music Archives - Page 124 of 265 - Ramblin' with Roger

June rambling #2: some more social justice

Leslie’s still in the hospital, getting incrementally better.

Is Trumpism becoming a new religion?

When The White House Can’t Be Believed

The 2017 Comprehensive Plan For Reorganizing The Executive Branch is codified in the June 2018 Delivering Government Solutions in the 21st Century. They’re DOING all of it, or trying to. (HT, Steve Bissette)

Family Separations: Should we be horrified, relieved, or just confused?

This Isn’t the First Time the White House Attempted to Cut the Dept. of Ed.

The corporate tax cut will never trickle down

Space defense will be a major concern for the U.S., but the “Space Force” is not the answer

Browser extension to fix the NYT’s squeamishness about calling him a liar

Reporter is raising her daughter to speak three languages; a stranger demanded she ‘speak English’ to her

Living While Black

More than one percent of Oklahoma’s population is in the slammer

Last Week Tonight with John OliverXi Jinping

We could use some more social justice when it comes to fandom

Father’s Day for children of abusive fathers

“In moral crisis” or “immoral crisis”?

Judge tosses Kansas law that disenfranchised thousands of eligible voters, orders KS Secretary of State Kris Kobach to take remedial law classes

Sales tax: Different items are taxable in different states

You don’t really know who Bernie Sanders was in the 1960s

Anthony Bourdain interviewed on The Daily Show, January 2018

RIP Dan Ingram

A natural gas power plant with no carbon emissions or air pollution

How does Disney World control mosquitoes?

‘I had to guard an empty room’: the rise of the pointless job

The Curious Origins of 16 Common Phrases

Now I Know: The Radio Reporter Who Found a New Voice, Literally and Why Is it Named Idaho? and The Tractors that Turn Farmers into Hackers and the Sound of Sneezes and The Man Who Takes Apostrophes Very Seriously and the National Animal of Scotland

The patron saint of the tacky

The LESLIE Chronicles

This is the picture of my sister’s bicycle after her accident on June 4; you can’t really tell that the handlebars are sheared off.

Leslie’s still in the hospital, getting incrementally better. Great strides in the past week, actually. She’s had a fourth surgery this week, on her palate. She has a coterie of friends tending to her, besides the hospital staff.

Most notably, I was able to talk with her this week! She has these different colored caps that cover the trachea incision that allows her to be audible. She was tired but coherent and rational. THAT is a very good sign.

If she were not wearing a helmet, there almost certainly would have had have been a different outcome. So if you are riding a motorcycle or bicycle or scooter, wear the damn helmet.

MUSIC

We’re Not Gonna Take It – Dee Snider (stripped down version)

77 Cover Songs – “Weird Al” Yankovic

Art of the song parody

Still A Friend Of Mine – MonaLisa Twins

99 Luftballons – Kaleida (Atomic Blonde Soundtrack)

Whitney Avalon sings again!

Anema e core – Pier Angeli

Just A Song Before I Go – Graham Nash (original demo)

John McElrath of the Swingin’ Medallions died at 77

Why Modern Music Is Awful

Music throwback: Rebecca Parris, RIP

When the mood is playful, Rebecca Parris can enfold you in a musical bear hug

There’s a performer you’ve probably never heard of named Rebecca Parris who died at the age of 66 this week. She grew up in the Boston area and the Globe described her as a jazz singer of uncommon range and emotional depth. “Ms. Parris wove together jazz inflections, freewheeling scat singing, andan endless palette of vocal shadings into something all her own.”

The New York Times explained her “problem” back in 2000. “She’s a New England favorite who hasn’t quite been able to develop a national constituency. And that’s unfortunate, since the veteran… singer has quietly evolved into a highly skilled jazz artist… Parris sang a set of familiar standards with the confident musicality of a performer with both the talent and the imagination to fully express her ideas.”

The singer experienced some physical ailments, making it hard to sing while standing up early in the century, but as this 2006 Globe story suggested, ‘It’s been a drag,’ but it’s spring, again, for Parris.

From a November 2007 review in the New York Times: “If Rebecca Parris … who is playing a rare New York engagement at Birdland, were a blues-rock artist, she would belong to the school of gutbucket mamas whose delivery is the vocal equivalent of wielding an ax. Her voice, a rich contralto with a baritone resonance, is so commanding that when a song’s attitude is combative, she can scare you. But when the mood is playful, she can also enfold you in a musical bear hug.

“Most revealing was a rendition of the old Doris Day hit “It’s Magic,” in which Ms. Parris’s stressing of the words “the magic is my love for you” transformed a girlish swoon of enchantment into the narrator’s grown-up awareness that she is creating her own happiness.”

I have two of her albums, My Foolish Heart and It’s Another Day.

Listen to:

My Foolish Heart

Over The Rainbow

Rebecca Parris On Piano Jazz (with Marian McPartland, NPR, 2008, 56 minutes)

Musician Todd Rundgren turns 70

The concept of Deface the Music by Utopia was to pay homage to The Beatles.

As I am a big fan of the eclectic, I love the music of Todd Rundgren.

I discovered Nazz, or the Nazz, his first, Philadelphia-based band after the group had already broken up. “‘Open My Eyes’ gained belated recognition thanks to its inclusion in Nuggets (1972), the genre-defining anthology of American 1960s garage punk and psychedelia.” He put out many albums, under various band monikers, reportage of which is a task too convoluted to note here. Check the Wikipedia.

Nor am I going to get into all the albums he produced for other people, including for Badfinger, Grand Funk Railroad, Meatloaf, the New York Dolls, Patti Smith, and XTC – look here.

Here’s somebody’s list of The 10 Best Todd Rundgren Albums To Own On Vinyl, FWIW.

Listen! All by Todd Rundgren, unless otherwise indicated; chart action is from Billboard Top 100:

Open My Eyes – Nazz, #112 in 1968
Hello It’s Me – Nazz, #71 in 1969, #66 in 1970 – these songs were the flip sides of each other
Loosen Up – Nazz, parody of Archie Bell and the Drell’s Tighten Up

We Gotta Get You a Woman – Runt, #20 in 1971; it’s unclear if this was a real band or just Todd

I Saw the Light, #16 in 1972
Hello It’s Me, #5 in 1973

Love in Action – Utopia, 1977
Can We Still Be Friends #29 in 1978 – I always find this song extraordinarily sad

Bang The Drum All Day, #63 in 1983; based on his comments playing this with Ringo Starr’s All-Starr Band, Todd thinks this is a really dopey song

Coverville 1222: The Todd Rundgren Cover Story II

Now we get to “the albums that Roger owns on vinyl” section of this post:

Deface the Music – Utopia (1980) – “The concept of the album was to pay homage to The Beatles and create songs which sounded very similar to the Fab Four’s tunes throughout the various stages of their career.” If you appreciate the Rutles, you should get this album.
I Just Want To Touch You
Life Goes On
Everybody Else Is Wrong

Swing to the Right – Utopia (1982)
Swing to the Right
One World

A Cappella (1985)
Something To Fall Back On
Pretending To Care
also
Real Man, from the “A Capella” tour

Beatles, especially Paul McCartney, on Quora

In the post-Beatles years, John acknowledged some appreciation for the Band On The Run album.

People ask a lot of questions about The Beatles on Quora. Seeing that it’s Paul McCartney’s 76th birthday – I get Macca’s newsletter every month – I thought I’d steal a few. You’ll find other, sometimes contradictory, answers as well, at the links.

Are there any Beatles songs that were written solely by Paul McCartney that were sung solely by John Lennon, and vice-versa?

Alex Johnston: “‘Every Little Thing’, on Beatles For Sale, was written entirely by McCartney but sung by Lennon, with backing vocals from McCartney and Harrison.”

What did the Beatles think of the Rolling Stones?

Alexander Chiltern: “Yes, they were friendly… A more attentive reading has suggested me that they had envy of each other, but specially The Beatles were very, very envious of the Stones.”

Which classic rock band has aged most embarrassingly?

Stanton Nicholas: “I’m going to commit a cardinal sin among Beatle-philes by suggesting that Paul McCartney is about ready to join this group if he doesn’t stop touring soon.” I saw him in 2014 and I thought he was great, FWIW.

Is there any band artistically better than the Beatles at any time?

Rosalind Mitchell: “The Beatles more or less wrote the rules for bands. It is also that no band has ever been do versatile.”

What are John Lennon’s favorite songs by Paul McCartney?

David Sylvester: “In John Lennon’s interview with Playboy in September 1980, he singled out several Paul songs for praise. These include:
All My Loving (‘it’s a damn good piece of work’)
Things We Said Today (‘Good song’)
For No One (‘one of my favorites of his’)
Yesterday (‘well done’)
Got To Get You Into My Life (‘one of his best songs’)
Hey Jude (‘one of his masterpieces’)
Why Don’t We Do It In The Road (I enjoyed the track’)
Oh Darling (‘a great one of Paul’s that he didn’t sing too well’)
Fixing A Hole (‘writing a good lyric’)
The Fool On The Hill (‘proving he can write lyrics’)

“In the post-Beatles years, John acknowledged some appreciation for the Band On The Run album, the song Monkberry Moon Delight, and notably Coming Up, which he fixated on in the summer of 1980.

I’m occasionally tempted to answer some of these queries, but time and, usually, a sufficient extant answer dissuades me. For instance, there are always questions about whether the Beatles will be remembered decades from now. There is no telling the future, but the preponderance of evidence, such as the sheer number of cover albums of their music being produced each year, suggests the answer is YES.

RIAA going gold, platinum, diamond

I have 12 albums on both LP and CD

The Recording Industry Association of America (EIAA) is celebrating 60 years of Gold & Platinum albums, representing sales of 500,000 and 1,000,000 units, respectively, in the United States.

The first Gold album certification was awarded to the cast album of “Oklahoma!”

In 1999, RIAA unveiled the Official Diamond Award, representing sales of 10,000,000 units. There are a lot of statistics and stories at the link. The LP or CD designation notes in what format, if any, I own that album. (I have none on cassette.) Sales in millions.

1. MICHAEL JACKSON- THRILLER, 33 (LP, CD with extras) – DECEMBER 30, 1982
33X Multi-Platinum | February 16, 2017
The extras involved producer Quincy Jones and the late songwriter Rod Temperton talking about putting the album together. Note the spike in sales after June 25, 2009.

2. EAGLES- THEIR GREATEST HITS 1971 – 1975, 29 (LP, CD) – FEBRUARY 1, 1976
29X Multi-Platinum | January 30, 2006
This became the RIAA’s first Platinum Album. For a time early in the 21st century, it was the #1 best seller again.

3. BILLY JOEL -GREATEST HITS VOLUME I & VOLUME II, 23 (CD) – JUNE 28, 1985
23X Multi-Platinum | October 26, 2011
The very first CDs I ever purchased, after SOMEONE gave me the first four Beatles CDs, KNOWING I had nothing to play them on

3. LED ZEPPELIN – IV, 23 (LP) – NOVEMBER 8, 1971
23X Multi-Platinum | January 30, 2006
This is the one with Stairway to Heaven

3. PINK FLOYD -THE WALL, 23 (LP) – NOVEMBER 28, 1979
23X Multi-Platinum | January 29, 1999
I had written bawdy lyrics to the title track.

6. AC/DC – BACK IN BLACK, 22 – JULY 21, 1980
22X Multi-Platinum | December 13, 2007
Never owned any AC/DC, though I have a country cover compilation.

7. GARTH BROOKS – DOUBLE LIVE, 21 – NOVEMBER 17, 1998
21X Multi-Platinum | November 1, 2006
Own some Garth, but not this.

7. HOOTIE & THE BLOWFISH -CRACKED REAR VIEW, 21 (CD) – JULY 5, 1994
21x Multi-Platinum | May 21, 2018
How did this album go from 16 million to 21 million? Brian Cantor, the story’s writer, explains: . “RIAA certifications are not issued automatically – the label has to apply. Often (especially with older releases), they won’t apply until there’s a compelling milestone — such as double diamond.”

9. FLEETWOOD MAC – RUMOURS, 20 (LP) – FEBRUARY 4, 1977
20X Multi-Platinum | October 3, 2014

9. SHANIA TWAIN – COME ON OVER, 20 – NOVEMBER 4, 1997
20X Multi-Platinum | November 15, 2004

11. THE BEATLES – THE BEATLES, 19 (LP, CD) -NOVEMBER 25, 1968
19X Multi-Platinum | February 6, 2001
This is the white album, which wasn’t dubbed platinum until 1991

12. GUNS N’ ROSES – APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION, 18 – JULY 21, 1987
18X Multi-Platinum | September 23, 2008

12. WHITNEY HOUSTON – THE BODYGUARD (SOUNDTRACK), 18 – NOVEMBER 17, 1992
18X Multi-Platinum | November 17, 2017
I’ve never seen the movie, but I HAVE seen the musical based on the movie.

14. BOSTON – BOSTON 17 (LP) – AUGUST 25, 1976
17X Multi-Platinum | November 20, 2003

14. ELTON JOHN – GREATEST HITS, 17 (CD) – NOVEMBER 4, 1974
17X Multi-Platinum | April 28, 2016
Another one of my first CDs, since I owned so many of his albums on vinyl.

14. GARTH BROOKS – NO FENCES, 17 (CD) – AUGUST 27, 1990
17X Multi-Platinum | November 1, 2006
Bought a box set of Brooks at one point.

14. THE BEATLES – 1967 – 1970, 17 (CD) – APRIL 2, 1973
17X Multi-Platinum | August 27, 2010
A present I received for my birthday, or maybe Christmas.

ALANIS MORISSETTE -JAGGED LITTLE PILL, 16 (CD)
BEE GEES – SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER (SOUNDTRACK), 16 (LP, CD)
EAGLES -HOTEL CALIFORNIA, 16 (LP)
LED ZEPPELIN – PHYSICAL GRAFFITI, 16 (CD)
METALLICA – METALLICA, 16

BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS -LEGEND, 15 (CD)
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN – BORN IN THE U.S.A., 15 (LP, CD)
PINK FLOYD – DARK SIDE OF THE MOON, 15 (LP)
SANTANA – SUPERNATURAL, 15 (CD) – achieved Diamond status in one year

ADELE -21, 14 (CD)
GARTH BROOKS -ROPIN’ THE WIND, 14 (CD)
SIMON & GARFUNKEL – GREATEST HITS, 14 (CD)
STEVE MILLER BAND – GREATEST HITS 1974-1978, 14 (CD)

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & E STREET BAND – LIVE 1975 – ’85 13 (LP)
PEARL JAM – TEN, 13 (CD)
PRINCE & THE REVOLUTION – PURPLE RAIN (SOUNDTRACK), 13 (LP, CD)

BOYZ II MEN -II, 12 (CD)
DIXIE CHICKS -WIDE OPEN SPACES, 12 (CD)
JEWEL -PIECES OF YOU, 12 (CD)
KENNY ROGERS -GREATEST HITS, 12 (CD)
LED ZEPPELIN -II, 12 (LP, CD)
MATCHBOX TWENTY – YOURSELF OR SOMEONE LIKE YOU, 12 (CD)
PHIL COLLINS – NO JACKET REQUIRED, 12 (LP)
SOUNDTRACK -FORREST GUMP, 12 (CD)
THE BEATLES -ABBEY ROAD, 12 (LP, CD)
THE ROLLING STONES -HOT ROCKS, 12 (LP)
TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS -GREATEST HITS, 12 (CD)

ADELE -25, 11 (CD)
AEROSMITH -GREATEST HITS, 11 (CD)
EAGLES -GREATEST HITS VOLUME II, 11 (LP)
JAMES TAYLOR -GREATEST HITS, 11 (CD)
LED ZEPPELIN -HOUSES OF THE HOLY, 11 (LP)
OUTKAST -SPEAKERBOXXX / THE LOVE BELOW, 11 (CD)
SOUNDTRACK -TITANIC, 11 (CD)
THE BEATLES -SGT. PEPPER’S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND, 11 (LP, CD)

BILLY JOEL – THE STRANGER, 10 (LP)
CAROLE KING – TAPESTRY, 10 (LP, CD)
CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL – CHRONICLE: 20 GREATEST HITS, 10 (LP, CD)
DIXIE CHICKS – FLY, 10 (CD)
DOOBIE BROTHERS -BEST OF THE DOOBIES, 10 (LP)
ERIC CLAPTON -UNPLUGGED, 10 (CD)
GARTH BROOKS -GARTH BROOKS, 10 (CD)
GREEN DAY -DOOKIE, 10 (CD)
HAMMER -PLEASE HAMMER DON’T HURT ‘EM, 10 (CD)
LED ZEPPELIN -LED ZEPPELIN, 10 (LP)
MADONNA -THE IMMACULATE COLLECTION, 10 (CD)
NIRVANA -NEVERMIND, 10 (CD)
NO DOUBT -TRAGIC KINGDOM, 10 (CD)
NORAH JONES -COME AWAY WITH ME, 10 (CD)
PATSY CLINE -GREATEST HITS, 10 (CD)
R.E.O. SPEEDWAGON -HI INFIDELITY, 10 (LP)
STEVIE WONDER -SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE, (LP, CD)
THE DOORS – THE BEST OF THE DOORS, 10 (CD)
U2 – THE JOSHUA TREE, 10 (CD)
VAN HALEN – 1984 (MCMLXXXIV), 10 (LP)
ZZ TOP – ELIMINATOR, 10 (LP)

If I counted correctly, there are 73 albums with at least 10 million sales in the United States, only 6 of which I’ve never owned. I have 16 on LP, 39 on CD and 12 on both, though there are probably a few LPs that I also have on CD through “alternative” means.