The passing last week of Men at Work's multi-instrumentalist and key creative force Greg Ham likely caught more than a few pop music fans off-guard, but those who knew the 58-year-old best probably (and sadly) weren't all that shocked. Ever since the puzzling 2010 court decision that determined the band's signature 1982 hit "Down Under" duplicated "substantial portions" of popular Australian children's song "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree," friends say that Ham had been despondent, even relapsing into drug and alcohol abuse in part due to his discomfort over the situation. The cause of death for the musician - found dead April 19 in his home near Melbourne - has yet to be determined, but it's difficult for any original fan of Men at Work's early-'80s heyday not to feel resentful about a court decision as suspect and potentially damaging as the "Down Under" judgment.
Nevertheless, former bandmate Colin Hay has been quick to praise the positive elements of Ham's life and the enriching perspective his personality brought to so many of the lives he touched. This, of course, is fitting and essential in the face of the loss of someone young and talented, but the sentiment is especially resonant in light of this week's feature, one of Men at Work's few tracks that featured Ham on lead vocals and drew from his solo songwriting efforts. Despite its seemingly downbeat title, "Giving Up" - a deep album track from the band's seldom-heard 1985 swan song LP, Two Hearts - actually embraces an uplifting if contemplative view on treasuring the joys of life while it's still possible. In essence, the song is about NOT giving up, and it serves as a particularly poignant requiem for an individual Hay remembered as "a beautiful man" graced with boundless humor and energy. Musically, this tune showcases one of Ham's least recognized gifts - his singing voice - and demonstrates the important role he served in a band clearly fronted by Hay but also most certainly graced with far more than mere backing from Ham. Fans celebrating the famous respective saxophone and flute parts from Men at Work hits "Who Can It Be Now?" and "Down Under" should probably also check out the group's unjustly out-of-print final record, which really allowed Ham to stretch out quite memorably as both songwriter and lead vocalist.
- Listen to "Giving Up" in its entirety here.
- Compare prices on Men at Work CDs here.
- Top Men at Work Songs of the '80s
- Top Down Under Artists of the '80s
- Best '80s Songs Featuring Saxophone
Album Cover Image Courtesy of Columbia - Greg Ham Pictured Above, Far Left
It was somehow appropriate that I first heard about the July 16 passing of legendary Deep Purple and Whitesnake keyboard master Jon Lord on NPR while I was driving home that evening. After all, Lord was always a rock and roll original whose influence and wide-ranging talent on the Hammond organ and other keyboard instruments reached disparate and eclectic audiences. Many classic rock fans certainly became familiar with Lord through his long-running tenure with Deep Purple, one of Britain's most famous and accomplished blues-based hard rock bands. Nevertheless, the man was remarkably busy and successful during his non-Purple years playing both orchestral music and arena rock with the early lineup of David Coverdale's eventually hair metal '80s band.
After yet another week shrouded by tragic and early celebrity deaths, the pop music world was forced to join in the mourning with Friday's announcement that founding Beastie Boys member Adam Yauch had passed away at 47 following a three-year cancer battle. So now, just three weeks after the pioneering rap-rock trio was enshrined into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, death strikes again in what could be construed by the extremely conspiracy-minded as a cruel attempt to silence the music. Now, I'm not literally saying some cosmic force in charge of death has something against rock and roll, but let's face it: 2012 has not been thus far kind to several creators of legendary music.
I'm the first to admit anytime the subject comes up that I was probably about as far as one could be from being hip to the early alternative/indie sound continuing to emerge out of the U.K. circa 1988. Trapped far too exclusively in a music world (though it seemed kind of wide open at the time) composed mostly of classic rock, hair metal and arena rock, I would have had no idea what to do if exposed to a band like The House of Love at that early point of my rock music education. So perhaps it's just as well that this London outfit remained as alien to me back then as a good, modestly stylish haircut. After all, only years after their peaks did I discover and appreciate the work of such bands as The Jesus and Mary Chain, Psychedelic Furs and Echo & the Bunnymen - all seminal influences on the dreamy, proto-indie rock strains of The House of Love.
While searching for a song to spotlight this week in this space, I've encountered a few unexpected obstacles, including a minor but nevertheless derailing bout with illness, an unlikely near-duplication of another entry I wrote two years ago involving Adam Ant, and general early-month sluggishness I've by now come to expect from myself. But I think I've punched through the paralysis now that I've stumbled upon the relatively brief but always interesting music career of American singer-songwriter Rachel Sweet. I also did another smart thing to help me get out of my own way; I consulted my wife about her gut reaction to my song selection for this week.
Over the years, commercial country music has not been a particularly solid breeding ground for successful bands, Alabama and current stalwarts Rascal Flatts notwithstanding. For some reason or another, mainstream country has always been dominated by solo artists supported by highly capable but frequently mercenary session musicians. This is but one important reason why The Desert Rose Band represented such a refreshing change of pace during the latter part of the '80s. The other, more important reason is that the group was fronted by Chris Hillman, one of the founding members of legendary, pioneering '60s country-rock bands The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers.