duaneiac

! !! !!! Some great music is being heard today! Now playing: What kind of bizarre, mixed up universe do we live in where a singer like Wayne Newton can become a multi-millionaire while a genuine vocal artist like Bill Henderson has to toil away his whole career in semi-obscurity? He was really one of the best male singers. As far as lyric interpretation goes, he's right up there with Sinatra as far as I'm concerned.

From earlier this afternoon: Now playing:

Previously, Disc 3 of 4 from Sure, there were plenty of classics included on that disc, but the song that really hit home hard for me this time around was "Dark End Of The Street". Such a great song which does not seem to get covered very often anymore. "We got to pay for the love that we stole". There's a lesson everybody got to learn in life -- some folks got to learn it over and over and over again. But do songwriters today even attempt to teach that lesson? Currently:

Disc 1 of 2 (of a CD I honestly forgot I even owned ).

Disc 4 of 5 from: Another great Rhino collection, this one all about science fictiony music from movies, TV, pop records, etc. This disc collects "Lounge/Incidental" music from such performers as Les Baxter, Ferrante & Teicher, Sun RA, Raymond Scott and Dick Hyman.

Yes. It was interesting listening to the first Sinatra/Jobim record and Jobim's all instrumental Wave album together. They were both recorded in early 1967 -- Sinatra's in Jan. & Feb. and Jobim's in May & June -- and both arranged & conducted by Claus Ogerman who, while not using the exact same arrangements for both sessions, utilized some similar musical motifs on both albums. Sinatra's version of "Dindi" is one of his finest performances, I think. now playing disc 1 of 2 from:

Disc 6 of 7. I love these Rhino boxed sets; I have a similar one covering 1980s music. They combine music with occasional clips of news reports from the era and usually have a song following the news clip which adds editorial comment upon it. For example, after a news report regarding Claudine Longet (if you are under 40, you will have to Google that name, I'm sure) with ELO's "Evil Woman". This disc also includes selections by (among others) KC & the Sunshine Band, Elvin Bishop, Rose Royce and the Bay City Rollers. Does any one else remember seeing the Bay City Rollers on Howard Cosell's short-lived variety show? It was supposed to be the biggest TV event since the Beatles first appeared on Ed Sullivan, but both the band and the TV show soon disappeared from sight.

Earlier: Currently:

Disc 1 and 2 of 2.

Disc 1 of 2

Well damn. Why did Joel Dorn choose to leave that performance off the CD version?

and then, just because it is that time of year, one of my favorite Jimmy Rushing recordings:

Disc 3 of 4, which includes selections by Eddie Jefferson, Wynton Kelly, Junior Mance, Milt Jackson, Zoot Sims, Yusef Lateef and more.

I finally realized why I love this album so much. I'm a big Peggy Lee fan and this album sounds like it could easily have been recorded by her. Not that Ms. Gardot was in any way attempting to copy or imitate Ms. Lee, but the moods of the songs and the tones set by the music & arrangements could have easily fit with Ms. Lee's style & persona -- the joy and fun of love in "If The Stars Were Mine", the very sensual nature of love in "Lover Undercover", the dramatic tension of love in "Our Love Is Easy". A couple of Ms. Gardot's originals here sound like they could have easily been penned by Ms. Lee, who was a worthy songwriter in her own right. Nothing else I've heard by Ms. Gardot has matched what she achieved here, but this album is a terrific listening experience. (Although I do always stop the CD after "Deep Within The Corners Of My Mind" and have not listened to the final two tracks -- an uninspired cover of "Over The Rainbow" and a remix of "If The Stars Were Mine" -- in years.) I'd recommend giving a listen to The Healing Game, Enlightenment and Days Like This. I think they are three very strong Van Morrison albums. Even the album with Linda Gail Lewis is fun for what it is. Many of his other releases of the past 25 years have had their moments, but often are kind of routine. I was not expecting much from it, but I really did like his Duets album from 3 years ago -- nothing profound, but an enjoyable list

One of his better efforts of the past 25 years. Several strong songs here and many of them only became stronger as Van Morrison polished them in his live performances.