Post by raccoon on Oct 28, 2018 14:17:47 GMT -5
So I was driving around today listening to a recording of Van Halen playing at some high school when they were still a struggling covers band. One of the songs they did was called 'Don't Call Us, We'll Call You'. I thought it sounded like a pretty good song, so being a music nerd, I looked it up when I got home. And found out it was originally done by Sugarloaf (of 'Green-Eyed Lady fame).
And then I came across this little nugget on Wikipedia:
"The song is a rather cynical view of the music industry, based on the band's real-life experience with CBS Records. It describes the difficulty of breaking into the business and securing a contract from the record company, who claims that the band is good, but too derivative of other popular bands at the time. When the band finally breaks through with a hit ("Green-Eyed Lady") and completes a successful tour, the record company changes course and wants to offer the band their services, only to receive the same line they gave the band before their hit—"don't call us, we'll call you." The references are a practical joke at the expense of CBS Records, which had just turned them down for a recording contract. The song includes the sound of a touch-tone telephone number being dialed near the beginning and ending of the song. Those numbers were an unlisted phone number at CBS Records in Manhattan ("area code 212" stated in the song), and the number of the White House switchboard (in the similar-sounding area code 202)."
Probably a stretch but...Paul screams out "212" at the end of Answering Machine. Is this a nod to Sugarloaf somehow?
I can see how the Mats at this stage of their career could relate to the subject matter of 'Don't Call Us', too.Did CBS reject the Mats at some point?
Maybe the song came to mind as Paul was writing Answering Machine and inspired him to include the operator snippet?
We know he was a huge fan of AM radio so it is easy to believe he was at least familiar with the song as it hit #9 in the country and stayed on the charts for 22 weeks when he was 16.
I clearly think about these things too much! Any thoughts out there? Anybody actually remember this song? I kinda like it...
And then I came across this little nugget on Wikipedia:
"The song is a rather cynical view of the music industry, based on the band's real-life experience with CBS Records. It describes the difficulty of breaking into the business and securing a contract from the record company, who claims that the band is good, but too derivative of other popular bands at the time. When the band finally breaks through with a hit ("Green-Eyed Lady") and completes a successful tour, the record company changes course and wants to offer the band their services, only to receive the same line they gave the band before their hit—"don't call us, we'll call you." The references are a practical joke at the expense of CBS Records, which had just turned them down for a recording contract. The song includes the sound of a touch-tone telephone number being dialed near the beginning and ending of the song. Those numbers were an unlisted phone number at CBS Records in Manhattan ("area code 212" stated in the song), and the number of the White House switchboard (in the similar-sounding area code 202)."
Probably a stretch but...Paul screams out "212" at the end of Answering Machine. Is this a nod to Sugarloaf somehow?
I can see how the Mats at this stage of their career could relate to the subject matter of 'Don't Call Us', too.Did CBS reject the Mats at some point?
Maybe the song came to mind as Paul was writing Answering Machine and inspired him to include the operator snippet?
We know he was a huge fan of AM radio so it is easy to believe he was at least familiar with the song as it hit #9 in the country and stayed on the charts for 22 weeks when he was 16.
I clearly think about these things too much! Any thoughts out there? Anybody actually remember this song? I kinda like it...
