Download MP3 Here   The great Sam Cooke had several huge hits in the early ’60s, among them “Another Saturday Night”, “Cupid”, “You Send Me”,  and this gem – “Twistin’ the Night Away”.  He was born Samuel Cook in 1931 and died (or rather was killed) just 33 years later.  The circumstances of his death don’t make for a pretty story and are disputed to this day.  You can “google” it if you’re curious.  He added the “e” to his last name in 1957 because he thought it was classier and would make him more appealing to white audiences.  Didn’t need the extra letter, Sam… your voice was all you needed.

Sam recorded “Twistin’ the Night Away” in 1962 using the best studio musicians in L.A. at the time – The Wrecking Crew.  Kind of an odd name for such a fine group of musicians, but it didn’t hurt their popularity.  They were the backup/studio band for just about everybody back then.  The likes of The Beach Boys,  Sonny & Cher, and Frank Sinatra used these session players in almost all of their recordings.  And they were the only musicians behind The Monkees since those boys couldn’t play an instrument to save their lives.

Nobody “twists” anymore (sad), but if invited to do so by a savvy bar band, they’ll do it forever.  That’s why I made this arrangement longer than usual.  It includes piano, sax, trumpet, and organ solos just to stretch it out a bit.  Give this one a shot at your next gig – they’ll twist ’til they drop.

  Download Instrumental   “Get off your seats and on your feets” is what we used as an introduction to one of the greatest rock dance tunes ever.  If this one doesn’t get ’em on your dance floor, you might as well pack up your amps and go home.

This is old time, head-bashing rock’n’roll – the same three chords played over and over again (in this case C, Bb, and F).  But the drum breaks and the guitar solos are fun and guaranteed to get the crowd going.  “Taking Care of Business” was written by Randy Bachman of Bachman-Turner Overdrive fame in 1967.  Bachman was inspired to write the song from a Beatles recording called “Paperback Writer”, a musical story about a man writing paperback novels for a living.  “Business” may initially seem like an ode to the working man, but was really more of a slam against people who actually do work for a living.  “I love to work at nothing all day” is a great line for musicians who, as everybody knows, don’t have to labor for their money.  Right.  Let me tell you something…. oh, never mind.

The piano track was played by a guy delivering pizza to the studio where BTO was struggling to get this song recorded.  He told them it needed piano and he just happened to be a piano player.  They laughed, tipped him, and sent him on his way.  Hours later, still trying to figure out what to add to those three endless chords, they tracked him down and he got his 15 minutes of fame (except nobody knows his name).  The piano saved the day… as it always does.

I’ve seen pictures of Elvis wearing a “TCB” necklace.  Makes me wonder if those letters have anything to do with this song.  I mean, if anybody “took care of business”, it was “The King”.

  Download Instrumental   If there was ever a “laid back” song, this is it.  Think of walking hand-in-hand with your lover in a park on a lazy Saturday morning – birds singing in the trees and kids laughing and sending toy sailboats skittering across a pond.  Or picture you and that same lover (or a different one – maybe you’re the kind that gets around) strolling barefoot along a sandy beach – margaritas in paper cups and waves gently pushing you away from the water’s edge.  The background music for all that?  “Groovin'” by The Young Rascals.

The “Rascals” released it in May of 1967, even though the record company was reluctant to do so.  They didn’t like the fact that there were no drums – only a couple of congas and sticks (however, I added a bass drum for a little more bottom).  To me, that’s part of the charm of this happy little tune.  Well, it soared to # 1 on the charts almost instantly, stayed there for four weeks, then plunged almost as quickly.  It’s still considered one of the best five hundred songs ever produced.  I think it’s one of the top ten.

Whenever “Groovin” came on the radio, I turned it way up just to hear the soulful harmonica behind the vocals and the beauty of the backup vocal mix.  Backup singers don’t get the credit they deserve.  Most times I’d rather listen to the second-line vocals than the lead.  My Yamaha keyboard has great vocal sounds and I get a huge kick out of creating the vocal mix.  If you’re a solo performer, you’ll have a nice full sound with this sequence.

Oh… and if you listen real close to the beginning and end, you can hear the birds that sang in the original record.  Yep, this keyboard has birds!  Yamaha makes me so happy… and so does this song.

  Download Instrumental    Since the goal this month is to keep things happy and upbeat, this piece is right up our proverbial alley.  Thanks to Keith Anderson for reminding me of this one.

There once was an Indian spiritual guide named Meher BaBa who claimed he was the Avatar – or God in human form.  He thought that the universe was largely just imagination and that every soul was God passing through that imagination on it’s way to divinity.  Well, alrighty then.  He also spent the last 44 years of his life in silence, refusing to speak in this world.  Probably a good idea.  His favorite expression was – you guessed it – “don’t worry, be happy”.

Singer and musician Bobby McFerrin noticed a poster of Meher BaBa in somebody’s apartment with the words “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” written underneath his picture.  Bobby liked the simplicity of such a philosophy and wrote a song about it.  He chose not to use even one musical instrument in his recording, instead opting to use his voice for all the parts.  So…  a few studio musicians lost some income on this one, but we won’t go there.  It’s the only a capella song to reach No. 1 on the Billboard charts and did so in 1988.  This tune was also featured in the movie Cocktail.

It’s a happy one.  And maybe even uplifting.  If you can whistle, mute track one and have at it.  Our arrangement is a little more reggae than McFerrin’s, but it works well on your beach gigs.  Have fun with it – I’m sure Mr. BaBa would approve… whereEVER he is in this universe.

  Download   There’s a certain caliber of nightclub where, about one in the morning, a fight will break out.  It’s inevitable.  You’re in the middle of “Wind Beneath My Wings” (boy, I sure hope not), when a woman suddenly screams (I think it’s the same woman in every bar) and a scuffle ensues at the end of the bar.  It goes on for 10 minutes while the bouncers do their thing and the club cuts the power to the stage.  I’ve never understood why they do that – must be a Southern thing.

The offending parties have been escorted out, power’s back on, weapons put away, and everybody looks at you with a “now what” expression on their face.  Well, you better kick it up, and fast.  Get your dancers back on the floor with a driving beat and a song with a message.  “It’s All Right Now” is perfect for this situation and will calm the savage beasts – I promise.  You want to make them happy in spite of themselves.  At least until that woman screams again.

  Download Instrumental   At one time I worked with a cruise ship singer who insisted on doing 70’s sitcom themes. I hated it, but she was calling the shots and I was along for the ride.  Night after night I “moved it on up” with The Jeffersons  and boarded the Love Boat with promises of love “exciting and new”.  However, she did do a killer version of Edith Bunker (as did Karen in later years).  I had to be Archie, but that was easy.

And then there was this theme from the sitcom “Happy Days”.  Richie Cunningham was no friend of mine – his sister was just sappy – Ralph had a big mouth – Potsie was (well, anybody named Potsie) – and Fonzie was like a guy I knew in high school… who beat me up… twice.  I was no fan of the show but I liked the start-up music.  So I didn’t mind (so much) playing this one for Miss Cruise Ship.  If you are determined to perform television theme songs, you would do well to start with this one.

It’s a new day and an exciting time in our country!  Be happy, you old dog!  What the hell do you have to lose?

  Download MP3   It’s time for everyone to just chill out!  No matter which side of the aisle you’re on, it’s been a tough political year for all of us.  But it’s time to move on, for cryin’ out loud – LET IT BE!

This song was the name of The Beatles last album.  The album was supposed to be entitled “Get Back”, but that proved to be entirely inappropriate.  There was no going back to what they were – there was only moving away from each other to pursue their own lives and careers.  It was time to just “let it be” and travel another road.

In a 1972 interview, Paul McCartney revealed who “Mother Mary” was in the song.  Most people at the time believed it to be a biblical reference, but not so.  Paul’s mother had died when he was 14, and she came to him in a dream one night in “times of trouble – speaking words of wisdom”.  His mother’s name, of course, was Mary.

So let’s use this tune as our own inspiration in this troubled time.  If you’re performing this song with these backups, do me a favor –  introduce the piece as a sign of better times to come.  Let’s get with the program, folks… let it go already.