Bloggerhythms

Bloggerhythms has closely followed and often participated in radio station WXPN's annual 885 countdowns they've aired every fall for about the last twenty years or so. After years of counting down the usual fare of best songs, albums and artists the non-commercial station at 88.5 FM - licensed to Philadelphia's University of Pennsylvania - decided to go rogue with some unique lists. Recent themes have included the 885 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century. I don't remember what came in at #1, but John Mayer had more songs on the list than anyone else. Two years ago we all voted for the 885 Greatest Songs By Women. This year the station offered listeners a fun countdown. They were asked to vote for their ten favorite songs that appeared in movies or on television. Your selections didn't have to be theme songs, they just had to be tunes that were aired on any TV show or featured in any film. They could be from concerts, documentaries, musicals, drama...

We all know that record sales are not calculated the same way they were thirty years ago when people were still buying physical copies of the music they loved. Things have changed so much in the modern era of streaming that it's much harder to gauge the popularity of a track today, but even with knowing that my favorite song of the 21st Century deserved a better fate. It's also the most current song to appear on this countdown. Sadly, Brandi Carlile's best known single, "The Story," is her only one to ever score a place on Billboard's Hot 100 where it only climbed to #75. Fortunately, the album of the same name did better. It peaked at #41 and that was good enough to earn the young singer-songwriter a gold record. Produced by the great T-Bone Burnett, "The Story" - written by Carlile's close frien...

Kim Richey has to be the least known of all the great female artists appearing on this countdown. In case you're not familiar with this fine singer-songwriter, she has a heavenly voice that perfectly suits the songs she composes. Quite often they're about the sadder side of love.  Richey is considered a country artist, but because she lacks the sometimes off-putting twangy guitars and southern accent - she's from Ohio - listeners who don't favor country music may find her appealing. Her later efforts have almost no country in them at all. On her second and most successful album, Bitter Sweet ,   Richey opens   with "Every River."  The rollicking beat and her tight electric band blend well with the lyrics to make a perfect song.  For the uninitiated it's a great introduction to her long career.  On "Every River" Richey reassures her lover that she'll always be there for him even if he has doubts after being spurned by...

Joan Baez's cover of Bob Dylan's "Simple Twist Of Fate" was never a single, but it became one of the better known tracks from her classic Diamonds & Rust LP. The whole album was more commercial than Baez's earlier work, and as a result it became one of her best selling and best loved releases. It achieved gold status and rose to #11 on Billboard's chart of the 200 best selling albums. It was obvious Baez was trying to expand her fan base, and more than a few of her earlier devotees were annoyed she was selling her soul to "the man." In Baez's hands, Dylan's classic tune from  Blood On the Tracks  is not treated as a folk ballad. Instead, the track possessed many similarities to the 70s, singer-songwriter sub-genre that was highly popular at the time. Because this up-tempo version of "Simple Twist Of Fate" was more accessible than Baez's previous work it received a considerable amo...

Along with my life-long obsession with The Beatles and my love of Southern California's Laurel Canyon sound Motown always possessed a big chunk of my heart during their powerhouse years of the 1960s. The Detroit hit factory's biggest act was The Supremes, and in November 1965 Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballard earned the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for the sixth time with "I Hear A Symphony." On "Symphony" The Funk Brothers and composers Holland-Dozier-Holland took Motown productions to a whole new level. It's a good thing they did because Motown President, Berry Gordy, was angry that the trio's previous single, "Nothing But Heartaches" broke their streak of five consecutive chart toppers. It failed to reach the top ten, peaking only at #11. Gordy then issued this directive, " We will release nothing less than Top Ten product on any artist; and because the Supremes' world-...

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...

Live At The World Cafe, Vol. 33 The World Café , a very eclectic music program syndicated nationally by NPR celebrated its 20th anniversary last year. It's a daily, two hour show hosted by David Dye, a local Philadelphia DJ, who has a long history in rock radio dating back to the early 1970s. Dye plays a wide-ranging mix of folk, jazz, country, rock and even some world music. The show originates and is transcribed from the studios of WXPN , the alternative-rock station owned and operated by the University of Pennsylvania. It's currently aired on more than 250 NPR outlets nationwide. Dye's on air guests have included hundreds of fledgling artists trying to find their way in the music business as well as many interviews and mini-concerts from superstars such as Paul McCartney, Yo-Yo Ma, and Joni Mitchell. As with all programming on public radio the show is commercial free so that means it relies heavily on funding from corporate sponsorship, the government, and don...

Every fall, beginning in 2004, WXPN, 88.5 FM , the radio station owned by the University of Pennsylvania, has entertained us with their annual listener's poll. In previous years fans have voted for their 885 favorite songs, albums, artists, and more. This year, the station will play back the 885 Ultimate Road Trip Songs as voted on by their listeners beginning at Noon on October 11, 2010. This fall's list is a bit of a challenge. WXPN has asked voters to send in the ten songs that "make you want to hit the road." As expected, voters are mostly picking songs about cars, driving, freedom, and escapism, but any song, from any era or genre, qualifies. These are not necessarily my ten favorite songs of all time but they are the ones that make me want to roll up my car windows, crank the volume up to eleven, blowup my car speakers, and hit the repeat button to do it all over again. Is there any other way to listen to music in your vehicle? 1. Chicago - 25 or 6 to 4 ...

Every year, non-commercial, WXPN, 88.5 FM in Philadelphia, hosts an annual, three day, outdoor music festival. For those unfamiliar with the station it's owned and operated by The University of Pennsylvania but it receives no funding from the historic Ivy League institution.  The influential station survives solely on their very aggressive fund raising efforts. One of its money makers is the annual Xponential Music Festival which for the sixth consecutive year has been held in Wiggins Park, on the banks of the Delaware River in Camden, NJ, directly across from the attractive Philadelphia skyline. While out of town readers may believe there is nothing of interest for them in this post they will quickly find out that they're wrong because WXPN and its festival can be enjoyed from anywhere. The entire event is always broadcast live on the radio and it's streamed all over the world on WXPN's website . Today, even though the very well-attended affair is over, you can...

WXPN began their countdown of the 885 Greatest Artists of All Time , as voted on by their listeners, on October 9, 2006. It all ended this evening at 7 PM. You can see the station's final vote tally here . The list was extremely diverse and included Mozart, Beethoven, Yo-Yo Ma, Eminem, Outkast, Jay Z, The Monkees, Abba, John Denver, The Clash, The Sex Pistols, Benny Goodman, Dave Brubeck, George Gershwin, Neil Diamond, Frank Sinatra, Bobby Darin, Weird Al Yankovic, Def Leppard, Guns 'N Roses, Judy Garland, John Phillip Sousa, Dolly Parton and Marvin Gaye, to name more than a few, as well as all of classic rock's heavy hitters. The list offered lots of surprises including more than a few arists who I never heard of finishing in surprisingly high places on the countdown. For instance, who is Neutral Milk Hotel and why did they finish at #332? The countdown took fifteen days to complete. The station played one song for each artist starting with number 885 through 501. Then fr...

WXPN, 88.5 FM, public radio from the University of Pennsylvania, is asking listeners to vote for their ten favorite artists of all time. This is the third year in a row that WXPN has asked their listeners to participate in one of their fun polls. Two years ago we voted for our ten favorite all time songs for the 885 Greatest Songs Of All Time , and last year we voted for our ten favorite albums for the station's 885 Greatest Albums Of All Time , a radio event that was even more enjoyable. This year’s artist poll may not top last year’s three week countdown but I’m still looking forward to it. Here is how the voting works. Your favorite artist receives ten points, number two gets nine points, and so on down the line. This year the station has expanded the voting by allowing fans to post an additional ten entries who will all receive one point. Vote by visiting the station's Official Website . I’m sure many voters will decide how to best compile their lists using differen...

It has been almost three weeks since WXPN began their countdown of the 885 greatest albums of all time as voted on by their listeners. It all ended today as the station counted down albums ten through one. There were lots of surprises and some obvious choices. Here is the final official countdown as it appears on the WXPN website . Only three albums on my list, those by Black 47, Mark Knopfler, and Michelle Shocked, failed to make the list. Here are how my picks fared. A red number indicates where they finished on WXPN's list. 1. Abbey Road - The Beatles #1 . There were five Beatles albums that were sure things to make the Top 885 and, since none of the five were played when only ten albums remained, you knew Abbey Road had to be among them. I wasn't sure where it would place in the top ten but I never believed it would finish #1 . A total of ten Beatles albums made the list. 2. Pet Sounds - The Beach Boys: #21 . I expected and wanted a higher finish for th...

Last year around this time, WXPN, 88.5 FM, Philadelphia, broadcasting from the University of Pennsylvania, asked listeners to vote for their ten favorite songs of all time. WXPN tabulated the votes and then played all 885 songs finishing with number one. For those of you curious about the results here are WXPN’s 885 Greatest Songs Of All Time . This year XPN is trumping that programming feat by asking everyone to vote for their ten favorite albums to compile the 885 Greatest Albums Of All Time . After long and careful thought, and with deep apologies to many great albums that didn’t make the cut, here is my list. In order to keep the list diversified, and to prevent it from getting top heavy with too many of the same artists, I forced myself to follow one rule: No artist could appear on the Top 10 more than once. So while this isn’t a true top 10, it will have to do. 1. The Beatles - Abbey Road (1969) The three part “Golden Slumbers” suite closing out the album gave this one...