AccuRadio Song Of The Day-John Rubinstein

Artist:John Rubinstein

Song:Corner of the Sky

Album:Pippin: Original Cast Recording

As the son of a world famous musician, John Rubinstein has had a lot to live up to. For most of his career, he has had success on Broadway. The 1972 musical Pippin was his first big hit. He has also appeared on TV and films and even composed film scores. But he's best known for his work on Broadway. He was born Dec. 8, 1946 in Los Angeles. His father was famed classical pianist Arthur Rubinstein. So I suppose Rubinstein was always going to be a musician. After studying theater and music at UCLA, he studied composition at Juilliard in New York. The first time I heard of Rubinstein was in the 1970 film Zachariah as the title character. This film was a psychedelic western that had rock musicians in it. That's why I knew about it. The film wasn't a hit at the time. But now it's a cult film. Rubinstein sang one song in the film but it wasn't on the soundtrack album. Then he got the title role in the Broadway musical Pippin. Stephen Schwartz had just had success with Godspell. Like that show, Pippin started out as a school project at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. Schwartz took over the project and developed it himself. It was a vehicle for Ben Vereen as Leading Player. He won a Tony. Rubinstein and the rest of the cast were support players. The show did OK. Motown released the original cast album. Rubinstein sang several songs in the show. Corner of the Sky was in Act 1. The Jackson 5 scored a hit single with the song. The cast album was remastered in 2000 and released with three bonus tracks including The Jackson Five's recording of Corner of the Sky. Rubinstein composed the scores for the 1972 Robert Redford films Jeremiah Johnson and The Candidate. He composed music for a lot of TV movies in the 80s. For the rest of the 70s, he did lots of TV guest shots. Rubinstein was a regular on the 80s TV series Crazy Like a Fox. I don't think Rubinstein has ever had a starring role in a film. He returned to Broadway for the 1980 show Children of a Lesser God. Other shows include M. Butterfly (1989), a late 90s revival of Ragtime, Wicked when it played Los Angeles in 2007 and a 2014 revival of Pippin as King Charlemagne. He has also done 150 audio books. Currently Rubinstein is touring with the one man show Eisenhower: This Piece of Ground and he teaches musical theater at USC. So he's done pretty well. Here's John Rubinstein performing Corner of the Sky on an Easter Seals Telethon in the 70s. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Natalie La Rose

Artist:Natalie La Rose f/Jeremih

Song:Somebody

Album:NOW That's What I Call Music! 54

Dutch singer Natalie La Rose scored a top ten hit with her 2015 debut single Somebody. It's her only hit to date. In fact, Natalie has not released an album. She currently records for her own label. She was born July 11, 1988 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Her parents are from Surinam. As a child, Natalie and her sister sang and danced together. She graduated from the Lucia Marthas Dance Academy in 2008. Natalie moved to Los Angeles in 2010. She signed with Blackground Records. They are best known as the late Aaliyah's label owned by her uncle Barry Hankerson. They were distributed by Interscope. Hankerson put Natalie in a duo with Sigourney Korper called Amsterdam. They appeared in the J. Lewis and Flo Rida video Dancing for Me. When things didn't work out, Natalie appeared as lead dancer in Lloyd's 2011 video Dedication to My Ex (Miss That). At an ESPY Awards after party, she ran into Flo Rida and told him that she would work with him one day. Flo Rida was so impressed that she toured with him for the next two years. She signed with his IMG label with Republic distribution. The 2015 single Somebody reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was an international hit. The record is based on the Whitney Houston hit I Wanna Dance with Somebody. The record was produced by The Futuristics (Alex Schwartz, Joe Khajadourian) and William Lobban-Bean aka Cook Classics. The remix featured singer Jeremih. When the follow up single Around the World didn't do nearly as well, Republic dropped her like a bad habit. Natalie never even got to record an album. That's how labels like Republic treat young black women. She's OK in the video. There's nothing wrong with her. But she comes across like Republic's Hot Girl of the Month. They think she's disposable. Since 2022, Natalie has recorded for her own label. I don't see that going anywhere. As we have seen in the past, an artist needs more than one hit record to get a big push from Universal labels. It's too bad but that's how they work. Here's the video for Somebody by Natalie La Rose.

   

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Billy Joe & The Checkmates

Artist:Billy Joe & the Checkmates

Song:Percolator (Twist)

Album:Teen Beat 5: Another 30 Great Rockin' Instrumentals

Coffee lovers are going to want to check out this classic 1962 top ten hit made by Los Angeles studio musicians. The guy behind this record was Dore Records owner Lew Bedell. He also founded Era Records with former Atlantic Records exec Herb Newman. Lew Bedell was born Lewis Joseph Bedinsky Mar. 21, 1919 in El Paso, TX. His father was from The Ukraine and his mother was born in New York City. After his parents divorced, his family moved to Los Angeles. They changed their surname to Bedell in 1941. After WWII, he formed a comedy team with Doug Mattson. They played clubs in Los Angeles and split up in 1953. Bedell continued to work clubs. He even had a short lived TV show in New York. He met Herb Newman in 1955 when Era Records was founded. Bedell was Era's comptroller. Era's big hit was the single The Wayward Wind by Gogi Grant. When she tried to leave Era for RCA, Era sued her for breach of contract. Bedell and Newman started Dore Records. They scored a hit with To Know Him Is to love Him by The Teddy Bears. Then Newman and Bedell split up and Bedell retained control of Dore. In 1961, Bedell suggested to studio pianist Ernie Freeman that they should record a version of the Maxwell House advertising jingle. The musicians were Freeman on piano, Rene Hall on guitar, Red Callender on bass, Julius Wechter on marimba and Earl Palmer on drums. These guys were all Los Angeles studio musicians and members of The Wrecking Crew. The record was called Percolator (Twist) by Billy Joe & the Checkmates. Freeman wrote the song and Bedell took a songwriting credit as Louis Bideau. He even used a college photo of himself and said it was a pic of the group leader Billy Joe Hunter. Of course the big surprise was when Percolator reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. You can get it on this Ace Records various artists comp. There were several Billy Joe & the Checkmates singles but Percolator turned out to be a one hit wonder. Bedell continued to run Dore Records. He had a thing for comedy and Hudson & Landry was his most successful act. Lou Bedell died on July 6, 2000 at age 81. Here's a video of Percolator (Twist) by Billy Joe & the Checkmates.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Brian McKnight

Artist:Brian McKnight

Song:Back at One

Album:Gold

R&B singer songwriter Brian McKnight had his greatest success in the 90s. The 1999 single Back at One was his biggest hit and his final big hit. He still records and tours these days. He was born June 5, 1969 in Buffalo. His older brother Claude McKnight III is a member of the acapella vocal group Take 6. The boys grew up in the church choir directed by their grandfather. Their family moved to Orlando, FL. when McKnight was ten years old. His dad worked for the Martin Marietta aircraft manufacturer. McKnight learned to play instruments and writing songs as a teen. He performed in local clubs while in high school. After graduating, McKnight got a publishing deal and moved to Los Angeles. After Claude McKnight's group Take 6 got a record deal with Warner Bros.' Reprise label in 1987, McKnight sent out demos and signed with Mercury Records. He released three albums for Mercury including the 1997 album Anytime which was certified 2XPlatinum. The 1997 single You Should be Mine was a top 20 pop hit. Even in those early days, McKnight normally wrote and produced his music. It was unusual for outside producers to be brought in though You Should be Mine was written and produced by Sean "Puffy" Combs. It was at this point that Universal bought Mercury's parent company PolyGram and all black artists were moved to Universal's Motown label. Mercury was turned into a country label. So McKnight signed a new deal with Motown and released the 1998 Christmas album Bethlehem. This was followed by Back at One in 1999. And this turned out to be McKnight's most successful album. It was certified 3XPlatinum and the single Back at One reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. As with his other albums, McKnight wrote and produced it himself. Why was this such a big success? Some believe that Anytime exposed McKnight to a more hip hop oriented audience and they stuck around for Back at One. After that, things didn't go so well. McKnight released three more albums for Motown. When none of them were positively received and they didn't sell as well as Back at One, McKnight left for Warner Bros. for the 2006 album Ten. When the album didn't sell, McKnight started recording for smaller labels. This 2CD comp has all his Universal hits. In recent years, McKnight appears to record for the indie label SoNo with Universal distribution. At this point he's a nostalgia act. Here's the video for Back at One by Brian McKnight.  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-William Johnson

Artist:William Johnson

Song:The Man I Used to Be

Album:Pipe Dream: An Original Cast Recording

The most notable thing about the Broadway musical Pipe Dream is it was one of Rodgers & Hammerstein's biggest flops. It looks like the musical was shown on TV but I couldn't find out when and where it aired though this clip was used in an episode of the Netflix series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. William Johnson started out as a child actor. Pipe Dream was his final appearance as he died in 1957. He was born Mar. 22, 1915 in Baltimore. He made his Broadway debut at age 8 in the 1924 play Shipwrecked. Then he appeared in the 1926 operetta The Vagabond King. After performing in vaudeville and appearing in a couple of films, Johnson returned to Broadway in the 40s. He starred with Ethel Merman in the 1944 show Something for the Boys and with Patricia Morison in a 1951 London production of Kiss Me, Kate. Then he was nominated for a Tony for the 1956 show Pipe Dream. Then he died from a heart attack on Mar. 6, 1957 at age 40. Pipe Dream was based on the John Steinbeck novel Sweet Thursday. Former Republic Pictures music department head Cy Feuer and partner Ernie Martin backed the hit musical comedy Where's Charley?. Rodgers and Hammerstein helped them finance the show. After the success of Guys and Dolls, Feuer and Martin wanted to turn Steinbeck's novel Cannery Row into a musical. Steinbeck didn't think that would work. But he agreed to write a sequel that could be a musical. And that was called Sweet Thursday. Feuer, Martin and Steinbeck wanted Frank Loesser to write the show. But he was busy with The Most Happy Fella. So they approached Rodgers and Hammerstein. After some reluctance due to the racy subject matter, they agreed to do it. They cast opera singer Helen Traubel as the female lead. Feuer and Martin wanted Henry Fonda for the male lead. He tried to learn to sing. But his father-in-law Richard Rodgers said no. For the prostitute Suzy, they auditioned Julie Andrews. But she was also up for My Fair Lady and Rodgers told her to take that role. Rodgers had seen Judy Tyler on The Howdy Doody Show playing Princess Summerfall Winterspring. After she left the show, she auditioned for Pipe Dream and got it. The problem with the show was Rodgers was having health issues so Hammerstein was in charge. And he tried to clean up the content of the show. Remember one of the lead characters is a prostitute. How do you clean that up? Pipe Dream was a critical and financial failure. It ran from March to June 1956. The original cast album is available on CD. After Johnson died, Judy Tyler died in a car accident. Helen Traubel thought the show was cursed. So she started carrying good luck charms. Pipe Dream is generally considered to be Rodgers and Hammerstein's worst musical. It's only been revived a couple of times as a standalone concert. It was probably a mistake for them to agree to do it in the first place. Here's William Johnson performing The Man I Used to Be from the musical Pipe Dream 1956. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lauren Alaina

Artist:Lauren Alaina

Song:Road Less Traveled

Album:Road Less Traveled

Country singer songwriter Lauren Alaina finished second to Scotty McCreery on the 2011 season of American Idol (AI). I remember watching that and I didn't think either of them was any good. The 2017 single Road Less Traveled is her biggest hit to date. She has a new album coming out in August. I will say about Lauren what I say about a lot of AI contestants. She never would have got a record deal without AI. She's a pretty girl but there are plenty of those in Nashville. She writes all her songs but they are terrible. So I don't like her. She was born Nov. 8, 1994 in Rossville, GA. which is a suburb of Chatanooga. Her mother is an actress and TV host and entered Lauren in child talent competitions. She won her share of those. But it didn't get her anywhere and she worked in a pizza joint. She was rejected twice by America's Got Talent before passing her AI audition. The judges loved her and she was expected to win but finished second to Scotty McCreery. After AI, she signed with Mercury Nashville. And her single Like My Mother Does was a top 20 pop hit. The album Wildflower did OK but not great. She appeared on all the TV shows and was named New Artist of the Year at the American Country Awards. So she was treated like a star. But the results don't reflect that. But Mercury keeps trying. After 2014 vocal cord surgery, Lauren released the 2017 album Road Less Traveled. The single Road Less Traveled was a top ten country hit and was certified Platinum. The big difference between the first album and this one is that Lauren co-wrote all the songs on this one. The co-writers on Road Less Traveled were Meghan Trainor and Jesse Frasure. Frasure is a producer who has worked with many Nashville artists. The album was produced by busbee who died in 2019. Her 2021 album Sitting Pretty on Top of the World didn't sell either. Again, Lauren co-wrote all the songs. Paul DiGiovanni formerly of the band Boys Like Girls produced. He has produced Jordan Davis. She left Mercury for Joey Moi's Big Loud label. They are distributed by Universal. So they haven't given up. Her album Stages is coming out in August. Moi produced the album with Ben Johnson. Moi produced Morgan Wallen. This almost seems like Lauren's last chance. If Joey Moi can't sell her, who can? Here's the video for Road Less Traveled by Lauren Alaina.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Dizzy Gillespie

Artist:Dizzy Gillespie

Song:Birks' Works

Album:Dizzy's Diamonds: Best of the Verve Years

This is another in my Jazz for Beginners complete with a performance video and an affordable comp suitable for beginners. Trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie was one of the inventors of bebop. He started recording in the 40s. But his prime was when he recorded for Verve in the 50s. He was born John Birks Gillespie Oct. 21, 1917 in Cheraw, SC. His father was a local bandleader who died when Gillespie was ten years old. Gillespie started playing piano at age four. By age 12, he taught himself to play trumpet and trombone. He listened to his idol Roy Eldridge on the radio and dreamed of being a jazz musician. Gillespie won a music scholarship to the Laurinburg Institute and went there for two years until his family moved to Philadelphia in 1935. He played with local bands like Edgar Hayes and Teddy Hill and appeared on a 1937 Hill recording of King Porter Stomp. Then he met dancer Lorraine Willis and they married in 1940. She got him a spot in Cab Calloway's band. But Calloway didn't like Gillespie's onstage antics nor his solos which he called "Chinese". When someone threw a spitball during rehearsal, Calloway blamed Gillespie which Gillespie denied. They had an altercation and Gillespie was fired. A Great Day in Harlem director Jean Bach has made a short about this incident called The Spitball Story. This film is an extra on the DVD of A Great Day in Harlem and it's available on Amazon. He joined Earl Hines' band in 1943. And that's where he met Charlie Parker. They both went to Billy Eckstine's band in 1944. Gillespie left to start his own band. And that's when bebop was born. Gillespie continued in Eckstine's band. He signed with RCA's Bluebird label in 1946 and starred in the film Jivin' in Be-Bop. That's when he started bringing in Cuban musicians like Chano Pozo. Gillespie appeared regularly on Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic concert series. Then Granz started Verve Records. Gillespie started his own label Dee Gee which didn't last. Then he was throwing a party for his wife and someone bent the trumpet's bell upward. Gillespie liked the sound so much that he had all his trumpets made that way and it became his trademark. Gillespie signed with Verve in 1951 and stayed there until 1961. He first recorded Birks' Works on one of his Dee Gee albums in 1951. This recording is from the 1958 big band album Birks' Works. You can get it on this 2CD budget comp. Also the album Birks' Works is available in a 2CD expanded edition. Except for Birks' Works, all the songs on this album are standards. Ernie Wilkins from the Count Basie band was the main arranger. But Gillespie, Melba Liston and Benny Golson also arranged some tracks. Musicians are Gillespie, Talib Daawud, Lee Morgan, Ermit V. Perry and Carl Warwick on trumpet, Melba Liston, Al Grey and Rod Levitt on trombone, Emile Henry and Jimmy Powell on alto sax, Benny Golson and Billy Mitchell on tenor sax, Billy Root on baritone sax, Wynton Kelly on piano, Paul West on bass and Charlie Persip on drums. After leaving Verve in 1961, Gillespie recorded for Philips, Limelight, Solid State and Perception. Remember Granz sold Verve to MGM in 1960. When Granz started Pablo Records in 1973, Gillespie signed in 1975 and stayed until 1983. Granz sold Pablo to Fantasy in 1987. Concord now owns those recordings. Gillespie recorded for Atlantic, GRP and Timeless and continued to tour until he died on Jan. 6, 1993 at age 75. Here's Dizzy Gillespie with Sam Rivers on sax, Ed Cherry on guitar, John Lee on bass and Ignacio Berroa on drums performing Birks' Works at the 1987 New Jersey Jazz Festival.