5 great “Working” songs for Labor Day

Here are five great “working” songs for this Labor Day weekend, as heard on my new radio show, “The Vinyl Express,” on Big 95.3 FM Saturday mornings from 9 until 11:

“Allentown” by Billy Joel:  This  1980s hit was originally called “Levittown,” based on the town in New York where Billy grew up.  Just before he was set to record it, he visited Pennsylvania, and the town of Bethlehem, home of Bethlehem Steel, which was closing operations.  Right next door is Allentown, which Billy thought would make a better song title.  That town had lost so many jobs in 1982, Billy performed a benefit concert there, as they were closing all the factories down.

“She Works Hard For The Money” by Donna Summer:  This 1983 hit was based on a real-life experience. Donna Summer was in a restaurant. She saw a waitress who had nodded off. Donna startled the woman from her nap, and the woman told Donna she worked two jobs and was really tired. Donna took that thought, and wrote this song in about 20 minutes.

“A Hard Days Night” by the Beatles:  The Beatles had already scored a few hits by the summer of 1964, and they could do no wrong.  They were trying to come up with a name for their movie, and used an off-the-cuff remark Ringo Starr had made a few days earlier.  Then they wrote a song to match, with that great feedback guitar lick intro. Here’s a live version:

“Nine to Five” by Dolly Parton:  A number one song in 1980, Dolly wrote this as the theme of the movie she starred in with Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda.  It quickly became a theme for working women, who were striving to gain equality in the workplace.

“Five O’Clock World” by the Vogues: This 1966 hit was ahead of its time, with a twelve-string guitar, piano, bass, vocal shouts and even some yodeling.  There’s a lot going on here, plus some great lyrics: “‘Cause it’s a five o’clock world when the whistle blows, no one owns a piece of my time, and there’s a long-haired girl who waits, I know, to ease my troubled mind…”

Bonus: About thirty years later, “The Drew Carey Show” made this song popular again, using it as its theme song, even staging an elaborate production number with all the cast members: