Oh L'amour! How Will I Know? Basically, I Wanna Dance With Numbers

A great man once said that creating a pop song that makes people happy is one of the hardest things to do.

It is quite simple to tap into negative energy and create the kind of songs and pictures that make you cry.

There is a sadness in this world, for we are ignorant of many things. Yes, we are ignorant of many beautiful things - things like the truth. So sadness, in our ignorance, is very real. Tears are real. What is this thing called a tear? There are even tiny ducts - tear ducts - to produce these tears should the sadness occur. Then the day when the sadness comes - then we ask: "Will this sadness which makes me cry - will this sadness that makes my heart cry out - will it ever end?" The answer, of course, is yes. One day the sadness will end.

Yesterday a friend suggested I listen to "Oh L'amour" on a rainy NYC day. That, and "How Will I Know" are two pop songs that have brought me happiness at different stages of my life.

Patrick Bateman: Did you know that Whitney Houston's debut LP, called simply Whitney Houston had 4 number one singles on it? Did you know that, Christie?

Elizabeth: [laughing] You actually listen to Whitney Houston? You own a Whitney Houston CD? More than one?

Patrick Bateman: It's hard to choose a favorite among so many great tracks, but "The Greatest Love of All" is one of the best, most powerful songs ever written about self-preservation, dignity. Its universal message crosses all boundaries and instills one with the hope that it's not too late to better ourselves. Since, Elizabeth, it's impossible in this world we live in to empathize with others, we can always empathize with ourselves. It's an important message, crucial really. And it's beautifully stated on the album.



"How Will I Know" is the third hit single from Whitney Houston's self-titled first album. The single was released in November 1985 and was written by George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam of Boy Meets Girl fame, who wrote it for Janet Jackson[1]. The song is an electric dance tune about the singer wondering if a guy she likes feels the same way about her.

On the US Billboard Hot 100 singles survey, "How Will I Know" rose from #60 to #50 the week of December 14, 1985, reaching the #1 spot by February 15, 1986, and becoming Houston's second number-one single. The single displaced "That's What Friends Are For" by Dionne Warwick, thus becoming only the third time (and first by female artists) in history for relatives to replace themselves at number one. It remained at number one for two weeks, and spent fifteen weeks in the top forty.

The music video for "How Will I Know" was directed by Brian Grant and is set against a fantasy, vividly colored background, with dancers in black outfits and wearing French-style makeup. The video is recognized for the animated paint dripping down the screen. In the video, when Houston sings "I'm asking you 'cause you know about these things", there's a brief screencap of singer, close family friend, and Godmother Aretha Franklin.

There's a boy I know
he's the one I dream of.
Looks into my eyes
takes me to the clouds above.
Oh
I lose control
can't seem to get enough.
When I wake from dreamin'
tell me
is it really love?

How will I know? Cirl
trust your feelings -
How will I know?
How will I know? Love can be deceivin' -
How will I know?

How will I know if he really loves me?
I say a prayer with every heartbeat.
I fall in love whenever we meet.
I'm asking you
'cause you know about these things.
How will I know if he's thinking of me?
I try to phone
but I'm too shy - can't speak.
Falling in love is so bitter sweet.
This love is strong
why do I feel weak?

Oh
wake me
I'm shakin'; wish I had you near me now.
Said there's no mistakin'
what I feel is really love.

Oh
tell me: how will I know? Girl
trust your feelings - . . .
How will I know if he really loves me? . . .

If he loves me - if he loves me not -
if he loves me - if he loves me not -
How will I know? - How will I know? -
How will I know? - How will I know

How will I know if he really loves me? . . .
How will I know? How will I know? How will I know?
How will I know? - I say a prayer - how will I know?
How will I know? - I fall in love - how will I know?
How will I know? - I'm asking you - how will I know?




"Oh L'amour" is a song by British synth pop duo Erasure,c onsisting of songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer Andy Bell, released in April 1986 as their third single. Written by Erasure members Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, "Oh L'amour" is a lament from someone experiencing unrequited love ("broke my heart / now I'm aching for you"). The song is an uptempo synth pop dance track.

Oh l'amour
Broke my heart
Now I'm aching for you
Mon amour
Whats a boy in love
Supposed to do

Looking for you
You were looking for me
Always reaching for you
You were too blind to see
Oh love of my heart
Why leave me alone
I'm falling apart
No good on my own

Oh lamour
Broke my heart
Now I'm aching for you
Mon amour
Whats a boy in love
Supposed to do

Why throw it away
Why walk out on me
I just live for the day
For the way it should be
There once was a time
Had you here by my side
You said I wasnt your kind
Only here for the ride

Oh l'amour
Broke my heart
Now I'm aching for you
Mon amour
Whats a boy in love
Supposed to do

No emotional ties
You don't remember my name
I lay down and die
I'm only to blame
Oh love of my heart
Its up to you now
You tore me apart
I hurt inside-out

Oh lamour
Broke my heart
Now I'm aching for you
Mon amour
Whats a boy in love
Supposed to do

Oh l'amour
Broke my heart
Now I'm aching for you
Mon amour
Whats a boy in love
Supposed to do





Girls On Top was the pseudonym used by record producer Richard X between 2001 and 2002. As part of the bootleg music craze of the time, Girls On Top had a string of limited edition underground singles released on vinyl only. Richard X used the method of taking the instrumental music track of one pop record and the a cappella version of another pop record and splicing the two together.

"I Wanna Dance With Numbers" is Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)" vs Kraftwerk's "Numbers".

Uh... yeh... woo... hey yeh... huh... hoo yeh... uh huh... yeah...
I want to dance...

Clocks strikes upon the hour,
And the sun begins to fade.
Still enough time to figure out,
How to chase my blues away.
I've done alright up 'til now,
It's the light of day that shows me how,
And when the night falls, loneliness calls.

(Chorus:)
Oh! I wanna dance with somebody.
I wanna feel the heat with somebody.
Yeah! I wanna dance with somebody,
With somebody who loves me. (x2)

I've been in love and lost my senses,
Spinning through the town.
Sooner or later the fever ends,
And I wind up feeling down.
I need a man who'll take a chance,
On a love that burns hot enough to last.
So when the night falls,
My lonely heart calls.

(Chorus x2)

Somebody who... Somebody who... somebody who loves me...
Somebody who... Somebody who... to hold me in his arms...

I need a man who'll take a chance,
On a love that burns hot enough to last.
So when the night falls,
My lonely heart calls.

(Chorus x2)

Ooh ooh! Dance! Come on baby... (laughs)
Dance! Wooo! Yeh! Dance! You dance like this... (laughs)
Woah! (dance!)

Don't you wanna dance? (dance!) with me baby.
Don't you wanna dance? (dance!) with me boy.
Don't you wanna dance? (dance!) with me baby.
With somebody who loves me.

Don't you wanna dance?
Say you wanna dance.
Don't you wanna dance? (dance!)

Don't you wanna dance?
Say you wanna dance.
Don't you wanna dance? (dance!)

Don't you wanna dance?
Say you wanna dance. (uh huh)(dance!)
With somebody who loves me.
Ooh (dance!)
Ooh-oh (dance!)
Ooh (dance!)
...with me baby...

I Wanna Dance With Numbers

Two Of Hearts

At Women, the soundtrack is usually ipod playlists, a mix of Sparklehorse and Band of Horses.

After hours, anything goes. Lately, all I listen to is freestyle music.

Stacey Q has been on my mind a lot recently. Her look set her apart from other freestyle artists - her hair was bigger, her clothes brighter, and her accessories more baroque. Stacey was a California girl, who began studying classical ballet at 5 years old. Her entertainment background included being a cast member at Disneyland and performing as a showgirl & riding elephants for the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus



How did she end up having a top 5 hit, performing freestyle music, a predominantly urban genre of music?

Where did her look come from?

According to programmer Keith Walsh :

“this impossibly stylish former Ringling Bros. elephant girl and veteran of the Disney Main Street parade possessed star qualities perfectly compatible with electronic music, a genre Stacey also adored. She was enamored with the obscure Japanese band The Plastics and The B-52's, and simply could not get over David Bowie. As a student of style, Swain could literally turn rags into a fashion statement. On one occasion she went to the renaissance fair in Agoura, California dressed simply in two
large pieces of soft leather she bought from a shop in Anaheim."

I would love to see what Stacey Q looks like today.

It was announced on April 16, 2009, that the title of the new Stacey Q album will be "Color Me Cinnamon." It will be released this summer by Hydra Productions. The first single will be "Trip."

Wikipedia Background info:

"Two of Hearts" is a song by artist Stacey Q, from her debut album Better Than Heaven.
The song was one of the highest-selling singles of 1986 (at over a million copies), reaching #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single also did well in the Hot Dance Music / Club Play list, landing at #4, and was a top 10 hit in Australia where it reached #7 on the ARIA chart. It also made the top 60 for the Hot R&B / Hip Hop Play list. Stacey Q performed the song on the television show The Facts of Life, in character as "Cinnamon," a rival of Tootie's.

The song was played on the TV show It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia in the "The Gang Gets Whacked Part II" episode when Dennis becomes a male prostitute.

The music video was featured in Beavis & Butt-head, in which the duo mistake it for a telethon.

Stacey Swain was born on November 30, 1958 in Fullerton, California. She is the youngest of three children.

She is best known for her 1986 hit single "Two of Hearts". On one occasion she went to the renaissance fair in Agoura dressed simply in two large pieces of soft leather she bought from a shop in Anaheim.

Swain's first guest appearance on The Facts of Life was an episode titled "Off-Broadway Baby", first airing on November 1, 1986. The episode was set in New York City, where Tootie applies for the lead singing part in a Broadway musical, using "Two of Hearts" as her audition song. She is befriended by Cinnamon (played by Swain), a talented but "kind of ditzy" aspiring singer competing for the same role. When Tootie discovers Cinnamon is also auditioning with "Two of Hearts", she tries to talk her out of the competition, in the process causing Cinnamon to miss her audition entirely. By the episode finale, Tootie allows Cinnamon to audition in her place, and Cinnamon goes on to win the part ahead of Tootie. Swain performed "Two of Hearts" in character in the episode.

This is the most sincere form of Metafiction I have seen in quite a while: Superstar Stacey Q, performing as a struggling actress, lip synching to her own hit song.

It's very Betty Elms/Diane Selwyn.

Crying

"Crying" is a rock and roll ballad written by Roy Orbison and Joe Melson and sung by Orbison.

I was all right for a while, I could smile for a while
But I saw you last night you held my hand so tight
As you stopped to say hello
Oh, you wished me well, you couldn't tell
That I've been crying over you, crying over you
And you said, so long
Left me standing all alone
Alone and crying, crying, crying, crying
It's hard to understand but the touch of your hand
Can start me crying

I thought that I was over you
But it's true, so true
I love you even more than I did before
But darling, what can I do
For you don't love me and I'll always be
Crying over you, crying over you

Yes, now you're gone and from this moment on
I'll be crying, crying, crying, crying
Yeah, crying, crying over you

The song was released as a 45rpm single by Monument Records in July 1961 and went to No. 2 on the Billboard pop music charts.

Crying, performed by Roy Orbison



In 1987, Orbison rerecorded the song as a duet with k.d. lang as part of the soundtrack for the motion picture, Hiding Out. Their collaboration won the Grammy Award for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals. The duet version was a minor chart hit for the two, peaking at #42 on the Hot Country Singles chart.


Crying, performed by K.D. Lang



Rebekah Del Rio performed an a cappella Spanish language version of the song, entitled "Llorando" in the 2001 David Lynch film Mulholland Dr. The song had also previously been used on the soundtrack for the 1997 cult film Gummo, directed by Harmony Korine, in which two of the central characters even discuss the song at length.



Rebekah Del Río explains the beautiful and mysterious story about her translation & cover of Crying on her website.

Crying was featured in the movie Gummo.



After huffing glue, Tummler remarks that his cross-dressing brother used to sing Crying. Tummler then proceeds to weakly sing parts of the song. The original version of the song is used during the last scenes of the movie.