Are There Angels Singing? Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Easybeats

The Easybeats are best remembered internationally for hits such as "Friday On My Mind" (1966) and "Hello, How Are You" (1968) but in their native Australia they had a total of 11 top 30 hits, including two number ones.
This list of chart entries includes "Heaven and Hell" (1967) which reached number 14 on the Australia Go-Set Charts and number eight on the Kent Music Report, also in Australia.
It was a minor hit in UK but its chart position in this country wasn't helped by the BBC who banned the original version of the song as it contained the lyrics, "discovering someone else in your bed".
The Easybeats disbanded in 1969, leaving us a great musical legacy as well as allowing members to go on to greater things. Vocalist Stevie Wright continued with the hits as a solo artist, including the brilliant "Evie (Parts 1, 2 & 3)" (1974) while guitarists Harry Vanda and George Young teamed up as songwriters, writing hits such as "Love Is In The Air" (1977). They also found time to produce albums for the band containing George's brothers Angus and Malcolm, a rather well known rock band by the name of AC/DC.

Answer: The Tea Party

"Heaven Coming Down" (1999) became the first number one on the Canadian rock chart for the band and was also their first top 20 hit on the Canadian national charts.
The track was nominated for Best Single at the Juno awards of 2000, but lost out to "Bobcaygeon" (1999) from fellow Ontario band, The Tragically Hip.

Answer: Eric Clapton

Clapton wrote "Tears In Heaven" (1992) following the death of his son Conor, aged four. The track soon became the best selling single released by Clapton and charted in many countries.
As well as reaching number five in his native UK, it also reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in USA and hit number one in Canada and New Zealand.
"Tears In Heaven" (1992) was also nominated for five Grammy awards in 1993, winning in the Best Pop Vocal Performance Male, Record of the Year and Song of the Year categories.

Answer: Pixies

Pixies, from Boston Massachusetts, are led by Black Francis and his clever lyrics along with the band's mix of alternative rock, punk and surf rock make them a great band to see live.
"Monkey Gone To Heaven" (1989) was the band's first real taste of success and is about environmental issues such as pollution, ozone depletion and the greenhouse effect.
It seems amazing to me that this track still sounds so fresh and new, an astounding 30 years plus since its release. The sign of a great song, surely?

Answer: Justin Moore

"If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away" was actually first released in 2006 by Rhett Akins but failed to chart in the Country charts in either USA or Canada.
Five years later, in 2011 Justin Moore covered the song and scored a huge hit in the Canadian Country chart as well as the Billboard Hot 100 in USA and hitting the top spot on the Billboard Country chart in USA, giving him his second on that chart after "Small Town USA" had hit number one in 2009.

Answer: 2Pac

Not only a big hit in New Zealand, this single, the first from the posthumous 2Pac album, "R U Still Down? (Remember Me)" (1997), also charted well in the UK R&B chart and the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop chart.
The track's title comes from the lyrics of "Welcome to the Ghetto" (1992) by Spice 1, which contains the line, "Brothas taking each other's lives, And going to rest in peace, I wonder if heaven got a ghetto".

Answer: Five Finger Death Punch

If you know your metal bands, this one was fairly easy as only Five Finger Death Punch are American. Enter Shikari are from St. Albans in UK, Volbeat are Danish and Bullet for My Valentine are from Wales.
"Wrong Side Of Heaven" (2014) peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart in USA and was accompanied by a powerful video highlighting the rising number of homeless people that are veterans of the US forces.

Answer: Bee Gees

"Too Much Heaven" (1979), from the Bee Gees' album "Spirits Having Flown" (1979) was a number one hit in Canada and in USA on the Billboard Hot 100. In Germany, the track was also popular as it hit number ten, but not as popular as the cover version from Nana twenty years later.
Nana raps as Jan Van Der Toorn supplies the falsetto vocals and although the song is done in English, it was only a chart hit in Austria and Switzerland along with Germany.

Answer: The Elgins

The Elgins were a Motown vocal band with the wonderfully talented Saundra Edwards on lead vocal.
Unfortunately, their career was short lived, lasting only until 1967 apart from occasional reunions, and this was their only big hit, but what a masterpiece it is.
The song was later recorded as a disco track by Bonnie Pointer in 1979, also on the Motown label, and reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in USA, but to my ear, is nowhere near the Elgins' version.

Answer: Led Zeppelin

One of the most recognisable songs ever, as well as being one of the most requested on FM radio and the tune that every budding guitarist wants to learn, yet it was never released as a physical single.
It wasn't until 2007, a full 36 years after it was originally recorded that "Stairway To Heaven" was available as a single in digital download format and it managed to chart in countries around the world.
"There's a lady who's sure all that glitters is gold" and in this case she would be absolutely right as "Stairway To Heaven" (1971) continues to enthrall new generations of listeners.