Bye Bye - Moi moi

Arto Sotavalta recorded "Moi moi" in 1975 and it was released on the B-side of "Seilaan", his cover of Rod Stewart's "Sailing". The A-side was a modest hit, but this flipside has been unjustly forgotten. The Finnish lyrics are by Chrisse Johansson and the arrangement by Veikko Samuli. The original song "Bye Bye" was written and performed by Brtish singer/sogwriter/producer Peter Shelley (b. Peter Alexander Southworth). Peter made his breakthrough as a singer in 1974 with "Gee Baby". This "Bye Bye" is from the "Gee Baby" -album. Peter was also closely connected with Alvin Stardust, see this earlier finnpick.

Only 1 Finnpick to go. 

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Your Kiss is Sweet - Suukkosuma

Ami Aspelund recorded "Suukkosuma" (Wealth of kisses) in 1975. It was released as B-side of a single that sadly flopped. Responsible for the Finnish lyrics and production was Chrisse Johansson. The original song "Your Kiss is Sweet" was co-written and performed by Syreeta (b. Syreeta Wright). The song was released on the 1974 album "Stevie Wonder Presents Syreeta". This song "Your Kiss Is Sweet" was released also as a single and presented her with a chart success. Stevie Wonder, who co-wrote the song and produced the album, was also doing background vocals on this reggae-flavoured song.

Just 21 Finnpicks to go.

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Good Morning Little Schoolgirl - Hei pieni joko mennään

Rauli "Badding" Somerjoki (see earlier entry)  covered numerous r&b/rock'n roll classics and this "Hei pieni joko mennään" (Hei little one, lets go) was one of those. It was released as the opening track on his "Sydän lämpöä täys" album in 1975. In the following year it was released also as a single (on the B-side was Rauli's cover of Elvis' "Kiss Me Quick"). Neither the album nor the single sold in great quantities. The original song "Good Morning, School Girl" or "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" is an old blues standard that has been covered countless times.It was first recorded by blues legend John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson in 1937. In 1961, the R&B duo Don & Bob (Don Level and Bob Love) recorded a different version of "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" with different chord changes and lyrics, including references to popular dance styles of the time. The majority of subsequent versions (like the one by Badding) took on to Don & Bob's version and the present copyright owners of the song are in deed misters Level and Love.

47 Finnpicks to go.

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Papa - Isä

Today is Father's Day. Many countries celebrate it in June but we in Scandinavian countries celebrate it in the middle of darkest autumn. There are much less songs of fathers than mothers (I wonder why ...). But here's one, to honor all the fathers. Kari Tapio (yes, him again) recorded "Isä" (Father) in 1975. The Finnish lyrics were made by a woman, Chrisse Johansson. For some inexplicable reason it was at the time released only on a compilation album. The original version of this beautiful song was written and performed by Paul Anka, bearing the title "Papa". So here's to you all 'isät', 'papas', 'fathers', 'grandpas', etc,

60 Finnpicks to go.

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The Black Eyed Boys - Rautainen klaani

Leo Luoto recorded nearly 60 songs, but never really broke through. Which is kind of of odd considering the quality of his singing, and the material wasn't so bad either. This is one of the better ones, "Rautainen klaani" (Clan of iron), that was released as a single in 1975. The original song was called "The Black Eyed Boys" and it was a 1974 UK hit for Paper Lace. The band chose their name from lace products created from a special grade of high quality paper manufactured in Nottingham, their hometown. The song was written by fathers of many hits, Peter Callander Robin and Mitch Murray. You can see Paper Lace perform it in Top of The Pops, here.
82 Finnpicks to go.

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Heartbeat It's A Lovebeat - Sydän hakkaa

Anna Babitzin had a short solo recording career in the 70's. In 1975 she released a single with this "Sydän hakkaa" (The heart is pounding) on the B-side of a another (home-grown) teen beat pop song. Both sides failed to make any greater success. The Finnish lyrics for today's finnpick were provided by Pertsa Reponen. The original "Heart" -song was called "Heartbeat It's A Lovebeat", and it was a US hit for the Canadian group DeFranco Family. The DeFrancos were really all siblings, and they had a couple of chart hits, this one being the biggest one - reaching number 3 in the Billboard Chart in 1973. The lead cvocalist Tony DeFranco was only 14 at the time. You can see the group perform the song live, here.

83 Finnpicks to go.

Black Water - Lauantaisin

Reijo Karvonen recorded "Lauantaisin" (On Saturdays) in 1975 and it was released as a single but this funky tune flopped chartwise. The original was called "Black Water". It was performed by US rock/soul/funk band Doobie Brothers and it was written by band memher Patrick Simmons. The song was released on their 1974 album "What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits" and fared well when released as a single, being the band's first number 1 single, You can see them perform it live, here.

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Boogie On Reggae Woman - Kun tulin stadiin

The soul-, funk- or reggae hits were rarely covered in Finland. This one song is an example of actually all of those. The group Uranus recorded the song "Kun tulin stadiin" (When I arrived in the city) in 1975 for their one and only album "Aamun hauta". Uranus was short-lived soulfunk/prog -group in 1970's. One can surely label them as an album group, becouse they never released any singles ;-). The original song was called "Boogie On Reggae Woman" and it was a 1974 single by Stevie Wonder, taken from the album "Fulfillingness' First Finale". It reached number 3 in Billboard Hot 100 Chart. The song features Wonder's distinctive harmonica, and is also notable for Wonder's pulsating Moog synthesizer bassline.

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Peacemaker - Rauhanhieroja

Seppo Närhi released the album "Närhi" in 1975. One of the tracks was this "Rauhanhieroja" (Peacemaker). Probably record company doubted its potential as a single and it remained only an album track. The original "Peacemaker" was the work of British singer-songwriter Albert Hammond.  The song was on the 1973 album "Free Electric Band", whose title track was finnpicked here.  You can see Albert perform the song live in television studio, here.

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Angie Baby - Angie baby

Cascade was an ambitious pop group - active in years 1974-1977 - performing mainly soul- and rhythm & blues numbers. The founding members and main vocalists were Ami Aspelund (see earlier entry), Aimo Jaara, (see earlier entry), Marjo-Riitta Kervinen (see earlier entry) and Kari Kuusamo. Cascade released "Angie baby" on the B-side of their second single in 1975. The song earned another Finnish version - using same Finnish lyrics by Chrisse Johansson - by Päivi Paunu, who recorded it in 1976. The original "Angie Baby", was written by American songwriter Alan O'Day and it was a number one US hit for Australian singer Helen Reddy. It hit the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart at the end of December of 1974. The song depicts somewhat 'crazy' girl living in a dream world of lovers, inspired by the songs on her radio.

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The Wall Street Shuffle - Pistin pennit jonoon

I'm back from my vacation - later than expected. And now it's finally the time to initiate the Finnpicks Grand Tour of USA. We will do a musical journey across USA from East to West (approximately), and start our journey from New York. Vicky Rosti recorded "Pistin pennit jonoon" (I put the pennies in line) in 1975 for her "Vicky" album. It was a good version of the original, but it was never released as a single. The Finnish lyrics were made bu Pertsa Reponen. The original song was called "The Wall Street Shuffle" and it was a hit for UK progressive pop group 10 CC in 1974. The song originally appeared on the band's 1974 album Sheet Music and was the second single to be released from the album. It was also the most successful single to be released from the album making number 10 on the British charts. The tune was composed by band members Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman. Of course you know that Wall Street is the financial district of New York City, one of the principal financial centers of the world. You can see the group perform the song live, here.
  
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Petite femme - Et saa sitä miettiäkään

Kai Hyttinen recorded "Et saa sitä miettiäkään" (You shall not even think about it) in 1975 for his album "Saanhan olla hän". It was not released as a single, being perhaps something else that public expected from Kai. The lyrics were crafted by Kai's (and ours) old friend Veikko "Vexi" Salmi. The original song was called "Petite femme" (Little woman) and it was a 1974 hit for French singer named Santiana. His real name was Jean-Pierre d'Amico, and he was born in Tunisia but made his career in France. He was popular singer in the 70's and later moved to broadcasting business being the the first program director of French youth radio station NRJ (broadcasting nowadays also in Finland).

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Ibo Lele - Mombasa

It seems that we have Taiska Sunday again. This time we present the definitive Taiska song. She recorded "Mombasa" in 1975. It became top 10 hit in 1976 and it has since been one of the most popular Finnish records of all time. Therefore it's quite extraordinary that very few have heard the original tune called "Ibo lele". Well it was of Italian origin and composed by Fabio Frizzi, best known for his horror film scores, which have become some of the most widely known in the genre. But this song was from the score written for a 1974 erotic movie called "Amore Libero" (Free Love), directed by Pier Ludovico Pavoni. It features erotic movie star Laura Gemser ("Black Emmanuelle") in her first role. The movie is not set Mombasa, Kenya, but in the island of Seychelles. Then, what is "Ibo Lele"? Well, having not seen the movie, I don't know. I guess it's a location in Seychelles, becouse there's another tune in the soundtrack called "Ibo Lele at Night".

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Rubber Bullets - Puupaukut

Vicky Rosti recorded "Puupaukut" (Duds) in 1975 for her album "Vicky". Although the original song was quite popular, this Vicky's version remained only an album track. The lyrics were by Pertsa Reponen and the arrangements by Veikko Samuli. The original song "Rubber Bullets" was a big hit for British pop-prog band 10 CC. It was the band's first number one single in UK, topping the charts in June 1973. Someone has described the song as "neo-hard rock boogie". It is a tongue-in-cheek homage (lyrics here) to Jailhouse Rock. It caused some controversy at the time, because of the British Army's use of rubber bullets to fight rioting in Northern Ireland.

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Play Me Like You Play Your Guitar - Tahdon olla sun

Pauliina (real name Paula Erko) released her first single in 1966 as Paula Suhonen. In the 70's she began to use stage name Pauliina. She recorded several singles with no success, and appeared as a background singer on many other recordings. In 1978 she joined in the vocal group Silhuetit. So she's possibly singing on this 1978 finnpick. In 1975 Pauliina recorded this "Tahdon olla sun" (I want to be yours) to the lyrics of Chrisse Johansson. The original song was collaboration of songwriters Tony Macaulay and Keith Potger (of the Seekers). It was performed in 1975 by old axe man from the 50/60's, Duane Eddy. The song that featured Eddy's regular backing singers Rebelettes, was a surprise come-back hit for the guitarist. You can see the song performed in British Top Of The Pops TV Show, here.

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Sorrow - Vaaraa

Here's a rare single form Kristian. He recorded "Vaaraa" (Danger) in 1975. It was three years since his previous single ("Se syntikö on", finnpicked here) and the public had obviously forgotten about him, becouse the single was a flop. The lyrics were provided by Heikki "Hector" Harma. The trigger for this single release was of course the David Bowie's version of the original "Sorrow", being a Top 10 hit for him in 1973. The song was, however, recorded originally in the 60's. It was written by US songwriter trio Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer for the group The McCoys. But it was made a hit by British beat band The Merseys. The Merseys was a duo formed by two former members of the Liverpudlian group The Merseybeats; Tony Crane and Billy Kinsley. This song, their first single, reached number 4 in the UK charts in 1966. I present here also the excellent Finnish cover by Muska from the year 1993, with different lyrics and titled "Anteeks" (Sorry).

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My Eyes Adored You - Niin aika rientää

It's hard to understand why this man wasn't a big star. Heikki Pietiläinen recorded some pop ballads in the 70's and as you can hear from this 1975 "Niin aika rientää" (So the time flies) -song, he got the vocal potential to become a great Finnish crooner. But for some reason he faded away. As far as I know he released only one single (in 1975) and contributed to several 'Various Artists' compilation albums. In 1991 he released a cassette(!) with songs primarily in the classical music vein. It would be nice to know where is he now? The original of today's Finnpick was "My Eyes Adored You", a big hit for Frankie Valli (b. Francis Stephen Castelluccio). It was originally recorded by The Four Seasons in early 1974. But after their record label did not release it, the recording was sold to lead singer Frankie Valli for 4000 dollars. After rejections by several record labels, Valli succeeded in getting the recording released on Private Stock Records, but it's owner wanted only Valli's name on the record. The single was released under Frankie Valli's name and topped the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1975.

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Union Silver - Kuulen laulun

During my Finnpicks research I've often come up with a song that has made me wonder why haven't I never before heard this beautiful song. This is an example of those songs. Eija Sinikka (see earlier entry) recorded "Kuulen laulun" (I hear a song) for her eponymous album in 1975. Chrisse Johansson was the the lyricist. The original song was called "Union Silver" and it was a lesser known hit by the Scottish pop group Middle Of The Road. Their enigmatic lead vocalist on this and on all their hits was Sally Carr.

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Sad Sweet Dreamer - Niinkin sattuu

Päivi Paunu recorded "Niinkin sattuu" (That's what can happen) in 1975 to the lyrics by Sauvo "Saukki" Puhtila. The song was never released as a single, And it was not included in any of Päivi's albums. It was released only on of "Maailmalla soi" hit cover compilations. So, sadly this beautiful song is forgotten by all.. The original song was the sole big hit for Brtish vocal group Sweet Sensation. "Sad Sweet Dreamer " reached number one in UK charts in 1974. This soul ballad is heavily influenced by the Stylistics, and led by lead vocalist Marcel King's falsetto, . The song was produced by Tony Hatch and David Parton (aka Des Parton) . Parton aslo wrote the song. You can see the group perform "Sad Sweet Dreamer ", here.

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Some Kind Of A Summer - Kesistä parhain

Don't know if we now have the best summer of all times, but definitely we're really experiencing some kind of a summer. This awkward introduction leads us to today's Finnpick, Berit's (see earlier entry) "Kesistä parhain" (The best summer). Berit recorded it in 1975 for her album "Sattuma kuljettaa". The lyrics were provided by old stalwart Sauvo "Saukki" Puhtila. The original song "Some Kind Of A Summer" was performed by 70's teen idol David Cassidy, and it was included in his 1972 album "Rock Me Baby". It was released only as an album track. The lyrics can be seen at his fansite.

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