NOTABLOG
MONTHLY ARCHIVES: 2002 - 2020
JULY 2011 | SEPTEMBER 2011 |
Song of the Day: All
of Me, words and music by Gerald
Marks and Seymour
Simons, was featured in many renditions on the radio show of Danny
Stiles, "The
King of Nostalgia," "The Vicar of Vintage Vinyl," who passed away
back on March 11, 2011. Today, we remember the stylish Stiles, who gave all of
himself to the cause of preserving great American standards. Check out these
performances: Ruth
Etting, Billie
Holiday, Dinah
Washington live "Jazz on a Summer's Day," Lester
Young and Teddy Wilson, Ella
Fitzgerald, the
very Sassy Sarah Vaughan, Willie
Nelson, John
Pizzarelli, Tal
Farlow and Red Norvo, Frank
Sinatra swingin' at Caesar's Palace, and the one and only Pops with
Chops: Louis
Armstrong (all YouTube clips).
| Permalink |
Posted to Music | Remembrance
Song of the Day: Coney
Island Baby, composed by Vinny
Catalano and Peter
Alonzo, is a 1961-62
doo-wop gem, recorded by the
Excellents. It inspired everyone from Lou
Reed to Tom
Waits to re-imagine their own Coney
Island babies. But today it is posted in tribute to all the residents
of Coney
Island, who live just a few Brooklyn blocks
away from me, and who survived
evacuation, the
shutdown of the NYC subway system, and Irene
herself, which was downgraded from a Hurricane to a Tropical Storm.
Irene touched New York City soil when it
made landfall in Coney Island around 9am this morning. So here's a
doo-wop shout out: enjoy the original single by the
Excellents on YouTube.
Song of the Day: Till
the World Ends, written by Dr.
Luke, Alexander
Kronlund, Max
Martin and Kesha,
was recorded by Britney
Spears for her album "Femme
Fatale." This sizzling, apocalyptic dance track shouldn't be taken
too literally, especially for those of us in the Northeast who experienced an
earthquake this week, and who are now facing Hurricane
Irene. No fear. We'll just dance till the world ends . . . Take a
look at the
official video on YouTube.
Song of the Day: Found
a Cure, a #1
dance track from 1979, was written by Nick
Ashford and Valerie
Simpson. It appears on the Ashford
& Simpson album, "Stay
Free." Ashford
passed away on 22 August 2011. But he left behind a musical legacy
that still provides the cure; listen to the
energetic, soulful 12" remix on YouTube.
| Permalink | Comments
(1) | Posted to Music | Remembrance
This isn't my favorite song but it is a good one. Normally, I'd choose "I Am The
Walrus." Since the Beatles, however, are already well represented (Strawberry
Fields, She Said, She Said), I'll go with "The Boxer." Simon's acoustic guitar
tracks are exquisitely detailed, expanding on the textures he wove so
convincingly on "Mrs. Robinson." Set upon the implacable heartbeat of the kick
drum, they dance and flutter like solemn butterflies. Very few major artists
could get away with the opening line to this song, but Simon's delivery not only
suspends mundane reality, it welcomes the listener into a story so
matter-of-factly that one simply assumes it's authenticity. Garfunkle's
intimate, intuitive harmony is so finely crafted and performed that it's nearly
transparent; like the guitars, it focuses attention on the song, rather than
itself. The inclusion of the bass harmonica compliments and emphasizes the
narrative so well, that it achieves an aura of inevitability. It is nearly
impossible to imagine the song without it. Then one comes across that ephemeral
guitar solo. Because the guitarist uses the volume knob or foot pedal to allow
the notes to swell into being, the solo appears to glide into and out of
awareness; a ghost moving serenely through the mist. Simon stated, in a long-ago
interview, that he was initially opposed to an extended ending for this song. At
that time, "Hey Jude" had just recently taken that concept to the limits of pop
utility (and then some!) and he didn't want to appear to be contrived.
Fortunately, Garfunkle and Halee convinced him otherwise. And so it is, that
after one of Simon's most profoundly moving verses (listen to the restrained
delivery on the last quatrain.....it HURTS), we are treated to layer upon layer
of sonic textures, opening upon some facet of the many emotions implicit in the
song. Simon DID prove his instincts were correct when, at the very end,
everything drops out, save the acoustic guitars and a brief, haunting voice that
seems to be singing to itself. Well, enough.
P.S. I like this blog!
Posted by: Tucson Real Estate | August
27, 2011 03:33 PM
Song of the Day: Lady
(Hear Me Tonight), the debut single by French duo, Modjo,
was written and performed by Romain Tranchart and vocalist Yann Destagnol. The
recording features a guitar sample of "Soup
for One," performed by Chic,
for which Nile
Rodgers and Bernard
Edwards are also credited as songwriters. Check out YouTube to
listen to this hot dance track.
Song of the Day: Shake,
Rattle and Roll was composed by Jesse
Stone (a.k.a. Charles
E. Calhoun) and was recorded first by Big
Joe Turner. But it was in 1954 that Bill
Haley and His Comets were the first to score a Top
Ten Billboard hit with this all-time classic white-hot and
bluesy track. Check out YouTube for renditions by Big
Joe Turner, Bill
Haley, Elvis
Presley, a
live Fats Domino, and Jerry
Lee Lewis. Today, NYC
was shakin', rattlin', and rollin' in the wake of a
5.8 magnitude earthquake whose epicenter was near Richmond, Virginia.
I felt it for sure ... but figured I was having some sort of dizzy spell.
Song of the Day: It's
a Man's Man's Man's World features the words and music of Betty
Jean Newsome and the one and only James
Brown, whose recording of the song was a huge hit on both the R&B and
pop charts. Listen to two versions by Brown: the
original, a
jazz-influenced reworking from "Soul on Top" with the swingin' Louis Bellson
Orchestra (both YouTube links), and two versions that invert the
imagery: one finely orchestrated, grinding rendition by Cher (YouTube
link), and a totally deconstructed powerhouse live performance at the 2007
Grammy Awards by Christina
Aguilera (YouTube link). Aguilera
is a Staten Island native, which is all the more appropriate today,
as the
NYC borough marks the 350th
anniversary of its founding in 1661. Happy
Birthday, Staten Island!
| Permalink |
Posted to Culture | Music | Remembrance | Sexuality
Song of the Day: Separate
Ways (Worlds Apart), written by Jonathan
Cain and Steve
Perry, is featured on
the Journey album Frontiers.
Listen to the full-length version of one of my favorite Journey songs
on YouTube.
Song of the Day: There
Must Be a Way, music by David
Saxon, lyrics by Robert
Cook and Sammy
Gallop, was a
big 1967 hit for Jimmy
Roselli, who passed
away on June 30, 2011. Check out the original
Roselli 45 on YouTube, and also versions by Joni
James, Louis
Armstrong, and the
Great One, Jackie Gleason.
| Permalink |
Posted to Music | Remembrance
I'm a great fan of "So
You Think You Can Dance," and am absolutely elated to see that Melanie
Moore has been named "America's
Favorite Dancer."
She was my favorite too! From the start of the season!
Brava! (And three cheers to the show's creator, executive producer, and regular
judge, Nigel
Lythgoe, for telling some of these
folks where to go!)
| Permalink |
Posted to Culture | Film
/ TV / Theater Review | Music
Song of the Day: Somebody
to Love, composed by Heather
Bright, The Stereotypes, and Justin
Bieber, was recorded
by Bieber for his album, My
World 2.0. My favorite version of the pop dance hit is the "remix,"
performed by Bieber,
with a great assist from his mentor, Usher.
The "official
video" is on YouTube (and JB gets 2.0 points for wearing a Yankees
cap in the video).