It doesn’t make sense for NewsRevue, this one, but by gosh it does make sense for me to play with it now (May 2017) as a practice/performance piece on my baritone ukuleles.
I republished it unchanged as The Woodstock Revival Song in October 1994 but I don’t think anyone picked up on it that time either.
I rather like it, mainly because I always disliked “A Horse With No Name” and the feeble attempts of non-talented guitar players to render both of its chords. As I said, ideally suited for me to try out new techniques on my ukes.
A SONG WITH NO TUNE
(To the Tune of “A Horse With No Name”)
(The singer’s voice should start to show strain from the middle of VERSE 2 onwards)
VERSE 1
In my first gig out in Bethel,
I was hoping the crowd was alive;
There were heads and hawks and hogs and freaks,
There for Woodstock to revive.
The first thing I played was a chord name of E,
And the second note was an E;
For the third chord, I thought I’d try me an E,
On the fourth I freaked out with an E.
CHORUS 1
I’m giving a concert with a song with no tune,
It’s so good to get out here and croon;
If you remember, it has no words either soon,
And the la las’ll send the crowd right over the moon;
La la, la la la la, la la la, la la;
(Wow-harmony) La la, la la la, la la la, la la;
VERSE 2
After two days in the Bethel rain,
My songs were sounding like Bread;
After three days, my throat is in so much pain,
I sound like Crosby Stills and Nash instead;
And the stories I told made them realise I’m old,
And the crowd wished that I was dead.
CHORUS 2
You see I’m giving a concert with a song with no range,
It’s so good to be out on the stage;
The lack of lyrics may appear to be strange,
But you can’t recall much when you get to my age;
La la, la la la la, la la la, la la;
(All together now) La la, la la la la, la la la, la la; (Key change….
….no only kidding) La la, la la la la, la la la, la la.
Here is America singing A Horse With No Name with lyrics up on the screen: