Thought | 5ive Songs

On the 30^th edition of 5ive Songs (2022), we select five songs that are associated with THOUGHT in some form or fashion.  

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elcome to 5ive Songs, where we keep things short and sweet – no extra calories or needless fluff! There’s a theme/topic, five songs, and a short blurb.  Yes, it’s a playlist, but it’s a miniature playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  On the X edition of 5ive Songs (2022), we select five songs that are associated with THOUGHT in some form or fashion.  Okay, let’s get into it!

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1. Anthony Hamilton, “I Thought We Were in Love”

💿 Love is the New Black • 🏷 My Music Box / BMG Rights Management • 📅 2021

“We were two peas in a pod, not spending much time apart (No, no) …And out of the blue things started to change / You started acting real strange.” Uh-oh! In 2021, 🏆 Grammy-winning, contemporary soul singer/songwriter 🎙 Anthony Hamilton released a brand-new studio album, 💿 Love is the New Black.  Sadly, it failed to chart on the Billboard 200.  Nonetheless, it’s a well-rounded LP that plays true to Hamilton’s artistry. 🎵 “I Thought We Were in Love” marks one of the best moments, inspired by and interpolating a 🎙 Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes classic, 🎵 “I Miss You, Pt. 1”.

Cleverly, the harmonized backing vocals in “I Thought We Were in Love” recreate the harmonies of “I Miss You, Pt. 1,” while the melody is inspired and emulates the beloved 70s gem.  It’s most obvious when those celestial, lush backing vocals lift the “Oh, I” but fail to complete the remainder of the lyrics (“…miss you, miss you, miss you”).  Beyond its inspiration, “I Thought We Were in Love” is a fabulous throwback joint in its own right.  It’s a reminder of how accomplished Mr. Hamilton has been throughout his career in preserving and recreating soul music. Of course, the plight of love is the modus operandi.

“I thought we were in love, love

I had to leave you alone

I thought we were in love, love

What more can I do? Yeah.”

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2. rei brown, “Thinking Bout You” (Ft. Joji)

💿 Xeno • 🏷 Jimaku Super • 🗓 2022

“Barely made my flight, we were up all night / Now I’m thinking ‘bout you.” Oh, the feels, the feels, 🎙 rei brown! The Japanese, queer, alt-pop artist based in New York releases his debut album, 💿 Xeno (short for xenophobia).  Brown describes Xeno as an album that explores the otherness he’s felt throughout his life.in July 2022. In the intriguing single, 🎵 “Thinking Bout You”, he gets an assist from Japanese-Australian alternative pop/R&B musician, 🎙 Joji with stellar results.

Brown is the first voice heard, smoothly delivering the chorus with some cool vox effects.  He sets the tone of this song about missing significant others.  Brown asserts, “I wrote my part mostly in the context of a long-distance relationship. There are hints in it that suggest it takes place in a different more sci-fi reality.” Cool and utterly compelling, to say the least. During his verse, we get ‘standard’ vocals from brown, contrasting the ‘spacier’ chorus, addressing the said relationship.  “It’s never easy to leave you / … You can bet that I bleed too, take me back to the shore,” he sings poetically.  Joji provides a stark contrast in the second verse, vocally, while addressing distance from his own perspective:

“Made me look the other way

No longer summer days

They see it in my face

I know it’s just a graze

They got me in a maze

And I hope it’s just a phase.”

Contributing to the vibe of this record, beyond brown and Joji is 🎛 Holz, who produces with brown. “Thinking Bout You” speaks volumes.

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3. Mary J. Blige, “He Think I Don’t Know”

💿 No More Drama (Version 2) • 🏷 Geffen • 🗓 2001

“And he think I don’t know / He think I don’t know, oh.” What, 🎙 Mary J. Blige, does he think you don’t know? Hmm, well, he thinks she doesn’t know he’s unfaithful – HE’S A CHEATER! Mary’s anger and pain are our listening pleasure in 🎵 “He Think I Don’t Know”. She sings soulfully over a lush, minor key, 🎼✍ 🎛 Gerald Isaac production.  Isaac didn’t only produce it though – he wrote this 🏆 Grammy-winning gem.  That’s right, MJB won the 🏆 Grammy for Best Female R&B Performance for this marvelous, five-and-a-half-minute-plus slow jam at the 45^th Annual Grammy Awards.

“I don’t know what gets me more

‘Bout your two-hour trips to the store

How they never have what you went there for

Yet you say to trust you more.” 

Yup, Mary is onto his adulterous ways! She’s a detective in the second verse, asserting, “On my way to work one night / As I made a left at the light / See, what I saw just wasn’t right / Guess what’s done in darkness gon’ come to light.” Of course, in the chorus, MJB keeps emphasizing how this no-good dude underestimates her intelligence: “And he think I don’t know / He must think I’m stupid.” Mary, girl, you’re anything but on this 💿 No More Drama (Version 2) gem that didn’t chart on the Billboard Hot 100!

Appears in 🔻:

• Mary J. Blige, “He Think I Don’t Know”: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 42 (2022)

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4. Chris Stapleton, “Devil Always Made Me Think Twice”

💿 Starting Over • 🏷 Mercury • 📅 2020

“And mama always set a good example / Daddy always gave me good advice / Jesus tried to steer me in the right direction…” Hmm, I wonder how the chorus concludes from 🎵 “Devil Always Made Me Think Twice.” Well, honestly, it’s as you’d expect: “But the devil always made me think twice / Devil always made me think.” Here, 🏆 Grammy-winning country singer/songwriter 🎙 Chris Stapleton covers himself.

How does Mr. Stapleton manage to cover himself? Well, “Devil Always Made Me Think Twice,” the second track from 2020’s 💿 Starting Over, was originally recorded by 🎙 Hailey Whitters.  Even so, Stapleton wrote the song alongside 🎼✍ Al Anderson. The resulting record is a high energy, traditional country record where Stapleton is assertive, infusing ample spirit into the performance.

“And when I’m standin’ at the gate

They’ll tally up my sins, they won’t let me in.”

Appears in 🔻:

• Devil 😈: 5ive Songs No. 52 (2021)
• 13 Songs That Totally Have It Made
• DEVIL 😈: A Compendium of 21 Devilish Songs

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5. Ariana Grande, “Bad Idea”

💿 thank u, next • 🏷 Republic • 📅 2022

“I got a bad idea / How ‘bout we take a little bit of time away.” 💿 Thank u, next marked one of the best pop albums of 2019.  It shows 🏆 Grammy winner 🎙 Ariana Grande at her best. Honestly, I’m still salty that thank u, next failed to win a Grammy! Oh well! Filled with hits, there’s nothing bad about the ‘thought’ song, 🎵 “Bad Idea.” The second-longest song on thank u, next, it’s as consistent and compelling as everything that precedes and follows.

“Bad Idea” – about what the title suggests thematically –successfully blends and bridges pop and R&B seamlessly.  While Grande never ‘wails,’ she successfully incorporates her sick upper register without forcing it. In the second verse, she sings, “Yeah, I know we shouldn’t, baby, but we will (you know we will).”  What will they do, you ask? Do ‘it,’ of course!

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Thought: 5ive Songs No. 30 (2022) [📷: BMG Rights Management, Brent Faulkner, Clovis Cheminot, Geffen, Jimaku Super, Magnus Mueller via Pexels, Mercury, The Musical Hype, My Music Box, OpenClipart-Vectors, Pixabay, Republic]

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