AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Sugarcubes

Artist:The Sugarcubes

Song:Birthday

Album:The Great Crossover Potential

Of course the Icelandic band The Sugarcubes is best known as the launching pad for the popular singer Bjork. I guess she had to start somewhere. They only recorded three albums. So they weren't around very long. I guess she got too big for the band. Bjork had been in bands as a teen. She even recorded a solo album in 1977 when she was 11 years old. The band was called Puki when it was formed in 1986 out the ashes of two bands. Bjork had just given birth to a son. She wanted a cute band name so it was changed to The Sugarcubes. Bjork and singer Einar Orn were in The Sugarcubes' entire run along with guitarist Por Eldon Jonsson. Bassist Bragi Olafsson and drummer Siggi Baldursson were the other main members. The Sugarcubes signed with the British indie label One Little Indian and Elektra Records in the US so they could tour everywhere. Birthday is from their 1988 debut album Life's Too Good. It's probably their best known song. The Sugarcubes did well on the British charts. But they never had a big hit single. But Life's Too Good was highly acclaimed by the music press including Album of the Year by the British music papers NME and Melody Maker. Plus Bjork got plenty of attention from the music press. So one would have thought that the album's success would lead to stardom for The Sugarcubes. But it really didn't and they split up in 1992. Fans were interested in Bjork but not The Sugarcubes. This comp covers all three albums. So The Sugarcubes were most notable as a launching pad for Bjork. Here's the video for Birthday by The Sugarcubes.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Muse

Artist:Muse

Song:Hysteria

Album:Absolution

The British band Muse have had success at home. But with the 2004 album Absolution, they started to get attention in the US and they have a new album coming in June. The main criticism of Muse is they sound too much like Coldplay. But that kind of criticism could also be used as a recommendation. So if you like Coldplay, you should like Muse. Muse was formed in 1994 while all three guys were attending Tergnmouth Community School in Devon County in England. They were all in different bands. Drummer Dominic Howard was looking for a singer for his band Carnage Mayhem. Matt Bellamy auditioned for guitarist. But he also sang and Howard wanted him for that. They renamed the band Gothic Plague. They asked Fixed Penalty drummer Chris Wolstenholme if he wanted to be the bassist. He joined and the band was renamed Rocket Baby Dolls. After they smashed their equipment at a local battle of the bands, they actually won the contest and decided to take themselves more seriously. They changed the band name to Muse. Bellamy thought the name was inspirational and it looked good on a poster. They moved to London and opened for the band Skunk Anansie. They met with recording studio owner Dennis Smith and he started a record label for them. Smith knew the boys when they were kids. They released a couple EPs and got some radio play. Despite that, British labels were reluctant to sign Muse because...wait for it..they sounded too much like Coldplay. So Muse went to New York to play a showcase for several labels and they signed with Maverick Records owned by Madonna and Guy Oseary with Warner Bros. distribution. The 2003 album Absolution was Muse's third album. There were problems at Maverick. And after a lawsuit, Madonna and Oseary left and Warners took over the label. Muse is still on Warner Bros. and have a new album coming in June. Absolution is the album that got Muse worldwide attention. They write and produce all the songs. Bellamy writes all the lyrics, is lead singer and he plays guitar and keyboards. They hire keyboardists for tours. There is no Muse single CD comp. So you should check out Absolution if they interest you. Muse continue to tour and record. They will release their tenth album The WOW Signal! in June. They will begin touring in July to support it. Here's the video for Hysteria by Muse.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Skye Sweetnam

Artist:Skye Sweetnam

Song:Tangled Up in Me

Album:Noise from the Basement

Canadian singer songwriter Skye Sweetnam was sixteen years old when Capitol Records attempted to turn her into a teen pop star. When that didn't work out, she formed the punk metal band Sumo Cyco which is still active today. She was born May 5, 1988 in Bolton, ON which is northwest of Toronto. She began singing as a child and she took singing and dancing lessons. She started writing songs and a demo got the attention of Capitol Records Canada and they put her together with producer James Robertson. He's a local guy from Guelph and other than Skye, he hasn't produced anything notable. He currently lives in Hamilton and plays local clubs. The two wrote and produced the 2004 album Songs from the Basement. The album was ready in 2002 and Capitol kept postponing it. Skye was supposed to tour with Britney Spears but Britney injured her knee and the tour was postponed. Capitol tried other things to promote Skye but none of them worked. Critics thought Skye sounded too much like Avril Lavigne and that didn't help. This album is available as a digital download. For the 2007 album Sound Soldier, Capitol brought in the production team The Matrix who had produced...ahem...Avril Lavigne. When that album did worse, Skye left Capitol and formed the punk metal band Sumo Syco. Skye is lead singer and co-writes all the songs. They have released four albums on the Austrian label Napalm Records. They last released an album last year. They just started a US tour. So for Canadian music fans wondering what happened to Skye Sweetnam, there ya go. Here's the video for Tangled Up in Me by Skye Sweetnam.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Clifford Brown

Artist:Clifford Brown

Song:Memories of You

Album:Ultimate Clifford Brown

Here is another of my Jazz for Beginners series complete with a live video clip and an affordable comp intended for beginners. Though trumpeter Clifford Brown died in 1956 at age 25, he has had a lasting impact on jazz and is considered an all time great despite his brief career. He was born Oct. 30, 1930 in Wilmington, DE. His father played trumpet. He tried to organize his four sons into a vocal group. But Brown was fascinated by his dad's shiny trumpet and started blowing. At age 13, Brown's dad bought him a trumpet and had him take lessons. He was in a jazz band in high school that made trips to Philadelphia. Though Brown attended college after graduating from high school, he was more interested in jazz. After being injured in a June 1950 car crash, Dizzy Gillespie visited Brown in the hospital and encouraged him to start a music career. Brown's main influence was bebop trumpeter Fats Navarro. He moved to New York and played with Art Blakey and J.J. Johnson before forming a band with drummer Max Roach. He was a member of Blakey's first band with Lou Donaldson, Horace Silver and Curley Russell. At the time, Miles Davis and Charlie Parker were among Brown's admirers. Roach had moved to Los Angeles and Brown followed him. The original Brown/Roach band was formed in 1954 with Harold Land on tenor sax, Richie Powell (Bud Powell's brother) on piano and George Morrow on bass and signed with Mercury's jazz label EmArcy. Most of Brown's recordings were on EmArcy. Brown alternated recording with Roach and recording as a leader of his own band. He also recorded with singers Sarah Vaughan and Dinah Washington. And he also recorded the 1955 album Clifford Brown with Strings. Of course this was influenced by Charlie Parker's album with strings. Record companies thought an album with strings would reach a wider audience when all it really did was annoy the established jazz fanbase. I guess Brown just went along with it because if it was OK with Parker, it's OK with him. The album was produced by EmArcy house producer Bob Shad. The string arrangements were by Neal Hefti who was working with Count Basie at the time. The band was Brown's usual band of Powell, Roach and Morrow plus guitarist Barry Galbraith. The songs are all standards including the 1930 Eubie Blake song Memories of You. This song was first recorded by Louis Armstrong in 1930. You can get it on this Verve comp CD compiled by trumpeter Nicholas Payton. So Brown was just getting started when on June 26, 1956, Brown and Powell were driving to a gig in Chicago. Powell's wife drove and the guys slept in the back. It was raining and she lost control on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and that was it. Clifford Brown died at age 25. Brown didn't drink, smoke or take drugs. So it's likely he would have lived a long life. But his music still sounds great. I listen to him all the time and so should you. Here's Clifford Brown performing Lady Be Good and Memories of You on the TV show Soupy's On hosted by Soupy Sales. This is the only live video clip of Clifford Brown.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lowell Fulson

Artist:Lowell Fulson

Song:Reconsider Baby

Album:Reconsider Baby: The Complete Checker Singles 1954-1962

The 1954 single Reconsider Baby is the best known song written and performed by bluesman Lowell Fulson. It was also influential in developing the West Coast blues style pioneered by T-Bone Walker. He was born Mar. 31, 1921 on a Choctaw reservation in Atoka, OK. His father died when he was six years old. So his mom moved the family to nearby Clarita, OK where her father owned land. As a child, Fulson sang in church. He took up the guitar at age 12 influenced by Blind Lemon Jefferson and Blind Boy Fuller. He played local dances as a teen. Then he moved to Ada, OK and joined a band led by local bluesman Texas Alexander. Then he moved to Gainesville, TX and played dances for a couple of years. He was drafted into the US Navy in 1943. He was stationed in Oakland, CA and that's when Fulson saw T-Bone Walker And decided he wanted to play like him. Fulson settled in Oakland after WWII and played local clubs until Swing Time Records owner Bob Geddins signed him to a record deal and bought him a new guitar and amplifier. Fulson recorded for Swing Time until he signed with the Chess Records label Checker. So now he's on a national label and that's when Reconsider Baby was released and reached #3 on the R&B charts. Fulson wrote the song and Leonard and Phil Chess produced it. Musicians were Paul Drake on piano, Bobby Nicholson on bass and Chick Booth on drums. Plus a horn section with Philip Gilbeaux on trumpet, Phatz Morris on trombone, Julian Beasley on alto and baritone sax and Choker Campbell on tenor sax. But the most important thing about Reconsider Baby is that it was covered by many performers including Elvis Presley in 1960. And that led to other covers of Fulson songs. So that made him a big influence. You can get all of Fulson's Checker recordings on this comp from the reissue label Jasmine Records. Fulson switched to Kent Records in 1962 probably because they were more of an R&B label. His biggest hit for Kent was the 1967 single Tramp which was a big hit for Otis Redding & Carla Thomas. After that, Fulson recorded for smaller labels. But he continued to be a great live performer until he died on Mar. 7, 1999 at age 77. Here's Lowell Fulson performing Reconsider Baby in Los Angeles 1983.

AccuRadio Song Of the Day-Robert Maxwell, His Harp and Orchestra

Artist:Robert Maxwell, His Harp and Orchestra

Song:Shangri-La

Album:Hard to Find Orchestral Instrumentals

Robert Maxwell was a harpisr who is best known for writing two big hits, Ebb Tide and Shangri-La. He recorded plenty of easy listening albums. But the big surprise was when his 1964 recording of Shangi-La was a top 15 hit. He had one other chart single so he's not even a one hit wonder. But I think it's fair to say that Maxwell didn't depend on chart success anyway. He was born Max Rosen Apr. 19, 1921 in New York City. He started playing the harp as a child. His two brothers play the harp too. Abe Rosen played on Broadway and Myor Rosen was with the New York Philharmonic for thirty years. After Maxwell won a scholarship at Juilliard, he became the youngest member of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington at age 17. During WWII, Maxwell played in the 11th Naval District Coast Guard led by Rudy Vallee. So that got him to play popular music on the harp. So that got him thinking about writing and recording. He didn't have to be part of an orchestra. So for most of the 50s, Maxwell recorded for MGM Records. But the big surprise was when Frank Chacksfield scored a top five hit with his 1953 single of Ebb Tide. Maxwell wrote Shangri-La with violinist Matty Malneck in 1946. Malneck recorded it in 1946 featuring a Maxwell harp solo. The 1957 recording by the vocal group The Five Coins was a top 15 hit. Maxwell signed with Decca and reached #15 with his 1964 single Shangri-La. Jackie Gleason used Shangri-La on his early 60s variety show for his Reginald Van Gleason character. Plus Vic Dana recorded a vocal version. Maxwell's version had a "Space Age" arrangement led by sax and organ solos. So it had a pop music sound as opposed to classical. You can get Shangri-La on this various artists comp from the oldies label Eric Records.Maxwell recorded as Bobby Maxwell for Command/ABC in the 70s. And he continued to appear with orchestras until his death on Feb. 7, 2012 at age 90. Here's a video for Shangri-La by Robert Maxwell, His Harp and Orchestra.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Future Islands

Artist:Future Islands

Song:Seasons (Waiting on You)

Album:Singles

Future Islands is a synth pop band and they have been around for almost twenty years. They are an indie band on an indie label. The 2014 album Singles is their biggest seller to date. Chances are pretty good that if you like synth pop, you should like Future Islands. The band was formed in Greenville, SC in 2006 and moved to Baltimore in 2008. Lead singer Sam Herring and keyboardist Gerrit Weimers were friends growing up in Morehead City, NC. Guitarist William Cashion started hanging out with them. He had already been in a couple of bands. So he thought they would be interested. They called the band Art Lord and the Self-Portraits. They were influenced by art classes they took in school. They recorded four albums and then split up because high school was over and they were going in different directions. Herring, Weimers and Cashion formed a new band Future Islands. They got rid of the art class gimmick. The fourth member of Future Islands was Erick Murillo. He didn't stay long. The drummer for most of their history has been Michael Lowry. They signed with the indie label Thrill Jockey. After three albums, they switched to the indie label 4AD for the 2014 album Singles. The single Seasons was singled out as 2014's best single by the music press including Pitchfork, Spin and NME. So that helped generate sales and Future Islands appeared on Late Show with David Letterman. Seasons became an internet hit before Billboard included online airplay in results. Future Islands writes and produces all the songs. Future Islands is still around. They released their latest album in 2024. They are playing some shows in May. I think if Future Islands was on a major label, they could cross over to pop with a decent promotion budget. But they seem happy with the freedom they have at 4AD who will release a comp CD next month. Here's the video for Seasons (Waiting on You) by Future Islands.