https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiNgz6KDD2k
― adult music person (Jordan), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:20 (twelve years ago) link
whenever lovely day is being played, i am responsible
ty horseshoe!
― Tom Skerritt Mustache Ride (DJP), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:20 (twelve years ago) link
any time!
― horseshoe, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:22 (twelve years ago) link
You could be right, ENBB. I've never really listened to oldies stations.
― jaymc, Wednesday, May 25, 2011 4:18 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark
Oh man I totally do.
― \(^o\) (/o^)/ (ENBB), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:24 (twelve years ago) link
You have already voted in this poll and cannot vote again.Return to Front Page
:(
― horseshoe, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:25 (twelve years ago) link
Man this is hard.
"Just the Two of Us" was actually the first thing I ever consciously heard by him.
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:27 (twelve years ago) link
which i should really investigate at some point
you really should!! its not even that large or daunting, and its fantastic
― ban drake (the rapper) (max), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:30 (twelve years ago) link
I am hearing this in Henry Fonda/Tom Joad voice
― Concatenated without abruption (Michael White), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:30 (twelve years ago) link
hey everyone should watch the still bill doc if u havent already
― just sayin, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:36 (twelve years ago) link
be warned tho it could easily make u cry
the reissue liner notes to still bill devote a LOT of time to the use me drums
do tell? who was the drummer on that anyway?
i was doing a recording session for someone yesterday and trying to straight up channel/rip off those drums.
― adult music person (Jordan), Wednesday, May 25, 2011 4:16 PM (20 minutes ago) Bookmark
iirc it was all about how he was the only dude who could play those 16th notes on the hi-hats with one hand, and when they came across the beat they just riffed on it for many, many hours and it kinda sorta turned into a song even though it's basically that one riff.
if i can find the record i will dig it out and check that.
― call all destroyer, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:40 (twelve years ago) link
Still Bill is essential viewing. The clip of him doing "Just The Two Of Us" on American Bandstand is pretty revealing; the look on his face says "GET ME OUT OF HERE. NOW."
― shake it, shake it, sugary pee (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 20:47 (twelve years ago) link
I have nailed "Lovely Day" at karaoke and you cannot touch my skillz
― skot gigz - moombah pimpin' (The Reverend), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 21:03 (twelve years ago) link
Anyway, the real answer is "Grandma's Hands"
the two i crank the loudest are lovely day and use me. but this dude is A+ all the way around.
― I'm 11 and I love Gay Dad. Today's music is so formulaic its appalling. (will), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 21:04 (twelve years ago) link
Here's where I give a thumbs up to the recent documentary.
― The Edge of Gloryhole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 21:20 (twelve years ago) link
Use me is so amazing, and not quite as overplayed as the rest. I have the groove stuck in my head just from thinking about it.
― The dad guitar, or "bass" in muso terms (Whitey on the Moon), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 21:21 (twelve years ago) link
Am I the first one on this thread to mention "Who Is He And What Is He To You?" <3<3<3
The 5 in the poll are all great, but my love for "Use Me" has never dimmed (and I do find it kinda overplayed, but still...)
― The hoppiest hop hopper now with xtra hops (Dan Peterson), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 21:26 (twelve years ago) link
Love the structure of Lean on Me - ultra-simple and memorial backing hook, the melody and backing track start in parallel to drive in the hook, then a bit of complexity is added so the ear doesn't tire (the lines move across each other: "it won't be long", "when you're not strong", "somebody to lean on"), then the amazing spare breakdown. Much more minimalist than I remember, and the four minutes fly by.
― skip, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:04 (twelve years ago) link
memorial=memorable
― skip, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:05 (twelve years ago) link
For me he's one the greatest American Songwriters...he has a very similar lyric writing talent to Todd Rundgren in that he can write something really green and make it sound completely heartfelt...in somebody elses hands (grandma's??) it could sound mawkish and sentimental but he writes and sings it straight from the heart and that's something you can't fake...he completely nails it...I utterly adore him and wish there were more writers about like him today...he kills me...
― The Pastiche Liberation Front (sonnyboy), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:20 (twelve years ago) link
Still Bill in its entirety should be in every thinking man's top ten.
― The Edge of Gloryhole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:21 (twelve years ago) link
Lean on Me is a totally great but DARE graduations spoiled it for me a little.
― free inappropriate education (Abbbottt), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:21 (twelve years ago) link
Gonna have to go with a massive favorite from my childhood here: Ain't No Sunshine.
― _Rudipherous_, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:24 (twelve years ago) link
http://www.blackclassicmovies.com/dvd_covers/lean_on_me.jpgi've seen this movie, but i have only the vaguest recollections of it.
― tylerw, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:27 (twelve years ago) link
It had to be 'Lean On Me'...the way he delivers it is a thing of wonder...it totally transcends any crap interpretation...it should be sung in every school every day...
― The Pastiche Liberation Front (sonnyboy), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:28 (twelve years ago) link
amazing little clutch of tunes, and so varied in terms of vibe! makes it really hard to choose a favorite. i guess the first i'd cut is lovely day, which is nice and funky, but feels a bit slight in comparison to the likes of "just the two of us" and "ain't no sunshine". i guess those are my top two. prefer the cryptic, nocturnal sheen of the darker/slower tracks to the more upbeat likes of "lean on me" and "use me".
"just the two of us" sort of rewrites paul simon's "50 ways to leave your lover", right? not a complaint, cuz i love both songs to death, but the similarities are striking. voting "ain't no sunshine" cuz the ache is so deep and delicate.
― contenderizer, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:36 (twelve years ago) link
haha i have never heard "lean on me" and was sure that "who is he (and what is he to you)" would be in here
― the smoke cloud of pure hatred (lex pretend), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:37 (twelve years ago) link
wow can't believe that didn't occur to me before about 50 Ways/Two of Us, you are totally right
― metally ill (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:38 (twelve years ago) link
"who is he" would have been my choice, as it is i can't look past "ain't no sunshine" because it's basically perfect
― the smoke cloud of pure hatred (lex pretend), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:38 (twelve years ago) link
Going for "Lovely Day", which was actually a fantastic vocal performance. That ultra-long tune he is keeping without any problems!
― Hongroe (Geir Hongro), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:42 (twelve years ago) link
ultra-long note, I mean
― Hongroe (Geir Hongro), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:43 (twelve years ago) link
"Ain't No Sunshine" for me--it's got that desolate eeriness that you find on so many of the greatest songs from that moment ("Smiling Faces," "The World Is a Ghetto," etc.) I've been compiling early-'70s soul tapes and CDs for friends since the mid-'80s, and that's always my Bill Withers go-to song. But I like all the others to one degree or another.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:45 (twelve years ago) link
haha i have never heard "lean on me"
I suppose I should stop being surprised at you, but really now.
― jaymc, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:56 (twelve years ago) link
Unless the song just really has no profile at all in the UK?
― jaymc, Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:57 (twelve years ago) link
Let me be the first:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhwiYThNZDM
― The Edge of Gloryhole (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 22:57 (twelve years ago) link
'Just the Two of Us' ruined by both Mike Myers and Will Smith.
― when use becomes abuse (S-), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 23:30 (twelve years ago) link
Still wish there had been a proper release of the Gap commercial mashup of "Lovely Day" and "I Hear Music in the Streets."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJ2XBzq387c
― scissorlocks and the three bears (Eric H.), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 23:37 (twelve years ago) link
aint no sunshine
― Midworst (jjjusten), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 23:40 (twelve years ago) link
Use Me
― the morals of a tomcat and the manners of a wolf (GOTT PUNCH II HAWKWINDZ), Thursday, 26 May 2011 02:26 (twelve years ago) link
Lean On Me > Ain't No Sunshine > Use Me > Lovely Day > Just The Two of Us
...though the first three are so close that it feels ridiculous to rank them. His first two records contained much stronger material than either of those latter two songs, though. There isn't a song on Just As I Am that isn't brilliant, really.
Liked the documentary as well, though I wish there was a bit more to it. Reviewed it <a href=http://echoandsway.wordpress.com/2011/04/07/beside-the-music/">here</a>.
― jer.fairall, Thursday, 26 May 2011 02:33 (twelve years ago) link
Ugh, make that here: http://echoandsway.wordpress.com/2011/04/07/beside-the-music/
― jer.fairall, Thursday, 26 May 2011 02:34 (twelve years ago) link
Also would have said Grandma's Hands. But voted Ain't No Sunshine.
― boxall, Thursday, 26 May 2011 02:35 (twelve years ago) link
I feel like on a particular day, I could vote for any one of these (and also "Grandma's Hands"), but "Ain't No Sunshine" is some be-all/end-all shit in my world.
― Johnny Fever, Thursday, 26 May 2011 02:38 (twelve years ago) link
I just want to vote for USE ME as this live clip is one of my favorite things I found on youtube. The band is so laid back in the pocket and groovy.
The drummer is just the coolest. He's like "this is a pretty killer groove ain't it."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3hBYTkI-sE
― earlnash, Thursday, 26 May 2011 03:28 (twelve years ago) link
I've always been partial to "Kissing My Love," he just sounds so overwhelmingly joyous. Out of this list, "Ain't No Sunshine" has always sounded alien in how fantastic it is, even if "Use Me" is kinda more interesting to me.
― trippin lookin at my portfolio (billy), Thursday, 26 May 2011 03:56 (twelve years ago) link
xp: Goddamn, that's awesome.
― the morals of a tomcat and the manners of a wolf (GOTT PUNCH II HAWKWINDZ), Thursday, 26 May 2011 03:59 (twelve years ago) link
Ain't No Sunshine is inexplicably great. He just rides that "I know, I know, I know" riff and you can't say just how it becomes transcendent, but it does. But I voted Use Me, because, face it, such a great lyric and it's crazy-funky as all get out.
― Aimless, Thursday, 26 May 2011 04:01 (twelve years ago) link
Use Me, the others all in a tie for 2nd place
― Bill E, Thursday, 26 May 2011 04:03 (twelve years ago) link
Bill Withers "Lovely Day" C/D
― Doctor Casino, Thursday, 26 May 2011 05:02 (twelve years ago) link
ikr
what's the point of being on blue note if you can't work that promo money
― j., Saturday, 1 December 2018 17:58 (five years ago) link
― The hoppiest hop hopper now with xtra hops (Dan Peterson), Wednesday, 25 May 2011 21:26 (seven years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
this
tho i did rock lean on me in panto once (huntsman assuring snow white i wasnt gonna kill her, full robin hood look including green tights why thank you ladiez)
― puppy bash (darraghmac), Tuesday, 4 December 2018 00:34 (five years ago) link
Bill Salter who wrote/ co wrote Just the Two of Us for /with Bill plus “Where is the Love” for Roberta Flack & Donnie Hathaway is getting some attention via his granddaughter’s Tik Tok. She is now making a doc about her 84 year old grandfather
https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/human-interest/2020/12/05/harlem-native-who-wrote-just-the-two-of-us-now-a-viral-sensation
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 12 December 2020 16:41 (three years ago) link