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.

  

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Collie Buddz

Artist:Collie Buddz 

Song:Blind to You

Album:Collie Buddz

Colin "Collie Buddz" Harper is a reggae rapper and singer who has a significant fanbase because the 2007 singles Come Around and Blind to You connected with an audience that is still with him today. He currently records for his own label. He was born Aug. 21, 1981 in New Orleans but he grew up in Bermuda as his mom is Bermudian. Harper studied audio engineering at Full Sail University in Florida and appeared on Shaggy's 2007 album Intoxication. The name Collie Buddz is cannabis slang. That one appearance got him a record deal with Columbia Records and they released the 2007 album Collie Buddz. The album and the singles Come Around and Blind to You topped the Reggae chart. But it doesn't look like Columbia promoted Harper in any other market. Harper now says that he signed what is called a "360" deal which allows Columbia to recoup marketing and production costs. Harper says he didn't get any royalties for 13 years. When Columbia wasn't happy with the album sales, Harper decided to leave Columbia and start his own label. The album served its purpose to connect him with his target audience. So maybe Harper was using Columbia's global reach to get what he wanted. Harper wrote most of the album songs and worked with several producers. He co-wrote and produced Blind to You with Jamaican producer Dwayne "Supa Dups" Chin-Quee who is part of the Black Chiney sound system. This album is available as a digital download. Harper started his own label currently distributed by Ineffable Music Group. He does his own promotion. They just distribute his product. Harper released his latest album in 2023 and he is a very successful live performer. So it looks to me like Harper got exactly what he wanted and used Columbia to get that. Here's Collie Buddz performing Blind to You at Cali Roots 2013. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Joyce Manor

Artist:Joyce Manor

Song:Schley

Album:Never Hungover Again

Punk rock fans should enjoy the modern day punk band Joyce Manor. Of course punk rock was very popular in the 70s. It's not popular anymore but Joyce Manor has a significant following. Joyce Manor was formed in 2008 in Torrance, CA. Lead singer and guitarist Barry Johnson and guitarist Chase Knobbe decided to start a band. The name Joyce Manor came from an apartment building that Johnson would pass on walks. They started out as an acoustic duo. Bassist Matt Ebert and drummer Kurt Walcher were added in 2009 to give them the sound they were after. At first, Joyce Manor was part of Southern California's emo revival. They signed with 6131 Records and released their debut album Joyce Manor in 2011. The band gained a following through word of mouth. Punknews named it their 2011 Album of the Year. They released the 2012 album Of All Things I Will Soon Grow Tired on Asian Man Records. The album was not well received. Johnson says now that he didn't want to be like other bands. He was put in touch with Epitaph Records owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz and they are still on that label. The 2014 album Never Hungover Again was Joyce Manor's first album on Epitaph. The album was produced by Joe Reinhart of the band Algernon Cadwallader. Johnson writes all the songs though they are credited to Joyce Manor and the royalties are evenly split. All the songs are around two minutes long. All their albums are around twenty minutes long. Apparently this is a nod to the 90s California punk and emo scene where they started out. I don't like twenty minute albums. But Joyce Manor's fans are OK with it. And this album got rave reviews most notably from Spin Magazine. It's available on CD. The album did well enough that Joyce Manor is playing bigger shows and sometimes headlining. Walcher left Joyce Manor before they recorded the 2016 album Cody. They tried to hire a replacement but they now hire a drummer for tours. Joyce Manor went on hiatus for COVID. But they released a new album I used to Go to This Bar Jan. 2026. Gurewitz produced it. They are currently on tour. Here's Joyce Manor performing Schley at The El Rey in Los Angeles 2014. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-BigXthaPlug

Artist:BigXthaPlug f/Bailey Zimmerman

Song:All the Way

Album:I Hope You're Happy

Rapper Xavier "BigXthaPlug" Landrum scored a top five hit with the 2025 single All the Way featuring country music star Bailey Zimmerman. It also topped the country charts. A country rap crossover is not new. It's just not done that frequently and it's usually done as a one off. Recently there was Beyonce's 2024 album COWBOY CARTER which she produced after a record company executive told her she couldn't. And of course Jelly Roll straddles country and rap. More typical was when Nelly featured Tim McGraw on the 2004 single Over and Over. And Nelly appeared on the 2013 Florida Georgia Line single Cruise. This is a complete album of the same formula. Rapper and country singer alternating vocals on every song. I think most folks would tire of this type of crossover quickly. That's why you don't see it done frequently. Also this album is only 26 minutes long. Landrum was born May 12, 1998 in Dallas. His mom was a "gangsta" who once shot at a would be thief during an attempted robbery. But she was his best friend. His father was the disciplinarian. Landrum listened to rap and R&B as a child. He was a poor student who skipped classes and got into fights. After moving to Commerce, TX to live with his father, Landrum got into football. And after graduating from high school, he attended Crown College in Minnesota. When Landrum started selling weed to students, police found weed in his dorm room and he was expelled from school and sent home. When he got home, Landrum started robbing drug dealers. That landed him in jail. And that's when he started rapping. And after he was released, he recorded his first mixtape. Landrum again landed in jail in 2022 for illegal possession of weapons and weed. This time he signed with UnitedMasters and released his 2023 debut album Amar named after his son. UnitedMasters is owned by former Sony Music president of Urban Music Steve Stoute. When Landrum's 2022 single Texas contained slide guitar and Southern Rap swagger, some country stars expressed an interest in working with him. And that's when he recorded the 2025 album I Hope You're Happy. The single All the Way featuring Bailey Zimmerman reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it topped the Country Singles chart. It was certified 2XPlatinum. The album was certified Gold and it was only released as a digital download. Most of the album was produced by Krishon "BandPlay" Gaines. They met in 2022 while Landrum was on tour with Key Glock. Gaines has worked on all his albums. Landrum is currently on tour. But he has said that his next album will be rap and the country crossover is a one off album. I'm not surprised. The album did make him famous. Here's the video for All the Way by BigXthaPlug featuring Bailey Zimmerman. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Fapy Lafertin

Artist:Fapy Lafertin

Song:Fleur de Lavende

Album:Dutch Jazz Giants Volume 7: Gipsy Swing

The influence of French jazz guitar legend Django Reinhardt is so vast that it's impossible to know where to start. Look at all the bands that have the name "Hot Club" in their name. And Reinhardt did invent what we know today as Gipsy Swing. Belgian guitarist Jean "Fapy" Lafertin plays other styles of music sometimes. But mostly he plays in Reinhardt's style. He was born Nov. 20, 1950 in Kortrijk, Belgium in the Manouche Romani community. He started playing guitar at age five. After playing in his family band with his father on violin and his brother on second guitar, he joined a band led by violinist Piotto Lindberger. The band was called WASO. The other members were Vivi Limberger on guitar, Keon De Cauter on sax and Michael Verstraeten on bass. Then Lafertin started his own band in 1985 in The Netherlands with Rudi Brink on violin and Joop Hendricks and Tim Kliphuis on sax and clarinet. Then Lafertin released his debut album as a leader in 1991. The album title is Fleur de Lavende. The album was released on the Norwegian label Hot Club Records owned by Jon Larsen of the band Hot Club de Norvege. Lafertin recorded some Gipsy Swing standards. But he wrote Fleur de Lavende. Musicians are guitarist Flip Krajenbrink, violinist Hadi Mouallem, bassist Simon Planting and drummer Onno De Brujin. I think they are all Dutch. This album is available as part of a 10CD box set called Dutch Jazz Giants released by the Dutch label Pink Records. There's a different artist on each CD. I don't know why anyone would release a box set like this. But the albums are available individually as digital downloads. Lafertin's album is volume 7 of the box set. Since then Lafertin has released several albums on different labels. His latest album is with clarinetist Evan Christopher called A Summit in Paris on the French label Camille Productions released in 2020. Lafertin tours Europe frequently. But I don't think he has ever played in North America. Django Reinhardt fans should check him out. Here's Fapy Lafertin with Martin Limberger on guitar, Simon Planting on bass and Frans van Oosterhout on drums performing Fleur de Lavende on Dutch TV 1992.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The El Dorados

Artist:The El Dorados

Song:At My Front Door

Album:Essential Doo-Wop: Let's Have a Ball

The doo wop group The El Dorados topped the R&B Singles chart and scored a top 20 pop hit with the 1955 single At My Front Door. It turned out to be their only big hit though a version of The El Dorados has played the oldies circuit for many years. The El Dorados went to Englewood High School in Chicago. They were called Pirkle Lee and the All Stars when they formed in 1952. The lead singer was Pirkle Lee Moses Jr. He also wrote songs and led the group for decades. After Moses spent some time in the US Air Force, he returned in 1954 and the group name was changed to The El Dorados. The other members were tenors Louis Bradley and Arthur Basset, second tenor Jewel Jones and baritones James Maddox and Richard Nickens. They came to the attention of Chicago DJ Al Benson and he got them an audition with Vivian Carter of Vee-Jay Records. The El Dorados signed with Vee-Jay. At My Front Door was their fifth single and it topped the R&B Singles chart and reached #17 on the pop chart. They released an album called Crazy Little Mama. Pat Boone's version of At My Front Door reached #7 on the pop charts. At My Front Door was written by The Drifters lead singer John Moore and he produced with Vee-Jay co-owner Ewart Abner. Abner went on to be Stevie Wonder's manager and president of Motown in the 70s. The album Crazy Little Mama is available on CD from the Japanese label P-Vine. But if you only want At My Front Door, you can get it on this comp of doo wop classics. The El Dorados split up in 1957. Vee-Jay soon dropped them. Moses continued to lead a version of The El Dorados until his 2000 death. A version of The El Dorados still tours today. Here's The El Dorados performing At Your Front Door 1994.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Barleyjuice

Artist:Barleyjuice

Song:Weekend Irish

Album:The Barleyjuice Irish Collection

Barleyjuice is an American band that plays Irish themed music. There have been other similar bands, most notably The Dropkick Murphys. Like that band, Barleyjuice performs mostly original songs. They are from Philadelphia. Kyf Brewer and Keith Swanson were bagpipers for the Loch Rannoch Pipes & Drums in Pineville, PA. They decided to start Barleyjuice in 1998 as a side project to perform traditional Irish and Scottish songs in a rock style very similar to The Dropkick Murphys. They played mostly on St. Patrick's Day. They became a full time band in 2001 after they released their debut album One Shilling. They record for their own label. One of the songs from that album appeared in the 2001 film Driven. Brewer and Swanson are the only constant members of Barleyjuice. They write and produce everything. They started to get attention when the song What's Up Yours? from the 2003 album Another Round was named Song of the Year by listener vote at Celtic Radio. Weekend Irish is from their 2008 album Bonnie Prince Barley. A music video was produced for that song. Then they made a deal with the shopping network QVC to sell the 2CD comp The Barleyjuice Irish Collection to viewers. Bonnie Prince Barley is probably Barleyjuice's most popular album. But it's out of print. You can get Weekend Irish on The Barleyjuice Irish Collection which is available as a digital download. Swanson retired from Barleyjuice in 2019. But he returned and they still play occasional shows. They last released an album in 2018. Here's the video for Weekend Irish by Barleyjuice.