" by Murray Roman * "Variazione III" by Osanna * "Blues So Bad" by The Mystic Number National Bank * "Oleo Strut" by Mother Mallard's Portable Masterpiece Company * "Moshitup" by Just-Ice featuring KRS-One * Background synthesizers from the film 'Blade Runner'* "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" by Led Zeppelin * "The Human Abstract" by David Axelrod * "The Madness Subsides" by Pekka Pohjola * "Dolmen Music" by Meredith Monk * Audio from the film 'Prince of Darkness'
'Mutual Slump'
samples: * "Possibly Maybe" by Björk * "Love, Love, Love" by Pugh Rogefeldt * "More Than Seven Dwarfs in Penis-Land" by Roger Waters and Ron Geesin
'Midnight in a Perfect World' samples: * "Outta State" by Akinyele * "Sower of Seeds" by Baraka * "California Soul" by Marlena Shaw * "The Human Abstract" by David Axelrod * "Sekoilu seestyy" (The Madness Subsides) by Pekka Pohjola * "Dolmen Music" and "Biography" by Meredith Monk * "Releasing Hypnotical Gases" by Organized Konfusion * "Life Could" by Rotary Connection
'What Does Your Soul Look Like (Pt. 1: Blue Sky Revisit)
samples: * "All Our Love" by Shawn Phillips * "Joe Splivingates" by David Young * "Nucleus" by The Alan Parsons Project * "Voice of the Saxophone" by The Heath Brothers * Audio from the film 'Prince of Darkness'* Voice of the character The Giant from the episode "Lonely Souls" of the TV series 'Twin Peaks' 'Endtroducing' full album: 0:00 Best Foot Forward 0:46 Building Steam with a Grain of Salt 7:25 The Number Song 12:00 Changeling 19:16 Transmission 1 19:51 What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 4) 24:53 Untitled 25:19 Stem/Long Stem 33:06 Transmission 2 34:35 Mutual Slump 38:35 Organ Donor 40:33 Why Hip Hop Sucks in '96 41:14 Midnight in a Perfect World 46:15 Napalm Brain/Scatter Brain 55:37 What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1 - Blue Sky Revisit) 1:01:54 Transmission 3
There was a bit of a delay for Beck in the recording of this diverse, sampladelic, post modern tour de force. “I thought 'Odelay' might be the last time I got a chance to make a record. I was acutely aware that I was thought of as a one-hit wonder. And I had all kinds of people telling me that it was no good, not to put it out. Before it came out, nobody who heard it was saying ‘This is fucking great.’ I really thought it might be a last hurrah.”
Sessions began with Bong Load producers Tom Rothrock and Rob Schnapf, with largely acoustic songs that were dark and downbeat; but Beck abandoned these and started working with the production team of the Dust Brothers (Mike Simpson and John King) at their house at Silver Lake. “It was tiny,” says Beck. “And one wall, floor to ceiling, was all records.”
They spent a lot of time listening to those records and coming up with impromptu jams. Simpson recalls, “We’d always been forced to sample from records. Whereas with Beck he’d say, ‘I’ve got some ideas’, and plug in his guitar and just start riffing. He’d play a bar or a measure and we’d take that and loop it up and he’d be like, ‘Oh, that’s incredible. Wow, I don’t even remember playing that!’ We were of like minds, had the same goals and were looking to make the same kind of music.”
It was a long and painstaking process. Beck says, “There was this old stuffed chair with the spring coming out of it. I remember sitting there for hours, just staring at that computer screen, waiting for something to back up. And the Pro Tools was so primitive, a lot of times the takes would be lost, so we would just be praying we wouldn’t have to start over.”
“It was great to make a record with nobody looking over our shoulders, nobody anticipating what we were going to do, so we were freed up,” says Simpson. “Even the record company was like, ‘Yeah, cool. Let us know when it’s done’. I don’t think they expected much either. It was nice there was no pressure at all. We were like kids in a candy shop just goofing around.”
The album was a major success, making Beck a spokesman for the slacker generation; but he admits that "Most of the vocals on the album were scratch vocals; we just grew attached to them." Still, the strange word-association poetry of these place-holder lyrics resonated with fans and still have meaning for him. “I’m definitely saying specific things; I articulate things, but in a way that’s encoded. I’m not always saying it in plain language because if I did it would come out trite. It’s a song, not an essay, so I include images and wordplay. Each song is about something specific to me, but I like to add random pieces so that the picture is more blurred—more like life. Life is full of extraneous parts so I like to have these things in my songs.”
'Odelay' peaked at number sixteen sold over two million copies in the United States. It was his first hit album in the UK, making it to number seventeen and going platinum. It was nominated for the Grammy Award for Album of the Year and won a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.
"Where It's At" uses spoken samples from a sex education film, 'Sex for Teens: (Where It's At)'
"There's a destination a little up the road
From the habitations and the towns we know
A place we saw the lights turn low
The jig-saw jazz and the get-fresh flow
Pulling out jives and jamboree handouts
Two turntables and a microphone
Bottles and cans just clap your hands just clap your hands"
"Sissyneck"
"I got a stolen wife
And a rhinestone life
And some good ol' boys
I'm writing my will
On a three dollar bill
In the evening time"
"Ramshackle" was one of the songs recorded in the original sessions with Rothrock and Schnapf.
"We will go
Nowhere we know
'Til we find our one and all
Hand me downs
Flypaper towns
Stuck together
One and all"
full album:
All songs written by Beck, John King and Michael Simpson, except where noted. Produced by Beck Hansen and The Dust Brothers, except where noted. "Devils Haircut" – 3:14 "Hotwax" – 3:49 "Lord Only Knows" (Beck Hansen) – 4:14 "The New Pollution" – 3:39 "Derelict" – 4:12 "Novacane" – 4:37 "Jack-Ass" – 4:11 "Where It's At" – 5:30 "Minus" (Beck Hansen) – 2:32 Produced by Beck Hansen, Mario Caldato Jr. and Brian Paulson. "Sissyneck" – 3:52 "Readymade" – 2:37 "High 5 (Rock the Catskills)" – 4:10 "Ramshackle" (Beck Hansen) – 7:29 Produced by Tom Rothrock and Rob Schnapf. Includes a hidden track called"Computer Rock" bonus tracks: "Diskobox" "Clock"
"She had the moves, she had the speed, it went to her head
But when she's on her back
She had the knowledge
To get her into college"
'Seeing Other People'
"How are you feeling?
I don't think you can be dealing
With the situation very well
You take a lover for a dirty weekend, that's ok
But when it's over
You are looking at the working week in the eyes of a gigolo"
'Like Dylan in the Movies'
"Lisa's kissing men like a long walk home
When the music stops
Take a tip from me, don't go through the park
When you're on your own, it's a long walk home
If they follow you
Don't look back
Like Dylan in the movies
On your own
If they follow you
It's not your money that they're after, boy, it's you"
'The Fox in the Snow'
"Girl in the snow, where will you go
To find someone that will do?
To tell someone all the truth before it kills you
They listen to your crazy laugh
Before you hang a right
And disappear from sight
What do they know anyway?
You'll read it in a book
What do they know anyway?
You'll read it in a book tonight"
'If You're Feeling Sinister'
"Hilary went to the Catholic Church because she wanted information
The vicar, or whatever, took her to one side and gave her confirmation
Saint Theresa's calling her, the church up on the hill is looking lovely
But it didn't interest, the only things she wants to know is
How and why and when and where to go
How and why and when and where to follow
How and why and when and where to go
How and why and when and where to follow
But if you are feeling sinister
Go off and see a minister
He'll try in vain to take away the pain of being a hopeless unbeliever"
'Me and the Major / Get Me Away from Here, I'm Dying'
full album:
All tracks written by Stuart Murdoch. No.TitleLength 1."The Stars of Track and Field" 4:48 2."Seeing Other People" 3:48 3."Me and the Major" 3:51 4."Like Dylan in the Movies" 4:14 5."The Fox in the Snow" 4:11 6."Get Me Away from Here, I'm Dying" 3:25 7."If You're Feeling Sinister" 5:21 8."Mayfly" 3:42 9."The Boy Done Wrong Again" 4:17 10."Judy and the Dream of Horses" 3:40
The Spice Girls gave us everything when their second single made its debut at the top of the British charts. After the group separated from Heart Management, Melanie Brown and Geri Halliwell sought out producer Eliot Kennedy at his home in Sheffield and convinced him to work with them. They ended up staying at his house for a week writing material. Kennedy recalls: "None of them played instruments, so I was left to do the music and get that vibe together. What I said to them was, 'Look, I've got a chorus—check this out'. And I'd sing them the chorus and the melody—no lyrics or anything—and straight away five pencils and pads came out and they were throwing lines at us. Ten minutes later the song was written. Then you go through and refine it. Then later, as you were recording it you might change a few thing here and there. But pretty much it was a real quick process. They were confident in what they were doing, throwing it out there."
'Say You'll Be There' was produced and recorded at Olympic Studios in London with production duo Absolute (Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins) who played all of the instruments except for the harmonica, which was played by Judd Lander, who had played it on 'Karma Chameleon' by Culture Club. After the huge success of 'Wannabe', anticipation in the UK for their new single was unprecedented with advance sales of over three hundred thousand copies. When it was released in mid-October, it made its first appearance at number one; and, by the end of the month, it had sold seven hundred and fifty thousand copies. 'Say You'll Be There' was a worldwide smash, reaching the top ten in most countries, debuting at number five in the US and at number two in Australia, and reaching number one on the Eurochart and in Finland.
Inspired by films like 'Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!' and 'Pulp Fiction', the award-winning video was filmed at the Mojave Desert in California with each of the girls playing the role of a martial arts expert: Victoria Beckham was"Midnight Miss Suki", Melanie Brown was "Blazin' Bad Zula", Emma Bunton was "Kung Fu Candy", Melanie Chisholm was "Katrina Highkick", and Geri Halliwell was "Trixie Firecracker".
I'm giving you everything
All that joy can bring
This I swear
Last time that we had this conversation
I decided we should be friends
Hey, but now we're going round in circles,
Tell me will this deja vu never end? Oh
And now you tell me that you've fallen in love,
Well I never ever thought that would be
This time you gotta take it easy
Throwing far too much emotions at me
But any fool can see they're falling,
I gotta make you understand
I'm giving you everything all that joy can bring this I swear
(I give you everything)
And all that I want from you is a promise you will be there
Say you will be there (Say you will be there)
Won't you sing it with me
If you, put two and two together
you will see what our friendship is for (Oh)
If you can't work this equation then
I guess I'll have to show you the door
There is no need to say you love me,
It would be better left unsaid
I'm (I'm) giving you everything (I give you everything)
all that joy(all the joy) can bring this I swear (yes I swear)
and (and) all that I want from you (all I want from you) is a promise
(is a promise) you will be there
Yeah, I want you
Any fool can see they're falling,
gotta make you understand
I'll give you everything on this I swear
Just promise you'll always be there
I'm giving you everything (I'm giving you everything)
all that joy (all that joy can bring) can bring this I
swear (yes I swear)
and all that I want from you (all that I want from you) is a promise
(I want you to promise you'll) you
will be there (always be there)
I'm giving you everything (I m giving you everything)
all that joy (all that joy can bring) can bring this I swear (yes I swear)
and all that I want from you (all that I want from you) is a promise
Pearl Jam had a little wow with the worldbeat sound of this meditative single. The song was chosen as the leadoff single for'No Code'as a "conscious decision" to decrease the size of their audience and bring some sanity back to their lives after their uphill battle against Ticketmaster. Eddie Vedder recalls, "We realized that we had an opportunity to experiment. For instance, everyone has written that 'Who Are You' was obviously inspired by my collaboration with Nusrat, but that's not where it came from". New drummer Jack Irons explains: "I'd been playing that since I was eight. It was inspired by a Max Roach drum solo I heard at a drum shop when I was a little kid." Stone Gossard also contributed to the composition of 'Who You Are' and the rest of the band knew they were onto something. "When I first heard that song, I was totally blown away by it. I thought it was the best song we had ever done!" exclaims Mike McCready. Vedder's lyrics seem to dance around the ideas of fate and free will and how who we are and the part we play in our lives depends on how we are. In the middle of a live performance of the song, he remarked, "It's a long story, and it won't fit . . . in a Rolling Stone." 'Who You Are' only reached number thirty one on the US pop chart; but it was a top five hit around the world, hitting number one on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and the Canadian RPM Alternative 30.
Girl Power took the world by storm out of Maidenhead with a little zigazig-ha. Heart Management put out an ad for girls ("Are you street smart, extrovert, ambitious, and able to sing and dance?") and received hundreds of replies. The five finalists Victoria Adams (Posh), Melanie Brown (Scary), Melanie Chisholm (Sporty), Geri Halliwell (Ginger), and Michelle Stephenson, moved in together and formed Touch. Emma Bunton (Baby) replaced Stephenson and they changed their name to Spice. At an industry showcase performance, they met producer Richard Stannard who got them together with his partner Matt Rowe. 'Wannabe' came out during their first writing session, with the group contributing parts they already had in a furious blast of creative energy that took thirty minutes. Mel C says, "You know when you're in a gang and you're having a laugh and you make up silly words? Well we were having a giggle and we made up this silly word, zigazig-ha. And we were in the studio and it all came together in this song." They recorded the song in less than an hour; but Posh missed the session and contributed backup vocals later. The group left Heart Management over artistic differences and signed with Simon Fuller's 19 Entertainment and accepted a deal with Virgin Records as the Spice Girls. They rejected numerous attempts to remix the song until Fuller gave it to Spike Stent. 'Wannabe' was their first single, topping the charts in thirty-one countries, selling over six million copies worldwide, and becoming the best-selling single by a female group. http://www.thespicegirls.com/
Ha ha ha ha ha Yo, I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want So tell me what you want, what you really, really want I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want So tell me what you want, what you really, really want I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna really, really, really wanna zigazig ah If you want my future, forget my past If you wanna get with me, better make it fast Now don't go wasting my precious time Get your act together we could be just fine I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want So tell me what you want, what you really, really want I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna really, really, really wanna zigazig ah If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends (Gotta get with my friends) Make it last forever, friendship never ends If you wanna be my lover, you have got to give Taking is too easy, but that's the way it is Oh, what do you think about that Now you know how I feel Say, you can handle my love, are you for real (Are you for real) I won't be hasty, I'll give you a try If you really bug me then I'll say goodbye Yo I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want So tell me what you want, what you really, really want I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna, (ha) I wanna really, really, really wanna zigazig ah If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends (Gotta get with my friends) Make it last forever, friendship never ends If you wanna be my lover, you have got to give (You've got to give) Taking is too easy, but that's the way it is So, here's a story from A to Z You wanna get with me, you gotta listen carefully We got Em in the place who likes it in your face You got G like MC who likes it on a Easy V doesn't come for free, she's a real lady And as for me, ha you'll see Slam your body down and wind it all around Slam your body down and wind it all around If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends (Gotta get with my friends) Make it last forever, friendship never ends If you wanna be my lover, you have got to give (You've got to give) Taking is too easy, but that's the way it is If you wanna be my lover You gotta, you gotta, you gotta, you gotta, you gotta Slam, slam, slam, slam (make it last forever) Slam your body down and wind it all around Slam your body down and wind it all around Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha Slam your body down and wind it all around Slam your body down and zigazig ah
