TERRY HOKNES - MY FAVORITE SONGS OF ALL TIME !  hoknes@hotmail.com   

2081

MOODY BLUES

22000 DAYS

1981

2082

BLACKBERRY WAY

I'VE SEEN HER EVERYWHERE

1991

2083

AMERICA

SHE'S GONNA LET YOU DOWN

1973

2084

GINO VANELLI

SON OF A NEW YORK GUN

1974

2085

ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW

TIME WARP

1975

2086

TERRY HOKNES

WHAT DARE I SAY

1996

2087

ATC

AROUND THE WORLD

2001

2088

SHINEDOWN

SECOND CHANCE

2009

2089

ROY WOOD

STRIDER

1975

2090

PAUL McCARTNEY

AIN'T NO SUNSHINE

1991

2091

VENTURES

WALK DON'T RUN

1960

2092

TERESA BREWER

MUSIC MUSIC MUSIC

1950

2093

ERIC CARMEN

ALL BY MYSELF

1976

2094

NATALIE COLE

I LIVE FOR YOUR LOVE

1988

2095

HUEY LEWIS & GWYNETH PALTHROW

CRUISIN'

2001

2096

SPICE GIRLS

WANNABE

1997

2097

SPIRIT

1984 (Spirit)

1984

2098

AMANDA MARSHALL

DARK HORSE

1996

2099

SPIRIT

MR SKIN

1970

2100

MELANIE

BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE

1969
    THE MOODY BLUES - 22,000 DAYS (1981)

Album:  Long Distance Voyager (1981)

My mother bought the new album Long Distance Voyager on vinyl in Fall 1981 when I was 10.  It was one of the first "new albums" I ever listened to so I got into The Moody Blues very heavily and possibly had bought most of their early albums in around 1983/1984.  Unfortunately there is no chart data for my favorite songs pre-1987.   I saw them in concert in 1992 in Saskatoon SK - 2nd row seats.

Long Distance Voyager is the tenth album by the British rock band The Moody Blues, first released in May 1981. on the group's Threshold record label. It was the group's first album featuring keyboardist Patrick Moraz in place of co-founder Mike Pinder, who left after Octave in 1978.

Upon release in 1981, Long Distance Voyager became the Moody Blues' second American number one album, and was also the source of the Top 20 singles "Gemini Dream" (#12) and "The Voice" (#15). It also continued their winning streak in their native United Kingdom, reaching #7 there.

  
    BLACKBERRY WAY - I'VE SEEN HER EVERYWHERE (1991) written by Gerard Saretsky

Album: Touch The Sky (1991)

The only album released by the band Blackberry Way consisting of myself:  Terry Hoknes (vocals,bass,songwriting), Gerard Saretsky (vocals,guitars,songwriting), Jed Evans (drums).  I named the band after the #1 UK hit by The Move featuring Roy Wood who is one of all my time idols.  All 3 members had previously been in the Saskatoon band The Smoking Crawdads featuring Mark Rogstad on lead vocals and guitar.   The band as a 4 piece had formed in the September 1990 when I was in 2nd year University, age 19, and we would rehearse underneath drummer Jed Evans dads business on 2nd Avenue.  Jamie Peever was our sound-tech at that time.  We played shows in Saskatoon and Regina.  In May 1991 we became a trio focusing on originals and 60's style songs only and performed gigs throughout Saskatoon.  Our last gig was in September 1991 at Records On Wheels owned by Ron Spizziri on 2nd Avenue near The Bay.  We recorded this 7 song album and released it on cassette only (at the time it cost $20.00 for blank CD's - too costly at the time).   The album was printed by Don Warkentin at Reel Precision that summer and we recorded the album on my 2 track reel to reel recorder that my grandpa Les Walters had since about 1968.  We recorded the band as a basic trio instrumental on one track with well balanced sound in the room so it would sound mixed on the final album.  The second track we recorded our vocals and any guitar overdubs/solo's required.   The album received a ton of airplay on CFCR 90.5 FM in Saskatoon and was played on every show continually that we fit the format.  I believed that The Crash Test Dummies debut album and ours were the 2 most played canadian content albums of the summer of 1991 on the station.  It was after this time of becoming involved with the station that I began hosting my own radio called  History Lesson from Dec 1991 to Sept 1993 where I taught the history of pop music.   

    AMERICA - SHE'S GONNA LET YOU DOWN (1973)

Album:  Hat Trick (1973)

December 31st 1987 - my #5 favorite daily song for 5 days at age 16 in Grade 12.

Hat Trick is the third original studio album by American folk rock trio America, released by Warner Bros. Records in 1973. The album was a modest hit in the US, peaking at 28 on the Billboard album chart, although it failed to go gold, whereas the group's first two releases had platinum sales. It produced one minor hit single, "Muskrat Love" which reached 67 on the Billboard singles chart and 11 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The title track is the only song written by all three members of America.

America is an English-American folk rock band, that originally consisted of Gerry Beckley, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek. The three members were barely out of their teens, when they became a musical sensation during 1972, scoring No. 1 hits and winning a Grammy for best new musical artist. Their recording success stretched throughout the 1970s; some of the band's best known songs are "A Horse with No Name", "Sister Golden Hair" (both of which reached No. 1), "Ventura Highway", "Tin Man", "Daisy Jane", and "Lonely People". George Martin produced seven of their albums.
    GINO VANNELLI - SON OF A NEW YORK GUN (1974)

June 28th 1989 - my #2 favorite daily song for 5 days at age 18 the summer before entering University.

Gino Vannelli (born June 16, 1952) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, musician and composer.   Born in Montreal, Quebec, Vannelli is one of three sons (Joe, Gino, and Ross) born to Russ and Delia Vannelli. Russ, his father, was a big band musician. As a child, Gino's greatest passion was music, and he began playing percussion at an early age. By the age of 15, Gino began writing songs. Just out of high school, he signed his first recording contract with RCA under the pseudonym Vann Elli, but went on to study music at McGill University.

After a stint in New York City, Vannelli and his brothers went to Los Angeles, California in a financially distraught and desperate state to wait outside trumpeter Herb Alpert's locked gate for an audition. Alpert was Vannelli's last hope prior to heading back to Montreal the next day. Alpert liked what he heard and two days later signed Vannelli with A&M Records, releasing his first album in 1973. Vannelli's brother, Joe, served as arranger and keyboardist for most of his recording career. At a time when polyphonic synthesizers were non-existent, Joe overdubbed multiple parts to create a texture of sound that was progressive for the early 1970s.

In 1974, "People Gotta Move" made it to #22 on the Billboard Top 100. On 15 February 1975, Vannelli became the second Caucasian performer to appear on Soul Train (Dennis Coffey appeared on 8 January 1972). This was his television debut. With his records climbing the charts, Vannelli toured as the opening act for Stevie Wonder. In 1978, the song "I Just Wanna Stop" earned Vannelli an American Grammy Award nomination and was a number #1 single in Canada (#4 in United States). Vannelli's album "Brother To Brother" was certified platinum in early 1979. Vannelli won Canada's Juno Award for Best Male Artist. Vannelli also won Juno Awards in 1976 and 1979.

    ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW - TIME WARP (1975)

Album: Rocky Horror Picture Show (soundtrack) (1975)

The Time Warp" is a song featured in the 1973 rock musical The Rocky Horror Show and in the 1975 film adaption The Rocky Horror Picture Show, as well as a dance performed during the chorus of the song of the same name. The song is both an example and a parody of the dance song genre in which much of the content of the song is given over to dance step instructions. The dance is one of the major audience-participation activities during screenings of the film and performances of the show. It has become a popular song beyond the reaches of the film and show, and is often played at dances and weddings. An extended remix version of the song was released in 1989.

"The Time Warp" was the fifth song in the original stage show (after "Science Fiction/Double Feature", "Dammit, Janet!", "Over at the Frankenstein Place" and "Sweet Transvestite"), but fourth in the film (following "Over at the Frankenstein Place"). Stage productions continued to use the original placing until Richard O'Brien revised the script for the 1990 West End revival in which he moved the song to the film’s placing. For reasons of pacing, most productions now follow this order.

The song consists of verses sung by alternating characters, serving as the introduction to two of them, and choruses sung by the chorus of "Transylvanians" (Movie) or "Phantoms" (Musical), and the Criminologist/Narrator (played by Charles Gray in the movie). The characters that sing the verses are, in order, Riff-Raff (Richard O'Brien in the movie), Magenta (Patricia Quinn in the movie), and Columbia (Little Nell Campbell in the movie). After the second full chorus, Columbia often launches into her tap dance.
    TERRY HOKNES - WHAT DARE I SAY (1996) Demo Opus #887

I wrote my first song in 1982 at age 11 in Grade 6.     I would sporadically write 18 few songs over the next 4 years.  Starting with my 19th song (Opus #19) I began writing on a very regular basis starting in December 1986 in Grade 11 at Aden Bowman.  This included writing over 58 songs with my best friend Nels Krauss over the period of 1986-1992.  I wrote 97 songs in 1987 and then 215 songs in 1988.   By the time I graduated high school at age 17 I was up to Opus #268.   I wrote another 178 songs in 1989.   By the time I celebrated my 19th birthday I was up to Opus #524.   At that time I was in first year University living in Muenster, SK in residence at St Peters College at the monastery.  I met a poet from New York named Philip Murray who I collaborated with writing music to his words 91 songs in total.  I wrote my 1000th song the week I turned 25 in January 1996.
  ATC - AROUND THE WORLD (2001) hit #28

Album: Planet Pop (2000)

One of the first songs I really liked and played a lot when starting to download mp3 files through Napster in 2000.

April 24th 2001 - my #3 favorite daily song for 121 days at age 30 while living in Dalmeny.

Around the World (La La La La La)" is a song by German Eurodance group ATC. It was released as their debut single from their debut album, Planet Pop in 2000 in Europe, and in 2002 in the United Kingdom. It samples the song "Pesenka" by Russian group Ruki Vverkh, and it was produced by German producer Alex Christensen. The song reached No. 1 on the Top 40 charts in 2000. The song was released as a digital download for the first time on RealPlayer's Rhapsody MP3 store (from Now That's What I Call Music! 6). The song, as well as the album, is available on the Canadian iTunes Store. It is the group's signature song. The song hit #28 in USA and #10 in Canada.
    SHINEDOWN - SECOND CHANCE (2009) hit #7
Second Chance"" is a song by American hard rock band Shinedown and the second single from their 2008 album, The Sound of Madness. However, the song is not included on the UK release of The Sound of Madness. It was released on September 9, 2008 and has become Shinedown's most successful single.

The song has been used in promotion for the second season of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and the 2008 WWE Tribute to the Troops show. In May 2009, "Second Chance" was used in a promo regarding the return of character Michael Corinthos on ABC's daytime drama General Hospital. It was released on DLC as part of a 3-song pack on Guitar Hero 5 and also for Rock Band 3.

Two versions exist -- a rock version, which is the album version, and a pop version (notably played on Sirius XM Radio's Adult Top 40-formatted The Pulse satellite radio channel), which is a remix, although the harder guitars start in the second verse in the song rather than at the second half of the first verse.

"Second Chance" is, by far, Shinedown's biggest hit to date. It has reached #1 on Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks, Hot Modern Rock Tracks, and Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks charts (their first #1 on this chart), making it the band's first song to top multiple charts. It is only the third song to top all three of those charts, the other two being "One Headlight" by The Wallflowers and "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day. On the Billboard Hot 100, it peaked at #7, making it not only their first top-40 single to date ("I Dare You" was their first Hot 100 single in 2006), but also their first top-10 single. It's also their debut single on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart, debuting at #29. On Mainstream Top 40 radio, the song has done exceptionally well for a rock song, peaking within the top three there at #3. It is their first charting single on the Canadian Hot 100 as well, so far peaking at #32.

Overall, "Second Chance" is Shinedown's third of six singles to top the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart to date, having spent 10 weeks at #1 beginning December 27, 2008. On the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart, it is their only #1 single to date, having spent three non-consecutive weeks at #1 beginning February 14, 2009.

On March 29, 2009, "Second Chance" debuted at #20 on the VH1 Top 20 Video Countdown, becoming their first video to ever debut on the show, and on May 16, "Second Chance" hit #1; Brent & Barry, the guests on the show at the time, introduced it themselves. It was later #1 a second time on June 20.
Watch the video at this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDlsVShQ_FE

  ROY WOOD - STRIDER (1975)

Album:  Mustard (1975) CD bonus track

I had been a huge fan of ELO for a while and knew of Roy Wood one of the founding members.  On February 14th 1985 at age 14 (grade 9) I flipped through the bargain bin of records at the Kresge's Department Store in Midtown Plaza shopping mall in Saskatoon and found this new sealed album Mustard priced at 99 cents.   The first time I heard this album that night I knew I had found a masterpiece and Roy Wood would be the first act to ever debut at #1 on my daily favorite music groups chart on that valentines day.  (I declare this to be Roy Wood day).  I bought a used copy of his first album Boulders a week later at Nudon Record shop on Louise & 8th Street.  I flew to New York 17 years later to see Roy Wood 3 times in concert and got to meet him backstage 2 times.  I have posted some of those video performances I filmed on www.youtube.com 

Mustard is the second solo album by Roy Wood, who wrote and produced every track and painted the cartoon-style cover. It was completed and released about the same time as he disbanded his group Wizzard. He played all the instruments, and contributed all vocals apart from guest appearances by Annie Haslam, Phil Everly, ex-Move & Wizzard bassist Rick Price, and co-engineer Dick Plant.   "Look Thru’ The Eyes of a Fool" (1975) and "Any Old Time Will Do" (1976) were released as singles, though like the album, neither made the charts
 
    PAUL McCARTNEY -  AIN'T NO SUNSHINE (1991)

Album:  Unplugged (1991)

I bought this CD at Records on Wheels on 2nd Ave in 1991. 

June 19th 1991 - my #3 favorite daily song for 4 days at age 20 after finishing 2nd year University.

Unplugged (The Official Bootleg) is a live unplugged performance by Paul McCartney, recorded and released in 1991. Following the vastness of his world tour recently captured on Tripping the Live Fantastic, McCartney relished the opportunity to strip back his songs and appear on the newly-launched acoustic-only show. Consequently, McCartney was among the first in a long line of artists to release an unplugged album.   Unlike other artists who appeared on the acclaimed show with acoustic instruments plugged into amplifiers (producing the sound heard), McCartney's instruments were 100% unplugged. Microphones were carefully placed close to guitars, pianos, etc. to pick up the sound (this can be seen on the album, where a large rectangular microphone can be seen in front of McCartney's acoustic guitar).   Using the same line-up that recently backed him (save for Blair Cunningham who had replaced Chris Whitten), McCartney used the opportunity to dust off some of his rarer tracks, including three from his 1970 debut album McCartney, alongside some obscure covers amid a helping of familiar Beatles hits.

This recording was one of the first in the famed MTV Unplugged series.   With McCartney in a loose and carefree context, critical response to Unplugged (The Official Bootleg) was very warm.   Initially released in a limited edition run in 1991, Unplugged (The Official Bootleg)—with artwork that recalls Снова в СССР's—was reissued in a more permanent fashion in the late 1990s. Upon its original issue, it reached number 7 in the UK and became McCartney's highest peaking US album in almost ten years, reaching number 14.

 
    THE VENTURES - WALK DON'T RUN (1960) hit #2

Classic first top 10 hit for the legendary guitar instrumental group

"Walk, Don't Run" is an instrumental composition written and first recorded by jazz guitarist Johnny Smith in 1954. The tune is essentially a counter-melody to the chord changes of the old standard, "Softly, As in the Morning Sunrise".

The Seattle-based instrumental rock band The Ventures released their version of the tune as a surf rock single in autumn 1960, which quickly became a hit. In the UK, the tune was covered by the John Barry Seven, whose version, while only peaking at #11 on the Record Retailer chart, compared to the Ventures' #8, outcharted them to reach the Top 10 on other UK charts, such as that of the NME.

The Ventures' version is believed to be one of the first surfing songs to make the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at #2 and reaching #3 on the Cash Box magazine chart for five weeks in August and September 1960.

The band's original drummer, George T. Babbitt, Jr., who later retired as a four-star Air Force general, left the band before "Walk, Don't Run" was released. The Ventures' website lists "[t]he drummer on Walk, Don't Run [as] Skip Moore, not Howie Johnson as many assume. Skip was given the choice of $25 or ¼ of the money the record would make for playing on the session. He took the $25". The Ventures made an updated cover version of the song in 1964 called "Walk, Don't Run '64" (which has a guitar riff similar to "Misirlou"), which made it into the Top Ten in the US that August.
    TERESA BREWER - MUSIC MUSIC MUSIC (1950) hit #1

Classic catchy retro song.

"Music! Music! Music!" is a popular song written by Stephen Weiss and Bernie Baum and published in 1949.

The biggest-selling version of the song was recorded by Teresa Brewer on December 20, 1949, and released by London Records as catalog number 604. It became a #1 hit and a million-seller in 1950. However, it has been rumored that some radio stations refused to play the record because of the thought that the lyric "I'd do anything for you/Anything you'd want me to" might be construed as indecent. It became Brewer's signature song and earned her the nickname "Miss Music".

Teresa Brewer (7 May 1931 – 17 October 2007) was an American pop singer whose style incorporated elements of country, jazz, R&B, musicals and novelty songs. She was one of the most prolific and popular female singers of the 1950s, recording nearly 600 songs.
    ERIC CARMEN - ALL BY MYSELF (1976) hit #2

Eric Carmen is an album by rock and roll musician Eric Carmen. It is also his first of two self-titled albums, the other released in 1984. It peaked at #21 on the Billboard album chart on its release in 1975 (see 1975) and generated the #2 pop single "All by Myself" in the same year. The song reached #1 on the Cashbox and Record World charts. The album also included two follow-up Top 40 hits, "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again" (#11), and "Sunrise" (#34), both of which charted in 1976.

Eric Howard Carmen (born August 11, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and keyboardist.  He scored numerous hit songs across the 1970s and 1980s, first as a member of the Raspberries (who had a million-selling single with "Go All The Way"), and then with his solo career, including hits such as "All By Myself", "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again", "She Did It", "Hungry Eyes", and "Make Me Lose Control".    

His first two solo singles were chart hits in 1976. Both were built around themes by Sergei Rachmaninoff. The first of these singles, "All By Myself" – based on Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 – hit number 2 in the United States, and number 12 in the United Kingdom where it was his only charting hit. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in April 1976.[3] The follow-up single, "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again" – based on the main theme of the slow movement of Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2 – reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, and hit number one on the US Adult Contemporary Chart, as well as number one on the Cash Box chart. Two years after its 1975 release, this self-titled album was certified Gold in 1977 for sales of more than 500,000 copies. "That's Rock and Roll" was also a number 3 hit single for singer Shaun Cassidy. 

 

    NATALIE COLE - I LIVE FOR YOUR LOVE (1988) hit #13

Natalie Maria Cole (born February 6, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter and performer. The daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, Cole rose to musical success in the mid-1970s as a R&B artist with the hits "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)", "Inseparable" and "Our Love". After a period of failing sales and performances due to a heavy drug addiction, Cole reemerged as a pop artist with the 1987 album, Everlasting, and her cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac". In the 1990s, she re-recorded standards by her father, resulting in her biggest success, Unforgettable... with Love, which sold over seven million copies and also won Cole numerous Grammy Awards.

Following the release of her eighth album, 1980's Don't Look Back, Cole's career began to take a detour. While Cole scored an adult contemporary hit with the soft rock ballad "Someone That I Used To Love" off the album, the album itself failed to go gold. In 1981, Cole's personal problems including battles with drug addiction began to take public notice and her career suffered as a result. In 1983, following the release of her album, I'm Ready, released on Epic, Cole entered a rehab facility in Connecticut reportedly staying there for a period of six months.

Following her release, she signed with the Atco imprint, Modern Records, releasing Dangerous, which started a slow resurgence for Cole in terms of record sales and chart success. In 1987, she changed to EMI-Manhattan Records and released the Everlasting album, which returned her to the top of the charts thanks to singles such as "Jump Start (My Heart)", the top ten ballad, "I Live For Your Love" and her dance-pop cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac". That success helped Everlasting reach one million in sales becoming Cole's first platinum album in ten years. In 1989, she released her follow-up to Everlasting, Good to Be Back, which produced the number two hit, "Miss You Like Crazy", which also achieved international success reaching the top ten in the United Kingdom.
    GWYNETH PALTHROW & HUEY LEWIS - CRUISIN' (2001)

April 24th 2001 - my #5 favorite daily song for 121 at age 30 while living in Dalmeny SK

Gwyneth Paltrow and Huey Lewis performed a cover of the song in the 2000 film Duets. The song is included on the soundtrack of the film. The duet spent one week at number one on the Adult Contemporary chart

Gwyneth Kate Paltrow Martin (born September 27, 1972) is an American actress and singer. She made her acting debut on stage in 1990 and started appearing in films in 1991. After appearing in several films throughout the decade, Paltrow gained early notice for her work in films such as Seven (1995) and Emma (1996) (in which she played the title role). Following the films Sliding Doors (1998) and A Perfect Murder (1998), Paltrow garnered worldwide recognition through her performance in Shakespeare in Love (1998), for which she won an Academy Award for Best Actress, a Golden Globe Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards, for Outstanding Lead Actress and as a member of the Outstanding Cast. She also won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series in 2011 for her role as Holly Holliday on the Fox hit TV show Glee in the episode "The Substitute".

Cruisin'" is a 1979 single written, produced, and recorded by Smokey Robinson for Motown Records' Tamla label. One of Robinson's most successful singles outside of his work with The Miracles, "Cruisin'" was a Top 10 Billboard Pop hit, peaking at number four not only on the Billboard Hot 100, but on the soul chart as well. The song was co-written by fellow Miracle Marv Tarplin . "Cruisin'" was an even bigger hit in New Zealand, reaching No. 1 on that country's chart. It is included on Robinson's ninth studio album, Where There's Smoke...
    THE SPICE GIRLS - WANNABE (1997) hit #1
Wannabe" is the debut song by British pop group Spice Girls. Written by the group members with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard during the group's first professional songwriting session, it was produced by Rowe and Stannard for the group's debut album Spice, released in November 1996. The song was written and recorded very quickly; the result was considered lacklustre by their label, and was sent to be mixed by Dave Way. The group was not pleased with the result, and the recording was mixed again, this time by Mark "Spike" Stent.

"Wannabe" is an uptempo pop song that incorporates a mix of hip-hop, rap, and dance music. The lyrics, which address the value of female friendship over the heterosexual bond, became an iconic symbol of female empowerment and the most emblematic song of the group's Girl Power philosophy. Despite receiving mixed reviews from music critics, the song won for Best British-Written Single at the 1997 Ivor Novello Awards and for Best Single at the 1997 BRIT Awards.

"Wannabe" was heavily promoted by the group. Its music video, directed by Jhoan Camitz, became a big success on the British cable network The Box, which sparked press interest in the group. Subsequently the song had intensive radio airplay across the United Kingdom, while the group performed it on television programmes and started doing interviews and photo shoots for teen magazines.

Released as the group's debut single in July 1996, "Wannabe" topped the UK Singles Chart for seven weeks and received a platinum certification by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). In January 1997 it was released in the United States, topping the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks. It was the group's only number-one single in that country. By the end of 1996, "Wannabe" had topped the charts in twenty-two nations and by March 1997 this number had climbed to thirty-one. It became the best-selling single by a female group, selling over six million copies worldwide.
    SPIRIT - 1984 (1984)

Album: The Thirteenth Dream / Spirit Of 84 (1984)

Spirit recorded their most famous anthem yet again for this final reunion album featuring the original members.   I first bought this album on used cassette in 1991.

The Thirteenth Dream was the second (and final) "reunion" album from Spirit. It features re-recordings of several of their best-loved tracks, along with three new songs. The most noteworthy things that can be said about the album are in regards to the excellent fidelity of the album, as it was originally recorded by an audiophile label and is an early digital recording (dating from December of 1982), and that it was the first Spirit album to be released on CD, as it appeared in that format from Mercury Records in West Germany in 1984 (consequently, it is also one of the best sounding early CD releases from a rock band, probably due to the recording technology that was implemented).  As previously mentioned, this album was originally released on CD in 1984. However, the original CD is incredibly rare. It was later reissued in 2004 by Beat Goes On in a two-fer with Future Games.   As a side note, a version of Elijah (originally released on Spirit) was recorded during these sessions and issued as the b-side of a maxi single. It has not appeared on any of the CD releases, or on the LP.    The album was issued as Spirit of '84 in the United States
 
    AMANDA MARSHALL - DARK HORSE (1996) hit #5 in Canada

Album:  Amanda Marshall (1995)

Dark Horse" is the title of a song co-written and originally recorded by Canadian pop singer Amanda Marshall. It was the fifth single from her 1995 self-titled debut album. In 1997, American country music singer Mila Mason covered the song for her own debut album, That's Enough of That.

Colin Larkin, in The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, wrote that it was "more personal" than the other story songs on Marshall's album. Jeremy Helligar of Entertainment Weekly said that Marshall "drums up momentum with the gently percussive 'Dark Horse'".

"Dark Horse" peaked at number five on the RPM Top Singles charts dated for the week of March 17, 1997. It also peaked at number one on the same publication's Adult Contemporary charts two weeks late

Amanda Meta Marshall (born August 29, 1972, Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian pop-rock singer.

She grew up in Toronto in a biracial family, with a White Canadian father and a Black Trinidadian mother. In several of her songs, Marshall has reflected on her racial identity "as a woman who looks white but is also half-black".

Marshall studied music extensively during her childhood, including at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. While performing on the Queen Street West bar scene in her teens, she met guitarist Jeff Healey, who was struck by her powerful voice and took her on tour
    SPIRIT - MR. SKIN (1970)

Album:  12 Dreams Of Dr. Sardonicus (1970)

I bought this album in February 1988 at age 17 in Grade 12 and did not know this band at all but took a chance buying this used record for $2.00 at Tramps record shop downtown on 3rd Avenue.  Not only did it become one of my favorite albums of all time but also helped make Spirit the most important band to me as an adult and an influence on my own songwriting style and my 2nd favorite group ever.

Spirit have now had more #1 songs on my daily songs chart than any other act ever.  19 different #1's since starting the chart in 1987. (25 years ago)   They also have had the most top 10 songs than any other group during the past 25 years of my daily song charts - a whopping 120 different times they have entered the top 10 with a song.   Unlike The Beatles, Yes, Klaatu, Roy Wood and others whom I liked before I started my charts, Spirit has luckily been 100% documented ever since discovering them in 1988.

February 17th 1988 - my #3 favorite daily song for 5 days at age 17.   

March 12th 2003 - my #10 favorite daily song for 28 days at age 32 while staying at grandmas after moving back from Dalmeny, SK before I bought my first home at Eastview.  Performing with Marilyn on the road now for almost 10 years and selling on ebay for 5 years.

Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus is the fourth album by the American psychedelic rock group Spirit. It was produced by David Briggs, who is best known for his work with Neil Young. The original LP was released in 1970 by Epic. It peaked at #63 on the Billboard 200 in February 1971 -- the band's lowest charting album to that point -- and spent 14 weeks on the chart. However, with strong catalog sales it also became the band's only album to be certified Gold in the U.S., achieving that status in 1976.  "Nature's Way" became one of Spirit's signature songs, but was not a big hit at the time, peaking at #111 on the Billboard pop charts in 1971. In 1973, the B-side of "Nature's Way", "Mr. Skin", also charted, peaking at #92.   
    MELANIE - BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE (1969)

Album: Affectionately Melanie (1969)

May 30th 1995 - my #9 favorite daily song for 259 days at age 24 while on the road performing for almost 2 years with Marilyn.

Affectionately Melanie (aka Melanie) is the second album by Melanie Safka. It contains "Beautiful People", a song that Melanie performed at the Woodstock Festival in 1969.

Melanie Anne Safka-Schekeryk (born February 3, 1947) is an American singer-songwriter. Known professionally as simply Melanie, she is best known for her hits "Brand New Key", "Ruby Tuesday", "What Have They Done To My Song Ma" and "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)".

Later in 1969, Melanie had a hit in the Netherlands with "Beautiful People". She also performed at the Woodstock Festival in 1969 and the inspiration for her signature song, "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)", apparently arose from the Woodstock audience lighting candles during her set (although most of the "candles" were actually matches or lighters). The recording became a hit in Europe, Australia, Canada, and the United States in 1970. The B-side of the single featured Melanie's spoken-word track "Candles in the Rain". "Lay Down" became Melanie's first Top Ten hit in America, peaking at Number 6 on the Billboard singles chart and achieving worldwide success. Later hits included "Peace Will Come (According To Plan)" and a cover of the Rolling Stones' "Ruby Tuesday".   In 1970, Melanie was the only artist to brave the court injunction banning the Powder Ridge Rock Festival, playing for the crowd on a homemade stage powered by Mister Softee trucks. Shortly following this performance, she played at the Strawberry Fields Festival, held from August 7 to 9, 1970, at Mosport Park, Ontario. She also performed at the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970 where she was introduced by Keith Moon and received four standing ovations (she also appeared 40 years later at the 2010 Isle of Wight festival).