Part I of The 80's! Elvis, Roxy Music and REM

Music Wed - Part 1 of the Moment-I've-Been-Dreading = An analysis of 80's music. I have an oft-expressed love/hate relationship with this decade. Sure, it produced some great music and spawned classic bands - U2 and REM were born in this time period. This also was the era that gave us hair bands, Bon Jovi, MTV-created bands, Huey Lewis & The News, Tiffany - shall I go on? But I know many of you love music from this decade, so I am finally chasing my white whale in an effort to capture my thoughts and feelings about 80's music. After much contemplation, I will begin with my first installment which will be dedicated to true New Wave pioneers. Now, first let me establish a few ground rules - I will not discuss U2 = I already have paid tribute to them and they are, for me! the greatest band to be borne of this decade. I also am excluding acts that had great success in the 80's, but were borne in the 70's, i.e., The Police, Van Halen, The Eagles, Bowie, Bruce, etc. So, to get this party started, let me give a nod to masters of New Wave music who went on to diversify their tastes and showcase their deep talents. I'm talking about Elvis Costello and Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music. Both created wildly different music, but have grown as artists and demonstrated early on that good 80's pop music could be plain old good music. Check out the following tasty nibbles = "Alison" http://youtu.be/h99neu9HtQA (1st live appearance!), "What's So Wrong With Peace Love and Understanding" http://youtu.be/lhol3zIoynE (check out the Bangles jumping in stage to dance!), "Every Day I Write the Book" http://youtu.be/lhLztdvgpFY and "Watching The Detectives" http://youtu.be/K--POHTLGY0 (this is an absolutely wicked live version) from Elvis and his early bands, The Attractions and The Imposters. Next is Bryan Ferry's Roxy Music included such musical masters as Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, who went on to produce Bowie's best 80's music and to shape U2's seminal movement into ambient and dance music in the 90's. The effect of these artists stretches far, and check out this early Roxy Music classic gems "Love is the Drug" http://youtu.be/0n3OepDn5GU, "Avalon" http://youtu.be/bpA_5a0miWk and "More Than This" http://youtu.be/kOnde5c7OG8. Finally, let me pay tribute to the second greatest band from the 80's, REM. This band singly made local, indy/college bands relevant and inspired the creation of the chart on Rolling Stone magazine for College Radio. Here are some early REM classics -- "Its the End of the World" http://youtu.be/u2UhvN0k74w , "Everybody Hurts" http://youtu.be/NLlOeGeVih4, "Stand" http://youtu.be/AKKqLl_ZEEY, and "Radio Free Europe" http://youtu.be/KA57Pafq_NU. The more I discuss the subject of 80's music with friends, the longer the series becomes. Let's start with these clear winners and move from there. Enjoy!

Cerissa's Music Wed - Awesome songs of inspiration by Groban, Dion and the two greatest divas of our time!

I had planned to start this week a multi-part analysis of 80's music. For me this is a very conflicted exercise because of my love-hate relationship with that decade of music. As I was struggling, my lovely daughter Cerissa came to my rescue and allowed me an extra week to work on Part I by offering this spontaneous contribution. I love these songs, and in particular I love the specific recordings she picked - perfect pop music in the very best sense. Enjoy!

In tribute of Dad I'm doing Music Wednesday this week! My theme is uplifting, awe inspiring, legendary songs and voices. I listen to this set of 3 songs on nights when I need some cheering up, strength to go, and peace to sleep. I hop in bed, plug in my ear buds, and pull up each of these videos. I ask you to do the same. To start off we have Josh Groban's live version of You Raise Me Up-it features a black choir and phenomenal violinist: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tHDoLAJf8rQ
Next is the goddess Celine Dion in My Heart Will Go On-this is also live and is the weirdest video but she rocks it, just watch it. Her soothing voice provides resilience to keep going: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WNIPqafd4As . Lastly we have the dynamic divas themselves, Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. These prima donnas battle it out in When You Believe. This song will banish any sorrow, doubt, or frustration. Listening to this always uplifts my spirit. This is a live version and they're awesome. Watch and enjoy these legends: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eAM2-hg7xJs&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DeAM2-hg7xJs.

Thanks to Cerissa for a really fun entry, and thanks to all of you who take a moment to enjoy with me a love for all types of music.

Powerhouse Women of Rock! Wilson, Benatar and More!!

Music Wed is dedicated to the blow-down-the-doors voices of Rock Goddesses. What Freddie Mercury and Robert Plant are to male rock voices, Anne Wilson and Pat Benatar are every bit their equal in representing female rockers. Take a taste of these delectable morsels from the original "Midnight Special" show (which remains a classic archival history of live 70's rock performances) - "Crazy On You" (featuring an extended Nancy Wilson solo at the intro) http://youtu.be/4gpNqB4dnT4, and "Barricuda" (a showcase piece for the original lineup of Heart, which truly was a band to be reckoned with in the 70's rock genre), http://youtu.be/2QkmmDvkLSI. Love me some Heart, and I never tire of Anne's thundering vocals from their early albums. If you want a real treat, kick back and play the album "Dog and Butterfly" from front to back.  Another woman who blazed a trail for women rockers was the classically trained Pat Benatar.  Check out her blasting sounds on a smoking live version of "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" http://youtu.be/0JRgHol94Xc. Let's wrap up this tour of great female rockers with the First Lady of New Wave, Debbie Harry of Blondie. Her power was only matched by her attitude on "One Way or Another" (with the original band in 1979), http://youtu.be/ygfUjp4x_hQ, and she roars through a great rendition of "Call Me" from 1982, right before Chris Stein got sick and the band ceased performing for the next 15 years, http://youtu.be/knrJNAj0Jm0. My bonus cut? None other than a rare live version of "Rapture" (a song Rena can sing from beginning to end, including the early rap interlude!),  http://youtu.be/ZHhcSnWDdFc. All Hail Rock Chicks - Enjoy!

Part 2 of LFDH - The Oldies Version with Nick Lowe, Smokey, Joe Walsh and Todd Rundgren

Music Wed - I had so much fun picking, then re-listening to, the Part 1 songs in my tribute to "Live From Daryl's House" that I just had to jump into Part Deux - The Oldies Edition. Let's start with two quick performances from Daryl's "other" house, his London pad. It is just as charming as his upstate New York home is, but is classically English, down to the little garden in the back. While in London, he taped two fun shows with the master songwriter and producer Nick Lowe (a well-known hit - "Gotta Be Cruel To Be Kind" http://youtu.be/6no9DKxJhW0, and a tender, sweet little-played ballad "Shelley My Love" - I totally dig the melody on this tender tune http://youtu.be/-_In1-LX64Q). Go back and check out your early Elvis Costello and Dave Edmunds records, and you will see Nick Lowe all over the place as a writer, producer and player. Next is Smokey Robinson who starts with "Sara Smile" and then lets the band pull him into a really nice version of Smokey's old classic "Ooooo Baby Baby" - you gotta check out this clip (http://youtu.be/iRxCy44zg5M). I have to play Pat Monahan (of Train) singing one of Hall & Oates' sweetest older tunes, "Wait For Me" - this one is a keeper http://youtu.be/zzUYWS0mBzs. I want to keep the mellow groove, so I will take a little known, but much appreciated, Daryl Hall single that he played with Joe Walsh to great effect - "Somebody Like You" http://youtu.be/b_6GrnhUzzw. Let's wrap this up with the only multiple appearance guest on LFDH, Todd Rundgren, one from Daryl's NY house and one Todd's wonderful Hawaii house. Here are some oldies, but goodies taken from each location. From Hawaii - "I Saw The Light" (http://youtu.be/tA0xRBQq_ds) and "It Wouldn't Have Made Any Difference" (http://youtu.be/prOYxFPoKSM); and from New York, a song I never grow tired of, "Can We Still be Friends" (http://youtu.be/1pLTD23l468). I have to leave you with one bonus cut, and that will be Todd adding his flair to another song I can play on a continuous loop, "Wait For Me" (http://youtu.be/9NekaojZPzM). Enjoy!

My Love For "Live From Daryl's House" -- Part 1

Music Wed - It is no secret that one of my favorite shows (read: a show that I can get "lost in" for 25-45 minutes and just "float away" with some mindless entertainment) is "Live at Daryl's House" featuring Daryl Hall. At 60+ years of age, his musical chops are still at their peak, while his voice retains the range and elasticity of his youth.  And his band is a musical marvel, with the ability to play just about any style, genre and era of music that is matched only by the mighty E Street Band. This post will be the first of two items this week where I will showcase what I so enjoy about this particular show. This first installment will highlight Daryl's collaborations with more contemporary musicians where he has reinterpreted their songs, while they have joined him in reworking his old, classic material. In both cases, the results are so genuinely enjoyable and will remind you why you all are so hooked on music. Daryl's invitations to certain current musicians have introduced me to wonderful singer/songwriters that I otherwise might not have been exposed to. So this installment will share some of my fave "Daryl discoveries" (at least for me!). The first is Butch Walker's take on one of my truly beloved Daryl Hall songs, "Why Was It So Easy" - http://youtu.be/cMj0VaawMn8. Before seeing this episode, I had no idea of how sweet and rangy were Butch's vocals, and once I did, I became a fan. The next is Daryl's effort to promote a truly talented female performer, who with a little luck should be enjoying the same success as her contemporary, Sara Bareilles - Diane Birch, and here are two great songs from her initial album (as presented by Daryl's incomparable band): "Nothing But A Miracle" http://youtu.be/H9lyrOETXao, and "Fools" http://youtu.be/unoYkG3EUwc. Finally, Daryl teamed up with Finger Eleven to do a breezy, loose version of Bill Withers' classic "Ain't No Sunshine" - http://youtu.be/cbdU9gXeF7w. This is the best of the old and the new. There are so many others I could share, such as Fitz and the Tantrums, Jason Mraz, Nick Waterhouse, Jimmy Wayne and Meyer Hawthorne, just to name a very few. I hope this and my next installment will encourage you to check out this cool show. Enjoy! Bonus cuts -- I love Rumer's appearance featuring "Sara Smile" http://youtu.be/GeXwSL6mh6I, and her song "Take Me As I Am" http://youtu.be/QqgmTGQ8MIU - I love these songs!!

The Beatles Before The British Invasion - 1963 Classics

Music Wed - As many of you may have read or heard, this month marks the 50th anniversary of The Beatles performances over three weeks in February on The Ed Sullivan Show, which is universally recognized as the official commencement of Beatlemania in the US. It is important to note that Beatlemania had already been sweeping through the UK and Europe for over a year before it landed in the States. Here are a couple of fun facts about Beatlemania and how it started in this country. First, The Beatles had been rejected for distribution in the US by the holder of their publishing rights in the this country, Capitol Records, four times during 1963, because the execs at this record company felt they were a novelty act and would not be interesting or sellable to a US audience. In fact, if a 14 year old girl in Baltimore had not asked her daddy to bring a Beatles 45 rpm record back to her from a business trip to London in December 1963, and then took that record and sent it to a local DJ and asked him to play it, who knows when or whether we would have had a Beatles' or British Invasion in this country. The listener response to this single record sent to a local DJ by this girl was so overwhelming that music stations all over the East Coast had to get stewardesses and pilots to bring them copies of Beatles' records to them to play because Capitol Records still refused to make and distribute any Beatles records at that time. The Beatles would not have been noticed by Ed Sullivan if not for the efforts of a lone teenage girl who heard second hand from her daddy of The Beatles' exploding popularity which he witnessed during repeated business trips to Europe during 1963. Of course, once Capitol saw how popular the group was, they started printing and selling Beatles' singles in January 1964, and the rest, as they say, is history.  Here is a glimpse of The Beatles from televised performances in 1963 which show their live energy and irrepressible energy before they became a worldwide phenomenon -- Live on Swedish TV   http://youtu.be/A2nJXcZy_Gw; Live in Liverpool  http://youtu.be/brwmLjD-3Hw; and a rare color file of She Loves You  http://youtu.be/QoF-7VMMihA). Cheeky little buggers who changed music as we know it. Enjoy!

Looking for Good New Music? Check out Lorde and Jake Bugg - Teen Artists With a Talent and Vision

Music Wed - Most of the time I focus on what I consider more classic or more timeless music and don't spend a bunch of time on the disposable drivel that is churned out by the mainstream music industry. But I want to call out two contemporary artists who are fresh, relevant and talented. What is interesting about both of these artists is that they have gained popularity and success by defying the "formula" so-called hit makers have established to govern what ultimately makes it on the radio, finds space on restaurant playlists and earns award show accolades. So here's a shout out to Lorde and Jake Bugg. She is a poet with a wry wit and a low tolerance for fools, copycats and music industry sycophants; he is a skilled musician with a keen eye for topical issues. Ella (Lorde's real name and the name she uses in her life), earned my respect when she openly sang live at the Grammys over a harmonic backing track, just like Queen used to do when they performed Bohemian Rhapsody - there was no subterfuge or trickery, like Selena Gomez, Britney Spears, Ke$ha and so many other pop stars resort to. Her stark Grammys performance of Royals was eerie, a bit disturbing, and wonderful in its use of the silent parts (just as Miles Davis has always done so brilliantly). Both of these teen artists have an ability to communicate as song writers and as people. Check them out, and here are a few items to get you started -- For Lorde, I recommend "Tennis Court" (http://youtu.be/D8Ymd-OCucs) and "White Teeth Teens" (http://youtu.be/ZWVZBwrQhsY) to get a sense of her abilities beyond Royals. As for Mr Bugg, I suggest you check out "Broken" (http://youtu.be/3EL20VKlvbs) and "Two Fingers" (http://youtu.be/J9XwFecNXyU). I think you will dig them because they are something that is a little rare in pop music today - they are real. Enjoy!