Hello from a now-raining-Queenstown
(bah).
Some fine entries this week! Everyone who sent in an entry correctly identified The Sex Pistols’ “God Save The Queen”, while Halsey’s “Castle” caused the most puzzlement.
Your leaderboard this week:
🥇 on 12/12: icyred, Kathleen Turner Overdrive, All the world’s a song, The Reign and The Terror, Vercisca, Team Impoverished, DC Lyfers, The Weevils, The Bögan Crüe, and Team BSA
🥈 on 11/12: Bex K, and Statistically Unsound
🥉 on 10/12: Megan and The Chamberlains
Have a lovely weekend, and I’ll see you on Monday with a quiz that is written in the stars…
Kirsti.
1970s: “God Save the Queen”, The Sex Pistols
Oh, God save history
God save your mad parade
Oh, Lord, God have mercy
All crimes are paid
When there's no future how can there be sin?
We're the flowers in the dustbin
We're the poison in your human machine
We're the future, your future
Hint: This was the second single released by this legendary British punk band. This song was released during Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee in 1977. The song reached No. 1 on the NME charts in the United Kingdom, and made it to No. 2 on the official UK Singles Chart as used by the BBC. Legend has it that the charts had been "fixed" to prevent the song from reaching No. 1…
1980s (UK): “The Queen is Dead”, The Smiths
So I broke into the Palace
With a sponge and a rusty spanner
She said, "Eh, I know you, and you cannot sing"
I said, "That's nothing, you should hear me play piano"
We can go for a walk where it's quiet and dry
And talk about precious things
Hint: This English rock band from Manchester are regarded as one of the most important acts to emerge from the British independent music scene of the 1980s. Their three biggest album releases are Meat Is Murder, [the same name as this song], and Strangeways, Here We Come. The band shares their name with an actor called Will, a singer called Patti, and a café in Wellington’s Old Bank arcade.
1980s (US): “Ladies First”, Queen Latifah (and Monie Love)
The next man, or the next woman
It doesn't make a difference, keep the competition coming
And I'll recite the chapter in verse
The title of this recital is "Ladies First"
Step out into the night
Queens of civilization are on the mic
The scene is right, the crowd is hype
I expel the wack and those who bite
Why, cause I'm that type
Hint: This feminist anthem is a signature song from this American hip hop artist, and comes from her debut album All Hail the Queen. As well as being a talented singer, she’s also a fantastic actress: she garnered acclaim with her role of Matron "Mama" Morton in the musical film Chicago (2002), receiving a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She’s even had her own daytime talk show!
2000s: “No One Knows”, Queens of the Stone Age
We get some rules to follow
That and this, these and those
No one knows
We get these pills to swallow
How they stick in your throat
Tastes like gold
Oh, what you do to me
No one knows
Hint: This American rock band was formed in the late 90s by Josh Homme, the only constant member of multiple line ups. They are known for their blues, Krautrock and electronica-influenced style of riff-oriented and rhythmic hard rock music. The title of the song is in the lyrics quoted; the name of the band refers to this week’s theme and a broad prehistoric period that came before the Bronze Age.
2010s (NZ): “Kings and Queens”, Brooke Fraser
We’ve got a long to go but we got the energy
It took a little while to find reality
We’ve come a long way you know, living inside a dream
If we can just find that we are kings and queens
Hint: This New Zealand singer-songwriter is the eldest of three children born to former All Black Bernie Fraser, and grew up in Naenae. Her first album was What To Do With Daylight, and featured the songs “Arithmetic”, “Saving the World” and “Lifeline”, and she’s currently a Grammy award winning member of the Hillsong Worship band.
2010s (US): “Castle”, Halsey
I'm headed straight for the castle
They wanna make me their queen
And there's an old man sitting on the throne there saying that I probably shouldn't be so mean
Hint: This song is from this artist’s debut album Badlands, along with such bangers as “New Americana”, “Colours”, and “Gasoline”. She performs under an anagram of Ashley, her first name, and the title of this song is in the lyrics quoted.
