2. Melanie: Midwest Auckland emo four piece Melanie released their full length album 42 Losers in May 2020 and have been playing a fine selection of gigs and house parties since
1. Born on the 3rd February 1947 in Astoria, New York deceased 23rd January 2024, Melanie made her first recording, "Gimme a Little Kiss", when she was five.
She first found chart success in Europe. Her 1969 song "Bobo's Party" reached number one in France. Later that year she had a hit in the Netherlands with "Beautiful People" before performing at Woodstock. Apparently, she was inspired to write "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" by the audience lighting candles during her set; the song became a hit in both Europe and the USA. Her biggest hit in the USA was "Brand New Key", also known as "The Roller Skate Song". She has been awarded three gold albums.
Three of Melanie's compositions were hits for The New Seekers: "Look What They've Done to My Song Ma", "Beautiful People", and "The Nickel Song".
With one exception her albums have been produced by her husband, Peter Schekeryk. Her three children - Leilah, Jeordie and Beau-Jarred -are also musicians. Beau-Jarred is a guitarist and accompanies his mother on The 2003 Australian hip-hop track "The Nosebleed Section" by The Hilltop Hoods sampled Melanie's "People in the Front Row".
In 2004 Melanie released Paled by Dimmer Light, which is co-produced by Peter and Beau-Jarred Schekeryk.
In 2010 the last album co- produced by her now late husband Peter Schekeryj and their son Beau Jarred Schekeryk was released: Ever Since You Never Heard Of Me
Melanie, who became the voice of an era in one magical instant onstage at Woodstock, has been putting the pieces in order.
Pieces of a career, scattered by the winds of experience and assembled again by the force of love into the most personal and brilliant moments of her musical journey.
Melanie is poised to enlighten new generations about what it means to sing with both passion and eloquence, to write at once with intelligence and emotion, and to inspire through song… and nobody does this better than Melanie.
Others learned this that night at Woodstock, where as a New York kid barely known outside of the coffeehouse circuit in Greenwich Village, she sang her song "Beautiful People" and inspired the first panorama of candles and cigarette lighters ever raised at a concert event. That, in turn, moved the young singer to write "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain"), which sold more than one million copies in 1970 and
prompted Billboard, Cashbox, Melody Maker, Record World, and Bravo to anoint her
as female vocalist of the year. Her single "Brand New Key," an infectious romp about
freedom and roller skates, topped the charts in 1971.
And so her story began.
With guitar in hand and a talent that combined amazing vocal equipment, disarming
humor, and a vibrant engagement with life, she was booked as the first solo pop/rock
artist ever to appear from the Royal Albert Hall to Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan
Opera House, and later opened the New Metropolitan Opera House in New York, the
Sydney Opera House, and in the General Assembly of the United Nations, where she
was invited to perform on many occasions as delegates greeted her performances
with standing ovations.
The top television hosts of all time -- Ed Sullivan, Johnny Carson, and Dick Cavett --
battled to book her. (After her stunning performance on his show, Sullivan goggled
that he had not seen such a "dedicated and responsive audience since ElvisPresley.")
Accolades rolled in, from critics ("Melanie's cult has long been famous, but it's a cult
that's responding to something genuine and powerful -- which is maybe another way
of saying that this writer counts himself as part of the cult too," wrote John Rockwell
in The New York Times) as well as peers ("Melanie," insisted jazz piano virtuoso
Roger Kellaway, "is extraordinary to the point that she could be sitting in front of us in
this room and sing something like 'Momma Momma' right to us, and it would just go
right through your entire being.")
In the years that followed Melanie continued to record, continued to tour.
UNICEF made her its spokesperson; Jimi Hendrix's father introduced her to the
multitude assembled for the twentieth anniversary of Woodstock. Her records
continued to sell -- more than eighty million to date. She's had her songs covered by
singers as diverse as Cher, Dolly Parton, and Macy Gray. She's raised a family, won
an Emmy, opened a restaurant, written a musical about Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity
Jane…
She has, in short, lived a rare life. But all of it was just a prelude to what's about to
come.
"For the first time, I'm not afraid to voice exactly what I feel. I used to feel that I didn't
want to say too much, but now I can say anything. I feel like a person who's never
been heard. Maybe people think they've heard me, but they never really have. I'm a
new artist who is having so much fun with my voice -- a person shouldn't be allowed
to have so much fun. I'm the woman I wanted to be when I was sixteen and going for
Edith Piaf. It's me -- I'm back."
(Written by Robert L. Doerschuk)
Animal Crackers
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause my mother told me so long ago,
"If you eat your animal crakers,
The children in Europe won't starve anymore".
Hahaha hahahaha hahaha.
Oh I love eating icecream,
Chocolate, vanilla and butter pecan,
'Cause I love helping my fellow man.
Yeah, I eat more crackers than anyone can
Hahaha haha.
Once I went on a diet
(that's the freudian part, is it, when I forget it)
Once I went on a diet
A carbohydrate diet ain't nice
'Cause you can't eat animal crackers.
So, I'm gonna stay a fatty for all of my life,
Hahaha hahaha.
But some people think that fatties are nice, yeah.
Did you ever hear of Alice's restaurant?
I eat at Alice's restaurant year after year.
She makes an animal cracker pizza, ha
And she gives animal crackers out free with the beer.
Oh, let's give Alice a great big cheer.
She knows the age...
Ah, animal crackers are in this year!
Ha ha hahaha.
Oh, lalalalala lala lala
Melanie's song "Animal Crackers" appears to be a simple, light-hearted tune about eating animal crackers. However, on closer inspection, it contains deeper layers of meaning about helping others and the challenges of dieting. The opening lines, "Oh, eat your animal crackers, 'cause my mother told me so long ago," reveal that the act of eating animal crackers is tied to a lesson in compassion and generosity. The singer claims that by eating the crackers, children in Europe won't starve anymore, suggesting that there is a connection between our small actions and the greater good.
The following lines, "Oh I love eating ice cream," contrast with the previous sentiment, but the singer clarifies that she loves animal crackers the most because they allow her to help her fellow man. However, the song takes a lighthearted turn as she admits to eating more crackers than anyone can, and jokes about the Freudian implications of her failed attempt at dieting. She concludes the song with a shout-out to Alice, who serves animal cracker pizza and gives out free animal crackers with beer, suggesting that the love of animal crackers is shared by many.
Overall, "Animal Crackers" is a witty and whimsical song that invites the listener to find joy in the small things while recognizing that our actions can have an impact on others.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, eat your animal crackers
Melanie encourages people to eat animal crackers.
'Cause my mother told me so long ago,
Melanie's mother taught her the importance of eating animal crackers.
"If you eat your animal crackers,
Melanie's mother said that if she ate her animal crackers,
The children in Europe won't starve anymore".
other children in Europe wouldn't go hungry anymore.
Oh I love eating icecream,
Melanie also enjoys ice cream.
Chocolate, vanilla and butter pecan,
Her favorite ice cream flavors are chocolate, vanilla, and butter pecan.
But I best love animal crackers
However, she enjoys animal crackers the most.
'Cause I love helping my fellow man.
She believes that by eating animal crackers, she is helping others.
Yeah, I eat more crackers than anyone can
Melanie eats more animal crackers than anyone else.
Once I went on a diet
Melanie tried going on a diet once.
(that's the freudian part, is it, when I forget it)
She has trouble remembering the details of her diet, which she attributes to Freudian theory.
A carbohydrate diet ain't nice
She didn't enjoy being on a carbohydrate diet.
'Cause you can't eat animal crackers.
On the diet, she was unable to eat animal crackers.
So, I'm gonna stay a fatty for all of my life,
She jokes that she'll stay overweight for the rest of her life as a result of being unable to give up animal crackers.
But some people think that fatties are nice, yeah.
She recognizes that some people find overweight individuals attractive.
Did you ever hear of Alice's restaurant?
She asks if the listener has heard of Alice's restaurant.
I eat at Alice's restaurant year after year.
Melanie frequents Alice's restaurant.
She makes an animal cracker pizza, ha
Alice makes a unique dish with animal crackers - pizza.
And she gives animal crackers out free with the beer.
Additionally, Alice gives animal crackers to customers at no charge when they order beer.
Oh, let's give Alice a great big cheer.
Melanie celebrates and praises Alice for her animal cracker offerings.
She knows the age...
It's unclear what Melanie means by this line.
Ah, animal crackers are in this year!
She exclaims that animal crackers are a popular treat this year.
Ha ha hahaha.
She laughs at the idea of animal crackers being trendy.
Oh, lalalalala lala lala
She finishes the song with a repeated vocalization.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MELANIE SAFKA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind