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)
Johnny Boy
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It is the end
of the summertime.
In the wine,
in the tree:
You and me.
You'll recall all the tears.
I had fears.
But you did, Johnny boy, my friend.
They're falling again!
Johnny boy, my friend,
Stop them again
for a lonely girl
In the world
of the stone buildings
That would turn brown
if they were born
In the town
where the trees are grown.
Johnny boy, I'm alone.
Please take me home!
Johnny boy, my friend,
Please hold my hand
In the middle of the night
When the world crashes with all its might.
Johnny boy, if you had pain
I would do the same.
Johnny boy, my friend,
You gotta help me again!
Johnny boy, my friend,
It is the end, it is the end
of the summertime,
In the wine,
in the tree:
You and me.
You'll recall all the tears.
I had fears.
You couldn't stop from falling
But you did, Johnny boy, Johnny boy, my friend, my friend.
You gotta help me!
The song Johnny Boy by Melanie is an emotional ballad about a close friendship between two people, particularly one who is struggling with feelings of loneliness and fear. The lyrics describe the end of summer and the memories shared by the two friends, particularly those that involve drinking wine and being surrounded by trees. The singer recalls shedding tears and feeling scared, but also remembers how her friend Johnny was always there to comfort her and help her through difficult times.
The chorus of the song is particularly impactful, asking Johnny to help her again as she struggles with feelings of loneliness and despair. The final lines of the song repeat the plea for help, highlighting the importance of true friends who are willing to stand by us and offer support in times of need.
Overall, the song is a poignant reminder of the power of friendship and the critical role that it plays in our lives. Although it is not explicitly romantic, Johnny Boy speaks to the deep connection that can exist between friends, and the way that the love and support of others can help us overcome even our darkest fears and challenges.
Line by Line Meaning
Johnny boy, my friend,
Addressing a friend named Johnny Boy.
It is the end
of the summertime.
The end of summer is being acknowledged.
In the wine,
in the tree:
You and me.
Memories of being together with Johnny Boy in a vineyard or garden.
You'll recall all the tears.
Remembering the times of sadness.
I had fears.
Admitting to having fears that Johnny Boy could not stop.
You could not stop them from falling.
Reflecting that Johnny Boy was not able to help at the time of sadness.
But you did, Johnny boy, my friend.
Acknowledge that Johnny Boy helped in the past and gratitude being expressed towards him.
They're falling again!
The tears are resurfacing, and help is needed once more.
Stop them again
for a lonely girl
In the world
of the stone buildings
That would turn brown
if they were born
In the town
where the trees are grown.
Johnny boy, I'm alone.
Melanie requests Johnny Boy to help her once more. She compares her current surroundings to stone buildings and wishes to live in a forested area instead.
Please take me home!
Melanie desires to be away from her current environment and wishes to return home, seemingly with Johnny Boy.
Please hold my hand
In the middle of the night
When the world crashes with all its might.
Melanie asks Johnny Boy to provide emotional and physical support during difficult times, even when it is espeically tough.
Johnny boy, if you had pain
I would do the same.
Offers to return the favor to Johnny Boy if the situation was reversed and he was going through a difficult time.
Johnny boy, my friend,
You gotta help me again!
Melanie reiterates the importance of Johnny Boy's help and requests he assist her once more.
Johnny boy, my friend,
It is the end, it is the end
of the summertime,
In the wine,
in the tree:
You and me.
You'll recall all the tears.
I had fears.
You couldn't stop from falling
But you did, Johnny boy, Johnny boy, my friend, my friend.
You gotta help me!
The song concludes with a repetition and variation of previous lines. Melanie emphasizes the importance of Johnny Boy's help and support, and emphasizes that he must help her again.
Contributed by Eli P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.