Bad Moon Rising
It was an old horror film that inspired John Fogerty to write this song for Creedence Clearwater Revial. It’s about a man who sells his soul to the devil. “History takes place in the early 18th century,” Fogerty revealed. “There was a terrible hurricane that destroyed everything. When it was over, the survivors discovered that the only field left intact was the cornfield of the man who had sold his soul to the devil.” This story became “Bad Moon Rising”, one of Creedence Clearwater Revial’s greatest hits.
Pink Moon
Pink Moon is the full moon at the beginning of spring – and it doesn’t promise anything good either. When Nick Drake released the album “Pink Moon” in early 1972, he did not know he would be dead two and a half years later. He was suffering from depression. He was eventually found dead in his bed with an overdose of antidepressants. He was only 26. “Pink Moon” is one of the greatest albums of all time. The theme “Pink Moon” is a warning: “The pink moon is on its way and will catch you all.”
Man On The Moon
This song isn’t about astronauts. The R.E.M. theme song is part of the soundtrack to the film of the same name about American comedian Andy Kaufman (played in the film by Jim Carey). Kaufman was a television star in the 1970s. Both director Milos Forman’s film and the song are a tribute to this comedian.
Walking On The Moon
“Giant steps are what you take, walking on the moon, I hope my leg don’t break, walking on the moon”. (You take great steps when you walk on the Moon, I hope it doesn’t break my leg when I walk on the Moon.) Ten years after the moon landing, the three members of The Police worry that someone could break their leg while walking on the moon despite weightlessness. Singer Sting got the idea when he was drunk in a hotel room.
Moonshadow
Cat Stevens (now Yusuf Islam) grew up in London’s West End, where it never darkens. “I never saw the moon, there were only streetlights everywhere,” he later recalled on a TV show. “And then, on a beautiful night, I stood on the shore and saw my shadow in the moonlight. That was unbelievable.”
Moonlight Shadow
The shadow of the moonlight represents a sudden and unexpected death. Mike Oldfield was nearby in a hotel when John Lennon was killed. That indirectly inspired him to write this song. Because the song, sung by Maggie Reilly, is about escapist Houdini at first sight. But the letters “all he saw was the silhouette of a gun” and “a man who fled shot him six times,” arising that it is Lennon’s murder. Houdini died not from a firearm but from a blow to the stomach.
Harvest Moon
A wonderful love song in which Neil Young tells his partner after many years how much she still loves her: “Because I’m still in love with you, I want to see you dance again. Because I’m still in love with you on this harvest moon.” Jazz singer Cassandra Wilson created a wonderful poetic version of the same song years later.
Son of the Moon
The legend of a gypsy woman who asks the goddess moon for a man. Luna agrees, but demands to have her first child in return. Said and done. The woman gets a husband and a son. But after his birth he wants to stay with him. The problem: the child is light-skinned and grey-eyed. The husband stabs the woman out of jealousy. The song was a huge international success for the Spanish band Mecano.
