Theme from Exodus
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Theme from Exodus

Today’s piano piece is the theme from the 1960 film Exodus. This was requested by my friend Jenny who celebrates her birthday today. The film, produced and directed by Otto Preminger was based on the 1958 novel of the same name by Leon Uris. The soundtrack was written by Ernest Gold who won an Oscar in 1960 for Best Music: Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture.

If it’s your first time on the site, find out more about the 365 Songs project or see all of my May songs here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/theme-from-exodus

Ohne Dich (schlaf’ ich heut’ Nacht nicht ein)
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Ohne Dich (schlaf’ ich heut’ Nacht nicht ein)

It’s my last day in Germany today, so here’s another German tune. I’m not sure how well known this song will be among those of you who tune in regularly. It’s by the German band Münchener Freiheit, and featured on their debut album Von Anfang an back in 1986. The title means something like “without you I won’t sleep tonight”. Münchener Freiheit (or “Freiheit” as they were known in the English-speaking world) are probably most well known in the UK and US for their song Keeping the Dream Alive which now features on most Christmas compilation albums.

Today’s random story: I first heard this song playing in Athena in Ayr back in the late 1980s. Since this was long before Shazam, I asked the shop assistant what it was. It turned out he was Swedish and kindly made me a mixtape of German and Swedish pop music for me which I picked up the next time I went back to the shop!

If it’s your first time on the site, find out more about the 365 Songs project or see all of my May songs here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/ohne-dich-schlaf-ich-heut/s-JmSy2

Baby Grand
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Baby Grand

And we’re back to Billy! Today’s song is Billy Joel’s duet with Ray Charles, Baby Grand, which was released as the fourth single from The Bridge album in 1986. When Ray Charles found out that Billy had named his daughter, Alexa Ray, after him, he contacted Billy and offered to record a duet, “providing the song was right”. Billy then came up with the Georgia on my mind-inspired song which tells of the relationship between a pianist and his piano.

There are more Billy Joel songs in my Piano Man album and this year’s Billy Joel songs are here. If it’s your first time on the site, find out more about the 365 Songs project or see all of my May songs here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/baby-grand-1/s-tbUvs

Gymnopédie No.1
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Gymnopédie No.1

I’m returning to classical music this morning with Eric Satie’s Gymnopédie No. 1. Published in 1888, this is the first of three Gymnopédies which are regarded as an important step towards modern ambient music. They went against many aspects of the classical tradition: this piece starts with two major 7th chords repeated, and in terms of structure it does not resolve to its main theme and ends unexpectedly. I hope you enjoy something a little different today.

If it’s your first time on my site, you can find out more about why I’m playing a tune every day here, and although we’re only just into a new month, you can check out my other May pieces here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/gymnop-die-no-1/s-oAT19

The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)
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The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)

I love this song! It’s probably not very “piano-y”, but I thought I’d play it anyway and I hope you enjoy it. It appeared on the 1966 Simon and Garfunkel album Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme. The fascinating fact about this song (which should appeal to my two sons…) is that it featured in the episode of The Simpsons called Who Shot Mr Burns? (Part One) when Mr Burns says “Hello lamppost, whatcha knowin’? I’ve come to watch your power flowin’.”

If this is your first time on the site you can find out more about the 365 Songs project here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/59th-street-bridge-song/s-UcDyq

99 Luftballons
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99 Luftballons

I arrived in Berlin last night and for my first day in Germany and the first day of a new month of 365 Songs, I decided to play Nena’s 1983 hit 99 Luftballons, or as it was released in its English version in 1984, 99 Red Balloons. The background to this song is interesting. Nena’s guitarist Carlo Karges attended a Rolling Stones concert in June 1982. Red balloons were being released into the sky and as he saw them drift towards the horizon they seemed to change shape and look like strange spacecraft. Karges wondered what would happen if they floated over the Berlin Wall into the Soviet Sector.

The original German lyrics tell a story: 99 balloons are mistaken for UFOs and an army general dispatches aircraft to identify the mysterious craft. The pilots find only children’s balloons, but nonetheless decide to put on a show and shoot them down. This display of force worries the nations on the other side of the border and so ensues a conflict of power, and then a 99-year war, all because of a harmless flight of balloons. The song is therefore about the futility of war. The English lyrics aren’t a literal translation, but point to similar circumstances.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/99-red-balloons

Rule The World
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Rule The World

This week Take That are playing all week in the SSE Hydro and it seems that almost everyone I know is going to see them at some point. Today’s song is Rule the World from 2007. It was used at the closing ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics as the flame was extinguished.

It’s the final day of April, so you can check out all of my April songs here. Is this your first time on the site? Find out more about the 365 Songs project here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/rule-the-world

Hold Me
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Hold Me

This song must rank among the cheesiest songs I’ve played so far, and the reason I’m playing isn’t much better! I was staying at a Premier Inn on Sunday night before a meeting in East Lothian early on Monday morning, and as I sat eating my breakfast, this song came on, sung by Whitney Houston and Teddy Pendergrass. I’m sure you needed to know those details… Their recording was from 1984, but it actually featured on Silk Electric, the 1982 Diana Ross album, under the title In Your Arms.

First time on the site? Find out more about the 365 Songs project or see all of my April songs here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/hold-me

Skyfall
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Skyfall

Today’s song is the theme from the 23rd Bond film, Skyfall. Written and recorded by Adele, it was released at 0:07am on the 5th October 2012 as part of Global James Bond Day, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the release of Dr. No, the first Bond film. A bit of controversy surrounds the lyrics of the song, which are apparently very close to the words of a poem in Tamil by the poet Subramania Bharati. A line in the poem is as follows:

Uchchi Meedhu Vaan Idindhu Veezhugindra Podhinum, Achcham Illai Achcham Illai Achcham Enbadhillaiyae

This translates roughly to: “let the sky fall, when it crumbles, we will stand tall and face it all together.” Sounds familiar…

First time on the site? Find out more about the 365 Songs project or see all of my April songs here.

https://soundcloud.com/mark-pentleton/skyfall

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