Day 157: June 6: Sadie

"She said to me, boy, hurry to Sunday school."

Mediocre cover of a Spinners song.  Those two covers albums could really have just been one album- and even then probably just been ok.  Nothing special here.

Sadie

I'm not well versed in The Spinners catalog, but I did know this one.

Working My Way Back to You

Day 156: June 5: Circle Round the Sun

"She throws her arms around me just like a circle around the sun."

Fuzzy metaphors and psychedelic arrangements make this a minor miss from the self-titled album.  However, even in this slight mess you can hear the beginning his craft developing.

Circle Round the Sun

If you want a funky circle song, look no further.  I give Billy's infectious joy a little credit for keeping the Beatles together a little longer than they otherwise would have.

Will it Go Round in Circles?

Day 155: June 4: Wandering

"and it don't look like I'll ever stop my wandering."

James clings to his folky roots on this treasure from the Gorilla album.  There's a little Woody Guthrie and a little Kingston Trio in there- although he's more polished than either of those acts.  Simple, sweet and beautiful.

Wandering

In contrast, these guys want no part of that.

Never Did No Wanderin'

Day 154: June 3: Mockingbird

"I'm gonna find myself a better way."

Russ Griswold asks "Is that made up?  That sounds made up."  He has a fair point, but this is a tremendously fun sing-along.  Yes-indeed-o.

Mockingbird

One of the few cheeseball duets to match the fun of James and Carly is this one.

Don't Go Breaking My Heart

Day 153: June 2: I Was a Fool to Care

"but I don't care even if I was a fool."

Here's a great track from the Gorilla album. James says it was his attempt to replicate the Philly sound- I'm not sure he's done that but whatever he's got going here really works.  There were a couple of live videos out there of this track but this studio version was so much better I opted just go with audio.

I Was a Fool to Care

Paul performs a song about another notorious fool.  

The Fool on the Hill

Day 152: June 1: Ananas

"Here I am at your window, baby."

James goes French again.  He is basically saying I am infatuated with you.  I'm not sure what it has to do with a pineapple.

I also enjoy that this clip is A&E by Request but it starts with James turning down a request for Steamroller because he wanted to play this new song.

Ananas

And if you like pineapples- you may also like pina coladas. But maybe not this song with one of the silliest premises of all time.

No this is not footage of your local karaoke bar- it's some Rupert Holmes cheese.

Escape (The Pina Colada Song)

Day 151: May 31: Long Ago and Far Away

"Love is just a word I've heard when things are being said."

This one has a mournful beauty to it.  Although it is not one of his better known songs it broke the top 40 on the Billboard chart- and even went to number 12 in Canada.  The studio version has some haunting backing vocals from Joni Mitchell that are absent in this live performance.

Long Ago and Far Away

Here's another song about not being able to get what you want- this one quite blatantly.

You Can't Always Get What You Want