Today’s clip is “Farewell to Paradise” by Emitt Rhodes. Rhodes is most often referred to as “the one-man Paul McCartney,” because he wrote, performed, and recorded his music entirely on his own in his garage studio. And yes, his music absolutely has a mid-60s-to-mid-70s McCartney sound. He’s been a cult favorite since his debut album …
Discovered Cover: “Love Song” by ONJ
This is a new discovery for me: Olivia Newton-John’s 1971 cover of “Love Song.” For the longest time I was only familiar with Elton John’s version, which appeared on his Tumbleweed Connection album from the previous year. In later years I became familiar with the version recorded by Lesley Duncan, the person who wrote the …
Calmarie – Debbie Harry on “Night Music”
One of my favorite TV shows in the late 80s was NBC’s Sunday Night (later known as Night Music). This was a late-night show that featured musicians that didn’t typically get airtime on the more mainstream programs. They featured many jazz, blues, and World Music artists playing live with the in-house band, which included hosts …
Marisa Monte – Carnavália
Here’s a video of Marisa Monte performing “Carnavália,” which originally appeared on the 2002 album Tribalistas. This is one of my all-time favorite albums, and this song still gives me chills. Carnavalia — (Antunes/Brown/Monte) Vem pra minha ala Que hoje a nossa escola vai desfilar Vem fazer história Que hoje é dia de glória nesse …
Poppies
(This entry originally appeared here on May 20 2004.) As we approach Memorial Day, veterans all over the country will be accepting donations and distributing poppies in honor of the people we’ve lost in war. This effort seems much more poignant these days. The significance of the poppy and its relation to veterans goes back …
Diariamente – Marisa Monte
This is a nice little song from Marisa Monte’s 1991 album Mais. “Diariamente” runs down a list of everyday things, set to a simple acoustic guitar. I bought this CD just before my daughter Becca was born, and this was one of the songs that I used to play for her when she got fussy. …
Carpet of the Sun
For the last several years, I’ve said that my ideal job for when I retire– or win the lottery– would be as a starter at a golf club. It’s not so much for the love of the game (I’m an average player at best) as it is the fact that it’s just a very cool …
Indian Summer
We’ve had great weather this weekend, mostly in the upper 60s. I snapped the photo above from my dining room window, but the picture doesn’t do justice to the color that was blazing there. This reminded me of a song by The Dream Academy, called (coincidentally enough) “Indian Summer.” This was from their 1987 album …
Tumbleweed Connection
This was one of the first Elton John albums I owned. It was his second major-label release (in this country), and shows what Elton and lyricist Bernie Taupin were capable of before all the flash that followed a couple years later. The album has an old-west feel to it, which Taupin attributes largely to his …
Sloop John B
Today would have been my brother Dick’s 51st birthday. In his memory, here’s one of his favorite Beach Boys songs.