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yellow
river/down the mississippi line
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Yellow River (J Christie)
The song that launched Christie is truly a pop song
of the highest calibre. It has all the ingredients of a chart hit par
excellence — a catchy hook, interesting lyrics, and an infectious
beat. The composition struck a universal chord, infiltrating the charts
of just about every country in the world (reaching No 1 in 26 countries),
and winning several honours, including the prestigious Ivor Novello
award for best song of 1970. As well, the piece is regarded as a classic
Vietnam Era song. Yellow River
continues to be popular even today, ensuring its
composer a tidy living merely from the royalties. The song has also
been used in advertisements for The Yellow Pages in the UK.
If you are one of the few people in the world who hasn't
heard this song, you will not be disappointed if you track it down and
give it a listen.
Yellow River 1980s version (J Christie)
Jeff re-recorded Yellow River in the 80s with a studio band and it was released on special compilation albums as well as a single. This version comes to a clean finish, unlike the original, which faded out at the end.
Down the Mississippi Line (J Christie)
This is a travelogue about the merits of the Mississipi Line district, and possibly reflects the group's geographical period, when they performed songs about various towns, places and states (Yellow River, San Bernadino, New York City - four years later, the theme would resurface with Alabama). The song has a powerful, driving beat, with a typical catchy melody, and indeed is strong enough to stand on its own merits were it to be released as an A-side. The version on the single starts off with a nice percussion/tambourine introduction, which would be later discarded when the song was re-recorded for the album.
