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)
Chosen Few
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Papers are burning
The undisputed were doomed
When music was victimized
Innocence scandalized
Star people left for the moon
And no one was the wiser
No one ever knew
No one knew but me (and the chosen)
No one knew but me and the chosen few
When she and the old man were splitting again
And the planet was right for a change
When Africa called and the sought out America
Never to hear her again
I'm always so amazed that
No one ever knew
Ah no one knew but me (and the chosen)
No one knew but me (and the chosen)
No one knew but me and the chosen few
So we live and we change and we come back again
And our brothers scream where have you been
As the lay waste to planet and torture the dreamer
And the picture's looking quite dim
Won't someone change the channel
Can't stand the evening news
No one knew but me
No one knew but me
No one knew but me and the chosen
No one knew but me and the chosen
No one knew but me and the chosen few
(And we'll all go together)
The lyrics of Melanie's song Chosen Few are quite complex, and they deal with a range of different themes and ideas. The song contains powerful social commentary about the state of the world, as well as touching on more personal themes of love and relationships.
The song begins by discussing how the tables have turned, and how the undisputed are now doomed. The lyrics then move on to explore the idea that music has been victimized and that innocence has been scandalized. There is a sense that the world has become a darker place, and that things are not as they should be.
Despite these dark themes, there is a glimmer of hope in the song. The lyric "No one knew but me and the chosen few" suggests that there are some who have seen through the darkness and have found a way to shine a light. This implies that there is still hope for the world and that there are those who can make a difference.
Overall, the song Chosen Few is a powerful and thought-provoking piece that touches on a range of different themes and ideas, from social commentary to personal relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
Tables were turning and
A time of change and upheaval was beginning
Papers are burning
Important documents and information were being destroyed
The undisputed were doomed
Those in power and authority were destined to fall
When music was victimized
The art of music was being oppressed and harmed
Innocence scandalized
Young and innocent people were being caught up in scandal and corruption
Star people left for the moon
Celebrities and influential people were distancing themselves from society's issues
And no one was the wiser
The general public was unaware of what was truly happening
No one ever knew
The truth was kept hidden from the masses
No one knew but me (and the chosen)
Only a select few, including the singer, were aware of the situation
And the planet was right for a change
The world was ready for some kind of shift or transformation
When Africa called and the sought out America
Some kind of connection or collaboration was being made between cultures on different continents
Never to hear her again
There was a permanent loss or separation
I'm always so amazed that
The singer is surprised that no one else seems to understand the gravity of the situation
So we live and we change and we come back again
Life includes periods of growth and transformation, with cycles of returning to familiar patterns
And our brothers scream where have you been
Others may judge or criticize us for our choices or absences
As they lay waste to planet and torture the dreamer
People in power are damaging the environment and oppressing those with creative or ambitious ideas
And the picture's looking quite dim
The future seems bleak and uncertain
Won't someone change the channel
The singer wants a shift in perspective or attention
Can't stand the evening news
The news is overwhelming and distressing to listen to
No one knew but me and the chosen few
The same group of people seems to be aware of the negative changes happening in the world
Contributed by Ava S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ian Walker
Glad you're okay! By the way, Cyndi Lauper has cited Melanie as one of her early influences...
Marshall Johnson
Oh! How could I have forgotten this very precious gem of Melanie's beautiful songs! Thanks, Ian, for posting this!
Keith S
Picked up on this too. Ian, you're such a treasure.
Ian Walker
Hi Jalane, I'm glad you like this one too. Haven't heard of the Doollies, will do a search! Hope life's treating you kindly...
Devils Advocate
This song is about Melanie receiving an Emmy Award for writing the song for Beauty and The Beast back when it was a Show on TV. They did not allow Melanie to sing the song because of Prior Arrangement for another singer, the contract had already been given to another woman. That is why this song is titled "Chosen Few"
Groovy Guru
crazy about this song and album Cowabonga
Helmer rodriguez
Love Melanie Safka superb song FOR these troubled times
Wendy Noll
Can't believe I never commented on this before....maybe I did....anyhow....love this!