AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Arthur Lyman

Artist:Arthur Lyman

Song:Yellow Bird

Album:The Exotic Sounds of Arthur Lyman

Arthur Lyman was a vibraphonist in Martin Denny's band when he went solo and recorded similar Exotica music. Lyman scored a top five hit with the 1961 single Yellow Bird. A couple of his other songs charted so he was not a one hit wonder. Lyman was an Easy Listening staple for years. He was born Feb. 2, 1932 in Kauai, Hawaii. He was the youngest of eight children. After Lyman's father was blinded in a riveting accident, the family moved to the Honolulu suburb of Makiki. His dad locked him in his room with Benny Goodman records with orders to "learn what good music is". Lyman learned all of Lionel Hampton's solos on a toy marimba. He made his radio debut at eight years of age, toured USO shows with his dad and brother and started playing clubs at age 14. After graduating from high school, Lyman worked as a hotel desk clerk. And that's where he met pianist Martin Denny, known today as The Father of Exotica. After hearing Lyman play, Denny offered him a spot in his band playing at the club Don the Beachcomber. Lyman was making good money with a successful band. After Denny signed with Liberty Records and had success with hits like Quiet Village, Lyman went solo and signed with Hi-Fi Records. Lyman's music was similar to Denny's but of course it featured the vibraphone. Lyman had immediate success when the 1959 single Taboo reached #55 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the album reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 200. Then his 1961 single Yellow Bird reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Yellow Bird was a 19th Century Haitian song that was turned into the calypso instrumental Yellow Bird by Norman Luboff, leader of The Norman Luboff Chorale. Marilyn and Alan Bergman wrote lyrics and The Mills Brothers charted with their 1959 recording of Yellow Bird. This twofer CD has Yellow Bird and Taboo and Yellow Bird appears on several various artist comps. Like many Easy Listening artists of the era, Lyman continued to release instrumental albums until 1968. Lyman continued to appear in Hawaiian hotels. For years Lyman and Denny didn't speak until they reunited for a 1990 album. Arthur Lyman died of cancer on Feb. 24, 2002 at age 70. Here's a video of Yellow Bird by Arthur Lyman. 

 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Miranda Maverick vs Priscila Cachoeira

 Here's the match video of Miranda Maverick vs Priscila Cachoeira from last night's UFC show in Salt Lake City. Joanne Wood was supposed to be Priscila's opponent but she pulled out a couple of weeks ago due to visa problems. I think Joanne was planning for this to be her retirement match. Miranda came in on two weeks notice. She's 26 years old from Missouri. She trains at Elevation Fight Team in Denver. She's 4-3 in the UFC. Priscila is 34 years old from Brazil. She trains at MMA Masters in Miami. She's 4-4 in the UFC. She's mainly a striker. So Miranda needed to take Priscila to the ground and try to get a finish. In the first two rounds Miranda controlled her on the ground but it was too close to the fence to get a finish. In round three she got the takedown in the middle of the cage so there was enough space for Miranda to progress to an armbar finish. I expected Miranda to win this fight. But she hasn't done well against better opposition. I don't think Priscila belongs in the UFC. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Tierney Sutton Band

Artist:The Tierney Sutton Band

Song:Sometimes I'm Happy

Album:On the Other Side

Jazz singer Tierney Sutton has been recording since the late 90s. She has been nominated for several Grammys including the 2007 album On the Other Side. She was born June 28, 1963 in Omaha but she grew up in Milwaukee. She sang and played piano while growing up. But she didn't know about jazz until she saw a Betty Carter concert while studying Russian language and literature at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. So she studied at Berklee in Boston under jazz saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi. Tierney moved to Los Angeles in 1994 and released her debut album on Challenge Records in 1997. Then she signed with Telarc Records. She has worked with the same musicians her entire career. She says that as a member of the Baha'i faith, all decisions are made by the band collectively. So her band is Christian Jacob on piano, Trey Henry and Kevin Axt on bass and Ray Brinker on drums. Sometimes I'm Happy is from the 2007 album On the Other Side. All the songs are standards with the word "happy" in the title. Sometimes I'm Happy was written by Vincent Yeomans and Irving Caesar for the 1927 musical Hit the Deck. After Benny Goodman recorded it in 1935, the song became a jazz standard after Bud Powell and Carmen McRae recorded it in the 50s. Trumpeter Jack Sheldon makes a guest appearance on the album. On the Other Side was Grammy nominated. Tierney has received nine Grammy nominations. After Telarc was purchased by Concord, Tierney switched to BFM Jazz. Her latest album was released last year. Tierney and her band appeared in the 2016 Clint Eastwood film Sully. Christian Jacob scored the film. Here's Tierney Sutton with Kevin Axt and Ray Brinker performing Sometimes I'm Happy. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Hikaru Shida vs Nyla Rose

Here's the match video of Hikaru Shida vs Nyla Rose from last night's episode of AEW Rampage. Both are former AEW champs but AEW hasn't done much with either of them lately. In this video, you will see the complete match. I thought the match was fine though I really don't care much for Nyla. But it shows that Hikaru can work with anyone and that she is very strong. I could have done without Marina Shafir at ringside. After Hikaru won the match, AEW announced that on Wednesday's 200th episode of Dynamite, Hikaru will get a shot at Toni Storm's AEW Women's Championship. I don't know why they didn't announce this in advance to promote Rampage. I don't expect Hikaru to win because she returns to Japan every other month. But I do expect Hikaru to get a better match out of Toni than we have seen in AEW. And I also expect outside interference which could result in a non finish. Tony Khan likes that kind of screwy nonsense. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day.Aventura

Artist:Aventura

Song:Su Veneno

Album:14 + 14

Aventura is a very successful Bachata group. The 2009 single Su Veneno is one of their biggest hits. Aventura is from The Bronx, NY though they are all of Dominican descent. They started out in 1993 when Lenny Santos and his brother Max Santos started a group with a cousin called Banda Sueno. It didn't last long as the cousin was much older and the two high school students wanted someone younger to sing lead. But they couldn't find anyone in the neighborhood who could sing. One of the band musicians knew someone at his school. That was Anthony Santos. He sang in his church choir with his cousin Henry. They called themselves Los Tinellers which is teenagers spelled so that Hispanics could pronounce it. The group performed in the neighborhood. They got a manager and released a 1995 album. It didn't sell and they got a new manager who changed their name to Aventura and tried to sell them as a boy band. The 1999 album Generation Next was released on Premium Latin Music. They performed traditional Dominican Bachata with contemporary sounds. They started to have success on the US East Coast and in the Dominican Republic. Their music was eventually called Urban Bachata. They had success with the 2002 album We Broke the Rules when the single Obsesion featuring Judy Santos charted and the album sold 1.5 million copies worldwide. Then Anthony Santos changed his name to Romeo partially to project a romantic image and he didn't want to be confused with Bachata singer Antony Santos. Aventura's success continued. Probably the high point was when they sold out The Theater in Madison Square Garden on Mar. 10, 2006. Aventura signed with Sony Latin for the 2009 album The Last. Su Veneno was one of several singles that were top ten Latin hits. The album was certified 4XPlatinum. Romeo Santos wrote most of the songs and the band self produced. Su Veneno was released in Bachata and Bolero versions. You can get both on this CD/DVD set that is a greatest hits comp with a DVD of videos. Aventura went on hiatus in 2011. Romeo Santos was very successful as a solo artist. They reformed in 2019. They released an album and toured. There has been talk of new music but nothing yet. They played their final concert on Dec. 19, 2021 and there are no plans to tour anymore. So I think Aventura could be finished but they had a great run. Here's the video for Su Veneno by Aventura. This is the Bachata version. There is a video for the Bolero version.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Los Bukis

Artist:Los Bukis

Song:Falso Amor

Album:30 Inolvidables

The 1974 single Falso Amor was the first big hit for the Mexican group Los Bukis. They were very popular until they split up in 1996 and they have since reformed. The group was formed by lead singer, songwriter and keyboardist Marco Antonio Solis and his guitarist cousin Joel Solis. At first they called themselves Los Hermanitos Solis and then changed it to Los Bukis which translates to The Kids. They have had various members over the years. But Marco writes and sings all the songs. And the only reason Los Bukis split up in 1996 was Marco wanted to go solo. Los Bukis signed with Melody Records which was purchased by Fonovisa and more recently Universal. After Falso Amor (False Love) became a big hit in 1974, their debut album Casas De Carton was retitled Falso Amor with a new cover. Falso Amor sold a million copies in the first month of release. Los Bukis was very successful especially after they moved to the US in the 80s. Marco's songs were recorded by other artists. So it got to a point in the 80s where he was writing and producing all of Los Bukis' recordings. Not surprisingly Marco got the itch to go solo. He left in 1996 for a very successful solo career. The rest of the band stayed together as Los Mismos which means the same members of Los Bukis. When Marco's solo career ran its course, he reformed Los Bukis in 2021. They have not recorded new music but they have been touring. This comp is a good intro to their music. Here's Los Bukis performing Falso Amor on the 1977 TV show Siempro De Domingo.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Pat Monahan

Artist:Pat Monahan

Song:Her Eyes

Album:Last of Seven

Fans of the popular band Train should be interested in this 2007 album by that band's leader Pat Monahan. It is to date his only solo album and I don't expect him to record solo again. He was born Feb. 28, 1969 in Erie, Pa. His dad owned a clothing store and was an amateur musician. He was the youngest of seven children. Monahan was in the local band Rogues Gallery in the late 80s. After they split up, he moved to San Francisco. Train was formed in 1994 and they were very successful until they decided to go on hiatus in 2006. Monahan went to England to work on some music for Tina Turner with British producer Guy Chambers. Chambers is a former member of World Party and is best known for producing Robbie Williams. A couple of their songs appeared on the 2009 3CD box set Tina! The Platinum Collection. After he returned home, Monahan wrote and produced the 2007 album Last of Seven with Patrick Leonard. Leonard is best known for his work with Madonna. Her Eyes was the lead single and it charted on the Adult Contemporary chart. Monahan and Leonard wrote Her Eyes with John Shanks. Shanks is best known for producing Westlife. He played guitar on Her Eyes. Those making guest appearances include Brandi Carlile, Graham Nash and Richie Sambora. The album did OK. But not surprisingly, Monahan reformed Train in 2009 and they still record and tour. Train fans should check out Monahan's solo album. But I don't expect him to do another one unless Train splits up or something. Here's the video for Her Eyes by Pat Monahan.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Mel McDaniel

Artist:Mel McDaniel

Song:Louisiana Saturday Night

Album:Greatest Hits

The 1980 single Louisiana Saturday Night was not Mel McDaniel's biggest hit but it was his first top ten country hit. He scored a total of eight top ten hits in the early 80s. He was born Sept. 6, 1942 in Checotah, OK and grew up in Okmulgee. This was near Tulsa. McDaniel was inspired to play music after watching Elvis Presley on TV. After performing at a high school talent contest, McDaniel was in several bands. After graduating from high school, he started playing Tulsa clubs. After an unsuccessful trip to Nashville, McDaniel performed in clubs near the oil fields in Anchorage, AK. He returned to Nashville in 1976. And after working as a demo singer for Combine Music, that company's owner Bob Beckham helped McDaniel get a record deal with Capitol Records. McDaniel had modest success at first. But for his 1980 album I'm Countryfied, things clicked when they brought in producer Larry Rogers to work with McDaniel. Rogers had previously worked with Bill Black's Combo. This was McDaniel's third album. No doubt Capitol was getting impatient with McDaniel. Louisiana Saturday Night reached #7 on the Country Singles chart. It was written by veteran songwriter Bob McDill and was first recorded by Don Williams on his 1977 album Country Boy. Louisiana Saturday Night is the theme song for LSU football. McDaniel continued to have success with top ten hits like Right in the Palm of Your Hand (1981), Take Me to the Country (1982), Big Ole Brew (1982) and I Call it Love (1983). Then he finally scored his only #1 country hit with the 1984 single Baby's Got Her Blue Jeans On. By this time McDaniel was working with veteran producer Jerry Kennedy. This was also written by Bob McDill. McDaniel was known for singing happy songs and he did this deliberately. He said folks were bummed out already and he didn't want to add to that. McDaniel recorded 11 albums for Capitol from 1976-89. You can get all his hits on this comp. It's short but it's the only one with the original recordings. McDaniel didn't record much after that. He did continue to tour until he was forced to retire after falling into an orchestra pit on Nov. 14, 1996 in Lafayette, LA. McDaniel never recovered from that. And after a 2009 heart attack, McDaniel died from lung cancer on Mar. 31, 2011 at age 68. Here's Mel McDaniel performing Louisiana Saturday Night and Big Ole Brew on the TV show Church Street Station. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-scolohofo

Artist:scolohofo

Song:The Dawn of Time

Album:oh!

This 2003 album is from four of the top jazz musicians in the world. Fans of all four guys should dig it. Tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano was in guitarist John Scofield's early 90s band. Lovano left the Scofield band to start his solo career. Meanwhile bassist Dave Holland and drummer Al Foster were both members of the Miles Davis band at different times. Of course Holland has his own career as a leader. He also appeared on a couple of Lovano's early 90s albums. Foster is mainly a sideman. He appeared on Lovano's 1996 album Celebrating Sinatra. Also Scofield, Holland and Foster all appeared on Joe Henderson's 1993 album So Near, So Far (Musings for Miles). They may have been interested in recording and touring. Scheduling can be difficult for these guys. By the time they were able to make the project a reality, Henderson had died. No doubt Scofield wanted to work with Lovano again. And both guys were on Blue Note and they wanted to tour. I'm sure Blue Note liked that. The end result was the 2003 album oh! by scolohofo. The Dawn of Time is a Lovano song that first appeared on Lovano's 1993 album Universal Language with Tim Hagans on trumpet, Kenny Werner on piano, Charlie Haden on bass and Jack DeJohnette on drums. The Dawn of Time also appears on Logano's 2008 album Symphonica with the WDR Big Band and Orchestra. scolohofo is a great album is and it's available as a budget CD. But it turned out to be a one off album probably due to busy schedules. Scofield and Lovano did reunite on Scofield's 2015 album Past Present. But they were never able to record a second scolohofo album. Here's scolohofo performing The Dawn of Time at the 2002 JazzBaltica festival in Germany.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-REZ

Artist:REZ

Song:Lovespeak

Album:Civil Rites

Resurrection Band were pioneers in what is now called Contemporary Christian Music (CCM). When they first started in the 70s it was called Jesus Music. By the time the 1991 single Lovespeak topped the Christian Rock chart, the band name was changed to REZ and they went in an AC/DC influenced heavy metal direction. Resurrection Band were part of Chicago's Jesus People USA community led by the husband and wife team of Glenn and Wendi Kaiser. Both sing and Glenn Kaiser plays guitar. The band was called Charity when it was part of Jesus People Milwaukee in 1972. When Jesus People USA split into four groups, the Kaisers moved to Chicago and called themselves Resurrection Band. The band would play anywhere for free and gave away cassettes of their music. At this point the established church community was very skeptical of Jesus Music, especially hard rock like Resurrection Band. An $8,000 donation allowed Resurrection Band to record the 1978 album Awaiting Your Reply. They wanted to get the album into Christian bookstores. But religious record labels didn't like the music. Finally, Star Song signed Resurrection Band and the album sold well. But when Star Song didn't like the 1979 album Rainbow's End, Resurrection Band signed with Light Records for the 1980 album Colors. Resurrection Band recorded for Light and Sparrow in the 80s. But they built their own recording studio and started their own label Grrr in 1988. They also changed their name to Rez Band then REZ. This was after some of their videos were played on MTV. Their move to a more heavy metal sound helped. But CCM was more acceptable by the mid 80s with some acts having mainstream success. This included the CCM metal band Stryper. Lovespeak is from the 1991 album Civil Rites. It topped the Christian Rock charts. The band continued but by the late 90s, Kaiser was more interested in being a solo act and REZ split up. REZ has reunited occasionally but Kaiser still leads his own band. He last released an album in 2020. Here's REZ performing Lovespeak.

  

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Bruna Brasil vs Shauna Bannon

Here's the fight video of Bruna Brasil vs Shauna Bannon from yesterday's UFC show in London, England. This fight is at Strawweight. Bruna is 29 years old. She owns her own gym in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She got into the UFC through Contender's Series and lost her UFC debut. Shauna is 29 years old from Dublin, Ireland. She trains with former UFC fighter Paddy Holohan. This is her UFC debut. She went 2-0 in Invicta. There was a lot of hype surrounding Shauna including a Conor McGregor endorsement. Both fighters are kickboxers so I was expecting three rounds of kickboxing. I don't know if it was the UFC jitters or fighting in England but Shauna couldn't get going until the third round. So Bruna won the first two rounds. Shauna won the third round but she needed a finish. I wasn't impressed with either of them. Enjoy the video! 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Ketlen Vieira vs Pannie Kianzad

Here's the fight video of Ketlen Vieira vs Pannie Kianzad from yesterday's UFC show in London, England. This fight is at Bantamweight. Ketlen is 31 years old from Brazil. She trains at Nova Uniao which is probably the largest gym in Brazil. Ketlen is 7-3 in the UFC. She has all the skills to be a champ but she lacks killer instinct. Pannie is 31 years old from Denmark but she trains in Sweden. She's returning from knee surgery. She's 5-3 in the UFC. She was runner up on TUF 26. Her history is she can beat lower level competition but she loses to high level fighters. So I expected Ketlen to win this fight. But she needs to win convincingly to get into the Bantamweight title picture. She didn't do it. Ketlen won the first two rounds by controlling Pannie on the ground and then Pannie won round three. But Ketlen needed a finish to get a Bantamweight title shot and her lack of killer instinct betrayed her again. Enjoy the video! 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Julija Stoliarenko vs Molly McCann

Here's the fight video of Julija Stoliarenko vs Molly McCann from yesterday's UFC show in London, England. This fight is at Flyweight. This fight with two really lousy fighters was the co-main event of the show because of Molly's popularity in England. She's 33 years old from Liverpool, England. She trains at Next Generation in Liverpool. Paddy Pimblett is one of her teammates. She became popular with a 3-0 run in Cage Warriors. She's 6-4 in the UFC but she won three in a row until she lost by submission to Erin Blanchfield. Molly is a striker with no ground skills. Julija is 30 years old from Lithuania. She trains at Fighter House. She's 1-5 in the UFC. She was fighting at Bantamweight until this fight. The only thing she is good at is the armbar. All Molly has to do to win this fight is keep it standing and avoid the armbar. But she couldn't do it and Julija won with the armbar at 1:55 of round one. I don't think either fighter belongs in the UFC. But they are always going to hire fighters who are popular at home to sell tickets. The crowd sure was deflated when Molly tapped. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Femi Kuti

Artist:Femi Kuti

Song:Oyimbo

DVD:Live at the Shrine

Femi Kuti is the son of Nigerian music legend Fela Kuti. He carries on his dad's Afrobeat tradition in grand fashion. He was born June 16, 1962 in London, England and he grew up in Lagos, Nigeria with his mother after his parents split up. Then in 1977, he moved in with his father. Kuti learned to play sax and was in his dad's band Egypt 80. He studied at Baptist Academy and Igbobi College in Lagos. Kuti started his own band Positive Force with his dad's keyboard player Dele Sosimi in 1986. The band went to France to play The New Morning in Paris. This got him a record deal with PolyGram and Kuti released his debut album in 1989. After Universal bought PolyGram in 1997, Kuti continued to record for Universal including the Red Hot & Riot tribute album to his dad. He is also a major political activist like his dad. So the apple hasn't fallen far from the tree. Oyimbo is from the 2008 album Day by Day. This was one of several albums that Kuti recorded for the British label Wrasse. It's on Knitting Factory in the US. This album is available as a budget CD. But you can also get Oyimbo on the DVD Live at the Shrine from Chris Blackwell's Palm Pictures. It was also released on CD but the DVD is available at a budget price. Kuti started his own label in 2014 but it doesn't look like anything came from that. His latest album Legacy+ was released in 2021 on Partisan Records. It's a 2CD set with Femi Kuti on one CD and his son Made Kuti on the second CD. Made also sings and plays sax. It's a good way for Femi to pay tribute to his dad and continue to the next generation. Here's Femi Kuti performing Oyimbo from the DVD Live at the Shrine. This video is not on YouTube. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Charlotte Flair vs IYO SKY

Here's the match video of Charlotte Flair vs IYO SKY from last night's episode of Smackdown. The original plan was to do a segment announcing Asuka vs Charlotte vs Bianca Belair for SummerSlam. But instead the match was announced before the show and they did this match. Bianca did not appear on the show. The match is OK. Of course the usual problem with Charlotte is she is not as good as the WWE thinks she is. Plus she has this bad habit of sandbagging her opponent to make herself look good. So anyone who thought IYO would win was dreaming. And then there was this nonsense with Shotzi and Bayley. It distracted from the match and it's also ridiculous. After Charlotte won with the Natural Selection which she flubbed, Asuka came to the ring and applied an armbar on Charlotte. At least she sold that. The booking for this angle has been lousy. I don't what they will do next week. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Earl Klugh

Artist:Earl Klugh

Song:Midnight in San Juan

Album:The Best of Earl Klugh

Earl Klugh plays jazz on a classical guitar. And that's one of the reasons he has been popular since the 70s. When Klugh started out in the 70s, he recorded for Blue Note. Then in 1985, he moved to Warner Bros. Why did he switch? His mentor at Blue Note was Dr. George Butler. When Butler left Blue Note for Columbia in 1978 and then Blue Note was sold to EMI, I'm sure that came with new management. It was around this time that Klugh recorded a couple of albums with Bob James. They won a Grammy for One on One. You can be sure that Klugh's status at EMI was something they discussed. When his contract expired, Klugh signed with Warner Bros. His success on the jazz charts continued and he recorded for Warner Bros. until 1997. Midnight in San Juan is from Klugh's 1991 album Midnight in San Juan. Klugh wrote and produced the album. It was arranged and conducted by David Matthews and Don Sebesky who both worked for CTI Records in the 70s. Musicians are Chuck Loeb on guitar, Eliane Elias on piano, Ron Carter on bass, Harvey Mason on drums and Paulinho Da Costa on percussion. Harmonica legend Toots Thielemans is a special guest. The album topped the jazz charts. You can get this song on this comp of Klugh's Warner Bros. recordings. Since leaving Warner Bros., Klugh has recorded for BMG, Koch and Heads Up. His most recent album was released in 2013. He still tours but one would think someone would want to record him. Here's Earl Klugh with Lenny Price on sax, All Duncan and David Spradley on keyboards, Al Turner on bass, Ron Otis on drums and Lorenzo Brown on percussion performing Midnight in San Juan on the 2001 TV special The Jazz Channel Presents Earl Klugh. This is available on DVD and the entire concert can be streamed on YouTube. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Nathaniel Rateliff

Artist:Nathaniel Rateliff

Song:And It's Still Alright

Album:And It's Still Alright

Singer songwriter Nathaniel Rateliff has had success as an album and touring act with his band The Night Sweats. But he took a little side trip to record the 2020 solo album And It's Still Alright. He has since returned to touring and recording with his band. He was born Oct. 7, 1978 in St. Louis but he grew up on a farm in Hermann, MO. He attended church with his parents. Rateliff learned to play drums at age 7 and taught himself to play guitar as a teen. He listened to his parents CCM record collection. But his dad also owned a copy of John Lennon's Imagine. And got Rateliff interested in writing. He left Missouri for Denver with his friend Joseph Pope III to work for the evangelical organization Youth with a Mission. When that got them to question religion, they formed the band Born in the Flood in 2002. They released an album in 2002 and turned down an offer from Roadrunner Records to form Nathaniel Rateliff and the Wheel. This was more of a folk rock act and they released an album. Rateliff recorded a solo album for Rounder in 2010 followed by another solo album in 2013. Rateliff and Pope formed Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats and signed with Concord's Fantasy/Stax label. This music had more of an R&B vibe and it was a last ditch effort to make it in the music business. Rateliff got lucky when Jimmy Fallon saw a video on YouTube, had Rateliff on The Tonight Show and they went viral. The 2015 album Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats was certified Gold. Since then the band has recorded two albums and continue to tour. Rateliff announced a 2019 solo tour and the solo album And It's Still Alright. He said these songs were more personal due to a recent divorce and the death of producer Richard Swift. The album did OK but it looks like a one off as Rateliff has returned to recording and touring with The Night Sweats. Here's the video for And It's Still Alright by Nathaniel Rateliff. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Al Caiola

Artist:Al Caiola

Song:Magnificent Seven

Album:Solid Gold Guitar

Guitarist Al Caiola started out in jazz. But then he became a studio musician. And in the 60s he was a house arranger for United Artists Records. And that led to recording instrumental versions of UA movie and TV themes in the 60s. He scored a top 40 pop hit with his 1961 recording of Elmer Bernstein's theme from the popular film The Magnificent Seven. Caiola charted three times and for the rest of the 60s, his albums did well in the Easy Listening marketing. He was born Sept. 7, 1920 in Jersey City, NJ. Caiola played in the US Marine Corps band during WWII and he was a stretcher bearer at The Battle of Iwo Jima. He moved to New York in the 50s and became a studio musician. Among those he recorded with were pianist Stan Freeman, Rosemary Clooney and The Ray Charles Singers. He recorded a couple of jazz albums for Savoy with pianist Hank Jones and drummer Kenny Clarke. He also recorded for Atco, RCA, Time and Roulette. And he worked as an arranger at Chancellor Records with Frankie Avalon. That's when United Artists hired him. The film The Magnificent Seven was pretty hot at the time. So it was decided that Caiola and arranger Don Costa would record an instrumental version of the theme led by Caiola's guitar. It looks like this was only released as a single. But when it reached #35 on the Billboard Hot 100, they had Caiola record an album. You can get Magnificent Seven on this 1962 album which is available as a digital download. This was followed up with the top 20 hit Bonanza in 1961. Like many instrumental bands from this era, this was strictly a studio band. I don't think Caiola ever performed live in the 60s. He recorded for UA until 1969. Caiola had his own label in the 70s. Later on he recorded for Accord and Alanna until his death on Nov. 9, 2016 at age 96. Here's a video for Magnificent Seven by Al Caiola.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Angela Winbush

Artist:Angela Winbush

Song:It's the Real Thing

Album:The Real Thing

After success on the R&B charts with the 80s duo Rene & Angela, Angela Winbush had solo success in the late 80s with hits like It's the Real Thing. She was born Jan. 18, 1955 in St. Louis. She grew up singing in church. While studying architecture at Howard University, she sang with Richard Smallwood and had a group Hot Tea with future background singer Tawatha Agee. Angela changed her major to music education and recorded a demo. New York DJ Gary Byrd got Angela a spot in Stevie Wonder's band. Then she met Rene Moore and they started working together as Rene & Angela. Not only did they have success as recording artists but they had success writing and producing hits for Janet Jackson and Stephanie Mills. But they weren't getting along. Then Angela was introduced to Ronald Isley. He hired her to work on The Isley Brothers' 1987 album Smooth Sailin'. Angela wrote and produced the album and played keyboards. Isley got Angela a record deal with Mercury. She wrote and produced the 1987 album Sharp. The single Angel topped the R&B Singles chart. She also wrote and produced the 1989 album The Real Thing. The single It's the Real Thing reached #2 on the R&B Singles chart. Meanwhile Angela continued to write and produce Isley Brothers albums. Angela married Ronald Isley in 1993. Angela switched to Elektra for the 1994 album Angela Winbush. The single Treat U Rite reached #6 on the R&B Singles chart. Though Angela wrote and produced most of the album, Treat U Rite was written and produced by Chuckii Booker. Though that was Angela's final album, she continued to write and produce for The Isley Brothers until she divorced Isley in 2002. Angela is a cancer survivor. From what I could tell, she still performs live but she hasn't recorded in years. Here's the video for It's the Real Thing by Angela Winbush.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Kenny Barron Trio

Artist:Kenny Barron Trio

Song:Shuffle Boil

Album:Book of Intution

Jazz pianist Kenny Barron has been around since the 60s. He started out as a sideman and started recording as a leader in the 70s. He was Grammy nominated for the 2016 album Book of Intuition. He was born June 9, 1943 in Philadelphia. His older brother was saxophonist Bill Barron. Barron started playing piano at age 12. On his brother's recommendation, Barron started playing in local clubs with guys like Philly Joe Jones and Jimmy Heath. After moving to New York, Barron made his first recorded appearance on his brother's 1961 album The Tenor Stylings of Bill Barron. He spent the next few years in a band led by Dizzy Gillespie and James Moody. After leaving that band in 1966, Barron started a band with trumpeter Jimmy Owens and they released the album You Had Better Listen on Atlantic. After that album, Barron recorded and toured with Freddie Hubbard for the next few years. Then he signed with Muse Records in 1973 and recorded five albums. He recorded a few albums for Enja in the 80s and was in the Thelonious Monk tribute band Sphere. They recorded for Elektra/Musician and Verve. Barron signed with Verve in 1993 and recorded for Verve and Universal jazz labels EmArcy and Impulse! The 2016 album Book of Intuition was his final album on Impulse!. This album was produced by Universal Music France CEO Jean-Philippe Allard. Musicians are Kiyoshi Kitagawa on bass and Jonathan Blake on drums. Barron wrote most of the album songs but Shuffle Boil was written by Thelonious Monk. This album was nominated for a Grammy. Barron released a solo piano album earlier this year. He taught piano at Rutgers for 25 years. Barron currently teaches at Juilliard. Here's Kenny Barron with Kiyoshi Kitagawa, Jonathan Blake and guest singer Gretchen Parlato performing Shuffle Boil and Phantoms at the Tokyo Jazz Festival Sept. 4, 2016.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jimmy Greene

Artist:Jimmy Greene

Song:Seventh Candle

Album:Beautiful Life

Jimmy Greene is one of today's top jazz saxophonists. His 2014 album Beautiful Life is his best known album as it made the jazz charts and was Grammy nominated. This was his first album after his six year old daughter was murdered in the Sandy Hook shooting. He was born Feb. 24, 1975 in Hartford, CT. His dad played sax. Greene got his first sax when he was six years old. He got into jazz as a teen and his teacher took him to Hartt School of Music to meet legendary jazz saxophonist Jackie McLean. So Greene studied with McLean and after graduating he was runner up in the 1997 Thelonious Monk Competition. Then he moved to New York and played with Horace Silver, Chick Corea and Rahsaan Roland Kirk. And he was in the New Jazz Composers Octet with guys like Gregory Tardy and Myron Walden. Greene made his recording debut as a leader with the 2000 album Brand New World on RCA. Since then Greene has recorded for Criss Cross, Sunnyside and SteepleChase. Meanwhile he moved to Winnipeg to teach at the University of Manitoba. Greene moved back to Connecticut to teach at Western Connecticut State University. That's when his daughter was murdered at Sandy Hook. Seventh Candle is from Greene's 2014 album Beautiful Life. This was his first album for Mack Avenue and his first after his daughter was murdered. The album hit the Billboard Jazz chart and was nominated for two Grammys. Musicians are Renee Rosnes on piano, Christian McBride on bass and Lewis Nash on drums. Guests include pianists Kenny Barron and Cyrus Chestnut, guitarist Pat Metheny and singer Kurt Elling. Greene has recorded three albums for Mack Avenue. His latest the 2020 album While Looking Up is with Lage Lund on guitar, Aaron Goldberg on piano, Reuben Rogers on bass and Kendrick Scott on drums. Here's Jimmy Greene performing Seventh Candle in Israel. The musicians are not identified.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Allin Perez vs Ashlee Evans-Smith

Here's the match video of Allin Perez vs Ashlee Evans-Smith from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Bantamweight. Allin is 28 years old from Argentina. She trains at MMA Masters in Miami. She lost her UFC debut last September. Ashlee is 36 years. She trains at Team Oyama in Irvine, CA. Carla Esparza is a teammate. Ashlee has been in the UFC since 2014. Her record is 3-5. She last won a fight in 2018. We haven't seen her since 2020 as she was on a two year drug suspension. Ashlee looked awful in this fight. Allin won easily. I scored the fight 30-26. Ashlee looked so bad that I think she should retire. Check it out for yourself.  

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Viktoriia Dudakova vs Istela Nunes

Here's the match video of Viktoriia Dudakova vs Istela Nunes from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Strawweight. Viktoriia is 24 years old from Volgograd, Russia. She trains at Alex Fitness. She was in Contender Series Aug. 2022 but her UFC debut was delayed by a knee injury. Istela is 30 years old. She trains at American Top Team in Curitiba, Brazil. She's 0-3 in the UFC. And this fight only went 34 seconds as Istela fell awkwardly and dislocated her elbow. It's pretty gruesome so I don't recommend this fight to the squeamish. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Norma Dumont vs Chelsea Chandler

Here's the match video of Norma Dumont vs Chelsea Chandler from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Featherweight. Norma is 32 years old from Belo Horizonte, Brazil. She trains at Gordin Fight Team. She's 5-2 in the UFC. She has won all her fights by decision. Chelsea is 32 years old. She trains at Cesar Gracie in Stockton, CA. That's the Diaz brothers. She won her UFC debut but I saw her in Invicta and I don't like her. So I expected Norma to win by unanimous decision because she doesn't finish fights. And that's what happened. It was never in doubt. I expect the UFC to close the Featherweight division. Norma said that she will drop to Bantamweight. Meanwhile Chelsea made up this dopey rumor that Ronda Rousey will return to the UFC to fight at Featherweight. Ariel Helwani quickly debunked this. I laughed when I saw it. How desperate is Chelsea? I guess she doesn't want to drop to Bantamweight. But the UFC has already released Leah Letson for refusing to drop to Bantamweight. Enjoy the video! 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Mayra Bueno Silva vs Holly Holm

Here's the match video of Mayra Bueno Silva vs Holly Holm from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This five round fight is at Bantamweight. Mayra is 31 years old. She trained at Chute Boxe in Sao Paulo. She currently trains at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, FL. She's 5-2 in the UFC. But she is 3-0 since moving to Bantamweight. Holly is 41 years old and she trains at Jackson Wink in Albuquerque, NM. Of course she is a former Bantamweight champ but that was a long time ago. And though Holly was favored by the oddsmakers, I think Mayra is a more dangerous fighter. I thought Holly won round one but she didn't dominate and I didn't think she could do that for five rounds. Mayra came out in round two and finished Holly in 38 seconds with a standing choke hold. That was enough to get Mayra a $50,000 bonus and a possible title shot. When Amanda Nunes retired, most thought that Julianna Pena and Raquel Pennington would fight for the vacant title. I said at the time to keep an eye on Mayra because she had a big fight coming up and she's on a roll. The UFC has said nothing so I don't know what they will do. It depends on when Julianna recovers from her broken rib. Also are they planning on a show in Brazil. Mayra in a title match in Brazil would be a big draw. So I wasn't surprised Mayra got this big win. She could be the next UFC Bantamweight Champion. Enjoy the Video!  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Sonny Rollins

 Artist:Sonny Rollins

Song:There Is No Greater Love

Album:Four Classic Albums

This is another in my series of jazz legends for beginners. The only requirement is a live video clip and an affordable album for beginners. Tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins is one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. His albums from the 50s like 1957's Way Out West is the best place to start. He was born Walter Theodore Rollins Sept. 7, 1930 in New York City. His parents were from The Virgin Islands. Rollins grew up in Harlem. He got his first sax when he was seven. Among his high school classmates were Jackie McLean, Kenny Drew and Art Taylor. After graduating from high school, Rollins started playing New York clubs and recording with trombonist J.J. Johnson, pianist Bud Powell, trumpeter Fats Navarro and drummer Roy Haynes. After spending ten months in jail for armed robbery and then getting arrested for violating parole by using heroine, he got his big break when his songs Oleo, Airegin and Doxy appeared on Miles Davis' 1954 album Bags' Groove. Then he went into rehab and was able to get off heroin. Upon his return, Rollins recorded with Clifford Brown and Max Roach. After Brown's 1956 death, Rollins continued with Roach. Rollins signed with Prestige Records in 1953. But his big breakthrough came with the 1956 album Saxophone Colossus featuring Rollins' signature song St. Thomas. After nine albums for Prestige, Rollins recorded for Blue Note, Contemporary and Riverside in the late 50s. There Is No Greater Love is from the 1957 album Way Out West on Contemporary. Musicians are Ray Brown on bass and Shelly Manne on drums. There Is No Greater Love was written by bandleader Isham Jones in 1936. Since then it has been recorded by many jazz musicians. You can get it on this Four Classic Albums comp from Avid available as a budget CD. The other albums are Tenor Madness (1956) on Prestige, Newk's Time (1957) on Blue Note and The Bridge (1962) on RCA. After leaving RCA in 1964, Rollins recorded for Impulse. He signed with Milestone in 1972 and recorded for them until 2000. Rollins retired in 2014. Here's Sonny Rollins with Walter Davis Jr. on piano, Yoshiaki Masuo on guitar, Bob Cranshaw on bass and Davis Lee on drums performing There Is No Greater Love in Laren, The Netherlands 1973. This entire concert can be streamed on YouTube.

                                            

Bib Bad Blog Video Theater-Asuka vs Bianca Belair

Here's the match video of Asuka defending her WWE World Women's Championship vs Bianca Belair from last night's episode of Smackdown. Obviously the WWE is setting up Asuka vs Bianca vs Charlotte Flair for SummerSlam so I didn't expect a finish. The match was fine while it lasted. But IYO SKY and Bayley were at ringside along with Charlotte Flair. The ending came after Bianca hit a KOD on Asuka on the announce table. IYO jumps the rail with plans to cash in her Money In The Bank contract. Charlotte tries to stop her and spears Bianca. The ref calls the DQ. IYO and Bayley roll Asuka into the ring. But before IYO can cash in MOTB, Asuka mists Bayley and escapes. They have more time to kill before SummerSlam so I don't know what they will do next. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Beta Band

Artist:The Beta Band

Song:Dry the Rain

Album:High Fidelity: Original Soundtrack

Dry the Rain was the signature song of the Scottish group The Beta Band because it appeared on the soundtrack of the 2000 film High Fidelity. They had some success in England but internal conflicts and financial problems forced them to split up. The Beta Band was formed in St. Andrews, Scotland by singer and guitarist Steve Mason and Gordon Anderson. At first they were going to call themselves The Pigeons but they changed it to The Beta Band. Anderson records as Lone Pigeon so I'm sure The Pigeons was his idea. Dry the Rain was on their 1997 EP Champion Versions. The rest of the band was John Maclean on keyboards, Steve Duffield on bass and Robin Jones on drums. This EP got them a record deal with EMI's Regal label. They were on Astralwerks in the US. Duffield was replaced by Richard Greentree and Anderson went home to Scotland and recorded as Lone Pigeon. The Beta Band released three EPs and then released the 1999 album The Beta Band. The album got mixed reviews and Mason denounced it as awful. He also wasn't happy with EMI's promotion budget. Meanwhile director Stephen Frears was looking for songs for his 2000 film High Fidelity. The film starred John Cusack as a music geek who worked in a record store. It was based on Nick Hornby's 1995 novel. Frears wanted music geek songs for the soundtrack. So he called on veteran soundtrack coordinator Kathy Nelson to find the music. Dry the Rain was one of those songs and The Beta Band toured the US because of this. They released three albums and were unhappy enough with the 2004 album Heroes to Zeros to split up. Also, Mason said they owed EMI a lot of money. There are The Beta Band comps available. But the High Fidelity soundtrack is available as a budget CD. Mason recorded as King Biscuit Time and since 2010 has recorded five albums under his real name. Jones, Maclean and Anderson formed The Aliens in 2005. They split up in 2008 when Anderson got sick and reunited in 2019. Here's The Beta Band performing Dry the Rain at their 2004 farewell concert at Shepherds Bush Empire. This entire concert can be streamed on YouTube.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The 1975

Artist:The 1975

Song:Sex

Album:The 1975

The 1975 have been successful in their native England. In North America they have had success as an album and touring band. Adam Hann, Matty Healy and Ross MacDonald went to high school together in 2002 in Wilmslow, Cheshire, England. Hann wanted to start a band to play gigs for teens organized by a city council worker. Hann played guitar. MacDonald played bass and Healy played drums. When the original lead singer Elliott Williams (now with the band Editors) pulled out, Healy took over as lead singer and George Daniel was brought in to play drums. The name The 1975 came from Healy's scribblings on his copy of Jack Kerouac's On the Road. I would describe The 1975's music as emo punk. All but Healy moved to Manchester to attend university. Healy went to music school. Their manager started his own label and got a distribution deal with Polydor. In the US they were on Vagrant Records with Interscope distribution. They released a couple of EPs before releasing their 2013 debut album The 1975. The album was produced by Mike Crossey who also produced Arctic Monkeys. Sex was one of several singles from the album. The album topped the British charts and was certified 2XPlatinum. In the US, the album was certified Platinum. They had similar success with their 2016 album I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware of It. So The 1975's success has been as an album and touring band. They have never had a big hit single. They have released five albums, most recently in Oct. 2022. On that album Being Funny in a Foreign Language, they worked with producer Jack Antonoff of fun. in an effort to be more commercial. The album was critically acclaimed but not as commercially successful as their early albums. They are currently on a US tour. With diminishing returns, I wonder how long they will want to continue the grind of touring. I recommend The 1975 to fans of emo music. Here's the video for Sex by The 1975.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Joe Henderson

Artist:Joe Henderson

Song:Serenity

Album:The Best of the Blue Note Years

This is another in my ongoing series introducing jazz legends to beginners. My only requirements are a live performance video and an album for beginners. Tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson was one of the best musicians to emerge in the 60s on Blue Note. He recorded for Milestone in the 70s and Verve in the 90s. So his career spanned four decades. But it all started on Blue Note. He was born Apr. 24, 1937 in Lima, OH. He was one of fourteen children. Henderson's parents and older brother encouraged him to study music. Two local piano teachers got him started. And then Henderson listened to Charlie Parker. And that was his biggest influence. He also enjoyed Lester Young, Flip Phillips and Lee Konitz. Henderson moved to Detroit to study at Wayne State University. Classmates included Yusef Lateef, Barry Harris and Donald Byrd. He also played local clubs backing up visiting musicians. After studying at Kentucky State, Henderson enlisted in the US Army for two years. He won a talent contest so he was sent on tour to entertain soldiers. After discharge, Henderson moved to New York and that's when he met trumpeter Kenny Dorham. The two started playing clubs. Dorham was already signed to Blue Note and after appearing on Dorham's 1963 album Uno Mas, Henderson signed with Blue Note. Henderson recorded five albums for Blue Note and he appeared on albums by Horace Silver and Lee Morgan among others. Serenity is from Henderson's 1964 album In 'n Out. This was Henderson's third album for Blue Note. Musicians are Kenny Dorham on trumpet, McCoy Tyner on piano, Richard Davis on bass and Elvin Jones on drums. You can get get it on this budget comp which is perfect for beginners. There is also a box set with all of Henderson's Blue Note albums available at a reasonable price. Henderson signed with Orrin Keepnews' new label Milestone in 1967. He remained with Milestone until 1977. During that time he experimented with jazz fusion and electronics. He also moved to San Francisco and taught at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. After Fantasy bought Milestone, Henderson left and he recorded for the Italian label RED until he signed with Verve in 1992. For Verve he recorded tribute albums to Billy Strayhorn, Miles Davis, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Porgy & Bess. And he recorded a big band album in 1994 that included a new version of Serenity. Henderson was a chain smoker and suffered from emphysema. He died of heart failure on June 30, 2001 at age 64. Here's Joe Henderson with Dave Holland on bass and Al Foster on drums performing Serenity in Munich, Germany 1993.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Freddie Roach

Artist:Freddie Roach

Song:It Ain't Necessarily So

Album:Good Move!

Though the Hammond B-3 organ is virtually obsolete in jazz, back in the 60s there were so many guys playing it that some guys got lost in the shuffle. And that's what happened to Freddie Roach. He recorded for Blue Note and Prestige in the 60s and moved to France in the 70s. He was born May 11, 1931 in The Bronx, NY. His mom was a church organist. While living with his aunt in White Plains, NY, he started playing the pipe organ and eventually taught himself to play. After studying at the Newark Conservatory, Roach played in Grachan Moncur's group The Strollers. Then he joined the Marines and played in the band. After his discharge, Roach played New York clubs with guys like Cootie Williams and Lou Donaldson. Then he moved to Newark and played with guys like Kenny Dorham, Cannonball Adderley and Jackie McLean. Roach's big break came when tenor saxophonist Ike Quebec asked him to join his band. Quebec recorded for Blue Note. Roach appeared on the 1961 albums Heavy Soul and It Might As Well Be Spring. Blue Note owner Alfred Lion liked Roach enough to offer him a record deal. Roach recorded five albums for Blue Note. This cover of the Gershwin standard It Ain't Necessarily So is from Roach's 1963 album Good Move!. It was his third album. Musicians are Eddie Wright on guitar and Clarence Johnston on drums. Wright played on several Roach albums. Johnston usually played with James Moody. Trumpeter Blue Mitchell and tenor saxophonist Hank Mobley appeared on half the album but not this track. The problem was there were so many Hammond B-3 organists at the time that it was going to be hard for Roach to distinguish himself. After recording three albums for Prestige, Roach moved to Paris and was an arranger in Oliver Lake's big band. Of course there has been renewed interest in obscure 60s jazz musicians in recent years. And Roach was pretty good. He just wasn't distinctive enough to be successful. He died from a heart attack on Oct. 3, 1980 at age 49. Here's a video for It Ain't Necessarily So by Freddie Roach.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Joe Nichols

Artist:Joe Nichols

Song:Sunny and 75

Album:Crickets

Country singer Joe Nichols got off to a great start when he signed with Universal South and his 2002 debut album Man with a Memory was certified Platinum. He scored a #1 country hit with the 2005 single Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off. But by the time the 2009 album Old Things New was released, things were getting stale for Nichols. He had worked his entire career with session guitarist Brent Rowan producing. Plus he went into rehab for substance abuse in 2007. Then Universal South merged with Toby Keith's Show Dog label to become Show Dog-Universal Music. In an effort to reinvent himself Nichols asked Show Dog-Universal president Mark Wright to produce his 2011 album It's All Good. Wright brought in veteran producer Buddy Cannon to help. When there were no hit singles and the album didn't sell, Nichols left Universal and signed with Broken Bow's Red Bow label. For his 2013 album Crickets, Mickey Jack Cones and Derek George were brought in to produce. Cones has worked a lot with Jason Aldean and they were looking to give Nichols a contemporary country sound. It worked as the singles Sunny and 75 and Yeah (produced by Tony Brown) both topped the US Country Airplay chart. When subsequent singles and the 2017 album Never Gets Old didn't sell, Broken Bow closed Red Bow and Nichols was among the artists who were dropped. It looks like the album was delayed a couple of times so I guess Nichols was in conflict with Broken Bow. Nichols released the 2021 album Good Day for Living on his own label. He is still working with Cones and George. But trying to sell himself will be a tough road for Nichols. I don't know if a label will spend money on him at this point. Here's the video for Sunny and 75 by Joe Nichols.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Willie Mabon

Artist:Willie Mabon

Song:I Don't Know

Album:The Seventh Son

The 1952 single I Don't Know was one of two #1 R&B hits for singer, songwriter and pianist Willie Mabon. He didn't seem to have much success after that and he moved to France in the 70s. He was born Oct. 24, 1925 in Hollywood, TN which is a suburb of Memphis. Mabon moved to Chicago in 1942 and he started recording in 1949 first with Aristocrat and then Parrot Records. Parrot was owned by DJ Al Benson. Parrot released Mabon's debut single I Don't Know and Chess Records liked it so much that they bought Mabon's contract. It says on one source that Chess bought Parrot but I think they bought Mabon's contract. Once Chess reissued I Don't Know, it topped the R&B Singles chart. Mabon wrote the song and played piano. Other musicians were Ernest Cotton on tenor sax, Bill Anderson on bass and Bill Stepney on drums. All three were in Memphis Slim's band. Mabon's other #1 R&B hit was the 1953 single I'm Mad. After that they didn't have much success with Mabon. They even had him record Willie Dixon's The Seventh Son with Dixon in 1955 and that went nowhere. Mabon left Chess in 1957 and recorded for Federal, Mad, Formal and USA Records. You can get Mabon's Chess hits on this budget comp from the reissue label Charly. Mabon moved to France in 1972 and was part of Jim Simpson's American Blues Legends tours. He recorded and toured until his death on Apr. 19, 1985 at age 59. Here's Willie Mabon performing I Don't Know on French TV 1974. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Denise Gomes vs Yazmin Jauregui

Here's the match video of Denise Gomes vs Yazmin Jauregui from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Strawweight. Denise is 23 years old from Brazil but she trains at PRVT in Las Vegas. So she is a teammate of Jessica Andrade. Karol Rosa is her girlfriend and main training partner. Karol was in her corner. She is 1-1 in the UFC. I liked her in her last fight. Yazmin is 24 years old from Tijuana, Mexico. She trains at Entram which is the largest gym in Mexico. She's 2-0 in the UFC. Yazmin was a big betting favorite. I don't gamble but I thought the fight would be closer. Both are aggressive fighters and like to finish. But I didn't expect Denise to get a 20 second TKO. Yazmin complained to ref Jason Herzog about the stoppage but I thought it was OK. Denise got a $50,000 bonus. Why was Yazmin such a big favorite? Well, Mexican fans bet on Mexican fighters. It doesn't matter who the opponent is. I don't think most fans know enough about either fighter to really know who could win. I like both fighters and I expected a competitive fight. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Vikki Carr

Artist:Vikki Carr

Song:It Must Be Him

Album:From the Heart

The 1967 top five hit It Must Be Him was the only big hit for Mexican American singer Vikki Carr. Most of her success in recent years has been in Mexico. She was born Florencia Vicenta de Casillas-Martinez Cardon July 19, 1940 in El Paso, TX. Her parents were Mexican. They moved to Rosemead, CA and that's where Vikki graduated from high school. She had been performing in local clubs when she signed as Vikki Carr with Liberty Records in 1962. She didn't seem to have much success until the 1967 single It Must Be Him reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. It Must Be Him was written and originally recorded by French singer songwriter Gilbert Becaud as Seul Sur Son Etoile. Mack David wrote the English lyrics. The record was produced by jazz saxophonist Dave Pell and arranged by Ernie Freeman. Vikki Carr has had a long career but It Must Be Him was her only big hit. You can get it on this budget comp. Vikki moved to Columbia in 1971. But she didn't have much success until she started recording exclusively in Spanish. And that's where she has had most of her recent success mostly in Mexico. She recorded for Columbia until 1994 and then recorded for Universal. I think she may have retired. Here's Vikki Carr performing It Must Be Him on The Ed Sullivan Show Dec. 31, 1967.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Rebecca St. James

Artist:Rebecca St. James

Song:Wait for Me

Album:Wait for Me: The Best from Rebecca St. James

CCM singer songwriter Rebecca St. James has been successful since she was a teen in the 90s. The 2000 single Wait for Me is one of her most popular songs. Rebecca recently returned from a long recording hiatus. She was born Rebecca Jean Smallbone July 26, 1977 in Sydney, Australia. Her brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone are the CCM band for KING & Country. Rebecca opened for Carman on his 1990 Australian tour. Her family moved to Nashville in 1991. After releasing an album independently, Rebecca signed with ForeFront Records. The label was owned by CCM act Degarmo & Key but EMI purchased it in 1996. ForeFront asked her to call herself Rebecca St. James. She released her debut album Rebecca St. James in 1994. Beginning with the 1996 album God, Rebecca worked mostly with producer Tedd "Tedd T" Tjornhom. They had a lot of success together. God was certified Gold and it was nominated for a Best Rock Gospel Album Grammy. Wait for Me is from the 2000 album Transform. Rebecca wrote this song about abstinence. It was produced by Tedd T but Matt Bronleewe produced most of the album. Wait for Me has been one of Rebecca's most popular songs. You can get all her hits on this budget comp. Rebecca left ForeFront after the 2005 album If I Had One Chance to Tell You Something. After the 2011 album I Will Praise You on Beach Street, Rebecca took a break from music to appear in a few Christian films and write novels. She returned to music with the 2022 album Kingdom Come for Bethel Music's Heritage label. She reunited with Tedd T. The single Kingdom Come featured her brothers for KING & COUNTRY. She has performed live but she's not on tour right now. Here's the video for Wait for Me by Rebecca St. James. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Def Leppard

Artist:Def Leppard

Song:Two Steps Behind

Album:Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits 1980-1995

The 1993 Def Leppard single Two Steps Behind was a top 20 hit. It appeared on the soundtrack of the 1993 film Last Action Hero. It did not appear on a standard Def Leppard album. So that means it qualifies as a discography orphan. Def Leppard lead singer Joe Elliott wrote Two Steps Behind and recorded an acoustic demo in 1989. It was decided not to include it on the album Adrenalize. But it resurfaced a couple of years later when Def Leppard were recording with the Irish band Hothouse Flowers. Lead guitarist Phil Collen suggested Two Steps Behind be recorded acoustically. It was released in England as the B side to the single Make Love Like a Man. They got a call from Columbia Records president Don Ienner asking for a new song for the soundtrack for the upcoming Arnold Schwarzenegger film Last Action Hero. Because Def Leppard was on tour at the time, they were unable to record a new song. Instead they sent several versions of Two Steps Behind which had not appeared on a Def Leppard album. Composer Michael Kamen chose the acoustic version and added strings. The song reached #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the album was certified Platinum. The film bombed because it was released too soon after Jurassic Park. So the soundtrack and Two Steps Behind were the most successful elements of the film. Def Leppard still performs Two Steps Behind live. The song appeared on the 1993 B sides and rarities album Retro Active. But the best place to find it is on the Def Leppard comp CD Vault. This was the only song Def Leppard contributed to a film and it has turned out to be one of their more popular songs. So it is a discography orphan but easy to find. Here's the video for Two Steps Behind by Def Leppard.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Dinah Shore

Artist:Dinah Shore

Song:Blues in the Night

Album:The Nashville Nightingale: Selected Sides 1939-1955

Of course Dinah Shore is best known for her long running TV show. But she was one of the most popular singers of the 40s. She had plenty of hits including Blues in the Night in 1942. She had 80 chart singles from 1940-57. She was born Frances "Fanny" Shore Feb. 29, 1916 in Winchester, TN. Her parents were Russian Jewish immigrants who owned a general store. Dinah contracted polio as a child. She eventually recovered but she walked with a limp. Dinah loved to sing as a child. Her parents encouraged this. Mom was a one time aspiring opera singer. Dad would let her sing in the store. The family moved to McMinnville in 1924 to open a department store. Then they moved to Nashville where Dinah attended high school. After her mother died of a heart attack, Dinah graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in sociology. After singing on local radio, Dinah moved to New York to try to get a job with a band. She sang the song Dinah in auditions. When a DJ couldn't remember her name, he called her "the Dinah girl" and the name stuck. She got a job with Xavier Cugat and that led to a contract with RCA Victor Records in 1940. She quickly became a very popular radio singer and was a regular on the NBC show The Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street followed by shows hosted by Eddie Cantor and Paul Whiteman. While Dinah was on Whiteman's show, Blues in the Night reached #4 on the charts and sold a million copies. Of course that song is a standard written by Johnny Mercer and Harold Arlen for the 1941 film Blues in the Night. Woody Herman topped the charts with his recording before Dinah. Dinah's first #1 hit was I'll Walk Alone in 1944. She continued to have success after she moved to Columbia in 1946. The 1948 single Buttons & Bows was probably her biggest hit. Dinah continued to appear on radio and in films like Up In Arms and Belle of the Yukon. Dinah returned to RCA in 1950. Though she was making a lot of money, she wasn't as successful and she moved to Capitol in 1959. This 4CD comp from the reissue label JSP covers most of Dinah's recordings. Dinah hosted her first TV show in 1951. In 1956 Dinah began hosting a monthly series for NBC called The Chevy Show. These were in color. The show was so popular, NBC renamed it The Dinah Shore Chevy Show. The show ended in 1961 after Chevy dropped the sponsorship. Dinah didn't record much after Capitol dropped her in 1962. Dinah continued to appear on TV and hosted daytime talk shows like Dinah's Place in the 70s. Dinah was married to actor George Montgomery from 1943-62. Their daughter actress Missy Montgomery owns the rights to all her TV shows. She produced a 2003 PBS special. But I don't think there is anything streaming and the DVDs I saw online looked like bootlegs. Dinah was an avid golfer with an LPGA tournament named after her. She died from ovarian cancer on Feb. 24, 1994 at age 77. Here's Dinah Shore performing Blues in the Night on The Ed Wynn Show 1949. This was her first TV appearance.