The Lemon Twigs Deliver Irresistible Power Pop on New Album

The Lemon Twigs were instant love when I first came across them in August 2020: Catchy power pop with flavors of baroque pop, classic rock and glam rock, delivered in perfect vocal harmony, and all of it with neat vibes from the ’60s and ’70s. When learning earlier this year they would come out with a new album, I was full of anticipation. A Dream Is All We Know dropped last Friday, May 3, and it’s sweet ear candy.

Behind the group from Long Island, N.Y. are 24-year-old Michael D’Addario and his two-year older brother Brian D’Addario. The multi-instrumentalists, who gained significant stage experience as children, formed The Lemon Twigs in 2014 when they were still in high school. Their first release was a cassette, What We Know, issued as a limited edition in 2015. This was followed by debut studio album Do Hollywood from October 2016. A Dream Is All We Know already is their fifth album – remarkable for artists who are still in their mid twenties!

Michael D’Addario (left) and Brian D’Addario

The group’s Bandcamp page notes A Dream Is All We Know, which comes one year after predecessor Everything Harmony, was made in the brothers’ recording studio in Brooklyn. Between Brian and Michael, they played nearly all instruments on the album (electric and acoustic guitar, mandolin, keyboards, strings, horns, bass, drums), swapping instruments and layering all tracks on top of each other. They also handled mixing and production.

The main exception to the above is the song In The Eyes of the Girl, which was co-produced by Sean Ono Lennon in his upstate New York studio. Lennon also played bass on the song’s recording, while the brothers handled drums and piano and, of course, added their incredible vocals. Another song, Ember Days, features some additional musicians: Otis Harriel and Yuri Kye (violin each), Rachyl Martinez (viola), Doug Machiz (cello), Daryl Johns (upright bass) and
Andres Valbuena (drums).

Time for some music! Since I already previously covered the magnificent opener My Golden Years here, I’m skipping it and go right to They Don’t Know How to Fall in Place. On their Bandcamp page The Lemon Twigs characterize the song as “bubblegum paradise with its euphoric harmonies and biting clavinet.” I would say it’s a blend between The Beatles and The Beach Boys. Whatever you want to call it, it sounds gorgeous.

Here’s the album’s title track. The Lemon Twigs call it “an existential space age epic.” BTW, just like the previous clip, the official video projects the brothers’ sense for theatrics – likely not a coincidence, given their childhood experience with Broadway performances and Michael’s appearances in a variety of TV shows and films.

In the Eyes of the Girl is the song that sealed my decision to write a review of the album. If you would have told me this gem was written by Brian Wilson, I would have bought it. In fact, I’d be curious what he thinks about it. As noted above, Sean Ono Lennon played bass and co-produced the song.

How Can I Love Her More? is another neat song I covered in my latest weekly new music review, so I’m skipping it here as well. Instead, here’s Peppermint Roses, which features a cool-sounding Farfisa organ and beautiful Beatle-esque harmony singing.

The last track I’d like to call out is the album’s closer. Aptly titled Rock On (Over and Over), the song is a nice rock & roller. As the album’s only such song, it provides a nice contrast to the other 10 tracks.

The Lemon Twigs sound like they would be fun to see live. And, as it turns out, I just missed them, in Jersey City where they played Saturday night – better luck next time! In case you’re interested in catching them, their next gigs are in Raleigh, N.C., tomorrow, May 7; Charleston, S.C., May 9; and Sandford, Fla., May 10. Their full current touring schedule is here.

Last but not least, I’m leaving with a Spotify link to the album. Hope you like their music and check it out.

Sources: Wikipedia; The Lemon Twigs Bandcamp page; The Lemon Twigs website; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday and welcome to another installment of imaginary music travel. If you’re a frequent visitor of the blog or are familiar with my music taste otherwise, you know how much I dig great vocals, especially when sung in perfect harmony. So this time, I thought to challenge myself and put together an itinerary of instrumental tracks only. I think I found some good stuff, so stay with me!

Jeff Beck/Declan

Starting us off today is Jeff Beck, who undoubtedly was one of most amazing guitarists of our time with an incredible tone. Apart from music with various groups like The Yardbirds, The Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice, he released a series of albums under his own name. Sadly, Beck’s nearly 60-year career came to an end in January 2023 when he passed away from bacterial meningitis at age 78. Off his seventh solo album Who Else! from March 1999, here’s the beautiful Declan, a composition by Irish folk musician Dónal Lunny.

The Allman Brothers Band/Jessica

This next track takes us to August 1973 and Brothers and Sisters, the fourth studio album by The Allman Brothers Band. During the recording sessions, co-founder and bassist Berry Oakley who had been struggling with addiction and depression in the wake of Duane Allman’s death weirdly was also killed in a motorcycle accident. The group carried on, bringing in Chuck Leavell and Lamar Williams on piano and bass, respectively, with guitarist Dickey Betts becoming their de facto leader. Betts also composed the bouncy Jessica, a tribute to gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, named after Betts’ infant daughter.

Horace Silver Quintet/Señor Blues

Just because we didn’t start today’s trip with jazz doesn’t mean we skip it altogether. This time, I’ve picked a track by pianist, composer and arranger Horace Silver who is especially known for hard bop, a style he helped create in the 1950s. After leaving The Jazz Messengers, who Silver had co-founded with drummer Art Blakey in 1954, he formed his own quintet. One of their early albums, 6 Pieces of Silver, appeared in late 1956. Here’s Señor Blues, a composition by Silver. He was backed by Donald Byrd (trumpet), Hank Mobley (tenor saxophone), Doug Watkins (bass) and Louis Hayes (drums).

Booker T. & the M.G.’s/Time Is Tight

One of the coolest ’60s backing bands I can think of were Booker T. & the M.G.’s. As house band of Memphis soul label Stax, they played on hundreds of recordings by artists like Wilson Pickett, Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Carla Thomas and Albert King. Starting in the early ’60s, Booker T. & the M.G.’s also released instrumentals under their own name. Their best-known is Green Onions, the title track of their October 1962 debut album. Time Is Tight became another hit single released in February 1969. Credited to all four members – Booker T. Jones (organ), Steve Cropper (guitar), Donald “Duck” Dunn (bass) and Al Jackson Jr. (drums) – the tune was included on the soundtrack album UpTight for the 1968 drama picture of the same title.

Jan Hammer/Crockett’s Theme

Next let’s pay a visit to the ’80s and one of the biggest instrumental hits of the decade I can recall: Crockett’s Theme by Czech-American musician, composer, and record producer Jan Hammer who had gained prominence in the early ’70s as keyboarder of jazz fusion band Mahavishnu Orchestra. Hammer also wrote scores for film and television. The latter included the ’80s U.S. crime drama series Miami Vice, which also became popular in other countries including Germany. Here’s Crockett’s Theme, which was released in 1986 and topped the charts in Belgium and The Netherlands, reached no. 2 in the UK and Ireland, and no. 4 in Germany. By comparison, it peaked at a moderate no. 42 in the U.S. on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary chart.

Peter Frampton/Isn’t It a Pity

For our sixth and final stop we shall head back to the present. In April 2021, Peter Frampton released his most recent all-instrumental album appropriately titled Frampton Forgets the Words. The English-American guitarist turned 74 on Monday. The day before, he was announced as one of the 2024 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Leading up to it I had read Frampton had really hoped he would make it in. The induction of the man, who with Frampton Comes Alive! delivered one of the most iconic ’70s rock live albums, is well-deserved! Coming back to the above-mentioned album, here’s a beautiful rendition of George Harrison’s Isn’t It a Pity, a great song from his first post-Beatles solo album All Things Must Pass, which came out in November 1970.

Of course, this post wouldn’t be complete without a Spotify playlist of the above tunes. Hope there’s something for you and you’ll be back for more. While I can’t exclude the possibility of future twists, I don’t think you’ll see another all-instrumental installment of The Sunday Six anytime soon!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

New Music Musings

Happy Saturday and welcome to my latest weekly new music review. Today, I’d like to offer songs that come from a mix of studio albums and EPs, which were all released yesterday (April 26).

Liz Brasher/Be in California

Memphis, Tenn.-based Liz Brasher is a singer-songwriter and guitarist whose style AllMusic characterizes as eclectic retro soul with elements of adult pop, rock, blues, and gospel. Here’s more from her AllMusic bio: Brasher sang in her church choir as a child and eventually found influence in The Beatles, the Delta blues, and Southern soul. She delved into American music history, learning the works of songwriters ranging from Stephen Foster to Lead Belly, and later Bob Dylan and The Staple Singers, as a college student in Chicago. She soon taught herself guitar and began writing songs. Her debut album Painted Imagine appeared in January 2019. Be in California is a great-sounding track off her second and latest album Baby Damn.

Billy Tibbals/Dream Away

Billy Tibbals is a Los Angeles-based alternative rock artist I first featured in April 2023. Originally hailing from London, Tibbals has lived in L.A. since 2014. During his childhood he became obsessed with British rock & roll – not a bad obsession, as far as I’m concerned! His debut EP Teenage, which offered a mix of power pop, glam rock and, of course, rock & roll, appeared in April 2023. Tibbals who optically reminds me a bit of Marc Bolan is now out with his second EP Nightlife Stories. Like the predecessor it was produced by Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes. Here’s the closer Dream Away, a neat power ballad with a cool retro vibe.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong/My Own Way

Maryland psychedelic funk band Pigeons Playing Ping Pong win this week’s prize for best name. They also sound really good! The quartet of Greg Ormont (vocals, guitar), Jeremy Schon (guitar, vocals), Ben (bass, vocals) and Alex Petropulos (drums, vocals) came together in college 15 years ago. Day in Time is the group’s seventh full-length album since July 2014′ Psychology. Here’s My Own Way. This is groovy stuff!

Gramercy Arms/Never Say Anything (Acoustic)

Gramercy Arms are a revolving New York-based collective of musicians and artists led by songwriter and producer Dave Derby, who I first included in a new music review in February. Prior to Gramercy Arms’ eponymous 2008 debut album, Derby co-founded indie rock band The Dambuilders and lo-fi home recording project Brilliantine; released two solo albums; and composed and produced some music for film and TV. Off their latest album The Making of The Making Of, here’s Never Say Anything (Acoustic), an alternate version of a song the group first included on their March 2023 predecessor Deleted Scenes – pleasant indie pop!

Anders Osborne/To Live

I’m pleased to highlight more new music by versatile New Orleans-based singer-songwriter and ace guitarist Anders Osborne, who I featured in a catching up on new music post 10 days ago. Osborne was born in 1966 in Uddevalla, Sweden and has lived in New Orleans since 1990. He blends multiple genres, such as funk, soul, rock, blues and R&B, into a tasty gumbo. Since his 1989 debut Doin’ Fine, Osborne has released more than 20 studio and live albums. His latest album Picasso’s Villa is now out. Here’s the rootsy To Live – love Osborne’s guitar work!

Ringo Starr/Gonna Need Someone

If you read my aforementioned catching up on new music post, you won’t be surprised this week’s picks include Ringo Starr, whose new EP Crooked Boy has now been released as well. His fifth EP since March 2021 comes six months after Rewind Forward, from which I covered the title track at the time. A marble vinyl limited edition of Crooked Boy was first released on Record Store Day on Saturday, April 20, followed by yesterday’s digital release. Here’s the upbeat Gonna Need Someone, which like the three remaining tracks was written specifically for Starr by Linda Perry who also produced the EP – I just love the man!

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; Pigeons Playing Ping Pong website; Ringo Starr website; YouTube; Spotify

On This Day In Rock & Roll History: April 23

Time for another installment for my long running irregular music history feature. I still find it interesting to tackle this by taking a look at select events that happened on a specific date throughout the decades.

1964: Additional footage was captured for the Can’t Buy Me Love sequence for The Beatles’ first movie A Hard Day’s Night. The Beatles Bible notes, Filming took place on Thornbury Playing Fields in Isleworth, south London. A fake helipad was constructed, and The Beatles were filmed running around and acting up. The film was released in July of the same year.

1971: The Rolling Stones released Sticky Fingers, which most fans regard as one of their best albums. It marked their first studio album without Brian Jones who had passed away in July 1969 and the second full-length recording after their live album Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out!, which featured guitarist Mick Taylor. Sticky Fingers, which was the band’s first to top the UK and the U.S. albums charts, became one of their best-selling, including more than 3 million sold units in the U.S. alone. Here’s the first single Brown Sugar, written primarily by Mick Jagger and, as usual, credited to him and Keith Richards.

1976: New York punk rock band Ramones released their eponymous debut album. While it became their best-selling album and eventually was certified Gold in the U.S. in April 2014 (500,000 certified sold units), it only reached no. 111 on the Billboard 200. Its two singles Blitzkrieg Bop and I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend missed the charts altogether. None of that changed the fact that the album is now regarded as their most accoladed and iconic release. Here’s the second single, which was written by drummer Thomas Erdelyi, known as Tommy Ramone.

1977: Soul and disco vocalist Thelma Houston hit no. in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 with her rendition of Don’t Leave Me This Way. Co-written by Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff and Cary Gilbert, the song was first released in 1975 by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass. Houston’s cover also enjoyed significant chart success in other countries and became her biggest hit.

1983: British band Dexys Midnight Runners reached no. 1 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 with the upbeat song Come On Eileen. The single, off their sophomore album Too-Rye-Ay, became their sole chart-topper in the U.S. Their biggest hit also topped the charts in Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, Ireland and Switzerland. The group who continues to exist and fronted by Kevin Rowland is now known as Dexys. Come On Eileen was co-written by Rowland (bass, guitar, piano, vocals); Jim Paterson (trombone) who continues to be part of the current line-up; and Billy Adams (banjo, guitar, backing vocals).

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; Songfacts History Calendar; Recording Industry Association of America website; YouTube

New Music Musings

Happy Saturday and welcome to my latest weekly look at new music releases. All picks are on albums that came out yesterday (April 12).

Maggie Rogers/So Sick of Dreaming

First up is Maggie Rogers, a singer-songwriter and record producer from Easton, Md., combining folk, dance and pop in her music. By the time she began writing songs in 8th grade, Rogers had picked up the harp, piano and guitar. She gained popularity in 2016 at the age of 22 with Alaska, a song she wrote while attending a master class at New York University’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music. By that time, Rogers already had released two independent albums. Her first label release Heard It in a Past Life, which came out in January 2019, debuted at no. 2 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200. Off her third and latest album Don’t Forget Me, here’s the pleasant So Sick of Dreaming.

Will Hoge/Good While It Lasted

Will Hoge is an Americana and southern rock singer-songwriter from Nashville, Tenn., who I first featured in July 2020. In 1997, he released an EP with his band at the time Spoonful, but it wasn’t successful and the group disbanded. After self-releasing a live CD and his first studio album Carousel, Hoge managed to get a deal with Atlantic Records in early 2002. While it was short-lived, it resulted in his major label debut Blackbird on a Lonely Wire in March 2003. Good While It Lasted, co-written by Hoge and Hayes Carll, is a song from his new album Tenderhearted Boys.

Nicolette & The Nobodies/Better Days

Ontario, Canada-based Nicolette & The Nobodies win the prize for best band name this week. Glide Magazine noted the group is led by singer-songwriter Nicolette Hoang, the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants. Their Bandcamp page describes them as “heavily influenced by the songs and stage presence of 60’s and 70’s country starlets” while retaining “the gritty rough edges of outlaw country.” From their debut album The Long Way, here’s Better Days. The song’s rock vibe immediately grabbed me.

Trummors/I Can Still Make Cheyenne

Trummors are a country rock duo from Taos, N.M., consisting of multi-instrumentalists David Lerner and Anne Cunningham who rely on a rotating cast of musicians. Their AllMusic bio notes they came together in 2010 in Brooklyn, New York and released their debut album Over and Around the Clove in 2012. Off their fifth and latest album, appropriately titled 5, here’s I Can Still Make Cheyenne, a song with a nice country vibe. Like all other tracks on the album, it was written pre-pandemic.

Mark Knopfler/Two Pairs of Hands

After Mark Knopfler quietly dissolved Dire Straits in 1994, the British guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer launched a solo career. The first album under his name, Golden Heart, appeared in March 1996. While not comparable to Dire Straits, Knopfler has continued to enjoy success with his solo albums. Off his 10th and latest, One Deep River, here’s the opener Two Pairs of Hands, written by Knopfler. I’ve always loved his distinct guitar-playing!

Blue Öyster Cult/Don’t Come Running to Me

Rounding out this post are Blue Öyster Cult. Formed in 1967 on Long Island, N.Y., the rock band first entered my radar screen with the great Don’t Fear the Reaper sometime in the late ’70s. Their 15th and latest studio album Ghost Stories is a collection of unreleased tracks they started but didn’t finish between 1978 and 1983, as well as three covers of Animals, Beatles and MC5 songs, Ultimate Classic Rock reported in a review. Here’s Don’t Come Running to Me, a pop rocker that stylistically would have fit on Mirrors, Fire of Unknown Origin or other BÖC albums from the late ’70s/early ’80s.

Sources: Wikipedia; AllMusic; Glide Magazine; Nicolette & The Nobodies Bandcamp page; Trummors Bandcamp page; Ultimate Rock; YouTube; Spotify

The Wizards of Vision and Sound

Welcome to another installment of my recurring monthly feature about record producers and sound engineers. This time, I decided to highlight a producer whose name I had seen repeatedly over the years since I started paying closer attention to album credits: Rick Rubin. Once I began to take a closer look at his work, I quickly realized how prolific he has been.

Rick Rubin (born Frederick Jay Rubin on March 10, 1963) got into music in high school after he befriended the school’s audiovisual department head who gave him a few lessons in guitar and songwriting. Rubin subsequently played in a couple of local bands, including punk group The Pricks. Their eponymous 1981 album marked the beginning of his work as a producer. While attending college at New York University, Rubin started Def Jam Recordings and was soon joined by hip-hop icon Russell Simmons. Aka. Def Jam, the label took on artists like LL Cool J, Beastie Boys, Public Enemy and Run-DMC.

Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons

After a falling out with Def Jam president Lyor Cohen in 1988, Rubin and Simmons parted ways, and Rubin started Def American Recordings in Los Angeles. In 1993, it became American Recordings, the label he heads to this day. While Rubin continued his association with hip-hop, he branched out into other genres, including metal, alternative rock and country, among others.

In 2007, Rubin became co-head of Columbia Records. Four years later, he established his own home studio, Shangri-La Recording Studios. In 2012, Rubin left Columbia and revived American Recordings by striking a deal with Republic Records.

Rick Rubin with Tom Petty

Over his 40-year-plus career, Rubin has won nine Grammy awards, including Album of the Year for The Chicks (2007) and Adele (2012). He has also won numerous Producer of the Year awards. In 2007, Rubin was called “the most important producer of the last 20 years” by MTV and made Time’s list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World.

As you would imagine, apart from accolades, Rubin has also received some criticism. In addition to select artists who complained about his work style, he has also been criticized to contribute to what is known as the “loudness war”, a trend of increasing audio levels in recorded music, which reduces audio fidelity and—according to many critics—listener enjoyment.

Now to the fun part, i.e., select highlights of Rubin’s production work. Let’s start with Raising Hell, the third studio album by Run-DMC released in May 1986, which Rubin co-produced with Simmons. Even if you’re like me and not much into hip-hop, it’s safe to assume you heard Walk This Way, the hip-hop group’s great collaboration with Aerosmith. The idea to have Run-DMC and Aerosmith collaborate on the rock band’s song came from Spin editor and Rubin’s friend Sue Cummings. Not only has this production often been credited for introducing rap hard rock to mainstream audiences but also for re-booting Aerosmith’s career.

Following the production of thrash metal band Slayer’s third studio album Reign In Blood (October 1986), Rubin worked with them again on their follow-on South of Heaven, which appeared in July 1982 and was the final album he produced for Def Jam. Since the group felt they couldn’t top the frenetic pace of the predecessor, they deliberately decided to slow things down on South of Heaven – jeez, the tracks I sampled all sound pretty intense to me, so I wonder what Reign in Blood is like – clearly, thrash metal isn’t my cup of tea, but it’s part of Rubin’s legacy, so I didn’t want to ignore it. The only track on South of Heaven, which starts out more subdued, is the closer Spill the Blood before heavy distorted guitar kicks in at about 30 seconds into the song.

Blood Sugar Sex Magik is the fifth studio album by Red Hot Chili Peppers and the first Rubin produced for them. Released in September 1991, it marked a notable stylistic change from predecessor Mother’s Milk. There were fewer heavy metal guitar riffs and more melodic songwriting. Let’s just say, the changes didn’t hurt the Peppers, giving them one of their highest-charting and best-selling albums to date. Here’s Under the Bridge, which became the band’s first hugely successful single. I’ve always liked that song!

For his second solo studio album Wildflowers, Tom Petty turned to Rubin, who also co-produced Petty’s next two studio projects with the Heartbreakers, Songs and Music from “She’s the One” (August 1996) and Echo (April 1999). “Rick loves music, and that’s really why I decided to work with him,” Petty explained. “It’s not because of his technical skill; he has no musical skill, he plays no instrument really, not even a guitar. He just loves music.” Here’s the beautiful title track.

In 2002, Rubin produced American IV: The Man Comes Around, the final album by Johnny Cash released during his lifetime. The fourth in Cash’s “American” series of albums, which were all produced by Rubin, has widely been acclaimed as one of Cash’s best works. I think it’s safe to say it also marks a highlight of Rubin’s career. The first in the series, American Recordings, released in May 1993, also was the first album to appear on Rubin’s renamed label. Here’s Cash’s incredible rendition of Beatles song In My Life, which was mainly written by John Lennon. This is a tear-jerker!

The final production work by Rubin I’d like to call out is Magpie and the Dandelion, the eighth studio album by The Avett Brothers, released in October 2013. Rubin had also produced the folk rock group’s two previous full-length albums The Carpenter (2012) I and Love and You (2009). Magpie and the Dandelion debuted at no. 5 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200 and at no. 1 on Billboard’s Folk Albums chart, becoming one of the band’s performing to date. Their upcoming eponymous album, scheduled for May 17, was produced by Rubin as well. Here’s Open Ended Life, the great-sounding opener of Magpie and the Dandelion.

Obviously, the above clips at best provide a snapshot of Rubin’s work over the past four decades. The following Spotify playlist include the above and some additional tracks he produced.

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

The Sunday Six

Happy Sunday and welcome to another imaginary music time travel excursion to leave any current worries you may have on your mind behind for a while or simply listen to some great music. As always, our itinerary includes six stops in six different decades with tracks in different flavors.

Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie/Bloomdido

Our journey today starts in July 1952 and an album by two jazz greats: saxophonist Charlie Parker, aka. Bird, and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. Parker was known for his blazing speed and introducing new harmonic ideas. Gillespie was a virtuoso and improviser building on Roy Eldridge’s style but adding layers of harmonic and rhythmic complexity previously unheard in jazz. Both musicians are credited as key figures for the development of bebop. On Bird and Diz, they came together. Bloomdido, a jazz standard, was composed by Parker who also wrote or co-wrote all other tracks except one. Feel free to groove along!

Little River Band/Lonesome Loser

Next, let’s head down under and pay a visit to Little River Band, a pop rock group formed in Melbourne in March 1975. I’ve always dug their great harmony vocals. They have also had some catchy songs. One of my favorites is Lonesome Loser, written by guitarist David Briggs who was a member from 1976-1981. The song was on the group’s fifth studio album First Under the Wire. It also appeared separately as the first single, reaching no. 6 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100, making it one of the group’s highest-charting songs there. Check out that killer three-part a cappella intro!

World Party/Is It Like Today?

Earlier this week, news broke of the untimely death of Welsh singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Karl Wallinger at age 66. He was best known as the man behind World Party and as a member of The Waterboys from 1983 until 1985. After leaving the British-Irish folk rock band, Wallinger formed World Party as a solo project in 1986 and released his debut Private Revolution in March 1987. In February 2001, a brain aneurysm sidelined his career until 2006. He slowly returned to performing and recording thereafter. In a 2022 interview, Wallinger said he was working on a new album. Is It Like Today? appeared on World Party’s third studio album Bang! released in April 1993. It also became the lead single – love that song and its retro vibe!

Monster Truck/Don’t Tell Me How to Live

Our next stop takes us to Canada and Hamilton, Ontario rock band Monster Truck. The group was formed in 2009 by guitarist Jeremy Widerman, drummer Steve Kiely and keyboarder Brandon Bliss, who teamed up with vocalist and bassist Jon Harvey. Following two EPs in 2010 and 2011, Monster Truck released their first full-length album Furiosity in June 2013. Don’t Tell Me How to Live is a song from their sophomore album Sittin’ Heavy that came out in February 2016. This rocks nicely!

Yes/Every Little Thing

Time to head to the ’60s for a dose of progressive rock by one of my favorites in a genre that has been an acquired taste: Yes. The British band were formed in London in 1968 by Jon Anderson (lead vocals), Peter Banks (guitar), Tony Kaye (keyboards), Chris Squire (bass) and Bill Bruford (drums). That line-up also recorded the group’s eponymous debut album, which dropped in July 1969. Apart from six original tracks, Yes featured two covers: I See You by the Byrds and Every Little Thing by The Beatles. Shout-out to my dear longtime German music friend Gerd for suggesting the latter, a song that first appeared on the December 1964 album Beatles For Sale. This is a dynamite cover – and, yes, after a 2-minute instrumental opening, there’s singing – gorgeous singing!

The Fixx/One Thing Leads to Another

And once again we’re reaching the point where we need to wrap up our little music excursion. This time, the trip ends in May 1983 with a song that kind of sums up how The Sunday Six oftentimes come together: One Thing Leads to Another by English new wave rock band The Fixx. I’ve always thought this song has a cool sound. Credited to all members of the band at the time – Cy Curnin (lead vocals), Jamie West-Oram (guitar, backing vocals), Rupert Greenall (keyboards, backing vocals), Alfie Agius (bass, backing vocals) and Adam Woods (drums, percussion) – One Thing Leads to Another is from the group’s May 1983 sophomore studio album Reach the Beach. It also became a single and their biggest hit on U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (no. 4) and in Canada where it topped the pop charts.

Last but not least, here’s a Spotify playlist of the above goodies. As always, I hope there’s something you like and you will be back for more!

Sources: Wikipedia; The Big Takeover; YouTube; Spotify

On This Day In Rock & Roll History: March 14

Checking my previous content revealed it had been six weeks since the most recent installment of my irregular music history feature. I felt this was a good reason for putting together another post. It also turned I had not covered yet March 14.

1958: The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) officially certified the first Gold single (1 million sold units): Catch a Falling Star by American pop vocalist and TV personality Perry Como. Co-written by Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss, it became Como’s final no. 1 hit in the U.S., topping Billboard’s Most Played by Jockeys chart, which was different from the Hot 100 where the single reached no. 3. The melody borrows from Academic Festival Overture by 19th century German classical music composer, pianist, and conductor Johannes Brahms. The backing vocals were provided by The Ray Charles Singers, a group of rotating vocals conducted and arranged by Ray Charles.

1963: British Merseybeat group Gerry and the Pacemakers released their debut single How Do You You It? Penned by English songwriter and record producer Mitch Murray, the song was an instant success in the UK, topping the charts there. George Martin, who saw hit potential, asked his then-new group The Beatles to record it. While the four lads did, they were less than excited. Martin ended up releasing their original song Love Me Do instead and giving How Do You Do It? to Gerry and the Pacemakers. It was a happy ending for both groups who also shared another commonality. Both were managed by Brian Epstein.

1968: BBC primetime television music program Top of the Pops premiered the promotional video of Lady Madonna. A March 14, 2016 article by Ultimate Classic Rock recalls The Beatles had started to make such videos in 1965, long before they would become the norm on MTV in the early ’80s. “Out of convenience, we decided we were just not going to go into the TV studios to promote our records so much,” explained George Harrison in the Anthology documentary. “It was too much of a hassle,” he added. “What we’ll do is just go and make our own little films, and we’ll put them out.” Notably, the video used studio footage of the band recording Hey Bulldog. Sounds like capturing video of Lady Madonna may have been too much trouble as well!

1972: Carole King’s legendary Tapestry album took the coveted Album of the Year at the Grammy Awards held at the Felt Forum in New York City. King also won in three additional categories: Record of the Year for It’s Too Late, Best Pop Vocal Performance for the album’s title track and Song of the Year for James Taylor’s rendition of You’ve Got a Friend, which she wrote. Among other winners that night were America (Best New Artist of the Year), Nilsson (Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male for Without You), Ike & Tina Turner (Best Rhythm & Blues Performance – Duo Or Group (Vocal Or Instrumental) for Proud Mary) and Bill Withers (Best Rhythm & Blues Song for Ain’t No Sunshine) – different times!

1987: Huey Lewis and the News hit no. 1 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 with Jacob’s Ladder. The song, which became third single from the group’s fourth studio album Fore!, was co-written by Bruce Hornsby and his younger brother and frequent collaborator John Hornsby. Jacob’s Ladder became the final of three no. 1 songs Huey Lewis and the News scored on the U.S. pop chart. Hornsby subsequently recorded his own version of the song for his May 1998 sophomore album Scenes from the Southside. His friend Huey Lewis was a guest, playing harmonica on Defenders of the Flag, another song Hornsby wrote with his brother.

1998: In an unusual move, Rick Rubin, who produced Johnny Cash’s 82nd studio album Unchained, aka. American II: Unchained, placed a full-page ad in Billboard magazine to thank “the Nashville music establishment and country radio” for their support. On February 25th of the same year, Unchained had won the Grammy for Best Country Album. The ad was bitter irony to make the point the Man in Black won the award despite country radio, which by that time had written him off as an aging artist. The shot originally was taken by photographer Jim Marshall during Cash’s 1969 performance at San Quentin prison after he had been prompted to “do a shot for the warden.”

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts Music History Calendar; Ultimate Classic Rock; YouTube

The Sunday Six

Good morning/afternoon/evening/night – regardless in which time zone you are, I hope you’re feeling great. If you live in a U.S. state that observes daylight savings time and forgot to adjust your watch, don’t worry, you didn’t miss the departure of the magical music time machine that once again will take us to six different tracks from six different decades and in different flavors.

Michael Brecker/Midnight Mood

For our first stop today, we’ll stay in the current century with soothing jazz by saxophone great Michael Brecker. Between 1969 until his untimely death in 2007 at the age of 57, he collaborated with many music artists outside the pure jazz realm, such as Steely Dan, Dire Straits, Joni Mitchell, John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen and Paul Simon. While Brecker’s recording career as a sideman started in 1969, his solo eponymous debut album didn’t appear until 1987.  Midnight Mood, composed by Austrian jazz fusion keyboarder and Weather Report co-founder Joe Zawinul, is from Brecker’s June 2002 studio album Nearness of You: The Ballad Book.

The Replacements/Can’t Hardly Wait

Next we shall head to July 1987, which saw the release of the fifth studio album by The Replacements, arguably one of the best and most influential rock & roll bands of the ’80s despite repeated acts of self-sabotage that hindered their success in the music industry. Pleased to Meet Me, the only album recorded by group as a trio, was well received by critics. In addition to its punk roots, the band got into other genres like soul and jazz. A case in point is Can’t Hardly Wait, penned by Paul Westerberg and featuring ex-Box Tops and Big Star vocalist Alex Chilton on guitar.

Hank Williams/Honky Tonk Blues

Our next stop takes us all the way back to September 1952 and Moanin’ the Blues, the sophomore album by Hank Williams. Like his November 1961 debut Hank Williams Sings, it featured songs that all had been previously released as singles, including the hits Lovesick Blues, Long Gone Lonesome Blues and Honky Tonk Blues. Apparently, Honky Tonk Blues took various attempts to record between August 1947 and December 1951, making it one of the most challenging track for Williams to record. In the end, things worked out well and Honky Tonk Blues peaked at no. 2 on the U.S. Country charts.

Deep Purple/Speed King

Time to push the pedal to the metal with Deep Purple and a hard rock song with some of the coolest lyrics. Speed King, credited to all members of the group – Ritchie Blackmore (guitar), Ian Gillan (vocals), Jon Lord (organ), Roger Glover (bass) and Ian Paice (drums), was on the British group’s fourth studio album Deep Purple in Rock released in June 1970. The song, which is made of lyrical bits of rock & roll hits by Little Richard, Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry, also became the albums lead single in May of the same year. Hang on to your seats – ha ha ha ha!

Sting/Shape of My Heart

After some charging high-speed hard rock & roll, I think this would be an opportune moment to slow things down. For this we shall travel to March 1993 and Sting’s fourth solo studio album. Ten Summoner’s Tales is the ex-Police frontman’s Mount Rushmore, in my humble opinion. Here’s the beautiful Shape of My Heart, which Sting co-wrote with guitarist and his long-term sideman Dominic Miller. The song also became the album’s fifth single in August 1993.

The Beatles/Back In the U.S.S.R.

Once again, we’re reaching the final stop of another music excursion, which I hope you’ve enjoyed. Let’s make it count with a song by my all-time favorite band The Beatles from their self-titled November 1968 studio album, aka. The White Album: Back in the U.S.S.R.. The album’s opener was written by Paul McCartney and, as usual, credited to him and John Lennon. The song is a parody of the patriotic sentiments about the U.S. expressed in Chuck Berry’s Back in the U.S.A. and The Beach Boys’ California Girls. Take it away, lads!

Of course, this post wouldn’t be complete without a Spotify playlist featuring the above tracks. So long and see you next time!

Sources: Wikipedia; YouTube; Spotify

Song Musings

Happy Wednesday and welcome to another installment of my midweek feature that takes a closer look at a song I’ve only mentioned in passing or not covered at all to date. This time I’ve decided to pick I’ve Seen All Good People by English progressive rock band Yes.

This song was co-written by the group’s lead vocalist Jon Anderson and bassist Chris Squire. It first appeared on their third studio release The Yes Album, which came out in February 1971. The first part of the song, Your Move, was also issued separately as the album’s second single in July of the same year.

Not only is I’ve Seen All Good People one of the best known Yes songs, but the single Your Move also helped them build some momentum at a opportune moment. It peaked at no. 40 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100 and climbed to no. 32 in Australia. The album also was a critical success and a commercial breakthrough – a welcome development after the low impact of Yes’s first two albums, which had put them at risk to be dropped by Atlantic Records.

The Yes Album surged to no. 4 in the UK and hit no. 40 in the U.S. on the Billboard 200. Elsewhere, it reached no. 7 in The Netherlands, no. 20 in Australia and no. 46 in Canada. It was the first Yes album with Steve Howe who had replaced original guitarist Peter Banks in 1970. It also was the last to feature co-founder and keyboarder Tony Kaye until their 1983 smash 90125. Here’s a neat live version of the song captured in London in 1972. By that time, Kaye and original drummer Bill Bruford had been replaced by Rick Wakeman and Alan White, respectively.

Songfacts characterizes I’ve Seen All Good People as an anti-war song, explaining “all good people” includes the so-called enemy. The first part Your Move, which was penned by Anderson, uses references to the game chess as metaphors of human behavior. One example Songfacts notes is the term “move on back two squares”, which means to retreat and rethink one’s position. There are also references to the John Lennon songs Instant Karma! (“send an instant karma to me”) and toward the end of the first part where backing vocalists can be heard singing the chorus of Give Peace a Chance under the main melody.

The song’s stunning a cappella opening line “I’ve seen all good people turn their heads each day so satisfied I’m on my way” is sung by Anderson, Squire and Howe in three-part harmony. This is followed by a laúd, a Spanish plectrum-plucked chordophone played by Howe. From there Your Move builds and in addition to beautiful vocals eventually includes bass drum, flute-like woodwind instruments and organ until it stops at around 3:30 minutes.

This is followed by the second part, All Good People, which was written by Squire. This part has a driving rock vibe and features multiple repetitions of the line “I’ve seen all good people turn their heads each day so satisfied I’m on my way”. As the song fades out, each repetition of the line is one whole step lower than the previous one. During this fade-out is the organ is swelling to a fat sound – pretty neat!

Neither Songfacts nor Wikipedia noted any covers of the song. Thanks to fellow blogger Randy from Mostly Music Covers, I recalled the website SecondHandSongs, a great resource for cover song information. There, I found Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs included a great rendition of I’ve Seen All Good People: Your Move/All Good People on their second collaboration album Under the Covers, Vol. 2, released July 2009. It features Steve Howe on electric guitar and laúd.

Following are some remaining insights from Songfacts:

In a Songfacts interview with Yes frontman Jon Anderson, he explained: “The song is about initiation of yourself into the idea that there is more to life than war and fighting within religions and things like that. So when we were singing ‘see all good people,’ it’s like, ‘we can see you all in the audience because you’re good people no matter what, and when you’re with music you’re enlightened, you’re good, you’re happy, you’re excited.’ And music is the kingpin of it all. It’s not just Yes, it’s music that brings people together like no other energy on such a level.”

Lead singer/lyricist Jon Anderson says that on the “Your Move” portion of this song, he was using the game of chess in this song as a metaphor for life’s spiritual challenges. “Life is a game of strategically placed situations presented to you, and you have to learn to live with them and work with them,” he said. “Doors are open and sometimes they’re closed. It’s the idea that we are surrounded by a spirit or god or energy is in time with our understanding of who we are.

With the line, “Send an instant comment to me, initial it with loving care,” this song references “Instant Karma,” which was a song recorded by John Lennon a year earlier. Lennon was a huge influence on Yes, who covered The Beatles song “Every Little Thing” on their first album.

The line, “Just remember that the gold is for us to capture all we want, anywhere, Yea, yea, yea,” refers to the rich and powerful victimizing the weak and poor. The US was taken off the Gold standard by Richard Nixon August 15, 1971 the same year this was released.

Sources: Wikipedia; Songfacts; SecondHandSongs; YouTube