music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime – 2019, Day 6 Righteous Bros
- 06/01/19 09:04 AM
In 1964 Soul music was still very much the most popular genre for pop singers. The Beatles and the British Invasion was just starting to sweep the nation, but a lot of people still liked listening to what was then termed blue eyed soul. The duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield, who called themselves The Righteous Brothers, released a song produced by Phil Specter titled "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin". It became a number one hit in both the U.S. and the U.K.
"You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" has the claim of being the most-played song in the history of American … (3 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime – 2019, Day 5 Genesis
- 05/30/19 07:46 PM
Another band that brought a new sound to music during a time when super groups abound, was Genesis. The name Genesis proved to be fitting because just as the band was achieving huge success with the album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, lead singer and driving force Peter Gabriel left to begin a solo career.
Faced with starting over, the band searched high and low for a dynamic replacement. Eventually, then drummer Phil Collins reluctantly took over as lead singer. Collins turned out to be the right choice as the band continued to gain popularity releasing album after album under the … (2 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime – 2019, Day 4 Smokey
- 05/28/19 08:21 PM
Smokey Robinson is one of the founding creators of the Motown sound.
Starting out with the singing group The Miracles, Smokey became one of the first acts signed to the Motown label. In fact, he had actually been friends with Barry Gordy since before the formation of Motown Records. In late 1960, The Miracles recorded their first hit single, Shop Around, which became Motown's first million-selling hit record.
Smokey Robinson ultimately would produce 26 top forty hits as the lead singer for The Miracles. He also was a prolific songwriter and producer. Between 1960 and 1970, the group released other top ten hits … (3 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime – 2019, Day 3 Wilburys
- 05/25/19 08:57 PM
Every once in a while a band of superstar performers unite together to create a Super Group. In April 1988 former Beatle George Harrison and Electric Light Orchestra band leader Jeff Lynne came up with the idea to bring in their friends Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Roy Orbison to record a song titled “Handle with Care”. The track was so successful they decided to form a band and record an entire album. The result was the album entitled Traveling Wilburys Vol 1.
As part of the fun, each of the band members adopted a pseudonym.
Nelson Wilbury - George Harrison … (4 comments)
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music: Going Old School with Music CDs.
- 05/24/19 08:59 PM
I like to listen to music, a lot. I simply cannot listen to talk radio or shock jocks spout their BS day in and day out. Furthermore, commercials bore me. My cure for boredom is listening to my favorite songs from an increasingly large music library. After all my favorite music spans over 6 decades.
I know for a lot of people streaming is the current method for listening to music. There are dozens of music services that offer thousands of songs and even create predictable playlists for the listener, but I am just not there yet. Streaming can be expensive, unreliable … (7 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime – 2019, Day 2 Santana
- 05/23/19 09:21 PM
One of the icons of Rock that has continued to maintain his relevance for over 50 years is Carlos Santana. Santana ranks up there in my book as one of the finest guitar players around. From his debut album Santana, released in 1969, on up to his 9 times Grammy-winning album Supernatural he continues to demonstrate his remarkable talent.
Carlos Santana and his band were one of the headline performers at the original Woodstock Music and Art Fair. This year Bethel Woods, the site of the historic Woodstock festival will host a series of concerts to celebrate the 50th anniversary. The lineup … (5 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime – 2019, Day 1 Clapton
- 05/23/19 09:05 PM
It is that time again!!! 30 Songs in 30 days.
Like so many other baby boomers, I grew up listening to Rock & Roll. From the mid-1950s right on up to the present day, Rock has endured. Even when we think the genre has run its course a new record or album surfaces that brings us back into the fold.
In June of 2018, I launched an effort to share 30 songs in 30 days. I called it The Soundtrack of a Lifetime. Listening to the songs was so much fun I decided to reprise The Soundtrack for 2019. The Soundtrack is compiled … (3 comments)
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music: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.
- 12/23/18 10:15 AM
One of my favorite Christmas songs is "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas",
The song was written for the movie Meet Me in St. Louis and originally sung by the iconic Judy Garland in 1944. But like most Christmas songs it has also been recorded by a host of other popular artists including Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, James Taylor and Sam Smith. It ranks 3rd in sales for Christmas songs.
The version I chose for this post was performed by pop singer Lou Rawls. Lou’s deep baritone voice adds a cool modern mix of blues & jazz sounds to the song. Lou Rawls … (11 comments)
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music: A second chance at a first impression.
- 06/29/18 09:06 PM
It isn't often you get a second chance to introduce yourself. I have only been on Active Rain for about 1 year, so I didn’t have a lot of blog posts to update. But writing a good blog is an ongoing experience. So the more you do it the better you become.
It is always fun to go back and look at what you have written in the past and to try and understand your motivation at the time you wrote the article. Some posts may only be relevant at the time you wrote it, others stand the test of time.
One thing … (7 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - 2018, Day 30 Don Mclean
- 06/28/18 08:00 PM
Well, it has been fun taking this trip down memory lane. I hope you had a chance to listen to some great songs and even view a couple of cool music videos. I also hope it either brought back some fond memories or created some new ones.
We are closing down the Soundtrack with American singer-songwriter Don Mclean’s American Pie. What other song is so reminiscent of the early days of Rock & Roll? It also debates the quality and direction of the future of Rock. But in retrospect, I think the genre did pretty well overall.
Released in 1971 the song … (0 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - Day 29 - Seger
- 06/27/18 06:55 PM
To many people, Bob Seger represents the hometown hero. Hailing from Detroit, MI, Seger often relates his experiences of growing up in the Midwest. Something many of us can relate to.
He was the lead guitarist and singer in several successful bands including the Last Heard, Bob Seger System, and The Silver Bullet Band.
Today’s song is a single from his album by the same name, Against The Wind. While the lyrics seem to have a deeper meaning of someone struggling through life. Bob claims that his inspiration actually came about from his days as a high-school cross-country runner. Go figure.
Bob … (0 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - Day 28 Bee Gees
- 06/26/18 07:07 PM
Which rendition of the Bee Gees do you prefer? The group that was a member of the British invasion of the 1960’s? Or do you prefer the Bee Gees that made everyone dance to the disco sound of the 70’s?
The trio of Barry, Maurice and Robin had their ups and downs even breaking up to do singles acts in the late 1960’s. Yet, they were one of the few bands that were able to achieve success in two different eras with different sounds. The latter of the two bringing the greatest notoriety.
Their soundtrack to the movie Saturday Night Fever catapulted … (2 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - 2018, Day 27 Everly Bros.
- 06/25/18 07:23 PM
Come back with me to the early days of Rock and Roll to a duo that left their mark on many of the future artists that we have come to know and love. I am speaking about the Everly Brothers. Don & Phil Everly were huge stars. The Everly Brothers had 35 Billboard Top-100 singles and at one point even hosted their own network TV show. They influenced many rock groups of the 1960s. The Beatles, The Beach Boys, and Simon & Garfunkel all developed their early styles by performing Everly Brothers songs. Groups whose style featured 2 and 3 part … (2 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - Day 26 - Crosby, Stills, Nash
- 06/24/18 08:31 PM
Crosby, Stills & Nash and sometimes Young is a 1970’s supergroup noted for their great vocal harmony. The band which formed in the late sixties with Stephen Stills from the group Buffalo Springfield, David Crosby from The Byrds and Graham Nash of Hollie's fame. Fourth member Neil Young would often join the trio on record and on stage. Each member added a different sound to the band's repertoire.
Together they performed from the Woodstock era through the tumultuous 60’s with a combination of protest songs and love songs. You never really knew which set of band members was going to be recording … (0 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - 2018, Day 25 Darius Rucker
- 06/23/18 12:14 PM
Ok country fans. You have waited 25 days to hear a country song. Long enough. While most of this blog has been dedicated to Rock & Roll, it is hard to deny the influence that country has had on Rock through the years. Many of the early rock stars like Conway Twitty and Johnny Cash were crossovers from the country world. Today it is the rock stars that are crossing over to country. One popular rock artist, Darius Rucker of Hootie and The Blowfish fame, has become very successful on the country charts.
Rucker surprised the world by gaining quick acceptance on … (2 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - Day 24 -Eagles
- 06/23/18 12:04 PM
I consider The Eagles to be one of the best rock bands ever. They are right up there with the Beatles and Rolling Stones. Despite the fact that many consider the Eagles to be a country sound, founding member Glen Fry was adamant that they were a rock band. One of the reasons early member Randy Meisner left the band, to be replaced by Timothy B. Schmidt, was the constant squabbling over the direction the band was taking. Eventually, Joe Walsh joined the band cementing it as a true rock band.
The Eagles are in my opinion one of the best live … (0 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - 2018, Day 23 Kenny G
- 06/22/18 08:43 PM
Today’s song is from another musical genre that expanded my palate beyond Rock & Roll. Considered Contemporary Jazz or often called Smooth Jazz it is one that is dominated mostly by instrumental compositions. Kenny G is one of those artists that made his mark playing Smooth Jazz. His songs feature his excellent command of soprano, alto and tenor saxophones.
His collaborations with other artists like, Andrea Bocelli, Aaron Neville, Toni Braxton, Michael Bolton and others have made him one of the best-selling recording artists of all time. His album Breathless, released in 1992, went on to become the best-selling instrumental album ever … (2 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - 2018, Day 20 Simon & Garfunkel
- 06/18/18 08:09 PM
“I’d rather be a hammer than a nail”, has got to be one of the most insightful lyrics ever recorded. The lyric, of course, comes from Paul Simon. Simon in addition to being half of the famous duo Simon & Garfunkel is a hugely successful songwriter.
I was introduced to Simon & Garfunkel by a high school English teacher that was trying to show our student class that literature could come in many forms. She would play the songs in class and together we would analyze the lyrics. I have been a Paul Simon fan ever since.
Paul & Artie are multi-talented … (0 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - Day 19 - Beach Boys
- 06/17/18 08:17 PM
I am pretty sure that just about everyone knows who The Beach Boys are. It seems like this group has been around in one form or another since the early sixties.
The Beach Boys practically created a whole new genre called surfing music. Their music was about growing up in Southern California in the 1960s. The songs were about cars, dancing, beach parties, surfing, and of course teenage love. On the surface, their songs seem simple, but if you really listen you can hear the complexities of Brian Wilson’s arrangements.
The Beach Boys continue to perform concerts worldwide. I had the pleasure … (0 comments)
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music: Soundtrack of a Lifetime - 2018, Day 18 - Chubby Checker
- 06/17/18 08:00 PM
In 1959 a young artist named Chubby Checker did a cover of a dance song that caught the attention of the nation. Whether it was Chubby’s enthusiasm, the way he demonstrated the dance or just his unique style. But The Twist skyrocketed to the top of the Billboard charts first in 1960 and strangely enough it again it resurged again in 1962. The only song to ever have topped the charts twice in such a short period of time.
The 1960s was a time when dance songs populated the airwaves. Young and old, everyone was dancing. In addition, it spawned numerous other … (0 comments)
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In 1964 Soul music was still very much the most popular genre for pop singers. The Beatles and the British Invasion was just starting to sweep the nation, but a lot of people still liked listening to what was then termed blue eyed soul. The duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield, who called themselves The Righteous Brothers, released a song produced by Phil Specter titled "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin". It became a number one hit in both the U.S. and the U.K.
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