Best of What’s New

It’s Saturday, which means time to take a fresh look at new music releases. This week, I decided to highlight five new tunes. The first four are included on albums, while the final pick is a single. All tracks came out yesterday (May 12).

Alfie Firmin/Lost On Me

Starting us off today is Alfie Firmin, a British singer-songwriter based in Southend-on-Sea, a coastal town about 40 miles east of London. Firmin just released his latest album Absentee. From his Bandcamp page: Containing 10 new original songs, ‘Absentee’ is Alfie’s 4th full-length album since 2018 (three as a solo artist and a fantastic album he did as part of the band Vestiges in 2018) and follows on from and expands upon the laid-back folk-rock sound hinted at on Alfie’s 2020 release ‘Waiting On’ (Self Released). ‘Absentee’ is Alfie’s most accomplished album to date. From the McCartney-esque piano balladry of ‘Lost on Me’ to the horn-laden folk-rock of ‘Can’t Stop Thinking About You’ alongside the Laurel Canyon country-shuffle of ‘December Third’ it is an album that is well-versed in the traditions of classic singer-songwriter pop filtered through the lens of Alfie’s distinctive croon. In my book, Firmin’s music is nice power pop. Here’s the above-noted Lost On Me, which indeed has a Macca vibe. I also can hear a dose of Gilbert O’Sullivan in here – lovely tune!

Bailey Zimmerman/Religiously

Bailey Zimmerman is a country-oriented singer-songwriter who already scores two multi-Plantinum no. 1 singles in the U.S. on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart since he emerged 2.5 years ago. Zimmerman, who was born in Louisville, Ill. and worked in the meat-packing industry and for a union gas pipeline before launching his current career, first started posting original music to his TikTok account in December 2020. In January 2021, he released his debut single Never Comin’ Home, followed by Fall in Love the next month, which became one of the above-mentioned no. 1 singles on the Country Airplay chart. He’s now out with his first full-length album Religiously. The Album. Here’s the opener and title track, which appeared as one of several singles. The tune was co-written by Zimmerman, Alex Palmer, Austin Shawn, Frank Romano and Marty James. This young artist certainly if off to an impressive start!

Parker Millsap/Wilderness Within You (feat. Gillian Welch)

Parker Millsap is an American singer-songwriter from Purcell, OK I first included in a Best of What’s New installment two years ago. According to his AllMusic bio, Millsap brings a maverick intensity to his brand of Americana. Ranging from the spare acoustic tone of his early-2010s output to the more nuanced structure of 2018’s rock-driven Other Arrangements, the singer and songwriter continued to hone the layers of his sound heading into the next decade. His fifth album, 2021’s Be Here Instead, was recorded live in the studio with a full band, and he fused acoustic and electronic instruments for 2023’s Wilderness Within You. Here’s the title track of his sixth and latest album, co-written by Millsap and Ryan McFadden. It features Americana artist Gillian Welch on harmony vocals – beautiful!

Nighthawk/Highest Score

Nighthawk are a fairly new rock band from Copenhagen, Denmark, blending classic arena rock and hard rock. From their Bandcamp page: Nighthawk started out as a solo project by Robert Majd (bass player in Metalite & Captain Black Beard). The idea was just to have some fun, play guitar and write some energetic rock’n’roll. The debut album featured a bunch of different singers. After that first album release in the summer of 2021 Robert got an itch to do more. This time the stakes would be higher. With the world famous Abbey Road Studios booked, a band and a collection of songs needed to match the caliber of the studio. Björn Strid (The Night Flight Orchestra, Soilwork & Donna Cannone) joined on lead vocals, Magnus Ulfstedt (Ginevra) on drums, John Lönnmyr (The Night Flight Orchestra) on keyboards and Christan Ek (Captain Black Beard) on bass. Nine original tunes together with two covers (of Kiss and Bruce Springsteen classics!) were recorded live in the studio in just two days. Here’s Highest Score, the opener of Nighthawk’s new album Prowler. Their melodic hard rock sounds pretty accessible.

John Mellencamp/The Eyes of Portland

The Eyes of Portland is the second lead single from John Mellencamp’s upcoming 25th studio album Orpheus Descending, scheduled for June 25. Fans who caught the heartland-turned-roots rocker on his current tour already heard the tune, since Mellencamp has included it in his setlist. This follows the first single Hey God, which came out on April 20 and which I covered here. Like that tune, The Eyes of Portland is an outspoken socially conscious song. It’s classic Mellencamp delivered in his distinct vocals roughened by decades of cigarette chain-smoking. I love the man and I’m really looking forward to the album!

So how about a Spotify playlist of the above and a few extra goodies? Ask and you shall receive!

Sources: Wikipedia; Alfi Firmin and Nighthawk Bandcamp pages; AllMusic; YouTube; Spotify

Ian Hunter Shows All Those Young Dudes How to Rock on New Star-Studded Album

Ian Hunter may be best known as the former lead vocalist of Mott the Hoople, but he had been a songwriter and musician for more than a decade prior to joining the British glam rockers in 1969. And since his departure from the group in 1974, Hunter has released a fairly steady stream of solo studio albums, including frequent collaborations with Mick Ronson until the untimely death of David Bowie’s former sideman in 1993 at the age of 46. Now, Hunter is out with his 15th and latest album Defiance Part 1, which arrived via Sun Records on April 21 – and, yep, that’s the storied label out of Memphis, Tenn.

According to Hunter’s website, the album first came together in early 2020 when COVID shut down the live music business and many artists took the lockdowns as an opportunity to work on new music. This included Hunter who wrote a series of new songs and recorded bare-bones demos at his home studio in Connecticut with his longtime collaborator, multi-instrumentalist and producer Andy York, who is also guitarist in John Mellencamp’s band.

When quarantine rules prevented Hunter from fleshing out the tunes in the studio with his backing group Rant Band, his manager Mike Kobayashi and Ross Halfin, a renowned music photographer, had a great idea: Reach out to some of his fellow artists who have their own home studios to see whether they would like to contribute to the tracks. Hunter did but evidently wasn’t quite prepared for what happened next.

“Everybody’s sitting around,” Hunter recalls on his website. “It’s Covid. Nobody’s going anywhere. We started sending them out [the demos/ electronic music files – CMM]. Slash started doing something. Robert Trujillo from Metallica. Ringo Starr, Mike Campbell. Joe Elliott [Def Leppard lead vocalist – CMM] is on a few tracks. Johnny Depp said ‘Jeff Beck’s with me and we’d like to do a couple of songs.’ I know Todd Rundgren, I toured with Todd way back, he’s done an amazing job. Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top guitarist – CMM]. Billy Bob Thornton and JD Andrew from The Boxmasters. It’s never ending. I mean, every day we’d get a phone call, this guy wants to do it, that guy wants to do it. It was like, I can’t believe this.”

Time for some music. Let’s get started with the kickass opener and title track Defiance. “There are a lot of reasons for calling this album DEFIANCE,” Hunter notes. “It’s like, people my age shouldn’t be making records, blah, blah, blah. But we’ve still got a bit left.” Hunter who is turning 84 in June certainly leaves no doubt about that. The tune features Slash on electric rhythm and lead guitars and Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo who used the signature fretless bass by the late Jaco Pastorious, the same instrument the virtuoso played on Hunter’s 1976 sophomore solo album All American Alien Boy.

Since I previously covered the excellent Bed of Roses featuring Ringo Starr and Mike Campbell, I’m skipping it here and going to Pavlov’s Dog. The ferocious rocker includes the surviving members of Stone Temple Pilots, brothers Dean DeLeo (guitar) and Robert DeLeo (bass) and Eric Kretz (drums).

One of the lyrical standouts on the album is I Hate Hate.

…I hate hate
It’s tearing us apart
I hate hate
From the bottom of my heart

I hate hate
It’s spreading like an epidemic
Ain’t no jabs
No one is immune

I hate hate
It’s all about the money
I hate hate,
And hate is in bloom…

Sadly, the words remain more relevant than ever!

Angel is one of the slower tunes on the album. It features the late Taylor Hawkins (former drummer of Foo Fighters) on drums, electric guitars, electric piano and backing vocals, Duff McKagan (bass; formerly of Guns N’ Roses), Aerosmith’s Brad Whitford (slide guitar) and prominent session musician Waddy Wachtel (12-string acoustic guitar, lead electric guitars).

The last track I’d like to call out is This Is What I’m Here For, another tune featuring Hawkins, this time on drums only. Wachtel provided electric rhythm and electric guitars, while Def Leppard’s Elliott sang backing vocals.

All songs were written by Ian Hunter who also played piano or electric guitar on most tracks. Defiance Part 1 was produced by Andy York and Hunter. “It’s like when I worked with Ronno [Mick Ronson – CMM],” Hunter told Rock Cellar magazine, commenting on York. “I’m blood and guts in the studio. I want drama 1-10. Andy takes care of all that, the minutiae, the same as Ronson used to do. He’s a stickler. He has to get everything right. I’m a lot kind of, “Well, that will do.” Not with Andy. Andy’s not like that. It’s gotta be right. I need somebody like that.”

Here’s a Spotify link to the album.

But wait, there’s more. Hunter’s website notes there will be Defiance Part 2, which will feature an equally stunning range of special guests while projecting an entirely different thematic approach and songwriting aesthetic. “Well, we’ve got to finish the second part,” Hunter said when asked by Rock Cellar about touring plans. “It’s about 60 percent, 70 percent done. But my co-producer Andy’s out with John Mellencamp till July, so we won’t get it finished till late summer. We’ll see then.”

Sources: Wikipedia; Ian Hunter website; Rock Cellar; YouTube; Spotify

The Follow-Up: John Mellencamp & Foo Fighters

New singles and forthcoming albums by John Mellencamp and Foo Fighters I didn’t include in my Best of What’s New post from Saturday are a good reason for another installment of The Follow-Up. The idea of this recently introduced feature is to supplement my weekly new music revue with short takes of new music I missed or didn’t cover for other reasons.

John Mellencamp – Hey God

On April 20, John Mellencamp released Hey God, the first single from his forthcoming 25th studio album Orpheus Descending, which is scheduled to drop on June 25. Stylistically, the tune would have fit on Mellencamp’s previous album Strictly a One-Eyed Jack. When it comes to the lyrics, the roots rocker leaves no doubt about what was on his mind when he wrote the words.

Weapons and guns, are they really my rights
Laws written a long time ago
No one could imagine the sight
Of so many dead on the floor

Hey God, if you’re still there
Would you please come down
Hey God, if you’re still there
Would you please come down…

Like his two previous albums, Orpheus Descending was produced by John Mellencamp and recorded at his own Belmont Mall Studio in Belmont, Ind. He has performed Hey God and The Eyes of Portland, another (still unreleased) tune from the new album, during his ongoing Live and In Person 2023 North American tour, which is scheduled to run through late June.

Foo Fighters – Rescued

Last Wednesday (April 19), Foo Fighters announced their first album since the untimely death of drummer Taylor Hawkins in Bogotá, Columbia in March 2022 at the age of 50 during the band’s tour in South America. They also released Rescued, a great raw-sounding rocker and the album’s first single.

From a statement on the group’s website: Following a year of staggering losses, personal introspection and bittersweet remembrances, Foo Fighters return with But Here We Are, out June 2 on Roswell Records/RCA Records.

A brutally honest and emotionally raw response to everything Foo Fighters endured over the last year, But Here We Are is a testament to the healing powers of music, friendship and family. Courageous, damaged and unflinchingly authentic, But Here We Are opens with newly released lead single “Rescued,” the first of 10 songs that run the emotional gamut from rage and sorrow to serenity and acceptance, and myriad points in between.

Produced by Greg Kurstin [who in addition to Foo Fighters has worked with the likes of Adele, Kelly Clarkson, Beck and Paul McCartney – CMM] and Foo Fighters, But Here We Are is in nearly equal measure the 11th Foo Fighters album and the first chapter of the band’s new life. Sonically channelling the naiveté of Foo Fighters’ 1995 debut, informed by decades of maturity and depth, But Here We Are is the sound of brothers finding refuge in the music that brought them together in the first place 28 years ago, a process that was as therapeutic as it was about a continuation of life.

Sources: John Mellencamp website; Foo Fighters website; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday morning, afternoon, or evening – in whichever time zone you are, I hope you’re doing great and are in the mood to join me on another journey to visit music of the past and the present century. This trip will have six stops in the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and 2008.

Shorty Rogers Quintet/Breezin’ Along in the Trades

Let’s start today’s journey by setting our music time machine to the year 1957. That’s when the Shorty Rogers Quintet released an album titled Wherever the Five Winds Blow. Born in 1924 Milton Rajonsky, Shorty Rogers was a trumpet and flugelhorn player who was instrumental in creating West Coast jazz. According to Wikipedia, this jazz style was developed in the 1950s in San Francisco and Los Angeles and is often viewed as a subgenre of cool jazz. Rajonsky who hailed from Great Barrington, Mass. started his career in the ’40s, working with Will Bradley, Red Norvo and Woody Herman. In the early ’50s, he played with Stan Kenton. In 1952, he released his debut as a bandleader, Modern Sounds, the first of many such albums that would appear over the next 40 years. Apart from playing as a sideman, Rajonsky also became a sought-after arranger of jazz music and beyond. Notable examples of the latter include The Monkees, e.g., Daydream Believer, and Bobbie Gentry’s first three albums. Rajonsky passed away from melanoma in November 1974 at the age of 70. Coming back to Wherever the Five Winds Blow, here’s Breezin’ Along in the Trades, a beautiful original composition. Shorty Rogers (trumpet) was backed by Jimmy Giuffre (clarinet, saxophone), Lou Levy (piano), Ralph Pena (bass) and Larry Bunker (drums).

The Jayhawks/Wichita

Our next stop takes us to September 1992 and Hollywood Town Hall, the third studio album by The Jayhawks. Since coming across them in August 2020, I’ve come to like this American alt. country and country rock band. Initially formed in Minneapolis in 1985, The Jayhawks originally featured Mark Olson (acoustic guitar, vocals), Gary Louris (electric guitar, vocals), Marc Perlman (bass) and Norm Rogers (drums). By the time Hollywood Town Hall was released, Rogers had been replaced by Ken Callahan. After four additional albums and more line-up changes, the group went on hiatus in 2004. They reemerged with a new formation in 2009, which still includes Louris and Pearlman, and have since released four additional albums, most recently July 2020’s XOXO. Hollywood Town Hall became the group’s first album that made the U.S. mainstream chart Billboard 200 (no. 192). Notably, it also climbed to no. 11 on the Top Heatseekers. Here’s the great Wichita, co-written by Olson, Louris and Pearlman.

The Who/I Can See For Miles

Time for a stopover in the ’60s to visit one of my all-time favorite bands. In December 1967, The Who released their third studio album The Who Sell Out. Primarily written by guitarist Pete Townshend with contributions from bassist John Entwistle and Thunderclap Newman vocalist Speedy Keen, the brilliant concept album includes a collection of songs interspersed with fake commercials and public service announcements. One of the tracks is I Can See For Miles, which also appeared separately as the lead single in October 1967. Townshend was convinced he had written a hit, yet the single “only” reached no. 10 in the UK. It did best in Canada, where it climbed to no. 8, and also charted slightly higher in the U.S., getting to no. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached the top 40 in New Zealand (no. 13), Australia (no. 20), The Netherlands (no. 28) and Germany (no. 37). Yet Townshend was disappointed. To me, it was the ultimate Who record, yet it didn’t sell,” he later commented. “I spat on the British record buyer.” While I wouldn’t call the tune’s chart performance terrible, I do agree with Townshend that I Can See For Miles is one of the gems by the British rockers.

John Mellencamp/Theo and Weird Henry

Let’s move on to the late ’80s. In May 1989, John Mellencamp released his 10th studio album Big Daddy, the last under the John Cougar Mellencamp name. Musically, the record continued his transition from heartland straight rocker to roots-oriented artist, which had begun with its predecessor The Lonesome Jubilee. Lyrically, it presents a collection of largely reflective songs. “Big Daddy was the best record I ever made,” Mellencamp told The Associated Press in December 1991 in the wake of his 11th studio album Whenever We Wanted. “Out of my agony came a couple of really beautiful songs. You can’t be 22 years old and had two dates and understand that album.” For context, the AP story also quoted Mellencamp as saying, “I had a daughter who grew up and I didn’t know who she was [I assume he referred to Michelle from his first marriage to Priscilla Esterline – CMM]. I was getting a divorce [from Victoria Granucci, his second wife – CMM] and I didn’t want one.” Big Daddy became best known for its lead single Pop Singer, which topped the charts in Canada and New Zealand and peaked at no. 8 in Australia. In the U.S., it surged to no. 2 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart and reached no. 15 on the Hot 100. Theo and Weird Henry, on the other hand, is a deep cut I love. It’s got more of a heartland rock vibe.

10cc/The Things We Do For Love

Our next stop takes us back again, to December 1976. That’s when British art pop band 10cc released The Things We Do For Love as a single. Co-written by guitarist Eric Stewart and bassist Graham Gouldman, who had founded the group with Lol Creme (guitar, keyboards) and Kevin Godley (drums) in July 1972, the tune was also included on their fifth studio album Deceptive Bends from May 1977. The Things We Do For Love placed in the top 10 singles charts in the UK (no. 5), Australia (no.) and the U.S. (no. 6). In Canada, it became their second no. 1 after I’m Not in Love, which had become 10cc’s breakthrough hit outside the UK in May 1975. I’ve liked the band’s often quirky songs since my teenage years. 10cc are still around as a touring act led by Gouldman and have been on the road for The Ultimate Greatest Hits Tour, which has upcoming gigs in The Netherlands before moving on to New Zealand and Australia in June. The current schedule is here.

The Hold Steady/Constructive Summer

And once again, we’re reaching the final stop of yet another music time travel trip, which takes us to the current century. In July 2008, The Hold Steady released their fourth studio album Stay Positive – kudos to fellow blogger Graham from Aphoristic Album Reviews who recently reminded me of the New York indie rock band by ranking their nine studio albums that have appeared to date. One of the albums he suggested I check out is Stay Positive. I did and voila! The Hold Steady first entered my radar screen in late March with their most recent studio release The Price of Progress. Formed in 2003, their current lineup includes co-founders Craig Finn (lead vocals, guitar), Tad Kubler (lead guitar, backing vocals) and Galen Polivka (bass), along with Steve Selvidge (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Franz Nicolay (piano, keyboards, accordion, harmonica, backing vocals) and Bobby Drake (drums, percussion). Wikipedia  notes The Hold Steady are known for their “lyrically dense storytelling”, “classic rock influences” and “narrative-based songs [that] frequently address themes, such as drug addiction, religion and redemption, and often feature recurring characters within the city of Minneapolis.” Let’s wrap things up with Constructive Summer, the kickass opener of Stay Positive. Like all other tracks on the album, it was co-written by Finn and Kubler.

So where’s the bloody Spotify playlist? Ask and you shall receive!

Sources: Wikipedia; Associated Press/Bowling Green Daily News; 10cc website; YouTube; Spotify

Song Musings

Happy humpday and welcome to another installment of Song Musings where I take a closer look at tunes I’ve only mentioned in passing or not covered at all. If you’ve been a frequent visitor to my blog or are aware of my music taste otherwise, you probably know John Mellencamp has been one of my favorite artists for many years. As such, it was only a matter of time before I would cover him as part of this weekly recurring feature.

I guess the heartland-straight-rock-turned-roots-artist from Seymour, Indiana doesn’t need much of an introduction. Mellencamp, who at the time still was John Cougar, first entered my radar screen in 1982 with a little ditty about Jack & Diane, his second big hit single in the U.S. and Canada. Strangely, according to Wikipedia, the tune, off his fifth studio album American Fool, didn’t chart in Germany, even though I seem to remember hearing it on my then-favorite mainstream radio station all the time. The first Mellencamp album I bought was Scarecrow released in August 1985.

By the time Big Daddy appeared in 1989, Mellencamp had started his transition from straight heartland to more roots and Americana-oriented rock. He had begun to take that direction on his 1987 album The Lonesome Jubilee, which remains among my favorite Mellencamp albums to this day. While I continue to dig his earlier straight rock sound, I’ve come to prefer his roots-focused music. I also like how his vocals have become much rougher over the decades.

This brings me to my song pick for this week: Big Daddy of Them All, from the aforementioned Big Daddy, Mellencamp’s 10th studio album – the last released as John Cougar Mellencamp. He hated the Cougar name, which had been given to him by his former manager Tony DeFries who insisted “Mellencamp” was too hard to market and pretty much imposed the awkward stage name Johnny Cougar on him.

Big Daddy of Them All did not become one of the album’s four singles. Like all except one track, it was penned by Mellencamp. While overall Big Daddy didn’t match the chart and sales success of its predecessor The Lonesome Jubilee, it still did pretty well, becoming Mellencamp’s first album to top the Australian charts, climbing to no. 3 and no. 7 in Canada and the U.S., respectively, and charting in various European countries. Eventually, Big Daddy reached 2X Platinum status in Canada and Platinum certification in the U.S. and Australia.

Here’s a live version of the tune from 2005, captured during Mellencamp’s Words and Music Tour.

Following are some additional tidbits on Big Daddy of Them All from Songfacts:

“Big Daddy Of Them All” was inspired by Burl Ives’ portrayal of Big Daddy in the 1958 movie version of Tennessee Williams’ Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Mellencamp said in the liner notes for the On The Rural Route 7609 box set: “This song was more or less a postcard to myself, saying, ‘You think Burl Ives wasn’t so nice? Guess what, John.'”

This song is one of the more personal in Mellencamp’s canon. By his own admission, he could be bossy and dismissive, and outright hostile to the media. Still, he was one of the most successful recording artists of the ’80s, earning money, fame, and adulation. Just one problem: None of those things were important to him.

In this song, he draws a parallel to the Big Daddy character in Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Big Daddy was rich, philandering, and cantankerous, which did him no good when he reached the end of his life. Mellencamp was still in his 30s, but he could see where his life was headed. At the time, his second marriage was crumbling down.

This is the lead track on Mellencamp’s Big Daddy album, and the song that provided the title. It has a very rootsy feel, with a prominent violin (by Lisa Germano) and accordion (by John Cascella). This kind of instrumentation is prominent throughout the Big Daddy album.

It’s worth noting that Paul Newman stars in the 1958 adaptation of Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, which inspired this song. He plays Brick, Big Daddy’s son. Paul Newman movies also made their way into Mellencamp’s songs “Paper In Fire,” which cribs a line from Hud, and “Rain On The Scarecrow,” which borrows from dialogue in Cool Hand Luke.

This song was a milestone for Mellencamp, who had a bit of a revelation. “At one time I thought I had all this stuff figured out, then I realized I didn’t,” he explained. “And I realized, like I said in ‘Big Daddy,’ when you live for yourself it’s hard on everybody. I didn’t realize I was hard to live with. It never dawned on me.”

“You gotta grow up and deal with what’s real,” he added. “Happiness, finding out who you are, and learning how to be a human being is what’s real.” (This interview appears in his VH1 “Coming Of Age” documentary.)

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; YouTube

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday morning, afternoon, or evening, wherever you are! Are you ready to embark on another excursion into the great world of music? Six tunes at a time? I am and hope you’ll join me!

Oscar Peterson Trio/Got It Bad (And That Ain’t Good)

There’s just something about jazz and Sunday mornings, which makes them a perfect match. Chances are you’ve heard of Oscar Peterson, even if you’re like me, meaning you’re not a jazz expert. In my case, I believe it was at my brother-in-law’s place where I first encountered the Canadian jazz pianist many moons ago. Over a 60-year-plus active career spanning the years 1945-2007, Peterson released more than 200 recordings and received many honors and awards, including seven Grammys, among others. None other than Duke Ellington called Peterson the “Maharaja of the keyboard.” Evidently, the admiration was mutual. Here’s I Got It Bad (And That Ain’t Good), originally released in 1942, with music by Sir Duke and lyrics by Paul Francis Webster. Ellington covered the tune on an album titled Night Train, which appeared in 1963 as the Duke Ellington Trio. He was backed by Ray Brown (double bass) and Ed Thigpen (drums).

Sting/If I Ever Lose My Faith In You

Next, let’s travel to May 1993 and another great artist who I trust needs no introduction: Sting. Born Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, the British musician and actor first gained prominence as the frontman, songwriter and bassist of The Police. By the time the group played their last gig in June 1986 prior to their break-up, Sting had already launched his solo career with the album The Dream of the Blue Turtles from June 1985. My pick is from his fourth solo effort, Ten Summoner’s Tales, which I think is his Mount Rushmore: If I Ever Lose My Faith In You. Sting remains active to this day and in November 2021 released his 15th solo album The Bridge. He’s currently on the road for what looks like a fairly extensive international “My Songs” tour, which includes the U.S. and Europe. The schedule is here.

David Bowie/Rebel Rebel

While David Bowie was a pretty versatile artist, I’ve always been particularly drawn to his glam rock-oriented phase. You give me the Ziggy Stardust album any day, and I’m a happy camper! By the time Bowie released his eighth studio album Diamond Dogs in May 1974, his glam rock phase was largely over. His backing band The Spiders From Mars had disbanded. Mick Ronson’s absence prompted Bowie to take over guitar duties himself. On Rebel Rebel, he proved that worked out quite well!…Rebel, rebel, you’ve torn your dress/Rebel, rebel, your face is a mess/Rebel, rebel, how could they know?/Hot tramp, I love you so!…

Patricia Bahia/Hold On

Our next stop takes us to the present with a compelling tune by a contemporary artist you may not have heard of: Patricia Bahia. I had not been aware of this Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter myself until recently. From her website: An award-winning songwriter, singer, cancer survivor, and coach, Patricia Bahia (pronounced bah-HEE-yah) is a multi-dimensional artist and songwriter-in-service who lives her bucket list and helps others to do the same. “Though I was always a singer, I didn’t write my first song until after receiving a cancer diagnosis in 2003. I’d spent my life doing what was expected of me, pursuing a career as a lawyer, living out someone else’s dream, while secretly harboring a dream of writing songs.”…Patricia encourages others to follow their own dreams, saying, “I am living proof that it is never too late to start living your dream. My mission is to spread love, healing, joy, and peace through the power of words and music, and to inspire others to follow their own dreams.” Here’s Hold On, a beautiful and powerful song Bahia released in September 2021.

John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band/On the Dark Side

Time to throw in some ’80s music. This next pick is from the soundtrack of the 1983 American musical drama picture Eddie and the Cruisers. The tale about the mysterious disappearance of cult rock star Eddie Wilson and his group Eddie and the Cruisers featured music by John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band, a group from Rhode Island that had started out as a bar band in 1972. The soundtrack, most of which was written by Cafferty and his band, gave them their international breakthrough. Despite some success with a self-released single in 1980, they were largely ignored by major record labels due to frequent critical comparisons of their music to Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band. When listening to On the Dark Side, the similarities are obvious. The tune sounds like a blend of Springsteen and John Mellencamp’s R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. That being said, On the Dark Side preceded Mellencamp’s hit by two years! In any case, it’s a cool song, and the Springsteen flavor doesn’t bother me at all!

Jefferson Airplane/Somebody to Love

Let’s take off one last time for today and go back to February 1967 and Surrealistic Pillow, the sophomore album by Jefferson Airplane. At that time, they had been around for approximately two years and released their debut Jefferson Airplane Takes Off in August 1966. While that record made the U.S. charts, climbing to no. 128, it was Surrealistic Pillow that actually made them take off. It also was Airplane’s first record with vocalist Grace Slick and drummer Spencer Dryden, who together with Jorma Kaukonen (lead guitar, vocals), Marty Balin (rhythm guitar, vocals), Paul Kantner (rhythm guitar, vocals) and Jack Casady (bass) completed their line-up at the time. The album’s second single Somebody to Love became the band’s biggest U.S. hit, surging to no. 5 on the pop chart. Penned by Darby Slick, Grace’s brother-in-law and originally titled Someone to Love, the tune first had been released by Darby’s band The Great Society in February 1966. At that same time, Grace was a member of the group as well and also sang lead on the original recording.

Last but not least, here’s a Spotify playlist of the above tracks. Hope you enjoyed today’s trip! The journey shall continue next Sunday!

Sources: Wikipedia; Sting website; Patricia Bahia website; YouTube; Spotify

If I Could Only Take One

Happy Wednesday with another decision which one tune to take on an imaginary trip to a desert island.

In case you’re new to this weekly recurring feature, the idea is to pick one song by an artist or band I’ve only rarely mentioned or not covered at all on my blog to date. This excludes many popular options like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Pink Floyd, Steely Dan, Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Carole King and Bonnie Raitt, to name some of my longtime favorite artists. I’m also doing this exercise in alphabetical order, and I’m up to the letter “q”.

How many bands or artists do you know whose names/last names start with “q”? The ones that came to my mind included Quarterflash, Queen and Quiet Riot. And, of course, my pick, Can the Can by Suzi Quatro. Yes, perhaps it’s not the type of song that would be your first, second or even third pick to take on a desert island, but it’s a great kickass rock tune anyway!

Can the Can, penned by songwriters and producers Mike Chapman and Nicky Chinn, was Quatro’s second solo single and her first to chart. And it was a smash, topping the charts in the UK, Germany, Switzerland and Australia. It also climbed to no. 2 in Austria and no. 5 in Ireland. In Quatro’s home country the U.S., the tune fared more moderately, reaching no. 56 on the Billboard Hot 100. American music listeners just weren’t as much into glam rock as audiences in other parts of the world, especially in Europe. Can the Can was also included on Quatro’s eponymous debut album, released in October 1973.

Here’s a bit of additional background on Suzie Quatro from her bio on AllMusic: With her trademark leather jump suit, instantly hooky songs, and big bass guitar, Suzi Quatro is a glam rock icon with a window-rattling voice and rock & roll attitude to spare. After getting her start in garage and hard rock bands, 1973’s breakthrough single “Can the Can,” a stomping blast of glam rock that combined ’50s-style song craft with Quatro’s powerful vocals, made her an international star. She followed up with a string of similar-sounding singles and albums — and made an impression on TV viewers with her role on the hit sitcom Happy Days — before softening her sound and scoring a hit with the 1978 ballad “Stumblin’ In.” While her work in the future would encompass everything from new wave pop on 1983’s Main Attraction to starring in a musical based on the life of Tallulah Bankhead in 1991, Quatro never lost her instincts as a rocker, as evidenced by albums like 2006’s Back to the Drive and 2021’s The Devil in Me.

When I heard Can the Can for the first time in the mid-’70s, it was not by Suzi Quatro but by German vocalist Joy Fleming. While I don’t know much about Fleming except for a 1974 live album titled Joy Fleming Live, I know one thing. She was a hell of a vocalist! Check this out!

Here are a few additional tidbits on Can the Can and Suzie Quatro from Songfacts:

…Quatro is an American who joined Mickie Most’s RAK label roster, becoming part of the glam rock revolution. Most produced her first single, “Rolling Stone,” but it went nowhere, so he asked songwriters Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman to write and produce her next single. The result was “Can The Can.”

When asked what “Can The Can” means, Nicky Chinn replied: “It means something that is pretty impossible, you can’t get one can inside another if they are the same size, so we’re saying you can’t put your man in the can if he is out there and not willing to commit. The phrase sounded good and we didn’t mind if the public didn’t get the meaning of it.”

Suzi Quatro: “I can hear a record for the first time and know whether it will be a hit. And I knew as soon as we had finished recording that we had a big hit on our hands.” (above quotes from 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh)

This was the first #1 UK hit for a solo female artist since “Those Were The Days” by Mary Hopkin in 1968.

Quatro never hit it big in her native America, although she did have a memorable role on the TV series Happy Days playing Leather Tuscadero. She landed several more UK hits, including the #1 “Devil Gate Drive,” and influenced a generation of female rockers, notably Joan Jett.

Quatro wrote many of her own songs, but they tended to be album cuts, with the Chapman/Chinn team getting the singles. In a Songfacts interview with Quatro, she explained: “I was very boogie-based, very bass-based. And they went away and wrote ‘Can the Can.’ We had the arrangement where I could write the albums, and they would write the three-minute single – although I did have singles out myself, like ‘Mama’s Boy.’ I didn’t learn anything from their songwriting, because I always had my own thing. Whatever I did, I did.”

Suzi Quatro, who turned 72 a few weeks ago, continues to rock on. And tour. Her current schedule is here. Here’s Can the Can captured at London’s Royal Albert Hall in April this year. What a cool lady!

Sources: Wikipedia; Suzi Quatro website; YouTube

The Sunday Six

Welcome to another Sunday Six where I’d like to celebrate the beauty of music in different flavors over the past 60 years or so, six tunes at a time. Let’s embark on today’s journey.

Wayne Shorter/Infant Eyes

Getting us underway today is soothing jazz by saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter. In addition to being a sideman playing with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and Miles Davis’ Second Great Quintet, Shorter started his recording career as a bandleader in 1959 with Introducing Wayne Shorter – the first of more than 20 additional albums he has made in that role. In 1970, Shorter became a co-founder of jazz fusion band Weather Report. Here’s Infant Eyes, a beautiful track he composed for his sixth album Speak No Evil, which appeared in June 1966. After an incredible 60-year-plus recording career Shorter (88 years) is now retired.

John Cougar Mellencamp/Rain On The Scarecrow

Next, let’s go to August 1985 and the eighth studio album by heartland-turned-roots rock artist John Mellencamp, who I trust doesn’t need much of an introduction. Scarecrow was the record that brought Mellencamp on my radar screen. At the time, he was still known as John Cougar Mellencamp and nine years into his recording career that had started in 1976 with the Chestnut Street Incident, released as Johnny Cougar. His manager at the time, Tony Defries, had come up with this name, convinced an artist with the last name Mellencamp wouldn’t generate much interest. Mellencamp who hated the name kept “Cougar” through Scarecrow before finally adopting his real name John Mellencamp for the follow-on album The Lonesome Jubilee from August 1987. While Scarecrow is best known for its U.S. top 10 hits R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A., Small Town and Lonely Ol’ Night, I decided to highlight Rain On The Scarecrow, a tune I’ve always loved. Mellencamp penned it together with his childhood friend and longtime writing partner George Green.

The Byrds/Tiffany Queen

Every time I hear the name The Byrds, my first thought is the jingle-jangle guitar sound perfected by Rickenbacker maestro guitarist and vocalist Roger McGuinn. From the very first moment I heard songs like Mr. Tambourine Man, All I Really Want to Do and Turn! Turn! Turn! I was hooked, and I still get excited about the sound of a Rickenbacker to this day. While I knew there was more to The Byrds than a jangly guitar sound and great harmony singing, until the other day, I had not been aware of Tiffany Queen. Written by McGuinn, it became the opener of their 11th studio album Farther Along from November 1971. By that time, McGuinn was the band’s only original member, though the other co-founders Gene Clarke, David Crosby, Michael Clarke and Chris Hillman reunited with McGuinn one more time for the group’s 1973 eponymous final album. Here’s Tiffany Queen, which compared to the three above-mentioned tunes has more of a straight rock sound- I like it!

Fats Domino/Blueberry Hill

Yes, it may seem a bit arbitrary to throw in Blueberry Hill by Fats Domino. But then again, this goes to the central idea of The Sunday Six to feature music from different eras, in a zig-zag fashion. Plus, it’s a timeless classic! Written by Vincent Rose with lyrics by John L. Rooney, Blueberry Hill was first recorded by the Sammy Kaye Orchestra in May 1940, featuring Tommy Ryan on vocals. In 1940 alone, the tune was recorded five more times, including by the Glenn Miller Orchestra, the most successful of the six versions, which reached no. 2 on the U.S. charts. But to this day, Blueberry Hill is best remembered by Fats Domino’s amazing rendition released in 1956. It was also included on Domino’s third studio album This Is Fats Domino!, which came out in December that year. It became his sixth no. 1 on the U.S. R&B chart and his biggest hit on the mainstream Billboard Hot 100 (no. 2), then-called the Top 100. Feel free to groove along!

Peter Gabriel/Steam

Recently, fellow blogger Dave from A Sound Day hosted another great installment of his Turntable Talk feature, which focused on the MTV music video era. Dave was kind enough to invite me back to participate, and as I noted in my contribution, Peter Gabriel’s Sledgehammer would get my vote for best video. With the ex-Genesis lead vocalist on my mind, perhaps it’s not a big surprise a Gabriel tune is included in this Sunday Six. While I generally prefer So and his earlier albums, I decided to pick a song from Us, the follow-on to So, released in September 1992. Here’s Steam, a nice funky pop tune. It also appeared separately as a single in January 1993 and became Gabriel’s final significant chart success. This included a no. 1 in Canada and top 10 placements in the UK, Ireland and New Zealand. In the U.S., the song steamed to no. 2 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart. Songfacts notes similarities to Sledgehammer, including prominent horn lines and lyrics “loaded with sexual references.” I guess that’s a fair observation. It doesn’t bother me!

Sheryl Crow/Real Gone

And once again it’s time to wrap up. Since Sheryl Crow entered my radar screen in 1993 with All I Wanna Do, her breakthrough hit from her debut album Tuesday Night Music Club, I’ve enjoyed listening to her music. When she released Threads in August 2019, which I reviewed here, she noted the collaboration album was her final full-length release. Crow cited changed listening habits where most people build their own playlists rather than listen to albums. As sad as it is, it’s a fair point. Plus, Crow hasn’t retired from the music business and has since released a few additional singles. Plus, she’s currently on the road. Real Gone is a nice rock tune from the soundtrack of the 2006 animated film Cars, which appeared in May 2006. My son was four and a half years old at the time and liked the toy cars from Cars – dad liked them as well! Real Gone, which also was released in June 2006 as the second single from the soundtrack, was co-written by Crow and John Shanks who also produced the tune.

Last but least, here’s a Spotify list featuring the above picks.

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; Sheryl Crow website; YouTube; Spotify

If I Could Only Take One

Happy Wednesday and welcome to another installment of my desert island song exercise. If you’re a first-time visitor, I hope you’ll stick around and come back.

My song choice this week falls outside my ’60s and ’70s core wheelhouse, so in case you dig music from these two decades but are less excited about this pick, I hope you’ll check out some of the other posts and return. Should you love the tune I selected but are less sure about the ’60s and ’70s, come back anyway and allow me to demonstrate how much great music these two decades have to offer. BTW, you’ll also find some contemporary music on this blog.

After this shameless attempt of self-promotion, here are the rules: I’m about to embark on an imaginary trip to a desert island and need to decide which one song (not an album!) to take with me. Moreover, it must be a tune by an artist or a band I’ve only rarely written about or not covered at all. I’m doing this exercise in alphabetical order, based on my music library, and I’m up to the letter “m”.

Artists (their last names) and bands starting with the letter “m” are a sizeable pool in my music universe and, for example, include The Mamas & The Papas, Manfred Mann’s Earth Band, Paul McCartney, John Mellencamp, Men At Work, The Moody Blues and Mumford & Sons. And my pick is La Isla Bonita by Madonna.

Yes, I like a good number of her songs but must immediately qualify for the most part I’m referring to music on her first four albums. I’m also not familiar at all with her two most recent albums Rebel Heart (March 2015) and Madame X (June 2019). I vaguely recall sampling a few tunes from MDNA (March 2012). Afterwards, I stopped paying attention altogether. Other contenders for my specific song choice included Borderline, Into the Groove, Papa Don’t Preach and Like a Prayer. Not only has La Isla Bonita been among my favorite Madonna tunes for many years, but I also felt it’s a perfect fit for the occasion.

The Spanish pop-flavored tune was co-written by Madonna and co-producers Patrick Leonard and Stephen Bray. It first appeared on Madonna’s third studio album True Blue, which came out in May 1986. The song was also released separately as the album’s fifth and last single in February 1987.

Both the single and the album enjoyed substantial international chart success. La Isla Bonita went to no. 1 in Canada, France, Germany, Switzerland in the UK, while the album topped the charts in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. Europe definitely loved Madonna!

True Blue also became Madonna’s most commercially successful record globally, with more than 25 million units sold worldwide, and her third-highest seller in the U.S. where it reached 7x Platinum certification (verified sales of 7 million units) as of February 1995. In a review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine called True Blue “the album where Madonna truly became Madonna the Superstar – the endlessly ambitious, fearlessly provocative entertainer who knew how to outrage, spark debates, get good reviews — and make good music while she’s at it.” The album was also well-received by many other music critics.

How about La Isla Bonita gypsy style. This cool live reinterpretation captured in 2007 features guitarist Eugene Hütz and violinist Sergey Ryabtsev, both from Gogol Bordello, a gypsy punk band formed in New York City in 1999. Check this out – man, what a performance!

I’m leaving you with a few additional tidbits from Songfacts:

“La Isla Bonita” means “The Beautiful Island” in Spanish. In the song, Madonna sings about the beautiful island of San Pedro, where she longs to be. San Pedro is not a real island. In a 2009 interview with Rolling Stone, Madonna said, “I don’t know where that came from. I don’t know where San Pedro is. At that point, I wasn’t a person who went on holidays to beautiful islands. I may have been on the way to the studio and seen an exit ramp for San Pedro.”

This song provided yet another look and sound for Madonna, as it had a Spanish theme. In an interview with the New York Times, she called the song, “A tribute to the beauty and mystery of Latin American people.”

Songwriter and producer Patrick Leonard wrote this for Michael Jackson, but Jackson claimed he didn’t like the title and turned down the song. Leonard then offered it to Madonna, who rewrote some of the lyrics in her style. Leonard worked with Madonna on many of her other hits including: “Live To Tell,” “Who’s That Girl,” “The Look Of Love,” “Like A Prayer,” “Cherish,” “Oh, Father,” “Frozen” and “Nothing Really Matters.”

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; Songfacts; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Welcome to another Sunday Six, a celebration of music in different flavors of the past and the present, six tunes at a time. To those celebrating, Happy Easter! If you don’t observe the holiday, I still hope you’re enjoying the weekend. And just in case you’re looking for some great music, I have some humble suggestions. Hope on our magical time machine and let’s go!

Ahmad Jamal/For All We Know

Today’s journey starts in 1960 with relaxing jazz music by Ahmad Jamal. According to his website, he was born in July 1930 in Pittsburgh, Pa. and already began playing the piano at the age of 3. By the age of 10, Jamal was composing, orchestrating and performing works by Franz Liszt, exploring the music of Duke Ellington, Art Tatum, Nat Cole, Erroll Garner and a host of music notables...At 17, he left home at the request of the George Hudson Orchestra and began touring the country...He formed his own group in 1951 and with the help of John Hammond started his recording career with Okeh Records. Today, more than 70 years later, the now-91-year-old Jamal still appears to be active. His most recent album Ballads appeared in September 2019 – what an amazing career! For All We Know, which initially had been published in 1934 with music by J. Fred Coots and lyrics by Sam M. Lewis, was included on Happy Moods, a 1960 album Jamal recorded with Israel Crosby on bass and Vernel Fournier on drums – my type of music to start a Sunday morning!

Big Star/September Gurls

Next, we turn to the ’70s and power-pop band Big Star, to which Max from PowerPop blog introduced me and safe to assume other readers a while ago. Formed in Memphis, Tenn. in 1971 by Alex Chilton (guitars, piano, vocals), Chris Bell (guitars, vocals), Andy Hummel (bass, vocals) and Jody Stephens (drums), the group was initially active until 1975, during which they recorded two albums. While each received excellent reviews, both records were “commercial failures” due to ineffective marketing and other record label issues. For more on the band’s unfortunate history, I’d encourage you to visit Max’s blog, who has written about them various times, most recently here. One of Big Star’s best-known tunes is September Gurls, written by Chilton, off their sophomore album Radio City that appeared in February 1974. It’s hard to believe this catchy power-pop gem didn’t become a hit at the time. Twelve years later, the Bangles included a great cover on their hugely successful second album Different Light, the version I had known and loved for many years. When I listened to the original first, I immediately dug it just as much!

Bonnie Raitt/Made Up Mind

I’m very excited about this next pick, which is the most recent single by one of my all-time favorite artists: Bonnie Raitt. If you’re a more frequent visitor of the blog, you’ve probably seen me rave about Raitt and her great musicianship as a slide guitarist before. I think she’s an exceptional artist who has battled and overcome significant challenges during her 50-year-plus career. Made Up Mind, released on February 25, is from Raitt’s upcoming new album Just Like That…, slated for April 22. The tune was co-written by David Landreth, Joseph Sydney Landreth and Jonathan Singleton. Damn, now I want to see Bonnie again even more than I did before! If you like her music and haven’t been to one of her shows, I’d encourage you to catch her if you can. Her current national tour kicked off last evening in Hampton, N.H. Here’s the schedule. This lady is just amazing!

John Mellencamp/Paper in Fire

As fellow blogger Dave from A Sound Day posted a few days ago, April 12, 2022, marked the 40th anniversary of American Fool, the fifth studio album by John Mellencamp who at the time was still known as John Cougar. The thought the little ditty about Jack and Diane was on the radio four decades ago is mind-boggling to me! In a comment, I noted that my favorite album by the heartland rocker from Indiana is The Lonesome Jubilee, which appeared in August 1997. Don’t get me wrong, I also still dig Mellencamp’s straight rock albums he put out during the first half of the ’80s. But I love his transition into roots rock even more. It started on The Lonesome Jubilee with the introduction of instruments like accordion, fiddle and banjo. Here’s Paper in Fire, which was also released separately as a lead single a week ahead of the album. Like all other tracks except one, the song was written by Mellencamp.

Red Hot Chili Peppers/Under the Bridge

Including two songs by Red Hot Chili Peppers off their latest album Unlimited Love in recent Best of What’s New posts here and here reminded me of a band I had known primarily by name for many years. One of the few songs I could name was Under the Bridge, a tune I’ve always liked. Credited to all four members of the band – Anthony Kiedis (lead vocals); Michael Peter Balzary, known as Flea (bass, trumpet, piano, backing vocals); John Frusciante (guitars, keyboards, backing vocals); and Chad Smith (drums, percussion) – Under the Bridge is from their fifth studio album Blood Sugar Sex Magik, released in September 1991. Today, 21 years and seven albums later, the group from the city of angels is rocking on with the same line-up. One of the things I dig about Under the Bridge is Frusciante’s guitar part. That sound is just awesome!

Green Day/Wake Me Up When September Ends

Okey-doke, time to wrap up another Sunday Six. My final pick for this installment takes us back to the ’90s and one of the best-known tunes by Green Day: Wake Me Up When September Ends, off their seventh studio album American Idiot, released in September 2004. I’ve always liked how this band, which has been around since 1987, oftentimes combines grunge, punk and alternative rock with pop, especially on this album. Wake Me Up When September Ends was written by Green Day lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong about the death of his father when he was 10 years old. Bandmates Mike Dirnt (bass, backing vocals) and Tré Cool (drums, percussion, backing vocals) received co-writing credits for the music. The three of them still form Green Day’s current core line-up. Beware, this is a bloody catchy tune that might get stuck in your head! 🙂

Last but not least, here’s a Spotify playlist of the above tracks. Hope there’s something you like!

Sources: Wikipedia; Ahmad Jamal website; Bonnie Raitt website; YouTube; Spotify