Mi tierra cristiana - Sierra Nevada

Anneli Pasanen (see earlier entry) had a short span of singing career in the 70's/80's. Even if she had steady following, she never made real big breakthrough. Anneli recorded "Sierra Nevada" in 1977 for her album "Rakastan jokaista päivää". It was released as a single, but it went nowhere chartwise. The lyrics were provided by Pertsa Reponen. The original song was called "Mi tierra cristiana" (My christian land) and it was a hit in 1974 for Spanish pop group Los Puntos. The group originated from Almeria, and was formed in 1967 consisting of five young students. At first they performed covers of popular pop songs but later they began writing their own material, mostly written (like this finnpick) by band member Alfonso Grano De Oro. The theme of the song, Sierra Nevada, is a mountain range in the region of group's home province Almería. It contains the highest point of continental Spain, Mulhacén at 3478 metres. Due to its landscape, numerous spaghetti westerns were filmed there.

Here's the pair:

The Old Nickelodeon Sound - Vanhat laulut nuo

Matti Esko (see earlier entry) recorded "Vanhat laulut nuo" (Those old songs) in 1990 for his hit album "Reissumies". The lyrics depicted an old sailor reminiscing good old days. The original song was called "The Old Nickelodeon Sound" was an album track on Sailor's second - and most successful - album "Trouble" in 1975. You can see Sailor perform the song, here. Originally "nickelodeon" was the name for an early 20th century form of small neighbourhood movie theatre. But Sailor gave the name to a music instrument they developed. It was a huge two-sided synthesizer with multiple stacks of keyboards. It was used to re-create the multiple instrument sounds used in Sailor's recordings. In addition, the band had no base player, and all base parts were played by nickelodeon, thus contributing in creation of the original sound of Sailor.

Here's the pair:

Glass of Champagne - Lasi samppanjaa

Today is the Independence Day of Finland, and I think we could celebrate it by raising a glass of champagne. Neumann (see earlier entry) recorded "Lasi samppanjaa" (A glass of champagne) in 1992 for his album "Tähti ja meripoika". It was also released as a single, but didn't hit the charts. The original song was called "Glass of Champagne" and it was a smash hit for Sailor. This band was my my favourite band of the 70's and was led by musical genius Georg Kajanus. His biography tells us that he was born in Norway and was the son of a Russian prince and the granddaughter of Finnish composer and conductor Robert Kajanus. Well. I'm nor sure if this is all true, but nevertheless, Kajanus's music is superb. The three first Sailor albums in the 70's are all my favourites and one can only wonder why there are only couple of finnpicked Sailor songs. Tomorrow I will present an other one ... You can see Sailor perform the "Champagne" song, here.

Here's the pair:

You're In My Heart - Oot suonissain

Seppo Närhi recorded "Oot suonissain" (You're in my veins) for his 1978 album "Vieraat huoneet". It was also released as a single (B-side to "Vieraat huoneet", cover of "It's A Heartache"), The A-side was a minor hit, but this flipside did not get much attention. Even if the original song was quite a big hit all over the world. It was "You're In My Heart " and performed in 1977 by Rod Stewart. It was also written by Rod himself and the lyrics mention Stewart's favorite football team in the phrase "Celtic United". You can see Rod perform the song in 2004 in Royal Albert Hall , here, with a lots of audience participation.

Here's the pair:

Hey Mama - Vain ilmaa

We now return to our randomly recurring series "Both Sides Now". We present today the B-side to yesterday's Paula Koivuniemi 1973 Finnpick. It was called "Vain ilmaa" (Just air). The lyrics were - as on the flipside - by Vexi Salmi. The original song was performed by British singer Joe Brown (finnpicked before, here). Joe has been described as a "chirpy cockney". He had his most successful period in the beginning of the 60's with his backing band the Bruvvers. This "Hey Mama" he recorded during his on-and-off solo career in 1973.

Here's the pair:

When I'm A Kid - Jotakin jäi

Paula Koivuniemi recorded "Jotakin jäi" (Something remained) in 1973. It was released only as single, and was a modest hit, but nowadays sadly forgotten. The lyrics were provided by Vexi Salmi. The original song "When I'm A Kid" was performed by Demis Roussos (b. Artemios Ventouris Roussos) in 1972. Although it is not one of Demis's most known songs, it was a reasonable hit for him at the time in the continental Europe.

Here's the pair:

Whodunit - Hei kuka

Yesterday we had three Finnish brothers singing, today we have brother ans sister duo Anna & Kirka Babitzin. They recorded an album called "Anna & Kirka" in 1978. "Hei kuka" (Hey, who?) was one of the album tracks. As with yesterday's finnpick, the lyrics were written by Pertsa Reponen. The original song was co-written by Frederick "Freddie" Perren, who was a famous American songwriter, record producer, arranger, and orchestra conductor. In the mid and late 70s, Perren found big success writing and producing such mega-hits as "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor and this "Whodunit" by the Tavares (number 1 R&B hit in 1977). Tavares was an American soul band founded already in 1963. It consisted of 5 Tavares bothers Feliciano, Arthur, Perry, Antone and Ralph. You can see the band perform this song, here. The word "whodunit" (for "Who['s] done it?") is derived from the world of detective stories. "Whodunit" is a complex, plot-driven variety of the detective story in which the puzzle is the main feature of interest. Ellery Queen (USA) and Olavi Susikoski (Finland), famous detectives in their respective countries, are referred in the songs lyrics.

Here's the pair:

We Do It - Minuun uit

We have met Brothers Saari many times. This time we present their 1977 song "Minuun uit" (You swim into me) released of course under moniker Jouko, Kosti ja Paavo, on the eponymous album. The lyrics were crafted by Pertsa Reponen. The original song was written by Englishman Russell Stone, who also first recorded it (in 1975) with his wife Joanna. They were performing under the name R & J Stone. The song became a big hit, but Russell Stone decided that he did not want to remain as a singer, and preferred to concentrate on producing and writing for his wife. Sadly, Joanna died only four years later. You can see the duo performing the song, here.

Here's the pair: