CAIRO - What is happening in the world now? Revolutions and riots are everywhere and it seems there will be more. Who would've thought that this tidal revolution would hit our planet and spread so far in a few months? It all started in January and over the past seven months major changes have taken place in several countries. Hopefully, very soon, the entire world will be enjoying peace and freedom. Freedom? Isn't it a good word to talk about? Stevie Wonder was feeling “Free”, or at least this is what he said. Personally I would never doubt what this genius has to say. After all, his 1984 hit “I Just Called to Say I Love You” – taken from the movie “The Woman in Red” – is an Academy Award winning song. How could anyone question the man who called to say he loves you? How much did he spend on that call? At that time international calls were so expensive, especially those made from cell phones, which we didn't have in Egypt back then! Excuse me… where did he get your number from? Forget about your number and let's talk about another one – 1984, which was the year Kenny Loggins said “I'm Free”. Thank-you very much Kenny, but I've always known that I'm free and this remark was rather… oh… you were not talking about me! OK. So are you still free? There is someone I wanted you to meet but I'm not sure if she's free. Anyway, Kenny included that song on the soundtrack to the movie “Footloose”, which of course featured the title track he sang and it was nominated for an Oscar but he lost to Stevie Wonder. If I were Kenny I would have preferred to give more details… I would have said something like “Young, Free and Single”, which is exactly what Sunfire said. This will surely impress more ladies, don't you agree? By the way, this is also the same title of a silly song by the pop group Boney M. Did I just say Boney M? This is so funny… Excuse me for a few minutes, I'll just go laugh my head off and then come back! It's just that Boney M, its songs and the effects used on them sound so out of date these days. All this talk about “Freedom” reminds me of a song with the same name by a very dynamic duo known as Wham! If the name doesn't ring any bells I will remind you – this duo consisted of Andrew Ridgley and someone called George Michael as well as… no-one else because it was a duo not a trio. However, if you are going to buy two members we will throw in another one for free. So you will get three for the price of two. Thank you for shopping at the Egyptian Mail! Ironically, a few years after the split of Wham! George chose the name “Freedom” for a totally different song he made and released as a solo artist. I have to tell you that the track recorded under the name of the duo was a simple love song about a boy complaining that his girl is having too much “freedom”. As for the one recorded by George Michael, it was about breaking free from the pop industry and its rules. Since I started the previous paragraph with the word ‘Ironically', I guess it will be appropriate to start the next one by saying… Ironically Part II, when Robbie Williams decided to leave the boy band Take That, his debut single as a solo artist was a cover of George Michael's “Freedom”. Well, the two of them were in successful boy acts, chose to walk out while at the peak of success, pursued very successful solo careers and both of them are English… Just like The Beatles, who had a BIG hit called “Free as a Bird”. So far, there's nothing wrong. Now let me remind you that it was recorded and released in 1995, which was 25 years after the Beatles split. Well… that was 15 years after John Lennon was killed! How was he on the song then? The answer is very simple… If you know the right answer, call 0999 9999 and win a Beatle. Hmm, sorry to say it but the remaining members are collector's items, so we can't give away any Beatles this season. However, my Scottish mum got me two amazing Beatles memorabilia items and… this is a personal matter. So, Lennon recorded some songs before passing away and the surviving members, plus George Harrison, who was still alive 16 years ago, added their own work to two of them. The first was “Free as a Bird” and the second “Real Love”. You will surely agree that the latter is a very “sweet” track when I tell you that it was used in a chocolate commercial! Still with freedom and birds, I can't help but tell you about “Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Now that I've told you, I will tell you something else – three of the band members died in a plane crash! So much for birds and flying in general! The same song was covered and mixed with a cover of Peter Frampton's “Baby I love Your Way” and the result was a strange but good medley performed by Will To Power. Sting was compared to a bee because of a stripy pullover he used to wear. Bees fly so they are free, which means that Sting is a real supporter of freedom. He proved this point by making a track called “If You Love Somebody Set Them Free”. Nice try Sting. If I were you I would have called it “If You Love Somebody Marry Them” or something like that. Well, it's your song and it's your choice, but don't blame me when they never come back. You of course know that when you set someone free they might wander away and go straight to the “Freeway of Love” with her majesty the Queen of Soul – Aretha Franklin. There is no speed limit in that part of the city. Before I go I would like to wish you and all your loved ones a very happy Eid. Send me Eid cookies to: [email protected]
