Grease – Summer Nights
One of my favourite musical films when I was young was Grease (released in Hungary under the title Pomádé). Unfortunately I have not seen it for a long time, but I still know the songs by heart, and I suspect many people who love 1950s rock and roll are the same. The story of the film is extremely simple, yet it contains images and moments that I think nobody ever forgets. Almost every Sandy-Danny duet is like that, as are the songs and the dance contest, but even among the spoken scenes there are moments that stay with you for life. One example comes near the end during the pie-throwing contest, when the ridiculous Eugene hits his teacher in the face with a pie and is actually proud of himself, only to receive one in the face in return... no comment. In a way, the entire film burrows into your head and stays there forever, and I do not mind that at all. This 1978 film created a wonderful tribute to the music of two decades earlier. At the same time it also features sensational songs composed specifically for the film. They are not songs from the 1950s, yet they fit the film perfectly – hats off to the songwriters!
One of the eternal classics, and perhaps the most famous song, is You Are The One That I Want, which audiences still demand decades later:
Let us rewind the film a little and arrive at the first big duet – one in which the characters themselves do not even know that they are singing together . We, the viewers, become insiders and get to see certain details of a summer romance from both the male and female point of view. Here is the unforgettable “music video” – because it works perfectly well as one – of Summer Nights from the film:
I have had the chords to this song for a long time and thought I would make a video of it. If you are with a group of friends and happen to have the lyrics with you – because this is not usually one people know entirely by heart – find a few adventurous boys and girls and the performance can begin immediately. The song sounds very good with ukulele chords. It is useful to know that the time signature is 2/4, at least if I am hearing it correctly, and there is a new chord in every bar. What does that mean? You have to change chords rather quickly. There are no particularly complicated or intimidating chord shapes; the practice is needed so that your strumming remains even and your fingers always arrive at the correct chord on the first beat of the bar. Most of the time your fingers will be cycling through G major, E7, A major and D major – and doing it at speed!
The song also gives the right hand plenty of work because the rhythm needs to be driven firmly. Of course, you do not have to play it exactly the way I do in the video. Everyone can adapt it according to taste and change whatever they like. What I show is never sacred moving scripture – compare “Holy Scripture” – merely one possible arrangement. So here is the video, and you can find the corresponding chords by clicking here :
