Song Musings

It’s Wednesday and I’d like to welcome you to another installment of my weekly recurring feature, which explores a song I’ve only mentioned in passing or not covered at all to date. In this case, it’s actually a tune by a band I haven’t written about until now, even though various fellow bloggers have covered them. Time for my first post dedicated to The Replacements! Courageously, I decided to pick I Will Dare.

Penned by the Minnesotan group’s frontman and main songwriter Paul Westerberg, I Will Dare first appeared in July 1984 as the lead single of their third studio album Let It Be. The album was released in October of the same year.

I Will Dare marked a departure from the band’s punk origins by embracing a more pop-oriented alternative rock sound. Like all but one of their other singles, I Will Dare did not enter the U.S. pop chart Billboard Hot 100. However, as Songfacts explains, the tune became very popular on college stations across the U.S. and got some airtime on commercial stations in big cities.

It probably didn’t hurt that R.E.M. lead guitarist Peter Buck frequently hang out with The Replacements at the time. They used his 12-string Rickenbacker on I Will Dare. While the band’s own lead guitarist Bob Stinson came up with the guitar riff, he had some challenges with the solo, so Buck ended up playing it. Songfacts notes his feel was inspired by Zal Yanovsky, guitarist and co-founder of The Lovin’ Spoonful.

Interestingly, Let It Be had a similar path to I Will Dare. While it missed the charts, became the band’s breakthrough album. It was well-received by music critics and subsequently ranked as one of the greatest albums of the ’80s by AllMusic and Rolling Stone. Let It Be is also included in Rolling Stone’s most recent September 2020 edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, ranked at no. 156.

BTW, in case you wonder, the album’s title was a reference to that other album you may have heard of. According to Westerberg, it was picked when The Replacements were looking for a title and decided to name the album after the next song they would hear on the radio, which happened to be Let It Be by The Beatles.

The Replacements also wanted to play a bit of a joke on their manager Peter Jesperson who was a big Beatles fan. Westerberg told Rolling Stone the title “was our way of saying that nothing is sacred, that the Beatles were just a damn fine rock & roll band. We seriously were gonna call the next record Let It Bleed.”

Following are some additional tidbits about I Will Dare from Songfacts:

U2’s “I Will Follow” irritated Replacements frontman Paul Westerberg so badly that he wrote two songs about it. The first was “Kids Don’t Follow,” the second was “I Will Dare.”

Westerberg saw U2 perform at Uncle Sam’s nightclub in Minneapolis in April 1981 on the backend of U2’s first international tour. Named the Boy Tour in promotion of the band’s first studio album, it started September 6, 1980, and ended June 9, 1981. (Peculiar though insignificant factoid: U2 played another club named Uncle Sam’s on that tour – this one in Buffalo, New York, on December 8, 1980.)

U2 played “I Will Follow” twice the night Westerberg saw them. He appreciated the sound but took umbrage with lyrics he interpreted as a statement about youth in general. This was a misinterpretation on his part because Bono wrote “I Will Follow” for his deceased mother, but Songfacts didn’t exist in 1981, so there was no way for him to know that.

Westerberg immediately wrote “Kids Don’t Follow” in response to the show. The song leads off Stink, the 1982 EP they made following their debut album, Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash. He wrote “I Will Dare” a couple years later in 1983 as the Replacements’ second studio album, Hootenanny, was being mastered. He felt it was the best song he ever wrote and wanted to get it on the album, but it was too late in the process, so it ended up on their next one, Let It Be.

“I Will Dare” has a few layers of meaning. In addition to sniping at Bono, it’s a statement about the Replacements themselves. In Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements, Westerberg says, “Part of it has to do with the band: we’ll dare to flop, we’ll dare to do anything.”

It was also “a kind of love song,” according to Westerberg. An unnamed confidant in Trouble Boys says they believe that Westerberg might have been messing around with some ladies that he shouldn’t have at the time.

The timing worked out well because “I Will Dare” wound up being the opening track on Let It Be, the band’s 1984 breakthrough album.

The words “I will follow” are contained entirely between the titles of the two response songs “I Will Dare” and “Kids Don’t Follow,” though Westerberg never claimed to have intended this.

Westerberg plays mandolin on this song.

The Replacements 2017 album For Sale: Live at Maxwell’s 1986 includes a performance of “I Will Dare.” (see second clip above – CMM)…

…Part of the song’s success was due to its promotion. The Replacements’ label, Twin/Tone, was in a significant upward transition. Using money earned after their act The Suburbs took off earlier that year, they moved out of cofounder Paul Starks’ basement and into a set of offices in South Minneapolis. They were able to bring in new staff and to devote more time to the business, which led to a proper promotional buildup for the single and its attendant album. It was a new thing for the Replacements.

“I Will Dare” remains a favorite for Replacements fans. Many consider it their signature song. It’s highly acclaimed among music journalists as well: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame included this song on their 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll list.

Sources: Wikipedia; Rolling Stone; Songfacts; YouTube

Music Musings

Happy humpday and welcome to another installment of my weekly feature that takes a deeper dive on a tune I’ve only mentioned in passing or not covered at all so far. Today’s pick is Don’t Get Me Wrong by Pretenders who at the time they released the song were still known as The Pretenders.

Penned by co-founder, lead vocalist and guitarist Chrissie Hynde, who has been the band’s primary songwriter since their formation in 1978, Don’t Get Me Wrong first appeared in August 1986 as the lead single of the group’s fourth studio album Get Close, which came out in October of the same year.

In the U.S., Don’t Get Me Wrong peaked at no. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking the band’s last big hit on the pop chart. It also topped Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart. Elsewhere, the single climbed to no. 8 in Australia, no. 10 in the UK, no. 11 in New Zealand, no. 14 in Canada and no. 25 in The Netherlands.

The album Get Close also did pretty well, reaching no. 6 in the UK and Sweden, no. 9 in Canada, no. 12 in Australia, no. 13 in New Zealand, no. 18 in Norway, no. 22 in The Netherlands and Switzerland, and no. 25 in the U.S. It reached Gold certification in the U.S. (0.5 million certified sold units) and the UK (100,000 certified sold units). This places Get Close within the group’s five most successful albums.

By the time Don’t Get Me Wrong and Get Close were released, Chrissie Hynde was the band’s only remaining original member. Co-founder James Honeyman-Scott (guitar) was found dead of cocaine-induced heart failure in June 1982, two days after original bassist Pete Farndon had been dismissed from The Pretenders. Farndon drowned in his bath in April 1983 after he had lost consciousness due to a heroin overdose. Honeyman-Scott and Farndon only were 25 and 30 years, respectively. Drummer Martin Chambers, whose enthusiasm was significantly impacted by the two deaths, left during the Get Close recording sessions. He rejoined the group in 1994.

In addition to Hynde (vocals, rhythm guitar), The Pretenders at the time of Get Close also included Robbie McIntosh (guitars), T.M. Stevens (bass) and Blair Cunningham (drums, percussion). Hynde, the band’s only constant member throughout its 40-plus-year existence, and Chambers remain part of the current line-up, which also features James Walbourne (lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Eric Heywood (pedal steel guitar, backing vocals) and Nick Wilkinson (bass, backing vocals).

Following are additional insights from Songfacts:

Written by Pretenders lead singer Chrissie Hynde, this song describes the complexities of love from a female perspective – she’s inconsistent, but wonderful, and wants her lover to know that he shouldn’t get too worked up, because she could change quickly. Hynde put a lot of weather references in the lyrics, implying that her mood reacts in a similar fashion...

…Chrissie Hynde wrote the song for tennis star John McEnroe, who was an aspiring musician. “He loved playing guitar,” she told Uncle Joe Benson on the Ultimate Classic Rock Nights radio show. “He’s a big music person, which is how I knew him, because he used to come to our shows and he was friendly with the band and stuff.”

Hynde added that she found inspiration while aboard a plane. “I had in mind that I was going to write this song for him to do. Years later, when I was on British [Airways], I heard an announcement – because I did write some of that song on a plane – and I think I nicked one of the top-line melodies from the overhead announcement: ‘Dong-dong-dong-dong … Welcome to British Airways.'”

The music video is based on the spy series The Avengers, which aired in Britain in the ’60s and was an influence on the Austin Powers movies. Most of the video is actual footage from the series, which starred Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg, interspersed with shots of Chrissie Hynde as Rigg’s character. With their videos, the Pretenders made no attempts to appeal to the core MTV demographic of American teenage boys.

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; YouTube

Best of What’s New

It’s Saturday again and I’m thrilled to welcome you to yet another set of six new tunes – the third week in a row! All tracks are on releases that came out yesterday (April 28).

Country Westerns/Knucklen’

My first pick is by Country Westerns, a rock-oriented three-piece based in Nashville, Tenn. I first featured in a June 2020 Best of What’s New installment. Their origins date back to 2016 when singer and guitarist Joey Plunkett started working on songs with drummer Brian Kotzur. The trio’s current line-up also includes Jordan Jones, the newest member who replaced their original bassist Sabrina Rush. Here’s a bit more from their website: Country Westerns infuse punk rock chutzpah with a classic rock sheen, yielding a sound that’s simultaneously fresh and reminiscent of all the LPs you used to “borrow” from your cool uncle. Their debut album came out in May 2020, beautifully coinciding with… a worldwide pandemic...CW’s varied inspirations are evident on their self-produced “pandemic EP” that features covers by Richard Thompson, Jad Fair, and Dead Moon. This brings me to Forgive the City, CW’s sophomore album, and the nice melodic opener Knucklen’, co-written by Plunkett and Kotzur.

Annie Blackman/Ash

Annie Blackman is a 24-year-old alternative folk singer-songwriter hailing from Montclair, N.J. After she became a fan of Taylor Swift, Blackman was inspired to pick up the guitar and write her own songs in fifth grade. I love it when music grabs kids – so much cooler than video games! She began her recording career while still attending high school and released her debut album Blue Green in 2016. After Blackman had posted some clips of her original music on TikTok, she came to the attention of San Francisco-based Father/Daughter Records. The independent label signed her in 2021 and released her next (third) full-length album All of It in April 2022. Blackman is now out with Bug, her first EP. Here’s the lovely opener Ash, penned by Blackman.

The Damned/Western Promise

English punk rock band The Damned were formed in London in 1976. They have been active ever since, except for a short break-up from April 1978 to January 1979, after their second album Music For Pleasure had come out in November 1977. To date, The Damned have released 12 studio albums, which includes their latest, Darkadelic. As one would expect, they’ve had multiple changes over the years, with lead vocalist Dave Vanian having been the only constant member. The band’s current line-up also features original guitarist Raymond Burns, aka. Captain Sensible; Laurence Burrow, aka Monty Oxymoron (keyboards, backing vocals); Paul Gray (bass, backing vocals) and new drummer Will Taylor. From Darkadelic, let’s check out Western Promise, credited to Vanian and The Damned – it’s certainly not punk, but I love the tune’s sound!

Dave Hause/Drive It Like It’s Stolen

Dave Hause is an American singer-songwriter who performs solo and with his backing band The Mermaid. Starting from the mid-’90s, Hause played in a series of punk and hardcore bands, including Step Ahead, The Curse, Paint It Black, The Loved Ones, The All Brights and The Falcon, and between these groups released about 10 albums and EPs. In 2009, Hause also started a solo career, which has resulted in six albums to date, including his latest, Drive It Like It’s Stolen. After his third solo album Bury Me in Philly had appeared in February 2017, Hause put together The Mermaid. Hause’s solo work is notably different from hardcore and punk, focusing on heartland rock and Americana. Here’s the great title cut of his new album, co-written by Hause and his brother Tim Hause who also is a singer-songwriter.

Glen Matlock/Something ‘Bout the Weekend

Glen Matlock is best known for being the bassist in the original line-up of short-lived British punk pioneers Sex Pistols. While he left early during the recording sessions of the group’s first and only studio album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols, Matlock is credited as a co-writer on 10 of the 12 tracks. Since his departure in 1977, he has been very busy. Matlock has performed and recorded with various other bands and artists, including Rich Kids, Vicious White Kids, Iggy Pop, The Damned and The International Swingers, among others. He remains a member of the last group and also joined Blondie’s touring band last year. Additionally, he took part in various Sex Pistols reunion tours. Oh, and in 1996, Matlock started a solo career with the release of Who’s He Think He Is When He’s at Home? Five additional solo albums have since appeared, including his latest, Consequences Coming. Off it, I got the perfect tune for a Saturday: Something ‘Bout the Weekend. The nice rocker is credited to Matlock, Hotei (Tomoyasu Hotei) and Mark Garfield.

Sock/Change Your Mind

This brings me to my final pick, Welsh alternative rock band Sock. From their Spotify profile: Formed in Cardiff, Sock make guitar-driven alternative rock, taking inspiration from psychedelic music. Known for their creative melodic arrangements and blending of genres, the band describe their music as “a rather progressive affair.” Following on from the band’s debut album ‘Fresh Bits’, in 2018, their much anticipated self-titled follow-up is out this April. The album features Jacob on Rhythm Guitar & Vocals, Billy on Lead Guitar, Sam on Bass & Keys, and Simon on Drums & Percussion. Produced by the band, the album was recorded during the pandemic and sees the music move into a heavier and more refined sound. From that album, here’s Change Your Mind – nice sounding tune!

Last but not least is a Spotify playlist of the above goodies plus a few additional tracks – another pretty good week on the new music front, at least in my book! 🙂

Sources: Wikipedia; Country Westerns website; YouTube; Spotify

Best of What’s New

Welcome to another installment of my weekly new music revue. All featured tracks appear on albums, which were released yesterday (February 24).

Westing/Back in the Twenties

Kicking things off are Westing, a rock band from Visalia, Calif., who until late 2021 were known as Slow Season. Together with the name change came the addition of Ben McLeod as lead guitarist, who also is a member of All Them Witches, a rock group from Nashville. Additionally, Westing include Daniel Story Rice (vocals, keyboards), Hayden Doyel (bass) and Cody Tarbell (drums). Slow Season had emerged about 10 years ago and released three albums. The reincarnated group’s first new release as Westing is titled Future. Here’s the album’s opener Back in the Twenties, which first appeared as the second upfront single about two weeks ago. It’s got a bit of a Led Zeppelin swagger. A bio that accompanies the clip of the song’s official video below notes the tune’s “message comes through clear (and loud) that however much Westing’s foundations might be in ‘70s styles, the moment that matters is now.”

Death Valley Girls/What Are the Odds

Death Valley Girls, who have been around since 2013, are a Los Angeles-based group blending garage rock, psychedelic pop and proto-metal. From their AllMusic bio: Evoking names like the Cramps, Black Sabbath, and Bikini Kill, the band was founded by drummer Patty Schemel (Hole), her six-string-wielding brother Larry Schemel, vocalist Bonnie Bloomgarden, and bass player Rachel Orosco. The group released their debut album, Street Venom, on cassette via Burger Records in 2014. Patty left the group shortly thereafter and was replaced by Laura Kelsey (the Flytraps). In 2016, Death Valley Girls issued their sophomore studio long-player, Glow in the Dark. The band moved to Suicide Squeeze Records for 2018’s Darkness Rains, and in 2020 they released their fourth full-length effort, Under the Spell of Joy. Now Death Valley Girls are out with their new album Islands in the Sky. Let’s listen to What Are the Odds, a tune co-written by Bloomgarden and Larry Schemel. I would call this song charmingly weird. It certainly rocks!

Iris DeMent/Goin’ Down to Sing in Texas

My next pick is by singer-songwriter Iris DeMent, who blends elements of Americana, country, folk and gospel. Born in Paragould, Ark. as the youngest of 14 children, DeArment was exposed to country and gospel music early on, but a bad experience during her first performance as a 5-year-old put a pause on additional such efforts. It wasn’t until the age of 25 in 1986 that she penned her first song Our Town, which changed her trajectory to becoming a songwriter. DeMent’s debut album Infamous Angel appeared six years later in October 1992. She has since released six additional albums including her latest Workin’ on a World. According to her website, it addresses the modern world — as it is right now — with its climate catastrophe, pandemic illness, and epidemic of violence and social injustice — and not only asks us how we can keep working towards a better world, but implores us to love each other, despite our very different ways of seeing. Here’s Goin’ Down to Sing in Texas, a tune her website characterizes as an ode not only to gun control, but also to the brave folks who speak out against tyranny and endure the consequences in an unjust world. Undoubtedly, DeMent won’t endear herself to everybody with her outspoken lyrics.

Philip Selway/Check For Signs of Life

Wrapping up this week is Philip Selway, who is best known as the drummer of Radiohead, the English alternative rock band he co-founded in 1985. While Selway had written songs as a teenager, he decided to focus on playing the drums for the group. Eventually, he changed his mind and released his debut solo album Familial in August 2010. It was an immediate success in the U.S. where it reached no. 7 and no. 8 on Billboard’s Top Heatseekers and Americana/ Folk Albums charts. It also made the UK’s Official Albums Chart (no. 185). This brings me to Strange Dance, Selway’s third and latest solo effort. From his Bandcamp page: When Philip Selway approached some of his favourite musicians to play on his third solo record he said he imagined it as a Carole King record if she collaborated with the pioneering electronic composer Daphne Oram and invited him to drum on it. Unsurprisingly they were all sold, and so began the bringing together of an extraordinary number of gifted people, including Hannah Peel, Adrian Utley, Quinta, Marta Salogni, Valentina Magaletti and Laura Moody. Here’s Check For Signs of Life. Written by Selway, this geat-sounding tune was first released as a single in October 2022.

As usual, here’s a Spotify playlist featuring the above tracks and a few additional songs by all highlighted artists.

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; Iris DeMent website; Philip Selway Bandcamp page; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Welcome to another Sunday Six. I can’t believe we’ve already made it through the first month of 2023. I hope you’re feeling groovy and are in the mood for some time travel into the magic world of music. As always, the trip includes six stops in different decades. Fasten your seatbelt and let’s go!

Barney Kessel/A Foggy Day

Our journey today starts in 1956 with American jazz guitarist Barney Kessel, a name I first heard from my brother-in-law in the late ’70s or early ’80s, then still my sister’s boyfriend. Kessel, who was active from the early ’40s until the early ’90s when a stroke put an end to his career, was particularly known for chord-based melodies. He was a sought-after session guitarist who worked with many other jazz greats, such as Charlie Parker, Oscar Peterson and Ray Brown. During the ’60s, Kessel was a member of the prominent LA-based session group The Wrecking Crew, playing on recordings by The Monkees, The Beach Boys and others. Eventually, he left studio work to focus on his jazz career, both as a solo artist and sideman. In 1973, Kessel also co-founded Great Guitars, a jazz supergroup with fellow jazz guitarists Charlie Byrd and Herb Ellis. A Foggy Day, composed by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin, is a track from Kessel’s 1956 album Kessel Plays Standards. Check out this amazing guitar tone!

Donald Fagen/The Nightfly

Let’s next jump to October 1982 and The Nightfly by Donald Fagen. His solo debut and first release without his longtime Steely Dan collaborator Walter Becker remains my favorite Fagen album. The Nightfly came 16 months after Fagen and Becker had dissolved Steely Dan in the wake of the Gaucho album, whose recording had been hampered by numerous creative, personal and professional setbacks. Fagen’s first solo album touches on topics from his childhood in the late ’50s and early ’60s, including late-night jazz disc jockeys, fallout shelters and tropical vacations. As such, it is very autobiographical, unlike his earlier compositions for the Dan. Notably, due to writer’s block, it would take Fagen 10 years to release his second solo album Kamakiriad, which was produced by Walter Becker who also contributed guitar and bass. It also led to a supporting tour of Fagen and Becker, their first as Steely Dan since 1974. Coming back to The Nightfly, here’s the great title track.

Etta James/At Last

Time to pay a visit to the ’60s and the debut album by Etta James, an amazing vocalist who over a nearly 60-year career performed in multiple genres, such as gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, rock and roll and soul. James had an eventful life and career, which included heroin addiction, severe physical abuse and incarceration. In spite of her struggles, except for an eight-year gap in the ’80s, James released albums at a pretty steady pace. Following her 1988 comeback album Seven Year Itch, James received multiple recognitions, including inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1993), Grammy Hall of Fame (1999) and Blues Hall of Fame (2001), as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2003). Sadly, James passed away from leukemia in January 2012, five days prior to what would have been her 74th birthday. Let’s celebrate this outstanding artist with the title track of her very first album At Last! Co-written by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren for the 1941 musical film Sun Valley Serenade, the tune was first recorded by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra, becoming a no. 2 on the U.S. pop chart in 1942. James’ beautiful rendition, one of her best-known songs, reached no. 47 on the U.S. pop chart and no. 2 on the R&B chart. What a voice!

Ry Cooder/Little Sister

Our next stop is July 1979, which saw the release of Bop Till You Drop, the eighth studio album by Ry Cooder. If I recall it correctly, the first time I heard about him was in connection with the 1984 Wim Wenders picture Paris, Texas, for which Cooder wrote the score – one of the best acoustic slide guitar-playing I know. Cooder is a versatile artist who in addition to 17 film scores has released a similar amount of solo albums since his 1970 eponymous debut. Over his 55-year-and-counting career, Cooder has also collaborated with numerous other artists like John Lee Hooker, The Rolling Stones, Randy Newman, Linda Ronstadt and David Lindley. Bop Till You Drop, yet another album to which my then-bandmate and longtime music buddy from Germany introduced me, mostly is a collection of R&B and rock & roll covers. This includes the opener Little Sister, penned by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman and first recorded by Elvis Presley in 1961. While I dig that version, especially Hank Garland’s lead guitar, I like Ray Cooder’s soulful rendition even more!

Matthew Sweet/I Belong to You

I don’t know about you, but I’m in the mood for some sweet power pop. This takes us to the current century, more specifically May 2018 and Tomorrow’s Daughter, the 13th studio album by Matthew Sweet. I first came across the singer-songwriter in January 2021 when his most recent studio album Catspaw appeared, and featured one of the tunes in a Best of What’s New installment. After playing in various bands in the ’80s and releasing two unrecognized solo records (Inside, 1986; and Earth 1989), Sweet achieved commercial breakthrough with his third studio album Girlfriend, which came out in October 1991 and to date is one of two records that reached Gold certification in the U.S. Between 2006 and 2013, Sweet collaborated on a series of cover albums (Under the Covers Vol. 1 – Vol. 3) with Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles. I featured two of their great renditions in previous Sunday Six installments here and here. From the above-noted Tomorrow’s Daughter, here’s I Belong to You, a lovely pop rock tune.

Mudhoney/Blinding Sun

Before yet another musical journey comes to an end, let’s visit one more tune. The year is 1992 and the month is October. That’s when American band Mudhoney came out with their fourth studio album Piece of Cake. Formed in Seattle in 1988, the group is viewed as instrumental in creating grunge and an inspiration for many other bands who embraced that genre, as well as alternative rock. Mudhoney are still active and have released 10 studio albums to date. A new one, Plastic Eternity, is in the can and scheduled for April 7. At the time they recorded Piece of Cake, their only charting album in the U.S. on the Billboard 200 to date, Mudhoney featured Mark Arm (vocals, guitar, organ, piano), Steve Turner (guitar, harmonica, banjo, vocals) and Dan Peters (drums, percussion, vocals), who remain part of the current lineup, and Matt Lutkin (bass, vocals) who was replaced by Guy Maddison in 2001. Here’s Blinding Sun, credited to all members of the band at the time. I like their garage sound.

Last but not least, below is a Spotify playlist of the above goodies. As always, I hope there’s something here you enjoy!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

Best of What’s New

Welcome to another Saturday and my latest revue of newly released music. All picks this week are from albums that appeared yesterday (January 27).

White Reaper/Fog Machine

Kicking off this post are American garage rock band White Reaper. According to their profile on Apple Music, they are making retro style bubblegum punk mixed with some arena rock. Formed by childhood friends in Louisville, Kentucky, the group named themselves after a spooky decoration they came across in a Halloween story. They released a critically acclaimed EP in 2014, followed by their 2015 debut album, White Reaper Does It Again. Pitchfork named their sophomore LP, The World’s Best American Band, one of the 20 Best Rock Albums of 2017. White Reaper’s lineup includes Tony Esposito (guitar, vocals), Hunter Thompson (guitar), Ryan Hater (keyboards), Sam Wilkerson (bass) and Nick Wilkerson (drums, percussion). Fog Machine, credited to the entire band, is a tune from their fourth and latest studio album Asking for a Ride. It rocks and is pretty melodic!

H.C. McEntire/Turpentine (feat. Amy Ray)

H.C. McEntire is a singer-songwriter from Durham, N.C. From her AllMusic bio: Blessed with a perfect country voice and the uncompromising determination of a punk rocker, H.C. McEntire (also known as Heather McEntire) is best known as a member of the bands Mount Moriah and Bellafea, as well as for her work as a solo artist. With Mount Moriah, McEntire began exploring the atmospheric side of Southern roots music, and in her solo work, she dug deeper into this territory, mixing the artful side of indie rock with melodies and vocal lines that harken back to traditional country and folk. Her solo debut, 2018’s Lionheart, introduced her new variations on her style, and 2020’s Eno Axis upped the indie rock side of the formula. Now McEntire is out with her third album Every Acre, and I love what I’ve heard thus far. Here’s Turpentine, co-written by McEntire, Luke Norton, Daniel Faust and Casey Toll, the bassist of Mount Moriah, and featuring Amy Ray of contemporary folk duo Indigo Girls – a beautiful tune with a great roots rock sound!

The Arcs/Behind the Eyes

The Arcs are a garage rock band formed in 2015 by singer-songwriter and record producer Dan Auerbach as a side project to The Black Keys, his blues rock band together with drummer Patrick Carney. Apart from Auerbach (lead vocals, guitar), The Arcs currently also include Leon Michels (keyboards, guitar), Nick Movshon (bass) and Homer Steinweiss (drums, percussion). Richard Swift, another member who was featured on the group’s 2015 debut album Yours, Dreamily, passed away in July 2018 at the age of 41 due to complications from hepatitis, as well as liver and kidney distress. This brings me to Behind the Eyes from The Arcs’ sophomore album Electrophonic Chronic, a track credited to all members of the group and Russ Pahl who also provides steel guitar.

Vusi Mahlasela, Norman Zulu & Jive Connection/Prodigal Son

My last pick for this week is South African singer-songwriter Vusi Mahlasela, who according to a bio on his website is simply known as ‘The Voice’ in his home-country, South Africa, celebrated for his distinct, powerful voice and his poetic, optimistic lyrics. His songs of hope connect Apartheid-scarred South Africa with its promise for a better future. Raised in the Mamelodi Township, where he still resides, Vusi became a singer-songwriter and poet-activist at an early age teaching himself how to play guitar and later joining the Congress of South African Writers. After his popular debut on BMG Africa, “When You Come Back,” Vusi was asked to perform at Nelson Mandela’s inauguration in 1994. Vusi has toured globally and shared the stage with Dave Matthews Band, Sting, Paul Simon, Josh Groban, Ray LaMontagne, Natalie Merchant, Taj Mahal, among many others. A news announcement describes his latest release, Face to Face, as a lost recording from the archives in January with a 2002 collaboration between…Vusi…, singer-songwriter Norman Zulu and Swedish jazz/soul collective Jive Connection. Check out the amazing opener Prodigal Son, which drew me in right away!

Here’s a Spotify playlist of the above tunes and some additional tracks from the four featured albums and artists.

Sources: Wikipedia; Apple Music; AllMusic; Vusi Mahlasela website; YouTube; Spotify

Best of What’s New

Happy Saturday and welcome to another installment of my weekly new music revue. All featured tunes appear on albums released yesterday (January 20). Let’s get to it!

The Heavy Hours/Days Since You’re Gone

My first pick this week are The Heavy Hours, an alternative rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio I first featured in a Best of What’s New installment last February. From their AllMusic bio: The Heavy Hours emerged at the beginning of the 2020s with an organic blend of alt-rock punch and thoughtful folk-driven storytelling. The Cincinnati band’s Wildfire EP helped them earn a label deal in advance of their 2022 debut full-length Gardens. Taking their name from a line by Irish poet William Butler Yeats, the Heavy Hours formed in 2018, though their friendship dates back to their high school years. Inspired as much by folk music as by soaring post-rock, the band’s sound is a rich amalgam of guitar-based rock led by the yearning vocals of frontman Michael Marcagi. This brings me to Days Since You’re Gone, a nice tune from the group’s self-titled sophomore album.

Katatonia/Atrium

Swedish rock band Katatonia were formed in Stockholm in 1991. Starting out as a death metal studio-only project of Jonas Renkse and Anders Nyström, Katatonia have since not only become a full-fledged group with different line-ups but also embraced a more melodic form of metal and progressive rock – it’s safe to assume I wouldn’t have picked a death metal outfit! Katatonia’s ninth studio album Dead End Kings became their highest-charting to date in Sweden (no. 12) and Finland (no. 4), respectively, and also entered the charts on a broader international scale, including the U.S. (no. 138) and UK (no. 142). In addition to Renkse (lead vocals) and Nyström (guitar), the group’s current members include Roger Öjersson (guitar), Niklas Sandin (bass) and Daniel Moilanen (drums). Atrium, written by Renske, is a track from their 12th and latest studio album Sky Void of Stars. Yes, the music is on the heavier side, but pretty melodic!

The Murder Capital/Return My Head

The Murder Capital are an Irish post-punk band from Dublin, who began performing in 2015. After setting up their own label Human Season Records in 2018, they released a series of singles the following year, leading up to their debut album When I Have Fears, which came out in August 2019. Their music has been compared to several UK post- and art punk bands, including Idles, Slaves, Shame and Fontaines D.C. The Murder Capital are James McGovern (vocals), Damien Tuit (guitar), Cathal Roper (guitar), Gabriel Pascal Blake (bass) and Diarmuid Brennan (drums). Here’s Return My Head, a tune from their new sophomore album Gigi’s Recovery. Not quite sure what it is about this song that drew me in. It’s slightly weird but kind of catchy at the same time!

The Bad Ends/Mile Marker 29

Wrapping up this week’s new music post are The Bad Ends, an alternative rock band from Athens, Ga. According to their website, the group catalyzed when Mike Mantione (vocals, guitar), who gained initial prominence as frontman of popular Athens band Five Eight in the ’90s, had a chance encounter with Bill Berry (drums, guitar, electric sitar), former drummer of R.E.M. The group also features Christian Lopez (guitars, mandolin, banjo), Geoff Melkonian (keyboards, piano, guitars, vocals) and Dave Domizi (bass, vocals). Mantione and Domizi had been friends since 1991, while Melkonian produced one of Five Eight’s previous albums. The Bad Ends “quietly recorded, produced, and mastered what would become The Power and The Glory at Mike Albanese’s Espresso Machine Studio in Athens,” their great debut album that is now out. Here’s the opener Mile Marker 29 – not a bad end at all! And, yep, this band can definitely not deny their hometown!

Last but not least, following is a Spotify playlist of all the above tunes and a few additional tracks by the featured artists.

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; The Bad Ends website; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Good morning, afternoon, evening, night…in whichever time zone you are, I’d like to welcome you! Is 2023 already starting to feel old? Are you struggling with sticking to any new year’s resolutions? I hope you can put aside any such thoughts you may have and join me on another trip into the amazing world of music. Let’s all escape the present and have a great time together while it lasts!

Red Garland/Almost Like Being in Love

Today, our journey starts in June 1957 with some groovy jazz by pianist Red Garland. Born in 1923 in Dallas, Tx., Garland started playing the clarinet and alto. saxophone before switching to the piano in 1941. In the ’40s, he also had a short-lived career as a welterweight boxer. Garland who helped popularize the block chord style of playing in jazz piano, gained prominence when he joined the Miles Davis Quintet in 1954. In addition to Davis, it featured jazz greats John Coltrane, Philly Joe Jones and Paul Chambers. After leaving the quintet in 1958, Garland formed his own trio. They recorded with many other artists, such as Pepper Adams, Nat Adderley, Ray Barretto, Kenny Burrell and Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis. Garland continued to work until his death from a heart attack at age 60 in April 1984. Almost Being in Love, composed by Allen Jay Learner and Frederick Loewe, is a great track from Garland’s album Red Garland’s Piano. He was backed by Chambers (bass) and Art Taylor (drums). Feel free to snip along!

Toad The Wet Sprocket/All I Want

Our next stop takes us to the early ’90s and a great tune I was reminded of the other day when I coincidentally caught it on the radio: All I Want by Toad The Wet Sprocket. Formed in 1986 in Santa Barbara, Calif., this alternative rock band took their peculiar name from a Monty Python comedy sketch. After their first two albums, which didn’t receive much attention, the band broke through with their third studio release, Fear, which appeared in August 1991. That success was fueled by All I Want, the second single off the album and the group’s first to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, climbing to no. 15. Toad the Wet Sprocket had a few additional charting songs and disbanded in 1998 after their fifth album Coil. Yet they continued to work on and off until 2008. As of 2009, the band has officially reunited and released two additional albums to date. All I Want was written by Glen Philips (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, mandolin, keyboards), one of three founding members who remain with the group to this day. This jangly guitar sound and beautiful harmony singing are right up my alley!

The Georgia Satellites/Keep Your Hands to Yourself

Time to pay a visit to Atlanta, Ga. The year is 1986 and it’s the month of October. That’s when southern rock band The Georgia Satellites released their eponymous debut album. The record became their most successful to date, surging to no. 5 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200. In turn, that was thanks to Keep Your Hands to Yourself. Their biggest hit peaked at no. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and no. 3 in Canada. Elsewhere, it reached no. 20 in Australia and no. 69 in the UK. After two more albums and a few additional charting singles, the group went on hiatus in 1990. The Georgia Satellites reemerged in 1993, released another album in 1996, and have since been a touring act. Their current line-up features original member Rick Richards (lead guitar, backing and lead vocals), together with Fred McNeal (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Bruce Smith (bass, backing vocals) and Todd Johnston (drums). Keep Your Hands to Yourself was penned by the group’s original lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Dan Baird. That Stonesy rocker just makes me smile, but no touching, please!

Pink Floyd/See Emily Play

After three tunes into our current excursion, we must turn to the ’60s, one of my favorite decades in music. Our destination is the second single by Pink Floyd, See Emily Play. I love the early stage of the British group, formed in London in 1965 by Syd Barrett (guitar, lead vocals), Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals), Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals) and Nick Mason (drums). See Emily Play, penned by Floyd’s initial leader and key songwriter Barrett, first appeared in the UK in June 1967 as a non-album single. This early gem was also included on the U.S. edition of the band’s debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, which came out in August of the same year. Unfortunately, it was the only album featuring Barrett as a full member of Pink Floyd. Due to heavy drug use and mental illness, his behavior became increasingly erratic and led to his departure in April 1968. At that time, David Gilmour had already joined the group. While Floyd’s June 1968 sophomore album A Saucerful of Secrets still included some contributions from Barrett, Gilmour had fully taken over on guitar. Sadly, Barrett passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2006, after he essentially had lived in obscurity since the late ’70s.

Bob Dylan/Tangled Up in Blue

On to the ’70s and an artist I trust needs no introduction. When it comes to Bob Dylan, I’ve always had sentiments ranging from admiration to indifference. If anything, I’ve regained appreciation of Robert Zimmerman since his most recent studio album Rough and Rowdy Ways. To me, it’s a late-career gem. One of Dylan’s earlier tunes I’ve loved from the very first time I heard it is Tangled Up in Blue. In fact, I would count it among my all-time favorites by the Nobel Prize-winning singer-songwriter. It first appeared as a single on January 17, 1975, three days ahead of the release of Blood On the Tracks. Initially, Dylan’s 15th studio album received mixed reviews, but as we’ve seen all too often, the critics came around and now regard it as one of his greatest albums. Fans apparently agreed all along. Blood On the Tracks became Dylan’s second album to top the U.S. charts. It also was no. 1 in Canada and reached the top 5 in the UK (no. 4), Spain (no. 3), Norway (no. 2) and The Netherlands (no. 5). Man, I just love that song!

Melissa Etheridge/Hold On, I’m Coming

Once again, we’re reaching the final stop of yet another music journey. For this last pick, we turn to the current century, though it’s a ’60s Stax tune. You see what I did there? I sneaked in another song from one of my favorite decades in music! In October 2016, Melissa Etheridge released Memphis Rock and Soul, a great tribute to Memphis soul label Stax. One of my favorite tracks on that album is her sizzling rendition of Hold On, I’m Coming. Co-written by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, the tune was first recorded by Sam & Dave. Released in March 1966, it became one of their biggest hits. And, yes, it’s been covered by many other artists, such as Aretha Franklin, Waylon Jennings and Tina Turner, but I just dig Etheridge’s funky version.

Of course, this post wouldn’t be complete without a Spotify list of the above goodies. Hope there’s something you like!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

Best of What’s New

Happy Saturday! The new music show must go on. Here’s what I found this week. All tunes are on releases that appeared yesterday (Nov 30).

Warren Zeiders/One Hell of an Angel

My first pick is by Warren Zeiders, a young country singer-songwriter from Pennsylvania. From his website: Warren Zeiders’ distinctive, high energy country music is powered by a steady supply of youthful grit, honesty, and muscle. Hailing from Hershey, Pennsylvania, the 22-year-old singer/ songwriter delivers outlaw sermons in a gravelly, world-weary voice that belies his young age. His music is suited more to the vast wilderness of his home state than the bright lights of Nashville, injecting a healthy dose of Heartland ethos into the honky tonks of Music City. But it’s that space he lives in—between lonesome outsider and magnetic performer—that helps him relate to listeners from all walks of life through songs fueled by unshakeable soul-searching. This brings me to 717 Tapes The Album, Zeiders’ new release, which combines songs from two previous 717 Tapes EPs (Vol. 1 and Vol. 2) with four new tunes. Here’s one of the latter, One Hell of an Angel, co-written by Zeiders, Benjy Davis and Josh Jenkins – nice country rocker!

Pixies/Vault of Heaven

Pixies are an alternative rock band from Boston, associated with the ’90s alternative rock boom. During their initial phase from 1986 until 1993, they released four albums. They broke up in early 1993 and reunited 10 years later. Their current line-up includes co-founding members Black Francis (lead and backing vocals, rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar), Joey Santiago (lead guitar, backing vocals) and David Lovering (drums, percussion, backing vocals), together with Paz Lenchantin (bass, violin, backing and lead vocals), who became a member of the group after they reunited. Vault of Heaven, penned by Francis (credited as Charles Thompson, his birth name), is a track from Pixies’ eighth and latest studio album Doggerel. Good song. The video is a bit odd!

Snarky Puppy/Keep It On Your Mind

While I didn’t know any of their music, I had heard of Snarky Puppy before and based on their name pictured a punk band – well, not exactly! From their AllMusic bio: An acclaimed fusion-influenced jam band, Snarky Puppy have built a loyal following with their adventurous blend of jazz, rock, and funk. Led by bassist Michael League, the Texas group emerged in the mid-2000s and garnered buzz with albums like 2006’s The Only Constant, 2010’s Tell Your Friends, and 2013’s Family Dinner, Vol. 1, which took home the Grammy for Best R&B Performance for their cover of the Brenda Russell song “Something” featuring singer Lalah Hathaway. More accolades followed, including further Grammy Awards for 2015’s Sylva and 2016’s Culcha Vulcha, the latter of which also topped Billboard’s Jazz Albums chart. The band again reached the Top Ten of the jazz charts with 2019’s Immigrance and picked up their fourth Grammy Award for 2020’s Live at the Royal Albert Hall. Empire Central is the group’s new live-recorded album that thematically revolves around the Texas city of Dallas. Here’s Keep It On Your Mind – definitely very different from what I expected. That said, I like it!

Dropkick Murphys/Talking Jukebox

What a coincidence – only three weeks ago, I featured some new music by Irish-American Celtic punk band Flogging Molly. Now it’s the turn of their Boston area cousins Dropkick Murphys who were formed in 1996, the year before Flogging Molly. Since their January 1998 debut Do or Die, the Murphys have released 10 additional albums, including their latest This Machine Still Kills Fascists. The all-acoustic album is composed of unused lyrics and words by Woody Guthrie and is the group’s first without lead vocalist Al Barr who was on hiatus from the band to take care of his ailing mother. In addition to Barr, Dropkick Murphys feature Ken Casey (lead and backing vocals, bass), Tim Brennan (accordion, mandolin, bouzouki, keyboard, piano, tin whistle, backing vocals, lead guitar), James Lynch (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Jeff DaRosa (banjo, mandolin, bouzouki, guitar, keyboard, piano, harmonica, tin whistle, backing vocals) and Matt Kelly (drums, bodhrán, backing vocals). Here’s Talking Jukebox. The music is credited to the band.

This post wouldn’t be complete with a Spotify playlist of the above songs and a few additional tunes by each of the featured artists.

Sources: Wikipedia; Warren Zeiders website; AllMusic; YouTube; Spotify

Song Musings

Today, I’m introducing a new recurring feature ingeniously titled Song Musings, in which I take a closer look at, yes, you correctly guessed it, specific songs. It can pretty much be any tune, new or old or in-between, as long as I haven’t covered it to date. This series replaces the If I Could Only Take One desert island song feature, which I finally wrapped up last week.

For my inaugural Song Musings post, I picked A Billion Balconies Facing the Sun by Welch rock band Manic Street Preachers. ‘Why that song?’ you may wonder. Because I came across it while browsing Songfacts, which I have a feeling is going to serve as a key source for Song Musings. I can’t possibly come up myself with different tunes all the time!

A Billion Balconies Facing the Sun was composed by Manics vocalist James Dean Bradfield and the band’s drummer Sean Moore, with lyrics by bassist and vocalist Nicky Wire. It appeared on their 10th studio album Postcards from a Young Man. I’m surprised this great tune didn’t become a single!

Manic Street Preachers, aka the Manics, were formed in 1986 at Oakdale Comprehensive School, Blackwood, South Wales, which all the band members attended. Bradfield and Moore were part of the initial line-up, which also featured Miles “Flicker” Woodward on bass. Three years later, they were joined by Richey Edwards (rhythm guitar, backing vocals).

Manic Street Preachers (from left): Sean Moore, Nicky Wire and James Dean Bradfield

That line-up recorded the band’s debut album Generation Terrorists released in February 1992. It received some favorable reviews and reached an impressive no. 13 on the British albums chart. Each of the next four albums climbed to even higher chart positions until the Manics hit no. 1 with their fifth album This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours, their most successful to date, which also performed strongly outside of Britain.

Manic Street Preachers are still around, with Bradfield, Wire and Moore remaining as the band’s core line-up. Their 14th and most recent album The Ultra Vivid Lament came out in September last year.

Following are some additional tidbits on A Billion Balconies Facing the Sun by Songfacts:

The song title is taken from a passage in writer J.G. Ballard’s 1996 novel, Cocaine Nights. Ballard wrote: “A billion balconies facing the sun; still, it means a final goodbye to wars and ideologies. But how do you energize people, give them some sense of community? A world lying on it’s back is vulnerable to any cunning predator.”

As befits a song title referencing JG Ballard, this pulsing rock assault blames technology and lambasts today’s laptop generation.

Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan guests on this track. Bassist Nicky Wire told Q magazine: “We were derided for wearing Guns T-shirts when we first moved to London, but they were such an important group for us growing up.”

“A Billion Balconies Facing the Sun” was previously used in 2008 by American rock band God Fires Man as the title of their debut album.

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; YouTube