I KNOW THERE’S SOMETHING GOING ON

ANNI-FRID LYNGSTADT

SONGWRITER: Russell Glyn Ballard

COUNTY: NORWAY

ALBUM: I KNOW THERE’S SOMETHING GOING ON

LABEL: POLAR

GENRE: HARD ROCK

YEAR: 1982

 

        Princess Anni-Frid Reuss, Dowager Countess of Plauen(Anni-Frid Synni Lyngstad; born 15 November 1945), widely known as Anni-Frid Lyngstad and also known by her nickname "Frida", is a Norwegian-born Swedish singer, songwriter and environmentalist, who is best known as one of the founding members and lead singers of the Swedish pop band ABBA. Born in Bjørkåsen (Ballangen), Norway, to a Norwegian mother and a German father, she grew up in Torshälla, Sweden, and started her first solo career there, as a jazz singer in 1967, through a talent competition called New Faces.

          She won the competition with her song, "En ledig dag", leading to a television appearance on Hylands Hörna on Dagen H; as a result, she was signed by EMI, and in turn was signed by Stig Anderson's record label, Polar Music, after years of releasing several singles and an album, Frida under the earlier record label. Although she had moderate success in Sweden, as she was a contestant for Melodifestivalen 1969 with her song "Härlig är vår jord", she did not reach international fame until she joined ABBA, which has sold over 150 million albums and singles worldwide, making them one of the best-selling music acts in history.

      After the break-up of ABBA, she continued an international solo singing career with mixed success, releasing the albums Something's Going On(1982) and Shine (1984); the latter being her last international album. In 1996, Lyngstad recorded her final album in Swedish, Djupa andetag(Deep Breaths), released by Anderson Records, before retiring from music.

      "I Know There's Something Going On" is a song recorded in 1982 by ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad(Frida). It was the lead single from her solo album Something's Going On. The song was a hit around the world during 1982 and 1983.

       Recording began in ABBA's Polar Music Studio, Stockholm, in February 1982. Frida recorded the album during the last year of ABBA in the 20th century. At the time of recording this song/album, Frida wanted to distance herself from "the typical ABBA pop sound". "I Know There's Something Going On" was written by Russ Ballard and produced by Genesis drummer and singer Phil Collins, who also played drums on the song. The backing vocals are sung by Lyngstad herself and Collins.

         "I Know There's Something Going On" was released in the summer of 1982 and became a major success for Frida. It hit #1 in Flemish Belgium and Switzerland, and was a Top 10 hit throughout most of Europe, as well as in Australia and South Africa. The song reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1983, where it had a total chart run of 29 weeks. Though the song did not reach the top ten, Billboard's Year-End chart ranked it as the 20th most popular song of 1983. However, in the UK, traditionally a popular market for ABBA, the song failed to reach the Top 40, peaking at #43 (and spending seven weeks inside the Top 75).

           A one-hour TV documentary about the making of the album and this song is included in Frida - The DVD. The whole recording process, from day one in the studio to the release party, was filmed by Swedish TV SVT. This documentary includes interviews with Lyngstad and Collins, Björn and Benny from ABBA, as well as all the musicians involved with the album.

I can see that it won't be long
You grow cold when you keep holding on
You know you've changed and your words, they lie
That's something you can't deny
 
I call, you're not at home
You're home, but you're not alone
If you wanna leave then why don't you say it
Your love has gone anyway
 
I know there's something going on
I know there's something going on
I know it won't be long
Won't be long before you're gone
There's something going on
There's something going on
 
I know a good thing must come to an end
But it's hard to take losing a friend
I know what you think and what's in your mind
So darling, look, why pretend?
 
I know there's something going on
I know there's something going on
I know it won't be long
It won't be long before you're gone
There's something going on
There's something going on
There's something going on
There's something going on
 
I know there's something going on
I know there's something going on
I know it won't be long
It won't be long before you're gone
There's something going on
There's something going on
There's something going on
There's something going on
 
I know there's something
I know there's something
I know there's something
I know there's something
I know there's something
I know there's something
I know there's something.

MY LOVE

WESTLIFE

SONGWRITERS: Jorgen Kjell Elofsson; Per Olof Magnusson; David Bengt Kreuger & Per Harry Nylen

COUNTRY: IRELAND

ALBUM: COAST TO COAST

LABEL: RCA RECORDS

GENRE: POP MUSIC

YEAR: 2000

 

            Westlife is an Irish pop vocal group formed in Dublin, Ireland in 1998. The group consists of members Shane Filan, Mark Feehily, Kian Egan, and Nicky Byrne. Brian McFadden was a member, until leaving in 2004. The group disbanded in 2012 after 14 years, later reuniting in 2018.

             In Ireland, the group has 11 number-one albums with a total of 13 top two albums, 16 number-one singles, as well as 34 top-fifty singles. They have sold over 55 million records. and are holders of the following Guinness World Records: first to achieve seven consecutive number-one singles in the UK; most public appearances in 36 hours by a pop group; most singles to debut at number one on the UK chart; and top-selling album group in the United Kingdom in the 21st century. They hold the record for the most shows played. Westlife has received numerous accolades including one World Music Award, two Brit Awards, four MTV Awards, and four Record of the Year Awards.

           The group has released twelve studio albums: four as a five-piece and eight as a four-piece. They rose to fame with their debut international self-titled studio album, Westlife(1999). It was followed by Coast to Coast(2000), World of Our Own(2001), Unbreakable – The Greatest Hits Vol. 1(2002), and Turnaround(2003), which continued the group's success worldwide. The group released their cover albums Allow Us to Be Frank(2004) and The Love Album(2006) and the studio albums Face to Face(2005) and Back Home(2007).

          After a hiatus of studio recording for almost one year in 2008, they released the studio albums Where We Are(2009), and Gravity(2010), and the compilation album Greatest Hits(2011). After eight years, the quartet group released their eleventh studio album, Spectrum, in 2019, followed by their twelfth studio album, Wild Dreams, in 2021.

        Their fourteenth, and latest concert tour is called The Wild Dreams Tour.

        Coast to Coast is the second studio album by Irish boy band Westlife. It was also the band's second album to be released as a five-piece. It was released on 6 November 2000 by RCA Records. Five hit singles were released from the album: "Against All Odds", "My Love", "What Makes a Man", "I Lay My Love on You" and "When You're Looking Like That". The album was a commercial success in both Ireland and the United Kingdom, selling 1.8 million copies in Britain alone. The album was the third-best selling of 2000 in Britain. As of October 2001, it sold seven million copies worldwide.

        In January 2005, the album was re-issued in a two-in-one box set compilation with the group's third album, World of our Own(2001). A video album, entitled Coast to Coast - Up Close and Personal, was released on 27 November 2000. It peaked at number one on the UK Visual Chart and a certified 3× Platinum.

An empty street, an empty house

A hole inside my heart

I'm all alone, the rooms are getting smaller

I wonder how, I wonder why

I wonder where they are

The days we had, the songs we sang together

Oh, yeah

 

And oh, my love

I'm holding on forever

Reaching for the love that seems so far

 

So, I say a little prayer

And hope my dreams will take me there

Where the skies are blue

To see you once again, my love

Overseas, from coast to coast

To find a place I love the most

Where the fields are green

To see you once again

My love

 

I try to read, I go to work

I'm laughing with my friends

But I can't stop to keep myself from thinking, oh no

I wonder how, I wonder why

I wonder where they are

The days we had, the songs we sang together, oh, yeah

 

And oh, my love

I'm holding on forever

Reaching for the love that seems so far

 

So, I say a little prayer

And hope my dreams will take me there

Where the skies are blue

To see you l once again, my love

Overseas, from coast to coast

To find a place I love the most

Where the fields are green

To see you once again

 

To hold you in my arms

To promise you my love

To tell you from the heart

You're all I'm thinking of

I'm reaching for the love that seems so far

 

So, I say a little prayer

And hope my dreams will take me there

Where the skies are blue

To see you once again, my love

Overseas, from coast to coast

To find the place I love the most

Where the fields are green

To see you once again

(My love)

 

Say a little prayer (my sweet love)

Dreams will take me there

Where the skies are blue (woah, yeah)

To see you once again

Overseas, from coast to coast

To find the place I love the most

Where the fields are green

To see you once again

My love.

BLACK PARIS BLUES

MIGHTY MO RODGERS

SONGWRITER: MIGHTY MO RODGERS

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: BLACK PARIS BLUES

GENRE: BLUES

LABEL: ISABEL RECORDS

YEAR: 2003

 

         Mighty Mo Rodgers(born July 24, 1942) is an American electric blues musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, who has released six albums to date. He has been influenced by the work of Aretha Franklin, Bobby Bland, Eddie Boyd, Jimmy Reed, Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, and Willie Dixon.

               Bonnie Raitt noted that "Mo Rodgers' music is a breath of fresh air in the blues/R&B world. He combines sly social commentary with a great funky sound… I love his voice. He's a welcome original.

       Maurice Rodgers was born in East Chicago, Indiana, He studied classical piano, but was more influenced by witnessing the blues acts that performed at his father's nightclub. In the mid-1960s, the music produced by the American record label Stax also affected his musical ambitions. In high school, Rodgers formed his first band, the Rocketeers. After entering Indiana State College, he fronted the Maurice Rodgers Combo. His love of playing keyboards led Rodgers to leave college and relocate to Los Angeles, California, becoming a full-time musician.

     He played the Farfisa electronic organ on Brenton Wood's 1967 hit "Gimme Little Sign".

          In 1973, Rodgers co-produced the album Sonny & Brownie(A&M Records), by Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee. He also played keyboards on the album's cut. Following a spell as a session musician, Rodgers moved into songwriting for Motown and Chappell & Co. He also worked as a record producer before returning to education and obtaining a philosophy degree from California State University, Northridge. His first solo album, Blues Is My Wailin' Wall, was released in 1999 by Blue Thumb Records. The lyrics of several of the songs on the album present Rodgers's philosophical views of mankind.

        In 2000, Rodgers performed at the Notodden Blues Festival. His European excursions have included concerts at the New Morning nightclub in Paris. In 2001, he performed on the album Memphis, recorded by Jean-Jacques Milteau, which also included contributions from Little Milton and Mighty Sam McClain. His own recordings continued with Red, White & Blues(2002); Black Paris Blues, a live album issued in 2004; and Redneck Blues(2007). His most recent release was Cadillac Jack in 2012.

               Rodgers appeared at the 22 Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival in August 2014.

       In 2019, he toured with Baba Sissoko and performed at several European blues festivals. In 2017, they had jointly released the album, Griot Blues. 

Walking in the twilight hour

Looking for that magic light

I go to the Left Bank

To feel what is right

So far away from home

What can I do?

With these black Paris blues

I see the ghost of the past

They always thought they would last

Black Americans coming here

Freedom that was clear

So far away from home

What can you do?

With the black Paris black Paris blues

 

Walking in the twilight hour

Looking for that magic light

I go to the Left Bank

Try to feel what is right

So far away from home

What can you do?

With these black Paris blues

 

Blue Moon done the one

Said Sidney Bechet

Listen to the music

It will show the way

 

I see Brick Top's

Josephine Baker too

I see Chesfer Himes

Richard Wright

With their blues

I see Dexter Gordon

I see Miles and Diz

I see Memphis Slim playin’ slim

I see so many ghosts

From my black past

You know they thought it would last

What can you do?

With these Black Paris Blues

Parlez-vous Francais?

Can you hear me say?

I feel lost, it is true

Parlez-vous Francais?

I've lost my way

I can't get back home, it is true

Here’s where I'm gonna stay

For my blues I will play

What can you do?

With these black Paris blues

What can you do?

With these black Paris blues

Ride them through

I will always will know it' true

In the black Paris blues

What can you do?

Black Paris blues

But ride them through

Hey hey

Black Paris blues.

 BRING IT ON HOME TO ME

SAM COOK

SONGWRITER: SAM COOK

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: FOREVER 32 HITS

LABEL: RCA RECORDS

GENRE: SOUL

YEAR: 1975

 

            Samuel Cook(January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred to as the "King of Soul" for his distinctive vocals, notable contributions to the genre and significance in popular music.

            Cooke was born in Clarksdale, Mississippi and later relocated to Chicago with his family at a young age, where he began singing as a child and joined the Soul Stirrers as lead singer in the 1950s. Going solo in 1957, Cooke released a string of hit songs, including "You Send Me", "A Change Is Gonna Come", "Cupid", "Wonderful World", "Chain Gang", "Twistin' the Night Away", "Bring It On Home to Me", and "Good Times". During his eight-year career, Cooke released 29 singles that charted in the Top 40 of the Billboard Pop Singles chart, as well as 20 singles in the Top Ten of Billboard's Black Singles chart.

        In 1964, Cooke was shot and killed by the manager of a motel in Los Angeles. After an inquest and investigation, the courts ruled Cooke's death to be a justifiable homicide. His family has since questioned the circumstances of his death.

           Cooke's pioneering contributions to soul music contributed to the rise of Aretha Franklin, Bobby Womack, Al Green, Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and Billy Preston, and popularized the work of Otis Redding and James Brown. AllMusic biographer Bruce Eder wrote that Cooke was "the inventor of soul music", and possessed "an incredible natural singing voice and a smooth, effortless delivery that has never been surpassed".

         Cooke was also a central part of the civil rights movement, using his influence and popularity with the White and Black populations to fight for the cause. He was friends with boxer Muhammad Ali, activist Malcolm X and football player Jim Brown, who together campaigned for racial equality.

        Cooke was born Samuel Cook in Clarksdale, Mississippi, in 1931 (he added the "e" to his last name in 1957 to signify a new start to his life). He was the fifth of eight children of the Rev. Charles Cook, a minister in the Church of Christ(Holiness), and his wife, Annie Mae. One of his younger brothers, L.C. (1932–2017), later became a member of the doo-wop band Johnny Keyes and the Magnificents.

       The family moved to Chicago in 1933. Cook attended Doolittle Elementary and Wendell Phillips Academy High School in Chicago, the same school that Nat "King" Cole had attended a few years earlier. Cooke began his career with his siblings in a group called the Singing Children when he was six years old. He first became known as lead singer with the Highway Q.C.'s when he was a teenager, having joined the group at the age of 14. During this time, Cooke befriended fellow gospel singer and neighbor Lou Rawls, who sang in a rival gospel group.

If you ever

Change your mind

About leaving

Leaving me behind

Baby, bring it to me

Bring your sweet loving

Bring it on home to me

Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)

 

I know I laughed

When you left

But now I know

I only hurt myself

Baby, bring it to me

Bring your sweet loving

Bring it on home to me

Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)

 

I'll give you jewelry

And money too

That ain't all

That ain't all I'll do for you

Baby, if you bring it to me

Bring your sweet loving

Bring it on home to me

Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)

 

You know

I'll always be your slave

Till I'm buried

Buried in my grave

Oh honey, bring it to me

Bring your sweet loving

Bring it on home to me

Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)

 

One more thing

I tried to treat you right

But you stayed out

Stayed out at night

But I forgive you

Bring it to me

Bring your sweet loving

Bring it on home to me

Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)

Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)

Yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah), yeah (yeah)

Yeah (yeah).