AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Mako

Artist:Mako and Company

Song:The Advantages of Floating in the Middle of the Sea

Album:Pacific Overtures: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Most folks should be familiar with Japanese actor Mako from his many TV appearances or his role as Po-Han in the 1966 film The Sand Pebbles for which he got an Oscar nomination. But you may not know that he got a Tony nomination for his role as The Reciter in the 1976 Stephen Sondheim musical Pacific Overtures. I don't think he sings in this. He's like the narrator in Our Town. I'm pretty sure that most of you know nothing about Mako. He was born Makoto Iwamatsu Dec. 10, 1933 in Kobe, Japan. His parents were children's authors and illustrators Mitsu and Taro Yashima. They moved to the US in 1939 and worked for the US Office of War Information. They left Mako with his grandmother in Japan. He moved to the US in 1949. His father owned an art studio in New York City. He was pretty good at baseball and was scouted by the Cleveland Indians. Though Mako was interested in acting, he wasn't sure that he could make it a career. So he enrolled in the Pratt Institute School of Architecture and worked at his father's print shop. Mako enlisted in the US Army from 1953-55. While in the service, he performed in plays. Afterwards, he moved to Los Angeles to study at the Pasadena Playhouse. That's when he started calling himself Mako. His first film was Never So Few in 1959. He played bit parts in film and TV until he got the role as engine room worker Po-Han in the 1966 film The Sand Pebbles and was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. After that, he appeared in the films The Hawaiians (1970), The Island at the Top of the World (1974) and The Killer Elite (1975). And that's when Mako was cast in the Stephen Sondheim musical Pacific Overtures. It tells the story of the westernization of Japan in the 19th century. It appears that the show was cast via out of town tryouts. So my guess is the producers came to Mako's East West Players theater company in Pasadena and cast him there. The show was nominated for several Tonys including for Mako but only won a couple of minor awards. Pacific Overtures has been revived occasionally, most notably in 2004. But I don't think it's one of Sondheim's more memorable shows. The original cast album is available as a budget CD. Mako lived in Los Angeles so it was his only major Broadway appearance. Mako continued to appear in supporting roles in films and TV guest shots until he died on July 21, 2006 at age 72. Here's Mako and Company performing The Advantages of Floating in the Middle of the Sea on the 1976 Tony Awards broadcast. This is the first number in the show.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Alex Ubago

Artist:Alex Ubago

Song:Sin Meido a Nada

Album:20 Anos

The 2003 single Sin Meido a Nada is to date the biggest hit for Spanish singer songwriter pianist Alex Ubago. He's been a very popular crooner ever since. He's had some success in Mexico and he has been nominated for a Latin Grammy. But he has had most of his success at home. He was born Jan. 29, 1981 in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Alava, Spain. But he grew up in San Sebastian. He started writing songs as a teen. He contacted his musician cousin David who had a home studio and wanted to record some songs for his girlfriend. When those recordings landed in the hands of manager Inigio Argomaniz, he wanted to know if Ubago wanted a record deal. So they re-recorded the songs and Ubago signed with Warner Bros. Spanish label DRO. Sin Meido a Nada was one of several singles to be released before they were all collected on an album. Ubago wrote the song and it was produced by recording engineer Jesus N. Gomez. As I said, most of Ubago's success has been in Spain and other European countries. But he has also charted in Mexico and other Latin American countries. He has been nominated for Latin Grammys. All of his hits are on this comp. Ubago's latest album was released in 2024 and he is currently on tour. Here's the video for Sin Meido a Nada by Alex Ubago.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Aimee Mann

Artist:Aimee Mann f/Grant-Lee Phillips

Song:You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch

Album:One More Drifter in the Snow

I start looking at Christmas songs this time of year. I'm not looking for a specific kind of music. But something unusual is a good thing. I never know as music is played at random on my custom station. And decent videos for Christmas songs are hard to find. Most music fans should be familiar with Aimee Mann from her days with the band 'Til Tuesday and the smash hit Voices Carry. And she was nominated for an Oscar for her song Save Me from the 1999 film Magnolia. In recent years, she's gone under the radar because she has recorded for her own label SuperEgo since 2000. She had two very bad experiences at major labels. Epic Records killed 'Til Tuesday. The band split up because Epic wouldn't promote them. And they wouldn't let Aimee out of her contract for three years. Then she signed a solo deal and the label closed and sold her contract to Geffen. They didn't want her. After her music from Magnolia was a big success, Geffen refused to release Aimee's 2000 album Bachelor No. 2. They didn't think it was commercial enough. And with a little tinkering, Geffen thought they could turn Aimee into Avril Lavigne. So Aimee got out of her contract and started SuperEgo. Aimee usually writes and produces her albums with her bassist Paul Bryan. One More Drifter in the Snow was his first album as producer. Aimee wanted to record Christmas perennials influenced by the 1958 Johnny Mathis album Merry Christmas. She said she was going for a Julie London lounge vibe. You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch is from the Chuck Jones TV show The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. The song was written by Dr. Seuss and Albert Hague who you may remember from the film and TV series Fame. Grant Lee Buffalo leader Grant-Lee Phillips was brought in to narrate. He is friends with Bryan. This album is available as a digital download. Aimee last released an album in 2021. But she still performs live. and 'Til Tuesday reunited for one show last year. She hangs out at the Los Angeles club Largo. That's how Magnolia director Paul Thomas Anderson found her. Here's Aimee Mann featuring Grant-Lee Phillips performing You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch on the Dec. 13, 2006 episode of Conan. The guitar solo is by session musician Duke Levine who played on the album.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Tim Rushlow

Artist:Tim Rushlow

Song:She Misses Him

Album:Tim Rushlow

Tim Rushlow was the lead singer of the popular 90s country band Little Texas. After they split up in 1997. Rushlow scored a top ten country hit with the 2000 single She Misses Him. This should have been the beginning of a long and successful solo career. But Rushlow prefers to be part of a band. So he has made several attempts with middling success. He was born Oct. 6, 1966 in Midwest City, OK. but he grew up in Arlington, TX. He formed Little Texas with high school classmates and they had eight top ten country hits from 1991-95. They split up in 1997. After he sang the title song on comedian Jeff Foxworthy's 1998 album Totally Committed, Rushlow signed with Atlantic Records and released the 2001 album Tim Rushlow. She Misses Him was the second single and it reached #8 on the Country Singles chart. The song is a weeper about a woman whose husband is suffering from Alzheimer's and She Misses Him. It's not my kind of song but I can understand why some folks might like it. She Misses Him was written by veteran songwriter Tim Johnson. Rushlow wrote some songs with former Little Texas guitarist Porter Howell. The album was produced by veteran producer David Malloy who was working as a house producer at Atlantic at the time. Other than the one single, the album didn't do that well. It's available on CD. And Rushlow preferred to be part of a group. Then Atlantic closed their Nashville office. Rushlow formed the band Rushlow with cousin Doni Harris. They released an album on Disney owned Lyric Street Records. They scored a top 20 hit with I Can't Be Your Friend but Disney closed Lyric Street and Rushlow split up. Since then, Rushlow released a couple of albums independently. Then he formed The Frontmen with former Lonestar lead singer Richie McDonald and former Restless Heart lead singer Larry Stewart. They released a 2024 album on BBR Music Group. They have been touring but there is no word of a new album. To me, they seem like a 90s nostalgia act and they perform the old songs in their shows. I don't see much of a future in that. Here's the video of She Misses Him by Tim Rushlow. The images of Ronald Reagan in the video come across as exploitative to me. That's not a decision I would have made. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jamie MacDonald

Artist:Jamie MacDonald

Song:Ain't No Way

Album:Jamie Macdonald

Jamie MacDonald is a CCM singer songwriter whose music can best be described as blue eyed soul. She has done very well in the CCM market with her 2026 debut album. But she has potential to cross over to pop. I'll get into that later. She was born Oct. 17, 1984 in Nashville. Her father was a boxer who challenged for the World Light Heavyweight Championship three times. After her parents divorced, her mother remarried and her stepfather kicked Jamie out of the house for singing. She became addicted to drugs. After dropping out of high school, she moved to Los Angeles and was homeless. She decided to become a Christian and participate in a prison ministry. Jamie moved to Kansas City, MO and sang in clubs as Jamie Lyn. She recorded a demo and that led to writing songs for TV shows like The Rookie and Oprah Winfrey's Queen Sugar. After turning down a record deal, Jamie became a studio singer. Then she moved to Atlanta to take care of her father who was suffering from Parkinson's disease. He died in 2023. Then she signed with Capitol CMG in 2024. This is the parent company of what used to be called Sparrow Records. They started using the name Capitol CMG in 2019. It's still owned by EMI. Her debut album Jamie MacDonald was released Jan. 2026. The album reached #3 on the Christian charts and four of her singles charted. Ain't No Way reached #11 on the Christian Singles chart. So it did pretty well. The album was mostly produced by Austin Davis. He was a drummer with CCM singer Lauren Daigle and now he is producing CCM artists. Jamie wrote all the songs with co-writers. She wrote Ain't No Way with Davis, producer Colby Wedgeworth and Jonathan Gamble. Wedgeworth helped with production too. Jamie says her main influences are Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston. So I'm not surprised by the blue eyed soul vibe. She has been touring with Phil Wickham and Tauren Wells. Wickham is currently the hottest artist  in CCM. So does Jamie MacDonald want to cross over to pop? She hasn't expressed interest in doing that yet. But I expect Capitol CMG to bring that up with her. And keep in mind that her producer Austin Davis worked with Lauren Daigle who has been a very successful pop crossover artist. So time will tell but I wouldn't be surprised if she gave Capitol CMG the green light. Here's the video for Ain't No Way by Jamie MacDonald.

  

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.