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)
Nickel Song
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I'm being gambled on
They put in a nickel and I sing a little song
Da-da-da-da
They put in a nickel and I sing a little song
Well, I don't mind that they're lucky
But it seems that they always win
And if I had a nickel for each time that
I've been put on
I would be their nickel man
And I'd sing a little song
They're only putting in a nickel and
They want a dollar song
They're only putting in a little to
Get rid of a lot that's
Wrong.
Well I don't know so many things
But I know what's been goin' on
We're only putting in a little
To get rid of a lot that's wrong
And if we had a nickel for each time that
We've been put on
We'd all be their nickel man
And we'd sing a nickel song
You know they're only putting in a nickel
And they win a dollar song
Oh, yeah, they're only putting in a little
To get rid of a lot that's wrong
Oh, they're only putting in a nickel
To win a dollar song
Melanie's song The Nickel Song is a metaphor about the inequalities in society and how the wealthy exploit the less fortunate. The singer is being gambled on by the rich who are constantly making profit from her talent. She sings, "Well you know that I'm not a gambler, but I'm being gambled on. They put in a nickel and I sing a little song." Melanie implies that she doesn't have control over her own destiny, and the ones who have the power, use it to manipulate her. Despite the fact that they're just putting in a nickel, they're winning a dollar song. The song talks about how the rich take advantage of the poor's hard work and talent for their own benefit.
The lyrics also suggest that the people with money have an unfair advantage over those who don't. The line, "They're only putting in a little to get rid of a lot that's wrong" shows how a small investment can yield immense profits for the wealthy, while the poor struggle to get by. Melanie argues that this is unjust and that something needs to change. The line, "We're only putting in a little to get rid of a lot that's wrong," encourages people to demand fair treatment and stand up against exploitation.
Line by Line Meaning
Well you know that I'm not a gambler
I'm not one to take risky chances
But I'm being gambled on
But someone else is taking a risk with me
They put in a nickel and I sing a little song
They invest a small amount, and I provide a brief entertainment
Da-da-da-da
Vocalization indicating the melody of the song
Well, I don't mind that they're lucky
I'm not upset that they're fortunate
But it seems that they always win
But it's clear that they come out ahead
And gamblin' is illegal in the state of mind I'm in
And I personally don't approve of gambling
And if I had a nickel for each time that
If I received compensation every time
I've been put on
I've been used or taken advantage of
I would be their nickel man
I would have profited from their actions
And I'd sing a little song
And I would still provide a small form of entertainment
They're only putting in a nickel and
They're only investing a small amount and
They want a dollar song
They expect a much greater return
They're only putting in a little to
They're only offering a small amount in order to
Get rid of a lot that's
Resolve a greater issue that's
Wrong.
Well I don't know so many things
I'm not knowledgeable on various subjects
But I know what's been goin' on
But I'm aware of what's happening with this situation
We're only putting in a little
We're only offering a minimal investment
To get rid of a lot that's wrong
To fix a larger problem
And if we had a nickel for each time that
If we were compensated every time
We've been put on
We were taken advantage of
We'd all be their nickel man
We would have all profited from their actions
And we'd sing a nickel song
And we'd still offer a small form of entertainment
You know they're only putting in a nickel
It's important to recognize they're only offering a small amount
And they win a dollar song
But they expect a much greater reward
Oh, yeah, they're only putting in a little
They're only offering a small amount
To get rid of a lot that's wrong
To solve a larger issue
Oh, they're only putting in a nickel
They're only investing a small amount
To win a dollar song
In hopes of achieving a much greater return
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MELANIE SAFKA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@vitobarfalone6060
The curse of living a long life is to see people you admire and respect leave this world.....peace be with you sweet lady....the world is a little darker without your bright light....
@mafirearmsafety
the upside is you see your enemies go to hell first
@robertdouglas8895
All minds are connected.
@robertdouglas8895
@@mafirearmsafety That sounds like hell to me. The world is a mirror.
@michaelwaters8879
News of her passing leaves a big hole in my heart.
@user-yj3ob9kd3l
I lost a dear friend last week. Every time we lose someone, a relationship ends, and that branch of life of our life ends. The longer we live, the fewer branches we have!! 😢
@rolandstroebel6185
Dear sweet Melanie, I was just 12 years old in 71 when I first heard this wonderful song and went and bought the 45 to play on my harmony kardon lp player. Thanks for such wonderful MEANINGFUL songs.
I'm so sad that God called you home A few weeks ago.
This world is a bit orphaned now without your lovely folk songs.
Rest well dear Melanie 😢❤
@ernst2225
We were sitting around a campfire in Finland in 1973. Everything was dark around us and then someone turned on the radio. The Nickel Song with Melanie and Me And Bobby Mc Gee with Janis Joplin was playing. I'll never forget that, because I was high up north with my German girlfriend-the time didn't matter and lots of mosquitoes were flying. I was in a sauna for the first time even with a lake .This year I was back in Finland after 50 years-more south and when I came to Germany I heard the "Nickelsong" on Youtube .I got a little sad because my youth with which I associate this song is over and my girlfriend, my later wife, died of cancer. When the tracks played, I cried.
@chrisdevalcourt648
Memories!
Better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all.
The circle of life.
@thetruth-bf6je
🙏❤️🇮🇪