Monday's Music Moves Me: Work Songs

Monday's Music Moves Me theme today is a freebie and since it is Labor Day I thought I would go with "work" songs. I hope you enjoy.

I will start with Huey Lewis and the News "Workin' for a Livin'"

To those of us who work on the weekends "Working for the Weekend" with Loverboy

John Lennon "Working Class Hero"

                                            "Taking Care of Business" by Bachman Turner Overdrive

                                       
                                             Lynyrd Skynyrd "Workin' for MCA"

                                     

                                         Those are five fun work songs for your Labor Day Celebration!

Battle of the Bands Update: Merry Clayton

When I chose Merry Clayton as a participant on my October 1, 2015 Battle of the Bands that she recently had both of her legs amputated due to a near fatal car accident in 2014. I did vnot know she was going to be honored this month by the American Jazz Foundation with the first ever "Clark and Gwen Terry Courage Award."

I knew her because she provided the original female vocals on the chosen song for my Rocktober Battle of the Band song "Gimme Shelter" by the Rolling Stones. I thought her own version of the song would be cool to feature.



She lost the Battle to Grand Funk Railroad and Grand Funk Railroad had their day as victors wish you can revisit here.

However with all that Merry Clayton is going through and still have the attitude of "I Still have the voice" I think she deserves a post as well!

Here she talks about doing that song, Mick Jagger offers his thoughts, and a bit of just her..

Interesting trivia early in her career she worked with Ray Charles as one of The Raelettes. Her backup vocals ended up helping singers such as Pearl Bailey, Tom Jones, Joe Cocker, Carol King, Neil Young and more. If backing up The Rolling Stones on "Gimme Shelter" wasn't big enough her vocals also are featured on Lynyrd Skynyrds "Sweet Home Alabama."

In the 80s there was a movie called "Dirty Dancing" which was kind of big. Merry Clayton
is featured on the soundtrack with a song called "Yes"..

Here is a funky song called "Keep Your Eye on the Sparrow"

I didn't realize she also was featured on the Tori Amos song "Cornflake Girl" and was married to jazz musician Curtis Amy. Curtis brother is Sam Clayton who was a percussionist with Little Feat.

Merry Clayton plans to continue to sing and her voice will be featured on the  next Coldplay album.

I will be back with a new post soon.

A Perfect Way To End Summer

This was a summer of not doing much. Gas prices were high. I was working Saturdays, then I got the weekends off and my wife worked a few Saturdays. My wife switched jobs so she didn't have the time off. A car needed maintenance or something else came up. But then again we did go to the beach in March. We saw 9 Major League Baseball games including a Spring Training game, three in Baltimore, three in Washington, and two in Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh is how we spent the last seasonal weekend of summer. after attending the memorial service for Dick which I wrote about on my last blog. We headed out to Pittsburgh. Saturday night we watched the Pirates-Astros baseball game. Following the game there was a concert by Lynryd Skynyrd and fireworks. We didn't know about the concert so it was an added bonus.

Then we retired to our hotel room. The next morning we picked up some tidbits at a Super K-mart by the hotel and headed back downtown to see Sunday's game. It was the Pirates home finale. We watched the game and enjoyed the beautiful Pittsburgh afternoon. Afterwards we journeyed back home going another route. We stopped in LaValle, Maryland at a restaurant we have come to enjoy on our travels. Then we finally made it home around midnight.

Beautiful weather, Lynyrd Skynyrd and baseball what a wonderful way to say goodbye to summer.