Takin’ Care of Business - Bachman-Turner Overdrive (1973)
This fun rock song is written and sung by guitarist Randy Bachman. It opens with a guitar part and the piano soon joins it. I love the rock & roll piano part which matches well with the guitars. There are three guitar solos. The combination of piano and guitar including on the guitar solos remind me of the similar song “Sunspot Baby” by Bob Seger. The backing vocals in the chorus give off a celebratory feel.
Heat Treatment - Graham Parker & The Rumour (1976)
It opens with a few piano notes which are joined by all the instruments. There are great horns throughout the song. I like Bob Andrews’ jolly piano. The guitar has a good supporting role adding colour to the song. There is a relaxing saxophone solo. Graham sings with passion. I like his vocalisation of “yeah” near the end in a stretched out way. This is a rock song influenced by soul.
The Things We Do for Love - 10cc (1976)
This song is written by Graham Gouldman and Eric Stewart. Eric sings this song in a warm, relaxed way. He plays the keyboards and the lead guitar. The piano has an upbeat feel. Organ is featured in parts of the song and has a good presence. There is a gentle guitar solo. The three band members play all the instruments through the magic of overdubbing. This is an example of good pop rock.
Take It Easy - Delbert McClinton (1978)
This is an americana ballad which has elements of country and blues. There are horns in the song and also a saxophone featured including a solo. The song is led by melodic piano playing. There are female backing vocals. Delbert brings the feel you get from late 70s ballads.
Run for Home - Lindisfarne (1978)
This song is produced by Gus Dudgeon who was Elton John’s producer during his peak. It has a relaxing soft rock feel. There is a gentle melodic piano. The band sings together nicely during the chorus. An orchestra is featured. At the halfway mark, I like what the piano does. Lindisfarne gives us an example of the soft rock & pop rock songs of the time in England.
Le bon temps du rock and roll - Johnny Hallyday (1979)
This is a French language cover of Bob Seger’s “Old Time Rock & Roll” by France’s Johnny Hallyday. He also covered Bob Seger’s “Feel Like a Number” and “Brave Strangers” from the same album. It opens with a piano intro different to the original but gets the same feel. Johnny sings strongly. The first guitar solo is more intense than Bob’s version. There is no saxophone solo, but there’s a second guitar solo featuring great rock & roll piano backing including glissandos. Johnny kept the part from the original with singing and drums only. Johnny was able to maintain the musical style of the Bob Seger original and put his own spin on it. It’s unique hearing this song in French.
Long Distance - Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes (1980)
It opens with drums and the instruments come in. This song is piano driven. There are horns. Southside Johnny sings with emotion on this mid-tempo rocker. The guitar solo features good interjections by the horns. This song is Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes’ brand of heartland rock which includes soul influences.
Private Investigations - Dire Straits (1982)
This progressive rock song is written by Dire Straits’ singer and lead guitarist Mark Knopfler. It opens with a synth part. We get guitar and piano notes which come in and out. Following this, piano and classical guitar comes in. Mark says the words in a singspeak way. There is a classical guitar solo with few other instruments including vibraphone. We get synth and piano coming back. Keyboardist Alan Clark gives good rock piano notes at the end.
I’m Still Standing - Elton John (1983)
This is when Elton John reunited with his original band of Davey Johnstone (guitar), Nigel Olsson (drums) and Dee Murray (bass) to make the “Too Low for Zero” album. Elton’s band provides great backing vocals. Elton plays both piano & synths and sings loudly in celebration. Dee Murray’s bass guitar is more noticeable including some slap bass parts. I like Davey’s guitar solo. This pop rock song has positive energy.
Always - Bon Jovi (1994)
This is an epic power ballad. It opens with a drum part, brings in all the instruments rocking and then goes intimate mainly with Jon Bovi Jovi’s singing and David Bryan’s piano. All the instruments come in strongly during the chorus. The second verse is softer than the chorus, but the band has more to do than the first. An orchestra has a presence in this song. There is a light relaxing guitar solo by Richie Sambora. Jon gives great rock singing. David’s piano playing holds the song together. He provides great rock piano playing.
The music featured comes from Europe and North America. The countries the artists are from are the UK (Graham Parker & The Rumour, 10cc, Lindisfarne, Dire Straits, Elton John), the US (Delbert McClinton, Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, Bon Jovi), Canada (Bachman-Turner Overdrive) and France (Johnny Hallyday). These songs reflect the legacy of Mercury Records. If you enjoyed reading this, you may be interested in my article “Ten Great Capitol Records Songs”.
