CIGARETTES AND COFFEE

OTIS REDDING

SONGWRITERS: EDDIE THOMAS; JAY WALKER; JERRY BUTLER & OTIS REDDING

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: THE SOUL ALBUM

LABEL: VOLT RECORDS

GENRE: SOUL

YEAR: 1966

 

          Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. Redding's style of singing gained inspiration from the gospel music that preceded the genre. His singing style influenced many other soul artists of the 1960s.

            Redding was born in Dawson, Georgia, and at the age of 2, moved to Macon, Georgia. Redding quit school at age 15 to support his family, working with Little Richard's backing band, the Upsetters, and by performing in talent shows at the historic Douglass Theatre in Macon. In 1958, he joined Johnny Jenkins's band, the Pinetoppers, with whom he toured the Southern states as a singer and driver. An unscheduled appearance on a Stax recording session led to a contract and his first single, "These Arms of Mine", in 1962.

             Stax released Redding's debut album, Pain in My Heart, two years later. Initially popular mainly with African-Americans, Redding later reached a wider American pop music audience. Along with his group, he first played small shows in the American South. He later performed at the popular Los Angeles night club Whisky a Go Go and toured Europe, performing in London, Paris and other major cities. He also performed at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

        Shortly before his death in a plane crash, Redding wrote and recorded his iconic "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" with Steve Cropper. The song became the first posthumous number-one record on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B charts. The álbum The Dock of the Bay was the first posthumous album to reach number one on the UK Albums Chart. Redding's premature death devastated Stax. Already on the verge of bankruptcy, the label soon discovered that the Atco division of Atlantic Records owned the rights to his entire song catalog.

          Redding received many posthumous accolades, including two Grammy Awards, the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame. and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In addition to "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," "Respect" and "Try a Little Tenderness" are among his best-known songs.

          The Soul Album is the fourth studio album by American soul singer-songwriter Otis Redding, released in 1966.

It's early in the morning

About a quarter till three

I'm sittin' here talkin' with my baby

Over cigarettes and coffee, now

And to tell you that

Darling i've been so satisfied

Honey since i met you

Baby since i met you, ooh

 

All the places that i've been around

And all the good looking girls i've met

They just don't seem to fit in

Knowing this particularly sad, yeah

 

But it seemed so natural, darling

That you and i are here

Just talking over cigarettes and drinking coffee, ooh now

 

And whole my heart cries out

Love at last i've found you, ooh now

And honey won't you let me

Just be my whole life around you

And while i complete, i complete my whole life would be, yeah

If you would take things under consideration

And walk down this hour with me

And i would love it, yeah

 

People i say it's so early in the morning

Ou, it's a quarter till three

We're sittin' here talkin'

Over cigarettes and drinking coffee, now, lord

And i'll like to show you, well

I've known nothing but good old joy

Since i met you, darling

Honey since i've met you, baby yeah

 

I would love to have another drink of coffee, now

And please, darling, help me smoke this one more cigarette, now

I don't want no cream and sugar

'Cause i've got you, now darling

But just let me enjoy

Help me to enjoy

this good time that we'll have, baby

It's so early, so early in the morning

So early, so early in the morning

And i've got you

And you've got me

And we'll have each other

And we don't, we don't want nothing but joy, y'all

Nothing but joy...

RUSSIAN ROULETTE

RIHANNA

SONGWRITERS: CHARLES HARMON & SHAFFER SMITH

COUNTRY: BARBADOS

ALBUM: RATED R

LABEL: DEF JAM

GENRE: R&B

YEAR: 2009

 

           Robyn Rihanna Fenty(Saint Michael, February 20, 1988), better known as Rihanna, is a Barbadian singer, songwriter, actress and businesswoman. Her artistic career started professionally in 2003, when she auditioned for music producer Evan Rogers, where she passed. She would later sign a six-album deal with Def Jam record label. In addition to her musical career, Rihanna is also known for her involvement in humanitarian causes, business ventures and the fashion industry.

           Rihanna gained prominence in the music industry after the release of her first studio album, Music of the Sun in 2005, followed by the second album A Girl like Me(2006); both were influenced by Caribbean rhythms and reached the top ten on the United States album chart. She gained greater commercial recognition after the release of her third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad(2007), which incorporated elements of dance-pop and catapulted her to greater stardom, establishing her as a pop icon and a prominent figure. In the music entertainment industry. Rihanna introduced elements of music pop, dance and R & B in their four subsequent albums, Rated R(2009), Loud(2010), Talk That Talk(2011). All of which have incorporated experimentations of various musical styles and consolidated Rihanna's success on the international charts, with Unapologetic being her first number one album in the USA. His eighth album, Anti(2016), showed greater control over the artistic creativity of his work after his departure from Def Jam. It became his second number one album in the USA. In addition to her solo work, Rihanna has collaborated with various recording artists such as Drake, Eminem, Britney Spears and Calvin Harris.

      "Russian Roulette" is a song of the singer Barbadian Rihanna, for her fourth studio album, Rated R. It is the debut single from the work, released on November 23, 2009. It was written and produced by Ne-Yo, with help with composition by the singer. It debuted on the radio on October 21, 2009 at 4:23. Composed in a totally different rhythm fromprevious singles, "Russian Roulette" brings a bridge song and a strong chorus, pulling the vocal powers to the maximum. The song talks about exploring what can happen if we fall in love, and when that love becomes a kind of "fatal game". The hesitant pace is similar to that of "Unfaithful", but not as deep and specific.

      Contemporary critics attributed positive opinions to the song, with most of them expecting new material. Since then, it reached the first position in the Norway Singles Top 20 , Swiss Singles Top 75 , Bulgaria Singles Top 40 , and in the tables of Austria, Germany, and UK Singles Chart it reached the second position. It reached the ninth position in the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, in the Canadian Hot 100 and New Zealand. In the music video, there is an exchange of scenarios, between a game room, and a police interrogation room, arriving at an open space and in a water tank, where the singer is supposedly hit with several shots, coming from several sides.

           It has been certified gold by the ARIA, RIANZ and the IFPI Switzerland. It was performed for the first time live at Nokia's promotional concert, to promote the album's release. Since then, several performances of the song have been made, including at the NRJ Music Awards.

Take a breath, take it deep

Calm yourself, he says to me

If you play, you play for keeps

Take the gun, and count to three

I'm sweating now, moving slow

No time to think, my turn to go

 

And you can see my heart beating

You can see it through my chest

Said I'm terrified, but I'm not leaving

I know that I must pass this test

So just pull the trigger (trigger, trigger, trigger)

 

Say a prayer to yourself

He says, close your eyes

Sometimes it helps

And then I get a scary thought

That he's here, means he's never lost

 

And you can see my heart beating

Now you can see it through my chest

Said I'm terrified, but I'm not leaving

I know that I must pass this test

So just pull the trigger

 

As my life flashes before my eyes

I'm wondering will I ever see another sunrise?

So many won't get the chance to say goodbye

But it's too late to think of the value of my life

 

And you can see my heart beating

Now you can see it through my chest

Said I'm terrified but I'm not leaving, no!

I know that I must pass this test

And you can see my heart beating

Oh you can see it through my chest

I'm terrified but I'm not leaving, no!

I know that I must pass this test

So just pull the trigger (trigger, trigger, trigger).

ROCK THE BOAT

AALIYAH

SONGWRITERS: R. STEWART; S. GARRETT; ALKALINE TRIO & SI KAHN

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: AALIYAH

LABEL: BLACKGROUND

GENRE: R & B

YEAR: 2001

 

         Aaliyah Dana Haughton (/ɑːˈliːə/; January 16, 1979–August 25, 2001), known mononymously as Aaliyah, was an American singer, actress, dancer, and model. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and "Queen of Urban Pop".

           Born in Brooklyn and raised in Detroit, she first gained recognition at the age of 10, when she appeared on the television show Star Search and performed in concert alongside Gladys Knight. At the age of 12, Aaliyah signed with Jive Records and her uncle Barry Hankerson's Blackground Records. Hankerson introduced her to R. Kelly, who became her mentor, as well as lead songwriter and producer of her debut album, Age Ain't Nothing but a Number. The album sold three million copies in the United States and was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America(RIAA). After facing allegations of an illegal marriage with Kelly, Aaliyah ended her contract with Jive and signed with Atlantic Records.

      Aaliyah worked with record producers Timbaland and Missy Elliott for her second album, One in a Million, which sold three million copies in the United States and more than eight million copies worldwide. In 2000, Aaliyah appeared in her first film, Romeo Must Die. She contributed to the film's soundtrack, which spawned the single "Try Again". The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 solely on airplay, making Aaliyah the first artist in Billboard history to achieve this goal. After completing Romeo Must Die, Aaliyah filmed her role in Queen of the Damned, and released, in 2001, her self-titled third and final studio album, which topped the Billboard 200.

         On August 25, 2001, aged 22, Aaliyah died in na airplane accident in the Bahamas, when the badly overloaded aircraft she was traveling in crashed shortly after takeoff, killing all nine on board. The pilot was later found to have traces of cocaine and alcohol in his body, and was not qualified to fly the aircraft designated for the flight. Aaliyah's family later filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the aircraft's operator, Blackhawk International Airways, which was settled out of court.

             In the decades since her death, Aaliyah's music has continued to achieve commercial success, aided by several posthumous releases, and she has sold an estimated 24 to 32 million albums worldwide. Her accolades include three American Music Awards and two MTV VMAs, along with five Grammy Award nominations. Billboard lists her as the tenth most successful female R&B artist of the past 25 years, and the 27th most successful in history.

"Rock the Boat" is a song by American recording artist Aaliyah. It was written by Static Major, Eric Seats and Rapture Stewart for her 2001 self-titled album. "Rock the Boat" was posthumously released as a single in November 2001 in Australia, January 2002 in the United States, and May 2002 in the United Kingdom. Prior to its release as a single, "Rock the Boat" charted as an "album cut" and peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week of January 5, 2002. The song stayed on the chart for twenty-five weeks.

          Aaliyah initially started promotion for the expected second single "More Than a Woman". "Rock the Boat" was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards.

                                          

Boy, you know you make me float

Boy, you really get me high

I feel like I'm on dope

'Cause you

You serve me on a regular

 

Boy, we need to tie this rope

Before we drift any deeper

There now hold me close

Let's take this overboard now

I want you to

 

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

 

Work it in the Middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

 

Change positions

New position

New position

New position

 

Now stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

 

Ooh, baby, I love your stroke

'Cause you

'Cause you get me where I'm going

In jury you'll get my vote

'Cause I believe

I believe you know just

What you doing, now

 

Baby, now we can coast

Let's don't get in a hurry

That's too slow

Go ahead and put

That thang in overdrive now

I want you to

 

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

 

Work it in the middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

 

Change positions

New position

New position

New position

 

Now stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

 

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

 

Work it in the middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

 

Change positions

New position

New position

New position

 

Now stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

Stroke it for me

 

Stroke it for me

Hmm, stroke it baby stroke it baby

Hmm, work it baby work it baby

Ooh, stroke it

There is something I want you

 

I want you to use yourself

Like you never ever used it before

To explore my body (explore it, baby)

Until you reach the shore

You'll be callin' callin' for more

 

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

Rock the boat

 

Work it in the middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

Work the middle

Change positions.

BEGIN THE BEGUINE

JOHNNY MATHIS

SONGWRITER: COLE PORTER

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: THE BEST DAYS OF MY LIFE

LABEL: COLUMBIA RECORDS

GENRE: POP

YEAR: 1979

 

            John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer-songwriter of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum status and 73 making the Billboard charts to date. Mathis has received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for three separate recordings.

Although frequently described as a romantic singer, his discography includes traditional pop, Brazilian and Spanish music, soul, rhythm and blues, show tunes, Tin Pan Alley, soft rock, blues, country music, and even a few disco songs for his album Mathis Magic in 1979. Mathis has also recorded six albums of Christmas music. In a 1968 interview, Mathis cited Lena Horne, Nat King Cole, and Bing Crosby among his musical influences

          "Begin the Beguine" is a popular song written by Cole Porter. Porter composed the song between Kalabahi, Indonesia, and Fiji during a 1935 Pacific cruise aboard Cunard's ocean liner Franconia. In October 1935, it was introduced by June Knight in the Broadway musical Jubilee, produced at the Imperial Theatre in New York City. Beguine is a dance and music form, similar to a slow rhumba.

          The Best Days of My Life is an album by American pop singer Johnny Mathis that was released on January 29, 1979, by Columbia Records and scaled back considerably on his more than decade-long practice of recording recent hit songs by other artists. He did, however, cover two standards: "As Time Goes By" and "Begin the Beguine", the latter of which is given a disco arrangement.

      The album made its first appearance on Billboard magazine's Top LP's & Tapes chart in the issue dated February 24, 1979, and remained there for seven weeks, peaking at number 122. It also made it to number 38 during a five-week run on the UK album chart.

            The first song from the album to reach any of the charts in Billboard was a duet with Jane Olivor titled "The Last Time I Felt Like This" that was written for the 1978 film Same Time, Next Year and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song but lost to "Last Dance" from Thank God It's Friday. The duet entered the magazine's list of the 50 most popular Easy Listening records in the US in the issue dated February 24, 1979, and peaked at number 15 over the course of 12 weeks. Another track from the album, "Begin the Beguine", entered that same chart five months later, in the July 21 issue, and got as high as number 37 during its five weeks there. The only song from the album to reach the UK singles chart was "Gone, Gone, Gone", which made its debut there the following month, on August 11, and reached number 15 during a 10-week run.

           The album was first released on compact disc in 1989, and on January 27, 2015, Funkytowngrooves released an expanded edition of the album on compact disc that included five bonus tracks, two of which were disco mixes that came out in 1979 on a separate 12-inch single.

When they begin the beguine

It brings back the sound of music so tender,

It brings back a night of tropical splendour,

It brings back a memory evergreen.

 

I'm with you once more under the stars,

And down by the shore an orchestra's playing

And even the palms seem to be swaying

When they begin the beguine.

 

To live it again is past all endeavour,

Except when that tune clutches my heart,

And there we are, swearing to love forever,

And promising never, never to part.

 

What moments divine, what rapture serene,

Till clouds came along to disperse the joys we had tasted,

And now when I hear people curse the chance that was wasted,

I know but too well what they mean;

 

So don't let them begin the beguine

Let the love that was once a fire remain an ember;

Let it sleep like the dead desire I only remember

When they begin the beguine.

 

Oh yes, let them begin the beguine, make them play

Till the stars that were there before return above you,

Till you whisper to me once more,

"Darling, I love you!"

And we suddenly know, what heaven we're in,

When they begin the beguine.