AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Tom Cochrane

Artist:Tom Cochrane
Song:Life Is A Highway
Album:Mad Mad World





In Canada, Tom Cochrane is in the Canadian Music Hall Of Fame and a member of the Order Of Canada. In the US, he's a one hit wonder for the 1991 top ten hit Life Is A Highway. This shows how tough it can be for Canadians to break into the US market even if they are successful in Canada. That's why I have never liked Canadian content (Cancon) regulations. It creates an artificial success and the Canadian market isn't big enough to support musicians. They need to break the US market. Cochrane was born May 14, 1953 in Lynn Lake, MB but he grew up in the Toronto suburb of Acton, ON and then Etobicoke in the west end of Toronto. After graduating high school, he started playing local clubs and he wrote the theme for the infamous Canadian film My Pleasure Is My Business which was about and starred Xaviera Hollander AKA The Happy Hooker. Then he signed with Daffodil Records and released the 1974 album Hang On To Your Resistance. That's when I first heard of him. It's a great album that's worth getting. But Daffodil was having financial problems and they closed. Cochrane joined Red Rider in 1978. They signed with Capitol. They had success in Canada but they were unable to break into the US market. Cochrane went solo in 1989. Mad Mad World was released in 1991. Life Is A Highway topped the Canadian charts and it reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. Mad Mad World is available as a budget CD and a 25th anniversary 2CD edition was recently released. The second CD is a live recording. It would turn out to be Cochrane's only big hit in the US. But he continues to record and tour in Canada. His latest CD Take It Home was released on Universal Canada in 2015. He is also known for his humanitarianism especially with World Vision in Africa. Life Is A Highway was inspired by one of Cochrane's many trips to Africa. He's in the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, on Canada's Walk of Fame and a member of the Order of Canada for his philanthropy. Here's the video for Life Is A Highway by Tom Cochrane.

Felice Herrig vs Justine Kish added to June 25 UFC show

On last night's episode of UFC Tonight, UFC Fight Night 112 was announced for June 25 at the Chesapeake Arena in Oklahoma City. This will air on Fox Sports 1 in the US and TSN in Canada. A Strawweight bout was announced with Felice Herrig vs Justine Kish. Felice got the biggest win of her career over the undefeated and highly touted Alexa Grasso on Feb. 4. Her record is 12-6 and she trains at Curran MMA in Chicago. One would think that Felice would like to face a higher ranked opponent so Justine seems like an odd choice. The only thing is Justine is undefeated at 6-0 and that might have convinced Felice to take the fight. Justine may be undefeated but there are questions about her. She was scratched from TUF 20 to have knee surgery. Upon her return, she got a decision win over Nina Ansaroff. It's a fight that some thought Nina won. Then on Dec. 9, Justine won a unanimous decision over TUF 23 alum Ashley Yoder. For one thing, Justine missed weight. And the fight was close. All three judges scored it 29-28. So maybe the UFC wants to find out how Justine does against a ranked opponent. Felice will be favoured so if Justine pulls off an upset, that's a big deal. So though the fight may not be what Felice was looking for, she took this possibly to keep busy. Justine trains at Black House MMA in Redondo Beach, CA. I thought it was a strange match when I heard about it last night. Now it makes a little more sense though I'm not sure how a close fight helps Felice.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Dead Meadow

Artist:Dead Meadow
Song:At Her Open Door
Album:Three Kings





Dead Meadow is a modern day recreation of stoner rock or psychedelia. They are successful mostly as a touring band. Dead Meadow are from Washington, DC. They were formed in 1998 out of the ashes of The Impossible Five and Colour. The lead singer and guitarist is Jason Simon. Steve Kille is on bass and Mark Laughlin plays drums. Influences include early metal bands like Black Sabbath, psychedelia and authors like Tolkien and Lovecraft. They released two albums on a small label. Legendary BBC DJ John Peel liked them so much he asked them to come to London to record a Peel Session. But the band couldn't afford to travel so it was the first Peel Sessions to not record in the BBC studio. But it gave Dead Meadow a boost as Peel is a major influencer. In 2002, Laughlin left to attend law school and he was replaced by Stephen McCarty of Canyon. Dead Meadow signed with Matador Records in 2003 which meant their CDs would finally get decent distribution and they could do videos and tour like other bands. They added guitarist Cory Shane. At Her Open Door is from the 2005 album Feathers. Dead Meadow's music also appeared in the popular HBO series The Wire. Jason Simon is the nephew of The Wire creator David Simon. Feathers is out of print. But At Her Open Door is on this 2010 live CD/DVD. Shane left and they were a trio again. Dead Meadow recorded three albums for Matador and then started their own label Xemu. Laughlin returned in 2010. Dead Meadow released their most recent CD in 2013. But they continue to tour and I expect them to record new music when the tour is finished. Here's the video for At Her Open Door by Dead Meadow.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Justin Hayward

Artist:Justin Hayward
Song:Forever Autumn
Album:Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of War Of The Worlds



Justin Hayward is best known as the leader of The Moody Blues. He began to record solo in 1975 and he had his greatest success with this 1978 single Forever Autumn from this musical adaptation of the H.G. Wells science fiction novel War Of The Worlds. Hayward was born Oct. 14, 1946 in Swindon, England. In 1966 he replaced Denny Laine as lead singer of The Moody Blues and of course he was lead singer on all their hits. When The Moody Blues went on hiatus in 1974, Hayward recorded the album Blue Jays with Moody Blues bassist John Lodge and producer Tony Clarke. They had a top ten hit in England with Blue Guitar which Hayward recorded with 10cc. In 1977 Hayward released his debut solo album Songwriter. Then he was called to work on this musical version of War Of The Worlds. Jeff Wayne was a jingle writer who produced the David Essex hit Rock On. He got the idea to do a progressive rock version of War Of The Worlds. After Richard Burton agreed to narrate, Wayne signed with Columbia. He brought in Hayward, Essex, Chris Thompson of Manfred Mann's Earth Band, Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy and stage actress Julie Covington to sing. The musicians were mostly veteran session men like Chris Spedding on guitar, Herbie Flowers on bass, Ken Freeman on keyboards and Barry Morgan on drums. Veteran songwriter Gary Osborne wrote the lyrics and Wayne wrote the music. Forever Autumn was based on a Lego jingle that Wayne wrote in 1969. Osborne recorded it with Paul Vigrass in 1972 as Vigrass and Osborne. Hayward's recording of Forever Autumn was a top five hit in England and top 40 in the US. The album performed well and Wayne took it on tour. He's turned it into a cottage industry as he continues to release versions of War Of The Worlds on CD, DVD and on tour. Hayward appeared on a couple of the tours. But he mostly concentrates on his own music. You can get Forever Autumn on some Moody Blues comps. But War Of The Worlds is one of those albums that should be heard on its own. And it is available on CD. Here's Justin Hayward performing Forever Autumn on Top Of The Pops 1978.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Travis Greene

Artist:Travis Greene
Song:Intentional
Album:The Hill




Travis Greene made a big splash on the gospel charts with his 2015 major label debut album The Hill. Intentional topped the gospel singles chart and Greene was nominated for two Grammys. He was born Jan. 17, 1984 in Delaware but he grew up in Warner Robins, GA. Greene was still born and then resuscitated. Then at age four, he fell from a four story building in Germany. He was pronounced dead and then resuscitated. Then his father died in 1989. Fortunately, Greene's mother was a preacher so he grew up singing in church. After releasing two albums independently, Greene signed with RCA Inspiration and his debut The Hill was released Oct. 2015. Intentional topped the Gospel Singles chart and so did the follow up single Made A Way. Greene was nominated for two Grammys and 13 Stellar Awards. Greene is currently on tour. He recently relocated with his family and opened a new church in Columbia, SC. Those who enjoy the contemporary gospel of artists like Kirk Franklin and Tye Tribbett should check out Travis Greene. The Hill is available as a budget CD. Here's the video for Intentional by Travis Greene.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bono

Artist:Bono
Song:Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
Album:Across The Universe: Music From The Motion Picture




Of course everyone knows that Paul "Bono" Hewson is the lead singer of U2. One would think that he would have recorded a solo album at some point. But he never has. However, he does make guest appearances with artists as diverse as Frank Sinatra, Kirk Franklin and B.B. King. In this particular case, he recorded two songs for the 2007 film Across The Universe. It looks like this is the only time he's done this for a film. Across The Universe is a film that tells the story of young people set to the music of The Beatles. Most of the music in the film is performed by the cast including Jim Sturgess, Evan Rachel Wood, Joe Anderson and TV Carpio. But special guests appear on the soundtrack including Joe Cocker, The Secret Machines, Eddie Izzard, Jeff Beck and Bono & Edge. Bono appears in the film as Dr. Robert and performs I Am The Walrus. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds plays over the end credits. The music in the film was written and produced by veteran composer Eliot Goldenthal who has been the romantic partner of director Julie Taymor for many years. Bono also worked with Taymor on the 2010 Broadway musical Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark. I don't know what Bono will do in the future. He's a big star. He can do whatever he wants. In this case, I think he was asked to add some star power to the film. Here's Bono performing Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds over the end credits of Across The Universe.

Cynthia Calvillo vs Pearl Gonzalez added to Apr. 8 UFC show

Pearl Gonzalez

During yesterday's UFC broadcast, it was announced that Cynthia Calvillo vs Pearl Gonzalez has been added to UFC 210 Apr. 8 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. This will air on the main card PPV. It's a quick turnaround for Cynthia who made her UFC debut on UFC 209 Mar. 4 and she beat Amanda Bobby Cooper with a first round rear naked choke. Cynthia's record is 4-0 and she trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, CA. Pearl is new to the UFC but I have seen her before. She's from Chicago and she trains at Combat-Do. Her record is 6-1. Probably her highest profile win was over current UFC fighter Cortney Casey by third round armbar on the Oct. 18, 2013 XFC show in Nashville to win the XFC Flyweight Championship. This is the fight I saw. The other notable thing about this fight is Cortney launched an appeal due to Pearl's excessive use of spray tan. I'm not kidding. Pearl dropped to 115 in 2015 to get to the UFC. Her most recent fight was a second round submission win over Katie Casimir at the Apr. 30, 2016 HFC show in Hammond, IN. Pearl is 30 years old and Cynthia is 29. So it's not surprising that the UFC is looking to elevate one of them very quickly. Cynthia delivered in her UFC debut. But I think Pearl is a better opponent. So I'm looking for an exciting fight.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Lina Lansberg vs Lucie Pudilova

Here's the match video of Lina Lansberg vs Lucie Pudilova from yesterday's UFC show in London. Lina is the Swedish fighter brought in as a sacrifice to Cris Cyborg. She is mostly a Muay Thai expert. Lucie is from the Czech Republic and she was brought in as a late replacement. Her only loss was to Lina mostly because Lina used her size and strength to trap her on the fence and the ref allowed it. Lina tried to do the same at the start of this fight but ref Neil Hall broke them up quickly. So now Lina needed a different approach. Fortunately for her, Lucie wasn't very aggressive in round one. She just didn't throw enough and Lina was marginally more effective. So I scored the round 10-9 for Lina. Round two was very similar except Lina was more aggressive and she even scored a takedown near the end of the round. So I scored round two 10-9 for Lina. Lucie needs a finish. She wins round three but doesn't get the finish. I scored it 10-9 for Lucie. But some thought it was 10-8 and I'm going to explain why it wasn't 10-8. I noticed that face damage to Lina tends to look worse than it is. Miesha Tate was like that too. So even though Lina didn't get hit much in the first two rounds, she looked like she was hit a lot. Her mistake was getting into a clinch with Lucie and leaving Lucie's right arm free. Then she compounds that mistake by trying for a takedown instead of getting the hell out of there. This allows Lucie to land uncontested strikes and Lina's right eye is a mess when she gets out of it. The entire segment lasted about a minute. If Lucie had continued her dominance after that, I could consider a 10-8. But she didn't and it's wasn't enough. And the ref didn't look to stop the fight. The damage looked worse than it actually was. So I scored round three 10-9 for Lucie and Lina won the fight 29-28. All three judges scored it the same. Afterwards, Lina gave an awkward interview where she said she thought Lucie won. One of the reasons it was awkward is Lucie doesn't speak English. One thing is for sure. This was a lot better than their first fight. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Martika

Artist:Martika
Song:Toy Soldiers
Album:Toy Soldiers: The Best Of Martika





So I bet you all remember this 1989 chart topper as the video was played to death on MTV and MuchMusic. But whatever happened to Martika? Well, that's what I'm going to talk about. And though I know Martika is perceived as a one hit wonder, she had some other hits. She was born Marta Marrero May 18, 1969 in Whittier, CA. She appeared in the 80s TV series Kids Incorporated along with Fergie and Rahsaan Patterson. She left the show in 1986 and signed with Columbia Records and producer Michael Jay who had worked with the British girl group 5 Star. The album Martika was released in 1988. The first single More Than You Know reached #18 on the Billboard Hot 100. Toy Soldiers was the second single and it was a big worldwide hit. Martika wrote it about a friend's cocaine addiction. It was Jay who got her into songwriting. The guitar solo was by film composer Mark Leggett. The album was certified Gold. For her 1991 album Martika's Kitchen, Martika worked with several producers including Prince who wrote and produced the top ten single Love...Thy Will Be Done. She also had a recurring role in the TV series Wiseguy. That was it. Martika went underground for several years due to burnout and the pressure of fame. She returned in 2000 and talked about recording but never did until she joined forces with husband Michael Lee to form the group Oppera in 2003. Back in the 90s, he recorded as Nikki Lee. They released two albums independently with Martika calling herself Vida Edit. Meanwhile, rapper Eminem based his 2004 hit Like Toy Soldiers on Toy Soldiers and Columbia released this budget comp. Martika resurfaced again in 2011 with a single and plans to record an album of dance music. The album never happened. She has announced plans to tour that never materialized. But she was part of last year's Totally 80s nostalgia tour of Australia and she apparently got positive reviews. She is currently on a similar tour in England with Paul Young, Toyah and China Crisis. Here's the video for Toy Soldiers by Martika.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Three Degrees

Artist:The Three Degrees
Song:Maybe
Album:Greatest Hits




The Three Degrees are best known for the 1974 smash hit When Will I See You Again written and produced by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff for Philadelphia International. But they had success before that most notably this 1970 cover of The Chantels classic Maybe for Roulette Records. The Three Degrees were formed in 1963 in Philadelphia. And then they were discovered by Richard Barrett who was lead singer of the doo wop group The Valentines. By this time he had turned to producing. He signed The Three Degrees to Swan Records and they released several singles. None of them went anywhere. This included a 1966 cover of Maybe which Barrett wrote. Beware as this is not the version that was a hit. The Three Degrees went through several personnel changes until Valerie Holiday arrived in 1967. The other two members were Fayette Pinkney and Sheila Ferguson. That was the lineup for all their hits with Valerie usually singing lead. After Swan got caught up in a payola investigation, The Three Degrees recorded for Warner Bros-Seven Arts, the Gamble-Huff owned Neptune Records and Metromedia before they landed with Roulette Records. Maybe was the first single and it reached #4 on the R&B Singles chart and #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. The long version of Maybe is on this 3CD box set from the British reissue label Goldies which is owned by Proper Records. This is a budget release that has hits from several labels. The Three Degrees did a TV special in Australia and they appeared in the 1971 film The French Connection. They only recorded one album for Roulette followed by some singles. Barrett decided to move them to Philadelphia International and the group had most of their success there. They are particularly popular in England. Apparently Prince Charles is a big fan. They left Philadelphia international in 1975 for Epic. Then they moved to Ariola and producer Georgio Moroder who had just had success with Donna Summer. But The Three Degrees didn't have success there and they bounced around a few labels in the 80s. Valerie Holiday still leads The Three Degrees and they tour mostly in England as they were always bigger there than in North America. Here are The Three Degrees performing Maybe from that 1970 Australian TV special.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Gary Burton

Artist:Gary Burton
Song:Ladies In Mercedes
Album:Selected Recordings (Rarum IV)




Vibraphonist Gary Burton was brought to ECM Records in 1971 by Chick Corea. The two recorded and toured together and then Burton recorded for ECM until 1986. His normal pattern was to record as a quartet sometimes with guest musicians. For the 1980 album Easy As Pie, the rhythm section was long time collaborator Steve Swallow on bass and Mike Hyman on drums. Hyman had worked with sax player Jamie Aebersold. The other musician was sax player Jim Odgren. For the 1984 album Real Life Hits, Odgren was replaced by Japanese pianist Makoto Ozone. I presume Burton spotted Ozone on one of his many trips to Japan. In addition to recording and touring with Burton, Ozone had just finished his first solo album with Columbia. Burton and Ozone have recorded together many times including a couple of duet albums. So I think it's fair to say that Burton was responsible for Ozone's rise in the world jazz scene. Ladies In Mercedes was written by Swallow. Unfortunately, Real Life Hits is out of print but Ladies In Mercedes appears on this ECM Selected Recordings comp. Ladies In Mercedes also appears on the 2004 CD Generations on Concord. Ozone appears on that album along with guitarist Julian Lage. Burton and Ozone recorded the CD Time Thread in 2013 on Verve. And I'm sure they will record together again. Here's Gary Burton with Makato Ozone, Steve Swallow and Mike Hyman performing Ladies In Mercedes at the Budweiser Newport Jazz Festival in Madarao, Japan Aug. 1984.

Kanako Murata vs Claire Fryer added to Apr. 23 PANCRASE show

Kanako Murata, Claire Fryer

PANCRASE announced today that Kanako Murata vs Claire Fryer has been added to the Apr. 23 show at Differ Ariake. Kanako is 23 years old. She wrestled in college at Nihon University. She won the 2012 All Japan Championship. She was recruited to MMA by Olympic wrestling champ Saori Yoshida who works for RIZIN. She won her first four fights and she looked pretty good. But then she challenged Rin Nakai and Rin won by submission on the Dec. 29 RIZIN show. Kanako looked bad in that fight. I didn't think she could win. But she didn't show much aggression in that fight. She obviously has skills but her stock decreased significantly after that loss. RIZIN made a barter deal with PANCRASE. For allowing Rin to appear for RIZIN, Kanako has to fight for PANCRASE. Her opponent is 37 year old Claire Fryer. She is from Brisbane, Australia and her record is 4-2. So of course her age to experience level is not good. Most of her fights have been in the Aussie regional circuit. In 2012, she beat the now retired Rina Tomita in the all women's fed Brace. Her latest fight was her first outside Australia. She lost to Jennifer Olsim on the Mar. 19, 2016 UGB show in the Philippines. So she hasn't fought in over a year. Kanako has already beaten more experienced fighters. But the loss to Rin demoralized her so promoters need to build her back up. There are some who are really high on Kanako. But I thought allowing her to fight Rin at that stage in her career was a huge error. She said at the time she wanted to find out where she stood against the best. We found out that she's not as good as some think. She needs rehabilitation and this fight should begin that process.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Eric Andersen

Artist:Eric Andersen
Song:Faithful
Album:Blue River/Stages: The Lost Album





Folksinger Eric Andersen was a big part of the 60s Greenwich Village folk music scene. But he never had the commercial success that others had. The 1972 album Blue River was an attempt at a commercial success. And though it didn't work out, Andersen is still touring and recording today. He was born Feb. 14, 1943 in Pittsburgh but he grew up on the Buffalo suburb of Snyder, NY. After traveling to Boston and San Francisco, Tom Paxton brought Andersen to New York where he settled in to Greenwich Village. Andersen recorded several albums for the folk label Vanguard. Some of his songs were recorded by others, most notably Thirsty Boots by Judy Collins. But Andersen knew he would have to leave Vanguard to achieve commercial success. He recorded the 1968 album Avalanche for Warner Bros. at a time when Warners had just been sold to Seven Arts. so Andersen's album fell through the cracks. It was produced by Jerry Goldstein who went on to great success with War. After two albums at Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, Andersen moved to Columbia for the 1972 album Blue River. He was sent to Nashville to work with veteran producer Norbert Putnam with Nashville session musicians backing him up. The album was great and it sold OK. But it wasn't the breakthrough that either Andersen or Columbia president Clive Davis wanted. Andersen recorded a second album Stages again with Putnam and guest musicians like Leon Russell, Rick Danko and Garth Hudson. But somehow the master tapes were misplaced at Columbia and so Stages wasn't released until 1990. You can get Blue River and Stages on this twofer from the reissue label BGO. Andersen went to Arista with Davis in 1975. After three albums at Arista, Andersen moved to Europe. He toured in the 80s but he didn't record much. He resurfaced with the group Danko Fjeld Andersen with Rick Danko and Jonas Fjeld. They toured and recorded through the 90s. In recent years, Andersen has recorded for Appleseed most recently on the German label Meyer Records. Andersen lives in The Netherlands and he is supposed to have a new album coming out called Dance of Love and Death and a documentary called The Songpoet is in production and scheduled for a 2018 release. Here's Eric Andersen performing Faithful at the 1986 Philadelphia Folk Festival.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Van Halen

Artist:Van Halen
Song:Jump
Album:The Best Of Both Worlds





Van Halen was one of the most popular bands of the 80s. Jump was their only number one hit in 1984. The ironic thing is the use of synthesizers on Jump and the album 1984 led to the departure of lead singer David Lee Roth. Guitarist Eddie Van Halen and drummer brother Alex Van Halen were born in The Netherlands but the family moved to Pasadena, CA in 1962. Their dad Jan Van Halen was a jazz musician. They met David Lee Roth in 1972 when they wanted to rent a sound system from him. Instead they let him join the band. In 1974, they replaced original bassist Mark Stone with Michael Anthony from the band Snake. At first they called themselves Genesis. Of course they had to change that, first to Mammoth and then to Van Halen in 1974. Roth claimed it was his idea. He thought the name Van Halen could be like Santana. They played Los Angeles clubs until they signed with Warner Bros. in 1977 by Mo Ostin and Ted Templeman. Templeman had produced The Doobie Brothers. Their debut album Van Halen was released in 1978. A cover of The Kinks' You Really Got Me was a top 40 hit. The album was certified Diamond and the band toured successfully. They were very successful for the next few years. But Eddie Van Halen and Roth clashed over the direction of the band. Van Halen liked a more serious approach. Roth was more of a showman. It all came to a head with the album 1984. Van Halen began to use more synthesizers over Roth and Templeman's objections. Though they came to a compromise, it led to Roth's departure despite the album's success and that Jump was their first #1 hit. Van Halen wrote the keyboard riff for Jump in 1981. The band hated it but Templeman convinced Roth that it could be a hit and Roth should write lyrics for it. Things deteriorated during the ensuing tour. Van Halen was upset that Roth was doing outside projects without checking with the band. Roth was upset with Van Halen's drug abuse. Roth left after his cover of California Girls was a hit. Sammy Hagar, who knew Templeman from the band Montrose, replaced Roth. You can get all of Van Halen's hits on this 2CD comp. The band has continued. They still tour sometimes with Roth. Their latest CD was released in 2012. Here's the video for Jump by Van Halen.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Richard "Groove" Holmes

Artist:Richard "Groove" Holmes
Song:Misty
Album:Misty





Jazz organist Richard "Groove" Holmes scored a hit single with this 1966 midtempo version of the Erroll Garner standard Misty. Holmes was a Jimmy Smith influenced organist who made his name in Philadelphia. He recorded for Pacific Jazz in the early 60s. He moved to Prestige Records in 1965. His first album for Prestige was Soul Message. There is nothing unusual about the album except that Prestige released an edited version of Misty as a single and the record reached #44 on the Billboard Hot 100. For Holmes' next album, Prestige decided to call it Misty and add the single version to the album. The musicians on Soul Message were Holmes' longtime guitarist Gene Edwards and drummer Jimmie Smith who ironically went on to work with Erroll Garner for several years. The musicians on Misty are Edwards and drummer George Randall. Both albums are available on CD but Misty is available as a budget CD. But if you want the original six minute version of Misty, you should get Soul Message. Holmes left Prestige in 1968 and he recorded for World Pacific, Groove Merchant, Flying Dutchman and Muse. Today Holmes is revered and frequently sampled by hip hop guys. He is also considered to be a big influence on acid jazz. Richard "Groove" Holmes died of prostate cancer on June 29, 1991 at age 60. In 1992, The Beastie Boys recorded a tribute instrumental Groove Holmes on their album Check Your Head. Here's a video for Misty by Richard "Groove" Holmes.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Louis C.K.

Artist:Louis C.K.
Song:My 3-Year-Old Is A 3-Year-Old
Album:Hilarious





There was a time when comedy albums were best sellers. Back in the 60s, Bob Newhart outsold a lot of music. These days comedians depend on doing stand up comedy on HBO and Comedy Central and making good money from DVD sales. Sometimes CDs are released with the DVD. Such is the case with Louis C.K., one of today's most popular comedians. He was born Louis Szekely Sept. 12, 1967 in Washington, DC. His family moved to Mexico when he was a child. His father is Mexican. Then they moved to Boston and Louis said he wanted to be a writer influenced by Richard Pryor and George Carlin. After graduating high school, he worked as a mechanic and at a public access TV station where he learned to produce. He began to do standup in 1985 and then he moved to New York in 1989. HBO released his first comedy special in 1996. He was a regular on the late night talk show circuit. Louis was nominated for an Emmy for his 2008 Showtime special Chewed Up. He produced Hilarious in 2009 and then sold it to Epix and Comedy Central. It aired in 2010 and it was released on CD and DVD on 2011. Like most of his comedy, My 3-Year-Old is A 3-Year-Old focuses on Louis' family life. the routine is pretty funny though a little long. The CD is available but the DVD is out of print. Louis continues to tour doing standup and he releases occasional CDs. He has also done films and TV. His biggest success is the FX sitcom Louie which has run for five seasons. Louis hasn't decided yet if the show will continue. He is currently working on a couple of other shows that may not allow him to return to Louie. Here's Louis C.K. performing My 3-Year-Old Is A 3-Year-Old from the DVD Hilarious. This video is not on Youtube.

Louis CK - 3 year old (fig newton) PL from Kaziu on Vimeo.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Bethe Correia vs Marion Reneau

Here's the match video of Bethe Correia vs Marion Reneau from last night's UFC show in Brazil. This fight emphasized the shortcomings of both fighters. Bethe is a mediocre fighter with no ground game or punching power. Her mouth has gotten her places in the UFC. Marion has lost fights due to her lack of aggression. She has skills but I think she tends to overthink things and not use her instincts. Her instincts should have told her that Bethe can't submit her and Bethe doesn't have the power to KO her. There's no reason for Marion to be tentative with Bethe. But that's what happened in the first two rounds. And in the first round, it's not like Bethe did much either. But she did enough to win the round 10-9. Two of the judges scored it that way. The third judge scored it 10-9 for Marion probably based on some strikes she landed from bottom position after Bethe took her down at the end of the round. I didn't think it made up for her lack of offense in the rest of the round. The second round was worse for Marion as she again did nothing and Bethe scored with jabs and combinations. Her punches couldn't break an egg. But she did enough to win the round 10-9. So now Marion is down two rounds and she needs a finish. Her trainer Doug Marshall read her the riot act between rounds. It's like Marion sending one of her students to the principal's office. Lo and behold, Marion is a different fighter in round three. She takes Bethe down and pounds her. If she had stuck to that, she would have got a stoppage. But instead she switches to a rear naked choke attempt that she is unable to complete. It was a mistake but I don't mind aggressive mistakes. I scored the round 10-8 for Marion. It's a 28-28 draw. But will the judges score round three 10-8? They did and the fight was a majority draw. If you watch the end of the fight, Bethe thought she won. Obviously she thought winning the first two rounds was enough. There would have been justifiable outrage if the judges had scored round three 10-9. Most fighters know when they are getting clobbered. Not Bethe. Marion blamed herself for not doing enough in the first two rounds. That's easy to fix. Be aggressive at all times. Time will tell if she has learned her lesson. Lack of aggression seems to be an epidemic as this is the third straight UFC women's fight that I have scored a draw. Fighters don't win fights by default. Aggression is the key to winning. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Michel Petrucciani

Artist:Michel Petrucciani
Song:Satin Doll
Album:Promenade With Duke





Despite suffering from a crippling genetic disease, pianist Michel Petrucciani had a very successful career until his premature death. He was born Dec. 28, 1962 in Orange, Vaucluse, France. He suffered from the genetic disease osteogenesis imperfecta which causes brittle bones and in Petrucciani's case short stature. He played virtuoso piano despite great pain in his arms. His father Tony plays guitar. So does his brother Philippe and his brother Louis plays bass. His disease caused fractured bones over a hundred times before he reached adolescence. He also had difficulty walking so his dad was usually around to carry him. As a child, Petrucciani saw Duke Ellington on TV and he began to study piano at age four. His other big influence was Bill Evans as Petrucciani started listening to him at age ten. Petrucciani gave his first concert at age 13. He needed to move to Paris to further his career. But his father was very possessive. But musicians intervened and Petrucciani moved to Paris in 1977. He played with Kenny Clarke and then got to play with legendary trumpeter Clark Terry when Terry's pianist didn't show. At first Terry thought it was a gag when someone carried Petrucciani to the piano. But when he heard him play, Terry was astonished and agreed to help him. Petrucciani went to California in 1982 where he convinced sax player Charles Lloyd to come out of retirement and tour with him. Their first appearance was the filming of One Night with Blue Note at Town Hall in New York City. Then they played Montreux and Petrucciani and won the 1982 Prix d'Excellence. Then he moved to New York in 1984 and signed with Blue Note. From there Petrucciani was very popular on the jazz festival circuit and he recorded plenty of albums including this 1993 album Promenade With Duke. Of course it's a tribute to Duke Ellington with Petrucciani playing solo piano. This was his final album for Blue Note before switching to Dreyfus Jazz. Petrucciani knew he would die young. So he probably toured way too much especially in the late 90s and he also indulged in alcohol and coacaine. And he was married five times. So clearly he was a tough guy to get along with sometimes. I thought his playing was overdramatic sometimes. Technically he was a great pianist but he didn't have the feel that a guy like Bill Evans had. But audiences clearly loved that. Michel Petrucciani died of heart disease on Jan. 6, 1999 at age 36. Here's Michel Petrucciani performing Satin Doll on the INA TV show Le Cercle de Minuit Mar. 15, 1993.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Purson

Artist:Purson
Song:Leaning On A Bear
Album:The Circle And The Blue Door





If you're a fan of 70s progressive rock, you may want to check out Purson who are certainly trying to emulate that sound. They are from London, England. Rosalie Cunningham is the group leader. She is the lead singer and she plays guitar and keyboards. She also writes and produces everything with bassist Ed Turner. Other members are William Cunningham on sax and Raphael Mura on drums. Rosalie formed her first band Ipso Facto in 2007. They released a few singles and split up in 2009. Purson was formed immediately afterwards. Apparently Purson is one of the Kings Of Hell. Rosalie wanted to name the band after a god. But she couldn't find one she liked so she named it after a demon instead. They signed with Rise Above Records in England and Metal Blade in the US. Their 2013 debut CD The Circle And The Blue Door was highly acclaimed by progressive rock fans. Fans of 70s progressive rock should check it out. For the 2016 album Desire's Magic Theatre, Purson switched to the Finnish label Spinefarm. After the album was recorded, Turner was replaced by Justin Smith. Guitarist George Hudson and keyboardist Samuel Shove were brought in for the tour so Rosalie could concentrate on vocals. Rosalie announced at the final show of the tour that Purson was disbanding which is similar to what happened to Ipso Facto. She has worked in other bands so I'm sure we'll hear from Rosalie again. But Purson looked to have potential. Maybe Rosalie should record solo. She certainly has talent. Here's the video for Leaning On A Bear by Purson.

Lucie Pudilova in for injured Veronica Macedo at UFC London

Lucie Pudilova

A couple of weeks ago, the UFC announced that Veronica Macedo dropped out of her fight against Lina Lansberg at next Saturday's UFC show in London. Obviously they were looking for a European fighter. Today the Swedish site Kimura.se reported that Lucie Pudilova is Lina's new opponent. Lucie is from Pribram, Czech Republic. Her record is 6-1 and the interesting thing is her only loss is to Lina Lansberg at the Nov. 28, 2015 Battle of Botnia show in Sweden. I watched that fight and it was mostly clinching on the fence initiated by Lina. The ref kept breaking them up but it didn't help. Geez, I hope they don't do that again. Lucie's latest fight was a win over Alexandra Buch by choke on the Nov. 19, 2016 Clash FC show in the Czech Republic. She is yet another fighter who was scheduled to fight for Euro FC until they closed before their launch. I'm a little concerned because their first fight was boring. Maybe redemption will motivate Lucie to do better. Lina certainly looked stronger in that fight.

RENA's opponent named for Apr. 16 RIZIN show

Today RIZIN announced RENA's opponent for the Apr. 16 Yokohama Arena show. The fight is contracted for 49kg. Her name is Dora Perjes. She is 27 years old from Budapest, Hungary. With a 7-1 record, she is certainly has the most experience of any of RENA's opponents to date. Of course the problem is most of her wins have been on the Hungarian regional circuit. Her last two fights were for XFC in Brazil. I watched one of those fights where Dora won with a leglock. She was fighting a debutante who dropped Dora with a punch. She got careless and Dora got the leglock. In her most recent fight, Dora lost to Vuokko Katainen on the Mar. 14, 2015 XFC show in Brazil. Of course the problem is she hasn't fought in two years. I don't know the circumstances of course. She was supposed to fight for Euro FC. But they closed before launching so everything was cancelled. Her opponent in that fight Magdalena Sormova is fighting for PANCRASE this Sunday. So she has a good record that may be padded. I don't expect RENA to have any trouble with her.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Meghan Trainor

Artist:Meghan Trainor
Song:All About That Bass
Album:Title





Meghan Trainor started out as a songwriter before she burst onto the scene with the very catchy #1 single All About That Bass in 2014. My guess is this will turn out to be the biggest hit of her career. She was born Dec. 22, 1993 in Nantucket, MA. Her father was a music teacher and he played organ in church. She played in her family band as a teen. Her uncle was pals with former NRBQ guitarist Al Anderson. She began recording at home and she self released a CD in 2009. She finally met Anderson at a music conference in Colorado and he got her a publishing deal at Big Yellow Dog Music. After graduating from high school in 2012, Meghan started commuting to Los Angeles and Nashville for songwriting sessions. She met producer Kevin Kadish and he convinced her to move to Nashville permanently. Kadish produced Jason Mraz among others. After other artists recorded some of her songs, Meghan auditioned for Epic Records chairman LA Reid. He signed her and the single All About That Bass would top the Billboard Hot 100 in 2014. The album Title was certified 3XPlatinum. The song used musical terms to represent body image issues that many teen girls have. And Meghan doesn't have that thin model look that some singers have. The song resonated with teen girls. Meghan won the Best New Artist Grammy. Obviously the album was a big success. She went on tour but it was cut short due to vocal cord surgery. Upon her recovery, Meghan recorded the album Thank You mostly with producer Ricky Reed who is best known for producing Jason Derulo. Of course it's always difficult to follow a huge debut. The single No was a top five hit and Thank You was certified Gold. Of course that's not as good as her first album but that may have been a fluke and the sales of Thank You could be more typical of what can be expected. And even if Meghan's CD sales fall off a cliff, she can always write songs for others like Rascal Flatts who have recorded several of her songs already. She'll be just fine. Here's the video for All About That Bass by Meghan Trainor.

Kairi Hojo reportedly signs with the WWE

A few months ago when there was talk of a WWE women's tournament, the WWE made contract offers to Io Shirai and Kairi Hojo. These offers were confirmed by STARDOM owner Rossy Ogawa. But he also said he would try to keep both of them. The proposed women's tournament was pushed back and will likely take place this summer. In case you haven't noticed, the WWE has signed several indie female wrestlers and I expect more to be signed. Now Dave Meltzer reports that Kairi Hojo has signed with the WWE and she will arrive in Orlando and start in April. He is also reporting that Io Shirai will be at Wrestlemania and she could sign at that time. The timing is interesting because because today is Io Shirai's 10th Anniversary show. It seems that both told Ogawa that they would remain in STARDOM. Now it seems they both told him that so he would shut up and leave them alone. Because without these two, the STARDOM talent level takes a deep dip. Some fans try to compare this to the WWE's raid on New Japan. But New Japan has a much deeper talent pool than STARDOM. Most of the wrestlers in STARDOM are very green and not ready for main events. Hojo was brought in to STARDOM through her modelling agency as a replacement for Yuzuki Aikawa. She was terrible and out of shape in her early days. Though she has improved, I'm not as high on Hojo as some of the supposed experts including Meltzer. I think she is too similar to Io, almost like a carbon copy. All these supposed experts rave about Hojo's flying elbow drop. Who do you think taught her that move? Io Shirai of course. I've seen her do that same flying elbow drop though she rarely does it these days. The other big problem with Hojo is she has suffered two concussions over the past couple of years including one in Sept. 2016. What if she comes to the WWE and suffers another concussion? She could fail the physical. The WWE health standard is much higher than in Japan. Let's say for now she'll be fine. I think Hojo fits right in to NXT and the upcoming tournament. The potential signing of Io Shirai is a different story. Like Asuka, she could step right into the main roster and kill it. But with Asuka likely to move up to Smackdown after Wrestlemania, Io could fill the big hole that Asuka's departure from NXT would leave. Imagine a match between Io and Asuka at a Takeover show. That would blow the roof off the joint.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Sammy Hagar

Artist:Sammy Hagar
Song:I Can't Drive 55
Album:The Essential Red Collection





Sammy Hagar is best known first as lead singer of the 70s band Montrose and then in the 80s he replaced David Lee Roth in Van Halen. But he also had solo success especially in the 80s before he joined Van Halen. His success was mostly as an album artist. I Can't Drive 55 could be Hagar's signature song. He was born Oct. 13, 1947 in Salinas, CA. Hagar was in several late 60s bands including The Justice Brothers who were the house band at The Nightclub in San Bernardino, CA. Then Hagar moved to San Francisco. Guitarist Ronnie Montrose had a record deal with Warner Bros. and Doobie Brothers producer Ted Templeman. Montrose had previously been a session musician and a member of Edgar Winter's band. Hagar was recruited from a local cover band. Hagar wrote the Montrose hit Bad Motor Scooter. After two albums and during a European tour, Hagar left Montrose and went solo in 1975. He took bassist Bill Church and drummer Denny Carmassi with him so Hagar wasn't the only one not getting along with Montrose. Hagar recorded five albums for Capitol. He did OK but he didn't think they promoted him enough. So in 1982 Hagar signed with the newly formed Geffen label. His first Geffen album Standing Hampton was certified Platinum and the single I'll Fall In Love Again cracked the top 50. His 1984 album VOA did even better. For one thing, Hagar reunited with producer Ted Templeman. The album was certified Platinum and I Can't Drive 55 reached #26 on the Billboard Hot 100. Hagar says he wrote the song after getting a speeding ticket while driving on a desolate highway. He says he wasn't going that fast. NBC Sports and then ESPN used the song in NASCAR broadcasts. At this point, Hagar was a successful live draw. Then he replaced David Lee Roth in Van Halen in 1985. His run with them was very successful until his departure in 1996. Hagar stopped recording solo in 1987. He signed with MCA in 1997 and he released several albums as Sammy Hagar & The Warboritas. He returned to Van Halen in 2003 to tour to support a Best Of album. Afterwards, Hagar returned to The Warboritas and he has also led Chickenfoot and The Circle. Hagar currently records for Jimmy Buffett's Mailboat label. The Circle released a live CD in 2015. Hagar has discussed recording in the studio with them. Hagar is currently on a Rock & Roll Road Trip that is broadcast on AXS-TV. The Circle will tour this summer. Hagar's Capitol, Geffen and MCA hits are on this Hip-O comp. Here's the video for I Can't Drive 55 by Sammy Hagar.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Will Smith

Artist:Will Smith
Song:Gettin' Jiggy Wit It
Album:Greatest Hits





Will Smith started out as one half of the rap duo The Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff. They split up after Smith got into TV and movies. And then Smith recorded solo. He had his greatest solo success with the 1997 album Big Willie Style and singles like Gettin' Jiggy Wit It. He's mainly involved with films these days. His most recent album was released in 2005. He was born Sept. 15, 1968 in Philadelphia. He got into rap while attending high school. There have been reports that he turned down a scholarship to MIT but Smith says he wanted to rap and he never wanted to attend college. Smith met DJ Jazzy Jeff Townes in 1985 and they became one of the most popular and enduring rap acts of the late 80s mostly because their music was family friendly. But Smith mismanaged his money. He owed so much to the IRS he almost declared bankruptcy. Fortunately he signed in 1990 to star in the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. That success opened the door for movies. His final album with Townes was released in 1993. Smith appeared in several films but the most successful was probably Men In Black in 1997. He also signed a solo record deal with Columbia. His first single was the theme for Men In Black. Then he released the 1997 album Big Willie Style. Most of the album was produced by Poke & Tone (Jean-Claude Olivier & Samuel Barnes) and L.E.S. (Leshan Lewis). They had success producing the rapper Nas who sat in on some of the recording sessions. Gettin' Jiggy Wit It was the second single. The song is mainly based on the Sister Sledge hit He's The Greatest Dancer written by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers of Chic. Smith's idea was to repurpose the derogatory term "jigaboo" used to describe blacks. The single topped the Billboard Hot 100. The album Big Willie Style sold ten million copies worldwide. Smith has yet to repeat that success. And as Smith has had great success in films, he has phased out of music. For the 2005 album Lost and Found, Smith moved to Interscope. That's his most recent album. In 2011, Entertainment Weekly reported that Smith was recording a new album. Then in 2015, he announced plans to record with DJ Jazzy Jeff and plans to tour in 2017. Jeff is currently on a solo tour. So I don't know if Smith will ever record or tour again. Doesn't seem like it but you never know. Here's the video for Gettin' Jiggy Wit It by Will Smith.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Don Cherry

Artist:Don Cherry
Song:Bemsha Swing
Album:Art Deco





Trumpeter Don Cherry is best known for his days with tenor sax legend and free jazz pioneer Ornette Coleman. He is also the stepfather of Neneh Cherry and father of Eagle Eye Cherry. But he recorded plenty of great music as a leader. He was born Feb. 18, 1936 in Oklahoma City. His dad played trumpet and owned the local club Cherry Blossom. He moved with his family to Los Angeles in 1940. His dad was a bartender at the Plantation Club on Central Ave. and that's where the jazz scene was in Los Angeles. Cherry attended Fremont High School. After skipping school to play in the swing band at Jefferson High School, Cherry was sent to reform school where he met drummer Billy Higgins. They became life long friends and collaborators. In the 50s, Cherry was in Art Farmer's band and he jammed with Clifford Brown and Max Roach. He toured with sax player James Clay and they became life long friends. Cherry first worked with Ornette Coleman in 1958 and along with bassist Charlie Haden and drummer Billy Higgins, they invented free jazz with albums like The Shape Of Jazz To Come on Atlantic Records. In 1961, Cherry recorded The Avant Garde with sax legend John Coltrane. They recorded the Thelonious Monk song Bemsha Swing. In the 60s, Cherry toured with Sonny Rollins, Albert Ayler and George Russell. He was also a member of The New York Contemporary Five with Archie Shepp and John Tchicai. He recorded as a leader for Blue Note. Cherry moved to Sweden in the late 60s. Neneh and Eagle Eye Cherry were born in Sweden. He was a member of Old and New Dreams with Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden and Ed Blackwell. They recorded several albums for ECM. Cherry also explored World Music with percussionist Nana Vasconcelos and sitar player Colin Walcott as Codona. They also recorded for ECM. In the late 80s, Cherry signed with A&M Records. He recorded Bemsha Swing on the 1989 album Art Deco. This album was a reunion with sax player James Clay who he toured with in the 50s and he also reunited with Charlie Haden and Billy Higgins. You'll notice Cherry doesn't play a normal trumpet. He plays a pocket cornet. It's amazing the sound he gets from that little thing. Don Cherry died of liver cancer on Oct. 19, 1995 at age 58. Here's Don Cherry performing Bemsha Swing with Herbie Hancock on piano, Ron Carter on bass and Billy Higgins on drums on New Orleans 1986.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Diane Schuur

Artist:Diane Schuur
Song:Love Dance
Album:Collection





Diane Schuur is a jazz singer who had her greatest success when she first recorded in the 80s. She's still around but she's just not as popular as she once was. She was born Dec. 10, 1953 in Tacoma, WA. Due to a hospital error, Diane was blind at birth. She would eventually receive a financial settlement from the hospital. She attended the Washington School for the Blind. Diane began singing as a child. Her mom was a Duke Ellington fan. Diane's idols were Sarah Vaughan and Dinah Washington. As a teen, she performed in local clubs. In 1975, she auditioned for Tonight Show drummer Ed Shaughnessy. He was in Seattle touring with Doc Severinsen. Shaughnessy hired her for his band Energy Force and he wanted to hire her to sing with The Tonight Show band. But Severinsen didn't like Diane as she tended to oversing and he didn't like that. But touring with Shaugnessy got her to the 1979 Monterey Jazz Festival. And that's where jazz legend Stan Getz heard Diane. Things started to pick up. For one thing, he got her to stop oversinging. Less is more he told her. Getz appeared on Diane's 1981 debut album Pilot of my Destiny for a Seattle label Great American. Then he invited her to sing at The White House in 1982. GRP Records owner Larry Rosen saw Diane on TV and his partner Dave Grusin contacted Getz. Diane signed with GRP. Love Dance is from Diane's second album Schuur Thing in 1985. Grusin produced and arranged the album and played keyboards. Other musicians are Lee Ritenour on guitar, Abraham Laboriel on bass, Carlos Vega on drums and Paulinho Da Costa on percussion. Larry Williams played sax on most of the album but Stan Getz played on Love Dance. Jose Feliciano sang on two songs. Love Dance was written by Brazilian Ivan Lins and the English lyrics were written by Incognito bassist Paul "Tubbs" Williams. The album reached #10 on the jazz charts and this began a long run for Diane. She performed on the Grammys and also won a couple. This comp was released in 1989 and it covers Diane's early albums. Diane recorded for GRP until 1997 and then she recorded for Concord until 2008. He latest album was released in 2014 but she still tours regularly. Here's Diane Schuur with the GRP All Stars featuring Dave Grusin, Lee Ritenour, Abraham Laboriel, Carlos Vega, Dave Valentin and Larry Williams at The Record Plant in Los Angeles 1985. This was released on DVD but is now out of print.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Cynthia Calvillo vs Amanda Bobby Cooper

Here's the match video of Cynthia Calvillo vs Amanda Bobby Cooper from last night's UFC show in Las Vegas. This fight was supposed to be on the UFC Fight Pass prelims but it was moved up to the main card when the Khabib vs Ferguson match was scratched. I thought that was unusual because normally they would move a fight up from the FS1 prelims. My guess is that matchmaker Sean Shelby really likes Cynthia and he convinced UFC president Dana White to move it up. I'm sure White and most fans and journalists at the show had never heard of her. Cynthia is 3-0 and she trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento. But she has extensive amateur experience and she beat Invicta's Aspen Ladd as an amateur. I watched Cynthia's last fight when this fight was announced a couple of weeks ago and though I thought she was impressive, I didn't think much of her opponent. Amanda was in TUF 23 and she lost to Tatiana Suarez in the final. Most of the women who were on TUF 23 weren't very good. Amanda won over Anna Elmose in Nov. and the UFC promptly released Anna. The fight was a coming out party for Cynthia. After an initial exchange, Cynthia took Amanda down and after a scramble, she attempted an anaconda choke. That's usually a low percentage submission that can lead to disaster if a fighter spends too much time trying to apply it. Cynthia quickly abandons it and slickly transitions to a rear naked choke which is a high percentage submission. That was a very smart move and Cynthia hooked it and Amanda tapped out. So a big win for Cynthia in her UFC debut. The next move is to have her fight a ranked opponent. She's 29 years old so the UFC may want to move her up quickly to see if she can be a contender. One plus is Cynthia is fluent in Spanish. Check out the fight for yourself.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Maze featuring Frankie Beverly

Artist:Maze featuring Frankie Beverly
Song:Silky Soul
Album:Greatest Hits: 35 Years Of Soul





Maze was one of the top soul groups of the 70s and they had most of their success on Capitol Records. But they moved to Warner Bros. in the late 80s. And though they only recorded two albums there, a couple of songs were R&B hits and they are not always included on Capitol comps. Silky Soul reached #4 on the R&B Singles chart in 1989. When you listen to the song, it clearly samples from the Marvin Gaye classic What's Going On. Silky Soul is a tribute to Gaye. What you may not know is Gaye discovered Beverly. He got Beverly to change the group name from Raw Soul to Maze. He took Maze on tour as his opening act and got them a record deal with Capitol. All their albums were certified Gold and they had a lot of success on the R&B charts and as a live act. But Maze left Capitol after the 1985 album Can't Stop The Love and signed with Warner Bros. for the 1989 album Silky Soul. The single Can't Get Over You topped the R&B Singles chart and Silky Soul reached #4. The album Silky Soul was certified Gold. As I said, because those songs are on Warner Bros., Capitol did not include them on early Maze comps. But they have included them on more recent comps like this one from 2011. It's available as a budget CD. Maze only recorded two albums for Warner Bros. and they haven't recorded since 1994. But Maze still tours and there was even a Maze tribute album released in 2009. They also get sampled a lot by hip hop guys which is a sign of respect. I guess they are a 70s nostalgia act at this point but Maze were influential on today's neo soul and hip hop. Here's the video for Silky Soul by Maze featuring Frankie Beverly.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Julia Budd vs Marloes Coenen

Here's the match video of Julia Budd vs Marloes Coenen from last night's Bellator show in Oklahoma. This was for the Bellator Women's Welterweight Championship. This fight has been in the works for a couple of years delayed by injuries. I don't know why Bellator president Scott Coker didn't do this match two years ago. I guess he wanted to build up to it. But first Marloes got injured. The fight was scheduled for May 2016 but Julia pulled out due to injury. Alexis Dufresne replaced her and submitted Marloes. And that loss highlighted Marloes major flaw especially as she has gotten older. As great as Marloes has been over the years, she has a bad habit of underestimating opponents. That's why she has had several upset losses. The writers covering the Bellator show even asked her about underestimating Julia. There's no question that Marloes is a more complete fighter than Julia. Julia is mainly a kickboxer and she hasn't shown much of a ground game in the past. But she's always in top condition and she's very strong. She won't run out of gas. And her strength advantage turned out to be the key to the fight. Julia took Marloes down in round one. As we all know, Marloes is very good at submissions from bottom position. So though Julia was able to stay on top, she did nothing with it and she was almost submitted a couple of times. It was a very close round that could have been scored a tie. Between rounds, Julia's husband and trainer Lance Gibson encouraged Julia to keep taking Marloes down and be more aggressive in top position. It became clear that Julia was much stronger than Marloes and Marloes could not stuff takedowns. Maybe she thought Julia would stick to kickboxing. So Julia controls the second and third rounds. And in round four she gets a mount and her ground and pound led to the TKO stoppage. Congratulations to Julia Budd for winning the Bellator Women's Welterweight Championship. I'm not sure who is supposed to challenge her for the belt. Most of the 145lb fighters I have seen in Bellator aren't very good. Immediately after the fight, Marloes Coenen announced her retirement. Though the announcement was a surprise, it didn't really surprise me. Marloes doesn't seem like she would want to hang around if she's not competitive. There are plenty of fighters who don't know when to quit. Marloes' legacy is as a pioneer of women's MMA especially in Japan when at age 18, she won the 2000 World Remix tournament in Tokyo. And of course she was also the Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion. Should she have stayed at Bantamweight? She only went down to 135 because Coker asked her to do it. But she didn't like cutting that much weight so she went back to Welterweight. At least she knows it's time to go. On behalf of MMA fans worldwide, thank you Marloes Coenen for a legendary career. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Kathy Mattea

Artist:Kathy Mattea
Song:Love At The Five & Dime
Album:The Definitive Collection





Though it wasn't her biggest hit, the 1986 single Love At The Five & Dime was Kathy Mattea's first top five country single. So it set up her late 80s run which included four number one country hits. She was born June 21, 1959 in South Charleston, WV. Her home town of Cross Lanes didn't have a hospital. She took classical voice training but she discovered folk music in high school and learned to play guitar. While attending West Virginia University in 1976, Kathy was a member of the bluegrass group Pennsboro. In 1978 she moved to Nashville and sang backup for Bobby Goldsboro and recorded plenty of demos for songwriters. Songwriter producer Byron Hill liked Kathy and got her a deal with Mercury Records. Hill had written hits for Johnny Lee and George Strait. Hill produced Kathy's debut album. But her second album From My Heart was produced by Allen Reynolds. He produced all of her albums until he got busy with Garth Brooks. Kathy's 1986 album Walk The Way The Wind Blows was her breakthrough when her single Love At The Five And Dime reached #3 on the Country Singles chart. The song was written by singer songwriter Nanci Griffith who recorded it on her 1986 album Last Of The True Believers. Nanci is a great performer but she has had a lot of success writing hits for others. Guys like Reynolds are always on the prowl for great songs. Kathy became a fixture on the country charts. Her number one hits were Goin' Gone, Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses, Come From The Heart and Burnin' Old Memories. Kathy faded in the mid-90s. Walking Away A Winner was her final top five country hit in 1994. You can get all her hits on this budget comp. Kathy left Mercury in 2000 and she has recorded for small labels. She still tours. Her latest CD Calling Me Home was released in 2012 on Sugar Hill Records. That's a bluegrass label. Her recent music is more traditional country than when she was making hits in the 80s. I think Kathy prefers performing bluegrass. Here's Kathy Mattea performing Love At The Five And Dime on TNN's Nashville Now 1986.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Asuka vs Peyton Royce

Here's the match video of Asuka defending her NXT Women's Championship against Peyton Royce from this week's NXT show. I am posting Asuka's matches for those who don't have the WWE Network. Peyton Royce and Billie Kay are doing a mean girls gimmick that is too much like LayCool for me. However, they are good at playing terrified heels and both are improving as wrestlers. Peyton won the title shot in a three way over Ember Moon and Liv Morgan. At the start of the match, Asuka has things well in hand until she goes outside the ring and Peyton posts her shoulder. Peyton works on Asuka's shoulder. And Asuka to her credit continues to sell her shoulder. You would be surprised how many wrestlers forget to do that. Typically, Peyton gets overconfident and wastes way too much time. And that allows Asuka to recover. But Peyton hits a spinning head kick that should give her the win...but it doesn't. This leads to Asuka hitting a flying armbar which she transitions into the Asuka lock and it's over. Asuka retains her title and remains undefeated. I have no problem with a competitive match because squashes all the time would be boring. Afterwards, Billie attacks Asuka and they double team her until Ember Moon makes the save. Asuka and Ember Moon have a staredown so that begins the build towards the next Takeover show in Orlando. I liked Ember Moon when she was Athena in indies. But so far the Ember Moon character has been blah. And I hate her finisher. It takes too long to set up. Meanwhile, Asuka is working some Smackdown house shows beginning next week. She's filling in for the injured Naomi. Asuka is due to be moved up to Smackdown shortly anyway. That's what she told Tokyo Sports in a January interview. Will Asuka's winning streak continue? Well, the WWE loves streaks. And Goldberg even congratulated Asuka on her winning streak. Enjoy the video!
NXT Women's Championship: Asuka © vs... by therackattackvideos

RIZIN announces plans for Women's Grand Prix

RIZIN held a press conference today to announce matches for the Apr. 16 show at Yokohama Arena. This includes four women's matches. But they also announced plans for the Women's Grand Prix. They are beginning it in September and the finals will be on the NYE show. As I expected, the tournament will be at 48kg. It looks like there will be eight fighters in the tournament. And to emphasize this, they brought out RENA to announce that she will be participating. She is also scheduled for a match on the Apr. 16 show with her opponent to be announced. So I expect this tournament to be booked so she wins just like all of her Shoot Boxing tournament wins. She's probably the biggest star in RIZIN already. And winning this tournament will cement that and it will transcend the fight business and make her a mainstream star in Japan. Don't believe me? Take a look at the poster for this show. Who has the biggest head shot? RENA has always had star potential. The ratings go through the roof when she appears on TV. But Shoot Boxing is too much of a niche product and no one can figure out the rules anyway. The only thing is she hasn't beaten anyone decent yet in MMA so I want to see who RIZIN brings in to face RENA for the April show. She trains with Ayaka Hamasaki so you can be sure RENA will be well prepared. Let's get to the other three matches. King Reina will face Jazzy Gabert. Of course Reina recently won over Shayna Baszler at last week's DEEP JEWELS show. At that fight she weighed in at 150lb. Jazzy is better known as German pro wrestler Alpha Female. You may recall she was brought in at the NYE show to tease a match against Gabi Garcia. That may still happen if Jazzy wins this fight. She weighs 190lb and 90kg is the contracted weight for this fight. She won her only MMA fight in Nov. but there just isn't much competition at that weight. Japanese fans will know Jazzy as she was the top heel in STARDOM a couple of years ago. Saori Ishioka will face Bestare Kicaj. This fight will be at 48kg. A few years ago, Ishioka was thought to have star potential mostly because of her looks. It's the same thing as Shizuka Sugiyama. They train together. But like Sugiyama, Ishioka isn't that good. Her record is 14-10 but she is 1-2 since returning from pregnancy. Bestare is from Zurich, Switzerland. Her record is 2-0. Obviously Ishioka has an edge in experience so I would expect her to win to get her ready for the Grand Prix. However, stranger things have happened. And finally Kanna Asakura will face Aleksandra Toncheva. The Japanese media make a big deal out of Kanna because she's 19 years old and just graduated from high school. But I wonder if any of these guys have seen her fight. Her record is 6-2 but it's padded with old ladies and tomato cans. When she has had the opportunity to face someone decent, she has come up short as she did against Alyssa Garcia at the last RIZIN show. So I'm not sold on her. Aleksandra is from Bulgaria. This will be her pro MMA debut. But she is the 2016 IMAAF World Champion at 115lb and a two time IMAAF European Champ. We'll see how she does. This fight is contracted for 48kg though Aleksandra has fought at 115lb. At what point does Kanna Asakura go from being a prospect to a suspect. We may find out if she loses this fight. I guess I'll have more on this show once RENA's opponent is announced.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Poco

Artist-Poco
Song:Crazy Love
Album:The Essential Poco





Poco was one of several groups that emerged from the ashes of the popular 60s group Buffalo Springfield. Poco has been mainly an album and live concert act. But they have scored a couple of hit singles including Crazy Love in 1978. When Buffalo Springfield split up in 1968, singer and guitarist Richie Furay, guitarist Jim Messina and pedal steel guitarist Rusty Young formed Pogo with drummer George Grantham and bassist Randy Meisner. For copyright reasons, the group name was changed to Poco. They signed with Atlantic Records but they were traded to Epic for Graham Nash. Their early albums were highly praised but they didn't sell. Conflict with Furay led to Meisner being replaced by Timothy B. Schmit and then Messina left for Paul Cotton of Illinois Speed Press. Meisner went on to be a founding member of Eagles. Messina took a house producer job at Columbia which led to Loggins & Messina. As Poco's albums continued to flounder, Furay got worse and he left in 1973 to form Souther-Hillman-Furay Band. Then Poco left Epic for ABC for the 1975 album Head Over Heels. This was their most successful album to date and the single Keep On Tryin' reached #50 on the Billboard Hot 100. Then in 1977, Schmit left to join Eagles. Poco went on hiatus and Young and Cotton recorded as The Cotton-Young Band. ABC picked up the album. But they wanted it released as Poco. Cotton and Young agreed to that and they brought in bassist Charlie Harrison and drummer Steve Chapman. Grantham hadn't left Poco. He was paid to leave and he joined Ricky Skaggs' band. Harrison and Chapman played together for Leo Sayer and Al Stewart. So for the 1978 album Legend, Poco was more of a pop band. The album was certified Gold and Crazy Love reached #17 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was written and and sung by Young. Remember this was supposed to be The Cotton-Young Band before ABC had them change it. They had one other top 20 hit. And then Poco returned to obscurity. They left MCA for Atlantic in 1982 and it looked like they were going to disband. But then the original members of Poco reformed. They signed with RCA and scored their other top 20 hit with Call It Love in 1989. That was their commercial last gasp. This Sony Legacy budget comp covers all Poco's hits on all the different labels. The late 80s Poco reunion ended in 1992. Cotton and Young continued to lead Poco until Young announced his retirement in 2013. Poco doesn't tour full time anymore but they play occasional gigs. Imagine if Cotton and Young had not agreed to adopting the Poco name in 1978. Here's the video for Crazy Love by Poco.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-White Town

Artist:White Town
Song:Your Woman
Album:Women In Technology





Your Woman topped the British charts in 1997 and it was a top 30 hit in North America. It is the only big hit for Jyoti Mishra AKA White Town. He was born July 30, 1966 in Rourkela, India but he grew up in Derby, England. At first White Town was a band formed in 1989 when Mishra saw The Pixies. The group name was because of Mishra as an East Indian growing up in a small English town. After releasing an EP in 1990, he signed with Parasol Records but he also decided he preferred to make music at home with synthesizers and samplers. He sometimes brings in musicians but mostly Mishra records solo. he released two EPs and an album on Parasol. He recorded Your Woman in 1996 on the EP Abort, Retry, Fail. The song got enough attention to get Mishra a record deal with EMI's Chrysalis label. The album Women In Technology was released in 1997. Your Woman topped the British singles chart and reached #23 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was a big hit globally. Of course most folks remember the trumpet riff. That was sampled from the 1932 song My Woman by crooner and big band leader Lew Stone. Mishra says he heard that song on the British miniseries Pennies From Heaven. Mishra only recorded one album for Chrysalis and it is available as a budget CD. It's on plenty of various artists comps. Since then Mishra has recorded on his own label. His latest album was released in 2011 though he has released a couple of singles more recently. When asked about being a one hit wonder, Mishra says "it's better than being a no hit wonder". Here's the video for Your Woman by White Town. This video is on Youtube but the Vimeo version is better quality.

White Town - Your Woman from Anatoly Pupyshev on Vimeo.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bay City Rollers

Artist:Bay City Rollers
Song:Saturday Night
Album:The Definitive Collection





With their screaming fans, the Bay City Rollers seemed like they were everywhere in the mid-70s. Though they were a much bigger deal in England, Saturday Night was their only number one hit in North America. And they were forgotten by the late 70s. It might surprise you how long they were around before they hit the jackpot. The Bay City Rollers were formed in 1966 in Edinurgh, Scotland by bassist Alan Longmuir, his drummer brother Derek Longmuir and lead singer Gordon "Nobby" Clark. They threw a dart at a US map and it landed on Bay City, MI. They called themselves Bay City Rollers. Among those who were early members of the group were David Paton and Billy Lyall who went on to form Pilot. They signed with Bell Records in 1971. Their first single was a cover of The Gentrys' Keep On Dancing. It was a top ten hit in England. They struggled for the next couple of years and guitarist Eric Faulkner joined the group. Clark left and was replaced by Les McKeown and then guitarist Stuart "Woody" Wood solidified the lineup that would become famous. They began to have success on the British charts just as McKeown and and the arrival of the veteran production and songwriting team of Bill Martin and Phil Coulter. They produced the popular singer Sandie Shaw. BCR finally scored number one hits in England with Bye Bye Baby and Give A Little Love. By early 1975, they were the biggest act in England. Their mostly teen female fans wore tartan to concerts. Meanwhile, Clive Davis had purchased Bell Records and changed the name to Arista. Saturday Night topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1975. The album Bay City Rollers was released followed quickly by Wouldn't You Like It? and Rock 'n' Roll Love Letter. Three albums in six months and all were certified Gold. They also had two other top ten hit singles. It was over by the late 70s as the band were burnt out. The 1977 album It's A Game was their final charted album. McKeown was replaced by Duncan Faure. They left Arista for Epic in 1980. They quit touring in 1981. This budget comp has all their hits. BCR last recorded in 1985 but they have reunited occasionally. They announced plans for a tour and a new album in 2016. It doesn't look like that ever happened. Here's the Bay City Rollers performing Saturday Night on The Midnight Special 1976. Check out the crowd.