"Barabajagal (Love is Hot)" by Donovan

From the album of the same name. 1969.

Dave has heard this one for sure. This is one of my all-time favorites, but I'm pretty confident people probably haven't heard it. It is one of the catchiest songs of all-time. I am writing this children's book synopsis, and I have been listening to weird music to put me in the mood. One of the songs I have been listening to is "Atlantis," which is one of the most ridiculous pieces of music ever recorded. In fact, maybe I'll send that along as well. But I always sneak this one in, as well as "Season of the Witch," which is also incredible. "Mellow Yellow" I can do without.

"Barabajal" was recorded with the Jeff Beck group (which included Rod Stewart, who did a lot of cool things before he became super lame. Kind of like Steve Winwood.). Beck's ridiculous guitar lick tears through this song. But what I love most is the percussion-- in the hammered acoustic guitar, the shakers, and the sick drumming. The break beat MUST have been used in a hip-hop song before, and had I more talents in that area, I would do it right now.

As you probably all know, lyrics are very important to me. Well, not here. Or are they? Donovan's lyrics are, as ever, truly preposterous. "Barabajagal" is about an herbalist, I suppose, Barabajagal (I have no idea what this is or means, anyone? Sounds like something Lewis Carroll would have written) was his name, who is concocting some sort of hypnotic/ hallucinogenic tea for a woman to drink. It certainly mentions tea more than any other song I have ever heard. Then there's this: "In love pool eyes float feathers after the struggle./ The hopes burst and shot joy all through the mind/ Sorrow more distant than a star./ Multi color run down over your body/ Then the liquid passing all into all/ Love is hot, truth is molten." Even for hippie bullshit, that's bullshit.

Still Donovan was (is, he's still alive) a fucking badass. It's hard for us to remember that Donovan was supposed to be Dylan. That is, when Dylan was beginning to climb, Donovan was the guy on the rung above him. If you've never seen Don't Look Back, watch it, and you'll see what I mean. Though, as I recall, by the end of the movie, Dylan has already passed him, thereby forcing millions of people to not hear "Atlantis." Fuck you, Bob Dylan.