Persistent earworm alert CLXXV

Sometimes, you just need to tune the world out with a jaunty jingle.  My jingle of choice, at the moment: "Come down south to Art Haack Buick.  Come on down and get the Art Haack price..."  All native St. Louisans over a certain age know this jingle and might even find themselves heading south this Winter, without even knowing why.

SiriusXM highlights CXV

Wednesday and Thursday standouts:

Bluesville

• You Can Love Yourself-Keb' Mo' (Feeling unloved and needing a shot of self-esteem?  This is your song.)

Deep Tracks

• Anyway-Manassas (If karaoke had been all the rage in the early '70s, this would have been a good track for a group of confident friends to belt out.  Stephen Stills and company are clearly enjoying themselves, and it shows in the synchronicity between the vocalists and instrumentalists.  Also recommended: "Both Of Us (Bound To Lose.)" 
• A Long Time, A Long Way To Go-Todd Rundgren (One of Rundgren's subtler tunes; a voice and piano are all that's needed to sing sentiments appropriate for Valentine's Day, under less than ideal circumstances.) 

Escape

• Cupid-Tew/Dale (Although there's no topping the hit versions by Sam Cooke or The Spinners, the song lends itself well to an easy listening, keyboard-and-strings rendition.) 

Real Jazz

• All Blues-Miles Davis (For jazz aficionados, this is one of the most obvious recommendations. This is one of the most-played, recognizable trumpet melodies in jazz.  To hear it in a different light, check out Ron Carter's rendition; Carter carries the melody on the upright bass in his almost as captivating version.)
• Hard Work-Vincent Herring (A sly, on-the-move melody for saxophone and rhythm section.)

SiriusXMU

• Need Your Love-Tennis (Countless artists have sung similar sentiments, but that doesn't stop Tennis from singing earnestly about such well-worn territory and making it fresh.  "Need Your Love" is from the group's forthcoming release, "Swimmer," due out on Valentine's Day.)

The Spectrum

• See You Through My Eyes-The Head And The Heart (See my review of Keb' Mo's "You Can Love Yourself."  It's hard not to root for the person to whom these sentiments are sung.)

Watercolors

• Shake-Jesse Cook (A captivating Spanish guitar riff sustains the tune for nearly four minutes.)

Stingray Music highlights LXXXII

Wednesday morning highlights heard through U-verse:

Alt Country-Americana

• Shaking-The HawtThorns (K.P. Hawthorn's vocals suggest a blend of Maura Kennedy and Nicki Bluhm.) 

Canadian Indie

• Superstar-Rosemary Fairweather (Compellingly breathy, whispery vocals.)
• Running Into Love-Taylor Knox (This 2017 release has an '80s New Wave feel in the vocals and guitar.  Modern English's "I Melt With You" could segue with it.)

Caribbean Vintage Vibes

• Zandoli-Marius Cultier (An intriguing stew of international and jazz influences come together in this whirling dervish of a tune.  A strong rhythm section underscores the vocals.)

Chamber Music

• Franz Schubert: Four Impromptus, Op. post. 142, D.935: I. Allegro moderato (Paul Lewis, piano) (Sorrow gives way to hopefulness, but this energetic movement ends on an ominous note.)

Cool Jazz

• Toute Ma Joie-Les Blue Stars featuring Blossom Dearie (The English translation is "All My Joy," and it's sung impeccably.  I hope it isn't disrespectful that the vocal stylings remind me of the 1950s animated, singing concessions jingle, "Let's all go to the lobby to get ourselves a treat.")
• Hiram-Chuck Loeb featuring Will Lee (The haunting guitar line reminds me of Kerri Anderson's "Labyrinth.")

Folk Roots

• Lay Down Your Weary Tune-Jessica Rhaye And The Ramshackle Parade (A faithful, pleasantly sung cover of the Bob Dylan tune.)

Jazz Masters 

• Gershwin Medley-The Modern Jazz Quartet (An elegant, vibraphone and piano-centered tribute.)

An appropriate chart-topper

Somehow, this just feels like the natural order of things.  My most-played track in iTunes is the track, "3/14/14--Rosie meowing."  What?  You've never heard of it?  Actually, few people have.  It's a recording of family calico Rosie meowing three times.  Characteristically, her final meow is the most assertive one. 

Calicos are known for being take charge cats, so it feels appropriate that Rosie's meowing tops my iTunes playlist with 727 listens.  I have a vast music library in iTunes, covering a wide range of genres.  And yet, my top six most-played recordings are ones I made of cats meowing...

...and they're as musical to me as any symphony, jazz riff, or folk tune.

FM dial scan highlights CXXIII

Sunday and Monday highlights:

WSIE 88.7 FM

• Never Give Up On A Good Thing-George Benson (Wise lyrics about not being too hasty to discard someone who's faithful to you.)

KCLC 89.1 FM

• Oh Boy-Boy (Despite the group name, this is a two-woman duo.  This well-crafted power pop tune would segue well with the Beach Fossils tune, "Fall Right In.")

KWMU 90.7 FM

• Bold Changes-Kyle Eastwood (One of the best laid back, hummable grooves I've heard; the piano, bass, drums, trumpet, and saxophone complement each other perfectly.)
• Summer Samba-Patricia Barber (Barber's vocals are relaxed yet mannered enough that you catch every word of this much-covered tune.)

KSHE 94.7 FM

• You Better Think Twice-Poco (Lyrically, this makes the same point as George Benson's "Never Give Up On A Good Thing."  Appealingly energetic guitar and vocals.)
• You Are The Music-Trapeze (No slow build here...The guitar, bass, and drums propel this immediately ear-catching, uptempo track right from the beginning.)

Audio limitations

Nearly 40 years ago, I used to record "Pink Panther" cartoons off of the TV.  I didn't have a VCR, so these were audio recordings.  Although I couldn't see what was happening when playing the cassettes, I figured the Henry Mancini music would at least make me remember what had happened in each cartoon.  It stood up fine on its own anyway.

Recording just the audio of a tennis match back then, though...Well, admittedly, that was just strange.

Persistent earworm alert CLXXIV

I don't usually give out awards, but I decree that the best use of "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah" in song lyrics goes to...

..."Shambala" by Three Dog Night.  At least, that's what I've thought for the past hour.  Seriously, those yeahs work especially well in conjunction with the tune's rhythm.

A tough sell

When I was in middle school, I never liked asking students if they wanted to purchase tickets for the Association Of Instrumental Music.  Each ticket entitled the buyer to a dollar's worth of McDonald's food.  In the first place, kids don't have that much money.  They shouldn't have to be concerned with paying to support the school orchestra.  Secondly, when they want McDonald's food, they can use a more direct route to pay for it--cash.

Good music, even better camaraderie

Every January during high school, I always looked forward to playing in the All-State Orchestra.  Although playing great music with other talented musicians was enjoyable, I looked forward even more to talking with interesting people from other schools that I only got to see for those few days.  The concerts at the end of our stay were almost an afterthought.

Apparently, I wasn't the only participant who felt that way.  Another musician, who became one of my college orchestra's concertmasters, announced to everyone in the hotel hallway one night, "Think about the logic of it.  We know what chair (placements) we got.  Don't you all want to go home?"

A loud chorus of "Yeahhhhhhhh!" followed.

"Doing your job? Of all the nerve..."

One of the "fun" things about being a board op on a radio station is being taken to task for national programming over which you have no control.

In the early '90s, a listener called a station where I worked and asked angrily, "Why is your station airing what amounts to a blatant excuse for the cosmetics industry?"

I told her I couldn't answer that, as I just monitored the volume on the control board and did occasional local breaks.  I would like to have said, "I have nothing to do with the content of a national program that airs each weekday at this time.  This station is an affiliate that airs its flagship media organization's programs.  If their content offends you, take it up with them."

That would have been a more direct but potentially helpful answer.

Persistent earworm alert CLXXIII

Stuck for inspiration, I saw that this is my 1,969th post for this blog.  I immediately thought of 1969, which in turn started The Fifth Dimension's medley of "Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In" playing in my mind.  This also sparked a memory of one of my ROAM (Remnants Of Abstract Minds) notebook contributors, Julie A., writing in a margin in 1993, "What if the time period/year corresponded with the temperature outside?.  Today, it will be the late 1960s/early '70s.  Ironically, Drew has a fitting tie-dye shirt on  Wonder if that is telling us something?"

Persistent earworm alert CLXXII

During a cold, bleak month, it's only natural for the Roy Ayers tune, "Everybody Loves The Sunshine," to dominate one's thoughts.  Instrumentally and vocally, it's truly 1976 fusion, in the best sense.

The "meh" of its day

I don't remember anyone using this passive-aggressive response after third grade.  Forty years ago, though, kids at my grade school would tell other kids about something they were happy about--getting a good grade on a test or assignment, getting their quip or story published in the school paper, or having an enjoyable birthday.  In response, a disinterested student would sing the jingle, "Good for you, Special K!"

As "Whatever" responses went, that was fairly mild.  No one sang that jingle to me, nor did I sing it to anyone.  Still, I sometimes hoped a teacher or principal would walk by and stare at students who sang that--and that the students would catch on and think, "OK...If I don't have a polite response to a polite statement, I won't respond at all."

"There's more to life than radio, so enjoy the sunshine!"

A broadcasting school memory: A student recorded a mock radio air check in which he suggested that listeners go outside and enjoy the day.  He did this a few too many times for the instructor's taste.

"Never tell people to turn off their radios and stop listening," the instructor advised.  "That doesn't go over well with program directors.  I speak from experience."

Although it could be argued that listeners have minds of their own and can't be expected to listen to any one station around the clock, it's best not to make that argument to a radio boss.

FM dial scan highlights CXXII

Five standout tunes from Thursday and Friday:

KDHX 88.1 FM

• Sure As Night-Joan Shelley (Moving vocals and acoustic guitar.  Lyrically, this is a sad tale of having your heart broken and not moving past it.  I was reminded of Dar Williams and Mary Chapin Carpenter as I listened.)
• Perfidia-The Ventures (The title suggests the tune is going to be a heartrending song about betrayal.  You'd never guess that, however, from these two minutes of sunny surf-style/spy movie guitar music.)

WSIE 88.7 FM

• Cruising For Bruising-Basia (Can this relationship be saved?  Maybe, but the lyrics are ominous.  Although it's one of Basia's best-known tracks, it should have been a bigger hit in 1990.)
• We Will Meet Again-The Fred Hughes Trio (A Classical influence serves this sorrowful piano-anchored number well.)

WFUN 95.5 FM

• I Don't Wanna Lose Your Love-The Emotions (An infectious 1976 groove; it's somewhat faster than--but still compatible with--the group's big hit of the following year, "Best Of My Love.")

Persistent earworm alert CLXXI

My previous earworm, "On Top Of Old Smoky," triggered another one.  After I wrote that post, I remembered there was an episode of "Dobie Gillis" in which "The Name's Dobie Gillis" is sung to the tune of "...Smoky" when Dobie runs for student council.  That, in turn, has cemented the "Dobie Gillis" theme songs from various seasons in my mind.

In the first season, the theme song's lyrics spelled out the show's premise.  By the third season, the theme was an instrumental.  The second season's theme, however, is the one I can't get out of my mind.  There are definite sopranos in the mix, apparently intent on shattering glass.  You don't forget notes sung that high easily.

Someone who has seen a lot since 1901

Whenever I see the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Weatherbird, I half-expect him to break into a chorus of "Nice Work If You Can Get It."  Something about his attire just suggests that:

This bird has gotten around.  It's hard to believe he was already 36 when "Nice Work If You Can Get It" was published.

In memory of Neil Peart

Early in sixth grade, a friend asked me on a weekly, then almost daily, basis, "Have you heard Rush's drummer?"  He kept asking this until I confirmed, "Yes, I've heard Neil Peart play drums on Rush's albums.  I see why you're a fan."

And, I did see why he was such an admirer of Peart's drumming.  A band such as Rush, that isn't especially subtle and features the grandiose vocals of Geddy Lee, requires a drummer who isn't just a passive timekeeper.  I remember thinking that the first time I heard "New World Man."  When I think of the band's standout, "Tom Sawyer," Peart's drumming is key to the tune's epic feel.  It's also readily apparent on "The Spirit Of Radio" and "Entre Nous," which, in my opinion, is the best song Rush ever recorded.  Peart passed away recently, but the heart and personality he put into his drumming live on--deservedly.

The right signature sound

In the '90s, I recorded commercials, business updates, and events-around-town listings for an information-by-phone service.  The powers that be wanted the service to have a signature sound whenever anyone called in; I'd describe the musical options from which they chose as: fast, upbeat ring tone, spacey version of the fast, upbeat ring tone, brassy, victorious-sounding notes, part of a comet breaking off, and jolly leprechauns dancing.

They went with the fast, upbeat ring tone, which was a wise choice.  When choosing a signature sound, it's smart to select notes that are memorable without being cloying.

"Reduced psych ward prices for DJs! Act now!"

Years ago, it amused me when the owner of a radio station at which I worked mailed a brochure to all employees.  The brochure touted that the company now offered access to mental health services.

Making a living in radio--with its often low pay, frequent format changes, and personnel changes--can compromise a DJ's psyche.  Although a lot of the employees probably couldn't have afforded the mental health visits, due to their low pay, it was a thoughtful company gesture.

Persistent earworm alert CLXX

Perhaps the snow we've had today sparked this earworm.  I haven't gone to any event resembling a carnival in many years.  And yet, "On Top Of Old Smoky," played on the calliope, is stuck in my mind.  Lyrically, it doesn't work so well for a carnival.  Instrumentally, however, it's a natural fit.

Striving for fairness

I know, due to deadlines, that this isn't always possible.  Still, if I were a newspaper critic, I'd want to see at least two nights of any performance that runs more than one night.  I realize performers are supposed to be professionals and always do their best, but life sometimes gets in the way.  The air conditioning at a venue might not work one night.  One of the leading players might feel somewhat under the weather.  The audience might be unusually picky on another night and not applaud too easily, leading to a more subdued performance on stage.  Many variables can affect a performance, and as a reviewer, I'd want to make sure I'm being as fair and objective as possible.

Didn't expect sympathy, but...

A former co-worker and I were both fans of a singer/drummer who said he feels "subconscious guilt" about the amount of money he's paid and feels he "should work all the time for it."

After mentioning this quote to my co-worker, he responded sarcastically, "That's a nice thought."

I probably should have expected that response.  My guess is, a lot of listeners, even ardent fans, feel that way often about successful musicians.

Online radio sampler highlights CI

Five ear-catching selections heard today:

KAOS (Olympia, WA)

• Growth-Haruomi Hosono (Just waking up?  Feeling sluggish?  Can't remember where you put your keys, glasses, or toothpaste?  Need an instrumental that underscores your muddled confusion?  This is for you.  After the first minute of listening, I thought it would work in a life-cycle-of-plants documentary.  Appropriately, this piece, which at times sounds like a discordant carnival, is from the album, "Watering A Flower.")

WKJM (Petersburg, VA)

• Hopeless-Dionne Farris (I remember hearing Farris's song, "I Know," a lot on the former WVRV.  These heartfelt, tastefully sung ruminations, with appropriately cascading instrumentation, deserve at least as much airplay as "I Know" had at its peak.)

WRR (Dallas, TX)

• Antonin Dvorak: Humoresque No. 7 in G-flat major (Boston Symphony Orchestra/Seiji Ozawa, conductor; Itzhak Perlman, violin, Yo-Yo Ma, cello) (This piece, fit for a panoramic vista at dawn, allows a solo violinist's tone to resonate brightly over the orchestra.)

WXRT (Chicago, IL)

• Running Up That Hill-Meg Myers (Myers's powerful alto voice honors Kate Bush's original version.)
• Cuban Slide-The Pretenders (With a chorus this strong, why hasn't this received airplay on more stations?)

An overlooked cover tune LVI

While listening to the Dar Williams CD, "My Better Self," today, I was reminded that often, a good cover tune should elicit the reaction, "It sounds like the artist wrote that herself," or "She made that song her own while honoring its original intent."  Williams achieved both of those feats on her cover of Neil Young's "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere."  Her lead vocals, backing vocals, and instrumentation fit the song perfectly, and if I hadn't known otherwise, I would have thought Williams wrote it.

Incidentally, has anyone ever recorded a mashup of "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere" and England Dan & John Ford Coley's "Nights Are Forever Without You?"  I started fusing those songs together in my mind this afternoon, and I'm still thinking about them.  Something about the guitar part of "Everybody..." and Young's chorus triggered that connection for me.

Online radio sampler highlights C

Among these seven noteworthy tunes heard today are five selections from 2019:

KJZZ-HD2 (Phoenix, AZ)

• Relaxin' With Nick-Nicholas Payton (Not just any musician can excel at piano and trumpet, but Payton does.  He drives this bouncy, straight ahead melody on both instruments with fine support on bass and drums.)
• Aren't You Glad You're You?-Chet Baker & Gerry Mulligan (There's an appealing brightness in this melody and an easy synergy between trumpet and baritone sax.)

KLSU (Baton Rouge, LA)

• Small Talk-Immaculate Machine (If They Might Be Giants attempted to write a pop song with Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet providing the instrumental backdrop, this might be the result.  Points for the great hook, "There were nine of us in the photograph...")

KUMD (Duluth, MN)

• Sincerely-Rachael Kilgour (An endearing, sincere voice and guitar; I can imagine a vocalist singing this for her own enjoyment after an audience has gone home.)

WERU (Blue Hill, ME)

• Old Enough To Wonder Why (East Side-West Side)-Hiss Golden Messenger (It's unusual for me to describe a tune with bluegrass elements as mysterious, but that's an accurate term for these lyrics and the dichotomy between old school and modern instrumentation.)
• I Still Love You (Now And Then)-Josh Ritter (Refreshing honesty in the lyrics; I'd like to see this sentiment on a Hallmark card.)
• Anytime-Mavis Staples (A bluesy, engaging groove, with lyrics that are a testament to strength, resilience, and adaptability.)

Persistent earworm alert CLXIX

I'd like to know what triggered today's persistent earworm.  Ever since waking up, I've been thinking of the somber outro of ELO's "It's Over."  Since then, I've also worked my way backwards through the song and remembered how, vocally and instrumentally, it's a combination of various ELO songs.  Mostly, however, that downcast outro has dominated my thoughts.

Perhaps that's to be expected during the dark, flat month of January.

Sensing a tempo shift

I was impressed while listening to the CD, "The Latin Side Of Vince Guaraldi," today.  My cat, Collette, was washing herself in time to the song, "Treat Street."  When "Star Song," the tune after it, started, she slowed down just enough to accommodate the change in tempo.  It could be that she had been washing her fur for a while and would have slowed down anyway.

I prefer to believe she has an innate sense of rhythm.

Factors in the bottom line

Before the auditions during my third year in a high school ensemble, each orchestra member was asked to complete a questionnaire. We were asked to circle the highest position we'd be comfortable accepting within our section.  Detailed descriptions of the principal and assistant principal players' responsibilities were spelled out for us.  (i.e. "The principal of the section must have few or no absences at rehearsals, set an example for the rest of the section in rhythm, intonation, and overall musicality.  (S)he must also coordinate the fingerings and bowings for the section."  "The assistant principal must assume the principal's responsibilities in the principal's absence.")

I still wonder how heavily that survey factored into our chair placements that season.  If a musician didn't want the responsibility of being a section principal but played the best audition, was (s)he still named principal?  If only one person wanted the responsibility of being principal but played the third best audition, would that musician have been named principal?

If you're an orchestra director, to what extent, if any, should a musician's confidence override the audition results, especially when the results are close?

Kudos to a patient listener

Near the end of one of my "Jazz Odyssey" shows on KCOU, a listener called.  She said, "I know it's getting late in the show, so you probably won't have time to play it today.  For the edification of whoever is on the air tomorrow, though, could you please ask that DJ to play a song by Bobby McFerrin?"

I don't know if the following day's "Jazz Odyssey" DJ followed up on her request, but I hope he did.  Three things about her call impressed me:

• She said she listened to "Jazz Odyssey" regularly and that she wished the rest of the station sounded like that show.
• She acknowledged that getting her request on the air in the last few minutes of the show wasn't realistic.
• She was willing to wait 24 hours to hear her requested song.

I don't doubt that such scenarios still happen today.  With much quicker, wider access to music and a faster pace of life than we had 28 years ago, however, I suspect they happen less often.  We should all be so polite--and possibly use the word edification a little more often.

Persistent earworm alert CLXVIII

Is it blasphemous for me to consider a Beatles song an earworm?  I don't think so, considering "earworm" isn't necessarily a pejorative.  After being called into work unexpectedly yesterday on just four hours of sleep, I've been mostly hibernating today.  Thus, "I'm Only Sleeping" has been my default earworm today.  Am I excited about the new year?  Not particularly.  Not at the moment, at least.

Ask me again when I'm fully awake.