HIP HIP HURRAY … FOR SHANIA TWAIN TODAY!

International singing superstar Shania Twain (born right here in Canada), recently donated four hundred thousand dollars from her charitable foundation to the Sir Winston Churchill public school in Brampton for an enrichment program for kids at risk.  The program, which is in partnership with the Peel District School Board, will see $100,000. a year for four years go to free tutoring, healthy snacks and recreational activities.  The school had had several tragedies in the past year, including one ten year old child who died in a housefire and a Grade 4 student who was shot in his home.  So to salute Shania’s generosity, all five questions this time out are all about her.  During her career, Shania has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide and is ranked as the 10^th best selling artist (according to Nielsen Soundscan sales records).  Shania will be performing in Las Vegas starting on October 8th.

  

QUESTIONS

1.  This should be easy for any Shania fan.  What is her real name (aka her birth name)?  

      

2.  Shania and her former husband ‘Mutt’ Lange, created many musical masterpieces together before their divorce.  What is Mutt’s real name? (His last name really is Lange).                     

                

3.  What 1998 Shania Twain # 2 hit are the following lyrics taken from?  “Looks like we made it.  Look how far we’ve come, my baby.  We mighta took the long way.  We knew we’d get there someday.”                

4.  In which one of her songs does Shania mention Brad Pitt, Elvis, Captain Kirk, John Wayne and Tarzan?  Is it:  a. Any Man Of Mine  b. That Don’t Impress Me Much  c. I’m Gonna Getcha Good!  

    

5.  Shania Twain has won many awards.  How many JUNO awards does Shania have?  Is it:            

a. Six  b. Nine  c. Twelve  

ANSWERS

1.  Shania Twain’s real name is Eilleen Regina Edwards.  She was born in Windsor, Ontario to Sharon and Clarence Edwards.  Her parents divorced when Eilleen was two.  Her mother moved to Timmins and later married Jerry Twain, who adoped Eilleen and her two sisters, Carrie Ann and Jill.  After signing with Mercury Records in Nashville in the early 1990’s, she dropped the name Eilleen and became Shania Twain.                              

2.  Mutt’s real name is Robert John Lange.  His writing and production credits on albums usually reads: Robert John ‘Mutt’ Lange.  ‘Mutt’ was born in Zambia, South Africa on November 11^th, 1948.  Besides Shania, ‘Mutt’ has produced million selling albums for AC/DC, Def Leppard, The Boomtown Rats, Bryan Adams, Foreigner, Maroon 5 and Nickelback among many others.  ‘Mutt’ and Shania were married from 1993 until 2010.

    

3.  It’s “You’re Still The One”, a # 2 hit (for 9 weeks) in the spring of 1998.  It was Shania’s highest charting single.  Her other two Top Ten songs that charted on Billboards’ Hot 100 are: “From This Moment On” (# 4 in 1998) and “That Don’t Impress Me Much” (# 7 in ’99).    

                  

4.  The correct answer is b. “That Don’t Impress Me Much”.  In the middle of the song, Shania sings “Okay, so you’re Brad Pitt.  That don’t impress me much.”  Later on, she sings, “Okay so what do you think, you’re Elvis or something.  That don’t impress me much.”  On the fade out of the song, Shania says: “You’re Tarzan.  Captain Kirk maybe.  John Wayne.  Whatever!”

5.  That would be c. Twelve.  Shania has won 187 awards so far, including those 12 JUNO’s, plus 5 Grammy Awards, 27 BMI Songwriters awards and many others.  She also has a star on both the Hollywood Walk of Fame and Canada’s Walk of Fame.   

IT’S ONLY WORDS, AND WORDS ARE ALL I HAVE…

Yep, it’s another lyric challenge.  Do you know the name of the song and the performer who sang it simply by reading some of the lyrics?  That is the question.  Atually it’s 5 questions, so if you’re a sing-alonger (yes I know that isn’t a real word, but it is now!) with songs in your car, then this should be a breeze.  All of the questions below pertain to songs that were in the Top Ten on Billboards’ Hot 100 chart during the week of September 8^th, 1984.

 

QUESTIONS

1.  This female singer was on the comeback trail with this song.  Some of the lyrics are: “You must understand.  That the touch of your hand.  Makes my pulse react.  That it’s only the thrill.  Of boy meeting girl.  Opposites attract.”  This song was # 1 for three weeks in September of ’84.  What’s the name of this song and which ‘private dancer’ sang it?  

      

2.  The lyrics for this movie theme song weren’t all that scary, except for the man who wrote and sang it.  I’ll explain all that in the answer below.  Meantime, a short snippet of the lyrics are: “If there’s something strange in your neighbourhood.  Who ya gonna call?”  OK, if you can’t figure out the song title from that, you must have been afraid for the past 30 years?  The movie starred Dan Ackroyd, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis.  So who are you gonna call?  Answer please.                     

                

3.  A portion of the lyrics for this September 1984 Top 10 hit are:  “I’ve got this feeling.  Deep down in my soul.  That I just can’t lose.  Guess I’m on my way.  Needed a friend.  And the way I feel now, I guess.  I’ll be with you till the end.”  The performer was the  former lead singer of one of Motown’s most successful groups from the 1970’s and ‘80’s before embarking on a smash solo career.  What’s the song and who “Truly” (HINT ALERT) wrote and sang it?               

4.  This one might be a tad tougher.  The opening lyrics are: “Everytime I think of you, I always catch my breath.  And I’m still standing here, and you’re miles away.  And I’m wonderin’ why you left.  And there’s a storm that’s raging through my frozen heart tonight.”  Who’s the singer and what’s the name of this song?  You won’t have to Waite (HINT ALERT) long for the answer if you don’t know it. 

    

5.  A Canadian singer/songwriter from Montreal had the # 9 song the week of September 8^th, 1984.  A portion of the lyrics to his song are:  “Don’t switch the blade on the guy in shades; oh no.  Don’t masquerade with the guy in shades (oh no, I can’t believe it).  You got it made with the guy in shades, oh no.”  So search your Hart (HINT ALERT) and guess the name of this singer/songwriter and his 1984 Top Ten hit.  

ANSWERS

1.  Tina Turner had the # 1 song for the week of September 8^th, 1984 with her hit “What’s Love Got To Do With It”.  It was her very first # 1 EVER.  “Proud Mary” recorded as Ike & Tina Turner was the closest she’d come before that.  That one made it to # 4 in 1971.  “What’s Love Got To Do With It” was from her 1984 ‘comeback’ album “Private Dancer”, which also produced two other hits, “Better Be Good To Me” climbed to # 5 and the title song, “Private Dancer” peaked at # 7 in March of 1985.  Tina hit the Top Ten again three more times.  “We Don’t Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)” went to # 2 in September of ’85; “Typical Male” also made # 2 in October of ’86.  Tina’s last Top Ten hit, “I Don’t Wanna Fight” peaked at # 9 in August 1993.                           

2.  “Ghostbusters” by Ray Parker Jr. had been the # 1 song for three weeks in August of ’84, but by September 8^th, it had dropped to # 4.  Ray got into a bit of trouble with that song.  It seems the producer of the film was using temporary songs while editing “Ghostbusters” (the original score hadn’t been written yet) and rather liked “I Want A New Drug” by Huey Lewis & The News.  Ray Parker Jr.’s theme song for “Ghostbusters” was a little too close to “I Want A New Drug’ for Huey Lewis, so who’d Huey call?  His lawyer, naturally!  Huey Lewis sued and won an undisclosed settlement.  Ghostbusters” was the only # 1 Ray Parker Jr. ever had, although he had hit the Top Ten singles chart four previous times. 

    

3.  It was Lionel Ritchie who wrote and sang 1984’s “Stuck On You” (not to be confused with the 1960 Elvis Presley # 1 hit that used the same title.  It was a totally different song).  For the week of September 8^th, “Stuck On You” was at # 5, but the previous week, September 1^st, it had reached its peak at # 3.  Prior to “Stuck On You”, Lionel had had four  # 1’s – “Endless Love” a duet with Diana Ross in 1981, “Truly in ’82, 1983’s “All Night Long (All Night)” and a few months before “Stuck On You”, “Hello” hit # 1.  In ’85, Lionel was once again at the top of the singles chart with “Say You, Say Me”.      

                  

4.  “Missing You” by John Waite would go on to become a # 1 hit during the week of September 22^nd, but two weeks earlier, it was still climbing at # 2.  Although Waite charted 10 singles on Billboards’ Hot 100, “Missing You” was his only # 1 and in fact, his only Top Ten hit.  Prior to his solo career, Waite had been the lead singer for The Babys and Bad English.

5.  The week of September 8^th, 1984 was the final week for Cory Hart and his first Billboard charted hit, “Sunglasses At Night”, which peaked at # 7.  Although Cory charted 11 songs on Billboards’ Hot 100, only one other song, 1985’s “Never Surrender”, cracked the Top Ten, climbing to # 3 in 1985.  Earlier this year, Corey hung up his vocal chords with a final concert in his hometown of Montreal.