”Get On” is a song written and recorded by the Finnish

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Hurriganes Hurriganes was a Finnish rock band that was formed in the early 1970s. They were very popular in Finland, Sweden and Estonia in the 1970s and early 1980s, as well as a popular live act in Sweden during this time. Their classic line-up consisted ...

in September 1974. It appeared on their second album, entitled ''

Roadrunner The roadrunners (genus ''Geococcyx''), also known as chaparral birds or chaparral cocks, are two species of fast-running ground cuckoos with long tails and crests. They are found in the southwestern and south-central United States and Mexico, us ...

''. It was originally supposed to be just a filler, as the number of tracks recorded at that stage was deemed insufficient to fill a complete album. According to

Remu Aaltonen Henry Olavi "Remu" Aaltonen (born 10 January 1948) is a Finnish drummer and singer. He is the lead musician of the band Hurriganes, but has also pursued a solo singing career. Aaltonen was born in Helsinki. He was the oldest child in a family o ...

, both the music and the words were the result of improvisation, when producer Richard Stanley wanted the band to come up with one more song. However, according to Richard Stanley, the band had been playing the song live already during the previous summer, months before the recording sessions in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

. There exist recordings made by people in the audiences during the summer of 1974, and the song appears on these recordings.Hurriganes keräilysivu/Hurriganes collectibles
– Keikkanauhat (‘Gig recordings’). The words of this song consist of some kind of “Rock Esperanto”. There are words and phrases from the English language, but also non-sense words, and the syntax of proper English is not used systematically. Also, it is not possible to assign a sensible meaning to the lyrics. This situation arose from the deficient knowledge of English by the singer, Remu Aaltonen. The words were supposed to be replaced later by proper English, and Remu’s words were only meant for a demo recording. However, the other members of the band, as well as the producer, thought that the delivery was strong, and decided to stick to those words, despite opposition from Remu Aaltonen. The unique words are part of the charm of the song. The guitar intro is a version of the intro of

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...

’s “

Johnny B. Goode "Johnny B. Goode" is a 1958 rock song written and first recorded by Chuck Berry. Released as a single, it peaked at number two on ''Billboard'' magazine's Hot R&B Sides chart and number eight on its pre-Hot 100 chart. "Johnny B. Goode" is con ...

”, as Remu instructed

Albert Järvinen Pekka "Albert" Johannes Järvinen (25 October 1950 Iitti – 24 March 1991 London) was a Finnish guitarist. He is best known as the guitarist of the Finnish rock band Hurriganes. He got his stage-name Albert from one of his idols, blues guitarist ...

to kick the song off with this riff. The rhythm guitar the vocal harmonies of the middle eight were overdubbed, otherwise the song was recorded in one take. “Get On” is one of the best known songs by Hurriganes. It is usually heard on every gig that the band plays. It is often among the top songs when Finnish rock songs are discussed in the media, and it was voted the best Hurriganes song in the vote “The Greatest Bands” of the Finnish radio station Radio Rock. The song won the ''European Pop Jury'' competition in 1974.

Line-up

* Remu Aaltonen – drums, vocals * Cisse Häkkinen – bass guitar, background vocal * Albert Järvinen – guitar

Cover versions

The song has been played by * Hard Rock Sallinen (late 1970s, early 1980s) *

Leningrad Cowboys The Leningrad Cowboys are a Finnish rock band who perform rock and roll covers of other songs. They have exaggerated pompadour hairstyles and wear long, pointy shoes. They often work with the Russian military band the Alexandrov Ensemble. Be ...

on the album ''

We Cum from Brooklyn ''We Cum from Brooklyn'' is a 1992 album by the Leningrad Cowboys. Track listing Singles Three singles were released in support of this album "Those Were the Days" ;CD: BMG Ariola/ 664 878 (Germany) #"Those Were the Days" #"Get On" #"Chasin ...

'' (1992) * The New Duncan Imperials on the album ''The Best Of Mikhael Jackson'' (1993)

External links

''Get On'' in the YLE archive

References

{{authority control 1974 singles 1974 songs