Favorite Musical Artists: Steely Dan

I pretty much summarized my feelings about Steely Dan a couple years back in my tribute to Walter Becker. I’ve never seen them live – after all, during their prime they abandoned the road for the studio – but if they ever migrated from Jiffy Lube Live back to Wolf Trap, I’d give it a shot, despite Becker’s absence.

 

Favorite Songs:

 

My Old School  

Reeling In The Years

Deacon Blues

FM

Do It Again

 

King Of The World

Don’t Take Me Alive

Dirty Work

Hey Nineteen

Bad Sneakers

 

Show Biz Kids

Here At The Western World

Only A Fool Would Say That

Kid Charlemagne

Josie

 

Bodhisattva

Peg

Midnite Cruiser

Razor Boy

Turn That Heartbeat Over Again

Favorite Musical Artists: Indigo Girls

The Indigo Girls occupy an interesting middle niche in the music business ecosystem: not exactly household names, but more than cult favorites. They’ve received multiple Grammy nominations (with one win) and, with a run of six consecutive albums that went either gold or platinum, probably don’t have to worry about where their next meals are coming from. Yet, fortunately for their fans, they’re not so big that they can’t play venues such as Wolf Trap or the Maryland Hall for the Performing Arts (with reasonable ticket prices), or appear on the River Stage at XPNFest. And we can also be thankful that they didn’t become so acclaimed that they spawned a bevy of imitators trying to become the “new Indigo Girls”; it would be difficult if not impossible to improve on the original.

 

Concert notes: 2018 2015 (Wolf Trap) 2015 (XPNFest) 2014

 

Favorite Songs:

 

Southland In The Springtime

Fill It Up Again

Watershed

Closer To Fine

The Wood Song

 

Hammer And A Nail

Power Of Two

This Train Revised

Cold Beer And Remote Control

Galileo

 

Chickenman

Rise Up

Sugar Tongue

Get Out The Map

Least Complicated

 

Welcome Me

All That We Let In

Moment Of Forgiveness

Kid Fears

Shame On You

Favorite Musical Artists: Eva Cassidy

I’ve expressed my feelings about Eva in an earlier post (“With the possible exception of Sinatra, I’ve never heard anyone approach Eva Cassidy as a singer, in terms of voice quality, phrasing, and the overall ability to interpret a song”), but Jefferson Morley provided an even better summary in his superb 1998 Washington Post article, “When Chuck Met Eva”:

 

“She had a voice that could silence a barroom and get the pool players to lay down their cues. A voice that could prompt casual listeners to round up their co-workers for a night out dancing. A voice that could invest all kinds of American popular music with a true portion of herself.”

 

RIP Eva. Your legend lives on.

 

Favorite Songs:

 

Over The Rainbow 

Blue Skies

You've Changed*

Dark End Of The Street

Wayfaring Stranger

 

You Don't Know Me*

Stormy Monday

American Tune

Cheek To Cheek

People Get Ready

 

Oh, Had I A Golden Thread

I Could Have Told You So*

Penny To My Name

Autumn Leaves

Won't Be Long

 

A Bold Young Farmer

Gee Baby, Ain’t I Good To You*

God Bless The Child

Honeysuckle Rose

Fields Of Gold

 

* -- with Chuck Brown

Favorite Musical Artists: Gordon Lightfoot

Speaking of musical genres, I’m not sure whether Gordon Lightfoot was held back by their boundaries or transcended them – I prefer to think the latter. Although his earliest material had a decidedly country sound (and his later “Sundown” actually hit #13 on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart), he first gained attention as a folk artist, with performers such as Peter, Paul & Mary recording some of his material. Because of that background, I was always surprised when I found his albums in stores filed under Pop/Rock rather than in the Folk section. Similarly, I could never quite understand why he didn’t get nearly as much attention as did others (Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Carole King, fellow Canadian Joni Mitchell) during the 1970s “singer-songwriter” craze. Was it because he didn’t live in or hang around L.A.? Was it because his music leaned more “adult contemporary” than rock? (Although JT was certainly never known for rocking out.) Maybe it was because his songs never felt all that introspective: allmusic.com refers to typical singer-songwriter lyrics of the era that “were personal, although … often veiled by layers of metaphors and obscure imagery.”

 

All that aside, I’ve always had this somewhat fanciful notion that there’s some supernatural power that assigns all of us some fixed number of great songs. (For most of us, of course, that number is zero.) During his prime years during the 1960s and 1970s, Gordon Lightfoot certainly came up with far more than his share.

 

Favorite songs:

 

Canadian Railroad Trilogy

The Way I Feel (version from the album of the same name)

The Last Time I Saw Her

The Circle Is Small

Early Morning Rain

 

Summer Side Of Life

Did She Mention My Name

If You Could Read My Mind

10 Degrees & Getting Colder

Song For A Winter's Night

 

For Lovin' Me

Crossroads

Softly

Same Old Loverman

Endless Wire

 

Pussywillows, Cat-Tails

Sundown

Can't Depend On Love

Sit Down Young Stranger

That Same Old Obsession

Favorite Musical Artists: Lyle Lovett

It’s more or less a coincidence that Lyle Lovett comes up right after Mary Chapin Carpenter. Fans of the latter, of course, are sure to be familiar with these lines from “I Feel Lucky”:

 

Now eleven million later, I was sittin' at the bar.

I bought the house a double, then the waitress a new car.

Dwight Yoakam's in the corner, tryin' to catch my eye.

Lyle Lovett's right beside me with his hand upon my thigh.

[obviously with her consent; see chorus below]

…

I feel lucky,

I feel lucky, yeah.

Hey Dwight, hey Lyle, boys, you don't have to fight.

Hot dog, I feel lucky tonight.

 

(I have to admit I started to wonder, when in recent years it became annoyingly typical for the two of them to appear at Wolf Trap on back-to-back evenings, forcing me either to choose between them or endure two late nights in a row.)

 

The best summary of Lovett’s music I could find came from Last.fm: “Lyle Lovett is an Americana singer-songwriter and actor from Klein, Texas, who has been described as "the thinking man's cowboy". While typically associated with the alt-country genre, his albums typically incorporate folk, swing, blues, jazz and gospel music as well as more traditional country & western styles.”

 

Concert notes (all from appearances at Wolf Trap with his Large Band unless otherwise noted): 2019 2018 2017 (at Strathmore with John Hiatt) 2016 2015

 

Favorite songs:

 

If I Had A Boat

That's Right (You're Not From Texas)

Here I Am

Closing Time

Church

 

She's No Lady

I Will Rise Up/Ain't No More Cane

What Do You Do/The Glory Of Love

Simple Song

Penguins

 

Nobody Knows Me

Don't Touch My Hat

L.A. County

Good Intentions

My Baby Don’t Tolerate

 

North Dakota

Family Reserve

Pass Me Not O Gentle Savior

Wallisville Road

Which Way Does That Old Pony Run

 

Bonus tracks -- Funny How Time Slips Away (duet with Al Green), and Francine Reed’s performance of Wild Women Don't Get the Blues (always a highlight of his Large Band shows)

Favorite Musical Artists: Mary Chapin Carpenter

I’ve already told the story of how I first got into Mary Chapin Carpenter’s music. She continues to put on excellent concerts, although her days of country music stardom are long past. I recently went back and re-listened to her first five albums, from 1987’s Hometown Girl through 1994’s Stones In The Road. All are excellent, but I guess that Come On Come On (1992) would have to rate as my favorite: it produced 5 of the 20 songs listed below, and that’s not even counting “I Take My Chances” or her cover of Mark Knopfler’s “The Bug”. For a great introduction, check out her 1999 compilation-with-a-twist, Party Doll And Other Favorites.

Favorite songs:

 

Stones In The Road

Passionate Kisses

Outside Looking In

He Thinks He'll Keep Her

Down At The Twist And Shout

 

Hometown Girl

I Feel Lucky

Dancing In The Dark (live Springsteen cover)

Shut Up And Kiss Me

Goodbye Again

 

The Hard Way

I Am A Town

Quittin' Time

10,000 Miles

It Don't Bring You

 

The Way I Feel

How Do

Party Doll

Almost Home

Why Walk When You Can Fly

Favorite Musical Artists: The Beach Boys

It may have been fate that I was listening to the final half-hour of Rich Russo’s Anything, Anything this past Sunday night, as I caught his segue of Barenaked Ladies’ classic “Brian Wilson”, preceded by a partial live cover by the man himself. While the other members of the Beach Boys certainly played a major role in the group’s success (as evidenced by some fine work while Wilson was in the depths of his long-lasting mental health issues), there’s no question that Brian Wilson deserves his accolades as a musical genius; I’m not sure who else has been included in lists of top singers, songwriters, AND producers by major music publications. Except for when one of my dorm neighbors in college frequently played the underappreciated Surf’s Up album, I was always more inspired by the band on a song-by-song basis: not just the big hits, but many of their more obscure tracks as well. Although Brian Wilson’s melodies and vocal arrangements get the most attention, many of the band’s lyrics are also notable, initially evoking both the joys and difficulties of the teen years, and tackling more sophisticated topics later with the likes of “Long Promised Road” and “Til I Die”.

 

Favorite songs:

 

Don't Worry Baby 

Wouldn't It Be Nice

Barbara Ann

All Summer Long

Please Let Me Wonder

 

In My Room

Long Promised Road

Help Me, Rhonda

Fun, Fun, Fun

When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)

 

Sloop John B.

Good Timin'

Surf's Up

Darlin'

Surfer Girl

 

Good Vibrations

California Girls

Disney Girls

Wendy

Surfin' U.S.A.

 

Holiday bonus – just about everyone is familiar with the classics “Little Saint Nick” and “The Man With All The Toys”. They also did a stunning version of “Graduation Day”.

Favorite Musical Artists: Richard Thompson

Mark Deming begins his excellent biography of Richard Thompson at allmusic.com with the following sentence: “An iconic figure in British folk-rock, Richard Thompson is arguably the genre's greatest triple threat: a dazzling guitarist, an outstanding songwriter, and a strong and evocative vocalist.” I’d certainly agree, but would add “compelling live performer” to the list. One of the advantages of following a non-superstar act (speaking commercially, rather than in terms of talent) is that you get plenty of opportunities to see them in small, intimate venues (Rams Head, Barns at Wolf Trap, the Birchmere) at a reasonable price: since I started this blog, I’ve seen Thompson on 5 separate occasions, not counting his brief opening set for Bonnie Raitt at Wolf Trap.

 

Favorite songs:

 

Al Bowlly's In Heaven

Keep Your Distance

1952 Vincent Black Lightning

Tear-Stained Letter

Wall Of Death*

 

Valerie

I Misunderstood

King Of Bohemia

Dimming Of The Day

I Feel So Good

 

Don't Renege On Our Love*

Hots For The Smarts

Uninhabited Man

Beeswing

Crawl Back (Under My Stone)

 

Walking The Long Mile Home

Waltzing's For Dreamers

When The Spell Is Broken

How Will I Ever Be Simple Again

Crocodile Tears

 

* - Richard and Linda Thompson

Favorite Musical Artists: Bruce Springsteen

I guess in some ways it’s appropriate that I post this just a few days after The Boss announced the upcoming release of his 19^th studio album, and dropped its first “single”, “Hello Sunshine”. I like the song, but it’s not nearly as upbeat as the title might suggest. Rich Russo played it on his syndicated radio show this weekend, immediately followed by the Beatles’ “Good Day Sunshine”, and the contrast was pretty striking. (What it REALLY reminds me of is Danny O’Keefe’s 1972 hit “Goodtime Charlie’s Got The Blues.”)

 

Although I do own all 18 of Bruce’s previous studio recordings, plus some (but not all) of his live and/or previously-unreleased stuff (yes, I have the four-disc Tracks set), I’ve been a relative slacker compared to the true diehards in terms of seeing him live, with a modest total of five shows to my credit:

 

October 20, 1974 – Dickinson College (Carlisle PA)

November 11, 2007 – Verizon Center

September 14, 2012 – Nationals Park

April 20, 2016 – Royal Farms Arena (Baltimore)

September 1, 2016 – Nationals Park

 

I decided to see if I could find out a little more about Jon Landau’s legendary “rock and roll future” comment. A slightly longer excerpt is below; you can find the entire (lengthy) column from which it was taken here.

 

But tonight there is someone I can write of the way I used to write, without reservations of any kind. Last Thursday, at the Harvard Square theatre, I saw my rock'n'roll past flash before my eyes. And I saw something else: I saw rock and roll future and its name is Bruce Springsteen. And on a night when I needed to feel young, he made me feel like I was hearing music for the very first time.

 

Favorite songs:

 

Thunder Road

Jungleland

Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

Hungry Heart

The Price You Pay

 

My City Of Ruins

Jersey Girl

4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)

Dancing In The Dark

Darkness On The Edge Of Town

 

Blinded By The Light

Stolen Car

Born To Run

Pink Cadillac

Shut Out The Light

 

Kitty's Back

The Promised Land

Spirit In The Night

Wrecking Ball

One Step Up

 

And of course there’s his classic cover of “Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town”

 

Favorite Musical Artists: Del Amitri

I did a rather lengthy write-up of this wonderful, if relatively little-known, Scottish band previously, so I won’t repeat it here. (They’re also pretty great live.) Going back and listening to some of their material again, I was struck by the endings of several of their songs. “Be My Downfall” keeps the suspense going throughout the song – will he stay or will he go? “Always The Last To Know” contains a surprise twist at the end, while “Nothing Ever Happens” features, almost as a throwaway, an ominous pair of lines that not only re-color the rest of the song but remain relevant 30 years later. They also have an endearing habit of tossing in British expressions (car park, chat show, matchlight) that are seldom heard on this side of the pond.

 

Favorite songs:

Driving With The Brakes On 

Always The Last To Know

Be My Downfall

Roll To Me

In The Frame
 

Some Other Sucker's Parade

Nothing Ever Happens

Before The Evening Steals The Afternoon

Kiss This Thing Goodbye

Not Where It's At
 

Spit In The Rain

Sleep Instead Of Teardrops

Move Away Jimmy Blue

When You Were Young

Just Before You Leave
 

The First Rule Of Love

Out Falls The Past

Hatful Of Rain

In The Meantime

Long Journey Home

Favorite Musical Artists: The Impressions

Bruce Springsteen wrote in his must-read autobiography Born To Run (near the end of Chapter 25), “In the 1960s the first version of my country that struck me as truthful and unfiltered was the one I heard in songs by artists like Bob Dylan, the Kingsmen, James Brown and Curtis Mayfield.” The Impressions’ classic “People Get Ready” would later serve as one of the inspirations for Springsteen’s “Land Of Hope And Dreams”. Yet Mayfield certainly wasn’t limited to writing songs of social consciousness; like James Hunter, he was unbelievably prolific in producing classic songs about the ups and downs of more intimate human relationships, seemingly without breaking a sweat. It wasn’t just the songs, of course, as the vocal harmonies (usually led by Mayfield’s unmistakable falsetto) and arrangements are top-notch as well.

 

From my earlier notes on “I Loved And I Lost”:

 

I’ve always felt that Chicago soul music never got the credit it deserves. … Curtis Mayfield, of course, was the driving force behind much of this success. In addition to writing nearly all of the Impressions’ material, he wrote hits for fellow Chicagoans Jerry Butler, Gene Chandler, and Major Lance, as well as for Aretha Franklin and the Staple Singers. He also was a producer, started his own successful record label (Curtom), and had a notable solo career in the 1970s. … Most of the album cuts that Mayfield wrote for the Impressions are just as strong as the tracks that got released as singles, in sharp contrast to the filler that mars so many 1960 albums.

 

And I did get to see them live a couple years ago, with Jeremy Purifory doing an amazingly good job of taking Mayfield’s vocal parts.

 

Favorite songs:

I Loved And I Lost

People Get Ready

Gypsy Woman

It's All Right

I've Been Trying
 

Grow Closer Together

It's Hard To Believe

I'm So Proud

Talking About My Baby

Just Another Dance
 

Amen

We're A Winner

Sad Sad Girl And Boy

Minstrel & Queen

You've Been Cheatin'
 

Keep On Pushing

Long, Long Winter

See The Real Me

Never Let Me Go

Can't Satisfy

 

And I should also mention “For Your Precious Love”, the initial hit from the early version of the group featuring Jerry Butler. 

Favorite Musical Artists: James Hunter

From my review of his 2006 album People Gonna Talk: 

 

Allmusic.com characterizes Hunter as an “English channeler of American soul from days of yore”, which is probably as apt a description as any. What it doesn’t capture is that Hunter manages to draw upon his influences while nevertheless creating a sound that is uniquely his own. As both the lead vocalist and only guitar player in his superb band – Hunter now bills the act as “The James Hunter Six” – his sound heavily features his two sax players to drive his melodies, with his alternately edgy or supremely lyrical guitar work mainly reserved for the bridges of the songs. He also writes superb songs, both uptempo and ballads; one of my favorite Hunter lyrics is from “Don’t Come Back”:

 

Never have revenge in mind

‘Cos an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind

But forgiveness is the business of some other diplomat

So baby don’t come back.

 

 

Hunter has an excellent web site, which includes notes and track listings for all of his U.S.-released albums, as well as links to a number of interviews.

 

Fortunately for his fans, Hunter and his band tour frequently and generally hit the DC area. He does get around venue-wise: in addition to the shows listed below, I’ve seen him at Wolf Trap, XPNFest in Camden, and the Birchmere.

 

Recent concerts:

Pearl Street Warehouse, 2/24/2018 

Rams Head On Stage, 2/25/2016

The Hamilton, 11/1/2014

 

Favorite songs:

I’ll Walk Away

People Gonna Talk

Don’t Come Back

Look Out

Tell Her
 

Hand It Over

One Way Love

The Hard Way

This Is Where We Came In

You Can’t Win
 

Kick It Around

Let The Monkey Ride

How Long

Talkin ‘Bout My Love

Whatever It Takes
 

 (Baby) Hold On

Hear Me Calling

Don’t Do Me No Favours

Believe What I Say

I Don’t Wanna Be Without You

 

Each of the above is available on one of Hunter’s studio CDs. I would be remiss, however, to not also mention his classic cover version of The “5” Royales’ “Baby Don’t Do It”, which is a staple of his live shows.

Favorite Musical Artists

Having finally finished my previous one-year three-year blog project, it’s time to move on. This time, I’ll be honoring my 12 favorite musical artists of all time. They will be presented in random order, as I couldn’t bear to think that any of them were merely #7 or #11. They’re all equally great to me.

 

Since there are only 12 entries to work up, and 12 months in the year, I hope that this project will be completed in time. Feel free to nag me mercilessly if I should fall behind. (Some may detect a clue at the end of that sentence …)