Thursday, September 27, 2018

Playlist for 9/27

St. Paul & The Broken Bones - Young Sick Camellia
Paul Simon - In The Blue Light
Paul McCartney - Egypt Station
Ana Calvi - Hunter
John McLaughlin - My Goal's Beyond
Tony Williams - Turn It Over
Randy Weston - African Cookbook
Randy Weston - Blue Moses
King of the Road: Tribute to Roger Miller - various

Friday, September 21, 2018

Playlist for 9/21

Prince - Anthology: 1995-2010 (Digital Only)
Candi Staton - Unstoppable
Mitski - Be The Cowboy
Blood Orange - Negro Swan
Beyond the Calico Wall - Various
Aaron Lee Tasjan - Karma For Cheap
Americanafest 2018 Mixtape - Various
Crack the Sky - s/t

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

Top R&B Vocal Groups of All Time

A subject near and dear to my heart.  Greatest R&B groups of All-Time.  This post was prompted by Sirius' Soul Town channel, which came up with their own Top 20 this year.  Their list covered what they call the "Classic Soul Era", of the 60's/70's. But I'm including groups from before the 60's.

My list of the 40 Greatest R&B groups:

1.  Temptations
2.  Earth, Wind & Fire
3.  Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
4.  Drifters
5.  Supremes
6.  Spinners
7.  O'Jays
8.  Isley Brothers
9.  Jackson 5
10.  Gladys Knight & The Pips
11.  Impressions
12.  Sly & The Family Stone
13.  Commodores
14.  Kool & The Gang
15.  Parliament/Funkadelic
16.  Four Tops
17.  Stylistics
18.  Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
19.  Chic
20.  Dells
21.  Rufus featuring Chaka Khan
22.  Shirelles
23.  Staple Singers
24.  Ohio Players
25.  Coasters
26.  War
27.  Clovers
28.  Gap Band
29.  Manhattans
30.  Meters
31.  Marvelettes
32.  Mills Brothers
33.  Platters
34.  Chi-Lites
35.  Whispers
36.  Average White Band
37.  Maze featuring Frankie Beverly
38.  Delfonics
39.  Ink Spots
40.  Tavares

  
The Soul Town Top 20 list:

1.  Temptations
2.  Gladys Knight & The Pips
3.  Isley Brothers
4.  O'Jays
5.  Kool & The Gang
6.  Four Tops
7.  Earth, Wind & Fire
8.  Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
9.  Supremes
10.  Impressions
11.  Jackson 5
12.  Whispers
13.  Spinners
14.  Drifters
15.  Manhattans
16.  Dells
17.  Parliaments
18.  Moments
19.  Dramatics
20.  Chi-Lites

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Saturday, September 15, 2018

Playlist for 9/15

Lynyrd Skynyrd: If I Leave Here Tomorrow  (Documentary)
Dionne Warwick: Then Came You (PBS Documentary)
Steven Hyden - Twilight of the Gods: Journey to the End of Classic Rock (Book)
Jason Isbell - Sirens of the Ditch
Mojo magazine: Trojan Reggae Nuggets
Gregory Isaacs - Extra Classic
John Holt - 1000 Volts of Holt
English Beat - Here We Go Love
Peabo Bryson - Stand for Love

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

Music Years of My Life: September 11, 2001

First posted in September 2016

We all seek comfort in music when tragedy strikes.  One of the things I remember most about that day was going to Borders to buy the new Bob Dylan album, "Love and Theft" in the late afternoon.  9/11 was a Tuesday, which back then was New Release day, so I did what was normal for me and go to Borders (or Circuit City) and check out the latest CD's.  It was odd that inside this big store people were going about their daily business of browsing books, magazines, CD's, etc., while over the store's speaker system was a newscast of 9/11 events.

The comfort of entertainment in times like that can't be denied.  For some it's as much needed as family, faith.  On September 21 the first benefit concert was broadcast, America: A Tribute to Heroes.  An unplugged/acoustic show, which featured many notable performances.  On October 20, a bigger even was staged, Concert For New York City, which had many powerful moments.

There were also patriotic songs post 9/11, mostly from the Country field:  Alan Jackson's "Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning" and Aaron Tippin's "Where The Stars and Stripes and the Eagle Fly" were the most played in the latter part of 2001.

Many people have noted Clear Channel's now infamous banned or not banned  songs, which came out a week after 9/11.  In the end, it's memo didn't say stations couldn't play, say "In The Air Tonight" or "Free Fallin'", but suggested use their own judgment.  Banned or not?

Music has always played a part in my life.  In times of stress and personal pain, music can soothe you.  We always go back to the songs we love.

Sunday, September 09, 2018

Playlist for 9/9

Aretha Franklin - Sparkle
Aretha Franklin - Hey Now Hey
Aretha Franklin - So Damn Right
Aretha Franklin - Let Me In Your Life
Aretha Franklin - Love All The Hurt Away
Aretha Franklin - One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism
Aretha Franklin - Live in Philly 1972

Sunday, September 02, 2018

RIP Village Voice

The first time I became aware of the Village Voice was when I came upon Robert Christgau's Rock Albums of the 70's book at a library in the mid-80's.  Christgau's Consumer Guide was published monthly in the Voice, but finding a copy of the Voice in my area of California was never easy.
Every week, I would spend half a day driving to bookstores and libraries looking for the latest copy.  The Voice was a weekly, so imagine the time I put in from the 80's to the late 90's hunting down an issue.  BTW- the subscription price was too high, which is why I never went that route.
While my initial intentions were to read the music section, I quickly became a fan of the rest of the paper.  Especially the film and political parts.

Once the Internet came along, I no longer needed to hunt for every issue.  Just about everything was right there at my fingertips.  It was around this time that I emailed the music editor and asked how I could become a voter in its year-end music critics Pazz & Jop poll.  And from the early 2000's-2017, I voted in its poll.  With the Voice gone, so goes Pazz & Jop with it.  Unless somebody else picks it up.  Last year the Voice gave up its printed edition, like so many other papers, and went digital only. Sadly, it didn't last.  Now it is gone for good.  A staple of the New York scene.  And at its peak, an essential buy for many fans of alt-journalism throughout the U.S.

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Saturday, September 01, 2018

Playlist for 9/1

Jeff Lynne's ELO - Wembley or Bust (Concert Film)
Turning the Tables:21st Century Edition (NPR list of 200 Greatest Songs by 21st Century Women)
Wire Magazine August 2018 Playlist: Black Minimalism (88 Tracks)
Collins Kids - Rockaway Rock 55-62
Rayland Baxter - Wide Awake
Robbie Fulks & Linda Gail Lewis - Wild! Wild! Wild!
Shooter Jennings - Shooter
Jake Shears - s/t
Nicki Minaj - Queen
Ariana Grande - Sweetener
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