11/29/08 Oldies To Be Thankful For

Segment #1 – Oldies To Be Thankful For

I thought I'd continue the spirit of Thanksgiving just a bit into this weekend and play what I call "oldies to be thankful for", some of my favorite songs and artists that have stuck with me over the years. In the "credit where due" department, I borrowed this idea from a bluegrass dj in the Twin Cities, Phil Nusbaum of KBEM in Minneapolis, who always plays "bluegrass to be thankful for" on his show "Bluegrass Saturday Morning" around Thanksgiving weekend and he's played one or two requests for me in past years.

I will start with this song I've played before by the Critters—I've always thought it was beautifully sung and lyrically sophisticated for its time.
Mr. Dieingly Sad - Critters (lead singer was Don Ciccone, who also sang on the 4 Seasons hit "December 1963 [Oh What A Night]")
No Good To Cry – Wildweeds (Now Nashville resident singer/songwriter/guitarist Al Anderson was the lead singer back then)
Imagine That- Patsy Cline
My Cup Runneth Over – Ed Ames, who is probably more famous for a Johnny Carson appearance than his singing. This song was from the musical "I Do I Do" which was on Broadway in the mid 60s. This is another of those songs like I told you about a week or so ago when you were growing up that your mother loved but you thought it was square, and then when you got older you came to appreciate it—and you started watching all those Lawrence Welk reruns, too, for the pop culture of it all. OK, I confess to that!

Segment #2 – Picking Through the Record Box

One thing I'm so thankful for this year is all the wonderful new friendships I've made with a lot of the singer/songwriters and musicians in this community...and the support has really worked both ways. There are a lot of them out there trying to get cuts and gigs and such—I've seen and heard many of you this past week. I love you all so much and you know I have fingers and toes crossed for you—so this is for those who are listening today: Nashville Cats- Lovin Spoonful

Only Love Can Break A Heart - from the late, great Gene Pitney who hailed from my home state of Connecticut. I did get to see him in concert once a couple of years before I left for MN. He was wonderful and I'm very grateful to have had that experience. He recorded a lot of Burt Bacharach/Hal David compositions and there's one of those.
Just Like Me - Paul Revere and the Raiders (Mark Lindsay was my pre-teen heartthrob--more on that on another show, perhaps)
Here Comes The Night - Them (early Van Morrison)
Girl Like You - Rascals

Segment #3 – Soul Stew

I'm going to start a new section for the show. I call this Soul Stew. I've found myself in past weeks playing a lot of soul music. I've always loved soul and felt very connected to it so why not give it its own place in the show, right? I decided to give Wilson Pickett a call here and see if he wanted to start this thing off for us.
634-5789 - Wilson Pickett
Don't Play That Song - Ben E. King
Wish Someone Would Care - Irma Thomas
Double O Soul - Edwin Starr

Segment #4- Recent/current day section

I went to a writers night last weekend out at Fiddle and Pick in Pegram which is not far from here. There were a lot of wonderful writers and a few of them were very kind to share their CDs with me. I'll start with Mark Elliott, who went above and beyond in sharing his music with me—after the show Saturday he sang a song of his just for me that I liked called Baseball and Beatles—so thanks, Mark, if you're listening. I didn't have that song with me but I did have one from his latest release, Good Life.

Bye Bye Baby Jane – Mark Elliott
He Smiled Like An Angel – Laurie McClain (Ascend CD)

Encouragement:
A Closed Fist Holds No Light
(Adapted from the version written for SoGospelNews.com - that version will be posted here in December.)

I was driving home from someplace recently and heard on the radio a song I'd forgotten about, but I've liked: "I Just Wanna Be Mad" by Terri Clark. It's a song about a couple who had a spat and the wife declares her love but doesn't want to give up her mad...yet.

So, I got to thinking about that song. We are human and sometimes we do "just wanna be mad for awhile." Sometimes we get a little too critical too quickly before we know all of the facts. We direct that negative energy at people without thinking through the impact it might have on the person. But I think life's too short to hold small grudges for a long period of time and be unforgiving toward others. Besides, after a while it eats away at you and holds you back from happiness. A closed fist holds no light.

Try this if you're holding too tightly on to something someone may have said or done: make a fist. Note how uncomfortable and tight your hand feels. Look toward the center. It's closed and it's very dark in there. Not a bit of light can get in.

Now, open your hand. Stretch it out and allow the light to shine through. And let that grudge, bad feeling, misunderstanding that might not be all that important go.

The thing about the song I like is that despite present feelings, it offers up hope for reconciliation, that the dark cloud isn't going to last forever...that love will eventually conquer all. And making up and making peace can be fun, after all.
***
Closing song: Time Is Tight - Booker T and the MGs

The one show glitch might have been me struggling with a couple of words. Other than that, it was pretty clean. Go Wendy.

I want to take a moment to thank my fellow DJ River Jordan, whose great show, "Backstory On the Radio" follows mine, for her kind support--I heard her plug for my show on automation of her show as I was driving home. It came at a time when I needed it and it is nice to know someone's paying attention. And by the way, she nailed the essence of what the show is about. Thanks, River.

11/22/08 Playlist - 1963

This day, of course, was the 45th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy, on November 22, 1963. So I took a look back at some of the music of that year and walked through history a little bit. Most of us who were around at that time no doubt remember where they were when the President was shot. Me, I was in 3rd grade when one of the other teachers told our teacher the news. We had a little reading lesson going on at the time. I was one of those "teacher's pets" back then so our teacher left the room for a little bit and she put me in charge. Only thing was the class and I were a little confused on whether she wanted me to watch the room or run the reading group. Not long after that we were told the President had died and we all were sent home. From then on it was a weekend of black and white images on TV none of us will ever forget and my mother telling me to keep the volume on the music that I played on my stereo soft.

There is an aircheck out on the internet from radio station KLIF in Dallas from the day of the assassination which is quite chilling. At around 12:30 p.m. DJ Rex Jones was doing his show as usual. When the first report of a shooting came in, they played commercials for Sandra Dee's latest movie and clothing stores and music…then when reports got more serious, things gradually changed. But while this song aired on KLIF, few knew what was transpiring not far away from the station and the innocence the song by the Chiffons portrayed was soon to be changed forever.

Chiffons - I Have A Boyfriend
Rick Nelson - Fools Rush In
Kyu Sakamoto - Sukiyaki
Lesley Gore - It's My Party
Inez and Charlie Foxx - Mockingbird
Del Shannon - Little Town Flirt

Going back to JFK for a second, I visited the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas a few years ago and it was quite the experience. One thing I picked up while I was there was a DVD called JFK-Breaking the News which is a collection on clips from the local Dallas TV coverage and interviews from people who were on the scene, so if you're a history and TV news enthusiast, you might want to try to find this one.

Picking Through the Record Box
For the record box, I've pulled out all my stuff ahead of time, so we're going to stay with 1963 for the most part. 1963 is the year that I have the most vivid memories of music and of my childhood. I was 8 years old back then (go ahead, do the math, I don't mind). There was always music around the house because my mother loved it and I had that older sister advantage that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. My family was also involved with an Irish music club, so on many occasions there'd be a lot of visitors to the outdoor patio...and maybe an accordion or two. I played some songs that seems to stick out in that era and stayed with me that everyone liked a lot.

(Obligatory technical glitch of the day: I wanted to play Jimmy Soul Clark's "If You Want To Be Happy" from a tape cassette, but it decided not to cooperate.)

Gene Pitney - 24 Hours From Tulsa
Jackie De Shannon - Needles and Pins
Johnny Cash - Ring of Fire
Supremes - When the Lovelight Start Shining Through His Eyes

Brenda Lee - Losing You
New Christy Minstrels - Green Green
Dixiebells - Papa Joe's
Steve Alaimo - Every Day I Have To Cry Some

Current music:
Scott Krippayne - What Breaks Your Heart
He was one of the American Idol finale songwriter winners a couple of seasons back. He co-wrote the song Jordin Sparks sang, This Is My Now.

Stephanie Mills –Born For This
This song was written by BeBe Winans who resides here in town. I heard him do this song last year in my church. He's an ordained minister as well as an artist and he preached his first sermon for us. He sang this song at the end, and there was an incredible move of the spirit. People were reaching across the aisles hugging each other and all. I'll never forget that experience.

Inspiration:

Next week most of us will be pondering the things we are thankful for. I'd like to suggest that if there are any people you are thankful for in your life, that you be sure to encourage them and tell then. Life is too short, after all. 45 years ago we lost a President in the blink of an eye. If someone were sadly snatched from your life, will he or she have known how you felt about them? I hope so. It doesn't take a whole lot to say so. I'm thankful for being in this town, for my friends, my singer/songwriter people who have encouraged me and my mission here, and for getting to do this show with some great people. And you do know who you are.

11/15/08 - Soul Shot Saturday

Today on the show we had Soul Shot Saturday! Try saying that three times fast! Well, I practiced. I tried. But I blew it.

Déjà vu for those of you who saw a particular YouTube video featuring yours truly.

Anyway, what Soul Shot Saturday meant was I played a few cuts from some compilations that Rhino put out years ago called Soul Shots A Collection of Sixties Soul Classics. These have some great old soul tunes that you're not likely to hear on what's left of the commercial oldies stations (and I use that term loosely).I don't know how many albums were put out in this series, I have three of them.
Tyrone Davis – Can I Change My Mind
JJ Jackson - But It's Alright
Barbara Acklin - Love Makes A Woman
Lou Rawls- Love Is a Hurtin Thing
Flirtations - Nothing But A Heartache

Picking through the record box:
Lovin Spoonful - You Didn't Have To Be So Nice (by request!)
The Turtles - It Ain't Me Babe
Tams - Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy
Drifters - Please Stay (The only glitch of the day--they wanted to sing sooner than I was ready for them to. Gotta wait your turn, guys!)
Johnny Mathis - What Will My Mary Say (A song I always loved, but secretly as a child. Little Beatles loving me didn't admit that I actually loved a song my mother did!)
Sweet Inspirations - Sweet Inspiration
Jerry Butler - Mr. Dream Merchant (last two also from Soul Shots collection)

Current section:
Quite honestly, I don't really know where this falls in the baby boomer demographic this show usually covers, but I did want to share this song with you. If some of you are around Nashville or if you read album liner notes, you may be familiar with the name Gordon Mote. He's been one of the first call session piano players in Nashville for quite a number of years, but he's also a wonderful singer. Of late he has been the pianist for the Gaither Homecoming Tour and has launched a gospel music solo career. This song was sent to country radio. I first heard it about two and a half years ago as a demo and I told Gordon then he had a hit on his hands and I've very glad he recorded it himself—this is from his most recent album Don't Let Me Miss The Glory.

Gordon Mote - Wake Up Dancin
Alan O' Day - I Hear Voices
Michael Loonan - Meet Me On the Way To Madison

I'm sure every city has its special venue where musical magic is made every night. For me it was Music City Cafe/Billy's On Grand in St. Paul, MN. Back in the 90s it was where I'd hear and came to know Michael Loonan and others who started out on a small stage and then went on to do me proud and become touring musicians.

Inspiration:
I tried to do this last week but ran out of time—these are challenging times we're all living in where we have to make compromises and sacrifices right now so hopefully this piece which I wrote for another website will help just a little bit.

http://sogospelnews.com/index/articles/comments/9817/

Wrap up: King Curtis - Soul Serenade

I actually was pleased with the show today. Scripting and conceiving the show seems to be working well for me.

Next week: a walk through history, looking at 1963 and the 45th anniversary of the JFK assassination. It still affects me to this day and I'll have some thoughts on growing up in the wake of that monumental event.

11/8/08 Playlist- Let's Dance!; Ten November

Let's Dance!
I thought perhaps I'd start out by trying to get you all up and dancing. I was inspired a bit this weekend, not because I went to see Michael McDonald last Saturday night and ended up dancing in the aisles. On Sunday I tuned in one of the local cable access channels here in Nashville and found this little dance show. These couples were about 40-70 years old in age range and let me tell you, they were boogieing down, bebopping, just having a grand old time. It looks like they were from some sort of dance club—they danced one song right after the other for a solid half hour—it was pretty cool. Maybe I'll join one of those dance clubs, who knows. But right now, come one, everyone up on your feet, let's dance!

Four Tops – It’s the Same Old Song (and one of my favorite things was watching them dance)
Major Lance – Monkey Time
Sly and the Family Stone - Dance To The Music
Twisting the Night Away – Sam Cooke
Cool Jerk – Capitols
Dee Dee Sharp - Mashed Potato Time

Picking Through the Record Box
As I talked about last week, this is the part of the show that is like picking through the box of 45's you had as you were growing up and just playing whatever looks good to you at the time. Now for those of you who are younger and don't know what I mean by a 45, well, I'll presume you've at least seen what a vinyl album looks like. This is a tiny version of that with a big hole in the middle and you have to put a little odd shaped plastic spindle inside it to play it on a turntable. I know someone who has a neck chain with a little spindle charm on it and I said to this person, "isn't it scary that we're in a world now with people who don't even know what that is?"

Uniques - Not Too Long Ago
Reflections- Just Life Romeo and Juliet
Sandie Shaw - Always Something There To Remind Me
Human Beinz - Nobody but Me
Orlons - Wah Watusi
Rooftop Singers - Walk Right In
Swinging Medallions - Double Shot of My Baby's Love

Current
This week we are coming up on the 33rd anniversary of the shipwreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, which disappeared on Lake Superior on the tenth of November, 1975, and its 29 crewmen disappeared without a trace. Many of you are probably familiar with Gordon Lightfoot's song on the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. I played music from a production called Ten November. It's had dozens of performances across the US and Canada over the past 20 years. I saw it in St. Paul MN a couple of years ago and it was incredible. The liner notes to the soundtrack album, which is called Gales of November, tell us that the music and the play "reminds us how tenuous and precious are our ties to those we love in the face of the awesome power of nature." The singers are some of the finest voices in folk today: Prudence Johnson, who you may have heard regularly with Garrison Keillor on "A Prairie Home Companion", along with Ruth MacKenzie and Claudia Schmidt.

River to the Sea – Prudence Johnson (Gales of November)
Rich – Neal and Leandra – (Stranger to My Kin)
Listen Adversary – Prudence Johnson (Gales of November)

Wrap up - Telstar - The Toronados

11/1/08 Playlist

It was a long afternoon. Either that or I must have played a lot of short songs.

I couldn't decide what version of a song I wanted to play so I played them both:
Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye - The Casinos
Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye - Eddy Arnold
It's Up To You - Ricky Nelson
Young World - Ricky Nelson

First set of songs from "The Brill Building Sound" box set. I have this on cassette and I never used the tape deck before, so I held my breath that it would work. And it did--yay!

Halfway to Paradise - Tony Orlando
Take Good Care Of My Baby - Bobby Vee
Run To Him - Bobby Vee
Bless You - Tony Orlando

Tell It To The Rain - Four Seasons
Are You Lonely For Me Baby - Freddie Scott
Concrete & Clay - Unit 4 + 2

2nd set from "The Brill Building Sound":
I Can't Stay Mad At You - Skeeter Davis
Hey Girl - Freddie Scott
Oh No Not My Baby - Maxine Brown

Current (or non-oldie) section:
Walls - Mary Jane Alm and Pat Frederick (this month's "Wendy V's Encouraging Words" was inspired by this song)
All My Loving - Buddy Greene
Some Velvet Morning - Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood

Personal reflection:
I grew up with an older sister who is 10 years older than me. It was a helpful thing growing up with this music in the 60s when she was 18 and I was 8. Obviously, she bought most of the records. But, it wasn't long after that when I started bugging my folks for an allowance so that I could buy some, too. In any event, we would have our little sessions where we'd play records and she'd always want to be the one to pick (or "dictate", as she put it) what to play. I did get my licks in often, though.

Maybe some of you, when you dig out your old record collections, just sort of poke through and start grabbing songs to play just on impulse, not caring about how they fit together. Well, I do that sometime on this show. Just so's you know what's going on...