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Song Stories

“Situation”

Yazoo | 1982

Ex-Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke's synthesizer spits out a rapid riff somewhere between rock and classical music on "Situation." Alison Moyet sings a soulful vocal so deep many assumed they were hearing a male singer, It was originally a B side, only becoming a hit in the duo's native U.K. after it garnered increasing club play in the U.S. (where the group was forced to shorten its name to Yaz). The thumping beat helped the track become a staple of dance clubs in the early 1980s. "It's great that the single is doing so well in the States, although I'm not too happy with the record itself," Moyet said not long after its release. "I think it's pretty shoddy, actually!"

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Song Stories

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell | 1974

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.

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