The Sunday Six

Welcome to another installment of The Sunday Six that celebrates music from the past 70 years or so in different flavors, six tunes at a time. This week’s zig-zag excursion features a tasty stew. The ingredients include jazz, early ’60s pop, contemporary blues, classic ’70s soul, contemporary indie rock and early ’90s southern and blues rock. I generally find diversity enriching, in music and otherwise. Let’s embark on our little journey.

The Charlie Watts Quintet/Relaxing at Camarillo

On August 24, the music world lost Charlie Watts who passed away at age 80 from an undisclosed cause. Undoubtedly, he will always best be remembered as the unassuming longtime drummer and reliable time-keeper of The Rolling Stones. But it was actually his life-long love for jazz, not rock and roll, that got Watts into music. In-between tours and recording sessions with the Stones, he frequently was involved in jazz projects and eventually formed his own groups, The Charlie Watts Orchestra and The Charlie Watts Quintet. I’d like to celebrate the late Charlie Watts with Relaxing at Camarillo, a composition by jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker. Watts recorded the tune with his jazz quintet for a 1991 Charlie Parker tribute album titled From One Charlie. According to the credits listed on Discogs, in addition to Watts, the group featured Peter King (alto saxophone), Gerard Presencer (trumpet), Brian Lemon (piano) and Dave Green (bass). I know, it’s only jazz but I like it, like it, yes, I do!

The Everly Brothers/When Will I Be Loved

For fans of artists who are in their ’70s and ’80s, these are tough times. On August 21, Don Everly, who together with his younger brother Phil Everly had performed as The Everly Brothers for nearly 45 years (not counting a 10-year hiatus between 1973 and 1983 when each of the brothers pursued solo careers), passed away in Nashville at the age of 84. No cause of death was provided. I loved The Everly Brothers from the very first moment I got a greatest hits compilation, which must have been in the early ’80s. What spoke to me in particular was their beautiful harmony singing. I also thought their acoustic guitar playing was cool, especially on Wake Up Little Susie, their massive hit from 1957. In addition to covering songs written by others, The Everly Brothers also recorded some originals. Here’s one written by Don Everly: When Will I Be Loved. The tune was released as a single in May 1960 and also included on the album The Fabulous Style of The Everly Brothers that came out in the same year as well. What a classic!

Taj Mahal and Keb Mo’/Ain’t Nobody Talkin’

Let’s jump forward 57 years to May 2017 for some sizzling blues delivered by two great artists, Taj Mahal and Keb’ Mo’. I was reminded about their fantastic collaboration album TajMo the other day when putting together a post about other artists covering songs by The Who. Apart from renditions like a Cajun swampy version of Squeeze Box, TajMo also includes original tunes. One of them is Ain’t Nobody Talkin’, co-written by Kevin Moore (Keb’ Mo’) and John Lewis Parker. I was happy to see that TajMo won the 2018 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album. You can read more about it here. Meanwhile, here’s Ain’t Nobody Talkin’ – man, I love how Mahal and Mo’ sound together. And these horn fill-ins – so good!

Al Green/Let’s Stay Together

Next I’d like to turn to Al Green, one of the finest soul vocalists I can think of. Green, who became an ordained pastor in 1976 following the suicide of his girlfriend Mary Woodson in October 1974, is best known for a series of soul hits in the first half of the ’70s. In 1979, after he had gotten injured during a stage accident in Cincinnati, Green turned to gospel for nearly 10 years. In 1988, he came back to secular music, teaming up with Annie Lennox for a cover of Put a Little Love in Your Heart, yielding his first top 10 mainstream hit since 1974. It remains his last to date. Here’s Green’s first no. 1 from November 1971: Let’s Stay Together, his signature song. He co-wrote the smooth tune with Al Jackson Jr. (founding member of Booker T. & the M.G.’s) and producer Willie Mitchell. Let’s Stay Together also became the title track of his fourth studio album from January 1972. In 1983, Tina Turner brought the soul classic back into the top 10 charts in the UK, her comeback single from her comeback album Private Dancer that appeared in May 1984.

Lord Huron/Meet Me in the City

If you are a frequent reader of The Sunday Six, the name Lord Huron might ring a bell. Or perhaps you’ve been aware of this cool indie folk rock band all along, which initially was founded in Los Angeles in 2010 as a solo project of guitarist and vocalist Ben Schneider. In addition to him, the group’s current line-up includes Tom Renaud (guitar), Miguel Briseño (bass, keyboards) and Mark Barry (drums, percussion). In the June 20 installment, I featured the stunning Mine Forever, a track from the band’s most recent album Long Lost that came out on May 21. Here’s another great track from that album, Meet Me in the City, which further illustrates Lord Huron’s amazing moody and cinematic sound of layered voices, jangly guitars and expanded reverb.

The Black Crowes/Twice As Hard

This once again brings me to the sixth and final track. Let’s make it count with some crunchy rock by The Black Crowes. Initially founded as “Mr. Crowe’s Garden” in Marietta, Ga. in 1984, the band around Chris Robinson (lead vocals, harmonica, acoustic guitar, percussion) and his younger brother Rich Robinson (guitar, backing vocals) has a long history. It includes the type of drama with break-ups and reunions that’s all too common once rock egos become too big. The good news is since late 2019, The Black Crowes are flying again. Perhaps the band’s third reunion is the charm. Their tour to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their debut album Shake Your Money Maker from February 1990 had to be postponed because of you know what. It finally got underway on July 20 in Nashville, Tenn. and is scheduled to conclude in Bethel, N.Y. on September 25. In addition to the Robinson brothers, the group’s new line-up features Sven Pipien (bass, backing vocals), along with touring members Isaiah Mitchell (guitar, backing vocals), Joel Robinow (keyboards, backing vocals) and Brian Griffin (drums, percussion). Here’s Twice As Hard, the great opener of Shake Your Money Maker. Co-written by the Robinson brothers, the tune also became the album’s third single and their first no. 1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart.

Sources: Wikpedia; Discogs; YouTube

The Sunday Six

Here we are on another Sunday to explore the diversity of music six tunes at a time. Today marks the official start of summer and, boy, it’s certainly hot in my neck of the woods! But I take sun and heat over a dark and cold winter day any day. Regardless of the weather in your area and how you may feel about it, I hope you find something you enjoy among my picks for this new installment of The Sunday Six.

Jesse Colin Young/Song for Juli

Starting us off this time is a beautiful, largely instrumental track by Jesse Colin Young, co-founder and lead vocalist of The Youngbloods. When I stumbled across Song for Juli the other day, I immediately felt it would make for a nice Sunday Six opener. If you’ve read some of the weekly feature’s previous installments, you may have noticed my preference to start these posts on a softer note. After the dissolution of The Youngbloods in 1972, Jesse Colin Young (born Perry Miller) resumed his solo career he had first started in the early ’60s. That pre-Youngbloods phase had yielded two solo albums: The Soul of a City Boy (April 1964) and Young Blood (March 1965). Song for Juli is the title track of Young’s fourth solo album, a folk rock-oriented record that appeared in October 1973. The tune about his first child Juli was co-written by Young and the child’s mother Suzie Young, Young’s first wife. Young who last November turned 79 remains active and has released 13 additional albums to date. His most recent one is titled Dreamers and came out in February 2019.

The Turtles/Wanderin’ Kind

Every time I hear a song by The Turtles, I’m amazed by their great harmony singing. That being said, their biggest hit Happy Together, which I featured in a previous Sunday Six installment, is the only tune I’ve known by name, though I’ve heard some of their other songs. Well, now I can add Wanderin’ Kind, the opener of The Turtles’ debut album It Ain’t Me Babe from October 1965. The tune is one of the record’s four original tracks that were all written or co-written by the band’s lead vocalist and keyboarder Howard Kaylan. Fun fact from Wikipedia: Since at the time The Turtles recorded their first album their members were still underage, they required written permission from their parents to pursue the project. During their original five-year run from 1965 to 1970, The Turtles released six studio albums. In 1983, Kaylan and Turtles co-founder and guitarist Mark Vollman revived the band and have since toured as The Turtles…Featuring Flo and Eddie. They remain active and are planning to go on the road in the U.S. later this summer as part of the Happy Together Tour 2021.

Toto/Pamela

The other day, fellow blogger Music Enthusiast included Toto in an ’80s post, reminding me of a band I’ve listened to on and off since 1982 when they released their hugely successful fourth studio album Toto IV. Pamela is the opener of The Seventh One, which is, well, Toto’s seventh studio album that came out in March 1988. The tune was co-written by keyboarder David Paich and lead vocalist Joseph Williams. Among the features I’ve always dug about Pamela are Jeff Porcaro’s drumming and the cool breaks. Sadly, it turned out to be Porcaro’s final regular studio album with Toto. He died on August 5, 1992 at the age of 38 from a heart attack caused by coronary artery disease resulting from cocaine use. Following Toto’s second hiatus that started in October 2019 after the end of their last 40 Trips Around The Sun tour, they are back in business as of October 2020. A live album titled With a Little Help From My Friends, which captures a special lockdown performance from November 2020, is set to appear on June 25. Toto have also announced their next tour, The Dogz of Oz World Tour. Currently confirmed dates are for Europe starting in Bonn, Germany in July 2022. Paich and Williams are still part of the band’s current line-up, as is guitarist Steve Lukather, Toto’s only founding member who has continuously played in all of their incarnations.

Lord Huron/Mine Forever

Kudos to fellow blogger Angie from The Diversity of Classic Rock, who recently did a great feature on new music that includes Lord Huron, one of her picks that got my immediate attention. The indie folk rock band was initially founded in Los Angeles in 2010 as a solo project of guitarist and vocalist Ben Schneider. After recording and releasing a few EPs all by himself, Schneider started adding members for support during live shows and Lord Huron’s first full-length album Lonesome Dreams from October 2012. Apart from Schneider, the band’s current line-up features Tom Renaud (guitar), Miguel Briseño (bass, keyboards) and Mark Barry (drums, percussion). Mine Forever, written by Schneider, is a track from their new album Long Lost released on May 21. The tune perfectly illustrates what attracted me to Lord Huron, which is their amazing moody sound of layered voices, jangly guitars and expanded reverb. It has a cinematic feel to it. Check it out!

Bob Marley and the Wailers/Is This Love

The first time I heard of Bob Marley must have been on the radio during my teenage years back in Germany. I assume it was Could You Be Loved, his hit single from 1980, which got lots of play on the airways. What I remember much better is how I further got into his music. It was the excellent live album Babylon by Bus, which my best friend had gotten around the same time. Released in November 1978, the double LP captured performances by Bob Marley and the Wailers, mostly from three concerts in Paris in late June 1978. One of my favorite tracks from that album has always been Is This Love. Written by Marley, the tune first appeared on Kaya, the tenth studio album by Marley and his band, which came out in March 1978. There’s just something infectious about reggae. That groove automatically makes me move. Unfortunately, Bob Marley passed away from cancer on May 11, 1981 at the age of 36.

U2/Vertigo

The time has come again to wrap up another Sunday Six. As has kind of become tradition, I’d like to do so with a rocker: Vertigo by U2. I first got into the Irish rock band in the mid-’80s with their fourth studio album The Unforgettable Fire. From there, if I recall it correctly, I went to the live album Under a Bloody Red Sky, which in turn led me to U2’s earlier records. My favorite The Joshua Tree from March 1987 was still nearly three years away. After the follow-on Rattle and Hum, released in October 1988, I became more of a casual U2 listener. I think they have had decent songs throughout their career. Vertigo, the lead single from the band’s 11th studio album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb from November 2004, was an acquired taste. The Edge’s more straight hard rock playing was quite a departure from what I consider his signature sound on The Unforgettable Fire and The Joshua Tree album. At the same time, I respect that U2 don’t want to do the same music over and over again. While Vertigo hasn’t become my favorite U2 tune, I’ve come around and think it’s a pretty good song.

Sources: Wikipedia; The Turtles website; YouTube