Bagarre - No Toys

Italian alterna-disco-pop group Bagarre are mainly known for their semi-hit “Lemonsweet”, an upbeat ode to LSD. As much as I love “Lemonsweet”, though, my love for the infectiously melodic “No Toys” surpasses it by an order of magnitude. “No Toys” reflects a creative, whimsical side of proto-Italo Disco, and lyrically it's dominated by a theme that crops up in many-an early/mid-’80s tune: imagining what glamour & sophistication must be associated with personal wealth that is just out of reach. The song has a brilliantly off-kilter chant for its chorus, and much like all the great Italo tunes, something’s just not quite right about it; certain English words are occasionally mispronounced or incorrectly substituted by the non-native speakers, vocal delivery is heavily accented and in unnatural rhythms, and the arrangement is simultaneously happy-go-lucky yet slightly dreamy and moody.

• Bagarre - No Toys
• Bagarre - Lemonsweet (search @ YouTube)

Google turned up no lyrics, so here’s my stab at them:

Ain’t got no toys The things that do for girls and boys A Cadillac smiles That I can drive for miles and miles One, two, ain’t got no toys The things that do for girls and boys Three, four, a Cadillac smiles That I can drive for miles and miles Bricks on bricks So I can make a house that slicks* Mmm, money So everybody will call me honey Five, six, bricks on bricks So I can make a house that sticks Seven, eight, money So everybody will call me honey Ain’t got no toys An orange Porsche and pink Rolls Royce Flowers in spring Diamond bracelets and golden rings One, two, ain’t got no toys An orange Porsche, pink Rolls Royce Three, four, flowers in spring Diamond bracelets, golden rings (repeat all of the above again)

Ain’t got no toys An orange Porsche and pink Rolls Royce Flowers in spring Diamond bracelets and golden rings One, two, ain’t got no toys An orange Porsche, pink Rolls Royce Three, four, flowers in spring Diamond bracelets, golden rings Dine at The Ritz Long fur coats and swocker on mitts** Ginny fizz And anything that will make me whiz Five, six, dine at the ritz Long fur coats and swocker on mitts** Seven, eight, ginny fizz And anything that will make me whiz Ain’t got no toys The things that do for girls and boys A Cadillac smiles That I can drive for miles and miles One, two, ain’t got no toys The things that do for girls and boys Three, four, a Cadillac smiles That I can drive for miles and miles Five, six, bricks on bricks So I can make a house that sticks Seven, eight, money So everybody will call me …honey

*In the 2nd verse it’s definitely not “house that sticks,” but in the chanted chorus, it definitely is. I'm pretty sure she’s saying "slicks".

**In the last original verse, “swocker on” is my phonetic approximation of what they’re saying. It’s definitely not “sparkling.” Maybe some brand of designer gloves?

Moebius - "Urth"

Atlanteans, Lumanians, Lemurians, Welcome to Earth!

This is the first post in Hooked On Stereophonics, a music blog.


Moebius - "Urth": I was turned on to this over-the-top, vocal/vocoded synth disco track when I heard it in a Beppe Loda DJ mix on the Cosmic Disco and Beats In Space sites, but I had a hard time finding out the name of the song by Googling for the lyrics. To help other people who might find themselves in the same boat, I'm posting the lyrics here.

The song is apparently about ancient, lost, legendary civilizations of spacefaring superhumans returning to Earth. It was released on the group's self-titled album in Canada in 1979. The album was released 2 years later in Germany with the title Mirror Of Infinity. It's long out of print, of course.

In February 2008, Mutant Sounds made a post about the album which pointed to a place where you can download a rip of the whole thing (as MP3s in a .rar, hosted on RapidShare). The post attracted the attention of surviving band member Doug Lynner, who apparently is cool with it, although he'd like you to buy his recent album to show your support. The other band member, Bryce Robbley, is no longer living.

Anyway, to download "Urth", just get the whole album via the Mutant Sounds post. It includes "Urth" and their hit version of "Light My Fire", as well as some not-so-great tracks.

Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome to home
We're not alone
Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome to home
We're on our own

Lumanian
Woman and man
Children to be
Children of g
Supermen know
Super ego
Atlantean
Catch as catch can

Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome to home
We're on our own
Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome to home
We're not alone

Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome to home
We're in the zone
Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome to home
We're not alone

Lemurian
Lend me your hand
I am the moon
Welcome to you
Now that we're here
No need to fear
We hold the key
Be what will be

Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome back home
We're in the zone
Welcome to Urth
Home of our birth
Welcome to home