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Album Review: Rita Coolidge's 'Safe in the Arms of Time' Aug 10, 2018

Show notes

Rita Coolidge was one of the staples of Top 40 and Adult Contemporary radio in the 1970s and early 1980s. She's back with a new album entitled 'Safe in the Arms of Time,' which takes a unique look at love, life and relationships.

The songs on the album reflect the maturity of someone who has already gone through the highs and lows of love and is now experiencing what the emotion is like at this stage of her life. Coolidge gives voice to the realization that relationships and romance don't end after you reach a certain age, but that they are filtered through years of experiences.

Legendary Delta blues musician Keb Mo is featured on the album. He co-wrote two of the songs and sings a duet with Coolidge on "Walking on Water."

The album was produced by Ross Hogarth and is on Blue Ělan Records, a company quietly gaining a reputation as an artists' label, because of the way it embraces performers of all ages and genres. Coolidge says Blue Ělan reminds her of her days at A&M Records, when Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss were running the independent label as an artist friendly, family company.

Included in the review is a brief look at Coolidge's career in the 70s and 80s.

Album Review and Interview: Smooth Rock Sounds of the 80s are Back, Courtesy of Young Gun Silver Fox Jul 13, 2018

Show notes

That unmistakable sound of West Coast smooth rock was all over the radio in the late 1970s and early 1980s with groups such as Hall&Oates, Player, Steely Dan, the Little River Band, Boz Scaggs, the Michael McDonald lead version of the Doobie Bros and many others.

The genre, which incorporated elements of smooth jazz and soul, is making a comeback, and a group helping to make the past current is Young Gun Silver Fox. The band is made up of Andy Platts and Shawn Lee, who are not recording cover versions of 80s songs, but are creating new material that sounds like it was originally recorded from that era.

They duo has a new album out called 'AM Waves,' and the guys are so skilled at what they're doing that if you didn't know better, you would think you were listening to songs you somehow missed 35 years ago.

On the new episode of 'Documenting Popular Music,' journalist Robert Neil speaks with Platts and Lee from their studio in London about the new album and the retro sound that is starting to get a good deal of attention.

An Historic Writing Partnership – Legendary Songwriters Neil Diamond and Gilbert Bécaud Come Together to Write Songs for The Jazz Singer Movie May 19, 2018

Show notes

In the late 1970s, when Neil Diamond was asked to star in the movie the Jazz Singer, his career was at the peak of popularity, and he had not only established himself as an elite performer, but also an accomplished songwriter. Similarly, Gilbert Bécaud, who had reached stardom more than a decade before Diamond, was also revered as a top performer and songwriter in France and other European countries.

These two men came together in the late 1970s for a writing partnership that would ultimately produce about a dozen songs, including the first single from the Jazz Singer soundtrack – a song that would become one of the biggest recordings in Diamond's career.

On this episode of Documenting Popular Music, veteran journalist Robert Neil spotlights the remarkable songwriting collaboration and offers details about the Diamond/Bécaud partnership that have not been highlighted before.

TBT – Album Review: James Taylor's 'Before this World' from 2015 Feb 22, 2018

Show notes

For this 'Throwback Thursday' (TBT) episode of Documenting Popular Music, we are replaying our 2015 review of James Taylor's 'Before this World' album. To date, it is the last studio album Taylor has released, and he has been performing songs from the album on his current concert tour.

'Before this World' was produced by one of Taylor's long-time collaborators, Dave O'Donnell, and the core musicians who perform on the album have also been part of Taylor's inner circle for a long time. Additionally, guests Sting and Yo-Yo Ma appear on the album, which debuted at #1 on Billboard's album chart when it was released.

Included on the album is the now classic "Angels of Fenway," a tribute to the Boston Red Sox World Series championship season in 2004.

Musicians on the Album:

Luis Conte: Percussion

Walt Fowler: Handclaps

Steve Gadd: Drums

Larry Goldings: Piano, Wurlitzer, Fender Rhodes, Organ, Accordion, Harmonium

Jimmy Johnson: Bass

Michael Landau: Electric and Nylon-String Guitars

David Lasley: Vocals

Yo-Yo Ma: Cello

Kate Markowitz: Vocals

Arnold McCuller: Vocals

Rajendra Prasanna: Shehnai

Caroline Taylor: Vocals

Henry Taylor: Vocals

James Taylor: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Harmonica, Hi-Strung Guitar, Synth Guitar

Sting: Vocals

Andrea Zonn: Fiddle and Vocals

The O&F Studios is currently working on an elaborate edition of Documenting Popular Music, which will take a look at the year in music from 1977, a significant year that helped shape the latter half of the 70s.

Additional episodes currently being produced include an interview with the author of a new biography about Gordon Lightfoot and an in-depth interview with Merilee Rush ("Angel of the Morning").

Hey, Hey It's the Monkees, Part II – A Look at the Individual Careers of the Monkees in the 70s and 80s Jan 21, 2018

Show notes

The Monkees TV show debuted in September of 1966 and ran until March of 1968. During that time, the band saturated the music charts and radio stations with songs such as "I'm a Believer," "Daydream Believer," "Last Train to Clarksville," "Valleri," "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You," "Pleasant Valley Sunday," "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" and many others.

The group consisted for Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork, and the four had been assembled by producers at Screen Gems for the television show. In the beginning, the members of the group didn't have much say in the music they recorded, and their vocals were their main contributions. However, the Monkees were eventually able to wrestle away more control of the recordings, and their musical careers continued after the television show ended.

This episode of Documenting Popular Music, takes a look at the individual members of the Monkees and what they did after the break up – in the 1970s and 1980s. Insight into their careers is provided by Monkees expert Fred Velez, who writes a blog for the website Monkees.net, and he authored the book A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You: The Monkees From A Fan's Perspective.

Velez, who has a wealth of knowledge about the group, also offers some behind the scenes history, including how the Monkees and the Beatles hung out together, and how Dolenz ended up using a Beatles song in an episode of the Monkees TV show.

Part I of this feature takes a look at Nesmith and Dolenz.

Part II spotlights Jones and Tork.

Hey, Hey It's the Monkees, Part I – A Look at the Individual Careers of the Monkees in the 70s and 80s Jan 20, 2018

Show notes

The group consisted for Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork, and the four had been assembled by producers at Screen Gems for the television show. In the beginning, the members of the group didn't have much say in the music they recorded, and their vocals were their main contributions. However, the Monkees were eventually able to wrestle away more control of the recordings, and their musical careers continued after the television show ended.

This episode of Documenting Popular Music takes a look at the individual members of the Monkees and what they did after the break up – in the 1970s and 1980s. Insight into their careers is provided by Monkees expert Fred Velez, who writes a blog for the website Monkees.net, and he authored the book A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You: The Monkees From A Fan's Perspective.

Part I of this feature takes a look at Nesmith and Dolenz.

Part II spotlights Jones and Tork.

Album Review: The Eagles, Donna Summer, Garth Brooks, Vince Gill, Randy Owen and Many Others Pay Tribute to Dan Fogelberg Dec 15, 2017

Show notes

Dan Fogelberg passed away 10 years ago this month. His memory has been kept alive this year by a number of events, including the release of two new albums, 'Live At Carnegie Hall' (a previously unheard performance from 1979) and a tribute album that features a long list of musicians that loved Fogelberg's music.

This episode of Documenting Popular Music takes a look at the tribute album and artist such as Garth Brooks, who performs "Phoenix" with Trisha Yearwood providing background vocals; the late Donna Summer, who sings an inspiring version of "Nether Lands" using the same backing track that Fogelberg used for the 1977 classic; Amy Grant and Vince Gill, who provide a duet on "Longer" that gives new life to Fogelberg's biggest hit; Randy Owen, the legendary voice of the group Alabama – the best-selling country group of all time – sings "Sutter's Mill," originally from Fogelberg's progressive bluegrass album 'High Country Snows;' Zac Brown and his band deliver a live version of "Leader of the Band;" and Fogelberg's good friend Joe Walsh of the Eagles sings "Part of the Plan," a song he originally produced for Fogelberg for the 1974 album Souvenirs. Fellow Eagles Don Henley and Timothy B. Schmit sing backing harmonies for the new version of the song.

Other artists on the album include Michael McDonald, Jimmy Buffett, Boz Scaggs, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band with Richie Furay, the late Dobie Gray, Train, Fool's Gold (originally Fogelberg's backing band) and Casey James.

Included in this presentation is inside, background information from Fogelberg's former record producer, Norbert Putnam, one of the tribute album's co-producers. Putnam explains how Brooks and Summer got involved in the project, which is a true labor of love from Fogelberg's widow, Jean Fogelberg, also a producer on the album. She has worked hard to create a celebrated year for her late husband, and the tribute album is the final, very satisfying piece to an eventful year.

You can hear more from Putnam about his relationship with Dan Fogelberg in the Documenting Popular Music episode 'Leader of the Band -- Remembering Dan Fogelberg with Stories and Insights from His Record Producer' released earlier this year.

Read the Show Notes at

http://oandfstudios.com/documenting-popular-music/

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Coming soon from Documenting Popular Music, a look at Gordon Lightfoot's career with author Nicholas Jennings; a conversation with Merrilee Rush ("Angle of the Morning"), a look at TV theme songs from the 1970s that became Top 40 hits; and a biographical sketch of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Class of 2018.

The Making of a Classic – The Story of How One of Barry Manilow's Most Beloved Songs Finally Became a Hit Nov 21, 2017

Show notes

It was 1971, and a 25-year-old Barry Manilow was still a struggling musician and commercial jingles writer when he came up with a melody he felt was very special. That melody would become the song "Could It Be Magic," which featured a chorus based on the chord changes in Chopin's Prelude in C Minor.

"Could It Be Magic" had several early incarnations, including a version produced by a well-intending Tony Orlando that Manilow says thankfully didn't become a hit. The behind the scenes story of how the song eventually became a Top 10 single – as well as Manilow's unwavering belief that the song was something special – are detailed in this episode of Documenting Popular Music.

Album Review and Interview: Janis Ian Gets a Jazz Treatment – Sarah Partridge Talks about Her Tribute Album to the Folk Singer Oct 28, 2017

Show notes

About two years ago, Sarah Partridge began working on a project to bring new life to Janis Ian's songs by presenting them with fresh jazz interpretations. Ian, who debuted during the folk scene of the 1960s, rose to fame with her hits "Society's Child" (1967) and "At Seventeen" (1975), and she's written numerous songs – some of which were previously unrecorded – that deal with social, political and relationship issues.

Partridge and her arrangers – Allen Farnham and Tim Horner – have mined Ian's rich catalog of music for the tribute album Bright Lights and Promises: Redefining Janis Ian (Origin Records). The selection of songs and new arrangements work so well, it's a wonder no one has attempted this before.

Making the project even more special is Ian's involvement. She co-wrote two new songs with Partridge, and Ian and Partridge perform a duet on one of those new songs, "A Quarter Past Heartache."

On this episode of Documenting Popular Music, Partridge tells us how the album came together and how she was able to get Ian involved in the project.

You can find more about Sarah Partridge, who, before becoming a jazz singer, had an acting career that featured a role in the 1983 movie Risky Business, at the website, www.SarahPartridge.com, and you can find more about Janis Ian at the website www.JanisIan.com.

Upcoming episodes of Documenting Popular Music will feature a look at Gordon Lightfoot's career with author Nicholas Jennings, a conversation with Merrilee Rush ("Angel of the Morning") and a look at the story behind one of Barry Manilow's most beloved hits.

From the Heart of Alabama (Part II) - Former 'Split the Dark' Member Scott McDavid Talks about His Journey as a Musician Oct 22, 2017

Show notes

Documenting Popular Music puts a spotlight on the thriving musical scene in Alabama and the city of Birmingham, where musician Scott McDavid was born and raised. McDavid's journey is representative of numerous other musicians who work under some anonymity, but who have been vital to the creation, maintenance and spread of popular music in America.

McDavid's career began in his hometown, where he played with a number of local bands, including KD Ryzer, a very popular regional group. He later joined former members of the group Hotel ("You'll Love Again" 1978) as part of 1980s band Split the Dark ("Always a Chance" 1986).

In Part I of this feature, McDavid talks about some of the highlights of his Birmingham career, including winning the MTV Basement Tapes Contest with Split the Dark. He also discusses his work with jazz guitarist Eric Essix and his band.

In Part II of this feature, McDavid reveals why his respect and admiration for the legendary Chuck Berry didn't match the difficult task of actually working for the rock and roll great. McDavid also discusses his award winning work in scoring documentaries and independent films. Additionally, he talks about the process of making his newest single, "The Lady in Black (Just Let Me Dance)," which features singer Stephanie Love. The show concludes with his recollections of Birmingham's music scene.

You can learn more about McDavid at his website, www.ScottMcDavid.com and you can watch the music video for his new song at his YouTube page.

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