can I get a witness

 

Rod Stewart

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Woody Allen:

        "...I'm balding slightly on top, that's about the worst you can say about me."

Mia Farrow:

        "Hold my beer."

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"Can I Get A Witness" is a song written by Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Eddie Holland, for recording artist Marvin Gaye.

The record was issued on Motown's Tamla imprint in September of 1963.

What does "can I get a witness" mean?

It's supposed to ask a group, or an audience, "Hey -- anyone agree with me?!" in kind of a boisterous way.

Where does the phrase come from?

From old-time revival meetings and churches with vocally and sometimes physically active participation in their services.

"Can I get a witness?!"

"We hear yah!!"

"Preach!!"

------------------------- When I think of this song, the Rolling Stones come to mind immediately, & also Rod Stewart.  I used to have the Stewart recording of it on cassette and would listen while driving.

        Yesterday I typed in Rod Stewart and was shown a news-item where he and his son were going to have a court appearance because of an incident with a security guard outside of a party.  (??)

It said Rod Stewart's son put his face up very close to the face of the security guard in an aggressive style, then the security guy said or did something, and Rod Stewart punched him.

Punched?

My first idea was, his son must be 19 or 20 years old -- an age when he wants to prove his strength or whatever, so I Googled him:  he isn't 19 or 20, he's 41!

        41?  And my singer-man threw the actual punch, and if his son is 41, how the hell old is he??  

76, it turns out.

76 years old, havin' dust-ups with Security.

This is not the sort of event that I would have associated with the lovely man who recorded "Tonight's The Night," "Downtown Train," and The American Songbook.  God.

Today's news sounds like they're going to have a plea deal agreement...

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On You Tube, type in

can I get a witness, rod stewart

There's a video,

uploader:  Rod Stewart.

Play it and enjoy.

The sound is funny -- it might be mono rather than stereo, it's still great.  It's sort of got that "drone" that Keith Richards talks about, which Jimmy Reed had in his blues style.

        (Just play it on your device with the best sound and pretend you're living in 1964...)

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