AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Tommy Emmanuel

Artist:Tommy Emmanuel

Song:It's Never Too Late

Album:It's Never Too Late

Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel is popular with acoustic guitar geeks. These fans are more concerned with guitar technique than the music. A guy like Emmanuel doesn't need hit singles. He has his own cottage industry set up. He was born May 31, 1955 in Muswellbrook, New South Wales, Australia. He was one of six children. His mother gave him a guitar when he was four years. Then he heard Chet Atkins on the radio and was inspired to be a musician. His older brother Phil also plays guitar. So their dad formed a band they went on the road. When he died in 1966, Aussie country singer Buddy Williams asked the family if the boys could go on the road with him. Emmanuel moved to Sydney in the 70s and won talent contests. The Emmanuel brothers formed the band Goldrush and played sessions. In the 80s, Emmanuel played with singer Doug Parkinson and the band Dragon. He went solo in the 90s. Emmanuel signed with Columbia and I guess his music at the time could be described as jazz. His albums did well on the Australian charts. As time went on, he got into recording solo acoustic guitar as on the 2015 album It's Never Too Late. So it's made him popular with guitar geeks and he records instructional albums and videos. Now that he lives in the US, Emmanuel seems to be more popular than ever. He is currently on tour in Canada. So Emmanuel has quite the cottage industry outside the mainstream music industry. Here's Tommy Emmanuel performing It's Never Too Late at the Cumberland Caverns in Tennessee.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band

Artist:The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band

Song:Fallin' in Love

Album:The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band

When David Geffen was running Asylum Records in the 70s, they were having so much success with country rock like Eagles, he thought he could put a supergroup together and recreate the magic of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (CSNY). That's what The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band (SHF) was supposed to be. The one thing Geffen forgot was that CSNY constantly argued and that led to them splitting up despite their success. The members of SHF certainly had the pedigree to be a successful band. All three are accomplished singer songwriters. John David Souther was mostly a songwriter. He was in Linda Ronstadt's band. Chris Hillman was in The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers and Stephen Stills' band Manassas. Richie Furay had been in Buffalo Springfield and Poco. Hillman brought with him pedal steel guitarist Al Perkins from The Flying Burrito Brothers, keyboardist Paul Harris and percussionist Joe Lala from Manassas and drummer Jim Gordon from Derek and the Dominos. So SHF could have been successful. And their 1974 debut album The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band did OK. The album reached #11 on the Billboard 200 and the single Fallin' in Love reached #27 on the Billboard Hot 100. Furay wrote Fallin' in Love. All three guys wrote songs for the album. Richard Podolor (Three Dog Night) produced. But the album was not reviewed favorably. There were high expectations and the album was underwhelming. The reissue label Wounded Bird has released the album on CD. For the 1976 album Trouble in Paradise, Asylum brought in veteran Atlantic Records producer Tom Dowd. It didn't help. The album didn't sell and the critics panned it. Meanwhile, Perkins converted Furay to evangelical Christianity and he was driving the others nuts. That's when SHR split up. Souther scored a top ten hit with the 1979 single You're Only Lonely and was a successful songwriter. He died in Sept. 2024. Hillman went on to lead The Desert Rose Band and they had success on the country charts. Furay recorded as The Richie Furay Band in the late 70s. When that was unsuccessful, he started his own ministry in Broomfield, CO until his 2017 retirement. So though The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band may have seemed like a good idea at the time, it didn't turn out very well. Here's a video for Fallin' in Love by The Souther-Hilman-Furay Band.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Eydie Gorme

Artist:Eydie Gorme

Song:Blame It on the Bossa Nova

Album:The Stereo Singles Collection

Eydie Gorme is probably best known for her many years performing with her husband Steve Lawrence. But she also had a long solo recording career starting in the 50s. The 1963 single Blame It on the Bossa Nova was her biggest hit. She was born Edith Gormezano Aug. 16, 1928 in Bronx, NY. Her parents were Turkish Jews of Spanish descent. He dad shortened the family name to Gorme. Eydie was fluent in Spanish. Neil Sedaka is her first cousin. After graduating from high school, she worked as a Spanish interpreter but sang on weekends in a band led by Ken Greengrass who would become her manager. After singing in Tex Beneke's band, Eydie signed with Coral Records in 1952. Her big break came when she was hired to be a regular on The Tonight Show Starring Steve Allen in 1954. Steve Lawrence was already there and they started singing together. They married in 1957. After moving to ABC-Paramount Records, Eydie charted with the 1955 single Too Close for Comfort and her albums charted. After Steve and Eydie married, they hosted their own TV variety show. They started performing in clubs and recording together. After a couple of albums for United Artists, Steve & Eydie signed with Columbia and producer Al Kasha. He is probably best known for co-writing the 1972 Oscar winning song The Morning After. But at the time, he was a producer for Columbia in New York. He produced Lawrence's 1962 #1 hit Go Away Little Girl. Then he produced Blame It on the Bossa Nova for Eydie. It reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was the biggest hit in Eydie's career. The song was written by Brill Building husband and wife songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. They wrote many hits. Of course Blame It on the Bossa Nova was a humorous take on the popularity of Brazilian music in the US at the time. Eydie hated the song but Kasha insisted that she record it. Eydie thought if she gave a poor performance, Columbia wouldn't release it. Instead it was the biggest hit of her career. Columbia house arranger Marion Evans arranged and conducted and played the harpsichord solo. The Cookies sang the background vocals. You can get Blame It on the Bossa Nova on this comp from the French reissue label Classics. Of course the British Invasion soon followed and Steve & Eydie concentrated on performing live. Eydie had a lot of success recording in Spanish for the Latin market. She left Columbia in 1968 and recorded for RCA and MGM. She usually recorded in Spanish in the 80s. Steve & Eydie now owns the rights to all their recordings and they have reissued them. Eydie retired in 2009 and died on Aug. 10, 2013 at age 84. Here's a video for Blame It on the Bossa Nova by Eydie Gorme. There is no performance video so I guess Eydie really hated the song.

  

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Giulia vs Kelani Jordan

Here is the match video of Giulia vs Kelani Jordan from last night's episode of NXT. This is a qualifying match for next week's Women's Iron Survivor Challenge. This was an excellent match. Giulia did a great job to make Kelani look like a million bucks. She's a gymnast so she has athletic ability. But she's still learning. And she can learn a lot from Giulia. So I thought the match was very competitive though i don't think anyone thought that Kelani would win. There were no gimmicks in this match. It was a straight ahead athletic contest. And Giulia showed how great she is. I recommend you check it out. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Espen Eriksen Trio

Artist:Espen Eriksen Trio

Song:In the Woods

Album:You Had Me at Goodbye

Fans of European jazz will want to check out Norwegian pianist Espen Eriksen and his trio. They should remind you of guys like Tord Gustavsen. Eriksen is from Oslo, Norway. He met bassist Lars Tormod Jenset in 1998 while both were music students in Oslo. They played together but Jenset moved to Copenhagen to continue his studies. While Eriksen played sessions, he was planning to form a jazz trio. Jenset returned to Oslo in 2007. Eriksen texted drummer Andreas Bye to ask him to join the band. Bye had more experience than the others. But he liked Eriksen's demo and he already knew about Jenset. They started playing local clubs and Rune Grammofon owner Rune Kristofferson caught their act and signed them. Rune is distributed by ECM and they even use longtime ECM recording engineer Jan Erik Kongshaug. In the Woods is from their 2010 debut album You Had Me at Goodbye. Eriksen writes and produces. They have had success in Europe and Asia. It doesn't look like they have been to America. But it's like I said. If you enjoy the ECM style of jazz, you should like this. This band has released seven albums, most recently in 2023. On recent albums they have been joined by British saxophonist Andy Sheppard. He has been around since the 80s recording with Carla Bley and Steve Swallow. Here's the Espen Eriksen Trio performing In the Woods at the 2011 Penang Jazz Festival in Malaysia. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Freddie Hubbard

Artist:Freddie Hubbard

Song:Body and Soul

Album:The Essential Blue Note Collection

This is another in my Jazz for Beginners series. The only requirements are a live performance video clip and an album appropriate for beginners. Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard is best known for his 60s Blue Note recordings. He was born Apr. 7, 1938 in Indianapolis. He started playing trumpet in high school. Former Stan Kenton trumpeter Lee Katzman suggested that Hubbard take lessons at the Arthur Jordan Conservatory of Music with Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra trumpeter Max Woodbury. Hubbard played local clubs with Monk and Wes Montgomery, bassist Larry Ridley and saxophonist James Spaulding. He moved to New York in 1958 and started playing clubs. He signed with Blue Note in 1960 and his debut album Open Sesame was released. Meanwhile, Hubbard appeared on albums by Ornette Coleman and John Coltrane. In 1961, Hubbard replaced Lee Morgan in Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. So I think that's when jazz fans really started to notice Hubbard and listened to his Blue Note albums. Probably his most popular Blue Note album is Hub-Tones from 1962. Musicians are James Spaulding on alto sax and flute, Herbie Hancock on piano, Reggie Workman on bass and Clifford Jarvis on drums. His recording of the jazz standard Body and Soul is on the album Here to Stay. This was recorded a couple of months after Hub-Tones but wasn't released until 1976. Musicians are Wayne Shorter on tenor sax, Cedar Walton on piano, Reggie Workman on bass and Philly Joe Jones on drums. Body and Soul is also on the 1964 album The Body & the Soul. This is one of two albums that Hubbard recorded for Impulse. It looks like he may have been haggling with Blue Note over money. The band is the same as Here to Stay with the addition of Curtis Fuller on trombone, Eric Dolphy on alto sax and flute and Louis Hayes replacing Jarvis on drums. Hubbard left Blue Note and Blakey in 1966. I recommend this 5CD box set of Hubbard's Blue Note recordings. It's available at a reasonable price. Hubbard recorded for Atlantic in the late 60s. Then he had success recording for CTI in the early 70s. He moved to Columbia in 1974 probably because they threw a lot of money at him. But his attempts to record disco among other things fell flat. After leaving Columbia in 1979, Hubbard recorded mostly for small labels. He continued to tour in the 80s. Hubbard started to have health problems in 1992 including a lip injury that became infected. He died from a heart attack on Dec. 29, 2008 at age 70. Here's Freddie Hubbard performing Body and Soul. It doesn't give a date or location or identify the musicians. But my guess is somewhere in Europe in the 70s.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Milli Vanilli

Artist:Milli Vanilli

Song:Baby Don't Forget My Number

Album:Girl You Know It's True: The Best of Milli Vanilli

Baby Don't Forget My Number was the first of three number one hits for Milli Vanilli. Things were going great until it was discovered that the two guys you saw in their videos weren't actually singing. It was a big scandal. Everyone was shocked. Well, maybe not everyone. I'm sure many in the music industry thought that Milli Vanilli were phonies. I certainly did. If you know about the music business, you can tell when something seems fishy. The guy behind Milli Vanilli was German producer Frank Farian. He was behind the 70s group Boney M and it was well known that they didn't sing on the records. Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan were dancers who met at a club in Munich. They attempted to get work as background singers. Farian wondered if they could sing. The problem was he signed them before listening to them. He thought their look and dancing would make them a success. When he got them into the recording studio, Farian didn't like them. So he brought in studio singers Brad Howell and John Davis to sing the lead vocals. He called them Milli Vanilli. Milli was Farian's girlfriend's name. The name is based on the British band Scritti Politti. They lip synced to backing tracks. Audiences loved their look. And that's what Farian was counting on. After the first single Girl You Know It's True was a hit in Europe, Arista Records picked up Milli Vanilli for US release. The song reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. This was followed by Baby Don't Forget My Number, Blame It on the Rain and Girl I'm Gonna Miss You. All three topped the Billboard Hot 100. The 1989 album Girl You Know It's True was certified 6XPlatinum. Farian wrote and produced everything. So Milli Vanilli was riding high. They even won a Best New Artist Grammy. Things went sour when Milli Vanilli showed up for an interview at MTV and their English wasn't very good. They went on the 1989 Club MTV tour. On July 21, 1989 at the Lake Compounce theme park in Bristol, CT, there was a hard drive malfunction and the recording skipped. Pilatus knew that was the end and ran off the stage. They ultimately finished the set. But they were a laughing stock after that. This comp has all their hits. Of course Pilatus and Morvan blamed Farian. Plenty of lawsuits followed. Pilatus and Morvan released a 1992 album as Rob & Fab but they couldn't get the distribution to go anywhere with it. Milli Vanilli reunited with Farian in 1997. An album was recorded. But after Pilatus died on Apr. 3, 1998 due to an accidental drug overdose, the album was never released. Morvan released a solo album in 2003. He currently lives in Amsterdam. There are two Milli Vanilli documentaries. Attampts to make a Milli Vanilli biopic have been unsuccessful to date. This is certainly not the only occasion when phony singers have been sold. Remember Black Box? But it's certainly the most notorious. Here's the video for Baby Don't Forget My Number by Milli Vanilli. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Ming Shi vs Xiaocan Feng

Here's the fight video of Ming Shi vs Xiaocan Feng from yesterday's UFC show in Macau, China. This is the final of the Strawweight Road to the UFC tournament. I saw both fighters in that tournament. Ming is 30 years old from Kunming, China. She trains at China Catch Wrestling with coach Bagher Amanolahl. Ming's nickname is Doctor because that's what she is in real life. At 5'2", she's small for Strawweight. Xiaocan is 22 years old from Guangzhou, China. She trains at Chunbo Mixed Martial Arts with coach Chunbo Yuan. I liked what I saw from her in Road to the UFC. And she's 5'7" so she has a big size advantage. Xiaocan won the first two rounds easily. But I thought she could have gone for a finish and she just didn't do it. So Ming needs a finish in round three and she's not known as a finisher. Then at 46 seconds of round three, Ming lands a head kick and Xiaocan is out cold. She was taken to the hospital and it looks like she will be OK. I thought it was the equivalent of a lucky punch especially considering the height difference. And Ming was losing up until that point. So she got a UFC contract and a $50,000 bonus. We'll see how she does. I don't like her chances because of her size. At least she got one great KO. Enjoy the video. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Gabriella Fernandes vs Wang Cong

Here's the fight video of Gabriella Fernandes vs Wang Cong from yesterday's UFC show in Macau, China. This fight is at Flyweight. Gabriella is 31 years old from Natal, Brazil. She trains at MMA Masters in Miami. Her UFC record is 1-2. She was 3-0 in the LFA but she hasn't looked good in the UFC. Wang is 32 years old from Shanghai, China. She signed with the UFC after an appearance on a May Road to the UFC show. And she won her UFC debut in one minute by KO. Wang is an elite kickboxer who turned to MMA in 2022. She was heavily favored and she won round one easily with hard strikes. But then in round two, Gabriella knocked her down. And the key thing is Gabriella went right after her, took her back and put her to sleep with a rear naked choke at 3:49 of round two. A lot of fighters would have hesitated and let Wang off the hook. And that's why she won the fight. She was losing up until that point. And now that Gabriella got that big win, we'll see if she can keep it up. For Wang, it could be just a bump in the road. Plenty of elite fighters have lost on the way up. Time will tell. Enjoy the video! 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Yan Xiaonan vs Tabatha Ricci

Here's the fight video of Yan Xiaonan vs Tabatha Ricci from yesterday's UFC show in Macau, China. This fight is at Strawweight. This is the co-main event. Yan is 35 years old from Shenyang, China. She trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento with Urijah Faber and Danny Castillo. Her UFC record is 8-3. Her last fight was a title match loss to Zhang Weili. She's a good but not great fighter. Her striking is good but she doesn't hit hard enough and rarely finishes fights. Tabatha is 29 years old from Sao Paulo, Brazil. She trains at Paragon Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in Santa Barbara, CA. Her UFC record is 6-2. This is her biggest fight to date. If she wins, she gets into the title picture. I just don't think she's good enough. So the short version is that Yan won the fight easily 30-27. It's about what I expected. I don't know if Tabatha landed even one punch in this fight. It's like she was sleepwalking. I never understood why the UFC gave her the fight in the first place. I presume other ranked fighters didn't want to go to China. Afterwards, Yan called out Zhang Weili for a rematch. Zhang was in attendance. But we already know that Virna Jandiroba is getting the next title shot. She was in attendance too. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Phony Ppl

Artist:Phony Ppl

Song:Nowhere But Up

Album:Euphonyus

The funk group Phony Ppl have been around since 2008. But they have been gaining momentum since signing with a major label in 2018. Though I doubt that they will ever have a hit single, they may not need one. Phony Ppl is from Brooklyn, NY. Singer Robert "Elbie Three" Booker and keyboardist Aja Grant started playing together while attending Edward R. Murrow High School in Brooklyn. They were joined by guitarist Elijah "Elijah Rock" Austin, bassist Omar Jabari "Bari Bass" Grant and drummer Matthew "Maffyuu" Byas and self released the 2009 album WTF Is Phonyland?. After releasing the 2015 album Yesterday's Tomorrow, Phony Ppl appeared on the June 9, 2015 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!. This not only got them national exposure. But it got them a record deal with 300 Entertainment. That was founded in 2012 by former Warner Bros. Music chairman and CEO Lyor Cohen. He also ran DefJam in the 80s. They are distributed by Atlantic. Cohen was replaced in 2016 by former Warner Bros. president Kevin Liles who is also a 300 founder. Young Thug and Megan Thee Stallion record for them. So now Phony Ppl are on a much larger label and they should sell as an album and touring band. A hit single would be the cherry on top. Nowhere But Up is from the 2022 album Euphonyus. It's their second album for 300. Phony Ppl write all the songs. Producers include Ivan Barias, KAYTRANADA and Alissia Benveniste. The single fkn around featuring Megan Thee Stallion got some airplay but did not chart. Maybe they should have used a different title. Other guests include JoJo, Leon Thomas III and The Soul Rebels. This album was released only as a digital download. Phony Ppl aren't on tour right now. So they may be working on a new album. Soul and funk fans should check them out. Here's the video for Nowhere But Up by Phony Ppl. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-George Benson

Artist:George Benson

Song:This Masquerade

Album:The George Benson Collection

The 1976 single This Masquerade was not George Benson's biggest hit. But it was his first top ten hit. So it was the record that turned a top jazz guitarist into a pop star. The 1976 album Breezin' was Benson's first album on Warner Bros. after recording for Prestige, Columbia, Verve, A&M and CTI. The CTI albums in particular did well on the jazz charts. So what was the difference at Warner Bros.? At the time, Tommy LiPuma had just joined Warners as a staff producer. He was co-owner of Blue Thumb Records and had success producing acts that straddled jazz and soul like guitarist Phil Upchurch and The Crusaders. The big difference is that Benson is a great singer. He always sang on his albums. But no one ever tried to sell him as a singer. Also, Benson's voice resembled Stevie Wonder's voice. And Wonder hadn't released an album for a while. So This Masquerade was the lead single from Breezin' and it reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. This sold Benson to an all new audience and Breezin' was certified 3XPlatinum. Jazz fans didn't like Breezin' much but it set the stage for Smooth Jazz. Of course This Masquerade was written by Leon Russell and he recorded it in 1972. The piano solo is by Benson's regular pianist Jorge Dalto. Claus Ogerman arranged and conducted the strings. Other musicians are Phil Upchurch on guitar, Stanley Banks on bass, Harvey Mason on drums and Ralph MacDonald on percussion. This budget comp covers more than his Warners recordings. Benson had great success for the next few years with top ten hits like On Broadway (1978), Give Me the Night (1980) and Turn Your Love Around (1981). But it all started with Breezin' and This Masquerade. Here's George Benson performing This Masquerade on Top Of The Pops 1976. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Nickelback

Artist:Nickelback

Song:How You Remind Me

Album:The Best of Nickelback Volume 1

Supposedly, Nickelback is the most hated band in the world. There is even a documentary about this which can be streamed on Netflix. For a band that everyone hates, they sure have sold a lot of records. I don't think they are that hated but it's become a running joke. And Nickelback is laughing all the way to the bank. The 2002 single How You Remind Me is from their major label debut album. It's still their biggest hit and signature song. Nickelback is from Hanna, AB led by lead singer, songwriter and lead guitarist Chad Kroeger, his brother Michael Kroeger on bass, their cousin Brandon Kroeger on drums and Ryan Peake on guitar. At first they called themselves Village Idiot. But they changed it to Nickelback after what Mike said to his Starbucks customers when he gave them change. "Here's your nickel back.". They started out as a cover band. But then Chad asked his stepfather for a $4,000 loan so he could record a demo that became the 1996 EP Hesher. They self released the 1996 album Curb. Brandon Kroeger was replaced by Mitch Guindon. But he couldn't tour so Ryan Vikedal replaced him. Roadrunner Records A&R man Ron Burman was tipped off about Nickelback and he went to Vancouver to see them. He wanted to sign them immediately but his bosses at Roadrunner got cold feet. But he did sign them. Roadrunner re-released the 1998 album State and it was certified Platinum. The 2001 album Silver Side Up was their Roadrunner debut album. How You Remind Me was the first single and it topped the Billboard Hot 100. The album sold over ten million copies. Nickelback wrote and produced with a co-producer. For this album that was Alice in Chains producer Rick Parashar. For their other Roadrunner albums they worked with Joey Moi. Though How You Remind Me turned out to be Nickelback's biggest hit single, their albums sold millions for the next few years. So they became an album and touring band. Vikedal was fired in 2005 after a royalty dispute and was replaced by Daniel Adair of 3 Doors Down. Nickelback continued to have success. This comp is a good intro to their music. BTW, there is no volume two. Then the music press started reporting that Nickelback was the most hated band and worst band. The only other band to get this kind of press coverage was Creed. A 2013 Rolling Stone readers poll named Creed the worst band and Nickelback the second worst band of the 90s. This has gotten to be such a thing that the documentary Hate to Love: Nickelback was released in 2023. It can be streamed on Netflix. Kroeger doesn't seem to take this personally. He says he now has a thick skin. I don't like Nickelback or Creed and I especially dislike the lead singers. It's not my kind of music anyway. But they aren't the worst bands and it's not even close. It shouldn't be taken seriously. Supposedly this Nickelback thing started when they signed with the heavy metal label Roadrunner and fans of the label hated Nickelback. Nickelback is still around. They left Roadrunner in 2011. And after one album for Republic, they have released two albums for BMG, the latest in 2022. They will tour in 2025 so they may be working on a new album. Nickelback is not as popular as they used to be. But I think they had a much better run than they could have possibly hoped. They sold millions of albums for a long time. Here's the video for How You Remind Me by Nickelback. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Herbie Hancock

Artist:Herbie Hancock

Song:Rockit

Album:Ken Burns Jazz

Of course pianist Herbie Hancock is an all time jazz great and he was a big part of jazz fusion of the 70s. I have already featured him as part of my Jazz for Beginners series. But he made a big pop culture splash with the 1983 album Future Shock and the hit single Rockit. Of course the music video was a big part of the song's success. Hancock had a lot of success in the 70s with the jazz funk sound of The Headhunters. Hancock liked experimenting with electronics and he recorded the 1978 album Sunlight singing with the use of a vocoder. Meanwhile he still recorded jazz and at the time he recorded and toured with the quartet V.S.O.P. So the 1983 album Future Shock seemed to come out of nowhere. And needless to say, it turned out to be very influential. The guys behind Future Shock were bassist Bill Laswell and keyboardist Michael Bienhorn of the jazz rock band Material. They had tried out some of their ideas in Material and they approached Hancock to see if he was interested in collaborating. Future shock was the result. Most of the songs were written by Hancock, Laswell and Bienhorn. Laswell wrote the arrangements. Musicians include Pete Cosey on guitar, legendary Jamaican drummer Sly Dunbar of Sly & Robbie and Daniel Ponce on percussion. Cosey was in Miles Davis' 70s band. Ponce frequently worked with fellow Cuban Paquito D'Rivera. Future Shock was the most high profile album either appeared on. Most of the hip hop elements were added by pioneering turntablist Derek "DST" Showard. And then there was the music video featuring Jim Whiting's movable sculptures. The video was directed by Kevin Godley and Lol Creme of 10cc and Godley and Creme. They were music video pioneers. Of course MTV went nuts over the video. But in those days, radio stations boycotted songs that were popular on MTV. So Rockit only reached #71 on the Billboard Hot 100. It did top the Dance chart and reached #6 on the R&B Singles chart. It won two Billboard Video Music awards. Rockit was a bigger hit than the chart position and very influential on the hip hop that followed. Future Shock was certified Platinum. It was certainly Hancock's biggest commercial success. You can get Rockit on this comp. Hancock recorded two more albums with Laswell but neither was successful. Hancock left Columbia for Verve. He last recorded in 2010 though he still makes guest appearances and tours. A proposed new album was announced in 2018 but it doesn't look like it ever happened. Here's the video for Rockit by Herbie Hancock. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Pitbull

Artist:Pitbull f/Ne-Yo, Afrojack and Nayer

Song:Give Me Everything

Album:Greatest Hits

Armando "Pitbull" Perez is a rapper who mixes Latin sounds with pop. The 2011 single Give Me Everything is one of his two number one hits. He hasn't been as successful recently which makes me think he has to change his sound. Maybe listeners are tired of him. He has already had more longevity than most rappers. He was born Jan. 15, 1981 in Miami. His parents are Cuban immigrants. His parents separated when he was young so he was raised by his mom. Perez was a drug abuser as a teen and his mom kicked him out of the house. His main influences are Cuban singers Celia Cruz and Willy Chirino and rappers like Nas and Snoop Dogg. After meeting Lil Jon in Miami, Perez appeared on Lil Jon and the East Side Boyz' 2002 album Kings of Crunk. His song Oye appeared on the soundtrack of the 2003 film 2 Fast 2 Furious. At first Perez was on Luther Campbell's Luke label. But he never released anything. Robert Fernandez of Famous Artist Music & Management became his manager and introduced him to Lil Jon. Fernandez wanted to streamline Perez' music so it would be more radio friendly. Perez signed with TVT Records and released the 2004 album M.I.A.M.I. produced by Lil Jon. Perez released three albums fir TVT. They did OK but He thought he could do better with a larger label like Sony. So he' recorded for Sony since the 2008 album Pitbull Starring in Rebelution. The 2009 singles I Know You Want Me and Hotel Room Service were top ten hits. After releasing the 2010 Spanish language album Armando, things really picked up for Perez with the 2011 album Planet Pit. The first single Hey Baby (Drop It to the Floor) reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100. The second single Give Me Everything was Perez' first #1 hit. Planet Pit sold over two million copies. Perez wrote and produced with different producers on each song. On Give Me Everything, Ne-Yo and Nayer sing on the record. Of course Ne-Yo is a great singer and he sings the chorus. Perez raps the verses. I never heard of Nayer before. But she's a pretty girl with a thin voice. They didn't want a strong singer competing with Ne-Yo. The producer was Dutch DJ Nick "Afrojack" van de Wall. That's him at the turntable in the video. You can get all of his hits on this comp. Since then Perez hasn't been as successful. He left Sony in 2017 and has released a couple of albums on his own label. I would say he has been more successful than most rappers. Here's the video for Give Me Evrything by Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo, Afrojack and Nayer. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Peaches

Artist:Peaches f/Iggy Pop

Song:Kick It

Album:Fatherfucker

Merrill "Peaches" Nisker is a Canadian singer songwriter whose career picked up considerably when she signed with the British label XL Recordings and she got the legendary Iggy Pop to appear on the 2003 single Kick It. Her success to date has mostly been in Europe. She was born Nov.11, 1966 in Toronto. Her grandparents are European Jewish immigrants. As a teen, she appeared in two plays with Barenaked Ladies lead singer Steven Page. Merrill started out in the folk group Mermaid Cafe in the early 90s. Then she released a solo album in 1995. Then she joined the punk band The Shit which is when she started calling herself Peaches. She got it from the Nina Simone song Four Women. At the time, she lived with Leslie Feist above a sex shop and they toured together. Merrill went to Berlin, Germany to visit Jason Beck AKA Chilly Gonzalez from The Shit. After playing one show, the German label Kitty-Yo offered her a record deal. They release offbeat pop and electronica. Merrill returned to Toronto and recorded the 2000 album The Teaches of Peaches featuring what is still considered to be her signature song Fuck the Pain Away. She had enough success in England that she appeared on Top of the Pops. But her performance was deemed too racy to air. Merrill signed with Sony in Europe. After they saw her video for the song Set It Off, they hated it so much she was dropped and they wanted their advance back. Kitty-Yo still liked Merrill's music so they worked out a distribution deal with the British label XL Recordings. XL is the home for Adele. That led to the 2003 album Fatherfucker and the single Kick It featuring Iggy Pop. The album charted in England especially on the dance chart and so did the single. Merrill wrote and produced the album. Joan Jett wrote and produced one song. She was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award. She recorded two more albums for XL and released a 2015 album on her own label. Merrill toured in 2022 and there is a documentary of the tour called The Teaches of Peaches. She said at the time that she is working on a new album but there is no news about that yet. Here's the video for Kick It by Peaches featuring Iggy Pop. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Southern Pacific

Artist:Southern Pacific

Song:Any Way the Wind Blows

Album:Greatest Hits

After The Doobie Brothers split up in 1982, that band's guitarist John McFee and drummer Keith Knudsen formed the country rock band Southern Pacific. They scored four top ten country hits in the 80s. The other original members were lead singer Tim Goodman. McFee produced Goodman's 1981 album Footsteps. Keyboardist Glen Hardin and bassist Jerry Scheff are career sideman. Both guys worked with Elvis Presley. Southern Pacific signed with Warner Bros. and released the 1984 album Southern Pacific. Reno Bound was a top ten country hit. Hardin and Scheff were replaced respectively by Kurt Howell and former Creedence Clearwater Revival bassist Stu Cook. After the 1986 album Killbilly Hill, Goodman left to go solo and was replaced by David Jenkins of Pablo Cruise. The 1988 album Zuma featured Southern Pacific's highest charting single New Shade of Blue. It reached #2 on the Country Singles chart. Any Way the Wind Blows is from the 1989 album County Line. It reached #4 on the Country Singles chart. McFee wrote the song with Andre Passis who wrote the 1984 Huey Lewis & the News hit Walking on a Thin Line. Southern Pacific wrote all the songs and produced with Jim Ed Norman. I guess he made sure they sounded country. And that was the major criticism of Southern Pacific at the time. They didn't sound country enough. Any Way the Wind Blows appeared on the soundtrack of the Clint Eastwood film Pink Cadillac. There are scenes from the film in the video. By this time, The Doobie Brothers had reformed. So McFee and Knudsen disbanded Southern Pacific and returned to The Doobie Brothers. Warners released this comp after the split. Knudsen died in 2005. But McFee continues with The Doobie Brothers today. Here's the video for Any Way the Wind Blows by Southern Pacific.

 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Edwarda Moura vs Veronica Hardy

Here's the fight video of Edwarda Moura vs Veronica Hardy from last night's UFC show in New York City. This fight is at Flyweight. Edawrda is 30 years old from Salvador, Brazil. She trains at Galpao da Luta with her brother Yuri Moura. Her UFC record is 1-1. Both fights were at Strawweight and Edwarda missed weight for both which is why the UFC moved her up to Flyweight. Veronica is 29 years old from Venezuela. She trains at Renzo Gracie in New York City with her former UFC fighter husband Dan Hardy. Her UFC record is 4-4 and she's on a three fight winning streak. Edwarda is much bigger than Veronica which is the main reason she won this fight. I scored it 30-27 for Edwarda. One judge scored it the same. But the other two scored it 29-28 for Edwarda. During the week, Edwarda said she still wanted to fight at Strawweight. Hopefully, she has changed her mind. And maybe Veronica should move to Strawweight. Enjoy the video!

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Viviane Araujo vs Karine Silva

Here's the fight video of Viviane Araujo vs Karine Silva from last night's UFC show in New York City. This fight is at Flyweight. Viviane is 37 years old from Brasilia, Brazil and she trains at Cerrado MMA with coach Daniel Evangilista. Her UFC record is 6-5. Her history is she tends to lose close fights. She's a decent fighter but she's not a finisher. Karine is 30 years old from Curitiba, Brazil. Her coach is Gile Ribeiro. Her UFC record is 4-0 and she has finished three of those fights in the first round. She has looked really good. Viviane is a big step up in competition because she is ranked. What we found out in this fight is Karine has endurance problems. Round one was close but I scored it 10-9 for Karine. Round two was also close but I scored it 10-9 for Viviane. Karine was out of gas in round three so I scored it 10-9 for Viviane. And I scored the fight 29-28 for Viviane. The judges scored it the same. So now we know that Karine needs to work on her endurance because she's not always going to be able to get a first round finish. It was a big win for Viviane. But I don't think she's an elite fighter. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Louis Armstrong and the Commanders

Artist:Louis Armstrong and the Commanders

Song:Cool Yule

Album:Have Yourself a Swingin' Little Christmas

Here's a song that has gotten a lot of radio airplay in recent holiday seasons for it's retro swing vibe. It's become popular enough that Universal has produced a lyric video. But in 1953, it was on a B side of the Louis Armstrong single Zat You, Santa Claus. Armstrong never recorded a Christmas album. But he recorded enough Christmas songs that Universal has issued a couple of Christmas comps. I prefer this various artists comp from Bear Family mostly because it's over an hour long. Cool Yule was recorded when Armstrong revived his career in the late 40s with Louis Armstrong and his All Stars featuring Jack Teagarden on vocals and trombone. Cool Yule was recorded at the end of his Decca contract in 1953. After that, Armstrong would freelance for a few years. Cool Yule was written by Steve Allen who of course was best known as a comedian and original host of The Tonight Show. But he was also a jazz pianist and songwriter. The Commanders were a big band led by veteran bandleader Tutti Camarata and veteran drummer Eddie Grady. They recorded three albums for Decca in the mid 50s. They recorded the 1953 single Zat You, Santa Claus with Cool Yule on the B side. Both songs have become popular in recent years because they still sound fresh. Both songs appear on this Bear Family various artists comp. Others on the album include Glenn Miller, The Ames Brothers, The Mills Brothers, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Jordan, The Andrews Sisters, Fats Waller, Louis Prima, Peggy Lee and Lionel Hampton. Universal has released a couple of Louis Armstrong Christmas comps. But I like this one because it's longer and reasonably priced. Here's the lyric video for Cool Yule by Louis Armstrong and the Commanders. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-D-Mob

Artist:D-Mob f/Cathy Dennis

Song:C'mon and Get My Love

Album:3/60: Girls Night

C'mon and Get My Love was a top ten hit in 1989. It was the only big hit for D-Mob led by British producer Danny "Dancin' Danny D" Poku. It also was the first big hit for singer Cathy Dennis and she had a significant solo career in the 90s. One of D-Mob's other singles charted so technically he's not a one hit wonder. D-Mob only released one album. Today Poku is a producer and he owns a publishing and management company. Poku was born May 26,1963 Cobridge, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. He started out as a recording engineer and did remixes for Blondie and Howard Jones. Then he decided to make his own music as D-Mob. He signed with London's FFRR label. After the 1988 single We Call It Acieed reached #3 on the British Singles chart and topped the US Dance chart, London gave the green light for the 1989 album A Little Bit of This, a Little Bit of That. Singles from the album were successful in England and the Dance chart. But C'mon and Get My Love reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. Poku wrote and produced everything. I think that's him rapping too. The album is not available. But you can get C'mon and Get My Love on this 3CD budget comp from Crimson. You can also get it on Cathy Dennis' 1990 album Move to This as a budget CD. As I said, Cathy went on to a significant solo career. Poku only released the one D-Mob album. After a couple of 1994 singles, he concentrated on production and he now owns a publishing and management company. I guess his most significant artist that he produced is Kylie Minogue. Poku and his partner Tim Blacksmith were awarded MBE's in 2022. So obviously D-Mob is a very small part of Danny Poku's very successful career. Here's the video for C'mon and Get My Love by D-Mob featuring Cathy Dennis.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Far East Movement

Artist:Far East Movement f/The Cataracs and Dev

Song:Like a G6

Album:Free Wired

Far East Movement topped the charts with the 2010 single Like a G6. They had one other top ten single from the album Free Wired and haven't been as successful since then. So they are a one album wonder which is not unusual for hip hop groups. They last released an album in 2016 and are more active today as producers. The members of Far East Movement went to high school together in Los Angeles. They are Kevin "Kev Nish" Nishimura, James "Prohgress" Roh and Jae "J-Splif" Chuong. They started playing local clubs in 2001 as Emcees Anonymous and then changed it to Far East Movement. They released a mixtape in 2005 followed by the 2006 album Folk Music. When the 2006 single Round Round appeared in the 2006 film The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift along with the soundtrack and video game, they decided to take music more seriously probably because they got cheques in the mail. For the 2008 album Animal, they signed distribution deals in Korea and Japan. They added Los Angeles radio station Power 106 DJ DJ Virmin as their official DJ. When singles from the album got national airplay and exposure in films and TV, Far East Movement signed with Cherrytree Records with Interscope distribution. Like a G6 was the first single from the 2010 album Free Wired. Free Movement was the first Asian American group to top the Billboard Hot 100. Most of Free Wired was written and produced by the production group The Stereotypes. But Like a G6 was written and produced by the duo The Cataracs. The featured singer Dev works with them. If you're wondering about the title, they were looking for something to rhyme with "Three Six" as in Three Six Mafia. After Drake referenced a Gulfstream aircraft as G4, they used G6 though there is no such thing. So it's meaningless. The girl in the red dress in the video is usually credited as Erica Juliet in films and TV. The single The Rocketeer was also a top ten hit. The 2012 album Dirty Bass didn't do as well and Far East Movement left Interscope and started their own company. They released the 2016 album Identity and Chuong left Far East Movement. Since then Far East Movement have released a few singles. But these days they are more active as producers and that is their likely future. Here's the video for Like a G6 by Far East Movement featuring The Cataracs and Dev. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Ella Langley

Artist:Ella Langley f/Riley Green

Song:You Look Like You Love Me

Album:Hungover

You Look Like You Love Me was a top ten country hit and the breakthrough single for singer songwriter Ella Langley. It even crossed over to pop and charted worldwide. She was born May 3, 1999 in Hope Hull, AL which is near Montgomery. Ella performed locally until moving to Nashville in 2019. She self released some singles and opened for high profile country acts. She also wrote five songs for Elle King's 2023 album Come Get Your Wife. She signed with Columbia and made her Grand Ole Opry debut on Feb. 17, 2023 and her EP Excuse the Mess was released in May. This was followed by Ella's 2024 debut album Hungover. The single You Look Like You Love Me reached #8 on the Country Singles chart and #30 on the Billboard Hot 100. Ella wrote all the songs with co-writers. She wrote You Look Like You Love Me with Aaron Ratiere. He wrote a few songs for the 2018 film A Star Is Born. Guest singer Riley Green wrote the second verse. Ella wrote several songs with Joybeth Taylor. She hasn't had any hits yet. Will Bundy produced. He has had success as a songwriter but this is his first major label album as producer. Hungover and deluxe edition called Still Hungover are both available as digital downloads. They were not released on CD. Still Hungover has five bonus tracks. Both versions are on Amazon. Ella is off to a good start. The crossover to pop bodes well for her. But you never know about the music business. Even if she stalls, Ella can make a good living as a songwriter for hire. I'll keep my eye on her. Here's the video for You Look Like You Love Me by Ella Langley featuring Riley Green.

 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Giulia and Stephanie Vaquer vs Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson

Here's the match video of Giulia and Stephanie Vaquer vs Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson from last night's episode of NXT. Lash and Jakara have been getting in everyone's business lately including on the main roster. So Giulia and Stephanie wanted to put them in their place. And that's what they did last night. I would describe the match as semi competitive as Giulia and Stephanie would never do a squash. But there was never any doubt about who would win. They have only been together for a month and already they are a well oiled machine. Mike Rome did a brief interview with them after the match. And they teased that they could face each other in the Iron Survivor tournament. I doubt that the WWE would do that. It's probably too soon. But I wouldn't mind seeing it. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Roger Voudouris

Artist:Roger Voudouris

Song:Get Used to It

Album:Music That Changed Our Lives: 70's

Get Used to It was a top 30 hit in 1979. It was the only chart single for singer, songwriter and guitarist Roger Voudouris. So it is a one hit wonder. Today it's considered to be a soft rock classic and part of what is called Yacht Rock. I guess you're supposed to listen to it while lounging on your yacht...unless you're seasick. Voudouris had a very brief recording career. He went on to some success as a Smooth Jazz producer. He was born Dec. 29, 1954 in Sacramento. While in high school, he led the band Loud as Hell Rockers. They performed in local clubs and opened for The Doobie Brothers. They never recorded and then they split up. But Capitol Records spotted Voudouris and they paired him with singer songwriter and pianist David Kahne. Voudouris and Kahne recorded two unsuccessful albums and split up. Kahne has gone on to a successful career as a producer and A&R exec for Columbia and Warner Bros. Voudouris signed with Warner Bros. and veteran producer Michael Omartian. He produced plenty of soft rock and has a second career in CCM. Voudouris recorded three albums for Warners. Get Used to It was on his 1979 album Radio Dream. It reached #21 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song reached #4 in Australia. Warners sent Voudouris on a promotional tour of Australia. Voudouris and Omartian wrote all the songs. Voudouris played guitar. Omartian played keyboards. You can get Get Used to It on this various artists budget comp. After one more unsuccessful album for Warners, Voudouris released the 1981 album On the Heels of Love on Boardwalk Records. Neil Bogart started Boardwalk after he sold Casablanca Records to PolyGram. Sadly Bogart died from cancer in 1982. That was the end of Boardwalk and Voudouris' recording career. He wrote songs for the 1983 film The Lonely Lady starring Pia Zadora. Then he became an executive at Artful Balance Records and produced Smooth Jazz albums by guys like Tommy Emmanuel, Eric Gale and Stix Hooper. Voudouris died from liver disease on Aug. 3, 2003 at age 48. Here's the video for Get Used to It by Roger Voudouris.

  

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Damage CTRL vs Pure Fusion Collective

Here's the match video of Damage CTRL vs Pure Fusion Collective from last night's episode of RAW. The big news was the return of Dakota Kai from a knee injury. And the first thing they had her do was reunite with IYO SKY and Kairi Sane and get a big win. The match would have been much better if there was no commercial break in the middle. But all WWE matches are like that. But the match was OK but nothing special. They need to set things up for IYO's upcoming title shot. IYO came out for the main event to help Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill. Obviously IYO needs to do something insane in the War Games match. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Johnny McEvoy

Artist:Johnny McEvoy

Song:Mursheen Durkin

Album:The Very Best of Johnny McEvoy: 50 Legendary Recordings

Johnny McEvoy has been a legend of Irish folk music since he topped the Irish charts with his 1966 recording of the traditional song Mursheen Durkin. He also writes songs but he is mainly known for performing traditional songs. He was born Apr. 29, 1945 in Banagher, County Offaly, Ireland. McEvoy was attending art school when he formed The Ramblers Two with fellow student Michael Crotty. Their big break came when they opened for The Rolling Stones at The Adelphi Cinema in Dublin. They were offered a record deal by Pye Records. But Crotty decided not to continue. So when McEvoy recorded the 1966 single Mursheen Durkin, he was billed as The Rambler. After the record topped the Irish charts for three weeks, Pye let McEvoy use his real name. McEvoy recorded Mursheen Durkin after his mother suggested it. Mursheen Durkin is about an Irishman who goes to California looking for gold. Plenty of singers have recorded the song but McEvoy's version is the best known. You can get it on this 3CD comp. McEvoy topped the Irish charts several times. He also toured the world and played New York's Carnegie Hall. McEvoy recorded for Hawk in the 70s, MCA in the 80s and Dolphin in the 90s. He seems to record for his own label these days. He released an album last month and is currently on tour. Here's Johnny McEvoy performing Mursheen Durkin at The National Stadium in Dublin 1983.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Neon Philharmonic

Artist:The Neon Philharmonic

Song:Morning Girl

Album:Chartbusters USA: Sunshine Pop

The 1969 single Morning Girl was a top 20 hit. It was the only big hit for The Neon Philharmonic. This beloved oldie is perceived as a one hit wonder. But one of their other songs charted so they are not technically a one hit wonder. I'm sure most of you have heard Morning Girl but know nothing about The Neon Philharmonic. They only recorded two albums. They were from Nashville. Tupper Saussy wrote and produced everything and played keyboards. Don Gant was the singer. Saussy started out as a jazz musician. But he got into the Nashville studio scene which is where he met Gant. Saussy wanted to record a pop album but he needed a singer. The Neon Philharmonic's 1969 album The Moth Confesses was supposed to be a condensed opera. The album was recorded with Nashville session musicians and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. The Neon Philharmonic was strictly a studio group. I don't think they ever toured or appeared on TV. They got a record deal with Warner Bros. through connections that Gant had at Acuff-Rose Music. Morning Girl reached #17 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was surprise hit. But like I said, it's still a popular oldie today. You can get it on this Ace Records various artists comp. The Neon Philharmonic recorded a second album in in 1972. But it didn't do well and Warners dropped them. Gant went on to work at Acuff-Rose as songwriter and executive. He died in 1987. Saussy turned out to be a nut. He befriended Martin Luther King's assassin James Earl Ray and finagled a 1987 autobiography out of him. Ray sued Saussy after it was published. Saussy was a tax protestor and was convicted of tax evasion in 1985. He fled and was eventually found in California in 1997. After he was released from prison, he got involved in another conspiracy theory. But eventually he returned to music and recorded a couple of albums for Rhino Handmade before his 2007 death. Here's a video for Morning Girl by The Neon Philharmonic.

  

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Melissa Mullins vs Klaudia Sygula

Here's the fight video of Melissa Mullins vs Klaudia Sygula from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Bantamweight. Monserrat Rendon was supposed to be Melissa's opponent. But she pulled out due to injury and Klaudia came in on short notice. Melissa is 33 years old. She trains at Lions Gym in Coventry, England. Her UFC record is 1-1. She missed weight for the second straight fight. Klaudia is making her UFC debut. She is 25 years old from Poland. She trains at Ankos MMA in Poznan, Poland. Her MMA record is 6-2. But coming to the UFC is a big step. Nothing much happens in round one until Melissa scores a takedown at the end of the round and controls in top position. I scored it 10-9 for Melissa. Melissa scores a takedown early in round two and wins by ground and pound at 1:20 of the round. Enjoy the video. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Denise Gomes vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz

Here's the fight video of Denise Gomes vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Strawweight. Denise is 24 years old from Brazil. She now trains at The GAEA Project which she owns with Jessica Andrade and Karol Rosa. Her UFC record is 3-2. She's a hard puncher. Karolina is 39 years old from Poland. She is now training at American Top Team in Florida. Her UFC record is 9-8. She's a former title challenger but she has always been a one dimensional striker with no power. And now she's not as quick as she used to be. In this fight, she's a gatekeeper. If Denise wins, she can move up the rankings. Karolina takes it to the fence probably to avoid Denise's power. But Denise controls that clinch and wins the round 10-9. They are also against the fence in round two and Denise does enough to win the round 10-9. So now Karolina needs a finish and she's a points fighter. Again they spend a lot of time clinching on the fence. Karolina gets a takedown near the end of the round. But there isn't enough time to do anything with it. I scored the round 10-9 for Denise and the fight 30-27 for Denise. Two of the three judges scored it the same. And the third judge scored it 29-28 for Denise. I guess Karolina's strategy didn't work out. Like I said, I think she was trying to avoid Denise's power. But she was mostly on defense and it's hard to win fights that way. Enjoy the video. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Gillian Robertson vs Luana Pinheiro

Here's the fight video of Gillian Robertson vs Luana Pinheiro from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Strawweight. Gillian is 29 years old from Niagara Falls, ON but she trains at The Goat Shed in Miami with long time coach Din Thomas. Her UFC record is 11-6. Gillian is a great wrestler. But her striking is subpar and she needs half decent striking to get to the ground. Luana is 30 years old from Brazil. She now trains at Team Oyama in Irvine, CA with coach Colin Oyama. Of course that was the home for former UFC Strawweight champ Carla Esparza. Her UFC record is 3-2. She is a striker. Her big problem is she is undersized for Strawweight and this week she wished that the UFC would start an Atomweight division. That is being discussed. But the UFC should have started an Atomweight division a few years go. The only way that Luana can win this fight is to keep the fight standing. A lot of round one is clinching on the fence. But Gillian controls that and gets a takedown near the end of the round. I scored it 10-9 for Gillian. Luana does a much better job in round two. She blocks takedown attempts and wins the round 10-9. But Gillian gets a takedown early in round three and is able to control the rest of the round. I scored that 10-9 for Gillian and she won the fight 29-28. Two of the three judges scored the fight the same and the third judge scored it 29-27 for Gillian. She wins by unanimous decision. Obviously he scored round three 10-8 for Gillian. It was not quite there. Gillian was upset that she didn't get a finish. I think Luana gave her a tougher fight than expected. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Frank Gallop

Artist:Frank Gallop

Song:The Ballad of Irving

Album:Dr. Demento 20th Anniversary Collection: The Greatest Novelty Records of All Time

The Ballad of Irving was a novelty record that reached the top 40 in 1966. It was from the comedy album When You're in Love, The Whole World Is Jewish. Frank Gallop was a radio and TV announcer. This was his only hit single. He was born June 30, 1900 in Boston. He took singing lessons but by his own admission, he couldn't sing. After graduating from high school, he worked as an investment broker. One of his clients owned a radio station and asked Gallop to replace his current announcer. Though the job didn't last long, it convinced Gallop that he had a future in radio. So he worked for radio station WEEI for a year and then he moved to New York with his buddy and fellow announcer Ed Herlihy. Gallop worked for CBS and NBC. He announced on plenty of soap operas along with New York Philharmonic broadcasts and Orson Welles' Mercury Theater of the Air. He was also on The Milton Berle Show. When TV got going, Gallop was the announcer on The Perry Como Show. Among his other TV shows were Kraft Mystery Theatre, The Colgate Comedy Hour and the Dean Martin Summer Show hosted by future Laugh in stars Dan Rowan and Dick Martin. When Gallop was on the Como show, he worked with writers Bob Booker and George Foster. They wrote and produced the 1962 hit comedy album The First Family which spoofed the Kennedys. That ended with the assassination so they decided to go with the 1964 album You Don't Have to Be Jewish. Gallop was one of the performers on that album along with Lou Jacobi, Frank Gilford and Arlene Golonka. When the album was a hit, Booker and Foster produced the 1966 album When You're in Love, the Whole World Is Jewish. Both albums were on Kapp Records. Though the second album wasn't as successful, Gallop's recording The Ballad of Irving reached #39 on the Billboard Hot 100. The record was a spoof of Lorne Greene's 1963 hit Ringo. The song was written by Dick Williams, Frank Peppiatt and John Aylesworth. Peppiatt and Aylesworth would go on to create Hee Haw. Williams was Andy Williams' brother and one of the musical directors of the album along with Patrick Williams, a jazz trumpeter who went on to lead big bands and compose music for TV and films. The Ballad of Irving got Gallop a record deal with Musicor and the 1966 album Would You Believe Frank Gallop Sings? and the single Son of Irving. That was the end of Gallop's music career. The Ballad of Irving is a Dr. Demento favorite and you can get it on this 2CD various artists comp. Gallop returned to announcing and moved to Florida after retirement. He died on May 17, 1988 at age 87. Here's a video for The Ballad of Irving by Frank Gallop.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Vanessa Williams

Artist:Vanessa Williams

Song:What Child Is This?

Album:Star Bright

This is the time of year when I may recommend Christmas music. Vanessa Williams had a lot of success in the early 90s with hits like Save the Best for Last. But she faded by the late 90s and left Mercury for Atlantic in 1997. But before she left Mercury, she recorded the 1996 Christmas album Star Bright which features a really nice jazzy version of What Child Is This?. What Child Is This? was not recorded for that album. It was recorded for the 1992 various artists album A Very Special Christmas 2. This album was produced by Jimmy Iovine to benefit the Special Olympics. Iovine produced some original tracks for the album. And some were previously released. But What Child Is This? was produced for this CD by Vanessa and her producer at the time Gerry E. Brown. Brown was mainly a recording engineer. With Vanessa, it was his only producing credit. Vanessa was sometimes credited as co-producer. Her recording of What Child Is This? has a jazzy vibe. At the time, Brown was producing the 1993 album The Sweetest Thing. Jazz musicians Roy Hargrove, Ron Blake, Ron Carter and Peter Erskine appear on The Sweetest Thing so that has to be them on What Child Is This?. When Star Bright was released in 1996, Mercury added What Child Is This? to the album. Most of that album was produced by session trumpeter Jeff Kievet meaning Vanessa actually produced it. It's mostly Christmas standards. Universal reissued Star Bright as part of their 20th Century Masters series. It has a different cover but it's the same album. Vanessa left Mercury to concentrate on acting. She signed with Lava/Atlantic and released a second Christmas album Silver & Gold in 2004. Vanessa last released an album in 2021. She still does TV guest shots. Here's the video for What Child Is This? by Vanessa Williams. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Vince Mendoza

Artist:Vince Mendoza

Song:Otono

Album:Nights on Earth

Though he started out as a jazz trumpeter, Vince Mendoza is mostly a composer, arranger and conductor for hire. Though he does not have his own band, he has worked frequently with Metropole Orkest in The Netherlands and WDR Big Band in Germany. Mendoza is a seven time Grammy award winner. He was born Nov. 17, 1961 in Norwalk, CT. He studied piano and classical guitar as a child, then switched to trumpet and composed for his high school jazz band. After studying music composition at Ohio State, Mendoza moved to Los Angeles in 1983 and earned a master's degree in composition at USC Thornton School of Music. Then he got into studio work most notably with drummer Peter Erskine. After releasing a couple of albums on a Japanese label, Mendoza signed with Blue Note and released the 1990 album Start Here. Since then he has recorded a lot for European labels. Mendoza started working with WDR Big Band in 1994 and Metropole Orkest in 1995. He is currently artist in residence for both. After working on Bjork's 2001 album Vespertine, Mendoza composed the score for Lars Von Trier's film Dancer in the Dark starring Bjork. He has won Grammys for arranging for Joni Mitchell, The Brecker Brothers, and Metropole Orkest. Otono is from the 2011 album Nights on Earth on the German label Horizontal. Metropole Orkest appears on the album along with guest appearances by Christian McBride, Peter Erskine, John Abercrombie, John Scofield, Alex Acuna, Joe Lovano, Bob Mintzer and Ambrose Akinmusire. Musicians on Otono include Alan Pasqua on piano, Larry Goldings on organ, Nguyen Le on electric guitar, Louis Winsberg on acoustic guitar, Jimmy Johnson on bass, Peter Erskine on drums and Alex Acuna on percussion. This album is available as a budget CD. Mendoza currently records for BMG's Modern Recordings label. His 2023 album Olympians features Metropole Orkest and guest appearances by Dianne Reeves, Cecile McLorin-Salvant, Chris Potter and Alex Acuna. Mendoza is an adjunct professor of jazz composition at USC Thornton School of Music. Here's Vince Mendoza conducting Metropole Orkest in a performance of Otono 2012.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Northside

Artist:Northside

Song:Shall We Take a Trip?

Album:Chicken Rhythms

It's likely that if the band Northside had stayed together they would have had success mostly in England. Northside was part of what was known in the late 80s as The Madchester Sound led by The Stone Roses. All the bands were from Manchester, England. Northside was formed in 1989 by lead singer Warren Dermody, Michael Upton on guitar, Cliff Ogier on bass and Paul Walsh on drums. They signed with Factory Records. Upton was soon replaced by Timmy Walsh. Shall We Take a Trip? was the first single. The song is about LSD. So not surprisingly, it was banned by the BBC. It still charted and is probably their best known song. The album Chicken Rhythms was released in 1991. It was produced by Ian Broudie who produced Echo and the Bunnymen. Northside wrote all the songs. When the single Take 5 also charted, the album was picked up by Geffen in the US. It did get some radio play in the US. The main criticism of Northside was they were riding on the coattails of other Madchester bands like The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays. Northside recorded a second album. But Factory Records declared bankruptcy and the album was never released. And then Northside split up. Dermody led a version of Northside in 2006 but they never recorded. The original members reformed and toured in 2014. Dermody released a single in 2017. Tim Walsh was an audio engineer until his 2019 death. The others didn't stay in the music business. Fans of The Madchester Sound will probably enjoy Northside. They could have been something if they had stayed together. Here's the video for Shall We Take a Trip? by Northside.