Monthly Archives: October 2024

Music Monday: October 28, 2024

Posted in Holidays, Music Monday by

Hi, everyone. Welcome to this week’s edition of Music Monday.

1940s Halloween

Halloween display circa 1940’s-1950’s at a Five & Dime store. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Spooky season is upon us, so in that spirit (get it?), I made myself a small Halloween-esque playlist countdown perfect to listen to while I carve my jack-o-lantern:

5. Boz Scaggs: “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” (2003, written by Lorenz Hart and Richard Rodgers).

So many great versions of this show tune, most recently by Rufus Wainwright for “The History Boys” soundtrack (2006), but I have adored Boz’s voice forever so his cover has my heart.

4. Annie Lenox: “I Put A Spell On You” (2014, written by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins).

Yes, I love Bette Midler’s version from “Hocus Pocus” and Nina Simone’s jazzy cover of this song, but Lennox gives it soul which is always at the top of my list.

3. Donovan: “Season Of The Witch” (1966, written by Donovan and Shawn Phillips).

I am woefully late to this party (this song is from 1966!). I discovered it on an episode of “House” (S3 E11) and could not believe the song I was enjoying was by the folk singer who sang “Jennifer Juniper”. Wonders truly never cease.

Witch circa 1940s

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

2. Ella Fitzgerald: “Witchcraft” (2007 (recorded circa 1960), written by Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh).

It is by Lady Ella. Enough said.

1. Bobby “Boris” Pickett: “Monster Mash” (1962, written by Leonard Capizzi and Bobby Pickett).

Because the kid in me would not have it any other way.

Have a happy Halloween, everyone!

Womans World 1912 pumpkin cover

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Stay safe & well.

Music Monday: October 21, 2024

Posted in Music Monday by

Hi, everyone. Welcome to this week’s edition of Music Monday.

Blog image for 2024

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Eldorado, the fourth studio album by the Electric Light Orchestra, celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. It was released in the United States in September 1974 and contains my favorite song by this band. The songwriter did an acoustic cover of it in the 2012 documentary, “Mr. Blue Sky: The Story of Jeff Lynne & ELO” accompanied by the group’s keyboardist Richard Tandy on piano. It is now my favorite version of this incredible track.  

ELO
Jeff

Top: ELO”s 1974 album. Bottom: A moment captured from the 2012 documentary featuring Jeff Lynne on guitar and Richard Tandy on piano. (Images found online.  Original sources unknown.)

David Bowie released his 16th album, Tonight, 40 years ago in September 1984. It included a cover of The Beach Boys classic, “God Only Knows”, while the title song was a duet with Tina Turner. My favorite track peaked at #8 in November 1984 and featured Bowie in a dual role in the fabulous video that was in heavy rotation at the same time on MTV.

DB
Blue Jean

Top: The cover of David Bowie’s album, Tonight. Bottom: The artist in the video for the record’s Top Ten hit. (Images found online.  Original sources unknown.)

ELO: “Can’t Get It Out Of My Head” (1974, written by Jeff Lynne).

Jeff Lynne (featuring Richard Tandy on piano): “Can’t Get It Out Of My Head” (2012, written by Jeff Lynne).

David Bowie: “Blue Jean” (1984, written by David Bowie).

Stay safe & well.

Music Monday: October 14, 2024

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Hi, everyone. Welcome to this week’s edition of Music Monday.

Blog image for 2024

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

The Heart of Saturday Night, the second studio album by singer & songwriter Tom Waits, was released on October 15, 1974 on Asylum Records. The title song was written as a tribute to writer Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac, better known as Jack Kerouac, the author of one of my all time favorite books, “On The Road”.

It is easy to see the similarities between he and Waits. They both observed and then relayed stories about the invisible and forgotten people of the world. On Day 189 of my Lockdown Countdown, I wrote about “the souls Waits zeros in on and shares with his audience. The ne’er-do-wells, the alcoholics, the hookers, the broken-hearted, the sad sacks, the angry types, the ones wondering where their lives went, the ones haunted by their choices or the ones just broken by life. Waits is their voice. And to me they are all people I want to get to know because, as the saying goes, there but for the grace of God. Waits extends a hand to each of them. And that in and of itself gives us all hope.” I love Waits’ view of the world. I believe Kerouac would, too.

Waits

The cover of Waits’ 1974 album. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Hall & Oates 12th studio album, Big Bam Boom, was released 40 years ago on October 12, 1984. The first single & its fabulous video were released a week earlier and the song hit the #1 spot for one week in Dec 1984. The second single, “Method Of Modern Love”, peaked at #5 in February 1985. The duo has six #1 songs and 16 Top Ten hits in their career to date, which sadly may now be over after 50+ years. The two musicians are currently engaged in a legal battle over Oates allegedly trying to sell his half of the duo’s business without Hall’s required consent. I love these guys and I am seriously hoping they can resolve this matter amicably so we can all see them reunite on “Live From Daryl’s House”. Fingers crossed.

Hall Oates

The cover of the duo’s s 1984 album. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Tom Waits: “(Looking for) The Heart Of Saturday Night” (1974, written by Tom Waits).

Hall & Oates: “Out of Touch” (1984, written by Daryl Hall and John Oates).

Stay safe and well.

Music Monday: October 7, 2024

Posted in Music Monday by

Hi, everyone. Welcome to another edition of Music Monday.

Blog image for 2024

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

In September 1981 Journey’s seventh album, Escape, hit the top of the Billboard 200 chart for one week, giving the band their only #1 album. Two months earlier today’s featured song-the first single-was released and surprisingly it charted higher (it hit #4 in October 1981) than the second single which became the band’s signature song (“Don’t Stop Believin'” peaked at #9 in December 1981). The album’s third single, “Open Arms”, became the band’s highest charting single of their career, hitting #2 in February 1982.

The group was founded in San Francisco in 1973 as a backup band for local groups. It consisted of guitarists Neil Schon and George Tickner, keyboard player Gregg Rolie and bassist Ross Valory. But by 1981, only Schon and Valory were left with Steve Smith on drums, Steve Perry (who turned 75 in January) on vocals and Jonathan Cain on keyboards. It was this lineup that would achieve the success and popularity together until 1985 when Smith and Valory were unceremoniously dismissed (they returned in 1995 only to be fired again in 2020).

I was a big Journey fan back in the day and today’s song is my favorite track of theirs. Over the years the fighting, the egos, the personnel changes and the rest of the drama (in August a number of European tour dates were cancelled while Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain continued to battle) just soured me on the group to the point where even the placement of “Don’t Stop Believin'” in the series finale of “The Sopranos” could not change my mind. But my love of today’s song prevails and it is not because of the line referencing my favorite album of all time 😀

“One love feeds the fire
One heart burns desire
I wonder who’s crying now
Two hearts born to run
Who’ll be the lonely one
I wonder who’s crying now“.

Journey

Journey’s 1981 album and the band (L-R): Ross Valory, Jonathan Cain, Neil Schon, Steve Perry and Steve Smith. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Journey: “Who’s Crying Now” (1981, written by Jonathan Cain and Steve Perry).

Stay safe & well.