No No Song
"No No Song" is a 1974 song by English musician Ringo Starr. Written by Hoyt Axton and David Jackson, it appeared on Starr's 1974 album, Goodnight Vienna. It was released as a single in the US on 27 January 1975, backed with "Snookeroo,"[nb 1][1] and reached No. 1 in Canada[2], #3 in the Billboard charts[3] and reached No. 1 on Cash Box charts in the US[4].
| "No No Song" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) A-side label | ||||
| Single by Ringo Starr | ||||
| from the album Goodnight Vienna | ||||
| B-side | "Snookeroo" | |||
| Released | 27 January 1975 (US only) | |||
| Recorded | 1974 | |||
| Genre | Pop, novelty | |||
| Length | 2:33 | |||
| Label | Apple Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Hoyt Axton, David Jackson | |||
| Producer(s) | Richard Perry | |||
| Ringo Starr singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Goodnight Vienna track listing | ||||
11 tracks
| ||||
The lyrics describe Colombian marijuana, Spanish cocaine and Tennessean moonshine being offered to the singer, who refuses it all. Harry Nilsson provides backing vocals.
Some reissues and later pressings of the Ringo Starr version credit the song as "No No Song/Skokiaan."[5] This is presumably due to a copyright claim by the publishers of the latter song, although details are lacking. There are some similarities between parts of "Skokiaan" and the instrumental break between the second and third verses of Starr's version of the "No No Song," but without documentation this is no more than a supposition.
Reception
Billboard described "No No Song" as a "good, fun Ringo cut."[6] Billboard expressed concern that the drug references may limit airplay, even though the lyrics have the singer rejecting drug use.[6]
Covers
In 1975, the song's writer, Hoyt Axton, released his own version of the song, featuring Cheech and Chong, on his album Southbound.
That same year, Joe Dassin released a French language adaptation of the song, "Moi j'ai dit non" ("Me, I Said No"), as the B-side of his most successful single, "L'Été indien". In this version, the protagonist refuses money, a marriage proposal and a political office in order to preserve his peace of mind.[7] Another French version, "(Non non non non) Je suis un mari fidèle", ("I'm a Faithful Husband") was also released in 1975 by Robert Demontigny for the Québec market in Canada. This time, the protagonist refuses some women's advances but changes his mind in the end when he find his wife kissing his best friend.[8]
Brazilian rock musician Raul Seixas recorded a Brazilian Portuguese version called "Não Quero Mais Andar na Contra-mão" ("Don't Want to Ride on the Wrong Way Anymore"), adapting the drugs mentioned in the lyrics to the Brazilian culture (respectively, Colombian marijuana, Bolivian cocaine and Argentinian chloroethane spray). This version was included on his 1988 album A Pedra do Gênesis ("The Genesis's Stone")[9] and issued as a promotional single.[10]
References
- Footnotes
- US Apple 1880[1]
- Citations
- Harry, Bill (2004). The Ringo Starr Encyclopedia. London: Virgin Books. p. 183. ISBN 9780753508435.
- Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada Archived 2013-12-31 at the Wayback Machine
- https://www.billboard.com/music/ringo-starr/chart-history
- https://tropicalglen.com/Archives/70s_files/1975.html
- "Ringo Starr - No No Song / Skokiaan / Snookeroo - Capitol - USA - 1880". 45cat.com. 2016-05-08. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
- "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. February 1, 1975. p. 78. Retrieved 2020-07-17.
- https://www.paroles-musique.com/paroles-Joe_Dassin-Moi_jai_dit_non-lyrics,p01833051
- https://www.paroles-musique.com/paroles-Robert_Demontigny-Je_suis_un_mari_fidele-lyrics,p05522718
- https://www.discogs.com/Raul-Seixas-A-Pedra-Do-G%C3%AAnesis/master/487151
- https://www.discogs.com/Raul-Seixas-N%C3%A3o-Quero-Mais-Andar-Na-Contra-M%C3%A3o-A-Lei/release/6690502
External links
