Bloggerhythms

The vocally captivating "Mama Cass" Elliot was deservedly the female lead singer of the hall-of-fame, folk-rock group, The Mamas & The Papas , and it wasn't until late in their short career that the only surviving member of the quartet, Michelle Phillips, got her chance to grab the spotlight with a cover version of "Dedicated To The One I Love." The group - who dreamt of California - rode this wonderful single from  Deliver ,   their third album, to #2 in 1967. It became their next to last top ten hit. The only Mamas & The Papas record to chart higher was "Monday, Monday" that reached #1 in 1966. "Dedicated To The One I Love" was originally recorded by the "5" Royales and written by group member Lowman Pauling with R&B record producer, Ralph Bass. They released a now dated but soulful doo-wop influenced arrangement  in 1957 and again in 1961 when it went to #3. The Shirelles also released it twi...

I've loved Shelby Lynne for a long, long time as numerous posts on Bloggerhythms will make clear, so I actually feel guilty picking a song she didn't write as my favorite by this phenomenal singer-songwriter. "I Only Want To Be With You" is Lynne's cover of Dusty Springfield's first hit that she released way back in 1963. Springfield was the second British artist after The Beatles to have success on the American charts. The British star took the record to #12 in the USA in early 1964 and #4 in England. The album Lynne's cover song came from -  Just a Little Lovin,'   from 2008 - is a lovingly sung, but unpretentious tribute to Springfield featuring nine of her songs and one new Lynne original. The great thing about the album, and especially "I Only Want To Be With You," is Lynne completely remade it in her image instead of trying to copy Springfield who recorded an upbeat, pop song loaded with strings and ho...

I first discovered Billie Holiday back in 1972 by watching the Berry Gordy produced film,  Lady Sings The Blues , starring Diana Ross as the great jazz singer along with Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor and Scatman Crothers. Ross turned in a fine acting performance and proved she could sing jazz even though her silkier voice does not resemble Holiday's earthier delivery at all. At the time, I liked the movie despite its well-known historical inaccuracies and it sent me on a search for Lady Day's records. Among them was the outstanding "God Bless The Child." Holiday's reputation was mostly built as a superb interpreter of other people's songs, but she did earn an occasional composing credit. One of them is this classic, a co-write with composer Arthur Herzog, Jr. This masterpiece was recorded in New York on May 9, 1941 for Okeh Records  which was a subsidiary of Columbia and released the following year on a ten inch...

Here is the first of my ten entries celebrating WXPN's top 885 greatest songs by a female lead singer. Number ten   belongs to   Michelle Shocked  (real name, Karen Michelle Johnston),   who hasn't released any music since 2009 largely in protest of the meager compensation artists receive because of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act . Also, while Shocked has always been respected for her music, controversies born of her political stances have also greatly hampered her career. The first song I ever heard by Shocked was "Anchorage" taken from her first major label, full-length CD, Short Sharp Shocked in 1988. It made it to #66 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was also her highest charting set, but it peaked at only #73. She never had another single on the Hot 100 again, and her albums didn't do much better. "Anchorage" is a unique song. Recorded mostly in an acoustic setting it has a very pleasant melody supported b...

As they have done many times in the past, WXPN, 88.5 FM - a non-commercial, alternative radio station licensed to the University of Pennsylvania - is hosting a fall countdown. This year, listeners are asked to vote for their 885 favorite songs spotlighting women singing lead vocals. Your selections can be from any genre of music, any era of music. This year's extravaganza came about because both station employees and listeners are tired of the same classic rockers finishing at or near the top of the list every year. Legends such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, U2 and a few other obvious hall of famers always ranked high on the lists regardless of whether we were asked to vote for our favorite song, album, or artist. Women rarely made it into the top ten. According to the radio station's website, Kristen Kurtis, XPN's morning host said,  “I’ve been told by too many bosses over my 20 years working in radio not to p...

Guitarist Mike Jacoby previously recorded three albums on which he played all of the instruments himself, but since 2019 he's performed with Dan Read on bass and Mike Levin on drums. Together, they are  The Mike Jacoby Electric Trio . Depending on the needs of the song, this stellar outfit from Long Beach, California demonstrates a multitude of influences that include power pop, garage rock, British Invasion, and some roots rock with just a tiny bit of country thrown into the mix as well.  Jacoby makes it known that The Long Haul features "real bass and drums" without any of the metallic, glossy sheen that permeates rock music these days. Jacoby's lyrics are important too. He writes serious songs with a humorous edge. The eleven track set includes a few songs about love in all of its forms. The album opens with "Right Off The Bat" a tune that hilariously discusses how dangerous online dating can be. "Maybe, Just Maybe...

The Vince Guaraldi Trio would probably be forgotten today if it wasn't for their much loved holiday album,  A Charlie Brown Christmas . It was released in 1965 to accompany the television cartoon of the same name. The importance of Guaraldi's 1962 single, "Cast Your Fate To The Wind" - and how it helped spawn his Christmas LP that probably wouldn't exist without his only non-holiday, top 40 entry - cannot be underestimated. The instrumental peaked at #22 at a time when it was still possible for a jazz record to make an impact on the the Hot 100. It inspired TV producer Lee Mendelson - who liked what he heard on the radio - to commission the piano player to compose the soundtrack to A Boy Named Charlie Brown , a television special that was never aired because the producer couldn't find a sponsor. However, a soundtrack album,  Jazz Impressions Of A Boy Named Charlie Brown,  from the untelevised program was released and included a tune...