chimesfreedom

John Denver’s First Number One Song

In March 1974, John Denver had his first number one song with “Sunshine on My Shoulders,” aided by a number of factors.

On March 30, 1974, John Denver’s song “Sunshine on My Shoulders” became his first number one hit. The song — co-written by Denver, Dick Kniss, and Mike Taylor — first appeared on the album Poems Prayers & Promises in 1971. After originally appearing as a B-side to “I’d Rather Be a Cowboy (Lady’s Chains),” the song was then re-released as an A-side single in 1973.

Denver’s previous single, “Rocky Mountain High” was a hit too, but it only went to number nine in 1973 on the Hot 100 chart. The timing may have had something to do with the popularity of “Sunshine on My Shoulder.” The song about sunshine warming you up might be popular as winter was coming to a close in March.

There is another reason the timing may have helped the song’s popularity. The sad-sounding song might might have received a boost from the fact that the nation was in a melancholy mood as the Watergate scandal dragged on in 1974.

Another reason that “Sunshine on My Shoulders” may have gotten a boost to be Denver’s first number one song is that in 1973 the song had appeared in a TV movie, “Sunshine,” which starred Cliff DeYoung and Cristina Raines. The sad sound of the song perfectly fit the storyline, about a woman who learns she has terminal cancer and then starts to tape record a journal for her musician-husband and their daughter.

In the movie, which later led to a short-lived TV series, Cliff DeYoung sings “Sunshine on My Shoulders.” You may hear the version DeYoung, who was in a band before he began his acting career, on YouTube (around the five-minute mark).

More recently, Carly Rae Jepson covered the song for a new generation. Her version appears on her 2008 album Tug of War.

Despite the sad sound of the original version, the lyrics are more uplifting than depressing. Things cannot be too bad if the singer promises, “If I had a day that I could give you, I’d give to you a day just like today.” Further, the only crying is from sunshine in the eyes. And most of the time sunshine makes the singer high.

Denver, who passed away in October 1997, explained in 1974 that he wrote “Sunshine on My Shoulders” because he was feeling down and “wanted to write a feeling-blue song.” But he realized that the song ended up being more optimistic than he had originally intended. The song “is what came out.”

What is your favorite John Denver song? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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Snow Angels (Missed Movies)

When one considers that much of the U.S. has snow on the ground for a significant part of the year, it is somewhat surprising that so few movies are placed in that setting. There are the Christmas movies. But where are the movies set in the frigid and dreary months of January and February?

Perhaps because I grew up in the snow and later lived part of my life in areas without snow, I especially enjoy a good snow movie. And there are some excellent movies set in the snow such as the sad The Sweet Hereafter (1997). There’s also Paul Newman’s fine performance in Nobody’s Fool (1994). Murder sagas also seem to work well in the snow, as shown by Fargo (1996) and Insomnia (2002).

Snow Angels

073056_0a6fb5e7 — photo: Adam Colton (licensed for reuse)

One of my favorite snow movies, though, is Snow Angels (2006). The film is set in a 1970s small town in Pennsylvania. The time of year is during the weeks when snow stays on the ground but it seems too cold for more snowflakes.

In the opening scene of Snow Angels, a marching band practices as their director tries to inspire them. The students suddenly hear gun shots in the distance. The screen goes dark and we jump to “weeks earlier.” So we know from the start that somehow at least one person is heading toward a tragedy.

There are tragic turns in the movie, but I will not ruin the film. The movie focuses on two families. In one, Annie (Kate Beckinsale) and Glenn (Sam Rockwell) are separated spouses struggling with the failure of their marriage while trying to take care of their young daughter.

Annie works with and used to babysit for teenager Arthur (Michael Angaro). And the other family focus is Arthur’s family. While Arthur is developing a relationship with a new girl at school, his parents are separating.

The acting in Snow Angels is superb and believable. Sam Rockwell may not immediately come to your mind when listing the top actors today, but he continues to make his every movie worth watching. Here, as the troubled Glenn, he is outstanding. He makes viewers sympathize with someone they probably would not want to be around in real life.

I had seen Snow Angels several years ago. So I watched it again before writing this entry. I enjoyed the movie the second time too, although it may not be a movie you will want to watch repeatedly. Although there is a great deal of sadness in the movie, one may also find a little hope toward the end.

The movie is based on the book Snow Angels by Stewart O’Nan. Apparently the book included someone making a literal snow angel, while the movie does not. Still, the title suits the movie in a number of ways. “Snow Angels” may refer to real angels or to the cold emotions and isolation faced by many of the characters.

If you are looking for a light comedy or uplifting story for this weekend, you should look elsewhere. But if you are in the mood for an intense drama that keeps you enthralled, you may like Snow Angels.

The trailer gives away too much of the movie. So, you are better off not seeing the trailer before seeing the movie. But if you want to know more before deciding whether to watch the film, the trailer for Snow Angels is here.

“Snow Angel” the Song

Instead of the trailer I will introduce you to an excellent band from Ohio called Over the Rhine. The band consists of the husband and wife team of Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist.

Below is a fan recording of their live performance of their beautiful song, “Snow Angel.” The song is not related to the movie of the similar name. The singular “Snow Angel” is off their album of the plural Snow Angels (2008).

In the song, the singer tells of saying goodbye to her “one and only love” who goes off to war (“The rumors of a distant war / Called my true love’s name”). But the man is killed during the war, leaving the singer heartbroken (“Snow angel, snow angel / Someday I’m gonna fly / This cold and broken heart of mine / Will one day wave goodbye”).

Like the movie Snow Angels, the song “Snow Angel” captures something about the pain and loneliness of winter. It also reminds us to enjoy our days of warmer weather.

Movies You Might Have Missed is a Chimesfreedom series to inform our readers about good movies that did not receive the attention they deserved.

If you saw Snow Angels, what did you think? Any thoughts on the very last scene? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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Christopher Walken’s Movie Dance Montage

Huffington Post recently compiled a video of movie scenes with actor Christopher Walken dancing. The clip features scenes of Walken’s moves from more than fifty movies, all set to C+C Music Factory’s “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now).” Movies featured in the montage include The Deer Hunter (1978), Batman Returns (1992), Wayne’s World 2 (1993), Pulp Fiction (1994), Wedding Crashers (2005), Hairspray (2007), and A Late Quartet (2012). Seeing the large number of films that feature Walken’s moves, I wonder if some filmmakers hire him on that talent alone. Check it out.

Walken has not only danced in movies. With all of Walken’s great film work, he is also known for his footwork in the great video for Fatboy Slim‘s “Weapon of Choice.” If the new movie montage video has you craving more Walken dancing, here’s the Fatboy Slim video.

What is your favorite Christopher Walken dance? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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Kevin Bacon Reprises “Footloose” Protest on Tonight Show

On The Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon announced NBC’s new rule banning all dancing. Coincidentally, that night’s guest was Kevin Bacon, who pulled out his moves from his Footloose days to stand up against the network’s dancing ban.

Is he able to change peoples’ minds about the ban on dancing? You will have to check out the video to find out.

It is hard to believe that it has been three decades since Footloose opened in theaters in 1984. But the 55-year-old Keven Bacon shows he still has the moves (with a little help from a double). And he is a great sport here too.

What is your favorite Kevin Bacon movie? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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Springsteen’s “Spill the Wine”: Is This Just a Dream?

Bruce Springsteen fans have noted that the singer has been making some interesting song choices on his latest tour. Recently, a friend directed me to Springsteen’s February performance of “Spill the Wine,” originally a 1970 hit for Eric Burdon (the former lead singer of The Animals) and War on their album Eric Burdon Declares “War” (1970). This February 23 opening performance at the Hope Estate Winery in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales, Australia was the first public performance of the song by Springsteen and the E Street Band. I am not sure there is a better song to open a show at a winery.

“Spill the Wine” is one of those songs you have heard a million times even if you may not recognize the song’s name. The tune often appears in movies set in the 1970s, like Boogie Nights (1997) and Remember the Titans (2000), because the song sounds like the 1970s. You will recognize it once you hear the opening riff. It’s a cool song too, and Springsteen does it justice (with some lyric changes for the Australian locale), here leading into his own song, “Seeds.” Check it out.

“Seeds” is about a family struggling to survive in the Southwest. As for “Spill the Wind,” you may read the different theories about the song’s meaning around the Internet. AllMusic, which gives its own interpretation of the song, notes that the song is so unique that few folks — like Springsteen and the Isley Brothers — have ever covered it. And, like a number of other one-off songs performed by Springsteen, so far he has only performed it once.

Although Springsteen’s performance is a lot of fun, it is of course impossible to top the original. The first album of two collaborations between Burdon and War created this song that became War’s first major hit and Burdon’s last. Watch this performance by Eric Burdon and War of the shaggy dog story, “Spill the Wine.”