Song 125 - Word gets around by Stereophonics

Songs are like friends, they grow deeper in meaning the more time you spend with them. Okay so it is the first Friday of the month and it's time for an album. This week's album is Word gets around by Stereophonics. Released in August 1997, it was the band's first album and its songs centre around daily life in Cwmaman, the town they grew up in as a band. Reaching number six in the UK album charts, it is the only album that I know where the final line of the final song ends with the album title.  For me; the album takes me back to university days and the fun of being students, together with a teenage trying to make sense of losing her mum at 16. University definitely opened my world up and fought against the grief that was trying to shut it down. Sorry this is getting deep but some of this songs on this album although really upbeat deal with real issues and I think there is a grittiness to the lyrics that Kelly Jones writes, which appeals to the deeper, more reflective side of me.

They say that the best place to start is the beginning, but that is far too obvious for me; I'm going to start with track 4 of the album because it was the first single to be released by the band. Local Boy in the Photograph was inspired by Paul Boggis, who was killed by a train. I think the line You'll always be 23, yet that train runs on and runs captures an unspoken truth about death that the world always keep going and although things will prevent you from moving forward, the world never stops. It sounds very depressing the song but isn't, the tune and lyrics doesn't have a slow melody, but show captures the fragile nature of life. When the song was first release, it entered the charts at 51 one in 1997, but when it was re-released it reached 14.


The second single released was More Life in a Tramp's Vest and its lyrics take the view point of a local supermarket bag boy. Although this is a good song for me on the album it is sandwiched between other songs that I love so it is one of those songs that I can find myself doing the nodding head to but perhaps don't really listen to as much I should. Like the whole collection of songs; it reflects a character of the area of where the band is from. It reached number 33 on the UK single chart.

It only takes one tree to make a thousand matches, it only takes one match to burn a thousand trees is another one of Jones's lyrics that have burnt into my head (although I have now just read that it came straight off a match box). The line comes from the third track to be released A Thousand Tree. It reached number 22 on the UK single chart. The lyrics are about a football coach who ruined his career due to a sexual encounter with a female students. Again, this is another edgy lyrics that touches on the frail nature of life; especially if you are living dangerous and on the fringes of acceptable behaviour.

Fourth single Traffic reached number 20 on the UK chart, but it possibly for me one of the iconic songs  written by the Stereophonics. I think it appeals as the lyrics talk about every day life and as a writer/observer of life, watching people is a key part of the role. To be every observant as the person sitting on the bench watching everybody else carrying on with life. Recently we had a debate at writing group to whether it is lonely to write on your own in coffee shop. For me, at certain times, there is nothing better than to be lost in your own world and being the observer on everything going on around you.

Sometimes, especially with first albums, it is only the singles that  are worth writing home about, but the albums tracks on Word gets around are as stronger as the singles and stay true to the concept of the album; which was about every day life in the town the bad grew up in and the characters. Dealing with subjects like suicide with Billy Davy's daughter; being caught in a small town and everyone knowing your business in Goldfish Bowl, and the characters of the town like Looks Like Chaplin. I urge you to listen to this album in full and enjoy the talents of the Stereophonics.

Here the album in full
Word gets around by Stereophonics

Written by: Kelly Jones, Richard Jones & Stuart Cable
Date released: 25th August 1997

Song 122 - Mama told me not to come - Tom Jones & Stereophonics

Happy St. David's Day, I don't know whether there are any Welsh readers of the blog, but there are plenty of famous singers from Wales and I have chosen a song which is a duet between one of the most famous Welsh Singers of all time, Tom Jones and one of my favourite band Stereophonics (who are also Welsh).

They recorded Mama told me not to come for Tom Jones's 1999 Reload Album; which is an amazing album of duets Tom Jones recorded with 15 different artists to relaunch his career for the millennium. Mama told me not to come was the third single released from the album in March 2000 and reached number 4 in the chart. The album has sold over 1.2 million copies since it was released.

The song was originally written by Randy Newman for Eric Burdon. Burdon, the lead singer from the Animals, never went ahead with the planned release in 1966, but the song was released on an Animals' album in 1967.  The song would then be covered by Three Dog Night, who topped the US pop chart in 1970 with it. Newman would also release his own version of the song; which is far more mellow than the duet on Reload. 

For Newman the story behind the song was a young gentleman experiencing his first wild party in Los Angeles music scene in the 1960s; and the narrator is rather shocked from the experience. I wish I could say that as a country lass coming to the bright lights of Edinburgh to study turned me into a party girl but I have always been up for a good party.

Although we are moving away from the Oscars now that we are in March, I cannot leave this song without recognising the immense talent of Randy Newman,  especially when it comes to films. Newman has received 20 Academy Award nominations in the Best Original Score and Best Original Song categories and has won twice in the latter category, with the songs If I didn't have you from Monsters' Ink and We belong together from Toy Story 3. He has also won three Emmys, six Grammy Awards. He is in the Songwriters Hall of Fame and was named as a Disney Legend in 2007. See you thought this was a random blog with random songs!

As I am feeling generous - I will leave you with all four versions of the song and let you decide which you prefer, for me, it will always be the one that Tom Jones and Stereophonics recorded but maybe I am biased to the version I know the best. Have fun celebrating St. David's Day.

Three Dog Nights sing Mama told me not to come
Eric Burdon and Animals sing Mama told me not to come
Randy Newman's Mama told me not to come
Tom Jones and Stereophonics' Mama told me not to come

Song 2 - Mr Writer by Stereophonics

Keeping up with writing theme for the second song "Mr Writer" by Stereophonics has always, for me, been a gritter song about the writing profession whilst Paperback Writer  is all about pleasing a market, Kelly Jones's tones is telling Mr Writer to tell it like it really is. The song itself is the band's response to a negative write up by a journalist.

For me, I have a mix on iTunes that I put together for the novel that I am writing. Running next to Paperback Writer; it sends a message to me about keeping my writing real especially when talking about discrimination in the book. I think for me, it about watching the pace of my writing as you can't always have your character at crisis point, there has to be calmer period in the book so the impact of the words at critic points are there. For me you have to keep it honest in the framework of your ecosystem of the characters.

"Mr Writer" is the third single from the album Just Enough Education To Perform, which was released in 2001. The song has a raw and honest lyric together with a strong melody; which makes me always reach for the volume.

To listen to Mr Writer by Stereophonics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwOMnIuAGOY

Written by: Kelly Jones/Marshall Bird
Album: Just Enough Education to Perform