Friday, May 06, 2005
SHAM BA LA B/W THE SHOW MUST GO ON
When I was a wee youngster in the 70's I collected 45's - singles. I remember having 'What A Night (December 63)' by Frankie Valley, which still holds up - great bass line, awesome bridge. I had 'Life in The Fast Lane' by the Eagles, I think the B-side was 'New Kid In Town' I had 'Rubber Band Man', 'The Streak' by Ray Stevens, but the one that sticks with me is Three Dog Night's 'Sham Ba La' with 'The Show Must Go On'. Sham Ba La is a great melody, and being that Three Dog Night was basically a vocal act, they really lay the harmony on, and it's very effective. I still spontaneously break out into the chorus: "Where does your light shine, in the halls of Sham Ba La...." The flip side though, is where it's at. The backing track is your standard caliope circus/fairground feel. There must be a name for that tune, anyway it's the lead vocal that get's me every time.
"Baby, although I chose this lonely life
It seems it's stranglin' me now
All the wild men, big cigars, gigantic car
They're all laughin' at the lie"
The vocal is so huge, and the expression so deadly, not to mention the lyric, which, thirty years later, seems to describe my life so perfectly....
"Baby, there's an enormous crowd of people
They're all after my blood
I wish they'd tear down the walls of this theatre
Let me out, let me out
Oh, I'm so blind Oh, I'm blind
I wasted time, Wasted, wasted, oh so much time
Walkin' on the wire, high wire
But I must let the show go on"
I know the High Wire, yes sir, indeed.
When I was a wee youngster in the 70's I collected 45's - singles. I remember having 'What A Night (December 63)' by Frankie Valley, which still holds up - great bass line, awesome bridge. I had 'Life in The Fast Lane' by the Eagles, I think the B-side was 'New Kid In Town' I had 'Rubber Band Man', 'The Streak' by Ray Stevens, but the one that sticks with me is Three Dog Night's 'Sham Ba La' with 'The Show Must Go On'. Sham Ba La is a great melody, and being that Three Dog Night was basically a vocal act, they really lay the harmony on, and it's very effective. I still spontaneously break out into the chorus: "Where does your light shine, in the halls of Sham Ba La...." The flip side though, is where it's at. The backing track is your standard caliope circus/fairground feel. There must be a name for that tune, anyway it's the lead vocal that get's me every time.
"Baby, although I chose this lonely life
It seems it's stranglin' me now
All the wild men, big cigars, gigantic car
They're all laughin' at the lie"
The vocal is so huge, and the expression so deadly, not to mention the lyric, which, thirty years later, seems to describe my life so perfectly....
"Baby, there's an enormous crowd of people
They're all after my blood
I wish they'd tear down the walls of this theatre
Let me out, let me out
Oh, I'm so blind Oh, I'm blind
I wasted time, Wasted, wasted, oh so much time
Walkin' on the wire, high wire
But I must let the show go on"
I know the High Wire, yes sir, indeed.
Comments:
I've discovered that "Never Been To Spain," which turns up periodically on the 70's channel on satellite, is the perfect song for banging
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