AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Smashing Pumpkins

Artist:The Smashing Pumpkins

Song:Eye

Album:Greatest Hits

After The Smashing Pumpkins became stars with the 1995 album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness followed by a tour, they almost self destructed and split up in 2000 after the album Adore was a commercial disappointment. Smashing Pumpkins leader Billy Corgan must have had time on his hands because he contributed two songs to film soundtracks. Eye is from the 1997 David Lynch film Lost Highway. It was never released on a Smashing Pumpkins album so it is a discography orphan. As usual, the score for Lost Highway was composed by Angelo Badalamenti. A friend suggested that Lynch hire Trent Raznor of Nine Inch Nails to produce the soundtrack album. Reznor decided that the album should appeal to Lynch fans who hate pop music and also be accessible to Smashing Pumpkins fans. The album was released on Reznor's Nothing label with Interscope distribution. The reason Reznor mentioned The Smashing Pumpkins is Lynch had already asked Corgan to contribute a new song to Lost Highway. Corgan's music publisher suggested that Corgan get some music out there to fill the gap between Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and Adore. Corgan sent the song Tear to Lynch but he rejected it. The song appeared on Adore. But Lynch loved Eye and it was used in the film. That track sold the soundtrack album and it was certified Gold. That album is available. But you can get Eye on this Smashing Pumpkins comp. Most of the other songs on the soundtrack album were previously released. With the death of his mother and his divorce, this was a rough time for Corgan. And he announced The Smashing Pumpkins split in 2000. They reformed in 2005 and are still going strong today. Here's The Smashing Pumpkins performing Eve at the 1997 Les Eurockeennes festival in Belfort, France.  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Adolescent's Orquestra

Artist:Adolescent's Orquestra

Song:Persona Ideal

Album:La Historia...Los Exitos

Salsa music fans are going to want to check out this band from Venezuela as they have been very successful in Latin America since the early 90s. For most of Adolescent's Orquestra's history, Porfi Baloa has been the leader. He plays piano, keyboards and bass and writes and produces all the songs. His partner Luis Francisco Mendoza is the band manager. So he wasn't in the band but he handled finances and everything that was not music. Baloa started the band in 1994 and hired young musicians so he wouldn't have to pay them much money. Of course the problem with that is they leave. So band membership was a revolving door. Baloa's main responsibility was to maintain the music quality through that. There were twelve members in the original band. They signed with the local label Korta with Sony distribution. Korta switched to Universal in 1999. With their 1994 debut album Reclamando Nuestro Espacio, they were a hit in Venezuela. But the 1996 single Persona Ideal was bigger than that. Suddenly, they were a big deal all over Latin America. Baloa wrote, produced and arranged everything. And the band was like that for twenty years. This comp is available as a digital download. Things continued this way until Mendoza and Baloa butted heads and Baloa left in 2010 to start a new band on his own label with distribution by the local label Sonografica. Adolescent's Orquestra last released an album in 2015. They still perform live. But it isn't the same and Mendoza has to end the revolving door or they won't survive. I don't know if he can do that. Here's the video for Persona Ideal by Adolescent's Orquestra.  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Elizabeth Allen

Artist:Elizabeth Allen

Song:Do I Hear a Waltz?

Album:Do I Hear a Waltz?: Original Broadway Cast

Actress Elizabeth Allen started out in the mid 50s and was active mostly on TV until her 1996 retirement. But the highlight of her career was her Tony nominations for the musicals The Gay Life (1962) and Do I Hear a Waltz? (1965). She was born Elizabeth Gillease Jan. 25, 1929 in Jersey City, NJ. She started out as a Ford Agency model. She was spotted by a talent scout who cast her as The Away We Go Girl on The Jackie Gleason Show in 1957. She was working on a production for Helen Hayes Equity when Helen Hayes spotted her and advised her to pursue an acting career. Her first serious role was in the 1957 show Romanoff and Juliet written by and starring Peter Ustinov. Then she appeared in the TV shows The Twilight Zone and Tales of Wells Fargo. Her next big break was in the 1962 Broadway musical The Gay Life starring with Barbara Cook and Jules Munshin. Elizabeth was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Tony award. That led to two John Ford films, Donovan's Reef (1963) and Cheyenne Autumn (1964). Then she won the lead for the 1965 musical Do I Hear a Waltz?. Arthur Laurents based it on his 1952 play The Time of the Cuckoo which had previously been turned into the 1955 film Summertime starring Katherine Hepburn. The songs were written by Richard Rodgers and Stephen Sondheim. Elizabeth starred with Sergio Franchi. The main criticism of Elizabeth was that she was too young for the role. The show ran for six months. Laurents hated the casting. He thought Elizabeth was too young and Franchi couldn't act. But he overlooked this to get the play produced. It was nominated for three Tonys including one for Elizabeth. I guess this show is now forgotten, But the original cast album is available on CD. After that Elizabeth appeared regularly on TV mostly in guest shots on shows like Dr. Kildare, The Fugitive and Mannix. She was a regular on Bracken's World, The Paul Lynde Show and C.P.O. Sharkey. But none of those shows lasted. She continued to appear in films and TV but nothing major. In the 80s she appeared on the daytime soap Texas and a 1986 film revival of the musical 42nd Street. Elizabeth retired in 1995 and died on Sept. 19, 2006 at age 77. Here's Elizabeth Allen performing Do I Hear a Waltz on the Mar. 28, 1965 episode of The Ed Sullivan Show. Sergio Franchi appears in the clip but does not sing. 

AccuRadio S ong Of The Day-Real Boston Richey

Artist:Real Boston Richey

Song:Help Me

Album:Richey Rich

Rapper Real Boston Richey has been recording since 2021 and scored his first chart single Help Me in 2024. It's too soon to tell if he will have long term success. Right now it seems like a fluke hit. He was born Jalen Foster Feb. 4, 1997 in Tallahassee, FL. Foster's cousin Slugg taught him to rap in the Trap style. But he didn't consider rapping until Slugg was murdered in 2015. One of Foster's friends persuaded him to visit a recording studio in 2021. A couple of singles got him a record deal with the label Freebandz owned by the rapper Future with Epic distribution. His 2023 debut album Welcome to Bubba Land reached #42 on the Hip Hop chart. But there was no hit single. These days, the best way to do that is to post videos on TikTok and the song will spread virally. At that time, viral videos didn't count towards chart position. But Billboard has changed that. So after it was posted on TikTok, the 2024 single Help Me got enough radio play to reach #9 on the R&B Singles chart and #47 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was first released as a single and then added to the 2024 album Richey Rich. The album reached #48 on the Billboard 200. The song details Foster's personal problems. It probably would have been a bigger hit without all the profanity as many radio stations won't play anything with profanity. In Freebandz defense, they probably didn't think the song would be that big a hit. So if Foster wants to be a bigger deal, he will have to ditch the profanity. Of course, it may not have spread virally without the profanity. His music is available as a digital download. Also, Foster was arrested in Apr. 2025 for domestic assault on his girlfriend. If found guilty, his career is over before it gets started. Here's the video for Help Me by Real Boston Richey. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-John Cullum

Artist:John Cullum

Song:On a Clear Day You Can See Forever

Album:The Only Other Broadway CD You'll Ever Need

Actor John Cullum is best known for playing tavern owner Holling Vincoeur on the 90s TV series Northern Exposure. He was nominated for an Emmy. But he started out on Broadway and was Tony nominated for playing Dr. Mark Bruckner in the 1966 musical On a Clear Day You Can See Forever. And he sang the title song. He was not a singer but he appeared in a few musicals. He was born Mar. 2, 1930 in Knoxville, TN. He attended Knoxville High School and the University of Tennessee. He majored in speech and played on the tennis team. And he also appeared in over 30 theater productions in school. He married in 1959 and his son JD Cullum is an actor mostly on TV. He made his Broadway debut in the 1960 musical Camelot as King Arthur's son Mordred after Roddy McDowell left the show. Of course Richard Burton played King Arthur and Cullum also appeared in Burton's 1964 Broadway production of Hamlet and the film version. On a Clear Day You Can See Forever is based on  the 1926 play Berkeley Square. The songs were written by Alan Jay Lerner and Burton Lane. Lerner wrote several shows with Frederick Loewe including Camelot. But Loewe retired in 1960. Lane wrote Finian's Rainbow. French actor Louis Jourdan was supposed to star in the show. He was having trouble with the role during Boston previews and Cullum replaced him. It was quite a risk as a complete unknown was replacing an established star. But the show was a hit and Cullum was nominated for a Tony. The original cast album is available as a digital download. But if you only want Cullum's performance, it's on this various artists CD. Cullum's other successful Broadway shows include 1776, Shenandoah and On the Twentieth Century. On a Clear Day You Can See Forever was turned into a 1970 film starring Barbra Streisand and Yves Montand. Of course on TV Cullum is best known for the 90s series Northern Exposure. Other significant TV appearances include as Dr. Mark Greene's father in ER and as a judge in several episodes of Law & Order: Special Victim's Unit. Notable films include the 1966 film Hawaii and the 1972 film of the Broadway musical 1776. He's been more active on TV. Cullum was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame in 2007. Cullum has recently had health problems. But he is not retired. He appeared on TV in 2021. Here's John Cullum performing On a Clear Day You Can See Forever on the 1982 TV special Broadway Plays Washington on Kennedy Center Tonight.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Blanca

Artist:Blanca f/Tauren Wells

Song:Something Better

Album:The Heartbreak and the Healing: Deluxe Edition

Bianca Reyes was a member of the successful Christian Hip Hop group Group 1 Crew from 2003-13. She left to go solo and has had success in CCM. Something Better is one of several singles that made the Christian charts. She was born Feb. 10, 1986 in Puerto Rico but she grew up in Orlando, FL. Her father struggled with drug and alcohol addiction until he found God and brought his family with him. She joined Group 1 Crew in 2013. They were successful for a few years. Blanca married drummer John Callahan and got pregnant and left to go solo in 2013. Group 1 Crew split up in 2017. Blanca signed with Curb/Word Records. Mike Curb bought Word in 2016. Blanca has released four albums and has had success on the Christian charts. Something Better is from the 2022 album The Heartbreak and the Healing. Blanca divorced Callahan in 2020 and that's the main topic of the album. She wrote all the songs with the Swedish husband and wife team of Anton Goransson and Isabella Sjostrand. They have had success as songwriters and this is their first album as producers. The guest singer Tauren Wells was lead singer of the CCM band Royal Tailor. They split up in 2015 and he now records solo. The Deluxe Edition of The Heartbreak and the Healing has several bonus tracks. Bianca released the album Full Bloom Oct. 2025 and then she released a Christmas EP. She has pop crossover potential and she is interested in the Latin market. Here's the video for Something Better by Blanca featuring Tauren Wells. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lillo Thomas

Artist:Lillo Thomas

Song:Wanna Make Love (All Night Long)

Album:Greatest Hits

R&B crooner Lillo Thomas released three albums for Capitol Records in the 80s. He had success mostly on the R&B charts. He was born July 9, 1961 in Brooklyn, NY. He was a sprinter growing up and at age sixteen, he set a world record in the 200 meters. He was preparing for the 1984 Olympics when a car accident in Brazil ended his athletic career. Thomas' father was a preacher and he sang in church as a child. So he decided to get into studio work and maybe get a record deal. He became very good friends with Melba Moore and her producer Paul Laurence. Laurence was childhood friends with Freddie Jackson and wrote and produced his Capitol hits. They got Thomas a record deal at Capitol. Laurence produced all three of Thomas' albums. His success was mostly on the R&B charts. Wanna Make Love is from the 1987 album Lillo. It reached #7 on the R&B Singles chart. Laurence wrote and produced the song. Thomas also wrote and produced several tracks. He sang a duet with Melba Moore. That was his final album for Capitol. It's not clear why Thomas left Capitol. But it looks like he wanted to start his own label with Laurence. That would have been fine if they had immediate results. Instead Laurence launched his own singing career on Capitol but was unsuccessful. Thomas wouldn't record again until 2010 on his own label. This comp is on his own label. Thomas went to art school and has an online art gallery. He has released occasional music. But he's more active as an artist. Here's the video of Wanna Make Love (All Night Long) by Lillo Thomas.