AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Brandy Clark

Artist:Brandy Clark

Song:Girl Next Door

Album:Big Day in a Small Town

Brandy Clark has been a successful country music songwriter since 2011.  She started recording in 2013 and got a record deal with Warner Bros. in 2016. Though her albums have been critically acclaimed and Brandy has been nominated for Grammys, her albums aren't selling. The 2016 single Girl Next Door is her only chart single to date and it didn't chart that high. Brandy was born Oct. 9, 1975 in Morton, WA., a logging town in the shadow of Mount Rainier. Brandy was influenced by her parents record collection to start playing guitar at  age nine. She also started writing songs and performed in school musicals. Brandy earned a basketball scholarship at Central Washington University. But instead she earned an associate degree at Centralia University. She moved to Nashville in 1998 to study music business at Belmont University. Then she got a publishing deal. Brandy's longtime songwriting partner is Shane McAnally. He used to be a performer but is now a songwriter and record producer. Her first big hits were Miranda Lambert's 2011 single Mama's Broken Heart and The Band Perry's 2012 single Better Dig Two. Then Brandy started performing. She opened for Sheryl Crow in 2012 and appeared on the Grand Ole Opry. Brandy released an EP and CMT named her a Woman of Country. Then Mama's Broken Heart was nominated for a CMA award. Then she released the 2013 album 12 Stories on Slate Creek Records. She appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman. She toured with Jennifer Nettles. The album did well enough that Brandy got a record deal with Warner Bros. and top producer Jay Joyce. The album Big Day in a Small Town was released in 2016. The single Girl Next Door reached #39 on the Country Singles chart. Brandy wrote all the songs with co-writers. Girl Next Door was written with McAnally and Dean Dillon's daughter Jessie Jo Dillon. The album was nominated for a Grammy. It was critically acclaimed. But it didn't sell. The excuse given for this is the record company tendency to go for streaming first instead of physical sales. Of course that doesn't explain why Brandy hasn't had a big hit single. Meanwhile Brandy and McAnally wrote the Broadway musical Shucked in 2023. Anyway, Warner Bros. doesn't seem concerned as Brandy has a new album coming in 2027. Brandy Clark wouldn't be the first successful Nashville songwriter to fail as a recording artist and that includes Shane McAnally. She's lasted longer than most. Here's the video for Girl Next Door by Brandy Clark. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Montego Glover

Artist:Montego Glover

Song:Ain't Nothin' But a Kiss

Album:Memphis: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Montego Glover is a Broadway performer who was nominated for a Best Actress Tony for the 2009 musical Memphis. That's her best known appearance. She has done TV and films and even voice work on video games. But she's appearing on Broadway now. She was born Feb. 19, 1975 in Macon, GA. but she grew up in Chattanooga, TN. Montego attended high school at the Chattanooga School for the Arts & Sciences. Then she attended Florida State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Music Theater with Honors. Montego started out in regional theater. Her first Broadway appearance was in the 2006 musical The Color Purple. Memphis was written by David Bryan and Joe DiPietro and is loosely based on the life of Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips. Memphis played regional theater for several years before coming to Broadway in 2009. Most of the cast and crew including stars Chad Kimball and Montego Glover were with the show for several years. Memphis won the Tony for Best Musical and Montego was nominated for Best Actress. Memphis ran for three years so it was very successful. It was filmed and released on DVD and it can be streamed on Amazon Prime. Montego's other significant shows were Les Miserables in 2015 and Hamilton in 2017. She is currently appearing in a production of Here Are the Blueberries. Montego has done TV guest shots and a couple of films. But she seems to enjoy doing voiceover work for video games and animation. Here's Montego Glover performing Ain't Nothin' But a Kiss on the 2019 benefit show Broadway Stands Up for Freedom.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Artist:Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Song:Hooked on Classics

Albim:Hooked on Classics

London's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra was founded in 1946 by Thomas Beecham. Though they typically record classical music, they have occasionally made detours into popular music. More symphony orchestras do this than you might think. I guess record companies are trying to boost record sales. For the most part, that kind of strategy usually fails. The most notable exception to this was when the 1981 single Hooked on Classics was a top ten pop hit. This was a classical music medley with a disco backbeat. Though classical music purists hated this, the record did revive interest in classical music. The guy behind this was Australian producer Don Reedman. He moved to England in 1969 and worked as a song plugger for ATV Music. Then he went to work for K-Tel Records. Of course K-Tel is not a typical label so Reedman had to think outside the box. With his recording engineer partner Jeff Jarratt, Reedman produced the 1978 album Classic Rock with the London Symphony Orchestra. After Reedman heard the 1981 single Stars on 45 by the Dutch band Stars on 45, he decided to do the same thing with classical music. Stars on 45 was a Beatles medley set to a disco beat and it topped the charts. So he hired the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra to perform the music. Then he brought in Electric Light Orchestra keyboardist Louis Clark to arrange and conduct and Hooked on Classics was born. The big surprise was when Hooked on Classics topped the British Singles chart and reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. It helped that K-Tel produced a video that was played on MTV. The Hooked on Classics album is available as a digital download. K-Tel attempted to follow up this hit. But this is the kind of thing that is the prototype for a fluke one hit wonder. So Hooked on Classics never charted again. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is still performing and recording. And Don Reedman still works with them. Here's the video for Hooked on Classics by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

   

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Paul Anka

Artist:Paul Anka

Song:Diana

Album:Singing & Swinging

The 1957 single Diana was the first number one hit for Canadian singer songwriter Paul Anka. Of course he has had a long career. But Diana was the first single from his first album. He was born July 30, 1941 in Ottawa, ON. His parents owned a restaurant. His father was from Syria and his mother was from Lebanon. Anka sang in the church choir. In high school, he led a vocal trio called The Bobby Soxers. Anka's uncle gave him $100 to record his first single I Confess in 1956. Then he went to New York City to audition for producer Don Costa of ABC-Paramount Records. The song he sang at the audition was Diana which Anka wrote for a girl he knew from church. Costa took him into the studio and cut the record. The most notable musician who played on the record was jazz guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli. Diana topped the Billboard Hot 100 and sold nine million copies. The album Paul Anka was released in 1958. Of course the big difference between Anka and many of the teen idols of the era is he wrote a lot of his own songs. But the problem at ABC-Paramount is Anka's career stalled. So he signed with RCA in 1960 and bought all his ABC-Paramount recordings. He re-recorded his Paramount-ABC hita on RCA in 1963. Can you get the original version of Diana? Sure. Anka owns them and has released them on his own label. He has also licensed them to reissue labels like Jasmine who released this 2CD comp of Anka's Paramount recordings. The 60s were a dry period for Anka. But he scored a big comeback with the 1974 #1 single You're Having My Baby. Plus he's written plenty of hit songs including My Way for Frank Sinatra. He still records for his own label. He released an album this year. And he he has been on tour all year. Here's Paul Anka performing Diana on a 1960 episode of Ameriican Bandstand.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jimmy Jones

Artist:Jimmy Jones

Song:Good Timin'

Album:I'm Your Handyman

The 1960 single Good Timin' was one of two top five hits for R&B singer Jimmy Jones. The other hit was the 1959 single Handy Man. So I guess he was a two hit wonder. He had little success after that. Jones was born June 2, 1930 in Birmingham, AL. He moved with his family to New York City and started out as a tap dancer. He joined a doo wop group The Berliners in 1954. They changed their name to Sparks of Rhythm. After Jones left to start his own group The Savoys, Sparks of Rhythm recorded Jones' song Handy Man in 1956. After recording with a couple of other groups, Jones went solo and signed with MGM's Cub label. Jones got together with veteran producer Otis Blackwell. Blackwell reworked Handy Man and produced the record. Handy Man reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. When the flutist didn't show up to the session, Blackwell whistled the solo. This was followed by the 1960 single Good Timin' which reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. Good Timin' was written by veteran songwriters Fred Tobias and Clint Ballard Jr. It's Tobias' best known song. Ballard wrote the Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders hit Game of Love. Blackwell produced again. Which song was the bigger hit? According to VF Music, they are about even. VF Music is the site that assigns point values to chart position. I use it for research. You can get both songs on this Aim International budget comp. Jones left Cub in 1962 and recorded for Vee-Jay, Roulette, Parkway and Bell. He continued to record occasionally and tour especially in England's Northern Soul circuit. There was renewed interest in Jones when James Taylor's cover of Handy Man topped the charts in 1977. Jimmy Jones died on Aug. 2, 2012 at age 82. Here's Jimmy Jones performing Good Timin' The Dick Clark Beech Nut Show 1960. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-DJ Skitz alongside Roots Manuva

Artist:DJ Skitz alongside Roots Manuva

Song:Where My Mind Is At

Album:The Rebirth of Cool 7

Joseph Cole is a British DJ who goes by the name DJ Skitz. This 1996 single was an important building block in Acid Jazz at the time and it launched the career of rapper Roots Manuva. The problem was Cole didn't release an album at the time. Instead Where My Mind Is At was released on this Island Records various artists CD. Cole has released albums. But he seems to prefer doing remixes and releasing the occasional single. Plenty of DJs are like that. They prefer anonymity to fame. Cole was born in Cambridgeshire in 1970. He started DJing in 1991. Then he released Where My Mind Is At in 1996 on Ronin Records owned by the band 23 Skidoo. The rapper was Roots Manuva. He was also unknown at the time. But this single launched his career as well when major DJs like Gilles Peterson and Patrick Forge took notice of it. Also, producer Dallas Austin sampled Where My Mind Is At on the 1998 Monica track Gone Be Fine. You can get Where My Mind Is At on this 2CD various artists budget comp. Then Cole released the 1998 single Fingerprints of the Gods and that was the only British track to appear on Hip Hop Connection's top ten tracks of the year. Then Cole released the 2000 single Dedication featuring rapper Rodney P and it won Best Single at the 2000 UK Hip Hop awards. Cole had his greatest success with the 2001 album Countryman. And he had a lot of success with that. At the time, Cole was considered to be spearheading a renaissance in British Hip Hop. Of course nothing lasts forever. For a while, Cole had his own record label. He last released an album in 2010. He still produces and does remixes. But for a while, he was the leading light of British Hip Hop. Here's the video for Where My Mind Is At by DJ Skitz alongside Roots Manuva. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Blaque

Artist:Blaque

Song:808

Album:Blaque

The 1999 single 808 was one of two top ten hits for the R&B girl group Blaque. The album was certified Platinum. And then they went into the witness protection program. Blaque is from Atlanta. Shamari Fears formed her first girl group in 1994 with high school classmate Natina Reed. A producer tried to turn them into the urban country group Buutz. When Natina's pastor father found out about this, he didn't want her performing secular music. She left the group. Vocal coach and manager Cynnamyn Robinson helped Shamari form a new group called Intrigue. 12 year old Brandi Williams joined the group. After her parents divorce, Natina started looking at secular music again. She was singing jingles when she met talent scout Ronald Lopes. He's the brother of Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes of TLC. Lopes agreed to manage Natina and hired her to write songs for TLC. Natina wanted to form a girl group and she asked Shamari to join along with Brandi. The group was called Blaque after Lopes production company Blaque House. He asked his sister to help. And after working with them, she got them an audition with Sony Music CEO Tommy Mottola and he gave them a record deal. They were assigned to Trackmasters owned by the production duo of Jean-Claude Olivier and Samuel Barnes AKA Poke and Tone. The other executive producers were Lisa Lopes and Cory Rooney. Outside of North America, the group was known as Blaque Ivory. As I said before, the 1999 debut album was certified Platinum. The single 808 reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the single Bring It All to Me reached #5. Poke and Tone along with Cory Rooney produced most of the album. Natina co-wrote half of the songs. Of course outside producers were brought in. 808 was written and produced by R. Kelly with Poke and Tone and Rooney. The album is available as a budget CD. Blaque toured opening for 'N Sync and then TLC. Columbia was supposed to release the 2001 album Blaque Out. But then they decided to shelve the album and drop Blaque. It's never been revealed why they released them. Then Lisa Lopes died in Apr. 2002. Blaque signed with Elektra and started recording a new album. But it was cancelled and Blaque was released. Apparently, Natina didn't like the record. There were attempts to go solo but none of them worked out. Blaque had planned to reform. But Natina Reed was killed in a Oct. 26, 2012 car accident. Shamari appeared on the 2018 season of The Real Housewives of Atlanta. And she released a single with her husband Ronnie Devoe of Bell Biv Devoe. Here's the video for 808 by Blaque.