Six standout tunes heard this morning:
KDRU (Springfield, MO)
- Rise-Jahnavi Harrison with Willow Smith (The guitar intro made me think a Tracy Chapman or Tasmin Archer song was starting. This new age/international genre-blending tune sports a hypnotic "I can't go 'round again" refrain.)
- Nominated-Ginger Root (An interesting, catchy blend of spacey indie rock, jazz, and R&B in the vocals and instrumentation, especially the keyboard.)
KWMU-2 (St. Louis, MO)
- Go Where The Road Leads-Kenny Blake & Maria Shaheen (A brisk, pleasant stew of vocals, saxophone, keyboard, and bass make lyrics about taking a risk inviting.)
- I'll Keep Loving You-Andy Laverne Trio (A classy, elegant, uptempo piano arrangement.)
WBER (Rochester, NY)
- Can't Help Falling In Love-Lick The Tins (Upon seeing this song title, the majority of readers will probably think of Elvis Presley's rendition. Credit to Lick The Tins for an inspired Celtic interpretation.)
WXRT (Chicago, IL)
- Be The One-Poi Dog Pondering (To my ears, this is immediately accessible and singable. It puzzled me that the "Volo Volo" CD received a generally tepid reaction from KCOU staffers; perhaps not everyone liked the slicker, more produced sound, compared to the band's earlier work. My favorite Poi Dog Pondering tunes are still two of their earlier ones, "Postcard From A Dream (Toast And Jelly)" and "U Li La Lu," but I played "Be The One" on the air in 1992--and still would today. Also recommended: "The Hardest Thing" and "Lackluster." It was a surprise to hear WXRT air this amongst a playlist of more predictable songs by The Beatles, The Eagles, Beck, Pearl Jam, and Talking Heads.)
