Song Lyric Sunday: Finland’s Finest

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This week’s theme for Song Lyric Sunday gave me pause for thought. It is to play a song by a band that wore uniforms. Did this mean military style uniforms or, as Americans call their sports kits ‘uniforms,’ was this an homage to some sporting event taking place there today? No idea what it might be, though, as they just don’t hype it up enough. Jim’s post – I Don’t Need No Stinking Uniform – explains what he intended.

I know that a lot of bands started out back in the Sixties with a nice booted and suited look – The Beatles and The Rolling Stones among them – but I consulted the Wikipedia oracle for some real uniforms. I found the names of several bands I had heard of but knew little about, like Devo, but then the lightbulb moment happened. Who needs someone else’s list when you already know of a band that fits the bill? A few weeks ago I played you a song by the Finnish bluegrass band Steve ‘N’ Seagulls, and that country also gave us the weird Eurovision winners Lordi some years ago. There must be something in the water there, as they have another band of lunatics and they are who I’m featuring today. I’m giving you three by them, as they are worth a good look and don’t take themselves too seriously, which is probably just as well. This first one is a cover of a 1970 hit for a Canadian band – The Guess Who –  but I think you’ll get the idea:

And you thought Donald Trump’s hairstyle was original? No chance – like everything else about him, he stole the idea! As this is SLS I should really give you the lyrics before going any further:

American woman, stay away from me
American woman, mama, let me be
Don’t come a-hangin’ around my door
I don’t wanna see your face no more
I got more important things to do
Than spend my time growin’ old with you
Now woman, I said stay away
American woman, listen what I say

American woman, get away from me
American woman, mama, let me be
Don’t come a-knockin’ around my door
Don’t wanna see your shadow no more
Coloured lights can hypnotize
Sparkle someone else’s eyes
Now woman, I said get away
American woman, listen what I say, hey

American woman, said get away
American woman, listen what I say
Don’t come a-hangin’ around my door
Don’t wanna see your face no more
I don’t need your war machines
I don’t need your ghetto scenes
Coloured lights can hypnotize
Sparkle someone else’s eyes
Now woman, get away from me
American woman, mama, let me be

Source: AZLyrics.com

Writer(s): Randy Bachman, Jim Kale, Burton Cummings, Garry Peterson

And now for some background on the band. The Leningrad Cowboys were created by the Finnish film director Aki Kaurismäki together with two members of the Finnish comedy rock band Sleepy Sleepers – yep, more crazy Finns! The three of them conceived the idea in a bar in 1986 as a joke on what they perceived as the waning power of the Soviet Union. Kaurismäki  directed their first music video, which resulted in three short films and then a feature film about them, Leningrad Cowboys Go America, in 1989. This live performance is typical of what they do – humour, outrageous clothes and hairstyles, and lots of fun. In the beginning they played mostly cover versions, but have released their own songs too. 

Here’s another cover version, though they wore suits as their uniform for this one. The hair and shoes remain, though:

A little different from the Mary Hopkin original. which I don’t remember involving any farmyard animals. The accordion gives it a suitably French feel, though, to fit the way they themed it.

In keeping with their name they have recorded and toured a lot with versions of the Red Army Choir, though presumably without explaining the band’s origins to them. You might have seen them briefly in the first video, if you were quick enough! The Cowboys have made nine studio albums and four live records, though here hasn’t been anything new from them since 2013. Their fourth album, Go Space, was released in 1996 and was their first to contain entirely original songs. To close today I’m playing the lead single from it, written for them by Per Gessle, who was one half of the Swedish band Roxette:

No, I have no idea why they were flying around the Universe on tractors, either – presumably part of their Finnish rural upbringings. But the song has a nice melodic feel to it, though the humour of their outfits and hairstyles is still there. It was a cheeky touch to include NASA in the credits for the video, too. The single wasn’t a hit anywhere as far as I can tell, but the album reached #2 in Finland, #48 in Austria, and #88 in Germany. Maybe they are an acquired taste? 🤣

That’s all for today. This may not be what Jim had been expecting when he chose ‘bands in uniforms’ as this week’s theme, but amongst all the other things music can give us it needs to bring fun and a smile every now and then, and these guys and their lovely ladies knew how to do that. See you again for Tuesday Tunes, what?

61 thoughts on “Song Lyric Sunday: Finland’s Finest”

  1. Pingback: February | Take It Easy

  3. Ok let me get this straight. This band is Finnish, they have a Russian name (Leningrad), and they play cover songs of American and Canadian bands, and also a Swedish artist helped them write, and the last one here has sounds and images of France. haha what a mish mash … and …. they look like a lot of fun and sound really good! I like outrageous sometimes and their uniforms … I prefer ‘costumes’ are just that. Great choice. 🙂

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    • That’s about the sum of it! They play covers of Brits too, like the Mary Hopkin one here and they also have Delilah in their repertoire. They are huge fun, and they do sound good, underneath the clowning. I’m pleased you liked the choice – they were the only possible one for me for this theme 😊

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    • I hadn’t thought of that, but maybe they did get the hair idea from them, though making it a comedy version. I like these guys a lot, and deliberately chose them as I thought few would know of them: just the one so far! They are a lot of fun, aren’t they 😊

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      • Oh my goodness, Clive! They were terrific and judging by the size of the audience, they’re a hit! This was a trip and a half and in some ways they remind me of the B-52’s. They’re actually excellent musicians. Maybe I need to buy stock in hairspray! 😂

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      • Apparently they play to big crowds around eastern Europe, which is where I guess that first one was recorded. The B-52s is a good call – I can visualise Kate and Cindy leaping around with them. It would be easy to forget that they can play, which they certainly can. I think your money might be better invested in wigs, though 🤣

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  5. Never heard of these guys, but with their hair, I won’t forget them. It strikes me as interesting that I typically prefer the originals over most covers. In this instance, the results are split. I like the Grand Funk original much more, but I like their version of Those Were the Days over the Mary Hopkin original.

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  8. For some folk who came at it from a comedy angle the covers stand on their own, surprisingly good.
    And you rarely see a music band using a tractor as a prop unless it’s a cash-strapped Country band plugging John Deere products.

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  9. Thanks for these!🇫🇮 Coincidentally, I am currently editing a short video of Finnish ice skater, Emmi Peltonen. This post is helping me learn something about Finnish culture. I will watch the videos and look up filmmaker, Aki Kaurismäki and try to incorporate something of the style🇫🇮✌️

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  10. It was nice to hear a good cover of a hometown band for me (Guess Who?). (I don’t think anyone in Winnipeg bought a copy of that “other” cover.) But having said tgat, I don’t know if anyone in Winnipeg knows the Leningrad Cowboys. Gotta love the hair.

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    • It is a good version, isn’t it, and The Guess Who didn’t have pretty dancing ladies! I think this lot had a style all of their own, even if, as I suspect, they took off the hair after the show 😊

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      • The Cowboys having their iwn style is good, because it is glamboyant. (A typo, but a good one for them, I think. I’m leaving it in. Maybe it will catch on in the hip world!) Anyways, the Winnipeg boys in the Guess Who never went in for distractions. It was them, their music, and the audience.
        I dont know if you know about their excursion to England circa 1966. They hoped to make a splash in the Big Pond but they got swallowed up instead. Came back home with their tails between their legs and deeply in debt. But it made them into better musicians, and six years kater they were on top of the world!

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      • Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings were getting sick of each other, so Bachman left to first form Brice Belt, and then Bachman Turner Overdrive where he was finally allowed to be himself. Cummings on the other hand ended up in a solo csreer, but go my mind never did as well as while in The Guess Who? He did have some success playing in Ringo Starr’s All-Star Band.
        In the end Randy Bachman had a long-running radio show thst he just retired from a few years ago. No idea whst Cumming’s got up go.

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      • Cummings had some big hits early in his solo years and has won 6 Juno Awards, so I don’t think he’s done badly, though not as well as Bachman. I just looked them up – apparently they made an album together in 2007, covers of songs they grew up with, plus a new version of American Woman.

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      • After I left Winnipeg in the 80s, I pretty much lost interest in Cummings and Bachman. Burton had hits, yeah, but none of them impressed me. Junos, at the time, were more a popularity contest. It took time for them to gain any musical value.

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  13. Your post was perfect, Clive. The drummer in that first video by the Leningrad Cowboys reminded me of Screaming Jay Hawkins the way he dressed. Nice covers and the original was also cool and I bet it would be a nice show seeing them.

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    • Thanks, Jim, I’m glad you enjoyed it. I can see what you mean – I guess there’s nothing new, though this lot certainly did things a bit differently. I’d love to see them in concert too: looks like it would be fun.

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