Tuesday Tunes 247: Still Dreaming

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As you seemed to enjoy last week’s set of dream songs, and as I still have so many more that I could play, I’m going with it again for this week. So here are five more songs with dream in their title, either singular or plural. All were already on my list, though a couple of these were mentioned in comments on the previous set. I’m guessing that three will be well known, one less so, and one very probably not!

This was one of those that were mentioned, and it feels as good a place as any to start:

Running Down A Dream was a track on what was officially Tom Petty’s first solo album, Full Moon Fever, which was released in April 1989. The members of The Heartbreakers played on the album, though, as did Jeff Lynne, George Harrison and Roy Orbison from The Traveling Wilburys. The album reached #3 in the US and #8 in the UK, and has sold more than 6m copies. This song was released in July 1989 as the second single from the album, peaking at #23 in the US and #55 in the UK. It’s a great album, and it includes the song I Won’t Back Down, which has become an iconic signature tune for the Florida Gators college handegg (sorry, football) team since Tom’s passing. Highly recommended, as befits a song which I think I’m playing for at least a third time!

This next tune is the one which I think will be the least well known of today’s set:

She Comes To Me In Dreams was a track on Lost Channels, the fourth album by Great Lake Swimmers, which was released in March 2009. As far as I can tell – Wikipedia is a little short on info – the album didn’t chart anywhere, and this one wasn’t released as a single. The band, as their name might suggest, are from Canada, and as I have said when playing them previously they have a special place in my heart, as they were the first band I saw when I finally started going to gigs again after my long spell away in the depression days. They were fantastic, everything I could have wanted to help me get back into music, and I hardly noticed that it was a bitterly cold, wet Monday evening in November! This video, which I think has a bit of a feel of American Gothic about it, was directed by Scott Cudmore, who is from Toronto, where the band are based. His website is also short on details, and this one isn’t included in his music videos section: I’m being charitable, I think, in suggesting that this may be because it was quite some while back, and not because the GLS aren’t as famous as Kacey Musgraves or Selena Gomez, with whom has also worked. This is a typical GLS song, so if you liked it I can recommend following them up – my favourite of their albums is New Wild Everywhere.

Back on more familiar ground for my next tune, I think:

River Of Dreams is the title track and lead single of Billy Joel’s twelfth album. The single came out in July 1993, a month before the album, and reached #3 in both the US and the UK. The album also peaked at #3 in the UK, but made #1 in the US. The video features the Rocky Hill – Glastonbury Ferry in Connecticut, and was shot on the Providence & Worcester railroad bridge spanning the Connecticut River. Billy and his backup singers are standing on the western span of the bridge, with the open centre section behind them. Other locations that were filmed  are near Portland, East Haddam, and Old Saybrook, Connecticut and the tobacco barn was still in use at the time. His then-wife Christie Brinkley can be seen painting the artwork that features on the front cover of the album: each single released from the album featured one part of the large painting as cover art. The single went Gold in the US for 500k sales, and Silver in the UK for 200k. The album, was an even bigger success, going 5x Platinum in the US for 5m sales, and Platinum in the UK for 300k. It remains his last studio album release to date, if you discount a later collection of piano pieces. There have been a few live albums since then, but I guess he has kind of retired!

Today’s penultimate tune is the one which I think some may know, but may be new to others:

Dreams was the debut single by The Cranberries, released in October 1992 and peaking at #9 in their native Ireland, at #27 in the UK and at #42 in the US. Despite the apparent low chart placing it has been hugely successful here in the UK, being awarded a Platinum Disc for more than 600k sales. It was then included on their first album – Everyone Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We? – which came out in March 1993 and went on to even greater success. It was #1 in both Ireland and the UK, and made #18 in the US, and has sold more than 5m copies in the US (5x Platinum) and 600k in the UK (2x Platinum). They enjoyed continued success with both albums and singles, but disbanded after their singer Dolores O’Riordan drowned in the bath in a London hotel in January 2018, at the age of just 46. They released one final album after that, featuring the vocals she had already recorded for it: it has the fitting title of In The End, which is also its closing track.

I’m ending today with a song that a couple of you mentioned last week. I was never leaving this one out, though:

These Dreams first appeared on Heart’s eighth album, Heart, which was released in July 1985, back in the days of big hair. It got to #1 in the US and #19 in the UK, selling more than 5m copies in the US alone – just the 100k here! The track then became the third single taken from the album, in January 1986, also making #1 in the US, but only #62 in the UK. It was re-released here in 1988, though, and made #8 second time round. Unusually for the band they didn’t write most of its songs – this one was written by Bernie Taupin, taking a break from Reg, and Martin Page, a serial collaborating songwriter and bass player. Heart (based around Nancy and Anne Wilson) have made a number of great albums in their 50 years together, but I suspect they will be most remembered for their magnificent performance of Stairway To Heaven at the Kennedy Centre event honouring Led Zeppelin. Such is life, I guess!

That’s all for today, but I feel a third set of these may be coming along at some point: this is a fertile field! Until then, be safe and well, and I’ll see you again soon 😊

 

52 thoughts on “Tuesday Tunes 247: Still Dreaming”

  1. Pingback: That Was April | Take It Easy

  2. a wonderful part two. I knew all of the songs except for the one by the Great Lake Swimmers. I knew the Cranberries song, I just did not know it was them! As I mentioned recently, I need to listen to more of their music. And it’s been a while since I heard that Bill Joel tune, but like most of his songs, it’s great to listen to.

    And you just be doing a top 20 countdown, in reverse order. Because I know there will be a song from Mr. Tyler coming up in a future post 🙂

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    • Thank you, Jim, I’m pleased you liked them. GLS were my deliberate surprise package for this one: I love their music.

      Aerosmith are on my list of candidates, but there are many other good ones there too. I have other plans for next Tuesday but will probably bring this back in a week or two.

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      • It must be nice having the next two Tuesday Tunes already planned. I can remember there were same days I didn’t know what I was going to write about until 30 minutes before I hit the publish button. I’m sure the lack of planning was often directly related to the level of quality 🤓

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      • It isn’t always like that, trust me! Next week’s is a special day for which I’ve posted before, but this year it falls on a Tuesday so I couldn’t miss the opportunity!

        Your posts are always interesting, and sometimes the seat of the pants approach can work very well 😊

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      • so does that mean this coming Tuesday is sort of like a day off for you from blogging?

        thanks for the kind words; the seat of the pants approach can also be kind of stressful when you’re trying to keep a streak alive!

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      • No, it just means I’ll be going with a different theme. Dreams will return shortly, I’m sure.

        The one thing I promised myself when I retired was that I would remove stress from my life as much as I could. If blogging ever became stressful I’d give it up! I don’t think I could ever go for a streak like you did: posting every day for a month becomes too much for me!

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    • It seemed a fair guess, though the Canadians in the fold rather messed it up! I’m pleased you enjoyed them, Carol. My week is ok so far, thanks, and I hope the same for you xx

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  4. The songs just kept getting better. 🙂 I love Heart.
    The two that came to my mind right away when you mentioned the theme were Daydream Believer by the Monkees and I have a dream by ABBA. You know I can’t leave out ABBA. 😉

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  7. Wow these are all some good songs! I like the Billy Joel one, and I’ve heard it before, but didn’t know he was the one that sang it. Good to hear again. Cranberries – love it, and hear it on the radio all the time. The Great Lake Swimmers was good, and such a mysterious video gets me making up stories in my head about what was going on. I’m sure none of it is true though, but fun anyway … haha 🙂

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    • Thank you, Barbara, I’m pleased you liked them so much. I don’t listen to the radio very much these days, as I prefer to pick my own listening. But it’s good to know that one is still being played.

      You’re the second to remark on the mysterious GLS video: I think it helps the song’s atmosphere, even though I don’t know what’s going on either!

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  10. All excellent choices. All were known to me except the little Swimmers one, so I am listening to it now sounds kind of reminiscent of Jefferson Airplane minus Grace- but I do like it. This is the first time I have even heard of them, so thanks for the introduction.

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    • Thank you, I’m pleased you liked them. I hadn’t made that Jefferson Airplane link, and I’m not sure that I do now! GLS have made some lovely albums and are well worth exploring further if you feel like it. I suggest the album I mentioned in the post: the videos for Easy Come, Easy Go and New Wild Everywhere would be a good starting point.

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    • So do I! I think GLS deserve to have had much greater success than they have. They clearly have a following: the venue in which I saw them holds around 1300 and was pretty packed. Not bad for a horrible wet Monday night in winter!

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  13. A lovely selection of “Dream” tunes, which are all familiar. The Great Lake Swimmers and Cranberries songs get a lot of airplay here (Toronto), as does Tom Petty. And thank you for including Heart, one of my all-time favourites.

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  15. I assume you left off Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” due to space, or due to how obvious a choice it is, but my wife and I put “Rumours” on again the other night and wow, it’s a virtual greatest hits album as every single song is a classic! CSN had a great one called “In My Dreams” as well…look at me: now I have to post a list of them as well and I will link to your story!

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    • I actually played that one in the original set some years ago. I’ve been debating its inclusion this time round – in competition with a cover that was a hit here. We’ll see!

      Rumours is one of the all time great albums, with the sales figures to prove it! CSN are on my standby list – I’m thinking of giving this a third go so, maybe…

      A link will be very kind, thank you – and I might pick up some more suggestions from you!

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  16. Great pix today, Clive, as I was familiar with all the songs/artists except She Comes To Me In Dream by the Great Lake Swimmers. I liked the song but I’m still unsure what the video was all about. You featured two of my favorites in Billy Joel and Tom Petty … both classic-sounding songs for those two. The Wilbury influence is so strong in TP’s song, it’s undeniable. And what a great sound it is! I love Billy Joel’s backing group in River Of Dreams … a nice blend of doo wop, gospel and R&R. Tom & Billy, my tops pix for today!

    Thanks, Clive.

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    • Thank you, Nancy, I’m pleased you enjoyed these. I thought the GLS one would be new to just about everyone. As to the video, I’m wondering if it was a reflection of the lyrics with the young woman looking mysteriously direct at the camera, to enhance the ‘dream’ meaning. But what do I know!

      Happy to have found some favourites for you 👍

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