AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Solas

Artist:Solas

Song:Granny Quinn's/The Lilac Reel/Sporting Pat

Album:The Hour Before Dawn

Solas is an Irish folk group that is based in the US but is a mix of Irish and American musicians. They have been around since the mid-90s performing a mix of traditional and original songs. Solas was formed in 1995 by Seamus Egan. He was born in PA to Irish immigrants. He was age three when the family returned to Ireland. After Egan saw James Galway perform on TV, he started playing the flute. He now plays several instruments. He returned to Philadelphia and got together with fiddler Winifred Horan. She's from New York. They added singer Karan Casey from Ireland, guitarist John Doyle from Ireland and accordionist John Williams from Chicago and Solas was born. They released their debut album in 1996. They recorded for Shanachie which is only a distributor. They don't do promotion. So touring is promotion for Solas. Granny Quinn's is from the 2000 album The Hour Before Dawn. By this time, Karan left to go solo and was replaced by Dierdre Scanlan and Donal Clancy replaced John Doyle for this album. Other musicians are Mick McAuley on accordion, Chico Huff on bass and Ben Wittman and John Anthony on drums. Egan produced. This is available as a budget CD. Solas switched to the larger Compass Records in 2006. After Dierdre retired in 2008, there was a revolving door of singers. Solas announced they were going on hiatus in 2017. That seemed to be the end. But they announced last summer that they would go on a 30th anniversary tour in 2025. Who knows what they will do after that. Here's Solas performing Granny Quinn's/The Lilac Reel/Sporting Pat's in Galway, Ireland 2002.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Burna Boy

Artist:Burna Boy

Song:Last Last

Album:Love, Damini

Damini "Burna Boy" Ogulu is a Nigerian who performs in the Jamaican Dancehall style. So far he has had international success. But he may be making inroads in the US as the 2022 single Last Last cracked the top 40. It was also a top five hit in England. He doesn't perform in English so crossing over to mainstream is a tall order. He was born July 2, 1991 in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria. His grandfather was a DJ on the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation and Fela Kuti's first manager. Ogulu started out creating his own beats using FL Studio. After graduating from high school, Ogulu studied at University of Sussex and Oxford Brookes University in England. He returned to Nigeria and was an intern at Rhythm 93.7 FM in Port Harcourt. Then he moved to Lagos to work on his music. After self releasing a 2013 album, Ogulu signed with Aristokrat Records. But he wasn't happy there and returned to self releasing. The international interest began when Ogulu appeared on the 2018 Fall Out Boy song Sunshine Riptide. Then he released the album Outside with guest appearances by J Hus, Lily Allen and Mabel. His music is a mix of Afrobeat and Dancehall. Ogulu started performing internationally including a sold out concert at the O2 Academy Brixton in London. And he was named Best International Artist at the 2019 BET Awards. But to go farther, he needed a major label so he signed with Atlantic Records. Then he made a guest appearance on Beyonce's soundtrack for the 2019 film The Lion King: The Gift produced by Richard "P2J" Isong who has worked with Ogulu for his entire career. He continued to have success as a concert draw and he appeared as a guest artist with Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and Justin Bieber. He also won a Grammy. But he finally got that hit single with Last Last from the 2022 album Love, Damini. Last Last reached #4 on the British Singles chart, topped the R&B Singles chart and reached #39 on the Billboard Hot 100. Ogulu writes and produces with various producers, most notably Isong. He wrote Last Last with Finnish producers Off & Out, MDS and Ruuben and Nigerian producer Chopstix. The main sample is Toni Braxton's 2000 single He Wasn't Man Enough. You can hear her in the background throughout the song. So LaShawn Daniels, Harvey Mason Jr., Fred Jerkins III and Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins all got a songwriting credit. Guests on the album include Ladysmith Black Mambazo, J Hus, Ed Sheeran, J Balvin and Khalid. That is likely to be his biggest hit as US radio station programmers will always be reluctant to play an artist who sings in a foreign language. He doesn't need it anyway as he is now a big international star. A top ten pop hit sure would be nice though. Here's the video for Last Last by Burna Boy. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Chico Cesar

Artist:Chico Cesar

Song:A Primeira Vista

Album:Millennium

Chico Cesar is part of the new wave of singer songwriters to emerge in Brazil in the 90s. He's popular in Brazil but virtually unknown elsewhere. He was born Francisco Cesar Goncalves Jan. 26, 1964 in Catole da Rocha, Paraiba, Brazil. He worked in a record store at age eight. Then he was in the band Super Som Mirim. Cesar moved to Paraiba's largest city Joao Passoa to attend high school. And he studied journalism at Universidade Federal da Paraiba. He was in the band Jaguaribe Carne. After graduating from college, Cesar moved to Sao Paulo to work as a journalist. Meanwhile, he was writing poetry and working on his music skills. Cesar moved to Germany in 1991 to get experience performing live. When Cesar returned to Brazil, he decided to be a full time musician. Some of his songs were already being interpreted by others. So he self released a 1995 live album. That got the attention of MZA Music owner Marco Mazzola and he signed Cesar to a record deal. MZA specialized in the new generation of Brazilian performers and he had distribution from PolyGram and then Universal. A Premeira Vista is from Cesar's 1996 debut album Cuscuz Cla. The record was a hit. And it became a bigger hit when Daniela Mercury sang it in the soap opera Rei do Gado. Cesar won several awards. That established Cesar and he has been recording ever since. This budget comp is a good intro to his music. Cesar currently records for his own label and his latest album was released in 2022. Here's the video for A Premiera Vista by Chico Cesar. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-George Jones & Tammy Wynette

Artist:George Jones & Tammy Wynette

Song:Golden Ring

Album:16 Biggest Hits

Country music legend George Jones recorded plenty of duets with female singers. But most fans will remember his duets in the 70s with real life wife Tammy Wynette. The 1976 single Golden Ring was one of their three #1 country hits. Among the singers he sang with before Tammy were Virginia Spurlock, Jeanette Hicks, Margie Singleton, Melba Montgomery and Brenda Carter. Jones had his best chart success with Melba including the 1963 top five hit We Must Have Been Out of Our Minds. And Jones claimed in his autobiography that she was his best duet partner. Jones and Tammy were still married to others when they met on tour. They were handled by the same booking agency. And they married in 1969. Jones wanted to record with her but he was still under contract to Musicor and Tammy was on Epic. So Jones bought out his contract and signed with Epic. They worked with her producer Billy Sherrill and became known as Mr. & Mrs. Country Music. Some thought that Jones and Sherrill might clash because of different styles. But Sherril has said that the only problem was he had to record them separately because if he recorded them together, Jones never sang the song the same way twice and that drove Tammy nuts. BTW, duets are frequently recorded separately, sometimes in different locations. George and Tammy topped the country charts with the 1973 single We're Gonna Hold On. The albums sold well. The big problem with the marriage was Jones' alcoholism and that led to brawls between them and the divorce in 1975. But they continued to record and tour together because fans didn't want to see them separately. The 1976 singles Golden Ring and Near You topped the country charts and so did the album. Golden Ring was written by veteran songwriter Bobby Braddock and Rafe Von Hoy. Braddock wrote the song after watching a TV drama about the life of a gun. He just changed the subject to a wedding ring. After recording a 1980 album together, Jones left Epic for MCA and was able to revive his solo career. You can get all their hits on this budget comp. Here's George Jones & Tammy Wynette performing Golden Ring on an awards show 1976.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Yul Brynner

Artist Yul Brynner

Song:A Puzzlement

Album:The King and I: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Though he had a long Hollywood career, Russian actor Yul Brynner is mainly known for playing King Mongkut in the 1951 Broadway production and the 1956 film of the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical The King and I. He won awards for both versions. He was also known for his shaved head look which was very unusual at the time. He was born Yuliy Borisovich Briner on July 11, 1920 in Vladivostok, Far Eastern Republic, Russia. It's near the Chinese border. His family was well to do but their wealth was confiscated when the Red Army took over Vladivostok in 1922. His father was a mining engineer. His parents divorced in 1923 and his father lived with actress Katerina Kornakova. She would later help Brynner emigrate to the US. Brynner's mother moved the family to Harbin, China. His father gave him a guitar as a birthday present in 1930. He performed in nightclubs after his mom moved the family to Paris. Brynner became addicted to drugs after he suffered a back injury while working as a circus acrobat. His aunt was a physician and took him to Switzerland to recover. Meanwhile, Brynner met Jean Cocteau in Paris and became friends with him and other artists. After his recovery, Brynner moved to China for acting lessons from his stepmother. When Brynner's mother got sick and needed treatment in the US. he moved there with her in 1940. His sister was already living in New York working as an opera singer. During WWII, Brynner worked as an announcer for Voice of America and took acting lessons from Michael Chekhov. He married actress Virginia Gilmore and they appeared in the CBS TV series Studio One. Brynner made his film debut in the 1949 film Port of New York. I've seen that film.  Brynner has hair. Then he auditioned for the Broadway musical The King and I and won the starring role of King Mongkut. That's when he shaved his head. It became his signature role as he won a Tony. Then he won an Oscar when he reprised the role in the 1956 film version. He would reprise that role several times over the years. His shaved head became a thing and was known as the Yul Brynner look. Other films included The Ten Commandments, Anastasia and The Brothers Karamazov. Though this established him as a movie star, Brynner wasn't as successful in the 60s. Most of his films were commercial disappointments until he played the killer robot Gunslinger in the 1973 film Westworld. After appearing in the Westworld sequels, Brynner retired from acting and died from lung cancer on Oct. 10, 1985 at age 65. Here's Yul Brynner performing A Puzzlement in the 1956 film The King and I.

 

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Mackenzie Dern vs Amanda Ribas

Here's the fight video of Mackenzie Dern vs Amanda Ribas from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight is at Strawweight. This is a five round main event. Mackenzie is 31 years old. She trains in Huntington Beach, CA with Jason Parillo. Her UFC record is 9-5. Mackenzie is a former BJJ champ but her striking is subpar. That's why Parillo is her coach. Amanda is 31 years old from Varginha, Minas Gerais, Brazil. She trains with her father Marcelo Ribas and at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, FL. Amanda is not as good as Mackenzie on the ground. But her striking is better. So I didn't like her chances if the fight went to the mat. And that's how it went. The first two rounds were pretty close. But Mackenzie took control in round three and submitted Amanda with an armbar with four seconds remaining in the round. Mackenzie got a $50,000 bonus. So in a couple of weeks, Zhang Weili will defend her UFC Strawweight Championship against Tatiana Suarez. Right now, the next title shot should go to Virna Jandiroba. My guess is e UFC will have Virna vs Mackenzie main event a Fight Night show later this year and the winner gets a title shot. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Grant Geissman

Artist:Grant Geissman

Song:Cuba Libre

Album:Take Another Look

Jazz guitarist Grant Geissman first came to the public's attention when he played the guitar solo on Chuck Mangione's 1977 hit single Feels So Good. Since then he has recorded as a leader, sideman and studio musician. He plays acoustic guitar which is popular with guitar geeks. He was born Apr. 13, 1953 in Berkeley, CA and he grew up in San Jose. He started taking guitar lessons from local musicians and they all told him the same thing. Learn to play jazz and he will be able to play anything. So he learned jazz from guitarist Jerry Hahn who was in John Handy's band. After graduating from high school, Geissman attended De Anza College. Herb Patnoe was director of Stan Kenton's Jazz Clinics. He placed Geissman in that band. That's where he met his long time buddy drummer Peter Erskine. Geissman moved to Los Angeles to continue school. But he wanted to get into the Hollywood studio scene. Geissman played in big bands led by Gerald Wilson and Louie Bellson. Then he joined flugelhornist Chuck Mangione's band and that's when he played the solo on Feels So Good. Geissman recorded his first album as a leader in 1978. And he left Mangione's band in 1981. Since then he has recorded mostly for Bluemoon/Mesa Records. Geissman currently records for his own label distributed by Bluemoon. Cuba Libre is from the 1991 album Take Another Look. Geissman wrote most of the songs including Cuba Libre which he wrote with pianist Emil Palame who was in his 90s band. The rest of the band is Jimmy Johnson on bass, Tom Walsh on drums and Brad Dutz on percussion. There are horns and strings on a couple of tracks. Pianist David Benoit guests on one song. Geissman is a Los Angeles session musician. He composed the themes for the TV shows Monk and Two and a Half Men. His latest album Blooz was released in 2022. He doesn't appear to be on tour right now. He could be recording a new album. Here is Grant Geissman with Al Williams on sax, Emil Palame on piano, Stan Sarget on bass and Tom Walsh on drums performing Cuba Libre. It doesn't give a date or location. But I think this is Geisman's 90s band.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Rev. Milton Brunson

Artist:Rev. Milton Brunson

Song:Rise Up and Walk

Album:Praise God

Rev. Milton Brunson led Chicago's Thompson Community Singers for almost fifty years. He was also the pastor and musical director of Christ Tabernacle Church in Chicago. He recorded since the 60s but with the rise of contemporary gospel in the 80s, Brunson's music became more popular and he won some awards. Brunson's music was traditional gospel with some contemporary elements. He was born June 28,1929 in Chicago. After graduating from high school, Brunson was trained by gospel music legends Thomas A. Dorsey and Mahalia Jackson. He formed the Thompson Community Singers in 1948. After he was ordained, Brunson was pastor and music director at Christ Tabernacle Baptist Church. Brunson started recording in the 60s first on Vee Jay and then on Nashboro. With the rise of contemporary gospel artists like Andrae Crouch in the 70s, secular record companies wanted to see if it could be sold to a mass audience. Before that, gospel was sold mostly in Christian book stores. Brunson signed with Word's Myrrh label in the early 80s. And Word made agreements with A&M and Epic to market Christian music to a mainstream audience. Brunson and the Thompson Community Choir were chosen for this experiment. The one big mainstream crossover artist that came from this was Amy Grant. But the labels were happy enough with the results that they all own gospel labels today. So they must have made money or they wouldn't spend money on it. When Brunson recorded for Epic starting in the late 80s, he was nominated for Grammys and Soul Train Music Awards. Rise Up and Walk was written by Jessy Dixon and Brunson first recorded it in the 70s. This budget comp is a good intro to Brunson's music. The choir continued to record until Brunson died on Apr. 1, 1997 at age 67. The Thompson Community Choir continued to record as The Tommies. Here's Rev. Milton Brunson and the Thompson Community Choir performing Rise Up and Walk. There's no date but it looks like the 80s.