Fan reviews/comments

Baker Street
(Gerry Rafferty)
Originally recorded by: Gerry Rafferty


Windin' your way down on Baker Street 
Light in your head and dead on your feet 
Well another crazy day
You'll drink the night away
And forget about everything
This city desert makes you feel so cold.
It's got so many people but it's got no soul
And it's taken you so long
To find out you were wrong 
When you thought it held everything

You used to think that it was so easy 
You used to say that it was so easy 
But you're tryin'
You're tryin' now 
Another year and then you'll be happy
Just one more year and then you'll be happy
But you're cryin'
You're cryin' now 

Way down the street there's a light in his place
He opens the door he's got that look on his face 
And he asks you where you've been 
You tell him what you've seen 
And you talk about anything 

He's got this dream about buyin' some land
He's gonna give up the booze and the one night stands 
And then he'll settle down in a quiet little town
And forget about everything

But you know he'll always keep movin'
You know he's never gonna stop movin 
Cause he's rollin' 
He's a rollin' stone 

And when you wake up it's a new mornin'
The sun is shinin' it's a new mornin'
And you're goin'
You're goin' home 

(total playing time 6:32)


Song Facts: This can be found on The Day After Yesterday. Rick performed this song with a sax player at the concert in Rockford, IL on February 18, 2005

For more check out the cover section.

 
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This is one of those songs that I didn't know that I knew.  You know what I mean - you hear it on the radio, but you have no idea what the name of it is or who sings it.  Yet, you can sing along with it every time you hear it.   I remember that when Rick mentioned this as one of the songs he recorded for TDAY, I had no idea what he was talking about.  I even Googled the song title, read the lyrics, and still had no clue.   So I was pleasantly surprised the first time I heard this song at the Rockford show, and realized that I knew it!  And it rocked!
 
The more I listen to this one, the more I think it could also be a Rick Springfield song.  The music is great - very melodic.  The words do sound like they came from Rick's pen.  This one makes me think Rick should do more songs that include the saxophone.   I never knew it could be so cool!   I was really wishing, hoping and praying this would've been the first single.  This song just seemed to me to be an appropriate choice for that distinction.  It has a familiarity, yet doesn't get played a whole lot on any "current charting" radio stations.  There'd be tons of kids out there listening having no idea that this was a cover / remake.   Oh well.. *I* still like to listen to it anyway.
  
Baker Street is like religion in my house...it is not just a song, it is a hymn.

When I first heard that it was going to be on TDAY, I was in two minds. I was either going to LOVE it because here is a favorite song sung by a favorite singer, or I was going to hate it as it did not compare well to the original.

I was wrong.

I am really kind of (sadly) either apathetic, neutral, or maybe even ambivalent...one of those words is right, I just have not decided which is MORE right.

I don't dislike Rick's version - far from it. I do enjoy listening to it and appreciate the fact that he did not decide to do anything silly to screw it up. However, I am not in love (no pun intended) with it. 

I think the problem is that it is a little flat and a little bland. There is nothing there for me to really sink my teeth into, so as much as I love the song, I am disappointed that I am not just blown away with what Rick was able to do with it. I can't put my finger on exactly WHAT I WANT him to do with it as I really did not want him to change it too much, I guess I just expected it to be amazing, and what it really is is more akin to not bad.

I do LOVE the sax in the song. I can tell a definite difference between the TDAY version and the original when I hear that incredible saxophone blowing in the background. I wish I heard the same energy in Rick's voice as I hear in the sax...

I think (and this is just speculation) that when I first heard these songs as described by Rick as songs he LOVED, I assumed he'd sound like he loved them more on the album. He certainly sounds like he likes signing Baker Street, but I was hoping to hear him sound as in love with the song as I am.

In short, it is still Rick, and that it a good thing...but it is more of an average good than the outstanding I was really praying for. I think what solidifies the deal for me is that all things considered, no matter how much I adore Rick, on this one, I'd still rather hear the original...and I hate having to admit that. I wish I didn't have to.
This is my favorite cover song off of TDAY.  I fell in love with it instantly at the Rockford show in February 2005.  By the name of the song I did not believe I'd heard it before but when that telltale saxophone riff started I knew I'd heard the song before. That performance just seemed magical to me and I'm (still) waiting to see it on DVD (or TV) to see if it's simply grown in my mind or if it truly was all that.  
 
The song is well written, a story winds through it. In many ways I could see Rick writing a similar type of song. But I can also see the real reason this song may have appealed to Rick is almost the entire last 3 minutes (which is close to half the length of the song) is all instrumental. Or rather it's all jamming guitar with heavy doses of sax. And we all know Rick seems the happiest on stage when he's jamming his guitar.
Although I loved the original of this one, I never knew the name of it or who who the singer was.  This is one of my faves on this CD and I was very surprised, but yet thrilled that Rick included it. 

In this version, the saxophone is just wonderful and it blends so smoothly with the guitar.  The combination of the two just introduces the song and carries you through for the rest of the "ride". 

Since I like this song from so many years ago, and had not really paid  attention to the lyrics, I really can relate to this song now.  Since I believe everyone has a certain path they are searching for,  to follow in life, to find and  follow and find happiness, this one sort of sums it up for me.  Rick actually could have written this one if you ask me.