Tuesday Coffee Break: Autobiographical Songs
Posted at 8:27 AM on December 28, 2010
by Steve Seel
(47 Comments)
Filed under: 9:30 Coffee Break
Today's 9:30 Coffee Break is devoted to autobiographical songs - tunes that specifically and clearly speak in the artist in question's voice and refer unmistakably to their lives. In other words, not just a lyric that says "I" something-or-other, but rather, "here's the story of my career and/or my band."
Songs played:
The Mamas and the Papas "Creeque Alley"
Brother Ali "Fresh Air"
The Beatles "Ballad of John and Yoko"
Boston "Rock and Roll Band"
Johnny Cash "Man in Black"
Comments (47)
Johnny Cash - The Man in Black
Trying To Tell You I Don't Know -- Freedy Johnston ["Well I sold the dirt to feed the band . . ."]
History Lesson -- the Minutemen
The Ballad of Mott the Hoople -- um . . .
Fun topic!
Boston - Rock and Roll Band
Half Breed - Cher
At 17 - Janis Ian
Creeque Alley - Mamas and Papas
We're an American Band - Grand Funk Railroad
I second The Man in Black by Johnny Cash
Real Love - Lucinda Williams
Fresh Air - Brother Ali
Legend in My Living Room - Annie Lennox
Waylon Jennings - Are you Sure hank done it that way
Seen Your Video - The Replacements
Drummer - coconut records
Atmosphere - That Night
Flashlight Brown - Ready to Roll
lucinda williams...west
well actually almost any of her songs
but this one stands out as a story she told at the state
about trying to talk a midwest man in to moving out to cali.
Little Man by Atmosphere
"Coal Miner's Daughter" by Loretta Lynn
Early 1970" by Ringo Starr (about The Beatles)
"Who the F*ck Are Arctic Monkeys?" by Arctic Monkeys
Ballad of John and Yoko by the Beatles
Creeque Alley" by The Mamas & the Papas (describes how the band was formed
Hey Jude" by The Beatles (Written for John Lennon's son Julian after John's divorce)
We Three" by Patti Smith
Chelsea Hotel '78 - Alejandro Escovedo
Ballad of John and Yoko - John Lennon
The Who, who Are You. The opening line in the song, "I woke up in a Soho doorway, a policeman knew my name. He said you can go sleeping home tonight if you can get up and walk away." is how Pete Townsend woke up one morning after a nigh of heavy drinking. While waiting on a train in the London Undrground he tried to remember what happened. All he could remember is throwing punches around and preaching from his chair.
Pittsburg-Mason Jennings
"Ballad of John and Yoko" -- The Beatles.
"All The Way From Memphis" -- Mott the Hoople.
Don't Call Them Twinkies - The Hold Steady
Heart Songs - Weezer
Pedro the Lion - Bad Diary Days
My Dad - Paul Westerberg
I also second Coal Miner's Daughter by Loretta Lynn.
The Ballad of John and Yoko - The Beatles
Creeque Alley - The Mamas and Papas
Micheal Franti - Rude Boy's Back in Town
Beatles - Ballad of John and Yoko
"Stay" - Jackson Browne
"BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD AGAIN".. by
Neil Young.. sings about the band
Stiff Little Fingers - Wait and See
Ballad of john and yoko- beatles
Who can it be now- Men at work, about their days as starving artist, worried everytime someone knocked to get more bills paid.
Beth by Kiss!
"Top of the Bottom" - John Wesley Harding
Another vote for "Rock & Roll Band" by Boston...
fresh air - brother ali
Room Full of People in Your Head - cloud cult
barely breathing - the hold steady
bring it on by gaslight anthem
I walk the line - Johnny Cash
rehab - amy whinehouse
"Wanted Dead or Alive" - Bon Jovi.
A lot of random selections:
Odd choises
Tenacious D songs: Dio, Kyle Quit the Band, Friendship
Better choices:
Harry Nilsson - 1941
The Beatles - Ballad of John and Yoko
John Lennon - Oh Yoko!
Juicy - The Notorious B.I.G.gy Smalls
Trenchtown Rock - Bob Marley
PICK ONE:
"1968" by The Incredible String Band (Mike Heron directly addresses Robin Williamson)
"2000 Light Years Away" by Green Day (about the first time lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong kissed his girlfriend, now wife, Adrienne Armstrong, formerly Adrienne Nesser, and being apart for a while)
"And It Stoned Me" by Van Morrison about a day in his childhood fishing with a friend.
"Alive 'n' Kickin' by Kenny Loggins about his road to stardom
A Quitter" by Rasputina is Melora Creager's suicide note.
"Autobiography" by Ashlee Simpson
"Ballad of John and Yoko" by The Beatles
"Ballad in Plain D" by Bob Dylan (about Suze Rotolo and her sister)
"Ballad of Billy the Kid" by Billy Joel
"Ballad Of Moon Dog Mayne" by Ricky Ringside aka Gene Summers written by Deanna Summers
"Brian" by Brian Wilson
"Brian is Back" by The Beach Boys
"Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy" by Elton John (About John's songwriting partnership with Bernie Taupin)
"Chelsea Hotel No 2" by Leonard Cohen (1975—about Janis Joplin) [1]
"Childhood" by Michael Jackson
"Choppin" Wood" by Van Morrison written after his father died
" The Circle Game" by Joni Mitchell (about Neil Young, in particular his song about growing up ""Sugar Mountain"
"Cleanin' Out My Closet" by Eminem (about his childhood and his mother)
"Cleaning Windows" by Van Morrison about his first job after finishing school in Belfast Northern Ireland
"Close My Eyes" by Mariah Carey (about her troubled childhood)
"Clown" by Mariah Carey (about Eminem)
"Cosmia" by Joanna Newsom is about the death and importance of her best friend.
"Coal Miner's Daughter" by Loretta Lynn (about her childhood in Kentucky)
"Confessions of a Broken Heart (Daughter to Father)" by Lindsay Lohan (about her father and his cruelty towards her mother)
"Conversations with My 13 Year Old Self" by Pink
"Creeque Alley" by The Mamas & the Papas (describes how the band was formed)
"Descendents" by The Descendents (about the band)
"Early 1970" by Ringo Starr (about The Beatles)
"Emily" by Joanna Newsom is about her sister, Emily.
"Fall to Pieces" by Velvet Revolver (about lead singer Scott Weiland's drug problem)
"Family Portrait" by Pink
"The Glen" by Bradley Joseph (instrumentally describes his experience on a cross-country trip)
"Gangsters" by The Specials (supposedly about the Two-Tone band's former manager Bernie Rhodes, who also managed The Clash
"Go Leave" by Kate McGarrigle (about Loudon Wainwright III, Kate's first husband)
"Green Day" by Green Day (about lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong's first experience with Marijuana)
"Happy Birthday, Darling" by Gene Summers (song he wrote for his wife Dea during their first year of marriage)
"Howard Hughes by Rasputina is about Howard Hughes
"Harold Of The Rocks" by Primus (about how Les Claypool met original guitarist Todd Huth)
"Hey Jude" by The Beatles (Written for John Lennon's son Julian after John's divorce)
"History Lesson Part 1" by Minutemen
"Home" by Alan Jackson (contains direct references to Alan's early life)
"Home To McComb" by Bo Diddley (Bo Diddley was born in the town of McComb in south-west Mississippi)
"How Do you Sleep?" by John Lennon (John criticizes Paul McCartney's music since The Beatles' break-up " the only thing you done was "Yesterday" and since you've gone it's just "Another Day")
"I Miss You" by Randy Newman (Randy speaks directly to his first wife)
"I Think That I Would Die" by Hole (about Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain's daughter custody removal)
"I'm Just a Singer (in a Rock 'n Roll Band)" by The Moody Blues
"I'm OK" by Christina Aguilera (Aguilera speaks out about her abusive father)
"Ian Curtis" by Thursday ( About the lead singer of Joy Division before his suicide )
"Johnny Was" by Bob Marley (about the notorious Jamaican "rude boy" Trevor Wilson, who was the brother of Bob's former labelmate Delroy Wilson
"Journey to the End" by Rancid (about Operation Ivy which shared two members)
"Jules and Jim" by The Who (about the British journalist Julie Burchill and her relationship with Tony Parsons)
"Julia" by The Beatles (about John Lennon's mother)
"Killer, The" by Joe Hardin Brown. Produced by Gene Summers (song about Jerry Lee Lewis)
"Last Time I Saw Richard, The" by Joni Mitchell (about Joni's first husband)
"Layla" by Eric Clapton (about his unrequited love for George Harrison's wife Patti Boyd)
"Letter, The" by The Incredible String Band (about Mike, Rose and a fan)
"Like It Or Not" by Madonna
"Liverpool 8" by Ringo Starr (about his life with The Beatles)
"Live Like You Were Dying" by Tim McGraw (about his father)
"Look at Me" by Geri Halliwell
"Love In An Elevator" by Aerosmith (about a sexual encounter Steven Tyler had with two women in an elevator)
"Mockingbird" by Eminem (about his children and wife)
"Mother" by John Lennon (about John's mother and father)
"Mr. Bad Guy" by Freddie Mercury (realistically, a self-describing song)
"My Book" by The Beautiful South (about Heaton's life up to the formation of the band)
"My World" by Avril Lavigne
"Of Mice and Men" by Megadeth (about lead singer Dave Mustaine's life during his career)
"Only a Miracle" by Kenny Loggins (written for his first son Crosby)
"Orange County Girl" by Gwen Stefani (about her life since the days before No Doubt)
"Outta Here" by KRS-One (about his rise to hip-hop fame)
"Nutbush City Limits" by Tina Turner (portraits everyday life in her childhood home, Nutbush, Tennessee)
"No It Isn't" by +44 (concerning the break-up of blink-182.)
"No More No More" by Aerosmith (about life as a touring band)
"No Surprize" by Aerosmith (also about life as a touring band)
"Piano Man" by Billy Joel
"Playdough" by The Aquabats is a song about how life was easier when you were a kid and could play with Star Wars action figures
"Que fait-tu lá, Petula?" by Petula Clark spoofs the British public's reaction to her success in France
"Remnants of Percy Bass" by Rasputina is about the interior decorator.
"Rabbit Run" by Eminem (about Jimmy Smith's life... from the 8 Mile movie soundtrack)
"Rite of Spring" by Angels & Airwaves (about Tom DeLonge's teenage years and him starting blink-182)
"The Real Thing" by Kenny Loggins about his divorce from his first wife and describing it to his newborn daughter
"Rosanna" by (Toto) about (Rosanna Arquette) dating Steve Porcaro at the time
"Rock and Roll Band" by Boston about their early playing days
"Retard Girl" by Hole (about Courtney Love's bullying at school)
"Revelation" by D12 (about the childhood of each member)
"Sara" by Bob Dylan (about his first wife)
"Serve the Servants" by Nirvana (about Kurt's lifelong angst)
"Shadow" by Ashlee Simpson
"She" by Green Day (about self-confidence and self-esteem problems faced by lead singer, Billie Joe Armstrong's former girlfriend)
"She Has A Girlfriend Now" by Reel Big Fish (about a girl who dumped songwirter Aaron Barrett for another girl)
"Sliding Through Life on Charm" by Marianne Faithfull
"Slipping Through My Fingers" by ABBA (inspired by the daughter of band members Björn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Fältskog, who had recently started school at the time the song was recorded)
"Solsbury Hill" by Peter Gabriel (inspired by his departure from Genesis)
"Son of Evil" by GG Allin
"Story of Bo Diddley" (aka "My Story") by Bo Diddley (relates Bo Diddley's birth in McComb, Mississippi and his move to Chicago, Illinois to find fame)
"Sunset Strip" by Courtney Love
"Sweet Children" by Green Day (about Green Day when before they changed their name to "Green Day" from "Sweet Children")
"Teenage Whore" by Hole (about Courtney Love's stripper career before fame)
"Tenterfield Saddler" by Peter Allen about his childhood and Australia and marriage to Liza Minnelli
"Three Little Birds" by Bob Marley (about and for his girlfriend, the former Miss World Cindy Brakespeare
"To Try for the Sun" by Donovan (about his early days on the road)
"Two Twenty Nine" by Brave Saint Saturn (deals with the death of Reese Ropers grandmother)
"Two Rivers" by Petula Clark
"Undergoing Treatment" by Duran Duran (about how the band has been chronically mistreated by the music press and establishment and how it has been coping with the downward slide in their overall popularity)
The album Wall, The by Pink Floyd; autobiography of lead songwriter Roger Waters
"Wild Man Fischer Story, The" by Wild Man Fischer
"Williams' Blood" by Grace Jones (about Jones' career and relationship with her family)
"We Three" by Patti Smith (about her relationships with Jim Carroll and Robert Mapplethorpe at the same time in the 1970s)
"Wake Me Up When September Ends" by Green Day (about the death of Billie Joe Armstrong's father)
"What's Your Favorite Color" by Living Colour
"When We was Fab" by George Harrison (about The Beatles)
"Who the Fuck Are Arctic Monkeys?" by Arctic Monkeys
"With Arms Wide Open" by Creed (about lead singer Scott Stapp's son, Jagger Stapp)
"Your Mother and I" by Loudon Wainwright III (see "Go Leave")
"One"- Metallica.
It's about Lars. I'm suprised you weren't able to tell by his drumming.
The Spiderbite Song by The Flaming Lips!!!
Treat Her Right - "No Reason" (Mark Sandman singing about the death of his little brothers)
LCD Soundsystem - "Daft Punk is Playing at my House" (probably not true, but it sounds cool)
Silver Jews - "Trains Across the Sea" (In 27 years, I drunk 50,000 beers, and they just wash against me like the sea into a pier).
Treat Her Right - "No Reason" (Mark Sandman singing about the death of his little brothers)
LCD Soundsystem - "Daft Punk is Playing at my House" (probably not true, but it sounds cool)
Silver Jews - "Trains Across the Sea" (In 27 years, I drunk 50,000 beers, and they just wash against me like the sea into a pier).
Though its status as an autobiographical song wasn't revealed until (I think) the 1990s, Joni Mitchell's "Little Green" is about the child she gave up for adoption.
The Load Out/Stay Jackson Browne
There's one by Lynyrd Skynyrd too, but I can't think of the name of the song.
Truckin' - Grateful Dead
Woodstock - Crosby Stills & Nash
"What's Your Name" Lynyrd Skynyrd
Same Auld Lang Syne- Fogelberg
for the record, Boston never left in my eyes.
How could you not play "We're an American Band/"
Also, Wagon Wheel by Old Crow Med. Show
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