Wonderful Tonight? My arse
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I was writing an epically dull post on web standards when I noticed that Molly had written about her top three love songs and just had to rant.
Yes, Nick Drake’s “Brighten My Northern Sky” is a great song, but Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight”?!?!?! Eric Clapton??? Eric Clapped-out, more like.
When I was a bar singer in Turkey, I used to charge people one beer for requests, except for a few songs with finger-twisting chord changes (Stairway to Heaven, Bridge Over Troubled Water) that would cost the punter two beers.
There was also a select list of three-beer songs, chosen not because of complex chord structures, but because they’re toe-curlingly shit. I’m talking Rod Stewart’s “I am Sailing”. I’m talking “The Power of Love”. I’m talking two by Eric CrappedOn: “Tears In Heaven” and “Wonderful Tonight”.
It’s not even a hard song to play – in fact, just four chords will do it. You don’t need a great vocal range. What makes it so horrible is the sheer mawkishness of it; the ploddingly uninspired monosyllabic lyrics with their clunky and pedestrianly obvious rhymes (wear/ hair, see/ me, head/ bed).
Plenty of people paid the three-beer fine for “Wunnerfooool Tonighd”, so it’s evidently popular (but then, so are Whitney Houston, Osama Bin Laden and circumcision).
I thought those days were over, but late last year I joined a band and what do we play mid-set, to give the drummer a break? You guessed it. Wonderful To-fucking-night.
Bah.
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9 Responses to “ Wonderful Tonight? My arse ”
“Layla” is the real travesty: here we have a masterpiece of Persian literature, Nizami’s story of Majnoon’s love for Layla, which is like a madly intense equivalent of Romeo and Juliet in the east, people even had versions written in gold ink, and all clapton can come up with is:
“Layla, you’ve got me on my knees.
Layla, I’m begging, darlin’ please.”
The guitar riff is not bad though.
I even admitted in the post it wasn’t the best choice, but a sentimental one. So off my back, you bar singer in Turkey, you! 😉
Laaaaaaay laaaaaaaaaaaaarrrr!
I thought I should at least stop and see what this is all about, as your a “lawson” and i’m a “lawson” too.
Hmm.
Well, Hello fellow cyber traveller. Viel Gluek.
man, u reall should get help or smthing.. so ur critising music by “how hard is it to play” omg.. goto hell man :DDD music can sound good no matter how simple or complicated it is.. u’re just a paranoid. and u really should find urself.. :> its easy to play i admit that.. but it really touches from bottom of heart, i know that u require much from urself.. but dont critise someone who rly is better than u.. and to be honest with you.. u dont know anything about music itself if u’re saying that tears in heaven and wonderful tonight are crap
There is nothing wrong with being “pedestrian” and simple once in a while. There is beauty in simplicity and ordinariness. Too many love songs tritely proclaim the sun and the moon and the four winds and eternity of love; they all ring so hollow and superficial. It’s refreshing to hear a song with pedestrian lyrics speaking to thoughts and sensibilities of the common person. What I do look down on are so-called musicians who disrespect other musicians and label them and their songs with expletives. If I ever went to a bar you were playing in I would pay you ten beers to get out of my earshot.
If I ever went to a bar you were playing in I would pay you ten beers to get out of my earshot.
Yes, Bruce becomes much quieter and more respectful after ten beers.
Rant all you like, I agree totally! To be honest though “When I was a bar singer in Turkey” was enough for me, that one sentence alone as a post would have made my day.