AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Ecstasy, Passion & Pain

Artist:Ecstasy, Passion & Pain

Song:Ask Me

Album:Ecstasy, Passion & Pain

Ask Me was one of four mid 70s R&B hits for Ecstasy, Passion & Pain (EPP). They only recorded one album. The leader of EPP was lead singer, guitarist and songwriter Barbara Roy. She was born Barbara Gaskins in Kinston, NC. In the 60s, she recorded with her niece as Barbara and Brenda. After releasing a few unsuccessful singles, Brenda quit the music business. Barbara moved to New York and became a session musician. She formed EPP in 1973 and signed with Roulette Records. Though EPP was a band, they didn't play on the 1974 album Ecstasy, Passion & Pain. Barbara was sent to Philadelphia to work with veteran Philly Soul producer Bobby Martin. He used his usual musicians like Bobby Eli and Norman Harris on guitar, Ron Kersey on keyboards, Ronnie Baker on bass and Earl Young on drums. That's MFSB. Barbara wrote about half the songs on the album including Ask Me. It reached #19 on the R&B Singles chart. Four singles were top 20 R&B hits. This album was rereleased in the mid 90s by the British label Stateside and it's available as a digital download. I'm sure the band was unhappy about not playing on the album. So they all left. Barbara formed a new EPP. But when the first two singles didn't do well, she ended the band. Barbara topped the dance charts with the 1986 single Gotta See You Tonight. Barbara is now a minister based in Washington, DC and she released a gospel album in 2012. Here's Ecstasy, Passion & Pain performing Ask Me on Soul Train 1974. You gotta love Barbara's afro. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Snoop Doggy Dogg

Artist:Snoop Doggy Dogg

Song:Who Am I (What's My Name)?

Album:Tha Dogg: The Best of the Works

Rapper Calvin "Snoop Doggy Dogg" Broadus was already a star when his 1993 debut single Who Am I? was a top ten hit. That was because he appeared on the Dr. Dre album The Chronic. Broadus is now known as Snoop Dogg. He was born Oct. 20, 1971 in Long Beach, CA. His father wasn't around so he took his stepfather's name. Hid parents nicknamed him Snoopy after the dog in Peanuts. Broadus sang and played piano in church. Then he started rapping. He was in gangs as a teen and after an arrest for cocaine possession, he spent time in jail. Broadus started recording at home. And one of those recordings got the attention of Andre "Dr. Dre" Young and that led him to Death Row Records. After appearing on Young's 1992 album The Chronic, Broadus recorded his 1993 album Doggystyle. The album was certified 4XPlatinum. The first single Who Am I? reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. Young wrote and produced the album with Broadus. Who Am I? contains four George Clinton samples from Atomic Dog, Funkadelic's (Not Just) Knee Deep and Parliament's Give Up the Funk and P. Funk. The second single Gin and Juice also reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. Broadus recorded two albums for Death Row. After Broadus was acquitted of a murder charge, he made a lot of changes including starting his own label Doggy Style and moving his family out of the city. He signed with Master P's No Limit label distributed by EMI. Death Row owned all his early recordings which is why he changed his name to Snoop Dogg. They released this comp in 2003. Here's the video for Who Am I (What's My Name)? by Snoop Doggy Dogg.

  

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Veronica Hardy vs Juliana Miller

Here's the fight video of Veronica Hardy vs Juliana Miller from last night's UFC show in London. This fight is at Flyweight. Veronica is 27 years old from Venezuela. She now lives in England and is married to and is trained by former UFC fighter Dan Hardy. She's 1-4 in the UFC and we haven't seen her since 2020 probably due to the pandemic. Juliana is 26 years old from San Diego. She trains at Team Hurricane Awesome which is also the home of Bellator Flyweight Champ Liz Carmouche. The head coach is Manny Hernandez. Juliana got into the UFC by winning TUF 30. But I watched some of that show and all the fighters were terrible. And as you'll see in this fight, Juliana is inept. Veronica looked good and won 30-27. But I need to see her against better competition. But I do think her husband has helped her. Enjoy the video!

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Joanne Wood vs Luana Carolina

Here's the match video of Joanne Wood vs Luana Carolina from last night's UFC show in London. This fight is at Flyweight. Joanne is 37 years old from Scotland. She trains at Syndicate MMA in Las Vegas with her husband John Wood. She's 7-8 in the UFC and she's on a three fight losing streak. She's a kickboxer who is mistake prone. Luana is 29 years old from Sao Paulo, Brazil. Her coach is Lucas "Mineiro" Martins. She got into the UFC through the Brazilian Contender's Series. She's 3-2 in the UFC and we haven't seen her since Molly McCann knocked her out last year. She is another mistake prone fighter. So they both made mistakes. But Joanne made fewer mistakes and won by split decision. I thought Joanne won 29-28. Lately, Joanne has been talking about retirement. She has one fight left on her UFC contract and she says she wants to start a family. She says she will retire if the UFC doesn't offer her a new contract. Enjoy the video! 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Jennifer Maia vs Casey O'Neill

Here's the match video of Jennifer Maia vs Casey O'Neill from last night's UFC show in London. This fight is at Flyweight. Jennifer is 34 years old from Curitiba, Brazil. She trains at Chute Boxe with her boyfriend and coach Ed "Monstro" Carlos. She's a former title contender who is 5-5 in the UFC. She's a boxer with no power who rarely finishes a fight. Casey is 25 years old. She was born in Scotland but she trains in Australia with her father. She's 4-0 in the UFC but she's been off for a year due to knee surgery. For Casey to win this fight, she needed to pressure Jennifer right from the start. Because if Jennifer gets comfortable, she can outpoint anyone. And Casey didn't do that. She may have been tentative due to the knee surgery. So Jennifer won the first two rounds and fought defensively in round three. I scored the fight 29-28 for Jennifer. This is how Jennifer typically wins fights. I knew halfway through round one that she would win. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Sounds Orchestral

Artist:Sounds Orchestral

Song:Cast Your Fate to the Wind

Album:Instrumental Nuggets Vol. 2

This 1965 cover of the 1962 Vince Guaraldi hit Cast Your Fate to the Wind was a top ten hit. It was a bigger hit than the original. Sounds Orchestral was a British studio group. When John Schroeder joined Pye Records as label manager of Piccadilly Records, he wanted to create an instrumental band similar to EMI's Sounds Incorporated. When staff bassist Tony Reeves suggested covering Cast Your Fate to the Wind, Schroeder looked for a pianist to lead the band. He remembered hearing Johnny Pearson and brought him in for the session. When Cast Your Fate to the Wind reached #5 on the British Singles chart, Cameo Parkway picked it up in the US, it reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. So it charted higher than Vince Guaraldi's original probably because Cameo Parkway was very good at promoting to radio stations. Sounds Orchestral's recording was more knockoff than cover. Pearson plays piano with Peter McGurk on bass and jazz drummer Kenny Clare. Reeves left Pye for John Mayall's band and he was in the 70s band Curved Air. This was Sounds Orchestral's only big hit and you can get it on this various artists budget comp from the British label Repertoire. Pearson led Sounds Orchestral until they stopped recording in the mid 70s. He was also leader of the band for BBC's Top of the Pops TV show from 1966-80. The Johnny Pearson Orchestra scored a British top ten hit with the 1972 single Sleepy Shores. He also composed music libraries and TV themes. His theme for the BBC sports show Superstars was the original theme for ABC's Monday Night Football. Many of his compositions turned up in unlikely places. Pearson continued to record in the 80s and 90s. He died on Mar. 20, 2011 at age 85. Here's a video of Cast Your Fate to the Wind by Sounds Orchestral.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Kris Bowers

Artist:Kris Bowers

Song:Wake the Neighbors

Album:Heroes + Misfits

Though he has only recorded a couple of albums as a leader, jazz pianist Kris Bowers is making his mark as a film and TV composer. He has already been nominated for Emmys and won a Daytime Emmy for the 2016 Amazon TV special The Snowy Day. He was born Apr. 5, 1989 in Los Angeles. His father has written for TV and his mom works for DirecTV. Bowers took piano lessons as a child and attended the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts where Mulgrew Miller was one of his teachers. He earned a bachelor's and master's degree in jazz performance at Juilliard. He also performed in New York City clubs. Bowers recorded an album in Japan in 2010. Then he won the 2011 Thelonious Monk Jazz Piano Competition. That got him a record deal with Concord. He appeared on the 2011 Jay-Z and Kanye West album Watch the Throne. The 2014 album Heroes + Misfits is a mix of jazz and other music styles. Wake the Neighbors features guitarist Adam Agati who wrote the song with Bowers. Agati is currently a member of Marcus Miller's band. Other musicians are Burniss Earl Travis II on bass and Jamire Williams on drums. Guest performers include singers Jose James, Chris Turner and Julia Easterlin along with saxophonists Casey Benjamin and Kenneth Whalum. Since then Bowers has concentrated on film and TV music. Films include Green Book, Respect, King Richard and the upcoming film adaptation of the Broadway musical The Color Purple. On TV, he won a Daytime Emmy for The Snowy Day. He was Emmy nominated for the Netflix series When They See Us, the FX series Mrs. America and the Netflix series Bridgerton. He composed the music for the 2022 HBO miniseries We Own This City and the upcoming Disney+ Marvel miniseries Secret Invasion. That's what is keeping Bowers busy these days. Here's Kris Bowers performing Wake the Neighbors at The Bootleg Bar in Paris, France 2014.

   

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jermaine Dolly

Artist:Jermaine Dolly

Song:You

Album:Dolly Express

Jermaine Dolly topped the gospel charts with the 2015 single You. He also topped the gospel album charts with the 2017 album Dolly Express. He signed a new record deal and is working on new music. He was born Mar. 8, 1987 in Philadelphia. He grew up singing in church and learned to play piano and drums. While attending West Chester University, he led the group Prayz1. When they opened for gospel star Tye Tribbett, Tribbett was so impressed with Dolly that he was asked to join Tribbett's group as a backup singer. After touring with Tribbett and appearing on a couple of his albums, Dolly went solo and released the single You on his own label. When the single topped the gospel charts, Dolly released the 2017 album Dolly Express. Why was it a success? For one thing, Dolly spent money on a music video that doesn't take itself too seriously. Dolly has a following for his Instagram comedy videos. His goofiness is similar to Tribbett. And his falsetto vocal distinguishes him from other gospel artists. Dolly's normal voice is tenor. Dolly wrote, produced and played all the instruments himself. He also wrote and produced the album with help from former Dr. Dre protege Maurice Wilcher. Wilcher has also worked with Biz Markie, Freddie Jackson and Glenn Lewis. Dolly has signed with Malaco Records and is currently working on new music. Here's the video for You by Jermaine Dolly. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Chuck Norris

Artist:Chuck Norris

Song:Let Me Know

Album:Messing with the Blues

No, not THAT Chuck Norris. This Chuck Norris was a Los Angeles session guitarist backing up blues musicians. He recorded a handful of singles from 1947-53. He's a pretty good singer but he went nowhere and returned to session work. He was born Aug. 11, 1921 in Kansas City, MO but he grew up in Chicago. He was taught by classical violinist Walter Dyett who was a music teacher at DuSable High School in Chicago. His students included Nat King Cole, Johnny Griffin, Eddie Harris and plenty more. After a failed marriage, Norris moved to Los Angeles and played clubs at night. He started getting calls for studio work and he was very popular with guys like Floyd Dixon and Percy Mayfield. Norris recorded as a leader from 1947-53. Among the labels he recorded for were Coast, Imperial, Selective, Mercury, Aladdin and Atlantic. Let Me Know was released in 1953 along with Messin' Up. You can get both songs on this Ace Records comp of vintage Atlantic R&B. He recorded two other songs for Atlantic that were not released. Norris continued to play sessions and was in Johnny Otis' band with Johnny "Guitar" Watson. Apparently Norris had a big following in Sweden and he recorded the 1980 album The Los Angeles Flash there. There is even a Swedish band named after him called The Chuck Norris Experiment. He died on Aug. 26, 1989 at age 68. Here's a video of Let Me know by Chuck Norris.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Pinegrove

Artist:Pinegrove

Song:New Friends

Album:Everything So Far

Pinegrove is an indie band that have had some success since recording for a larger label. The music is pretty good so they might do even better if a major label picked them up. Pinegrove is from Montclair, NJ. Singer songwriter Evan Stephens Hall and drummer Zack Levine have been friends since childhood. Their fathers were in a cover band together. So Hall and Levine have played together since they were in sixth grade. After they had a band during high school, Hall attended Kenyon College in Gambier, OH. The name Pinegrove refers to a nature reserve in the area. This is basically a one man band. Hall writes all the songs, is lead singer and co-produces the albums. Levine is the only other regular member. They bring in musicians to record and tour like Levine's younger brother Nick Levine on guitar and bassist Sam Skinner who helps Hall with production. Pinegrove released an EP on Bandcamp in 2010 followed by the 2012 album Meridian. Hall moved to Brooklyn, NY in an attempt to reach a larger audience. But he preferred writing at home so he moved back to Montclair. Finally they signed with the indie label Run For Cover and released the 2016 album Cardinal. New Friends was the first single from the album. They also released the comp Everything So Far which is a good intro to Pinegrove's music. It's available as a digital download. For the 2020 album Marigold, the band signed with the British label Rough Trade, a much larger label that is one of the best indie labels anywhere. Their latest album 11:11 was released last year. And though things are going well, Hall said in a recent interview that Pinegrove may go on hiatus. We'll see. Here's the video for New Friends by Pinegrove.