February 23, 2024      —–     Chart #234

Hello Music Friends,

Hey folks, welcome to another edition of Chart of the Week. Last month we lost another rock artist. Father time has no sense of humor and does not take any days off unfortunately. Well today’s choice might not be everyone’s favorite, but it may solicit a few grins.  “Brand New Key” is a pop song written and sung by American folk music singer Melanie. Initially a track of Melanie’s album Gather Me, produced by Melanie’s husband Peter Schekeryk, it was known also as “The Rollerskate Song” due to its chorus. It was her greatest success, scoring No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart during December 1971 and January 1972. Billboard ranked it as the No. 9 song of 1972. It also scored No. 1 in Canada and Australia and No. 4 on the UK Singles Chart.

The song is sung from the viewpoint of a girl with roller skates trying to attract the attention of a boy. In an interview with Examiner.com, Melanie described what she claimed was the inspiration for the song:

I was fasting with a 27-day fast on water. I broke the fast and went back to my life living in New Jersey and we were going to a flea market around six in the morning. On the way back… and I had just broken the fast, from the flea market, we passed a McDonald’s and the aroma hit me, and I had been a vegetarian before the fast. So we pulled into the McDonald’s and I got the whole works… the burger, the shake, and the fries… and no sooner after I finished that last bite of my burger… that song was in my head. The aroma brought back memories of roller skating and learning to ride a bike and the vision of my dad holding the back fender of the tire. And me saying to my dad… ‘You’re holding, you’re holding, you’re holding, right?’ Then I’d look back and he wasn’t holding and I’d fall. So that whole thing came back to me and came out in this song.”

Melanie has acknowledged the possibility of detecting sexual innuendo in the lyrics, but has denied any deeper meaning:

I wrote in about fifteen minutes one night. I thought it was cute; a kind of old thirties tune. I guess a key and a lock have always been Freudian symbols, and pretty obvious ones at that. There was no deep serious expression behind the song, but people read things into it. They made up incredible stories as to what the lyrics said and what the song meant. In some places, it was even banned from the radio. My idea about songs is that once you write them, you have very little say in their life afterward. It’s a lot like having a baby. You conceive a song, deliver it, and then give it as good a start as you can. After that, it’s on its own. People will take it any way they want to take it.

Melanie Anne Safka Schekeryk (February 3, 1947 – January 23, 2024), professionally known as Melanie or Melanie Safka, was an American singer-songwriter. Melanie was born and raised in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens, New York City. Her father, Frederick M. Safka (1924–2009), was of Ukrainian ancestry, and her mother, jazz singer Pauline “Polly” Altomare (1926–2003), was of Italian heritage. Melanie made her first public singing appearance at age four on the radio show Live Like A Millionaire, performing the song “Gimme a Little Kiss”. She moved with her family to Long Branch, New Jersey, and attended Long Branch High School. Disturbed that she was rejected by her schoolmates as a “beatnik”, she ran away to California. After her return to New Jersey, she transferred to Red Bank High School in Red Bank, New Jersey. She graduated in 1966, although she was prevented from attending her graduation ceremony because of an overdue library book. She was inducted into the school’s hall of fame in 2014.

Fun facts: Melanie was one of only three solo female artists who performed at the Woodstock festival in 1969, and her first hit song, “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)”, was inspired by the Woodstock audience lighting candles during her set as well as being influenced by her following of Indian spiritual master Meher Baba. The record became a hit in Europe, Australia, Canada, and the United States in 1970. The B-side of the single featured Melanie’s spoken-word track, “Candles in the Rain”. Her first top 10 hit in America was “Lay Down”, which peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard singles chart and achieved worldwide success. Her later hits included “Peace Will Come (According To Plan)” and a cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Ruby Tuesday”.

This is a very lighthearted tune and kinda funny to me. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past.

Keep Rockin’,

Stan Bradshaw