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MLT – Cover Requests
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I’d love to hear a Bob Dylan cover from the MLT. How about this beauty recorded by the awesome Joan Baez. Only Mona and Lisa could do justice to this version.
Lisa would have to catch up with her ‘George Harrison’ sitar skills, however. I know you can do it, Lisa, now if only there were eight days a week perhaps!
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In “Count on Me” I hear a little Joan Baez kind of beauty in Lisa and Monas singing. I think they could do any Joan Baez song great justice.
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You’re right, Jung. “Count On Me” definitely has a Joan Baez flavor to it that I hadn’t picked up on. From the first time I heard it I thought it also captured the feel of McCartney ballads like “Put It There” and “Calico Skies”.
It would be wonderful to hear MLT cover some of the great folk singers of the 60’s! Can you picture them singing “Both Sides Now”… in harmony?
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Yes David. MLT can do any genre they want to do brilliantly as demonstrated over and over. Their stellar harmonies should not be limited to any genre. It’s too beautiful.
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That would be a real challenge!
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Wow Howard you have a broad range and knowledge of music. I’d bet you have an LP and or CD collection that would make radio stations drool. I appreciate all the songs and artists you mention. Some are new to me, some are songs I’ve known and loved but have forgotten or didn’t know the artist. You’ve made run to Wikipedia several times. Perhaps I should have just asked “Howardpedia.” I don’t think i’d heard of Crispian before now. Was he from or more of a presence in Australia? Then one of his videos had a Sonny and Cher hit of “You Were On My Mind.” Did they cover him or vice versa?
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I’m not always known for patience so I went to Wikipedia anyway. I guess we are lucky the song wasn’t called “Cockroaches are on my mind” as Wikipedia says.
“You Were on My Mind” is a popular song written by Sylvia Fricker in 1962,[1] in a bathtub in a suite at the Hotel Earle in Greenwich Village. She wrote it in the bathroom because “it was the only place … the cockroaches would not go”.
I’d forgotten it was a number 3 hit for “We Five” also. It looks like many people have covered it and had hits. The one I don’t see is Sonny and Cher, so my brain must be giving out. Oops.
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Hi John. The sixties and seventies were my era music-wise, so it wasn’t February 3, 1959, that the music died for me! As for “You Were on My Mind”, I have both ‘We Five’ and ‘Crispian’s’ versions on my Spotify playlists and I still have my copy of Crispian’s “The Pied Piper” on vinyl 45, purchased in the sixties.
As for Sonny and Cher, you may be thinking of their “But You’re Mine”.
‘You Were on My Mind’ is a nice song, but probably better is “The Last Thing on My Mind”, written by the great Tom Paxton. There have been literally dozens of covers of this song, including from Judy Collins, The Kingston Trio, Peter, Paul and Mary, Neil Diamond, Joan Baez, Marianne Faithful, The Dubliners, Nana Mouskouri, Hank Snow, Charlie Pride, Gram Parsons, and the Seekers. The MLT would make a lovely acoustic trio with Papa Rudi joining in, with a version like Cry, Cry, Cry’s:
While we’re with the country theme, don’t get me started on Johnny Cash’s “Cry, Cry, Cry”!
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Good call Jung! And what a great song from the Twins. I’ll never forget Lisa’s relating how she started writing this song during a blackout, by candlelight. Later when she was stuck, Papa Rudi helped out with the chorus, which also gave the song a title. Just a few short lines but they said so much about a father’s love for his daughter. It has always been one of my favourites from Orange, which is chock full of favourites!
I never thought I’d find anyone who could do Joan Baez successfully, but in the Twins, we have double the power! Baez has an album of Dylan covers -“Baez Sings Dylan”. The Twins play some Dylan in their “MonaLisa & Band Live in Concert (2007)” – ‘Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door’, ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’ (Byrds version) and ‘It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue’, featuring an awesome Papa Rudi on lead vocals and smooth operator, Michaela’s sexy saxophone highlighted! I think they get the loudest cheer for this number.
I hope you enjoy the following video as much as I do.
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I know this one quite well Howard. In the early 70s in elementary school in music class we use to sing Blowin in the Wind, and One Tin Soldier that really stood out. It was the first time I realized just how beautiful and emotionally moving music could be. I think Mona and Lisa could be a modern Joan Baez if they wanted to with the great depth of their singing voices and beautiful harmonies.
This one is my fave Joan Baez songs.
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I had a very similar experience, Jung. My elementary school music teacher taught us a lot of songs that I found out much later were from the 60’s. Petula Clark was a particular favorite of his. For some reason I recall that “One Tin Soldier” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” were the first two songs that we learned in fourth grade.
Unfortunately we didn’t get to hear the original recordings. He just played the piano and sang along, and passed out mimeographed copies of his own interpretation of the lyrics, which contained a lot of errors. But at least it gave us exposure to some great music when we were very young.
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I, as well always had a music class during my elementary school years and I do fondly remember my kindergarten teacher having an auto harp which she would okay… Maybelle Carter must of been an influence… Lol… I was in awe of that instrument and we’d sing all kinds of songs, most likely folk or some 60s stuff or easy kid songs, that part I don’t vividly recall but her playing auto harp I most certainly do…. And then in Grades3-5somewheres there was a kinda hippy 60s music teacher we had, she played guitar… I liked her and her stuff she taught us to sing, another music teacher we had, though much older than probably my kindergarten teacher, was not fond of her music class… Though I did enjoy singing out if the songbooks we had throughout elementary school, it was the SONGTIME SERIES of books for each grade up to Grade 6…
Also one of my older bros, had a cool Grade 5 teacher who was indeed a Beatles fan…. Lol
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Jacki, David. From Elementary school, the lessons I remember the most were the music classes. We had one music teacher in the whole school, Mr Stevens, who ran a very strict class though. There was to be no slacking or fooling around. He on his piano or Ukelele and all the kids singing, we made some beautiful music. Or at least it felt so beautiful singing them. Around Christmas time it was all the Christmas Carols that were so sweet. I think music and art is such an important curriculum that too often get cut in favor of science and math, but when there is nothing interesting to read or listen to, what is the point of all that science and math and engineering!
Petula Clark’s Downtown is one of my favorites, because in the 60’s I remember it was one of the few songs my mom use to sing when it came on the radio or on TV, in her somewhat broken english back then. All the 60’s pop culture was quite the fascination to my mom and dad who were in their 30s then. I remember my mom had her hair styled like Marlo Thomas of the 60’s comdy “That Girl”, which was one of my mom’s favorite TV shows. I’m guessing now she might of liked the main star Ted Bessell a little who co-starred with Marlo Thomas as her beau. 🙂 Petula Clark’s Dowtown just brought back volumes of memories just now. 🙂 What music can do. It always makes me feel good when I hear this one, and I can see why my mom liked it back then in the 60’s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx06XNfDvk0
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Well, it’s great to learn that my grade school music experiences weren’t as atypical as I had always thought. “Downtown” featured one of my music teacher’s most notable lyrical flubs: he rendered “Happy again” as “How can you win?” Even as a little kid I could tell that that made no sense.
Hey, Jung and Jacki, speaking of Marlo Thomas and grade school music class, did you guys sing the soundtrack to “Free To Be… You And Me”? Those songs are really burned into my memory, especially “William’s Doll” as sung by Alan Alda.
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On the subject of folk music, Joan Baez, The Searchers, and The Seekers had hits in the sixties with Malvina Reynolds’ “What Have They Done To The Rain”. I have chosen Marianne Faithfull’s cover here. So young and beautiful in 1965. What has Mick done to Marianne? I don’t know about you but I can definitely visualise The MLT producing a video of Mona and Lisa singing this number. If you watch to the end, you’ll even see Papa Rudi in disguise at the top of a step ladder, holding a watering can!
Malvina Reynolds (1900-1978) was an influential figure in the movement, and her composition – originally called “Rain Song”, was written in 1962 as part of the anti-nuclear campaign.
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Getting back to The MLT, Dylan and Papa Rudi, this would have to be the greatest cover of Dylan’s “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue”. From that great sixties Irish band ‘Them’, featuring Van ‘the man’ Morrison.
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The Masterminds – She Belongs To Me – 1965 45rpm, one-off single by Liverpool’s Masterminds, features Jimmy Page and Badfinger’s Joey Molland on guitars. I’ve included this cover because of Mona’s and Lisa’s 8 Sep 2019 request “To add to yesterday’s Tweet about somewhat forgotten 60’s songs out of Liverpool.”
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I have to include Dylan’s own version as I think it is the definitive one. Such a superb lyricist. So many metaphors.
“She’s got everything she needs, she’s an artist, She don’t look back”
“She can take the dark out of the nighttime and paint the daytime black”
“She never stumbles, she’s got no place to fall”. -
Hiya people
seems that there has been a few OZI track put forward during this conversation, so going off piste a little I thought I’d share my own contribution, recorded in 1965 by the local TV presenter turned pop star, Ernie became Australia’s version of Bruce Forsythe and made this a Number 1, for 16 weeks ! it knocked Elvis of the top spot.
The song “Think About Me” was written, composed and arranged by my dad Colin Kirby, hence the love of sixties era and tunes.
Sadly he’s now passed on but as his oldest son I have full copyright of this song and many others just shouting out to be recreated.
what do you guys think ??
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Skip, what a sweet gem “Think About Me” is! That must have been pretty special to have a song written by your dad going to the top of the charts back then. Did your father write many other songs that were recorded?
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I would love to see them do A Whiter Shade of Pale and Badge by Cream.
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Ironically, Ernie’s “Think About Me” recording is backed by the song “Mona Lisa”. I have lifted the following synopsis from the web.
“Ernest William Sigley (born 2 September 1938) s a Gold Logie winning Australian host, radio presenter and singer. Known as a pioneer of Australian television, Sigley is often styled as a “little Aussie battler” with a larrikin sense of humour.
Sigley is remembered for his 1964 association with the Adelaide leg of The Beatles tour of Australia. In one press conference, Sigley’s questioning of The Beatles brought about an enthusiastic response from John Lennon, which led to one of the best interviews of the tour.
In 1974, Sigley, with Denise Drysdale, recorded the popular duet, “Hey Paula”, released by Festival Records, Australia and produced at Armstrong Studios, Melbourne. This song went on to be a No. 1 best-selling hit for them in Australia. In the original version from 1963, Songwriter, Ray Hildebrand was Paul. “Paula” was Jill Jackson, the niece of the owner of the boarding house where Ray lived at the time.”
Ernie Sigley & Denise Drysdale (affectionately known as ‘Ding Dong’) – Hey Paula (1974).
His family announced in October 2016 that he has Alzheimer’s Disease. Not a bad career for someone born in Footscray, Melbourne, one of seven children of a boilermaker!
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What we really need is more covers of MonaLisa Twins’ originals, like this beautiful cover of “Still A Friend Of Mine”, from “Flavio’.
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I’ve shared a video cover of Malvina Reynolds’ “What Have They Done To The Rain” and we’ve since had requests for CCR’s “Have You Ever Seen The Rain” and “Who’ll Stop The Rain”. Well, I don’t think we can count on the MLT to stop the rain if this video is anything to go by!!
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I love that video. It still keeps me guessing which one is Mona and which is Lisa in those early baby clips. Both are just too cute and adorable, back then and now.
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