AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bing Crosby

Artist:Bing Crosby

Song:Dear Hearts and Gentle People

Album:Bing Crosby Sings Again

Of course Bing Crosby is the best selling recording artist of all time. And the 1945 single White Christmas is probably the biggest selling record of all time because it's been a hit record during the holiday season annually. Go check out Billboard's Holiday chart to see what I'm talking about. Well, that can be a blessing and a curse. After White Christmas topped the charts in 1945, it topped the charts again in 1946 and 1947. And it continued to chart for the next few years. The 1949 single Dear Hearts and Gentle People was one of the songs released to compete with White Christmas. Dear Hearts and Gentle People was released in Dec. 1949 and reached #2 on the charts. It was the B side to Mule Train and that reached #4. That year White Christmas reached #5. Dear Hearts and Gentle People was written by veteran songwriters Sammy Fain and Bob Hilliard. Supposedly the song is based on a scrap of paper found on composer Stephen Foster's body when he was found dying in a New York hotel room in 1864. It said "Dear friends and gentle hearts". The singer is supposedly singing about his or her home town. Dinah Shore was the first to record Dear Hearts and Gentle People and she reached #2 on the charts. Then Crosby matched that a couple of months later. Gordon MacRae and Dennis Day also recorded it but didn't do as well. It was not unusual in those days for multiple artists to compete for chart position with the same song. Crosby's recording was arranged and conducted by Perry Botkin. The background vocals are by Judd Conlon's Rhythmaires. They worked regularly with Crosby from 1947-57. You can get the song on this budget CD. Obviously Crosby had plenty of hits and I may look at other ones in the future. Here's Big Crosby performing Dear Hearts and Gentle People on the Apr. 25, 1954 episode of his variety show. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Wand

Artist:Wand

Song:Rio Grande

Album:Laughing Matter

Wand is s Los Angeles based neo psychedelic band that have had success as an album and touring band. They've been around since 2013 so that makes me wonder if the natives are getting restless. Before forming Wand, lead singer and guitarist Cory Hanson recorded as W.H.I.T.E. and played guitar with singer songwriter Mikal Cronin and in the bands Together Panagea and Meatbodies. He decided to form a new band with former art school classmates Evan Burrows and Lee Landey. Landey didn't stay but Burrows is still the drummer. Hanson decided to call the band Wand which I think is too generic. Hanson says that was deliberate. They toured with Ty Segall and released the 2014 album Ganglion Reef on Segall's label God? with distribution from the Chicago based indie label Drag City. Wand is still on Drag City. For the 2015 album 1000 Days, guitarist Daniel Martens and bassist Lee Landey left. Meanwhile, Hanson considered self producing and that's what Wand has done ever since. Hanson and Burrows write and produce everything. Rio Grande is from the 2019 album Laughing Matter. Lee Landey was still playing bass on the album. He just wasn't touring because he has a family. They went on hiatus and Hanson recorded a couple of solo albums. They finally replaced Landey with Evan Becker for a 2022 tour. The album Vertigo was released in 2024. They toured earlier this year but they are off the road right now. There has been talk that Hanson may go solo or have Wand record more mainstream music to get on a major label to get a hit single. I don't know what he will do but the constant touring must be a grind. Here's the video for Rio Grande by Wand. And yes, the video was deliberately produced like this.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Fitz and the Tantrums

Artist:Fitz and the Tantrums

Song:HandClap

Album:Fitz and the Tantrums

Fitz and the Tantrums have had success as an album and touring band. The 2016 single HandClap did well on the Alternative Rock chart. They were formed in Los Angeles in 2008 by lead singer James "Fitz" Fitzpatrick. The other original members were co-lead singer Noelle Scaggs, James King on sax, Jeremy Ruzumna on keyboards, Joseph Karnes on bass and John Wicks on drums. Most are still in the band. The purchase of an old electric organ inspired Fitzpatrick to write a song. After he played it for his college buddy King, he brought in the others. They released an EP in 2009. Their big break came when Maroon 5 leader Adam Levine heard it and Fitz and the Tantrums opened for them on a college tour. Then they signed with Dangerbird Records with Atlantic distribution. HandClap is from the 2016 album Fitz and the Tantrums. The album did well. It was certified Gold. HandClap reached #2 on the Alternative Rock chart. It's their biggest hit to date. Most of the album was produced by Jesse Shatkin who has produced Sia and Kelly Clarkson. But HandClap was written and produced by Grammy winning producer Ricky Reed, his partner Sam Hollander and Fitz and the Tantrums. The band members are not credited individually. It looks like the royalties are split evenly. The album is available as a digital download. John Wicks left in 2022 to teach at the University of Montana. Blair Sirita was brought in to play drums on the 2025 album Man on the Moon. But a permanent replacement has not been named. Here's the video for HandClap by Fitz and the Tantrums.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lee Ritenour

Artist:Lee Ritenour f/John Scofield

Song:Lay It Down

Album:6 String Theory

Normally I like to give an overview of an artist. But I haven't done that yet for jazz guitarist Lee Ritenour. This 2010 album 6 String Theory was released to celebrate Ritenour's 50th anniversary in jazz. He actually released his first album as a leader in 1976. 6 String Theory has a different guitarist on each song. He also launched a 6 String Theory competition for aspiring jazz guitarists. Shon Boubil won the first contest and he won a scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston and he got to play on the album. Boubil is working on his Ph.D. in theoretical physics and education at the University of Western Australia. So it remains to be seen if Boubil becomes a musician. I have my doubts. Ritenour holds the competition every two years and it has expanded to include piano, bass and drums. All the winners got Berklee scholarships. I guess Ritenour's thinking is no one did this for him when he was coming up. He just wants to pay it forward. The idea for the album came first. It inspired Ritenour to start the competition. Lay It Down was the first song on the album featuring guitarist John Schofield. I could be wrong but I don't think they had ever recorded together. It's an original song written, produced and arranged by Ritenour. The other musicians are Larry Goldings on organ, Melvin Lee Davis on bass and Harvey Mason Sr. on drums. Other guests include Keb' Mo, Taj Mahal, Pat Martino, Joey DeFrancesco, Joe Bonamassa, Robert Cray, Steve Lukather, Neal Schon, Slash, George Benson, Vince Gill, Jonny Lang, Joe Robinson, Andy McKee, Mike Stern, Tomoyasu Hotei, Guthrie Gowan, Tai Wilkenfeld and Shon Boubil. This album is available on CD. This album is on Concord. Ritenour's latest album Brasil was released on Candid last year. Ritenour is usually on tour. He's on a break right now but he'll be back on the road in January. Here's Lee Ritenour with Otmaro Ruiz on keyboards, Hadrien Feraud on bass and Wesley Ritenour on drums performing Lay It Down at the Blue Note in Hawaii 2018. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Grass Roots

Artist:The Grass Roots

Song:Midnight Confessions

Album:Playlist: The Very Best of the Grass Roots

The 1968 top five hit Midnight Confessions was the biggest hit for the band The Grass Roots. They had a pretty good run from 1967-72. The most interesting thing about The Grass Roots was they weren't a band at first. They were created in 1965 by Dunhill Records owner Lou Adler and the songwriting and producing team of P.F. Sloan and Steve Barri. Adler wanted to cash in on the folk rock movement. The 1965 top thirty hit Where Were You When I Needed You  was recorded by studio musicians. Sloan sang lead and played guitar. The other musicians were Larry Knechtel on keyboards, Joe Osborn on bass and Bones Howe on drums. None of those guys including Sloan wanted to tour. So Sloan and Barri found a group called The Bedouins in San Francisco and they became The Grass Roots. The problem was they wanted to record their own music. So Dunhill started over. When The Bedouins tried to continue as The Grass Roots, Dunhill threatened legal action. So Sloan and Barri went searching for a new band. A band called The 13th Floor had sent a demo to Dunhill. This band was led by guitarist Creed Bratton and keyboardist Warren Entner. The only problem was the lead singer had been drafted into the army. He was replaced by Rob Grill. The music continued to be written and produced by Sloan and Barri and performed by studio musicians. But at least they now had a touring band. Their first top ten hit was the 1967 single Let's Live for Today which was based on an Italian song. And that was the beginning of five years of success. Some of the band still wanted to write their own songs. But the success tempered that. The 1968 single Midnight Confessions  reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was written by Lou T. Josie of the band Ever-Green Blues. They had sent a demo to Dunhill and Barri thought it would be perfect for The Grass Roots. The demo had horns so Barri got Jimmie Haskell to write the arrangement. Grill and Entner shared lead vocals. Members of The Wrecking Crew played on the record including Mike Deasy on guitar, Carol Kaye on bass, Don Randi on piano, Larry Knechtel on organ, Hal Blaine on drums and Emil Richards on percussion. Saxophonist Plas Johnson led the horn section. Midnight Confessions was only released as a single. When it became a hit, Dunhill put it on a hastily assembled LP called Golden Grass. That is out of print but you can get all The Grass Roots hits on this budget comp. The Grass Roots' final top ten hit was Sooner or Later in 1971. By that time, there had been several personnel changes and they left Dunhill in 1974. I thought they did well for an ad hoc band. A version of The Grass Roots still plays oldies cruises. But none are original members. Here's The Grass Roots performing Midnight Confessions. This looks like the original band lineup.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Flaming Lips

Artist:The Flaming Lips

Song:She Don't Use Jelly

Album:Greatest Hits Vol. 1

The neo psychedelic band The Flaming Lips have been around since the 80s. They are an album and touring band. The 1993 single She Don't Use Jelly is their only chart single. But they don't need hit singles. The Flaming Lips were formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City with Wayne Coyne on guitar, his brother Mark Coyne on lead vocals, Michael Ivins on bass and Dave Kotska on drums. Wayne Coyne is the only original member still in the band. They released an EP in 1984 and Mark Coyne left soon after. Wayne Coyne took over as lead singer. Kotska was replaced by Richard English. Then Nathan Roberts replaced English and guitarist Jonathan Donohue of Mercury Rev was added. At the time they were recording for the indie label Restless. They signed with Warner Bros. for the 1992 album Hit to Death in the Future Head. The improved distribution and increased promotion budget increased album sales. Meanwhile, Donohue and Roberts were replaced by Ronald Jones and Steven Drozd. Previously The Flaming Lips had worked with producer Dave Fridmann. For the 1992 album Transmissions from the Satellite Heart, The Flaming Lips are credited with writing and producing. But my guess is Coyne is really writing and producing and if the others don't like it they can leave. And that's what they did. The single She Don't Use Jelly reached #55 on the Billboard Hot 100. And that was their only chart single. But The Flaming Lips continued to have success when they went to a more experimental sound. They had their greatest success when the 2002 album Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots was certified Gold without the benefit of a hit single. This 3CD comp covers everything. The Flaming Lips last released an album in 2020. So they may be working on new music. Here's the video for She Don't Use Jelly by The Flaming Lips. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Charlotte Flair vs Asuka

Here's the match video of Charlotte Flair vs Asuka from last night's episode of Smackdown. This match determined which team gets the advantage for tonight's War Games match. So I expected Charlotte to win. The match was OK. It wasn't four stars or anything. As usual, I didn't like Charlotte's sandbagging which she does to all her opponents. But Asuka got her licks in. The only thing I hated was the spot with the mist when Asuka accidently misted the timekeeper. Charlotte didn't get out of the way. She was never close enough to get out of the way. I'm sure she was yelled at afterwards. But that's typical of Charlotte's sandbagging. She always promises to do a spot but then she doesn't do it properly. And she does it enough that it seems deliberate. As for tonight's War Games match, the only thing I'm hearing is a possible split between Charlotte and Alexa Bliss. We have always seen heel turns in War Games matches so it wouldn't surprise me. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Eric Prydz

Artist:Eric Prydz

Song:Call on Me

Album:Red Hot Hits

Here's a record that topped the charts across Europe including England. It was successful mainly because it samples the chorus of a popular oldie. They do that because it works. The guy behind it is Swedish DJ Eric Prydz. Call on Me was his first and still his biggest hit. He was born July 19, 1976 in Taby, Sweden which is a suburb of Stockholm. His parents bought him a keyboard so he could make music in his bedroom. In 1994, Prydz was drummer of the synth band Enemy Alliance. They were looking to be the next Kraftwerk. When that went nowhere, Prydz started making music with a couple of friends and worked locally as a DJ. He gave a cassette to a friend and it ended up in EMI's London office. They released a single in 2000 followed by an EP. This did well enough in clubs that it got him remix work which pays the bills. Then he got together with Ministry of Sound to produce Call on Me. The sample is the chorus of the 1982 Steve Winwood song Valerie. Winwood even recorded new vocals for the record. Remember he wrote the song so he's getting paid. The song was first sampled in 2002 by the French duo Together. It played in clubs. But when Ministry of Sound wanted to release it as a record, Together decided against it. And that's when Ministry of Sound took it to Prydz. The record was very successful. It topped the British Singles chart and was a hit across Europe. It was only released as a single so you you can only get it on various artists comps like this 2CD comp from BMG. The music video is notable because of how lousy it is. The British music paper NME ranked it #5 on their list of the 50 Worst Music Videos Ever. It's an erotic aerobics video that appears to be a tribute to the 1985 film Perfect starring John Travolta and Jamie Lee Curtis. Ministry of Sound produced it. Prydz has never had another hit that big. But he still releases singles on his Pryda label and DJs live shows. Here's the video for Call on Me by Eric Prydz.