AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Michael Nouri

Artist:Michael Nouri

Song:King's Dilemma

Album:Victor/Victoria: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Actor Michael Nouri is best known for his many TV roles. He has also appeared in films. But it might surprise some that he has also appeared on Broadway. His most notable Broadway appearance was as King Marchan in the 1995 musical adaptation of the film Victor/Victoria. This appears to be Nouri's only recorded singing appearance. He has appeared in other musicals but none were recorded and most were not on Broadway. It's funny because he started out on Broadway before he got into TV. He was born Dec. 9, 1945 in Washington, DC. His father was an Iraqi immigrant who served in the US Army in WWII and became a writer for Stars and Stripes and The New Yorker. Nouri studied drama at Emerson College in Boston and was trained by famed acting coach Lee Strasberg. After appearing in an off Broadway production of The Crucible, Nouri made his Broadway debut in the 1970 comedy Forty Carats which ran for two years. He also had a small role in the 1969 film Goodbye, Columbus. Then he appeared in daytime soaps, most notably as Steve Kaslo in Search for Tomorrow. He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy. His next significant role was as Lucky Luciano in the 1981 miniseries The Gangster Chronicles. Then he played Nick Hurley in the 1983 film Flashdance. That was one of the most successful films of the year. So I think it's fair to say that's where most folks heard of Nouri. His other significant 80s film was the 1987 film The Hidden. He starred in the TV series' Bay City Blues and Downtown. Both shows were cancelled after one season. He was in the sitcom Love & War which ran for three seasons and that's when he appeared in Victor/Victoria. Of course most folks should be familiar with Blake Edwards' 1982 film Victor/Victoria starring his wife Julie Andrews. Edwards wanted to turn it into a Broadway musical. Henry Mancini and Leslie Bricusse were supposed to write the music. But Mancini died and Frank Wildhorn composed the music with Bricusse. Along with Julie Andrews, the stars were Tony Roberts, Michael Nouri and Rachel York. The show ran for two years so it was successful. The original cast is available on CD. It was also broadcast on TV and released on DVD. Since then Nouri has appeared as a regular on the TV series' The O.C., Damages, NCIS and most recently Yellowstone. And he has appeared on the daytime soaps The Young and the Restless and All My Children. Nouri recently appeared on The Pitt and The Rookie. So with his career winding down, I expect he will continue to make TV guest shots. Here's Michael Nouri performing King's Dilemma on the 1995 TV production of Victor/Victoria.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Echosmith

Artist:Echosmith

Song:Cool Kids

Album:Talking Dreams

Cool Kids was a top twenty hit in 2013. It was the only big hit for the band Echosmith. One of their other songs charted so they are not technically a one hit wonder. They only released one album on a major label and now record for their own label. Echosmith is from Chino, CA. They are a family group with Sydney Sierota on lead vocals, Jamie Sierota on guitar and keyboards, Noah Sierota on bass and Graham Sierota on drums. They started out performing covers and released a video of Come Together on YouTube. This got the attention of Warner Bros. Records president Rob Cavallo and he signed Echosmith. An EP was released featuring Come Together and they went out on tour. Meanwhile, their father Jeffrey David, who is also their manager, helped them write original songs. The album Talking Dreams was released and the single Cool Kids reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was certified Gold. All the songs were written by Echosmith and their dad. Mike Elizondo produced the album. He has produced Dr. Dre and Eminem among others. The album was rereleased in 2014 with a new cover. It's available on CD. This is the only album that Echosmith recorded for Warner Bros. The band's official reason was they left Warner Bros. "to escape the creative limitations of a major label and regain full control over their musical direction". The likely real reason was that Cavallo left Warner Bros. as part of a larger management shuffle. It's likely that Echosmith would have been lost in the shuffle anyway. They continued to tour. Jamie Sierota left Echosmith to be a father. Guitarist Josh Murty was hired to play guitar on tour. Echosmith started their own label. But get this. The label is distributed by Warner Music GroupADA which distributes indie labels. So Warners still distributes their albums. But there's no promotion. They have released two albums written and produced by the band and their dad. I guess that's what they wanted. But most bands need promotion. They aren't getting that anymore. Sydney is pregnant so they haven't been touring. And she has released a solo EP. So we'll see if they get anywhere. I have my doubts. Here's the video for Cool Kids by Echosmith. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bebel Gilberto

Artist:Bebel Gilberto

Song:Samba da Bencao

Album:Tanto Tempo

Singer Bebel Gilberto is the daughter of Bossa Nova pioneer Joao Gilberto. She has been recording and performing since the mid 80s. The 2000 album Tanto Tempo is considered to be her breakthrough album as it sold a million copies worldwide. She was born May 12, 1966 in New York City. Her mother is singer Miucha. When her parents split up, Gilberto lived in New York and Miucha moved back to Brazil. Bebel lived mostly in Brazil. She started performing as a child with both parents including a 1977 Carnegie Hall concert with her mom and Stan Getz. She started out in the mid 80s with the Brazilian rock band Barao Vermelho and wrote several songs with their lead singer Cazuzo. Bebel moved to New York in 1991. After she appeared on the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Rio, record companies started sniffing around. Bebel signed with the Belgian label Ziriguiboom in Europe and Six Degrees Records in the US. Tanto Tempo was her 2000 debut album. Bebel wrote most of the songs though Samba da Bencao is a Bossa Nova standard written by Vinicius de Moraes and Baden Powell. The album was produced by Serbian Mitar "Suba" Subotic. He had lived in Brazil since 1990. But tragedy struck when the recording studio caught fire while Subo was working on post production. He was able to save the masters but he died from smoke inhalation. Subo's friend and frequent collaborator Amon Tobin finished the album. The album sold a million copies worldwide including 300,000 in the US. It's available as a budget CD. Bebel recorded three albums for Ziriguiboom and has recorded for Verve among others since then. Her latest album Joao was released in 2023 on the indie label PIAS. It appears to be a tribute to her dad. She is currently touring to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Tempo Tanto. Here's Bebel Gilberto with Masa Shimizu on violin and bass, Jorge Continento on sax and guitar, John Roggie and Sacha Amback on keyboards, Magrus Borges on drums and Marcos Suzano on percussion performing Samba da Bencao in Rio de Janeiro Dec. 2012. This entire concert can be viewed on YouTube.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Eden Espinosa

Artist:Eden Espinosa

Song:In the Blasted California Sun

Album:Lempicka: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Eden Espinosa is a Broadway performer best known for playing Elphaba in touring productions of Wicked. She was Tony nominated for playing the female lead in the 2024 musical Lempicka despite the fact the show was not favorably reviewed and it didn't run very long. She was born Feb. 2, 1978 in Anaheim, CA. She is of Mexican descent. Eden began performing as a child and in high school, she played Maria in West Side Story. After graduating from high school, she worked at Disneyland and the Universal Studios theme park. And she toured with The Young Americans. While performing at Disneyland, a casting director spotted her and introduced her to the creators of the musical Brooklyn which was in the planning stages at the time. They suggested she move to New York and she was a standby for Idina Menzel's Elphaba in the 2003 show Wicked. She also filmed the 2006 film Ask the Dust. Eden left Wicked to star in the musical Brooklyn first in Denver then on Broadway. This show ran from Oct. 2004 to June 2005. Afterwards, she returned to Wicked and was in the national tour, Los Angeles and New York until June 2010. So she got a lot of mileage from that. Eden's other big show was Lempicka which was on Broadway in 2024. Lempicka is about Polish painter Tamara de Lempicka. The show was created by Carson Kreitzer and Matt Gould. This musical had runs in Williamstown and San Diego before it played Broadway in 2024. Though Eden was nominated for a Best Actress Tony and got positive reviews, Lempicka was slammed by critics and only played for one month. The original cast album is available on CD. Eden has recorded a couple of solo albums and has performed live in New York clubs since 2005. She hasn't done much in the way of films. But she has done TV guest shots. She's been doing a lot of voiceover work and I can see her doing a lot more of that as it can be very lucrative. Here's Eden Espinosa performing In the Blasted California Sun at The Green Room in New York City. This is my first time posting an Instagram video. Like Facebook, I do not go to Instagram unless I need a video clip. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Mellow Man Ace

Artist:Mellow Man Ace

Song:Mentirosa

Album:Rap N Oldies

Mentirosa was a top 20 hit in 1990. It was the only chart single for Latin American rapper Mellow Man Ace. He only recorded two albums and retired. He would return on his own label. He was born Ulpiano Sergio Reyes Apr. 12, 1967 in Pinar del Rio, Cuba but he grew up in the Los Angeles suburb of South Gate, CA. Reyes and his brother Senen "Sen Dog" Reyes are both rappers. They formed the group DVX with Lawrence "DJ Muggs" Muggerud and Louis "B-Real" Freese. But when Reyes left to sign with Capitol Records, the group name was changed to Cypress Hill after a street in South Gate. Of course they were known as Latin hip hop pioneers. Reyes released the 1990 album Escape from Havana. The single Mentirosa became a hit when the video was played to death on MTV. It reached #14 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was probably a bigger hit than that but radio stations were reluctant to play it. Reyes was good friends with Los Angeles radio station KDAY DJs "Tony D" Gonzalez and "Julio G" Gonzalez. No, they are not brothers. Tony D produced Mentirosa and about half of the album and Julio G did the scratching. The girl in the video is Argentine pop singer Maria Becerra. You can get Mentirosa on this various artists budget comp. The main samples were No One to Depend On and Evil Ways by Santana. BTW, they are too recognizable which is a pet peeve of mine. Reyes' big mistake was not getting clearance for the samples and not surprisingly that upset Capitol. When his 1992 album The Brother with Two Tongues didn't sell and there were no chart singles, Capitol dropped Reyes. I think Capitol buried him as they were pissed. Reyes announced his retirement. He returned in 2000 to release a couple of albums and recorded a 2006 album with his brother as The Reyes Brothers. He last released an album in 2010 but he still performs live. But he will be a one hit wonder forever. Here's the video for Mentirosa by Mellow Man Ace. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Los Campesinos!

Artist:Los Campesinos!

Song:The Sea Is a Good Place to Think of the Future

Album:Romance Is Boring

With a name like Los Campesinos!, you might think this band is Latin American. But they were actually formed at Cardiff University in Wales in 2006. They are a quirky indie band who have had modest success in England and they tour in the US. As I said, the band members were students at Cardiff University in 2006. The main members appear to be from Essex, England. The main members of the band are Gareth Paisey on lead vocals and glockenspiel and he writes all the songs, Neil Turner on lead guitar and Tom Bromley on guitar and keyboards. The rest of the band membership is fluid so I will concentrate on them. Campesino is Spanish for peasant and all band members were identified by the surname Campesino. That's too cutesy poo for me and apparently they aren't doing that anymore. Los Campesinos! began performing in local clubs in 2006. After posting songs on MySpace, they opened for the Canadian band Broken Social Scene. And that led to a record deal with the British label Wichita Recordings for Europe and the Canadian label Arts & Crafts for North America. They released a couple of singles and an EP and toured England in 2007. They released their 2008 debut album Hold on Now, Youngster... and toured Europe and North America to support it. The Sea Is a Good Place to Think of the Future was the lead single for the 2010 album Romance Is Boring. It was around this time that Gareth Paisey's sister Kim Paisey joined the band as keyboardist. The album was produced by John Goodmanson who produces Death Cab for Cutie. The album was a breakthrough for Los Campesinos! as it got rave reviews from critics. And that's important with this kind of music as it leads to longevity. Los Campesinos! released a tenth anniversary edition of this album in 2010. This was remastered and has a bonus track. It's available on CD. Los Campesinos! is still around. They released their latest album All Hell in 2024 on their own label. They have been rereleasing remastered versions of all their recordings. Here's the video for The Sea Is a Good Place to Think of the Future by Los Campesinos!. I know the video looks very amateurish but I believe that was done deliberately. This is a band that doesn't want to come across as too slick. 

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Oran "Juice" Jones

Artist:Oran "Juice" Jones f/Vincent Bell

Song:The Rain

Album:Juice

The 1986 single The Rain was a top ten hit. It was the only chart single for R&B singer songwriter Oran "Juice" Jones. So he is a one hit wonder. He retired in 2008 to take care of his ailing mother. He was in the news a few years ago when he announced plans to sue his record label DefJam for unpaid royalties. He was born Mar. 28, 1957 in Houston but he grew up in Harlem in New York City. The most notable thing about Jones before he got into music is that he was a Brigade Commander in the US Naval Academy and a trained Marine Corps sniper. After he left the Navy, he planned to make music with rapper Kurtis Blow. He wrote the song Daydreaming for Blow. When there was a payment dispute, Blow suggested that Jones should go to DefJam and work with Russell Simmons. So he signed with DefJam. They were strictly known for rap so Simmons started ORB Records for R&B. Rain was the first single from the 1987 album Juice. It reached #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the R&B Singles chart. Jones wrote the song and most of the album with Vincent Bell and Bell produced the album with Simmons. It looks like Bell was a DefJam house producer at the time. Bell also does the spoken word part at the end of the song. The girl in the video is model Danita Davis. This album is available on CD. Jones recorded three albums for DefJam. He charted on R&B but was unable to chart again on the Billboard Hot 100. He released the 1997 album Player's Call on Tommy Boy but that didn't sell either. Jones wrote and produced that album with Al Green's legendary producer Willie Mitchell. Jones retired from recording in 2008 to care for his ailing mother. He composes music for commercials so I assume he works for an ad agency. When The Rain was sampled in the film Suicide Squad, Jones announced that he planned to sue DefJam for unpaid royalties. It never went to court and was settled for a reported $2M. Jones still performs live and he has other business interests. Here's the video for The Rain by Oran "Juice" Jones.