Songs that Mention Flavor Enhancers in Their Titles

I read an interesting obituary in The New York Times yesterday. Clint Ballard, a respected songwriter, had passed away. Ballard had written such top hits as "The Game of Love" for Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders and "You're No Good" for Linda Rondstadt. He also wrote songs recorded by artists ranging from The Zombies to Frankie Laine and even Mitch Miller.

He also wrote "Gingerbread," one of my secret favorites by Frankie Avalon. The thought of that song inspired me to come up with a list of others with titles that contain some type of flavor enhancer like ginger.

10. "Garlic Head Clown Serenades Ballerina" by Califone: The unusual title is typical of this unusual band. The song has the band's eclectic mix of folk and electronic music, though Deceleration One is probably its most accessible album.

9. "You Oughtta See Pickles Now" by Jim Croce: The flavor enhancer here is actually a little girl the singer once had a crush on. It's more of a country tune than some of Croce's bigger hits, but the rhythm has endured better than "Bad Bad Leroy Brown" and "You Don't Mess Around with Jim."

8. "Salt in My Tears" by Martin Briley: I had not heard this song in nearly twenty years. Then last year I came upon it while rummaging around my parent's basement through my old vinyl collection. I played it on my turntable, and I remembered how comfortable its message made me feel when someone broke up with me.

7. "Sargent Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" by The Beatles: This album hardly needed any flavor enhancers, being as audibly delicious as nearly any album in the history of rock.

6. "Cinnamon Girl" by Neil Young: The guitar solo in this song vies for superiority with "Cowgirl in the Sand" from the same album, Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere. The enigmatic lyrics somehow make you yearn to meet with not only the girl, but the drummer relaxing between shows, the ten silver saxophones, and the bassist using a bow.

5. "Scarborough Fair (Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme)" by Simon and Garfunkel: The song with the beautiful harmonies sprinkles four flavor enhancers over this traditional tale about a girl who was once loved by the singer.

4. "Brown Sugar" by The Rolling Stones: The British rockers penned this one for a girl of a different race. The interracial message would not have the same effect now, after forty years of Civil Rights, but it was quite controversial back when it was released. Though the message may not shock as much now, the opening guitar riff still stands out as one of the best ever in classic rock.

3. "Build Me Up Buttercup" by The Foundations: Though butter makes things taste better, the buttercup here makes the guy feel much worse. She builds him up, as the title suggests, only to let him down. The joyful harmonies of the R & B band make it difficult to sympathize with the poor guy, since we're so happy to sing along with the tune.

2. "Mean Mr. Mustard" by The Beatles: John Lennon describes Polythene Pam's sister in this track from

Abbey Road. It's not a very attractive portrait, Mr. Mustard being unclean, lazy, and lascivious.

1. "Glass Onion" by The Beatles: Again it's John Lennon. This time he reflects on the stardom of The Beatles, poking fun at the fans who were convinced that Paul had died. It reveals that charming wit that Lennon the genius too often tried to hide.