Ten Great Capitol Records Songs

One of music’s successful record labels is Capitol Records. Capitol Records is an American record label which is now part of the Universal Music Group. I had written a similar article “Ten Great Universal Music Group Songs” where I included a few Capitol songs. I have been paying attention to Capitol Records since I started listening to Bob Seger’s music in 2010. Bob is of course featured in this article.

Up On Cripple Creek - The Band (1969)

This song is sung by drummer Levon Helm. Levon and The Band sing well together in the chorus with their backing vocals. Its opening is the drums with bits of guitar. This rock song is influenced by blues and country. As someone into keyboards, I love how this song has three keyboard parts (piano, clavinet & organ). The clavinet gives off quirky vibes. Robbie Robertson’s guitar plays a supportive part in the background and has a stronger presence in the last quarter of the song.

He Can’t Love You - Michael Stanley Band (1980)

Michael Stanley is an American rock singer who unfortunately passed away two years ago in March 2021. The Michael Stanley Band is a band he fronted. This is a catchy heartland rock song. It’s sung by keyboardist Kevin Raleigh. It has driving guitars with good piano backing. There is an organ in the background. It features saxophone from Bruce Springsteen’s saxophonist Clarence Clemons. I get Bob Seger vibes from this song with it reminding me of my favourite Bob Seger song “Even Now”.

Heartbreak Radio - Delbert McClinton (1981)

This song opens with a brief drum intro and it goes into electric guitars backed with piano. The piano is in the rock & roll style. There are horns in parts of the song bringing a soul influence. At the halfway point, there’s a saxophone solo with good piano accompaniment. It was originally recorded by Scottish singer Frankie Miller who co-wrote the song with songwriter Troy Seals.

If This Is It - Huey Lewis & The News (1983)

This is a fun pop rock song. It’s probably the first major hit song on this list. It opens with a drum intro and then Chris Hayes’ detailed guitar part comes in. The keyboards in the song are piano, organ and possible synths. The piano gives off a light rock & roll feel. The backing vocals in the chorus support Huey’s lead vocals well and give off a 50s vibe. Huey sings powerfully and melodically. Chris provides a fun charming guitar solo. The guitar solo plays again in the end alongside the last chorus and the concluding section as the song fades.

These Dreams - Heart (1985)

Heart is led by two sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson. This song was written by Martin Page (music) and Bernie Taupin (lyrics). Bernie Taupin is Elton John’s lyricist. Ann usually sings their songs, but this song is sung by Nancy. This is a synth driven soft rock song. The synths offer a gentle reflection of dreams. I get South American vibes in the chorus from one of the synth parts. Interestingly, Johnny Colla, a member of the previous song’s band, sings backing vocals on this track.

Don’t Mean Nothing - Richard Marx (1987)

This is a pure fun rock song. It opens with drumming followed by guitars and the whole band joins in. Michael Omartian plays piano. Richard sings powerfully. Three members of The Eagles are on this song who are Joe Walsh on guitar and Randy Meisner & Timothy B. Schmit on backing vocals. Joe gives a powerful guitar solo with good accompaniment from Michael’s piano. The organ has a supportive part. There is a good instrumental section led by the piano at the end.

Is Love Enough - The Doobie Brothers (1991)

This song was written by Walt Richmond & Jerry Lyn Williams. Interestingly, Walt co-wrote & played piano on the Bob Seger song “She Can’t Do Anything Wrong” that same year which I featured in my article on Bob Seger piano songs and Jerry had written the Eric Clapton song “Running on Faith” that I featured in my article on piano rock songs. This song features a mix of piano and synths. The synths seem to be emulating horn sounds. It’s sung by original lead singer Tom Johnston. Tom sings in an expressive and melodic way. There’s an organ which has a good subtle presence. At about the three-quarter mark, there’s a dark intense blues rock guitar solo. The guitar does more playing in the last section of the song.

Beautiful In My Eyes - Joshua Kadison (1993)

We’re now changing to something soft. This song has a gentle warm sound. Joshua sings soulfully and plays the piano powerfully. It opens with Joshua’s singing and piano playing with subtle organ. There is slight drumming close to the one minute mark and the full band comes in. This song seems like a song on Elton John’s wonderful 1989 “Sleeping With The Past” album such as “Amazes Me”. There is an orchestra and a powerful gospel sounding choir. This is a very melodic song. Next month will be the 30th anniversary of Joshua’s debut album “Painted Desert Serenade” this song comes from.

Manhattan - Bob Seger (1995)

The song opens with Manhattan traffic. Harry Stinson’s drums come in with the traffic before other instruments join in. There is an intense guitar part and a dark piano part. Roy Bittan gives great rock piano playing. The mix of piano and guitars work well. Bob sing-speaks this song. There is a synth undercurrent throughout the song. This song is an example of an epic long Bob Seger song. The song closes with sounds of Manhattan traffic like how it opens.

Can’t Stay Alone Tonight - Elton John (2013)

Capitol Records was the US label of Elton John’s 2013 Mercury Records album “The Diving Board”. I’m not in the US, but had to include this as I’m an Elton John fan. This is a melodic country ballad Elton John wrote the melody to lyrics by his songwriting partner Bernie Taupin. This song has no guitar with it driven by Elton’s piano. The slight keyboards give a nice whistling effect. Though this isn’t in Elton’s usual style, the song sounds positively and uniquely Elton with his singing, piano playing and melody. The bridge brings in a good melodic change.

This is my personal selection of Capitol Records songs covering a 44 year period. They showcase music that really rocks as well as gentle ballads. The artists featured range from major stars, well-known names and those with a degree of success but may not be widely known. It’s fitting that we opened with The Band and concluded with Elton John as The Band are one of Elton’s major influences.