AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Blaze

Artist:Blaze

Song:My Beat

Album:House Masters

Blaze was a production group known for producing house music. Though they occasionally released albums as Blaze, they were mostly producers for other artists. Their 1997 single My Beat is one of their most memorable songs as it charted in England and on the Dance charts. Blaze was formed in New Jersey in 1984 by Kevin Hedge and Chris Herbert. Herbert brought in Josh Milan who was in his church choir. They recorded an album with Herbert on vocals, Milan on piano and Hedge producing. After releasing a few singles, they produced the 1989 single One Better World for the British band ABC. That got Blaze a record deal with Motown and they released the 1990 album 25 Years Later. Herbert left in 1991 and Hedge took over as lead singer. He uses the name Palmer Brown. After leaving Motown, Blaze signed with the British label Slip 'n' Slide and released the 1997 album Basic Blaze. The single My Beat charted in England and on the Dance charts. Hedge is singer Palmer Brown. There are plenty of remixes available. There are two versions on this 2CD comp available as a digital download. Though Blaze recorded occasionally, they concentrated on producing other artists and doing remixes. They also owned a nightclub together. Blaze split up in 2012. Hedge is mainly a club DJ these days and he still uses the name Blaze. Milan started his own company Honeycomb Music where he is mostly a songwriter and producer. Here's the video for My Beat by Blaze.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Detergents

Artist:The Detergents

Song:Leader of the Laudromat

Album:The Golden Age of American Rock 'n' Roll: Special Novelty Edition

The 1965 single Leader of the Laudromat was a top 20 hit. One of their other songs charted so The Detergents are not technically a one hit wonder. Leader of the Laundromat was a parody of The Shangri-Las hit Leader of the Pack. Occasionally parody songs can be hits. I guess today Weird Al Yankovic is king of the parodies. Back then Allen Sherman was the king of parodies. Not surprisingly, The Detergents were a studio band led by Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss. They wrote and produced records together like the 1957 Perry Como single Catch a Falling Star and Brian Hyland's 1960 single Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini. But they weren't in The Detergents. In 1964, teenagers Ron Dante, Danny Jordan and Tommy Wynn were staff songwriters and session singers for Don Kirshner's song publishing company Aldon Music located in New York's Brill Building. All the song publishers were in that building. Jordan is Vance's nephew. So when Dante, Jordan and Wynn formed Cabin Kids and released the single Little Lollypop on the Screen Gems label, Vance heard about it and brought the song Leader of the Laundromat to them. He wanted them to record it as The Detergents. Jordan sang lead and the record was released on Roulette Records. It reached #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 which is pretty good for a novelty record. The Detergents became a real band and appeared on TV shows like Shindig! and Hullabaloo and toured with Dick Clark's Caravan of Stars. The album The Many Faces of The Detergents is available from Collectibles. But you can get Leader of the Laundromat on this Ace Records various artists comp. Dante is the best known of The Detergents as he was lead singer of The Archies and produced Barry Manilow's 70s albums. Jordan and Wynn briefly recorded as a duo. Jordan was one of the guys behind the 1972 instrumental hit Popcorn by Hot Butter. It looks like Wynn quit the music business. Here's a video for Leader of the Laundromat by The Detergents.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-By Divine Right

Artist:By Divine Right

Song:Come for a Ride

Album:Bless This Mess

The Canadian indie band By Divine Right have been around since the late 80s. The have had modest success in Canada. But the band personnel has been unstable and they have bounced around too many record labels. The likely blame for this goes to lead singer and guitarist Jose Miguel Contreras. Some band leaders treat a band like a collective and some behave like dictators and the band members get tired of that and leave. Contreras writes and produces everything so the band members are disposable. Contreras formed By Divine Right in 1989 with guitarist Steve Berman, bassist Liz Teear and drummer Mark Goldstein while attending Thornlea Secondary School in the Toronto suburb of Thornhill, ON. Goldstein stayed until 2000. But the other two were gone quickly. By Divine Right self released a 1992 cassette followed by a 1995 album on Kinetic Records. Then they released the 1997 album All Hail Discordia. Then they signed with the much larger Nettwerk label. Nettwerk picked up All Hail Discordia followed by the 1999 album Bless This Mess. Guitarist Leslie Feist and bassist Brendan Canning joined the band. Nettwerk sent By Divine Right on a North American tour opening for The Tragically Hip. They also released a video for Come for a Ride. Obviously, Nettwerk wanted to sell By Divine Right to a much larger audience. Contreras wrote and produced everything. The problem Nettwerk had with By Divine Right is they were more experimental art pop and guitar noise than Nettwerk's usual bands. They also weren't used to the tour schedule and were burned out when it was finished. The band's instability was also a factor. Leslie Feist and Brendan Canning left By Divine Right and started Broken Social Scene with Kevin Drew. That band has been very successful and of course Leslie has had a successful solo career. Bless This Mess is available on CD. Since then. By Divine Right has released albums on Linus Entertainment, Hand Drawn Dracula and Headless Owl. They released their latest album in 2022 on Fortune Stellar. They still tour but their music has a limited following and it probably always will. Here's the video for Come for a Ride by By Divine Right. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Alan Menken

Artist:Alan Menken

Song:Horse with No Rider

Album:Tangled:Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Alan Menken is a composer who has worked for Walt Disney Animation Studios since the late 80s. He has won a Daytime Emmy, seven Golden Globes, eight Oscars and one Tony. So he has won the EGOT as it is called. But he is mainly known for his music for Disney animated films including the 2011 film Tangled. He was born July 22, 1949 in New York City. His father was a dentist who played boogie woogie piano and his mother was an actress, dancer and playwright. Menken took piano and violin lessons as a child. Then he started to compose. He was nine years old when judges at the New York Federation of Music Clubs Junior Composers Contest rated his original composition Bouree as Superior and Excellent. After graduating from high school, he graduated from what is now called the New York University College of Arts and Science. Then he attended the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Workshop. Learning from a composer like Engel got Menken interested in writing musicals. He did that at BMI workshops from 1974-78 for the Broadway at the Ballroom series. Menken and Maury Yeston were the composers. Menken's big break came in 1979 when playwright Howard Ashman chose him and Engel to write the music for his musical adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut's novel God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater. It did well enough that Menken and Ashman decided to write a musical adaptation of the 1960 Roger Corman classic schlock film Little Shop of Horrors. And that was Menken's first big success as it was financially successful, won awards and was turned into a 1986 film. Then Walt Disney Studios hired Menken and Ashman to compose the music for the 1989 animated adaptation of the Hans Christian Andersen story The Little Mermaid. Disney wanted The Little Mermaid to sit alongside Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as a classic. It was so successful that it triggered a new era The Disney Renaissance. Under the Sea won a Best Song Oscar and Menken won a Best Score Oscar. After similar success with the 1991 film Beauty and the Beast, Ashman died while they were working on the 1992 film Aladdin. Ashman had finished three songs. Tim Rice wrote the rest of the songs with Menken. Rice was working on The Lion King. That was also very successful. Then Menken turned The Little Mermaid into a Broadway musical. And that was so successful that Broadway musicals are yet another Disney cash cow. Menken wrote the music for Pocahontas and Hercules with other songwriters. Then he returned to Broadway to work on the musicals The Little Mermaid and Sister Act. Then he worked on the 2011 animated film Tangled. This was an adaptation of the German fairy tale Rapunzel. Mandy Moore voiced the main character. It was written by Dan Fogelman and directed by Nathan Greno and Byron Howard. It was the first Disney animated feature to mix traditional animation with CGI and it cost $260M. Menken composed the score and wrote the songs with Glenn Slater. They had worked together before on the 2004 film Home on the Range. Though the film was successful and Menken's score was praised, the songs were criticized as pedestrian. I guess Salter could be blamed for that. The soundtrack album is a mix of Menken's score and songs mostly featuring Mandy Moore. It's available as a digital download. The album was certified Platinum. There was a 2017 TV series of Tangled. A live action sequel of Tangled was announced recently scheduled for a 2028 release. Menken's latest animated feature was the 2024 film Spellbound for Netflix. He also worked on the 2023 live action film The Little Mermaid. Menken is considered to be one of the all time great composers. I like his music. But he works on a lot of musicals and the songs in those musicals haven't been that good lately. Tangled is representative of that. Here's a video of Horse with No Rider from the 2011 film Tangled. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Coyote Shivers

Artist:Coyote Shivers 

Song:Sugarhigh

Album:Empire Records: The Soundtrack

The 1995 film Empire Records bombed at the box office. But the soundtrack album was a big seller. This is not unheard of. For example, the 1993 film Judgement Day bombed but the soundtrack was certified Gold. This song Sugarhigh was performed at the end of Empire Records. It is the only notable recording for Francis "Coyote" Shivers. He was born Sept. 24, 1965 in Toronto. He started out producing the Canadian band Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet. Their song Having an Average Weekend was the theme for the TV series The Kids in the Hall. He produced that band's first two albums. He played guitar in the instrumental rock band Sharkskin. They released three EPs. Then he moved to Los Angeles with famed producer Daniel Lanois. He also made stops in Amsterdam and New York City as guitarist for The Dave Rave Conspiracy. He returned to Toronto to appear in the 1995 film Johnny Mnemonic starring Keanu Reeves. The film was shot in Toronto. Then he got the role Berko in Empire Records. At the time Shivers was married to Bebe Buell and her daughter Liv Tyler appeared in Empire Records. The film was written by Carol Heikkinen based on her high school days working at Tower Records in Phoenix. It was also inspired by the 1976 film Car Wash. Everything in the film happens in one day. The script was given to producer Alan Riche who attended the same high school as Carol. They sold it to Regency Enterprises president Michael Nathanson and Pump Up the Volume director Allan Moyle. The film stars were Anthony LaPaglia, Maxwell Caulfield and Ethan Embry. Most of the film was shot in Wilmington, NC. Empire Records was supposed to get a wide release. But after previews, it was reduced to a two week limited release. Regency and Warner Bros. cut the release to minimize their losses. It was also critically panned with a 35% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. For the most part, they loved the music and hated the film. The soundtrack album sold two million copies while the film cost $10M and grossed $303 thousand. So if you are a fan of 90s alternative music, the Empire Records soundtrack is worth getting. It's available on CD. Shivers performs Sugarhigh at the end of the film with Renee Zellweger. He wrote and produced the song with Daniel Lanois. Shivers has recorded a couple of albums and appeared in a few films. But Empire Records is the only memorable thing he has done. As sometimes happens with films that bomb, Empire Records has gained a cult following through home video and cable. Maybe it's not so bad. Maybe I'll watch it sometime. Here's Coyote Shivers with Renee Zellweger performing Sugarhigh in the film Empire Records. Renee does not appear on the soundtrack recording. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Karrin Allyson

Artist:Karrin Allyson

Song:Moanin'

Album:By Request: The Best of Karrin Allyson

Jazz singer Karrin Allyson has been around since the early 90s. She has been nominated for five Grammy awards. From 1993 to 2011 she recorded for Concord and those are the recordings you want to check out. She was born Karrin Allyson Schoonover July 27,1963 in Grand Bend, KS. but she grew up in Omaha. Her father was a Lutheran minister and her mother was a psychotherapist and a classical pianist. Karrin studied classical piano, sang in church and performed musical theater. She attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha on a classical piano scholarship. She led an all female rock band called Tomboy and got interested in jazz and performed in local clubs. After Karrin graduated in 1986, she moved to Minneapolis and then moved to Kansas City in 1990. And that's where her singing career started. After she self released the 1992 album I Didn't Know About You, Concord signed her and re-released the album in 1993. She recorded the album with local Kansas City musicians. After the album was positively reviewed in the Chicago Tribune, Karrin recorded for Concord until 2011. Moanin' is from the 2002 album In Blue. By this time, Karrin was recording in New York with big name jazz musicians. Of course Moanin' is a jazz standard written by pianist Bobby Timmons when he was in Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers in 1959. Jon Hendricks wrote the lyrics and the Lambert, Hendricks and Ross version made Moanin' even more popular. The original recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. Karrin recorded standards on this album which were supposed to evoke a melancholy mood. The album was produced by veteran jazz producer Nick Phillips. Musicians are Steve Wilson on alto sax, Mulgrew Miller on piano, Danny Embrey on guitar, Peter Washington on bass and Lewis Nash on drums. Moanin' appears on this comp which is available as a digital download. Concord released it after Karrin left the label in 2011. Since then she has recorded for her own label. Her latest album A Kiss for Brazil was released in 2024 on Origin Records. Karrin still tours. But last month her husband and longtime manager Bill McGlauthlin died. They hosted a radio show together and first met in Kansas City in 1990. It makes me think that Karrin might retire. But I haven't seen anything indicating that though it wouldn't surprise me. Here's Karrin Allyson performing Moanin' at Montreux 2003. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Get Up Kids

Artist:The Get Up Kids

Song:Ten Minutes

Album:Something to Write Home About

The Get Up Kids is a punk emo band who have had success as an album and touring band. They have never been on a major label so they have never been promoted as stars. At this point, they probably don't want that as it might alienate their fans. I'm not a big fan of this kind of music in the first place. But for me, The Get Up Kids sound too much like other similar punk emo bands. But that's what the punk emo fans want. The Get Up Kids are from Kansas City, MO. Guitarist Jim Suptic, bassist Rob Pope and drummer Ryan Pope went to high school together and had the band Kingpin. Singer Matt Pryor led the band Secret Decoder Ring. When both bands split up in 1995, they merged and became The Get Up Kids. The big thing about Pryor is he was already writing songs. They opened for the emo band Mineral on their first show. The original drummer was Thomas Becker. When he went off to college, Nathan Shay replaced him. He was attending the Kansas City Art Institute with Suptic. The Get Up Kids self released a single and were going to tour. But Shay didn't want to tour and Rob Pope brought in his younger brother Ryan Pope. After releasing another single, The Get Up Kids signed with the indie label Doghouse Records and they combined the singles into an EP. And they signed a two album contract. The Get Up Kids drove to Chicago to record their debut album produced by Bob Weston of the band Shellac. The album was recorded over a weekend and The Get Up Kids went on tour opening for the emo band Braid. Their debut album Four Minute Mile was released in 1997. The album did OK and the band continued to tour. They opened for Braid in Europe. They were unhappy with Doghouse as they couldn't keep up with the increased popularity of the band. They decided to leave Doghouse. They talked to several labels and were going to sign with Mojo Records. Before they signed, they met Vagrant Records owner Rich Egan and he offered them more money and their own label. Then they met James Dewees who recorded a 1998 album as Reggie and the Full Effect. He joined The Get Up Kids as a keyboardist. He appeared on the 1999 album Something to Write Home About. Vagrant mortgaged themselves to sell the album. And it worked out as the album got rave reviews and it sold well. The Get Up Kids wrote and produced the album so royalties were split evenly. This album is available as a digital download. The Get Up Kids toured non stop for three years to promote the album. Not surprisingly, when it was time to record The Get Up Kids' next album, they were burned out. So they wanted to change to a more classic rock sound for the 2002 album On a Wire. Unfortunately, when the album was released, fans didn't like it. Alternative Press criticized The Get Up Kids for alienating their loyal fanbase. They lost fans and support from Vagrant. The Get Up Kids bought Black Lodge Studios in Eudora, KS with longtime recording engineer Ed Rose. Then they released the 2004 album Guilt Show. The album did OK. But they were overshadowed by the popularity of emo bands like Dashboard Confessional who they toured with. Meanwhile, they were tired of touring and they weren't getting along anyway. The Get Up Kids announced that they were disbanding. their final show was at the Uptown Theater in their hometown of Kansas City July 2005. The Pope brothers took over Black Lodge Studios. Rob Pope was in the band White Whale followed by Spoon. Ryan Pope was in the band The Roman Numerals. Matt Pryor already had a side project called The New Amsterdams. He also released two solo albums. Suptic started a record label but it didn't work out and he was working at Home Depot. James Dewees was a member of New Found Glory and My Chemical Romance. After a 2008 reunion show, The Get Up Kids recorded new music which became the 2011 album There Are Rules on their own label. When the album didn't sell, they went on hiatus again but they did return to release a 2019 album. They have returned to touring and they are still touring. Here's the video for Ten Minutes by The Get Up Kids. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Dartells

Artist:The Dartells

Song:Hot Pastrami

Album:Son of Frat Rock

The 1962 single Hot Pastrami was a top twenty hit. It was the only big hit for The Dartells. One of their other songs charted so it is not technically a one hit wonder. The Dartells were from Oxnard, CA led by lead singer and bassist Doug Phillips. The other members were Dick Burns on guitar, Randy Ray on organ, Corey Wilkie and Rich Peil on sax and Gary Peeler on drums. Phillips wrote this reworking of the Nat Kendricks & the Swans single Mashed Potatoes. The Swans were James Brown's band at the time. The Dartells recorded Hot Pastrami in a garage. So I guess they were literally a garage band. Their manager and producer Tom Ayers got them a record deal with Arlen Records. Hot Pastrami did well enough on local radio that Dot Records picked it up for national distribution. That's how many songs became hits in those days. Hot Pastrami reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963. Then The Dartells recorded what appears to be a mostly instrumental album. Not surprisingly, the album is out of print. But you can get Hot Pastrami on this Rhino various artists comp. After releasing a couple of unsuccessful singles. The Dartells split up. Some of them went on to other bands. Phillips was in the late 60s bands New Concepts and Camaraderie. Both bands were on major labels but went nowhere. Ayers went on to play bass for Johnny Burnette. Then he became an A&R man for several labels. Most notably he brought David Bowie to RCA. Here's The Dartells performing Hot Pastrami on a 1966 episode of The Lloyd Thaxton Show.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Hot Chelle Rae

Artist:Hot Chelle Rae

Song:Tonight Tonight

Album:Whatever

The 2011 single Tonight Tonight was a top ten hit. It was the only big hit for the band Hot Chelle Rae. One of their other songs charted so they are not technically a one hit wonder. But Tonight Tonight is the only song that anyone will remember. The band was called Miracle Drug when it was formed in Nashville in 2005 by lead singer Ryan Folisee and guitarist Nash Overstreet. After releasing an EP, bassist Ian Keaggy joined followed by drummer Jamie Folisee who is Ryan's brother. They had to change the band name for copyright reasons. Hot Chelle Rae was a MySpace stalker who disappeared when the band discovered she was a fake. But they liked the name. Soon after they signed with Jive Records and they released the 2009 album Lovesick Electric. They toured to support it but the album didn't sell. After recording the 2011 album Whatever, the single Tonight Tonight reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album did particularly well in Australia and New Zealand. So they spent a lot time touring there opening for Taylor Swift and Demi Lovato and headlining their own shows. Ryan Folisee and Overstreet wrote most of the songs with co-writers and producers. The album was produced by Emanuel Kiriakou who has worked with acts like Jason Derulo and Selena Gomez. He brought with him songwriters Evan Kidd Bogart and Lindy Robbins and they helped write Tonight Tonight. The other producer was Andrew Goldstein and he has worked with Maroon 5 and Katy Perry. By this time, Jive parent company Zomba was sold to RCA. So Hot Chelle Rae was moved to RCA. This album is available as a budget CD. After the 2013 EP Recklessly was released, Ian Keaggy announced that he was leaving Hot Chelle Rae. They continued to tour. But after Ryan Folisee left and released a 2017 country album, that seemed to end Hot Chelle Rae. I thought they weren't distinctive enough. I'm sure many listeners thought that Tonight Tonight was by a different band. Overstreet and Jamie Folisee reformed Hot Chelle Rae in 2018. Ryan Folisee declined the invitation to join and I wouldn't be surprised to see him concentrate on songwriting. His parents are songwriters. Hot Chelle Rae released an EP in 2020 followed by a few singles, most recently in 2022. They toured earlier this year, including some shows in Australia. I don't know if that's enough to keep them going. Here's the video for Tonight Tonight by Hot Chelle Rae.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jodi Benson

Artist:Jodi Benson

Song:I Got Rhythm

Album:Crazy for You: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Jodi Benson is best known as the voice of Ariel in the 1989 film The Little Mermaid. She was named a Disney Legend in 2011. She was also nominated for a Tony for playing Polly Baker in the 1992 Broadway musical Crazy for You. She does plenty of voiceover work in films, TV and video games. I guess Broadway is the only place where she performs live. She was born Jodi Marzorati Oct. 10, 1961 in Rockford, IL. She was raised in a Catholic family and after graduating from high school, she attended Millikin University in Decatur, IL. She made her Broadway debut in the 1983 musical Marilyn: An American Fable. This was an attempt to turn the life of Marilyn Monroe into a Broadway musical. It only ran for two weeks. Then she appeared in the 1986 musical Smile based on the 1975 film comedy about a beauty pageant. It also flopped. But it was written by Marvin Hamlisch and Howard Ashman. And Ashman and Alan Menken wrote the songs for the 1989 Disney animated film The Little Mermaid. So though Smile was a flop, it got Jodi into Disney. And that's the base of her career as Ashman told her to audition for The Little Mermaid. Then she was nominated for a Tony for playing Polly Baker in the 1992 Broadway musical. This should have been called Gershwin's Greatest Hits as it was loosely based on the 1930 musical Girl Crazy with other Gershwin hits thrown in. I guess it's an early example of a jukebox musical. It ran for a couple of years and has been revived several times. So it was a hit. The original cast album is available as a budget CD. Jodi still appears occasionally on Broadway. She is currently appearing in a revival of the Stephen Sondheim musical Into the Woods. But mostly Jodi does lots of voiceovers on films, TV and video games. Of course she is still the voice of Ariel. And she has done other Disney films including Flubber (1997) and Toy Story 2 (1999). And she has worked for other animation studios and video game producers. And like many performers, she appears as a guest soloist with regional symphony orchestras. Here's Jodi Benson performing I Got Rhythm from the musical Crazy for You on the 1992 Tony Awards broadcast. This was my first time posting a TikTok video. I don't know why anyone would post a video like this on TikTok. I checked and it can be embedded. But I didn't like how it looked. So as I do with Facebook videos, I downloaded it and uploaded it directly to my blog. This is how it should be.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Phillips, Craig and Dean

Artist:Phillips, Craig and Dean

Song:Come, Now Is the Time To Worship

Album:Here I Am to Worship: 16 Timeless Worship Anthems

Phillips, Craig and Dean has been one of the most popular CCM acts over the last 25 years. They were formed in 1991 but they were more successful in the 2000s because they switched to a larger label and were given a decent promotion budget. They have been nominated for ten Dove awards and won four. Randy Phillips is a pastor from Austin, TX. In 1991, he was shopping a solo album to record companies. When he showed up at the Nashville based CCM label StarSong, they suggested he form a male vocal group. Phillips called St. Louis native Shawn Craig and Dan Dean from the Dallas suburb of Carrollton, TX. and Phillips, Craig and Dean was born. All three guys are pastors. They recorded five albums for StarSong. EMI purchased StarSong in 1996. So by 1999, EMI closed StarSong and moved Phillips, Craig and Dean to EMI's CCM label Sparrow. The group's sound is soft rock with three part harmonies aimed mainly at an older audience. But that is what would have been acceptable to Christian audiences at the time. Today's CCM sound is more contemporary and I don't think Phillips, Craig and Dean have kept up. Besides, they are getting closer to retirement. Come, Now Is the Time for Worship is from the 2001 album Let the Words Be Few. CCM chart stats can be difficult to find but this is supposed to be one of their most popular songs. The song was written by Canadian CCM singer songwriter Brian Doerksen. The album was produced by Nathan Nockels who has produced several Phiillips, Craig and Dean albums. This budget comp covers their Sparrow albums. Phillips, Craig and Dean switched to Integrity's INO label distributed by Sony. When Integrity was sold in 2011, INO president Jeff Moseley bought the assets and changed the company name to Fair Trade Services. Sony still distributed them. So Phillips, Craig and Dean were on INO/Fair Trade from 2004-17. Their latest album You're Still God was released in 2020 on Gaither Music. So that means they are touring now with Bill Gaither's group. So I guess they are a nostalgia act now. They are currently on tour and they say they aren't retiring. We'll see. Here's Phillips, Craig and Dean performing Come, Now Is the Time for Worship. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Creatures

Artist:The Creatures

Song:Fury Eyes

Album:Boomerang

The Creatures were a spinoff of the popular British band Siouxsie and the Banshees formed by Banshees lead singer Susan "Siouxsie Sioux" Ballion and drummer Peter "Budgie" Clarke. The idea was to have something to do when the Banshees took a break. The idea came to them while in the studio working on the 1981 Siouxsie Sioux and the Banshees album Juju. They discovered by accident that the combination of just voice and drums worked well on the song But Not Them. So they recorded five songs and they released it as an EP called Wild Things. This included a reworking of The Troggs classic Wild Thing. It was released on Polydor in England. The EP did well enough in England that The Creatures performed on Top of the Pops. Then they released the 1983 album Feast. They signed with Geffen in the US. It was recorded in Hawaii so it had an exotica vibe. Their cover of the Mel Torme hit Right Now added horns and was a top 20 hit in England. So The Creatures had some success but it's not like they topped the charts. When Siouxie Sioux and the Banshees returned in 1984, The Creatures were put on hold until the 1989 album Boomerang. They recorded this album in Spain with producer Mike Hedges. Again this had an exotica vibe and horns were added to the album. The album was favorably reviewed and it did OK. Meanwhile, Susan and Clarke married in 1991 and moved to France. After Siouxsie and the Banshees split up in 1996, The Creatures started their own label and released an EP. They also filmed a concert with John Cale for Dutch TV. The Creatures released one more album in 2003. The end for The Creatures came when in a 2007 interview with The Sunday Times, Susan announced that they had divorced. Susan released an album in 2007. Clarke has appeared as a sideman and guest on several albums. But he's not really a solo artist anyway. Here's the video for Fury Eyes by The Creatures. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Elected

Artist:The Elected

Song:Not Going Home

Album:Sun, Sun, Sun

When the leaders of the band Rilo Kiley decided to take a break to work on other projects in 2002, Blake Sennett and Mike Bloom decided to start their own band The Elected. So they are a spinoff band. They released a couple of albums and then both guys went on to other bands. Sennett met Rilo Kiley lead singer Jenny Lewis in the 90s and even dated her for a while. Sennett started out as a teen actor. He is best known for playing Joey the Rat on the sitcom Boy Meets World. When acting dried up, Sennett joined Rilo Kiley. Bloom was a studio musician and joined Rilo Kiley occasionally when needed. Sennett and Bloom wrote and produced The Elected's two albums. They both sing and play guitar and keyboards. Drummer Jason Boesel was also a member of Rilo Kiley and bassist Daniel Brummel was in the band Ozma. They didn't stay as The Elected was really a two man band. Sennett and Bloom worked on demos at Sennett's home studio and they signed with the indie label Sub Pop. They released the album Me First in 2004 followed by the 2006 album Sun, Sun, Sun. Not Going Home is from Sun, Sun, Sun. They wrote all the songs and played most of the instruments. Bloom wrote and sang lead on Not Going Home. The album is available as a budget CD. The Elected ended after the two albums. Jenny Lewis released a solo album and Rilo Kiley released the 2007 album Under the Boardwalk. After they toured, Rilo Kiley went on hiatus again and so did Sennett to work on film music. Bloom joined Julian Casablancas' touring band. There was a third The Elected album in 2011 called Bury Me in My Rings. But Sennett has said that it was a solo album as he did everything himself. Sennett started the band With Night Terrors of 1927 and they released a 2015 album. Bloom is mostly a studio musician these days. My guess is if Rilo Kiley had never gone on hiatus in 2002, The Elected would never have happened. Here's The Elected performing Not Going Home on Jimmy Kimmel Live 2006.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Collie Buddz

Artist:Collie Buddz 

Song:Blind to You

Album:Collie Buddz

Colin "Collie Buddz" Harper is a reggae rapper and singer who has a significant fanbase because the 2007 singles Come Around and Blind to You connected with an audience that is still with him today. He currently records for his own label. He was born Aug. 21, 1981 in New Orleans but he grew up in Bermuda as his mom is Bermudian. Harper studied audio engineering at Full Sail University in Florida and appeared on Shaggy's 2007 album Intoxication. The name Collie Buddz is cannabis slang. That one appearance got him a record deal with Columbia Records and they released the 2007 album Collie Buddz. The album and the singles Come Around and Blind to You topped the Reggae chart. But it doesn't look like Columbia promoted Harper in any other market. Harper now says that he signed what is called a "360" deal which allows Columbia to recoup marketing and production costs. Harper says he didn't get any royalties for 13 years. When Columbia wasn't happy with the album sales, Harper decided to leave Columbia and start his own label. The album served its purpose to connect him with his target audience. So maybe Harper was using Columbia's global reach to get what he wanted. Harper wrote most of the album songs and worked with several producers. He co-wrote and produced Blind to You with Jamaican producer Dwayne "Supa Dups" Chin-Quee who is part of the Black Chiney sound system. This album is available as a digital download. Harper started his own label currently distributed by Ineffable Music Group. He does his own promotion. They just distribute his product. Harper released his latest album in 2023 and he is a very successful live performer. So it looks to me like Harper got exactly what he wanted and used Columbia to get that. Here's Collie Buddz performing Blind to You at Cali Roots 2013. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Joyce Manor

Artist:Joyce Manor

Song:Schley

Album:Never Hungover Again

Punk rock fans should enjoy the modern day punk band Joyce Manor. Of course punk rock was very popular in the 70s. It's not popular anymore but Joyce Manor has a significant following. Joyce Manor was formed in 2008 in Torrance, CA. Lead singer and guitarist Barry Johnson and guitarist Chase Knobbe decided to start a band. The name Joyce Manor came from an apartment building that Johnson would pass on walks. They started out as an acoustic duo. Bassist Matt Ebert and drummer Kurt Walcher were added in 2009 to give them the sound they were after. At first, Joyce Manor was part of Southern California's emo revival. They signed with 6131 Records and released their debut album Joyce Manor in 2011. The band gained a following through word of mouth. Punknews named it their 2011 Album of the Year. They released the 2012 album Of All Things I Will Soon Grow Tired on Asian Man Records. The album was not well received. Johnson says now that he didn't want to be like other bands. He was put in touch with Epitaph Records owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz and they are still on that label. The 2014 album Never Hungover Again was Joyce Manor's first album on Epitaph. The album was produced by Joe Reinhart of the band Algernon Cadwallader. Johnson writes all the songs though they are credited to Joyce Manor and the royalties are evenly split. All the songs are around two minutes long. All their albums are around twenty minutes long. Apparently this is a nod to the 90s California punk and emo scene where they started out. I don't like twenty minute albums. But Joyce Manor's fans are OK with it. And this album got rave reviews most notably from Spin Magazine. It's available on CD. The album did well enough that Joyce Manor is playing bigger shows and sometimes headlining. Walcher left Joyce Manor before they recorded the 2016 album Cody. They tried to hire a replacement but they now hire a drummer for tours. Joyce Manor went on hiatus for COVID. But they released a new album I used to Go to This Bar Jan. 2026. Gurewitz produced it. They are currently on tour. Here's Joyce Manor performing Schley at The El Rey in Los Angeles 2014. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-BigXthaPlug

Artist:BigXthaPlug f/Bailey Zimmerman

Song:All the Way

Album:I Hope You're Happy

Rapper Xavier "BigXthaPlug" Landrum scored a top five hit with the 2025 single All the Way featuring country music star Bailey Zimmerman. It also topped the country charts. A country rap crossover is not new. It's just not done that frequently and it's usually done as a one off. Recently there was Beyonce's 2024 album COWBOY CARTER which she produced after a record company executive told her she couldn't. And of course Jelly Roll straddles country and rap. More typical was when Nelly featured Tim McGraw on the 2004 single Over and Over. And Nelly appeared on the 2013 Florida Georgia Line single Cruise. This is a complete album of the same formula. Rapper and country singer alternating vocals on every song. I think most folks would tire of this type of crossover quickly. That's why you don't see it done frequently. Also this album is only 26 minutes long. Landrum was born May 12, 1998 in Dallas. His mom was a "gangsta" who once shot at a would be thief during an attempted robbery. But she was his best friend. His father was the disciplinarian. Landrum listened to rap and R&B as a child. He was a poor student who skipped classes and got into fights. After moving to Commerce, TX to live with his father, Landrum got into football. And after graduating from high school, he attended Crown College in Minnesota. When Landrum started selling weed to students, police found weed in his dorm room and he was expelled from school and sent home. When he got home, Landrum started robbing drug dealers. That landed him in jail. And that's when he started rapping. And after he was released, he recorded his first mixtape. Landrum again landed in jail in 2022 for illegal possession of weapons and weed. This time he signed with UnitedMasters and released his 2023 debut album Amar named after his son. UnitedMasters is owned by former Sony Music president of Urban Music Steve Stoute. When Landrum's 2022 single Texas contained slide guitar and Southern Rap swagger, some country stars expressed an interest in working with him. And that's when he recorded the 2025 album I Hope You're Happy. The single All the Way featuring Bailey Zimmerman reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it topped the Country Singles chart. It was certified 2XPlatinum. The album was certified Gold and it was only released as a digital download. Most of the album was produced by Krishon "BandPlay" Gaines. They met in 2022 while Landrum was on tour with Key Glock. Gaines has worked on all his albums. Landrum is currently on tour. But he has said that his next album will be rap and the country crossover is a one off album. I'm not surprised. The album did make him famous. Here's the video for All the Way by BigXthaPlug featuring Bailey Zimmerman. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Fapy Lafertin

Artist:Fapy Lafertin

Song:Fleur de Lavende

Album:Dutch Jazz Giants Volume 7: Gipsy Swing

The influence of French jazz guitar legend Django Reinhardt is so vast that it's impossible to know where to start. Look at all the bands that have the name "Hot Club" in their name. And Reinhardt did invent what we know today as Gipsy Swing. Belgian guitarist Jean "Fapy" Lafertin plays other styles of music sometimes. But mostly he plays in Reinhardt's style. He was born Nov. 20, 1950 in Kortrijk, Belgium in the Manouche Romani community. He started playing guitar at age five. After playing in his family band with his father on violin and his brother on second guitar, he joined a band led by violinist Piotto Lindberger. The band was called WASO. The other members were Vivi Limberger on guitar, Keon De Cauter on sax and Michael Verstraeten on bass. Then Lafertin started his own band in 1985 in The Netherlands with Rudi Brink on violin and Joop Hendricks and Tim Kliphuis on sax and clarinet. Then Lafertin released his debut album as a leader in 1991. The album title is Fleur de Lavende. The album was released on the Norwegian label Hot Club Records owned by Jon Larsen of the band Hot Club de Norvege. Lafertin recorded some Gipsy Swing standards. But he wrote Fleur de Lavende. Musicians are guitarist Flip Krajenbrink, violinist Hadi Mouallem, bassist Simon Planting and drummer Onno De Brujin. I think they are all Dutch. This album is available as part of a 10CD box set called Dutch Jazz Giants released by the Dutch label Pink Records. There's a different artist on each CD. I don't know why anyone would release a box set like this. But the albums are available individually as digital downloads. Lafertin's album is volume 7 of the box set. Since then Lafertin has released several albums on different labels. His latest album is with clarinetist Evan Christopher called A Summit in Paris on the French label Camille Productions released in 2020. Lafertin tours Europe frequently. But I don't think he has ever played in North America. Django Reinhardt fans should check him out. Here's Fapy Lafertin with Martin Limberger on guitar, Simon Planting on bass and Frans van Oosterhout on drums performing Fleur de Lavende on Dutch TV 1992.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The El Dorados

Artist:The El Dorados

Song:At My Front Door

Album:Essential Doo-Wop: Let's Have a Ball

The doo wop group The El Dorados topped the R&B Singles chart and scored a top 20 pop hit with the 1955 single At My Front Door. It turned out to be their only big hit though a version of The El Dorados has played the oldies circuit for many years. The El Dorados went to Englewood High School in Chicago. They were called Pirkle Lee and the All Stars when they formed in 1952. The lead singer was Pirkle Lee Moses Jr. He also wrote songs and led the group for decades. After Moses spent some time in the US Air Force, he returned in 1954 and the group name was changed to The El Dorados. The other members were tenors Louis Bradley and Arthur Basset, second tenor Jewel Jones and baritones James Maddox and Richard Nickens. They came to the attention of Chicago DJ Al Benson and he got them an audition with Vivian Carter of Vee-Jay Records. The El Dorados signed with Vee-Jay. At My Front Door was their fifth single and it topped the R&B Singles chart and reached #17 on the pop chart. They released an album called Crazy Little Mama. Pat Boone's version of At My Front Door reached #7 on the pop charts. At My Front Door was written by The Drifters lead singer John Moore and he produced with Vee-Jay co-owner Ewart Abner. Abner went on to be Stevie Wonder's manager and president of Motown in the 70s. The album Crazy Little Mama is available on CD from the Japanese label P-Vine. But if you only want At My Front Door, you can get it on this comp of doo wop classics. The El Dorados split up in 1957. Vee-Jay soon dropped them. Moses continued to lead a version of The El Dorados until his 2000 death. A version of The El Dorados still tours today. Here's The El Dorados performing At Your Front Door 1994.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Barleyjuice

Artist:Barleyjuice

Song:Weekend Irish

Album:The Barleyjuice Irish Collection

Barleyjuice is an American band that plays Irish themed music. There have been other similar bands, most notably The Dropkick Murphys. Like that band, Barleyjuice performs mostly original songs. They are from Philadelphia. Kyf Brewer and Keith Swanson were bagpipers for the Loch Rannoch Pipes & Drums in Pineville, PA. They decided to start Barleyjuice in 1998 as a side project to perform traditional Irish and Scottish songs in a rock style very similar to The Dropkick Murphys. They played mostly on St. Patrick's Day. They became a full time band in 2001 after they released their debut album One Shilling. They record for their own label. One of the songs from that album appeared in the 2001 film Driven. Brewer and Swanson are the only constant members of Barleyjuice. They write and produce everything. They started to get attention when the song What's Up Yours? from the 2003 album Another Round was named Song of the Year by listener vote at Celtic Radio. Weekend Irish is from their 2008 album Bonnie Prince Barley. A music video was produced for that song. Then they made a deal with the shopping network QVC to sell the 2CD comp The Barleyjuice Irish Collection to viewers. Bonnie Prince Barley is probably Barleyjuice's most popular album. But it's out of print. You can get Weekend Irish on The Barleyjuice Irish Collection which is available as a digital download. Swanson retired from Barleyjuice in 2019. But he returned and they still play occasional shows. They last released an album in 2018. Here's the video for Weekend Irish by Barleyjuice. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-OK Go

Artist:OK Go

Song:Here It Goes Again

Album:Oh No

OK Go is an indie band that have had success as an album and touring band. The 2006 single Here It Goes Again was a top 40 hit so it's probably their best known song. OK Go leader Damian Kulash met bassist Tim Nordwind at summer camp in Michigan when they were 11 years old. The band name came from something their art teacher would say while they were drawing. They kept in touch afterwards. Nordwind met keyboardist Andy Duncan in high school. After they moved to Chicago to attend school, they formed the band Stanley's Joyful Noise with drummer Dan Konopka. Meanwhile, Kulash studied music at Brown University in Providence, RI. After graduating, he moved to Chicago and formed OK Go in 1998. Kulash is lead singer, guitarist and he writes all the songs. They started playing local clubs and opened for Elliott Smith, The Promise Ring and The Olivia Tremor Control. They were the house band for the Chicago Public Media radio show This American Life. After self releasing a couple of EPs and opening for They Might Be Giants, OK Go moved to Los Angeles in 2001 and sent out demos to record companies. They signed with Capitol because Andy Slater was Capitol's new president and they thought he would give them more attention. Their debut album OK Go was released in 2002. The single Get Over It charted in England and OK Go performed on Top Of The Pops. But the album didn't sell in the US. For the 2005 album Oh, No, OK Go went to Malmo, Sweden to work with producer Tore Johansson who had worked with The Cardigans and Franz Ferdinand. After they finished recording, Duncan left due to creative differences and the tour schedule. Andy Ross replaced him. This album did better than the first one and the single Here It Goes Again reached #38 on the Billboard Hot 100. The video for Here It Goes Again was the band dancing on treadmills. So MTV played it to death and OK Go performed it live on the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. In those days, it was a double edged sword. The video helped record sales. But many radio stations were still resentful of MTV and might have refused to play the record anyway. Also, Kulash was concerned about being typecast as "that goofy band". Oh, No is available as a budget CD. OK Go ran into problems with their 2010 album On the Blue Colour of the Sky when Capitol posted videos on YouTube and would not allow embedding. In response to complaints, Kulash posted an open letter on the band website which included embed codes. He thought it was stupid too. Soon after OK Go left Capitol and started their own label Paracadute. OK Go is still around. They released an album last year and will tour in the fall. Here's the video for Here It Goes Again by OK Go.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Eladio Carrion

Artist:Eladio Carrion f/Bad Bunny

Song:Coco Chanel

Album:3MEN2 KBRN

Rapper Eladio Carrion has had success mostly in the Latin market. Reggaeton is marketed a little differently than other kinds of music. This song Coco Chanel charted in 2023 despite not being released as a single. Bad Bunny is on it and he's one of the biggest stars right now. My problem with Carrion is the same problem I have with many rappers. He releases way too much music and should be more selective. He's released seven albums since 2020 and plenty of standalone singles. He was born Nov. 14, 1994 in Kansas City, KS. His parents are Puerto Rican. His father was in the military so they moved around a lot until his family relocated to Humacao, Puerto Rico in 2005. Carrion was a swimmer who represented Puerto Rico in the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games and the 2011 Pan American Games. After he finished eighth in 2011, Carrion quit swimming and posted funny videos to Vine and Instagram. Then he started rapping and singing. He signed with Rimas Entertainment and released his 2020 debut album Sauce Boyz. The album was certified Platinum and his single Kemba Walker featuring Bad Bunny was certified Platinum and nominated for a Latin Grammy. And as I said, Carrion's music is not marketed traditionally. Word of mouth is more important than radio play. He's had similar success with all his albums. Coco Chanel is from Carrion's 2023 album 3MEN2 KBRN which is an abbreviation of Tremendo Cabron which means badass. Coco Chanel was Carrion's first song to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. And it was not released as a single. The success of the song was fueled by Bad Bunny's star power. Carrion and Bad Bunny had success with the 2020 single Kemba Walker. So there was a lot of anticipation for this new song. And it went viral when Bad Bunny dissed Phoenix Suns' Devin Walker who used to date Kendall Jenner who was dating Bad Bunny at the time. Coco Chanel was written by Carrion, Bad Bunny and producer John "DVLP" Zayas. This album is available as a digital download. Since then Carrion has released three albums including his latest in Apr. 2026. Plus he makes guest appearances. As I said, I think he could decrease his musical output and still do OK. It looks like he's going on tour in the fall. Here's the video for Coco Chanel by Eladio Carrion featuring Bad Bunny.