All Time Classic Songs | 60s 70s 80s 90s Rock Pop Ballads Rnb Disco » Soft Rock

“Ventura Highway” – AMERICA

martinsejas — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 09:25:10 +0000

Written by: Dewey Bunnell
Released: 1972

US Charts: #8
UK Charts: #42
Other Charts: N/A

Have you ever wanted to go on a road trip in such a relaxed mood that you could constantly and intensely feel nature’s elements such as the air and wind and be taken away while reminiscing about your childhood home town? If you do, then there is no better song for you. “Ventura Highway” is possibly the best example of classic soft rock from the 70s and it is mesmerizing for those in the right state of mind.

“Ventura Highway” deals with the person travelling from the cold northern part of the United States to the warm southern part of California. The singer talks about his childhood in the snow during the dark winter months while contrasting this to Ventura Highway where “the days are longer and nights are stronger than moonshine.” There is a tinge of sadness throughout that he is leaving where he came from for a place with a better climate.

“Ventura Highway” became the third hit single for the Anglo-American group America in 1972 and has remained one of their most popular songs since. It reached number 8 on the US Billboard Charts while it only reached number 42 in the UK.

The highlight of this song is the acoustic guitar riff which rings out constantly throughout the song and which puts you in a relaxed state of mind from the very beginning. The vocal performance of Dewey Blunell also helps to achieve that effect.

I hope you truly appreciate classic rock as much as I do and enjoy this great classic tune from America.

Please comment on this post below.

“Heart of Gold” – NEIL YOUNG

martinsejas — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 11:45:02 +0000

Written by: Neil Young
Released: 1972

US Charts: #1 (1 week)
UK Charts: #10
Other Charts: #1 (Canada)

The reason why I’ve chosen Neil Young’s classic song “Heart of Gold” as the topic of today’s article is because I’ve gained a much greater appreciation for the beauty of this song while listening to it yesterday. I’d heard the song only once before, and while I thought it was a great song, I never went crazy over it. However, as I skimming through a list of Billboard number 1 hits, I saw this song and thought I’d listen to it again. This time, it grabbed by the neck, bringing me closer to the lyrics and implanting its tune into my head for the rest of the day.

At the same time, it prompted me to read up on Neil Young’s music career as I didn’t know too much about him. The most amazing thing about him is his longevity in the music business. After 4 decades, his albums still continue to reach the top 20s of the Billboard Charts. In addition, Bob Dylan admires him as an artist and that’s saying something.

Focusing on the song, it deals with someone’s search for a person who is truly caring and loving, someone with a heart of gold. Young explores the difficulties involved in finding such a person in a society where there is a lot of malice, lies and betrayal. He says that he has crossed the ocean and been as far as Hollywood but hasn’t found that person despite growing old. Many people including myself can easily relate to such feelings and the desire to find that someone special who will truly love and care for us.

In addition, the song has a nice, soft and easy-to-follow rhythm dominated by the acoustic guitar. Young’s vocal performance also gives the song a touch of authenticity and sentiment. “Heart of Gold” became Neil Young’s only number 1 hit on the Billboard charts and one of a few to become mainstream hits. This song stayed in the head all day yesterday and I hope it does the same to you. Enjoy!

Lyrics can be accessed here.

Chords can be accessed here.

Feel free to comment on this song and/or my review below.

“What A Fool Believes” – THE DOOBIE BROTHERS

martinsejas — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 12:34:55 +0000

Written by: Michael McDonald & Kenny Loggins
Released: 1979

US Charts: #1 (1 week)
UK Charts: N/A
Other Charts: N/A

Have you ever been blinded by love? Haven’t we all been? And after the relationship has long ended, have you realized that the love someone had for you was not as strong or as deep as the love you had for that other person? We tend to look like fools when we eventually realize this and this is exactly what “What A Fool Believes” is about. Only that the song explores the subject with such an uplifting, dance and happy tune that you wouldn’t think it was about such a serious subject. In fact, you will be tempted to stand up, sing and dance to this classic Doobie Brothers song.

The most outstanding feature of this song is by far Michael McDonald’s voice, which is very distinctive and soul-like. When McDonald joined the Doobie Brothers in 1975 to replace Tom Johnston, who had been the lead songwriter and singer but was too fatigued to continue, he completely changed the group’s sound. Originally a band that played electric guitar-based rock, under McDonald they became a soft rock/soul band. This was due to the fact that McDonald had been playing in a jazz/blues/rock band called Steely Dan before joining the Doobie Brothers.

Their 1978 album Minute by Minute surprisingly became the group’s biggest selling album and “What A Fool Believes” (from the same album) became their most successful and most critically acclaimed song. Apart from topping the US Billboard Charts in 1979, the song also won Song of the Year and Record of the Year at the 1980 Grammy Awards.

This song always tends to bring a smile to my face, especially when I’m feeling down. “What A Fool Believes” unbelievably catchy and fun that it’s impossible not to love this classic song from the Doobie Brothers. Enjoy!

Lyrics can be accessed here.

Chords can be accessed here.

Feel free to comment on this song and/or my review below.

“Peace Train” – CAT STEVENS / YUSUF ISLAM

martinsejas — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 14:37:11 +0000

Written by: Cat Stevens
Released: 1971

US Charts: #7
UK Charts: N/A
Other Charts: N/A

“Peace Train” is one of the most well-known war-protest songs in music history and was written and composed by one of the most talented and popular musicians of the late 60s and 70s, Cat Stevens. The message of this powerful song continues to resonate today: violence in many parts of the world means that we all need to be hopeful and encourage peaceful solutions to today’s problems. The song asks all of us to jump on the “peace train” to achieve this dream of world peace.

The song was written at the height of Steven’s career and was in response to the Vietnam War at the time. However, Cat Stevens is no longer known as Cat Stevens anymore, he is known as Yusuf Islam. In 1978, he converted to Islam at the height of his popularity after a near-death experience in California in 1976. As a result of his conversion, he abandoned his career as a pop star and sold all his instruments and used his royalties to engage in philanthropic and educational causes. He only returned to composing pop songs in 2006 with his pop album in 28 years.

One can easily conclude that he didn’t realise his ultimate potential by ending his musical career at a relatively early age. While this is probably the case, he also demonstrated strong compassion and love by leaving his successful pop career in favour of dedicating his life to others. Nevertheless, he left us with many hit songs to remember and sing along to, such as “Peace Train.”

Overall, the lyrics and rhythm of the song present both an optimistic and pessimistic outlook of the world. The song declares that there is so much hope for the future, while so much pain in the present and that the “peace train” is there for all of us to get on. All that’s left is for us to get on the train. The song has a very catchy and easy to follow rhythm which makes it extremely memorable.

The above is of a performance in 1976, and as you will see or have seen, the singer’s ability to sound as great live as on the recording shows us that Stevens (Islam) is a genuine and enormously talented artist. His songs will live with us for a long time to come even after ending his musical careers early. I truly hope you enjoy this song as much as I do and join the peace train with me.

Lyrics can be accessed here.

Chords can be accessed here.

Feel free to comment on this song and/or my review below.

Subscribe to the All Time Classic Songs newsletter today and you’ll receive a FREE copy of my brand new e-book “The 30 Greatest Love Songs of All Time.” Limited time only!

“If I Could” – 1927

martinsejas — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 12:24:09 +0000

Written by: Gary Frost
Released: 1988

US Charts: N/A
UK Charts: N/A
Other Charts: #2 (Australia)

Today, I’ve chosen to feature another band and another song that never received the attention and popularity outside of their home country Australia. The band featured today has a bizarre named of 1927, which according to a certain biography was suggested to them at the last minute, since they could come up with a name themselves before the printing of their first album was supposed to begin. In fact, each of the members states in their bio that they were all born in 1927, which is of course false but it builds upon the theme of the band name.

The band themselves only lasted about 6 years, and during that time they recorded 3 albums, of which the first one was by far the biggest and most critically acclaimed. The song featured is their most successful track from that album, “If I Could.” It is wonderfully written and composed rock ballad that could have easily been one of Foreigner’s biggest hits in the US. Unfortunately, it never cracked other markets for some mysterious reason and its success was restricted to mainly Australia. If you listen to it, you will instantly realise that this song should have been more successful worldwide. What a shame.

Lyrics-wise, the song is simply about how someone would doing anything for their partner because they simply mean so much to them. It’s a simple message told by nice expressions of love such as “I’d paint a portrait of you” and “I’d write a book for you.” While the message might be simple and sweet, it is the beautiful melody of both the verse and melody that gives the lyrics extra beauty and makes the song easy to sing along and memorable.

This is a song that is very ideal to dedicate to your lover whatever the occasion. I’m quite sure that this song will not fail to do its job. Enjoy!

Lyrics can be accessed here.

Chords can be accessed here.

Feel free to comment on this song and/or my review below.

Subscribe to the All Time Classic Songs newsletter today and you’ll receive a FREE copy of my brand new e-book “The 30 Greatest Love Songs of All Time.” Limited time only!

“Daniel” – ELTON JOHN

martinsejas — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 09:07:10 +0000

Written by: Bernie Taupin
Released: 1973

US Charts: #2
UK Charts: #4
Other Charts: #7 (Australia), #1 (Canada), #27 (Germany)

Upon listening to this song for the first time, you will most likely be thinking that the singer is simply singing a tribute to his brother, Daniel. This is, however, not completely true. It’s because of this perception that the writer of the song, Bernie Taupin, who has been Elton John’s lyricist for more than 40 years, has said that “Daniel” is possibly the most misinterpreted song he has ever written.

In actual fact, the song was inspired by the events of the Vietnam War and is about a returning soldier named Daniel, who has been blinded during the war. Just like other veterans, he is lauded and treated like a hero upon returning home, however, this doesn’t interest him, he simply wants to get back to living his normal life. Unable to escape the attention of the people around him, he decides to go to Spain to find some solitude and find a quiet life.

Finding out the true meaning of the song makes this song sound even more beautiful and touching. This is a great example of how Taupin’s talent for words and John’s talents for melodies has been able to produce such marvelous and memorable songs. As sweet and as nice, the lyrics are, it is the melody that brings it to life and make us feel a deep sympathy for the subject of the song, Daniel.

The song clearly did resonate with the Vietnam War and its veterans at the time of its release, as shown by its success on the charts. Despite not being able to reach number 1 in the US or the UK, it was still a hit and thoroughly deserved to be one.

Personally, I still tend to interpret this song as a personal tribune to any loved one, not just a returning soldier. It can easily be done by changing some of the lyrics, as long as the melody stays the same.

I would have to say that the highlight of this song is the melody. Very few artists have got the gift of creating wonderful, beautiful and memorable like Elton John. While it may be true that his career is slowly winding down, we must all enjoy him while he is still around. Thank you Elton for making such incredibly beautiful songs. Enjoy!

Lyrics can be accessed here.

Chords can be accessed here.

Feel free to comment on this song and/or my review below.

Subscribe to the All Time Classic Songs newsletter today and you’ll receive a FREE copy of my brand new e-book “The 30 Greatest Love Songs of All Time.” Limited time only!

“Take It To The Limit” – EAGLES

martinsejas — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 15:04:25 +0000

Written by: Don Henley, Glenn Frey & Randy Meisner
Released: 1975

US Charts: #4
UK Charts: #12
Other Charts: N/A

I must admit that I was at first hesitant to write a review of this song for one big reason. The reason being that this is already the second Eagles song that I’m reviewing and I didn’t want to give you all the impression that I was already being biased towards the Eagles. I do admit that I adore the Eagles and their music. But for the best part of the day, I could not for some reason, get this song out of the head. And they say, that the best remedy is to let it all out in one go, which is what I’m going to do right now.

Put simply, this song is a masterpiece, arguably the best song the Eagles produced at their peak. However, it did not top the US charts like their other well-known songs, which is maybe why this song is not held in the same regard as some of their other songs such as “Hotel California.” Depending on your mood, this song rates between being the best Eagles song and 5th best Eagles song.

Right now, at the time of writing this, I’m in a buoyant mood and cannot simply get the song out of my head. The first time I heard this song, I felt a nice, easy and catchy rhythm from the beginning and instantly knew that it was going to be a great song. However, I was not able to work out all the lyrics the first time and I initially thought that it was simply about taking risks in your life to live life to the fullest. In other words, taking every aspect of your life to the limit as the song states.

Nevertheless, after finding the lyrics, I found out that I was way off mark. In fact, it is about feeling being lost in love and loneliness. Which probably explains the slow speed of the song. Despite this, I still listen to this song using my original (albeit incorrect) interpretation, as it provides a source of encouragement and advise to me in my life endeavours.

The one strange thing about this song is that it was not sung by Don Henley nor Glenn Frey, which was a first for the Eagles at the time. That is, however, irrelevant given the beauty and wonderful melody of the song which I hope you will all enjoy listening to.

Lyrics can be accessed here.

Chords can be accessed here.

Feel free to comment on this song and/or my review below.

Subscribe to the All Time Classic Songs newsletter today and you’ll receive a FREE copy of my brand new e-book “The 30 Greatest Love Songs of All Time.” Limited time only!