Bloggerhythms

Released as a single in 1969 from 20/20 , the Beach Boys' last album for Capitol Records, "I Can Hear Music" is possibly their greatest single of the post-Pet Sounds era and, unusually, it’s not an original. Instead, it’s a cover version written by Phil Spector, Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich that barely made it onto the charts for the Ronettes back in 1966. "I Can Hear Music" is very typical of the more mature sounds that Brian Wilson produced in the mid-1960s as he began to move away from the surfing and fun-in-the-sun fare that made the band famous. The big difference here is that this minor hit was released during the period when Wilson was sinking deeper and deeper into the mental illness that would plague him for most of the next twenty years. As a result he had little or nothing to do with this song, which served as little brother Carl's coming out as the de facto leader of the band. With this record, Carl proved he was paying very close attention t...

Famous in country-rock circles for decades, both Chris Hillman of the late, great Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers, and his own Desert Rose Band, and Herb Pedersen - one of Hillman's top sidemen in DRB - share equal billing and space on Way Out West . This album was a 2002 release that would have made Hillman's fellow Byrd and Burrito, Gram Parsons, proud. The long deceased progenitor of this once popular but now often forgotten genre was even referenced on the advance copy of the CD with the quote, "Perfect for fans of Gram Parsons and the Flying Burrito Brothers." More country than rock, lovers of Poco and early Eagles may find this set a rewarding listen as well. Their label, Back Porch Records, calls this CD "California Country." Loaded with the required pedal steel guitars, mandolins, banjos and fiddles, Hillman, Pedersen and their band offer up 17 tracks (including three instrumentals) of enjoyable, mid-weight, country-rock. Way Out West was...

Emma Swift is an Australian singer-songwriter currently living in Nashville with her partner, veteran, English rock n' roller, Robyn Hitchcock. Swift released her self-titled, debut EP in 2014 and it wasn't until August of this year that she released an eight song set of Bob Dylan covers that is generating a lot of positive press. She cleverly named it  Blonde On The Tracks . I'm not usually one to sit through unappealing vocals but Dylan is one of the few bad singers I can stomach. Even so, it's always rewarding to hear someone with a great set of pipes cover his work. Swift has a strong but feminine voice surrounded by tight folk-rock arrangements that are totally satisfying. Swift applies an eclectic touch to this record. She didn't always redo the most obvious songs and that's a good thing. Much of Dylan's most loved and famous works have been covered way too often so she decided to keep things...

Singer Rodger Collins wrote "She's Looking Good," an R&B barn burner that is nearly forgotten today. It didn't do much on the charts, but fortunately for him a much bigger star, Wilson Pickett, turned it into a top ten smash hit. The feeling here is that the composer's version is the better one because Collins "sings" more than Pickett does. The latter overdoses on histrionics but that didn't stop the wicked Mr. Pickett from riding the song all the way to #7 on the Hot 100 in May 1968. The original, short little ditty (2:16) offers a really cool horn chart, a great guitar riff that keeps the sharp arrangement moving, and a vocal style that should have provided Collins with a lot of hits. "She's Looking Good" was the highest charting song of Collins' career. His version only went to #44 on the Billboard R&B chart while missing the Hot 100 entirely. So, you're forgiven if you've never heard the original before today or...

I wanted to say something positive about the always controversial John Lennon because - if he had lived - today would have been his 80th birthday.  So much has been written about the man over the last sixty years that it is hard to produce anything that hasn't already been said. I tried, but this article is the best topic I could come up with for the occasion. This post is about the last song on Lennon's last album of new, original material, Milk and Honey . "Grow Old Along With Me" was written and recorded around the same time as the rest of that album along with Double Fantasy - the two LPs he made with Yoko Ono - shortly before he died. The romantic ballad proved that when he was inspired the Beatles' founder could write beautiful love songs that rivaled those of Paul McCartney.  "Grow Old Along With Me" was first recorded as a demo while Lennon was in Bermuda on a vacation without his wife. Ono phoned him to suggest he write a song in response to one...

Future Fossils , Christine Lavin's first full-length studio album from 1985, is like all of her later releases. Every CD she issues showcases her fine singing voice and her outstanding comedic edge. All contain several tracks that will have you laughing. A humorous outlook on life is what has gained her an ever-growing cult following over the years and made her a very popular attraction at coffeehouses, auditoriums and summer folk festivals. You can see the humorous possibilities in song titles such as "Cold Pizza For Breakfast" and "Nobody's Fat in Aspen," in which she asserts that no overweight people are ever allowed in that Colorado ski town. "Don't Ever Call Your Sweetheart By His Name" is about a woman who has had too many boyfriends and is so afraid of calling her current beloved by the wrong name that she only calls him "honey," "sweetie" or some other affectionate nickname. "Artificial Means" is about see...