"Now, some serious music. Listen!"

It's odd.  I'm not being tested, and no one is ever around to see me react this way, but whenever a Classical announcer refers to "Johann Sebastian Bachhhhhhhhh" with an elongated h, I sit up a little straighter. 

I'm probably not the only listener who feels like he'll be scolded if he doesn't pay attention.

A historical memento

Even though the turntable in the WEW studio didn't work when I was a DJ, I still liked having it there.  It was a nice reminder of the station's--and the music's--history.  Considering that the station had been on the air for 75 years when I worked there, that was a lot of history to recall.

SiriusXM highlights XCVIII

Noteworthy tunes heard yesterday:

'60s On 6

• Wichita Lineman-Glen Campbell (Campbell's wistful vocals nail the confessional intent of Jimmy Webb's lyrics.  Dee Felice Trio also captured the tune's wistfulness effectively in its piano-anchored instrumental version, and Ghost Of An American Airman recorded a solid indie rock cover of it.)

The Bridge

• Eye In The Sky-Alan Parsons Project (Thirty-six years later, this song's relatively mild-mannered rage still intrigues me.  Lyrically, it's an interesting way of saying, "I have power, but don't tempt me to use it.") 

Outlaw Country

• A Feather's Not A Bird-Rosanne Cash (Many aspects of this life are bigger than we are as individuals; Cash acknowledges this in a memorable chorus.)

Real Jazz

• Junction-The Art Farmer-Benny Golson Jazztet (A classy trumpet and saxophone-led number, with an excellent recurring piano transition, fit for a combo leading a slow dance or a big band.) 

SiriusXMU

• Nobody-Mitski (I have to respect any song that can combine such disparate elements as Isaac Hayes's "Theme From 'Shaft,'" ELO's "Livin' Thing," and Keren Ann's "Not Going Anywhere," while still sounding fresh and original.  These are some of 2018's more endearing vocals and piano playing.)

Soul Town

• Sitting In The Park-Billy Stewart (Is the protagonist making the right choice?  The listener can't help but sympathize with his plight in this 1965 R&B hit that deserves more recognition.)

The Spectrum

• Please Forgive Me-David Gray (Effective lyrics about being awestruck.) 

Persistent earworm alert CX

Some days, in the midst of checking mundane tasks off of a list, a song will pop into your mind and make everything seem less tedious.  That's the case for me with the metal cover of Toto's "Africa," by Leo Moracchioli featuring Rabea & Hannah.  While I'm still more inclined to listen to the original version, the tune works better than I thought it would in a guitar-heavy version with manic lead vocals.

Sometimes, when you open your mind a bit, you find that an odd-sounding concept isn't so implausible, after all.

Stingray Music highlights LXV

Noteworthy tunes heard through U-verse recently:

Adult Alternative

• Is It Like Today?-World Party (Good lyrics offering a historical perspective from 25 years ago that's needed in this country today.  "How could it come to this?"  Indeed.)

Cool Jazz

• All That I Need Is Love-Melody Gardot (Lyrically and vocally, this is a natural segue with Norah Jones's "It's A Wonderful Time For Love.")
• Triste-Oscar Peterson (This percolating piano melody hooks me from the first note, regardless of whether Kenny Barron or Oscar Peterson plays it.)

Everything '80s

• Get On Your Feet-Gloria Estefan (To my ears, "Get On Your Feet" holds up best among Estefan's non-ballad hits.  A lot of her ballads follow a similar template, so it's energizing to hear a get-up-and-go song sung and played with this much resolve.)

Folk Roots

• Sovay-Low Lily (This strong, brisk rendition of a traditional English tune, released in March, features excellent Celtic-style singing, mandolin, fiddle, and guitar.)
• Swept Away-Missy Raines featuring Alison Brown, Becky Buller, Molly Tuttle & Sierra Hull (An appealing blend of vocal harmonies against bluegrass instrumentation.)
• Weather Out The Storm-Figgy Duff (There's an epic quality in the vocals that makes me wonder how October Project's Mary Fahl would sound covering this.)

Jazz Latino

• Armame-Lauren Henderson (This could segue with Doris Day's version of "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps.") 

Jazz Masters

• Blue Moon-Ben Webster (The Marcels topped the charts with their spitfire vocal rendition of this in 1961.  As memorable as their version is, Webster's elegant version shows the tune is even better served as a slower, romantic tenor sax instrumental.)

Latin Lounge

• Voyage-Kike Fernandez (Soothing, sultry-sounding piano that falls somewhere between easy listening and smooth jazz.)

Overthinking this listening-to-music concept

While listening to a stack of 45s recently, I slipped into program director mode.

"Let's see," I thought.  "I was going to play this next, but it doesn't segue as well with the song playing as this one would.  It makes more sense to play this other song next, so that's what I'll do."

Then, I thought, "I'm not programming a radio station here or being a DJ at someone's wedding.  I'm just listening to 45s for fun.  Nothing has to segue with anything.  The only question for me should be, 'What songs do I feel like hearing?'"

That realization didn't stop me from reshuffling the records and playing them in the order that made the most musical sense.

In my defense, though, Gino Vannelli's "I Just Wanna Stop" segues smoothly after Earth, Wind & Fire's "After The Love Has Gone," and The Mini-Skirt Mob's version of "Be My Baby" leads right into Pat Benatar's "Little Too Late."

That's what listening to music for fun is all about, after all--following rules...

SiriusXM highlights XCVII

Standout tunes heard yesterday:

'80s On 8

• (Keep Feeling) Fascination-The Human League (A prototypical early '80s track that must be heard in its album incarnation; it's incomplete without the organ intro.  Well-crafted interplay between all vocalists and the synthesizer..."And so the conversation turned..." is one of the great transitions in any pop song.)

Deep Tracks

• Bluebird Revisited-Stephen Stills (A well-structured, imaginative build to the chorus; the trumpet backing adds to its appeal.)

Garth Channel

• Like We Never Had A Broken Heart-Trisha Yearwood (Life does a number on everyone at one time or another; Yearwood reminds us that it shouldn't stop us from enjoying life's positive aspects.)

Lithium

• Sick Of Myself-Matthew Sweet (One of the most ear-catching guitar-and-drums rock intros; when I think of the mid '90s, this sing-along track comes to mind frequently.)

Real Jazz

• It's The Talk Of The Town-Gene Ammons (The production on this track makes Ammons sound as though he's playing tenor sax off in the distance.  With a tone like this and elegant piano backing to match, it's a sound worth emulating.)

Siriusly Sinatra

• Good Morning Heartache-Gladys Knight (Knight emotes effectively in this fine cover, with appropriately lush backing from The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.  Also recommended: Laura Fygi's rendition.)

Three cheers for civility

There was something refreshing recently about hearing someone call in to an AM radio station.  She was asking how to rid her yard of moles, and the host gave her the names of two companies that could help her.  Although hearing the caller verify the spellings of each company's name didn't make for riveting listening, it was reassuring to hear a host being helpful and two strangers treating each other civilly. 

You don't hear as much of that type of civility on the radio--or in life--these days.

In memory of Nemo the cat

This type of post never gets easier to write, but that's appropriate, under the circumstances.

My brother's cat, Nemo, passed away today.  The rest of our family didn't know Nemo as well as my brother did.  We knew him well enough, however, to value him as a unique, independent-minded cat we'll never forget.

Memories of the fighter in Nemo bring to mind a particular Isley Brothers song.  Contrasting memories of him staring transfixed at lighted candles on a birthday cake remind me of Fleetwood Mac's subtle, album-closing mood piece, "Caught In The Rain."

Recollections of Nemo looking out at the sun from my brother's condo make me think of Michael Gulezian's guitar piece, "Sunrise Over Lock & Dam 5a."  The piece, like Nemo, comes across as somewhat guarded, at first.  As the piece builds, much like a sunrise, however, and the strings start to swell, it's gripping to hear in its entirety.  It captures the breathtaking nature of a sunrise and the gravity of each sunrise's uniqueness.

As an intelligent cat, I imagine that Nemo would have appreciated Gulezian's "Sunrise..."  Also, as my brother's cat, I'm sure he heard some fine jazz.  I suspect that the piano and trumpet elegance of a Sean Jones Quartet tune, such as "We'll Meet Under The Stars," would have gone over well with him as he sat on the couch or looked out the window.

To anyone who is mourning the loss of a pet: Although it's said that "time heals all wounds," I think a more accurate phrasing is, "In time, you come to terms with some wounds."  Patty Griffin captures this feeling in her sparse, passionately sung tune, "You'll Remember."  Its acoustic bass underscoring makes her lyrics resonate all the more.

Can't say this to just any customer

I'd find it refreshing if a record store worker would put an honest spin on the often unnecessary question, "Need any help?"  Just once, I'd like to hear a clerk ask, with mock seriousness, "Need any assistance with the intricacies of the alphabet?"

When cutting someone slack is appropriate

Someone compiled a cue sheet in a '70s edition of "American Top 40" using a manual typewriter, as the syndicate-provided cue sheet was missing.  Instead of The Captain & Tennille, the typist identified the duo as The Captain & Tinio.  I was amused, at first, but then, I started thinking.  It was surprising there weren't more such typos in the list, considering the typist on that day in the mid '70s didn't have Internet access and probably didn't have easy access to a pop music reference book.  The list could also have been typed on a tight deadline before any record stores were open to confirm the correct spelling.  Furthermore, about two decades later, a co-worker and I referred incorrectly to "Brolidar and Big Jim Nahgahro" in a song we'd heard.  Most likely, the list was intended for in-house reference only.

While The Captain & Tinio was incorrect, it was a somewhat understandable error, under the circumstances.

Persistent earworm alert CIX

I haven't eaten Apple Jacks cereal in years, but decades later, strolling through the cereal aisle of any grocery store still triggers the Apple Jacks jingle in my mind.  It's peculiar to think, "Cinnamon toasty, apple tasty, Kellogg's Apple Jacks," even while contemplating one's own mortality.

Pick yourself up--or lull yourself to sleep...

I don't know why this didn't occur to me earlier.  One of Ron Carter's catchiest bass melodies, to me, has always been "N.O. Blues."  For decades, I've thought, "What do the central recurring notes on the bass and piano remind me of?"  The answer should have been obvious: "Three Blind Mice," if the mice had formed a jazz combo.

If Carter's interpretation is too raucous for you, seek out the recently released Einstein Baby Lullaby Academy/Monarch Baby Lullaby Institute rendition.  Their rendition of "Three Blind Mice" recasts the tune as a new age lullaby, meant to induce sleep, though not in any great hurry.

Not the way to rise and shine

Years ago, over a song intro on a morning radio show, I heard the sound of a rooster crowing, followed by gunshots.  Although it was just a sound effect, the implication that the rooster should be shot irritated me.

We all have times when we'd rather sleep in, but there's no reason to shoot a rooster just for doing what it does.

"This is music, aged one."

At a previous job, I bought some cookies for those who worked with me.  A worker who was about 20 years younger than me said, "The only way this could have been better is if you'd brought Sick Puppies with you."  After a pause, he added, "It's a band."

While I hadn't heard much of the band's music, I'd heard of Sick Puppies and knew that KPNT played their music.  The older you get, however, the more I think it's assumed that you haven't heard of certain bands.  It's part of the "Hello, old person who is old," implication that comes with being older.

I'm not one to seek out parades...

...This morning, however, I made a concession to the parade I heard from my kitchen.  As the drum corps struck up a tune, I marched in time to the refrigerator, got out some juice, and drank it in 4/4 time.  I then marched over to my cat, Sylvia, who knows me well enough not to be puzzled by such quirky behavior.  She didn't start marching in time, but I suspect she would have if she hadn't been so sleepy.

Hearing some type of music performed by someone

Heard several years ago at a concert:

Audience member #1:  So, do you like (the artist about to take the stage?)
Audience member #2:  I don't know.  Who is she?  Is she a rocker?  She looks like a rocker.

It's puzzling that someone would attend a concert without knowing anything about the artist performing or even what type of music to expect.  At least he was approaching the concert with an open mind.

"In today's hydration news..."

Recently, I dreamed that I'd hired my cat, Sylvia, as the news director of a radio station.  I knew that faucet water was one of her passions:

Still, I wasn't prepared for her first newscast.  Her first story was about the lack of safe drinking water in third world countries.  That was an unusual lead story, but lack of water is a problem.  Her next story was about lead being found in some local business water fountains.  Fair enough, I guess; if there was lead in my drinking water, I'd want to know about it.  I drew the line at her third story, though; a survey allegedly showed that guardians who give their cat three or more drinks of water from the faucet per day increase their chances of gaining entry into Heaven by 45%.  She didn't cite the source of her survey; I didn't have the heart to tell her that I suspected she'd made it up.  At that point, I woke up.  If this had happened in real life, I'm sure I would have told Sylvia that her  newscasts would need to contain a wider range of stories.

Still, I guess we all filter the news according to our own priorities.

Only in college LVII

Once, on KCOU, I played "I Can't Wait" by Nu Shooz.  Outside of the "Retro 88" show, a fair number of listeners might have found it too populist for a station that strives to promote new and diverse music.

The song hadn't been playing for long when KCOU's most frequent listener called in and asked, "Drew, why are you playing this?"  He had a slight chuckle in his voice as he spoke.  Just for a moment, I started to second guess myself.  That moment doubt passed quickly, though, as I replied, "I know it's more mainstream than most of what we usually play during a general shift, but it has a strong hook and a lot of listeners took to it when it was a hit.  It also segues well with the song I played before it.  We play a lot of new and obscure music here, so now and then, it's refreshing to play a more familiar song that people know and like."

Once you get into the mindset of "Music no one has heard before is good," however, your radio station's most frequent caller sometimes becomes the arbiter of what fits the station's format--at least for a moment.

A post I never want to write

For the fifth September 11th since I started this blog, I'm forcing myself to write a post.  How do I write, once again, about such an awful day?  I have recordings of radio newscasts from that day; someday, I'll finally bring myself to listen to them again.  Not today, however.  Today, I've been reading articles about how September 11 changed people's lives and listening to "New York, New York" by Ryan Adams.  It was appropriate for "Saturday Night Live," during its first show after September 11, 2001, to have Adams sing his new song about the rejection he'd faced in New York, which includes the chorus, "Hell, I still love you, New York."  It's still difficult to watch the video he'd filmed for "New York, New York" four days before the 9/11 atrocities; knowing that such a significant part of the landscape disappeared in such a hateful, despicable way just four days later makes me want to just hear the song without any visual accompaniment.

I'm sure I'm far from alone in that department.

"Let's hear that song you almost never play."

It was always awkward when a listener called a radio station and asked to hear a song the station didn't have.  It was especially awkward when the song had been played on a prerecorded show.

"I'm sure I've heard it before on your station," the listener would say.

"Yes, but it was on a syndicated show that we run," I'd reply.  "We don't actually have that song in our library."

I couldn't blame the listener.  Most listeners don't think, "This song must be part of the approved rotation that's only played during certain times of day.  This other song must be part of the station's heavy rotation.  And this one is only being played because it's part of a national countdown or specialty show."

To most listeners, a radio station is simply a source of music they like.  That's worth remembering when you talk to listeners on the phone.

"So, you play the upright acoustic bass?"

Upon finding out I was a musician in high school and college, people would ask me, "Which instrument do you play?"  For years, I answered, "the bass," but realized later that a lot of people assumed I meant the electric bass.  Then, I started saying I played the double bass.  Even though that terminology is correct, it always sounded peculiar to me; it made it sound as though I played two basses at once.  At a certain point, I started saying I played the upright bass, and more people understood what that meant.  Still, for clarification, people would sometimes ask, "You mean that big bass that has to be lugged around?"

That's the one.

Only in college LVI

I'm sure I wasn't the only used record buyer in college who thought, "The owner of this store might not eat today if I don't buy something.  I'd better buy an album.  Actually, make that two albums."

Only in college LV

A conversation heard between two DJs in college:

DJ 1 (quoting from an album review): "If you like music, you'll like this."  Some of these reviews are kind of--I don't know...
DJ 2 (sarcastically): I don't know.  I'm not sure I like music very much.

Online radio sampler highlights LXXXII

Ear-catching tunes heard yesterday:

KEBF (Morro Bay, CA)

• Gambia-Sona Jobarteh (I'm pretty sure this is the first song I've highlighted that features the kora, a lute-like instrument that, according to the DJ, was made from a gourd.  Instrumentally and vocally, this is a memorable melody.)

KXT (Dallas, TX)

• Move-Milo Greene (Mysterious, breathy vocals; lyrically, this haunting new track could segue with Karla Bonoff's "Somebody's Eyes" or Snow Patrol's "Shut Your Eyes.")

WAER (Syracuse, NY)

•  Whisper Not-George Shearing (Sly piano and vibraphone.)

WFDU (Teaneck, NJ)

• D.W. Washburn-The Monkees (Not your typical Monkees hit; this is a quirky pick-me-up tune for hard times.  "Godspell"'s "Turn Back, O Man" sounds partially inspired by this track.)

WREK (Atlanta, GA)

• Callyx-Robert Rich (Need instrumental underscoring for exploring a cave or pursuing a suspect on a street late at night?  This is your soundtrack.)

Context? XLII

Heard on a California radio station today: "Berkeley doesn't care if the kids don't get the words quite right."

I wondered about the context of that statement.  I soon learned that Berkeley is a dog who listens to kids as they read aloud at a library. 

Kudos to Berkeley for being so non-judgmental.  Reading aloud to a dog who isn't critical is a great way to build one's confidence.

A linguistic irritant VII

I've never liked the expression, "Sing for your supper."  Although providing a service in return for money is the way of the world, who wants to be reminded that their work situation is a precarious, hand-to-mouth one?

Context? XLI

Another entry in the "Orchestra directors have unusual personalities" canon:

In middle school, a voice over the intercom said, "Mr. D., please stop by the office."

"For my donut?" Mr. D. responded.

He didn't receive a reply.

The positive side of requests

One thing I appreciated about taking listeners' song requests on the radio: The listeners and I both understood that there was a grace period.  They knew that other people called in, as well, and that they wouldn't likely hear their requests immediately.  Once, when I played a request about one minute after a listener called in, he called back and said, "Thanks for playing that song.  I'm impressed that you got it on the air so quickly."  I replied, "It segued well with the song I was playing, so I ran to the music library and cued the song up as fast as I could."

Song requests: Now and then, they augment your radio show and keep the listeners tuned in.

FM dial scan highlights CII

Late August and early September highlights:

KDHX 88.1 FM

• Driving Along-Nilsson (I'm not usually one for people watching while driving, but it's a fun tune for those who are so inclined.  "Driving Along" and "Gotta Get Up" are among the best tracks on the "Nilsson Schmilsson" album.)
• Going To Dale's (Instrumental)-Gloria Attoun (Welcoming banjo picking with a melodic undercurrent of strings; the feel of the tune reminds me of Ken Bonfield's "From A Friend.")

WSIE 88.7 FM

• Smile-Melissa Stylianou (The warmth in the vocals reminds me of Erin Bode's voice.)

KWMU 90.7 FM

• Moanin'-Bobby Timmons (As much as I like the vocal version by Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, I was glad to hear Timmons play his own composition on the piano.  This is an excellent example of well-crafted uptempo jazz with a bluesy feel--and a strong hook.)
• Amazing Grace-Aretha Franklin (In a lot of churches, it's customary not to applaud after the performance of a hymn.  I'm glad the congregation didn't adhere to that custom here.  After an expansive performance of such feeling and reverence, how could you not applaud?)

K297BI 107.3 FM, a.k.a. KNOU-HD2

• The Pachelbel "Loose" Canon (Los Angeles Guitar Quartet) (Variations on one of the most well-known Classical pieces in an impressive variety of styles, ranging from mambo to "For The Love Of Money" by The O'Jays.)