July 30, 2019

20,000 vinyl LP 191: Golden Earring ~ Moontan & Radar Love

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Golden Earring ~ Moontan
vinyl LP front cover detail
album cover photo by Ronnie Hertz
Model - Jilly Johnson
photo of album cover by Styrous®


This was the first album by the Dutch rock band Golden Earring I bought. Moontan is the ninth studio album by them and was released in July of 1973 but I didn't come across it until a few years later.
       

Golden Earring ~ Moontan
vinyl LP front cover
album cover photo by Ronnie Hertz
Model - Jilly Johnson
photo of album cover by Styrous®


This U.S. version of the album was originally issued with the UK "exotic dancer" cover, but it was quickly withdrawn and replaced with the "earring" cover.     


 Golden Earring ~ Moontan
vinyl LP front cover replacement
  
           
For me Radar Love is the epitome of hard rock; it is fast and furious with great drum and bass guitar breaks that let you take a breath and gasp for air at the same time (link below).        
            
From Wikipedia:
The song is written from the point of view of a car or truck driver who thinks of his beloved "baby", telling that they are able to share their feelings at distance without physical means like telephone or letters. He explains how this works and, while listening to a song on the radio, makes comments on the late night traffic in the early morning hour.   
        

Golden Earring ~ Moontan
vinyl LP back cover
album bacl cover photo by Ronnie Hertz
photo of album back cover by Styrous®


Vanilla Queen is a great song with a mellow but staccato synth intro that slowly builds into the song. At nine minutes and fifteen seconds it manages to travel with great abandon and has some lovely, quiet moments with delightful guitar work by George Kooymans then dramtic orchestral and horn backing by Job Maarse at the end which fades.      

It gets trippy and samples the Marilyn Monroe character in There's No Business Like Show Business: "Well, in simple English I'm..." from the "Lazy" performance and "What's your name, Honey?" from the Heat Wave performance of the Irving Berlin song (link below).

There is a performance version at eleven and a half minutes recorded live on April 25, 1975, at Winterland in San Francisco, California  (link below).        

The album contains a record size lyric sheet with great pix on it on one side . . .


vinyl LP insert with photos
photo by Styrous®













. . . and the lyrics on the other, especially, Radar Love!


 
Radar Love lyrics
photo by Styrous®
   


          

Golden Earring ~ Moontan
vinyl LP record sleeve
photo by Styrous®


"Radar Love"

I've been drivin' all night
My hand's wet on the wheel
There's a voice in my head
That drives my heel
It's my baby callin'
Says: I need you here
And it's a half past four
And I'm shifting gear

When she is lonely
And the longing gets too much
She sends a cable
Coming in from above
Don't need no phone at all

We've got a thing that's called Radar Love
We've got a wave in the air
Radar Love
      

Golden Earring ~ Moontan
vinyl LP record label, side 1
photo by Styrous®


The radio's playing some forgotten song
Brenda Lee's "Coming On Strong"
The road has got me hypnotized
And I'm speeding into a new sunrise

When I get lonely
And I'm sure I've had enough
She sends her comfort
Comin' in from above
Don't need no letter at all

We've got a thing that's called Radar Love
We've got a line in the sky
Radar Love


Golden Earring ~ Moontan
vinyl LP record label, side 2
photo by Styrous®


No more speed, I'm almost there
Gotta keep cool now, gotta take care
Last car to pass, here I go
And the line of cars drove down real slow

And the radio played that forgotten song
Brenda Lee's "Coming On Strong"
And the newsman sang his same song
One more radar love is gone

When I get lonely and I'm sure I've had enough
She sends her comfort, coming in from above
We don't need no letter at all

We've got a thing that's called Radar Love
We've got a line in the sky
We've got a thing that's called Radar Love
We've got a thing that's called
Radar Love
        
Tracklist:

Side 1:

A1 - Radar Love - 6:24
A2 - Candy's Going Bad - 6:12
A3 - Vanilla Queen - 9:20

Side 2:

B1 - Big Tree, Blue Sea - 8:13
B2 - Are You Receiving Me, written by J. Fenton* - 9:32

Companies, etc.

    Manufactured By – MCA Records, Inc.
    Phonographic Copyright (p) – Track Records Ltd.
    Copyright (c) – MCA Records, Inc.
    Published By – Larry Shayne Music, Inc.
    Pressed By – MCA Pressing Plant, Pinckneyville

Credits:


    Executive-Producer – Fred Haayen
    Producer, Arranged By – Golden Earring
    Written-By – B. Hay*, G. Kooymans*

Personnel: 

Additional personnel

Notes:

Includes a 11½" X 11½" black and white insert with lyrics on one side and live band photos on the other side.
Label Variation to Moontan: Parenthesis around Label Matrix, no asterisk in Side B Label Matrix.
Recorded In Holland.
Barcode and Other Identifiers

    Matrix / Runout (Side A Label): MCA396
    Matrix / Runout (Side B Label): MCA397
    Rights Society: ASCAP
    Matrix / Runout (Side A Runout, etched): MCA-396-W2
    Matrix / Runout (Side B Runout, etched): MCA 397-W2
    Matrix / Runout (Sides A, B, stamped): ◈-P-◈

Golden Earring ‎– Moontan
Label: MCA Records ‎– MCA-396, Track Record ‎– MCA-396
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: US
Released: 1974
Genre: Rock
Style: Pop Rock, Hard Rock

          
          
Viewfinder links:         

Irving Berlin         
Marilyn Monroe          
        
Net links:         
        
Discography          
Lineups & Timeline         
Golden Earring ~ website history & bio     
SongFacts ~ Radar Love      
VinylBeat ~ Banned!       
 
YouTube links:         
        
Radar Love with lyrics         
Radar Love live                   
Vanilla Queen         
Vanilla Queen Winterland, San Francisco, 1975    
Vanilla Queen (Acoustic Live) Grand Cafe ’De Kroon’, Amsterdam, 1992  
Brenda Lee ~ Coming On Strong         
          

 
What does radar love mean?
Before you could send a text message or call someone in their car, there was no way to communicate to a driver - unless you had a certain telepathic love that could convey from a distance your desire to be with that person, something you might call Radar Love!      
      
      
           
Styrous® ~ Tuesday, July 30, 2019            





         
          











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