AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Get Up Kids

Artist:The Get Up Kids

Song:Ten Minutes

Album:Something to Write Home About

The Get Up Kids is a punk emo band who have had success as an album and touring band. They have never been on a major label so they have never been promoted as stars. At this point, they probably don't want that as it might alienate their fans. I'm not a big fan of this kind of music in the first place. But for me, The Get Up Kids sound too much like other similar punk emo bands. But that's what the punk emo fans want. The Get Up Kids are from Kansas City, MO. Guitarist Jim Suptic, bassist Rob Pope and drummer Ryan Pope went to high school together and had the band Kingpin. Singer Matt Pryor led the band Secret Decoder Ring. When both bands split up in 1995, they merged and became The Get Up Kids. The big thing about Pryor is he was already writing songs. They opened for the emo band Mineral on their first show. The original drummer was Thomas Becker. When he went off to college, Nathan Shay replaced him. He was attending the Kansas City Art Institute with Suptic. The Get Up Kids self released a single and were going to tour. But Shay didn't want to tour and Rob Pope brought in his younger brother Ryan Pope. After releasing another single, The Get Up Kids signed with the indie label Doghouse Records and they combined the singles into an EP. And they signed a two album contract. The Get Up Kids drove to Chicago to record their debut album produced by Bob Weston of the band Shellac. The album was recorded over a weekend and The Get Up Kids went on tour opening for the emo band Braid. Their debut album Four Minute Mile was released in 1997. The album did OK and the band continued to tour. They opened for Braid in Europe. They were unhappy with Doghouse as they couldn't keep up with the increased popularity of the band. They decided to leave Doghouse. They talked to several labels and were going to sign with Mojo Records. Before they signed, they met Vagrant Records owner Rich Egan and he offered them more money and their own label. Then they met James Dewees who recorded a 1998 album as Reggie and the Full Effect. He joined The Get Up Kids as a keyboardist. He appeared on the 1999 album Something to Write Home About. Vagrant mortgaged themselves to sell the album. And it worked out as the album got rave reviews and it sold well. The Get Up Kids wrote and produced the album so royalties were split evenly. This album is available as a digital download. The Get Up Kids toured non stop for three years to promote the album. Not surprisingly, when it was time to record The Get Up Kids' next album, they were burned out. So they wanted to change to a more classic rock sound for the 2002 album On a Wire. Unfortunately, when the album was released, fans didn't like it. Alternative Press criticized The Get Up Kids for alienating their loyal fanbase. They lost fans and support from Vagrant. The Get Up Kids bought Black Lodge Studios in Eudora, KS with longtime recording engineer Ed Rose. Then they released the 2004 album Guilt Show. The album did OK. But they were overshadowed by the popularity of emo bands like Dashboard Confessional who they toured with. Meanwhile, they were tired of touring and they weren't getting along anyway. The Get Up Kids announced that they were disbanding. their final show was at the Uptown Theater in their hometown of Kansas City July 2005. The Pope brothers took over Black Lodge Studios. Rob Pope was in the band White Whale followed by Spoon. Ryan Pope was in the band The Roman Numerals. Matt Pryor already had a side project called The New Amsterdams. He also released two solo albums. Suptic started a record label but it didn't work out and he was working at Home Depot. James Dewees was a member of New Found Glory and My Chemical Romance. After a 2008 reunion show, The Get Up Kids recorded new music which became the 2011 album There Are Rules on their own label. When the album didn't sell, they went on hiatus again but they did return to release a 2019 album. They have returned to touring and they are still touring. Here's the video for Ten Minutes by The Get Up Kids. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Dartells

Artist:The Dartells

Song:Hot Pastrami

Album:Son of Frat Rock

The 1962 single Hot Pastrami was a top twenty hit. It was the only big hit for The Dartells. One of their other songs charted so it is not technically a one hit wonder. The Dartells were from Oxnard, CA led by lead singer and bassist Doug Phillips. The other members were Dick Burns on guitar, Randy Ray on organ, Corey Wilkie and Rich Peil on sax and Gary Peeler on drums. Phillips wrote this reworking of the Nat Kendricks & the Swans single Mashed Potatoes. The Swans were James Brown's band at the time. The Dartells recorded Hot Pastrami in a garage. So I guess they were literally a garage band. Their manager and producer Tom Ayers got them a record deal with Arlen Records. Hot Pastrami did well enough on local radio that Dot Records picked it up for national distribution. That's how many songs became hits in those days. Hot Pastrami reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963. Then The Dartells recorded what appears to be a mostly instrumental album. Not surprisingly, the album is out of print. But you can get Hot Pastrami on this Rhino various artists comp. After releasing a couple of unsuccessful singles. The Dartells split up. Some of them went on to other bands. Phillips was in the late 60s bands New Concepts and Camaraderie. Both bands were on major labels but went nowhere. Ayers went on to play bass for Johnny Burnette. Then he became an A&R man for several labels. Most notably he brought David Bowie to RCA. Here's The Dartells performing Hot Pastrami on a 1966 episode of The Lloyd Thaxton Show.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Hot Chelle Rae

Artist:Hot Chelle Rae

Song:Tonight Tonight

Album:Whatever

The 2011 single Tonight Tonight was a top ten hit. It was the only big hit for the band Hot Chelle Rae. One of their other songs charted so they are not technically a one hit wonder. But Tonight Tonight is the only song that anyone will remember. The band was called Miracle Drug when it was formed in Nashville in 2005 by lead singer Ryan Folisee and guitarist Nash Overstreet. After releasing an EP, bassist Ian Keaggy joined followed by drummer Jamie Folisee who is Ryan's brother. They had to change the band name for copyright reasons. Hot Chelle Rae was a MySpace stalker who disappeared when the band discovered she was a fake. But they liked the name. Soon after they signed with Jive Records and they released the 2009 album Lovesick Electric. They toured to support it but the album didn't sell. After recording the 2011 album Whatever, the single Tonight Tonight reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album did particularly well in Australia and New Zealand. So they spent a lot time touring there opening for Taylor Swift and Demi Lovato and headlining their own shows. Ryan Folisee and Overstreet wrote most of the songs with co-writers and producers. The album was produced by Emanuel Kiriakou who has worked with acts like Jason Derulo and Selena Gomez. He brought with him songwriters Evan Kidd Bogart and Lindy Robbins and they helped write Tonight Tonight. The other producer was Andrew Goldstein and he has worked with Maroon 5 and Katy Perry. By this time, Jive parent company Zomba was sold to RCA. So Hot Chelle Rae was moved to RCA. This album is available as a budget CD. After the 2013 EP Recklessly was released, Ian Keaggy announced that he was leaving Hot Chelle Rae. They continued to tour. But after Ryan Folisee left and released a 2017 country album, that seemed to end Hot Chelle Rae. I thought they weren't distinctive enough. I'm sure many listeners thought that Tonight Tonight was by a different band. Overstreet and Jamie Folisee reformed Hot Chelle Rae in 2018. Ryan Folisee declined the invitation to join and I wouldn't be surprised to see him concentrate on songwriting. His parents are songwriters. Hot Chelle Rae released an EP in 2020 followed by a few singles, most recently in 2022. They toured earlier this year, including some shows in Australia. I don't know if that's enough to keep them going. Here's the video for Tonight Tonight by Hot Chelle Rae.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jodi Benson

Artist:Jodi Benson

Song:I Got Rhythm

Album:Crazy for You: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Jodi Benson is best known as the voice of Ariel in the 1989 film The Little Mermaid. She was named a Disney Legend in 2011. She was also nominated for a Tony for playing Polly Baker in the 1992 Broadway musical Crazy for You. She does plenty of voiceover work in films, TV and video games. I guess Broadway is the only place where she performs live. She was born Jodi Marzorati Oct. 10, 1961 in Rockford, IL. She was raised in a Catholic family and after graduating from high school, she attended Millikin University in Decatur, IL. She made her Broadway debut in the 1983 musical Marilyn: An American Fable. This was an attempt to turn the life of Marilyn Monroe into a Broadway musical. It only ran for two weeks. Then she appeared in the 1986 musical Smile based on the 1975 film comedy about a beauty pageant. It also flopped. But it was written by Marvin Hamlisch and Howard Ashman. And Ashman and Alan Menken wrote the songs for the 1989 Disney animated film The Little Mermaid. So though Smile was a flop, it got Jodi into Disney. And that's the base of her career as Ashman told her to audition for The Little Mermaid. Then she was nominated for a Tony for playing Polly Baker in the 1992 Broadway musical. This should have been called Gershwin's Greatest Hits as it was loosely based on the 1930 musical Girl Crazy with other Gershwin hits thrown in. I guess it's an early example of a jukebox musical. It ran for a couple of years and has been revived several times. So it was a hit. The original cast album is available as a budget CD. Jodi still appears occasionally on Broadway. She is currently appearing in a revival of the Stephen Sondheim musical Into the Woods. But mostly Jodi does lots of voiceovers on films, TV and video games. Of course she is still the voice of Ariel. And she has done other Disney films including Flubber (1997) and Toy Story 2 (1999). And she has worked for other animation studios and video game producers. And like many performers, she appears as a guest soloist with regional symphony orchestras. Here's Jodi Benson performing I Got Rhythm from the musical Crazy for You on the 1992 Tony Awards broadcast. This was my first time posting a TikTok video. I don't know why anyone would post a video like this on TikTok. I checked and it can be embedded. But I didn't like how it looked. So as I do with Facebook videos, I downloaded it and uploaded it directly to my blog. This is how it should be.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Phillips, Craig and Dean

Artist:Phillips, Craig and Dean

Song:Come, Now Is the Time To Worship

Album:Here I Am to Worship: 16 Timeless Worship Anthems

Phillips, Craig and Dean has been one of the most popular CCM acts over the last 25 years. They were formed in 1991 but they were more successful in the 2000s because they switched to a larger label and were given a decent promotion budget. They have been nominated for ten Dove awards and won four. Randy Phillips is a pastor from Austin, TX. In 1991, he was shopping a solo album to record companies. When he showed up at the Nashville based CCM label StarSong, they suggested he form a male vocal group. Phillips called St. Louis native Shawn Craig and Dan Dean from the Dallas suburb of Carrollton, TX. and Phillips, Craig and Dean was born. All three guys are pastors. They recorded five albums for StarSong. EMI purchased StarSong in 1996. So by 1999, EMI closed StarSong and moved Phillips, Craig and Dean to EMI's CCM label Sparrow. The group's sound is soft rock with three part harmonies aimed mainly at an older audience. But that is what would have been acceptable to Christian audiences at the time. Today's CCM sound is more contemporary and I don't think Phillips, Craig and Dean have kept up. Besides, they are getting closer to retirement. Come, Now Is the Time for Worship is from the 2001 album Let the Words Be Few. CCM chart stats can be difficult to find but this is supposed to be one of their most popular songs. The song was written by Canadian CCM singer songwriter Brian Doerksen. The album was produced by Nathan Nockels who has produced several Phiillips, Craig and Dean albums. This budget comp covers their Sparrow albums. Phillips, Craig and Dean switched to Integrity's INO label distributed by Sony. When Integrity was sold in 2011, INO president Jeff Moseley bought the assets and changed the company name to Fair Trade Services. Sony still distributed them. So Phillips, Craig and Dean were on INO/Fair Trade from 2004-17. Their latest album You're Still God was released in 2020 on Gaither Music. So that means they are touring now with Bill Gaither's group. So I guess they are a nostalgia act now. They are currently on tour and they say they aren't retiring. We'll see. Here's Phillips, Craig and Dean performing Come, Now Is the Time for Worship. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Creatures

Artist:The Creatures

Song:Fury Eyes

Album:Boomerang

The Creatures were a spinoff of the popular British band Siouxsie and the Banshees formed by Banshees lead singer Susan "Siouxsie Sioux" Ballion and drummer Peter "Budgie" Clarke. The idea was to have something to do when the Banshees took a break. The idea came to them while in the studio working on the 1981 Siouxsie Sioux and the Banshees album Juju. They discovered by accident that the combination of just voice and drums worked well on the song But Not Them. So they recorded five songs and they released it as an EP called Wild Things. This included a reworking of The Troggs classic Wild Thing. It was released on Polydor in England. The EP did well enough in England that The Creatures performed on Top of the Pops. Then they released the 1983 album Feast. They signed with Geffen in the US. It was recorded in Hawaii so it had an exotica vibe. Their cover of the Mel Torme hit Right Now added horns and was a top 20 hit in England. So The Creatures had some success but it's not like they topped the charts. When Siouxie Sioux and the Banshees returned in 1984, The Creatures were put on hold until the 1989 album Boomerang. They recorded this album in Spain with producer Mike Hedges. Again this had an exotica vibe and horns were added to the album. The album was favorably reviewed and it did OK. Meanwhile, Susan and Clarke married in 1991 and moved to France. After Siouxsie and the Banshees split up in 1996, The Creatures started their own label and released an EP. They also filmed a concert with John Cale for Dutch TV. The Creatures released one more album in 2003. The end for The Creatures came when in a 2007 interview with The Sunday Times, Susan announced that they had divorced. Susan released an album in 2007. Clarke has appeared as a sideman and guest on several albums. But he's not really a solo artist anyway. Here's the video for Fury Eyes by The Creatures. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Elected

Artist:The Elected

Song:Not Going Home

Album:Sun, Sun, Sun

When the leaders of the band Rilo Kiley decided to take a break to work on other projects in 2002, Blake Sennett and Mike Bloom decided to start their own band The Elected. So they are a spinoff band. They released a couple of albums and then both guys went on to other bands. Sennett met Rilo Kiley lead singer Jenny Lewis in the 90s and even dated her for a while. Sennett started out as a teen actor. He is best known for playing Joey the Rat on the sitcom Boy Meets World. When acting dried up, Sennett joined Rilo Kiley. Bloom was a studio musician and joined Rilo Kiley occasionally when needed. Sennett and Bloom wrote and produced The Elected's two albums. They both sing and play guitar and keyboards. Drummer Jason Boesel was also a member of Rilo Kiley and bassist Daniel Brummel was in the band Ozma. They didn't stay as The Elected was really a two man band. Sennett and Bloom worked on demos at Sennett's home studio and they signed with the indie label Sub Pop. They released the album Me First in 2004 followed by the 2006 album Sun, Sun, Sun. Not Going Home is from Sun, Sun, Sun. They wrote all the songs and played most of the instruments. Bloom wrote and sang lead on Not Going Home. The album is available as a budget CD. The Elected ended after the two albums. Jenny Lewis released a solo album and Rilo Kiley released the 2007 album Under the Boardwalk. After they toured, Rilo Kiley went on hiatus again and so did Sennett to work on film music. Bloom joined Julian Casablancas' touring band. There was a third The Elected album in 2011 called Bury Me in My Rings. But Sennett has said that it was a solo album as he did everything himself. Sennett started the band With Night Terrors of 1927 and they released a 2015 album. Bloom is mostly a studio musician these days. My guess is if Rilo Kiley had never gone on hiatus in 2002, The Elected would never have happened. Here's The Elected performing Not Going Home on Jimmy Kimmel Live 2006.