AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bobby Edwards

Artist:Bobby Edwards

Song:You're the Reason

Album:20 Greatest Country Hits 1961

Bobby Edwards scored a top five country hit with the 1961 single You're the Reason. It crossed over and was a top 20 pop hit. Edwards had one other chart single so he is not technically a one hit wonder. He was born Robert Edward Moncrief Jan. 18, 1926 in Anniston, AL. His father was a preacher. As Bobby Moncrief, he recorded Long Gone Daddy for Pappy Daly's D Records in 1958. Then he covered Tex Ritter's 1945 hit Jealous Heart for Bluebonnet Records. Then Edwards went to Los Angeles to try and get a record deal. He met songwriter Terry Fell who got him a deal with Crest Records. They were owned by Gary Walker and Slim Williamson. Williamson was a musician so he produced the music. Edwards wrote You're the Reason with Fell. Fell wrote the Red Steagall classic Truck Drivin' Man. Then Edwards got together with Darrell Colton, Gib Guilbeau and Ernie Williams. They called themselves Darrel, Gib & Ernie. Once Wayne Moore was added, they backed up Edwards on You're the Reason and they were billed as Bobby Edwards & the Four Young Men. You're the Reason reached #4 on the Country Singles chart. Then it crossed over to pop and it reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. You can get You're the Reason on this various artists budget comp. In those days, when small labels scored a hit, they usually sold the contract to a major label. Crest sold Edwards' contract to Capitol Records. They chose to release the soundalike record What's the Reason and it reached #71 on the Billboard Hot 100. Edwards had no success after that. Edwards went home to Anniston and opened a recording studio. He recorded a couple of gospel albums in the 70s. Edwards moved to Smyrna, TN. in 2000 and he died on July 31, 2012 at age 86. Here's a video for You're the Reason by Bobby Edwards.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Marvelettes

Artist:The Marvelettes

Song:Please Mr. Postman

Album:Deliver: The Singles 1961-1971

The Marvelettes topped the charts with the 1961 single Please Mr. Postman. This was also Motown's very first number one hit. So it's unfortunate that The Marvelettes became an afterthought once The Supremes became popular. But that's because Motown owner Berry Gordy had a thing for Diana Ross. Everyone else got the leftovers. Well, Gordy was the boss. He could do what he wanted. The Marvelettes were formed in 1960 at Inkster High School in the Detroit suburb of Inkster, MI by Gladys Horton. She formed the group with fellow glee club members Katherine Anderson, Geoergeanna Tillman, Juanita Cowart and high school graduate Georgia Dobbins. They called themselves The Marvels. And after finishing fourth in a local talent show, they auditioned for Motown. After the first audition for Brian Holland and Robert Bateman, they auditioned for Gordy and Smokey Robinson. Gordy asked them to come up with a song. Georgia contacted local songwriter William Garrett. He wrote a blues song called Please Mr. Postman. He told Georgia she could use the song as long as he got credit if it was a hit. She turned it into a song appropriate for teens. Then Georgia left the group under pressure from her father. That left Gladys in charge and Wanda Young was brought in to replace Georgia. They signed with Motown but Gordy changed the group name to The Marvelettes so people would know they are a girl group. Holland, Bateman and Motown songwriter Freddie Morgan reworked Please Mr. Postman. Holland and Bateman produced the record and it topped the charts. As I said, this was Motown's first number one single. The Marvelettes had mixed success after that. The 1962 single Playboy was a top ten hit. But they weren't all that successful other than that. Plus they were always on tour doing The Motortown Revue. Juanita Cowart left in 1963 and Georgeanna Tillman left in 1964. So now they are down to a trio. In 1965, The Marvelettes made a comeback with the top ten hit Don't Mess with Bill written and produced by Smokey Robinson. That was their final hit and The Marvelettes disbanded in 1970. This 2CD budget comp has all their singles. Juanita Cowart is the only surviving member of The Marvelettes. Georgeanna Tillman died in 1980. Gladys Horton died in 2011. Georgia Dobbins died in 2020. Wanda Young died in 2021. Katherine Anderson died in 2023. Here's The Marvelettes performing Please Mr. Postman. 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Stephanie Vaquer vs Kairi Sane

Here's the match video of Stephanie Vaquer vs Kairi Sane from last night's episode of RAW. This began with the contract signing of the WWE Women's Championship match with Stephanie vs IYO SKY on this Saturday's Wrestlepalooza. Asuka interjects and volunteers Kairi vs Stephanie later in the show. Well, obviously Stephanie won't lose before this weekend but Kairi got her offense in. Asuka got involved too. The match was very good and Stephanie won with the Devil's Kiss followed by the SVB. Afterwards, Asuka confronted Stephanie and IYO came down to separate them. I don't know who will win on Saturday. But I expect Asuka to get involved what happens afterwards should be very interesting. So far, Asuka's heel work has been excellent. Enjoy the video! 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Wadsworth Mansion

Artist:Wadsworth Mansion

Song:Sweet Mary

Album:AM Gold: Early '70s Classics

Sweet Mary Was a top ten hit in 1971. It was the only chart single for Wadsworth Mansion. So it is a one hit wonder. They only recorded one album. I think it's one of those songs that folks remember but they know nothing about the band. Wadsworth Mansion was from Providence, RI led by Steve Jablecki on guitar, keyboards, lead vocals and he wrote Sweet Mary. His brother Mike Jablecki played drums. Other member were Wayne Gagnon on guitar and John Poole on bass. Wadsworth Mansion is in Connecticut. They signed with Sussex Records which was owned by Clarence Avant. Bill Withers was the best known artist on Sussex and he successfully sued Avant for royalties. There's a documentary about Avant on Netflix. Sweet Mary was the first single and it reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in Feb. 1971. You can get it on this Time Life various artists comp. This was followed by the album Wadsworth Mansion. Jablecki wrote most of the songs on the album including Sweet Mary. The album was produced by Jim Calvert and Norm Marzano. It doesn't like either produced anything else of note. Subsequent singles failed to chart. Wayne Gagnon was replaced by Howie McDonald in Jan. 1972. They recorded four songs for the next album when Mike Jablecki was replaced by Charlie Flannery. After a brief tour, Wadsworth Mansion split up in Aug. 1972. Steve Jablecki and Howie McDonald moved to Los Angeles to reform Wadsworth Mansion. A producer asked them to change the name to Slingshot but the band never recorded. Other than that, the members of Wadsworth Mansion left the music business. Here's a video for Sweet Mary by Wadsworth Mansion.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jon Gomm

Artist:Jon Gomm

Song:Ain't Nobody

Album:Secrets Nobody Keeps: Passionflower 10th Anniversary Edition

British guitarist Jon Gomm is popular with what I call guitar geeks. These are music fans who are concerned with guitar technique. The music is secondary. It's a significant secondary music market because these guitar geeks are pretty rabid. And it's not only for albums but videos and guitar tabs because many guitar geeks are aspiring guitarists. This 2013 cover of the Chaka Khan hit Ain't Nobody is probably Gomm's best known recording. He was born July 11, 1977 in Blackpool, Lancashire, England. His father is a music critic. Gomm started taking guitar lessons at age four. He played electric guitar as a teen. After graduating from high school, Gomm attended the Guitar Institute in London. While there, he played in jazz clubs, played sessions and played line dance clubs. Then he studied Jazz at the Leeds College of Music. And that's when he started experimenting with making drum and bass sounds on his guitar. He's unique enough to interest guitar geeks. He tours but he usually plays small clubs. And he plays guitar festivals. Gomm has recorded since 2003 mostly for his own label. This cover of Ain't Nobody is from his 2013 album Secrets Nobody Keeps. This is probably his best known album because it was crowdfunded. Gomm wrote and produced except for two covers. For his 2020 album The Faintest Idea, Gomm signed with Snapper Music's Kscope label. He actually sings on this album. Kscope released a 10th anniversary edition of Secrets Nobody Keeps. It has a bonus track and new cover art. Gomm does his own covers. That's the version that is available on CD. Gomm will do a couple of shows in Europe this weekend. Here's Jon Gomm performing Ain't Nobody at the Northern Film School in Leeds, England. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Krystal Meyers

Artist:Krystal Meyers

Song:My Savior

Album:Krystal Meyers

At first glance, you may mistake Krystal Meyers for Avril Lavigne. But Krystal is a CCM singer songwriter who not only resembles Avril Lavigne but she also had a rock sound that could have gone mainstream. Unfortunately, she only recorded three albums and seemed to disappear. I have some details about that. She was born July 27, 1988 in Denver and she grew up in Orange Country, CA. She sang in church as a child, started writing songs at age ten and was playing guitar by age 13. She must have been singing publicly because Robert Beeson of Sony's CCM label Essential heard about her and signed her to a record deal. I'm sure by that time she had turned down several secular labels including Sony's Columbia label. Krystal's debut album Krystal Meyers was released in 2005. She was 16 years old. She wrote all the songs including My Savior with producer Ian Eskelin of the band All Star United. The production duo of Wizardz of Oz (Andrew Bojanic, Elizabeth Hooper) worked on a few songs. Not surprisingly, the comparisons to Avril Lavigne began immediately. Sony encouraged this as they wanted Krystal to cross over to mainstream pop. It didn't happen. She did well on the Christian chart and also in Japan. Krystal recorded three albums for Essential. The last one was released in 2008. Then she disappeared. I think with time she could have crossed over to pop. But some CCM artists don't want to. What happened to her? After doing some modeling in Japan, I understand that Krystal was having problems with a stalker. She quit the music business. She married her guitarist and I assume they have kids. She decided that fame is not worth it. Here's Krystal Meyers performing My Savior on the Logan Sekulow Show 2005. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Don Omar

Artist:Don Omar f/Lucenzo

Song:Danza Kuduro

Album:Meet the Orphans

Don Omar is known as The King of Reggaeton. In case you didn't know, reggaeton is Latin hip hop. Needless to say, this is what they listen to in Latin America. And it occasionally crosses over to mainstream. Omar hasn't done that but he's been successful in Latin America. He was born William Omar Landron Rivera Feb.10, 1979 in Santurce, Puerto Rico. As a child, he was a rap fan and he was active in the Protestant church. He started performing in clubs as a teen. Omar signed with Universal's Machete label and his 2003 debut album The Last Don was a big success. It was certified Platinum and Omar won Billboard Latin Music awards and he was nominated for a Latin Grammy. In 2010, Omar started his own label Orlanato Music Group still distributed by Universal. The idea behind the album Meet the Orphans was for Omar to feature artists that have signed with his label. But the big surprise was when the single Danza Kuduro not only topped the Latin American charts but was a hit in Europe. It is his biggest hit to date. A possible reason for this is Danza Kuduro features French singer Lucenzo  and he wrote and produced the song. In addition, Danza Kuduro appears on the soundtrack of the 2011 film Fast Five. Omar has appeared in several films of that series. Omar co-wrote all the album songs Among the producers are Eliel and the duo of A&X. Both work frequently with Omar. This album is available as a digital download. Since then, Omar hasn't been as successful. But he still does OK on the Latin charts. For the 2023 album Forever King, Omar signed a distribution deal with Saban Music Group. We'll see how that works out for him. Here's the video for Danza Kuduro by Don Omar featuring Lucenzo. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Sturgill Simpson

Artist:Sturgill Simpson

Song:Turtles All the Way Down

Album:Metamodern Sounds in Country Music

In today's marketplace, country singer songwriter Sturgill Simpson's music is Alt Country. He has been favorably compared to the Outlaw Country of the 70s. This has led to critical acclaim and even Grammy awards. But he hasn't been able to cross over to mainstream country music which would boost record sales. In frustration, Simpson is now calling himself Johnny Blue Skies. He was born June 8, 1978 in Jackson, KY. His father was a Kentucky State Police trooper. After graduating from high school, Simpson was in the US Navy for three years. After returning home, he formed the country rock band Sunday Valley in 2004. They moved to Nashville. But when that didn't work out, Simpson moved to Salt Lake City to work for the Union Pacific Railroad. His wife convinced him to return to music. After Sunday Valley released an album, they split up and Simpson moved to Nashville. He released his 2013 album High Top Mountain on his own label with Thirty Tigers distribution. This was followed by the 2014 album Metamodern Sounds in Country Music. Both albums were produced by Dave Cobb who had previously worked with Shooter Jennings and Jason Isbell. Simpson wrote all the songs including Turtles All the Way Down which has a neo psychedelic vibe and drug references. Critics raved about both albums comparing Simpson's music to Outlaw Country and mentioning the psychedelic references. Simpson appeared on all the late night talk shows. Metamodern Sounds in Country Music sold very well for an indie release. The album is available on CD. Simpson soon signed with Atlantic Records. The question is can his music cross over to mainstream country. His first album for Atlantic was A Sailor's Guide to Earth. Simpson wrote and produced and brought in The Dap-Kings from New York to back him up. Simpson appeared on Saturday Night Live. And he won a Grammy for Best Country Album and was nominated for Album of the Year. Despite all of that and the critical acclaim, not only did the album not cross over to mainstream country but it sold less than Metamodern Sounds in Country Music. So I'm sure Atlantic was disappointed. For the 2019 album Sound & Fury, Simpson decided to make a "sleazy, steamy rock & roll record". He was moved to Elektra Records. This did not go well. The album didn't sell plus Simpson started criticizing the record business including claims that his Grammy nominations were a scheme to help Atlantic recoup their investment in him. Not surprisingly, Simpson returned to his own label. For his 2024 album Passage du Desir, Simpson announced that he would release all future albums under the name Johnny Blue Skies, a nickname he was given in Kentucky. He also toured under that name. Simpson appeared in the 2023 film Killers of the Flower Moon and was a regular on the 2023 season of the HBO series The Righteous Gemstones. If he thinks the record business is bad, wait until he gets a load of the movie business. Here's the video for Turtles All the Way Down by Sturgill Simpson.