Monthly Archives: May 2021

Let’s Take A Moment Day 431

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

Fifty years ago today-May 21, 1971-Marvin Gaye released his masterpiece, What’s Going On. This album was an expression of the angst he was feeling between 1969 & 1970 due to the state of the world-the Vietnam War, the effect of pollution on the environment, racial injustice, poverty-and what was happening in his own world: the break-up of his first marriage, the death of his friend, Tammi Terrell, the trials his brother, Frankie, faced in service to our country & as a veteran returning home from the war to little support in how to rejoin society; Gaye’s inability to break free of the confines of his Motown contract to make the music he wanted to make, his strained relationship with label owner Berry Gordy and Gaye’s money troubles with the IRS due in part to his cocaine addiction.

He co-wrote all nine songs on the album & produced it as well, his first time in that role. Motown’s house band, The Funk Brothers, helped Gaye find the perfect sound for each song. Upon its release, it was hailed as a landmark album not only for the singer but for music as well. It was critically acclaimed as a concept record, a first for Motown, and was considered an important statement for black music, too. The album had three Top Ten hits: “What’s Going On” (Day 76) hit #2 on the main chart, #1 on the R&B chart, “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” (Day 380) hit #4 on the main chart, #1 on the R&B chart and today’s song, which was the third single. It hit #9 on the main chart & was another #1 song on the R&B chart.

If Marvin Gaye only gave us his recording of “Grapevine” what a contribution that would have been all by itself. But the legacy of What’s Going On defines not only his talent but his heart, soul, intellect, empathy, strength & compassion for the world around him as well. His was one of the first voices I remember hearing and I have absolutely adored it ever since. The soulfulness, the passion, the intensity & the four octave range of his deep rich baritone to tenor voice, it is a truly beautiful & remarkable instrument. I miss him every single day. Happy anniversary to one of the greatest records ever made by one of the greatest artists who ever lived.

“Hang-ups, let downs
Bad breaks, set backs
Natural fact is
Oh honey that I can’t pay my taxes“.

Marvin 1971

Marvin Gaye circa 1970. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Marvin Gaye: “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)” (1971, written by Marvin Gaye and James Nyx Jr.).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 430

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

The Marshall Tucker Band released today’s song as the first single from their 1973 self-titled debut album. It failed to chart. But when they re-released it in 1977 it peaked at #75. Despite two poor showings on the charts two different times, today’s song went on to become a classic rock radio staple that still endures. And it remains one of only a handful of tracks featuring a flute arrangement, proving once again that bands that truly rocked used whatever instrument they needed to make a song go from good to great.

“I’m gonna buy a ticket, now
As far as I can
Ain’t never coming back
Ride me a southbound
All the way to Georgia, now
Till the train, it run out of track“.

MTB 1973

The Marshall Tucker Band circa 1973. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

The Marshall Tucker Band: “Can’t You See” (1973, written by Toy Caldwell).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 429

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

My parents were married 59 years ago on May 19, 1962. Today’s song is dedicated to them.

“I wanna sing you a love song
I wanna rock you in my arms all night long
I wanna get to know you
I wanna show you the peaceful feelin’ of my home“.

Loggins and Messina

Kenny Loggins (L) and Jim Messina (R) circa 1974. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Loggins & Messina: “A Love Song” (1973, written by Dona Lyn (D.L.) George and Kenny Loggins).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 428

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

Heavy metal bands were never my thing. It was a genre of music I could not identify with at all. A big part of that had to do with their videos. Many of them were degrading towards women. The models in the clips were usually scantily clad with cheap looking hair & clothes as they emulated poses that looked like they were right out of a Penthouse spread.

Then in 1987 director Marty Callner was hired to do a few videos for the band Whitesnake. Once he saw the lead singer’s girlfriend, an up & coming actress, he chose her to star in them despite another model already being booked for the job. And together Callner & the actress decided she would be dressed in real clothes so she would look elegant, sophisticated & glamorous in every video they made together. He & that actress, Tawny Kitaen, changed the look for women in metal clips forever starting with what became the iconic video for the song, “Here I Go Again”.

Other videos featuring Kitaen followed including “Still Of The Night”, “The Deeper The Love” and today’s song which I always loved. But it was the first clip, featuring her splits & cartwheels across the hoods of two Jaguars that most people remember best. I do not know a man over the age of 40 who does not go into a catatonic state when he just hears the beginning of that song because he immediately pictures the video in his head. It blew up from its premiere in 1987 & turned metal into a hotter commodity leading MTV to feature that genre in its own weekly show, “Headbanger’s Ball”.

Kitaen & Whitesnake’s lead singer David Coverdale became immense stars because of those music clips. They were like MTV’s version of GH’s “Luke & Laura”. The music supercouple got married in 1989 but sadly their romance did not end happily ever after. They divorced in 1991 with Coverdale stating he should have never married an American actress while she said he did not appreciate how much attention she received for the videos from the band’s fans.

Kitaen died on May 7, 2021 at the age of 59 with no known cause of death cited. I had not seen her in years but when I clicked on the story announcing her death, I barely recognized her. Like a lot of women growing older in Hollywood, she used plastic surgery to try & stop the aging process. Her life after those videos was not easy as she battled some legal issues & addiction problems which were documented in reality shows like “The Surreal Life” & “Celebrity Rehab”. In the 1990’s she had two daughters with her second husband & despite their divorce after five years of marriage, they raised their family together.

But in the late 1980’s I remember thinking what a charmed life Kitaen had & how great it must have been to be her. That is how I choose to remember her. And as someone who had enough respect for herself & women in general that she showed us how we should be treated, even in a man’s world. Rest in peace, Julie “Tawny” Kitaen.

“I can feel my love for you
Growing stronger day by day
An’ I can’t wait too see you again
So I can hold you in my arms”.

tawny

tawny david

Top: Tawny Kitaen sitting on the Jaguars she did her famous cartwheel over in the 1987 Whitesnake video for the song “Here I Go Again”. Bottom: Kitaen & David Coverdale inside the white Jaguar during another scene from the iconic video. (Images found online.  Original sources unknown.)

Whitesnake: “Is This Love” (1987, written by David Coverdale and John Sykes).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 427

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

Bobby Darin was born 85 years ago in NYC on May 14, 1936 as Walden Robert Cassotto. He grew up playing several instruments & developing his voice to prepare himself for a career in music. He started writing songs in 1955 at the Brill Building and eventually caught the attention of powerhouse music executive Ahmet Ertegun. By 1958 Darin had his first hit with “Splish Splash” and he was off.

His music evolved over the years taking him from the bubble gum pop sound of his first hit to his cover of Tim Hardin’s “If I Were A Carpenter” (Day 125) in 1966. He also starred in films & several TV specials & became half of one of the first supercouples when he married actress Sandra Dee in 1960. Darin died much too young at age 37 in 1973 but he left behind a legacy as a performer in all genres of entertainment because he did it all unbelievably well.

“Someday I don’t know how
I hope she’ll hear my plea
Some way I don’t know how
She’ll bring her love to me“.

Bobby-Darin-1962

Bobby Darin circa 1962. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Bobby Darin: “Dream Lover” (1959, written by Bobby Darin).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 426

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

Today’s song hit the #1 spot on the chart today in 1964 where it would stay for two consecutive weeks. It is by the beautiful elegant Queen Of Motown, Mary Wells. She was born May 13, 1943 in Michigan and started singing in her church choir. She auditioned for Berry Gordy in 1960 when he was 17 years old.

He had her work with Smokey Robinson who wrote many of her hits, including her first three released in 1962: “The One Who Really Loves You”, “You Beat Me To The Punch” & “Two Lovers”. But 1964 was the biggest year of her career thanks to today’s song, her duet album with Marvin Gaye entitled Together & her role as the first Motown performer to play in the United Kingdom when she was invited to open for The Beatles on that leg of their tour.

But Wells became displeased with the way Motown operated and despite alleged attempts by Gordy to renegotiate the deal she signed when she was 17, Wells was released from her contract per her request. However, that arrangement meant she could not receive any royalties from her former label.

She had some minor success after leaving Motown but decided to retire in 1974 to raise her four children. But she suffered from many afflictions including depression. a suicide attempt and drug use. In 1990 she was diagnosed with laryngeal cancer which led to her death at age 49 in 1992. Her old collaborator Smokey Robinson delivered the eulogy for the woman most fans remember as The First Lady Of Motown.

“As a matter of opinion I think he’s tops
My opinion is he’s the cream of the crop
As a matter of taste to be exact
He’s my ideal as a matter of fact“.

Mary_Wells_1965

Mary Wells circa 1965. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Mary Wells: “My Guy” (1964, written by William “Smokey” Robinson Jr.).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 425

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

Ritchie Valens was just 17 years old when he died with Buddy Holly & J.P. Richardson a/k/a The Big Bopper” on “The Day The Music Died” in February 1959. So it is hard to believe this year marked Valens’ 80th birth anniversary. He was born Richard Steven Valenzuela on May 13, 1941 in California. By high school he utilized his self taught musical skills to play for his classmates & eventually joined a local band,

However, it was his solo reputation that caught the attention of Bob Keane, the owner of a small record label. He signed Valens in May 1958 & started his career with today’s song followed by “Donna” and “La Bamba” (Day 324). Less than a year later, Valens died in the infamous plane crash in Clear Lake, Iowa. His legacy as one of rock & roll’s early pioneers stands more than 60 years later.

“I love you so, dear
And I’ll never let you go
Come on, baby, so
Oh pretty baby, I-I love you so“.

Valens

Ritchie Valens circa 1958. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Ritchie Valens: “Come On Let’s Go” (1958, written by Ritchie Valens).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 424

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

Today’s song has one of the most recognizable opening guitar riffs in music history. And it was written & played by my great musical love, Eric Clapton, when he was in the band, Cream. But it was the group’s bassist, Jack Bruce, who wrote the majority of their music while the lyrics were written by poet & lyricist Pete Brown. Bruce, born 78 years ago on May 14, 1943 in Scotland, came from a musical family. When he was a teenager he attended the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (n/k/a Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) on a scholarship to study musical composition & the cello.

By the mid 1960’s he met both Clapton & percussionist Ginger Baker and the three men formed Cream in 1966. Because all three came from other successful groups (Baker from The Graham Bond Organisation where he met Bruce who was in John Mayhall & The Bluesbreakers where he met Clapton who was in The Yardbirds), Cream was hailed as the first supergroup. They released four albums in the less than four years they were together, but their music changed live performances & improvisational jam sessions forever. It was also where Clapton developed his voice under the mentorship of Bruce.

The band broke up in 1969 as Clapton wanted to go in a different more streamlined form of music but also because the incessant fighting between Bruce & Baker got to be too much. They reunited in 1993 for their Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony & again in 2005 for seven shows-four at The Royal Albert Hall in England & three at Madison Square Garden in NYC. Bruce passed away in 2014 due to liver disease despite receiving a transplant about a decade earlier. Baker died in 2019, but both men remain musical legends for their time in Cream & their other contributions to rock history.

“I’m with you my love
The light’s shining through on you
Yes, I’m with you my love
It’s the morning and just we two“.

Cream 1967

Cream

Top: Cream circa 1968 (L-R): Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and Eric Clapton. Bottom: Cream circa 1993: Clapton, Baker and Bruce. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Cream: “Sunshine Of Your Love” (1967, written by Pete Brown, Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 423

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

Time for a Motown break. This one is in celebration of Stevie Wonder who turns 71 years young today. Born May 13, 1950 in Michigan, he rose to fame as a teenage prodigy at the label in the 1960’s with his early records. In the 1970’s he scored hit after hit with album after album and Grammy after Grammy.

Today’s song went to #3 in 1970. A year later when Wonder turned 21, he received the sum of $1 million from the $30 million he accumulated as an artist for the label. He also signed a new contract in his own name since he was finally a legal adult in charge of his own career. “Little” Stevie Wonder was gone & the man in his place became one of the greatest artists of all time. Happiest of birthdays to this Motown legend.

“I’ve done a lot of foolish things
That I really didn’t mean
I could be a broken man
But here I am“.

Stevie Wonder

Stevie Wonder circa 1971. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Stevie Wonder: “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)” (1970, written by Lee Garrett, Lula Mae Hardaway, Stevie Wonder & Syreeta Wright).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.

Let’s Take A Moment Day 422

Posted in Music by

Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

May blog 2021

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

The May music birthdays continue and today’s is a big one. One of the world’s greatest composers, Burt Bacharach, turns 92 years young today. Born May 12, 1929 in Missouri, he & lyricist Hal David have written some of the 20th century’s most popular songs including “This Guy’s In Love With You” (Day 133), “Walk On By” (Day 29), “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again”, “Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head” and “Close To You”, amongst others. In the 1980’s Bacharach co-wrote a few songs with his then wife, Carole Bayer Sager including “Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do)” & “That’s What Friends Are For”.

When the 1990’s came around another Bacharach fan, musician Elvis Costello, co-wrote a song with him for the 1996 movie, “Grace Of My Heart”. Two years later, the two musicians released an album together, Painted From Memory, which included their version of today’s song. Costello’s vocal is impressive and there is no mistaking the signature Bacharach touch featuring a fabulous trumpet & string arrangement. Living in a world with a talent like Bacharach is an absolute privilege. Happy birthday & continued love, health & happiness to this master musician.

“Since I lost the power to pretend
That there could ever be a happy ending
That song is sung out
This bell is rung out“.

Burt and Elvis

Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello circa 1996. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello: “God Give Me Strength” (1998, written by Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.