email Today’s Song Of The Day could have only happened in that strange and mystical place where the worlds of The Moody Blues and The Four Tops intersect. “Simple Game” was originally the B-side to the Moody Blues’ 1967 single “Ride My See-Saw.” The song was written by Michael Pinder, and didn’t appear on a […]
Song Of The Day – “The Hero Takes A Fall” by The Bangles
email Power pop doesn’t get any better than this! Along with The Go-Go’s, The Bangles were the main purveyors of the 1980s girl group sound. But while The Go-Go’s were lightweight and effervescent, The Bangles’ brand of rock was rooted in the sound of The Byrds and early Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, giving them […]
Today in Rock History – June 17
email 1965, Working at Abbey Road studios in London The Beatles completed work on the new Paul McCartney song “Yesterday” with the overdubbing of an additional vocal track by McCartney and a string quartet. They also recorded “Act Naturally” for Ringo’s vocal contribution on the Help! album and the song “Wait” in four takes. “Wait” […]
Song Of The Day – “Grimsby” by Elton John
email To use the title of one of the songs included on this album, Elton John’s Caribou is indeed a “Stinker.” That said, this beautiful turd of an album, his first to be recorded in the U.S., captures Elton John at his commercial apex and at the height of his creative powers. The fact that […]
Song Of The Day – “Daddy’s Home” by Shep & The Limelites
email Shep & The Limelites consisted of James “Shep” Sheppard, Clarence Bassett and Charles Bakersfield. They formed in Queens, New York in 1960 and are primarily remembered for their signature hit “Daddy’s Home.” Sheppard was originally a member of a group called The Heartbeats that signed with the Hull record label in the late 1950s. […]
Song Of The Day – “Harry’s House/Centerpiece” by Joni Mitchell
email Joni Mitchell was coming off of Court And Spark, her most commercially successful studio recording to date, sporting several hit singles including “Free Man In Paris,” “Raised On Robbery” and “Help Me.” So by 1975 interest was very high as critics and fans alike awaited her next record which was believed to be the […]
Song Of The Day – “Creepin’” by Stevie Wonder
email Today’s Song Of The Day is from Stevie Wonder’s 1974 album Fulfillingness’ First Finale which was released shortly after a car accident that almost took his life, making the album an all-the-more-important part of his canon. While on tour in North Carolina in August of 1973, Wonder’s car smashed into the back of a […]
Song Of The Day – “Thelma” by Paul Simon
email It boggles the mind how a song this good could have been left in the can, but that was indeed the fate of the Paul Simon outtake “Thelma,” which was originally intended for his 1990 album The Rhythm Of The Saints. (The song would surface three years later on the Paul Simon 1964 – […]
Song Of The Day – “Aire” by Chicago
email By the time of the sessions for their sixth studio album (and seventh overall), Chicago had dozens of hits behind them and had grown restless and unhappy with the concise nature of their previous two records. Sure the albums established the group as a hit making machine, but the band began to feel that […]
Song Of The Day – “Skateaway” by Dire Straits
email Today’s Song Of The Day comes from Dire Straits’ third album Making Movies. The album was co-produced by Jimmy Iovine whom Mark Knopfler contacted because he liked the production sound he gave to Patti Smith’s single “Because The Night,” and Iovine brought a similar New Wave sheen to Making Movies. David Knopfler left the […]
