AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lovemongers

Artist:Lovemongers

Song:Battle of Evermore

Album:Singles: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Most music fans should be familiar with the band Heart led by sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson. After success in the 70s, they made a big comeback in the late 80s. After the 1990 album Brigade and the subsequent tour, Heart decided to take a break. Ann and Nancy were approached to play a Red Cross benefit for the troops during The Gulf War. The problem was the members of Heart were scattered. So they decided to put together a new band to play one time only. They convinced their long time friend and songwriting partner Sue Ennis to play keyboards and former Heart guitarist Frank Cox to join the band. They called themselves Lovemongers as opposed to warmongers. Lovemongers played a wrap party for the film Singles which was directed by Nancy's husband Cameron Crowe. They were backed up by the band soon to be known as Pearl Jam. It went so well that they decided to record an EP produced by former Heart guitarist Scott Olson. This cover of the Led Zeppelin song Battle of Evermore appeared on the Singles soundtrack. The album is available on CD. After the 1993 Heart album Desire Walks On didn't do that well, it was clear that the grunge movement had taken hold and maybe it was time for Heart to take a break. They owed Capitol one more album and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones was brought in to produce the album The Road Home. The Lovemongers released the 1997 album Whirlygig on a small label. And after Nancy composed the music for Crowe's 2000 film Almost Famous, Heart returned to touring and eventually recording with the 2004 album Jupiters Darling. Here's the video for Battle of Evermore by Lovemongers.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Laufey

Artist:Laufey

Song:I Wish You Love

Album:A Night at the Symphony

Laufey is an Icelandic singer songwriter who is having success today as a 40s style pop singer. She's had success mostly in Europe. But she's making inroads in the US. She is on tour now. She has had success on the Jazz chart but her music is not jazz. Her music is aimed at an older audience who don't listen to current music. She was born Laufey Lin Bing Jonsdottir Apr. 23, 1989 in Reykjavik, Iceland. Her father is from Iceland and her mother is Chinese and comes from a musical family. Her twin sister is her creative director. Laufey learned piano and cello as a child. She graduated from the Reykjavik College of Music in 2018. She was playing cello for the Iceland Symphony Orchestra when she participated in the 2014 edition of what we will call Iceland's Got Talent and she was a semi finalist on the 2015 edition of The Voice Iceland. You guys know how much I love those shows. Excuse the sarcasm. Laufey was supposed to study economics. But instead she studied at Berklee School of Music in Boston with cellist Mike Block. She graduated in 2021 and now lives in Los Angeles. Laufey released a single in 2020 and then an EP in 2021. That's when she first recorded the song I Wish You Love written and originally performed by French singer Charles Trenet. That EP Typical of Me was listed as an album of the year by American Songwriter magazine. Posting jazz standards on TikTok got her more attention and a record deal from AWAL which stands for Artists Without A Label. Kobalt Music founded AWAL and it's supposed to be like Shanachie and similar labels where the artist owns the recordings. The tradeoff is those labels don't spend money on promotion. The problem is Kobalt sold AWAL to Sony. Supposedly AWAL still operates the same way. The difference is the artist has access to the Sony machine. This deal likely would not have gone through if Sony tried to change too much. Then Laufey signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music. A good introduction to Laufey's music is this 2023 live album A Night at the Symphony with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. It's kind of a greatest hits album available as a digital download. Laufey has done well on Jazz and Classical charts. Her 2025 album A Matter of Time reached #4 on the Billboard 200. Producers Spencer Stewart and Aaron Dessner of The National moved the emphasis from jazz to singer songwriter. There were no hit singles so some adjustments may be necessary. It remains to be seen how far Laufey will go to be a mainstream success. Here's Laufey performing I Wish You Love with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra 2023.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Wisin & Yandel

Artist:Wisin & Yandel f/Romeo Santos

Song:Aullando

Album:Los Campeones Del Pueblo-The Big Leagues

Wisin & Yandel are probably the most popular Reggaeton act over the last twenty years. After going on hiatus in 2013, they returned with the 2018 album Los Campeones Del Pueblo and the hit single Aullando. It sold over 15 million records. Then they split up after a final 2023 tour. Wisin & Yandel are from the same hometown in Puerto Rico. They started working together in 1998 after both appeared on the albums No Fear 3 and La Mision Vol. 1. The record label Fresh Productions thought they should record together and produced their 2000 debut album Los Reyes del Nuevo Milenio. After the success of a couple of albums, they started their own label with Universal distribution. The success continued until they went on hiatus in 2013. They said at the time they were not disbanding. After each recorded a couple of solo albums, they reunited for the 2018 album Los Campeones Del Pueblo. The album was a big success. It was certified 4xPlatinum. The single Aullando was certified 22xPlatinum but it only reached #10 on the Latin chart. There was likely a viral element as at the time, Billboard did not count anything viral. Romeo Santos was one of several guest singers on the album. Wisin & Yandel wrote and produced everything with several producers. Aullando was written and produced with Chris Jedi who has worked with several Reggaeton artists. Much of the album was produced by the team known as Los Legendarios. This album was only released as a digital download. After they toured, they announced in 2022 that after a final album and tour, Wisin & Yandel would disband permanently. And that's what they did. They said the split was amicable. They just wanted to work on different projects. We'll see how long that lasts. Here's the video for aullando by Wisin & Yandel featuring Romeo Santos. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Five

Artist:Five

Song:When the Lights Go Out

Album:Greatest Hits

The British boy band Five scored a top ten hit in the US with the 1998 single When the Lights Go Out. It was their only big hit in the US. They were much more successful at home. This was at the tail end of the boy band craze. of the 90s. The guys behind this group were Bob and Chris Herbert of Heart Management who also created The Spice Girls. They placed an ad in the performing arts newspaper The Stage. After 3,000 auditions, They narrowed it down to fourteen and then five. They were Ritchie Neville, Scott Robinson, Sean Conlon, Jason "J" Brown and Richard Breen. Breen took on the name Abz Love so no one would confuse the two Richards. They were named Five or sometimes 5ive. They are called Five on all the album covers. They signed a six album record deal with Simon Cowell and RCA. When the Lights Go Out was the second single from the 1998 album Five. It reached #4 on the British Singles chart and #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. That may have been a surprise to the group's management as early 90s British boy band Take That never charted in the US. Why was the song a hit in the US? My guess is fans thought it was a new Backstreet Boys single. I think they were supposed to be a soundalike act. The record was produced by Eliot Kennedy, Mike Percy and Tim Lever. Kennedy produced Take That. Percy and Lever are from the band Dead or Alive. Those three wrote the song with Westlife songwriter John McLaughlin. Five co-wrote several songs on the album. Five released three albums. They continued to have success in England. But When the Lights Go Out was their only US hit. My guess is when the target audience figured out they were fooled, they rejected Five as imitators of real boy bands. After the 2001 album Kingsize, Five split up. You can get all their hits on this comp. They reunited in 2006 and released an album in 2022. They will tour again in May. Here's the video for When the Lights Go Out by Five.

 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Dave Brubeck

Artist:Dave Brubeck

Song:Blue Rondo a la Turk

Album:Ken Burns Jazz

This is another in my jazz for beginners series complete with a performance video and a comp CD appropriate for beginners. Pianist Dave Brubeck was a great musician. But more importantly, he was very important in widening the audience for jazz. The 1959 album Time Out and the singles Take Five and Blue Rondo a la Turk opened the door for other jazz artists. And we are still seeing that in the success of Smooth Jazz. So Brubeck's music is important in the history of jazz. He was born Dec. 6, 1920 in Concord, CA but grew up in Ione, CA. His father was a cattle rancher. His mother studied piano and wanted to be a concert pianist. She taught piano to earn extra money and she taught her sons too. Brubeck attended Colege of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. to study veterinary science. One of his teachers urged him to switch his major to music. There was concern that Brubeck couldn't read music. But he was allowed to graduate as long as he promised never to teach. After his 1942 graduation, Brubeck was drafted into the US Army and served in Europe in the Third Army. After playing piano on a Red Cross show, Brubeck was taken off combat duty. He started the band The Wolfpack and met Paul Desmond in 1944. After WWII, Brubeck studied with composer Darius Milhaud at Mills College in Oakland. Brubeck first recorded in 1949 with Coronet Records. But they were having money problems and they were taken over by Fantasy Records. That's when Brubeck formed his first quartet with Desmond. They took up residency at San Francisco's Black Hawk nightclub and successfully toured college campuses. Brubeck thought that he had an ownership stake in Fantasy. And he brought other jazz artists like Gerry Mulligan and Chet Baker to Fantasy. But he was lied to and Brubeck left Fantasy for Columbia. The 1954 album Jazz Goes to College was his first album for Columbia. The musicians were Desmond, Bob Bates on bass and Joe Dodge on drums. After the album was a success, Brubeck appeared on the cover of Time Magazine. Brubeck was embarrassed by this as he thought Duke Ellington should have been on the cover. Brubeck and Desmond continued ton play with various musicians until drummer Joe Morello was hired in 1956. He was playing with pianist Marian McPartland. Them bassist Eugene Wright joined the band for Brubeck's 1958 Department of State tour of Europe and Asia. At the time, a racially integrated band was unusual. But he cancelled shows when promoters objected to Wright. He cancelled a TV appearance when the show producers wanted to keep Wright off camera. Then Brubeck recorded the 1959 album Time Out. The album was West Coast jazz but with unconventional time signatures. All the songs were written by Brubeck except for Take Five written by Desmond. Columbia president Goddard Lieberson agreed to this as long as Brubeck also recorded a standards album in case Time Out was a failure. Teo Macero produced the album. The big surprise was when Take Five got radio play and was a top 40 hit. Time Out was the first jazz album to sell a million copies. Rondo a la Turk was based on Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 11 mixed with rhythms Brubeck heard in Turkey. It was Brubeck's most successful album. But most importantly, it helped other jazz artists by introducing jazz to a new audience. So that's Brubeck's legacy. This budget comp is a great intro to Brubeck's music. He recorded for Columbia until 1968 and also recorded for Decca and Atlantic and other labels. He continued to tour and record until he died on Dec. 5, 2012, a day before Brubeck's 92nd birthday. He was going to a doctor's appointment. Here's Dave Brubeck with Paul Desmond, Eugene Wright and Joe Morello performing Rondo a la Turk on a 1959 episode of Playboy After Dark. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Elton John

Artist:Elton John f/George Michael

Song:Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me

Album:Duets

This duet version of Elton John's Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me topped the charts in 1991 and then John decided to record an album of Duets. The original recording of Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me was on John's 1974 album Caribou and it reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Then it appeared on his 1986 album Live in Australia. John said in his 2019 autobiography that he planned to retire the song as he soon having throat surgery. But he didn't retire it and after performing an acoustic version on MTV Unplugged in 1990, John first performed Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me with George Michael at Live Aid 1985. Michael performed the song regularly on his shows. Then at his Mar. 23, 1991 Wembley Arena concert, Michael brought out John as a surprise guest and they filmed it later at the Rosemont Horizon in Chicago. The record was a worldwide smash at a time when John needed a hit. It got a couple of Grammy nominations. At first the record was only going to be released as a single. But it was decided to record an album of duets. That decision was probably made by MCA's Steve Brown who worked a lot with John. Michael produced the record with studio musicians. The Duets album was released in 1993. Artists include k.d. lang, P.M. Dawn, Little Richard, Don Henley, Kiki Dee, Chris Rea, Tammy Wynette, Nik Kershaw, Gladys Knight, RuPaul, Marcy Levy, Paul Young Bonnie Raitt and Leonard Cohen. The production coordinator was Elton John's percussionist Ray Cooper. This album is available as a budget CD. But George Michael fans can get the song on the comp Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael. The album was certified Platinum. But I assume album sales were affected negatively by the two year time lag. Listeners have short memories. Here's the video for Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me by Elton John featuring George Michael. 

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Chuck Willis

Artist:Chuck Willis

Song: C.C. Rider

Album:Complete Singles As & Bs 1951-59

The 1957 single C.C. Rider was one of two R&B chart toppers for singer songwriter and pianist Chuck Willis. He's mostly forgotten today because he died in 1958. He was born Harold Willis Jan. 31, 1926 in Atlanta. Chuck Willis was a stage name. He got his musical training at YMCA sponsored Teenage Canteens and played with a couple of local bands. Atlanta DJ Zenas "Daddy" Sears became Willis' manager and got him a record deal with Columbia's race label Okeh. He scored a top five R&B hit with the 1952 single My Story. He scored four other top ten R&B hits. Despite this success, Willis left Okeh for Atlantic because He wanted to cross over to pop and Atlantic had shown a willingness to promote black artists to white audiences. Willis got the results he wanted when the 1957 single C.C. Rider topped the R&B chart and reached #12 on the pop chart. For the most part, Willis wrote all his own songs. Much to producer Jerry Wexler's surprise, Willis decided to record the traditional song C.C. Rider which was popularized by Ma Rainey. After Dick Clark played C.C. Rider on American Bandstand, it was discovered to be a great song for kids to do the popular dance The Stroll. Willis appeared on the show and demonstrated the dance. Willis was dubbed King of the Stroll. Then Screamin' Jay Hawkins told Willis he should start wearing a turban. This got him his own Saturday night TV show on Atlanta TV. Then Willis died on Apr. 10, 1958 at age 32 while having surgery for stomach ulcers. Upon his death, What Am I Living For topped the R&B charts. You can get all of Willis' singles on this 2CD comp from the British label Acrobat. Some of Willis' songs are still recorded. But for the most part, he is forgotten. Here's a video of C.C. Rider by Chuck Willis.