I have become mildly obsessed with "one hit wonder" Canadian singer/songwriter/producer Terry Jacks, who is best known for the massively divisive* 1974 #1 "Seasons in the Sun."
This Slate Article is subtitled "The Enduring Appeal of an Abominable Pop Song," but for my money this single is an eternal, haunting masterpiece.
The B-Side, "Put the Bone In," is one of the most ridiculous songs of all time, but it navigates the same strange divide between outsider camp and devastating tragedy that "Seasons" does. Apparently Soul Asylum covered it early in their career. (That YouTube link is to someone filming their turntable as the song plays!)
His debut LP has a bunch more great little psych-folk numbers (I also love "Concrete Sea"), and the group he formed with his wife Susan Jacks, The Poppy Family, tread similar ground and had a Canadian #1 with "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" - it's great.
As far as I can tell, none of Terry's stuff is available on CD (outside of "Seasons" on a million and one novelty/one-hit wonder comps). There's a pretty poor rip of the LP that has floated around for a while, but I think it's pretty easy to find the vinyl itself in thrift store dollar bins. Some Canadian label that specializes in restoring/archiving classic Canuck music has been talking about putting some of his old stuff out on CD for a long time, but it hasn't surfaced yet.
Am I alone in this? Would there be any interest in a big comp. of his stuff? Am I utterly tin-eared, and there's a reason he's mocked by connoisseurs of bad pop?
― Savannah Smiles, Thursday, 28 August 2008 09:41 (seventeen years ago)
I've never understood why people think this song is terrible
― Tom D., Thursday, 28 August 2008 09:42 (seventeen years ago)
Found an excellent Poppy Family compilation CD in Twickenham on Saturday for three quid - Good Thing Lost: 1968-73 with sleevenotes and track by track analysis by Terry J. No sign of any of his solo work on CD, though, apart from The Hits on sundry compilations.
― Marcello Carlin, Thursday, 28 August 2008 09:44 (seventeen years ago)
I've streamed that compilation several times (so I haven't seen the annotation) but it's excellent listening.
― m coleman, Thursday, 28 August 2008 10:45 (seventeen years ago)
No Blood in Bone and Where Evil Grows by the Pioppy Family are the fucking jam.
All their songs are about going mad, dying or going mad and then dying. Ace.
― Raw Patrick, Thursday, 28 August 2008 11:45 (seventeen years ago)
Susan Jacks just performed here in Vancouver a couple of months ago. She still lives here and is involved with the arts community.
There's lots of Poppy Family/Jacks talk elsewhere on ILM.
― everything, Thursday, 28 August 2008 14:07 (seventeen years ago)
"It's hard to DIE!"
― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 28 August 2008 14:17 (seventeen years ago)
"Which Way You Goin', Billy?" is supposed to be about Vietnam but I think it makes more sense as being about a wife realizing her husband is gay but deciding to stay married to him anyway.
― Joseph McCombs, Thursday, 28 August 2008 15:47 (seventeen years ago)
I doubt it's about Vietnam. The Canadians stayed outta that one. The gay thing is more plausible, though I think it's just about some dude walking out the door.
― everything, Thursday, 28 August 2008 17:39 (seventeen years ago)
'No Blood In Bone' is a fuckin' awesome tune, thirded.
I'm not sure why anyone would hate on 'Seasons in the Sun', although it is now tainted by association with boyband drivel (Westlife or Boyzone, can't quite remember).
― emil.y, Thursday, 28 August 2008 17:50 (seventeen years ago)
I only know a handful of his solo songs, but the Poppy Family and Susan Jacks' solo stuff is classic indeed. That 1968-73 comp (which covers about 75% of their total output) is definitely worth hearing. (And yeah, I've always liked "Seasons" too.)
― Myonga Vön Bontee, Thursday, 28 August 2008 17:56 (seventeen years ago)
Here's Jacques Brel with the original.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbhvoYYIdnQ
I believe the translation Jacks uses is a total travesty.
― Soukesian, Thursday, 28 August 2008 18:13 (seventeen years ago)
The subtitles aren't great, but it seems like a significantly different song.
― Soukesian, Thursday, 28 August 2008 18:15 (seventeen years ago)
The important difference in the lyrics is that in the original it's this guy saying he wants everyone to have a riot at his funeral, while Terry is just rememberin' the good ol' days. The translation was done by Rod McKuen by the way and was previously recorded by others so Terry doesn't deserve the vitriol of the h8rs.
I want everyone to laugh I want everyone to dance I want everyone to party like a bunch of fools I want everyone to laugh I want everyone to dance When they come to put me in my grave
VS.
We had joy, we had fun, we had seasons in the sun. But the hills that we climbed were just seasons out of time.
― everything, Thursday, 28 August 2008 18:41 (seventeen years ago)
without the psychedelic lace & frippery terry jacks sounds like a simpering tool on "seasons of the sun" if you were around when this was a hit you'd understand why it's so hated.
julian barnes' essay on brel and french pop made me reconsider the song itself. but jacks version still blows.
― m coleman, Thursday, 28 August 2008 21:47 (seventeen years ago)
if you were around when this was a hit you'd understand why it's so hated.
I dunno...I wasn't into reading music criticism when I was six, Mark! (And the psychedelc lace & frippery is what I like(d) the most.)
― Myonga Vön Bontee, Friday, 29 August 2008 09:43 (seventeen years ago)
hearing on the radio all the time is what I meant, thankfully I wasn't reading (much) music crit as a teen. I don't remember "seasons" as being lacey psychedelia like the poppy family but i need to er listen again
― m coleman, Friday, 29 August 2008 09:51 (seventeen years ago)
after getting "seasons in the sun" stuck in my head for about a week, i looked it up and found out that the b-side was called "put the bone in" and it's about a dog who likes to eat boneslol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_pX1-IxRBY
― La Lechuza (La Lechera), Tuesday, 26 January 2016 21:16 (ten years ago)