Queens of Vinyl is a series where we will explore the sounds, styles, and impact of some of the most incredible and influential female artists ever pressed to vinyl.
This week: Melanie
It was at the age of four that Melanie Safka made her debut on the radio show, Live Like a Millionaire. It wouldn’t be for another 18 years, in 1969, that Melanie would begin to take the music world by storm.
The 1969 Woodstock was 3 days of Peace & Music. It has been idolized in movies, documentaries, and stories for its legendary performances by icons like Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and The Who. It was, however, a young Melanie that took the stage and started a folk revolution as the rain began to fall.
Inspired by the crowd at Woodstock lighting candles during her set, Melanie penned her signature song “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain).” It went on to become her first Top 10 hit in America. From there, she played almost every known festival from here to the UK and got standing ovations every time.
1971, Melanie started her own record label, Neighborhood Records. Gather Me, the first self-release from Neighborhood, created the hit single “Brand New Key.” While controversial at the time due its “suggestive nature,” it sold over 3 million copies.
Following up with “Ring the Living Bell” and the “Nickel Song,” Melanie set records for the first female performer to have three Top 40 hits simultaneously.
Unlike a lot of her peers, Melanie survived the times of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, and is still going strong today, playing venues all over the world. In 1973, when she began to step out of the spot light in order to have a family and enjoy some free time, she was named an official UNICEF ambassador, and began to raise money for the organization.
Melanie has continued to make her mark on society and music. Her songs have been used in commercials and various television shows, and she even won an Emmy for the theme song of the TV show Beauty and the Beast.
In the last 40 years, Melanie has produced over 36 albums that have spawned roughly 20 chart-topping hits.
So what is in store for Ms. Safka? Slowing down is no where near that list. She continues to produce music, and in 2010 released her newest album Ever Since You’ve Never Heard of Me. Along with her newest release, Melanie is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the record to make her a household name, Gather Me.
Melanie will be playing a few shows in 2012, including Arizona, Vermont, New Hampshire and New York.
She’s on iTunes, she’s on CD, but if you want the true experience, then you’d better dig down under M and pull out that Melanie record that changed your life. What do you think your TVD Chicago writers had spinning while we wrote this?
Through it all, there are few who can match Melanie’s music and impact, so she is proudly added to the ranks of our Queens of Vinyl.
