Author Archives: HarryDJ

Great Music in Any Language

People around the world listen to music with English lyrics whether or not they understand the language.  Great music comes through regardless. The links below will likely challenge your language skills, but the great music certainly comes through regardless.

Japan is chock full of great rock bands, and one we’d love to see tour the U.S. is Asian Kung-Fu Generation.   AKG wrote lyrics in English for their first EP in 2000, but most of their catalog is in their native language.  The track translated “Blue Train”, performed live in the clip below, was a hit single from “Fan Club”.  It shows off their nifty rhythms and song structures.

Thandiswa Mazwai is a South African singer/songwriter who wins music awards regularly in her home country, and who also performs internationally.  The track below appeared on “Zabalaza”.

“Buena Vista Social Club” was a worldwide sensation when it was released in 1997.   American guitarist and musicologist Ry Cooder brought together many of Cuba’s greatest musicians to record what would become the biggest selling Cuban album of all time.   The first track, “Chan Chan”, was written by Compay Segundo.

Buy music:

Phil Ramone – Pioneering Record Producer

Record producers and engineers are rarely well known.  Phil Ramone may not be top of mind when you think of important music personalities of the last 50 years, but his influence is revealed in his obituaries that ran today – he passed away on March 30th at age 79.  The range of musicians he contributed his talents to is amazing – spend a few minutes reading through his discography here (Phil Ramone Discography) and rummage around his website to learn more.

Among his recent efforts was producing Amy Winehouse’s last recording, “Body and Soul”, sung with Tony Bennett for his “Duets II” album (the song won a Grammy for Best Pop Duo or Group Performance).  Among his first efforts was the record that started the Bossa Nova jazz craze in America, “Getz/Gilberto”, featuring the iconic “The Girl From Ipanema” (the album won multiple Grammys including Album of the Year in 1965).

In 1978 Ramone produced Billy Joel’s “52nd Street”. Another Album of the Year, this one in 1980, it was the first album commercially released on CD. Remember the CD?

Here’s a video of “Honesty” from “52nd Street”

Buy music:

Happy Birthday, Sir Elton!

March 25th is Elton John’s birthday – he turns 66.  He’s expected to release a new studio album later in 2013, but his most recent efforts involve a collaboration with the Australian electronic dance duo Pnau.  In the 2012 release “Good Morning to the Night – Elton John vs Pnau”, samples from John’s catalog are woven into new electronica tracks.

The first video below is an interview with John, Nick Littlemore and Peter Mayes telling the story of how they got together and what they’re up to. The second clip is Pnau’s “Phoenix” that pulls heavily from “Grey Seal”.  Click here (Pnau ) to get to  the Pnau artist page with a link to the title track of the new album.

Elton John shares a birthday with Aretha Franklin (Happy 71st Queen of Soul!), and the two appeared together for a benefit concert / TV special 20 years ago.  Half way through this clip you’ll see a chorus of superstars who sang at the event.

Couldn’t finish this post without including a favorite song from a favorite Elton John album. “Come Down in Time” is a gem from the flawless “Tumbleweed Connection”.

Buy music:

Dave Grohl Documents the History of Sound City

Dave Grohl’s 2013 plunge into documentary filmmaking “Sound City” mines the history of the recently shuttered studio where Nirvana’s “Nevermind” was recorded.  Grohl weaves many story lines together in his film, from the people who built and ran Sound City, to the technology that made the studio famous and the later technology that doomed it, to the string of major artists that passed through its unassuming front door.  He concludes with a strong statement about the virtues of musicians hunkering down in a studio till inspiration and perspiration get it just right, and shows us what he means by releasing “Sound City 606”.

Check out the trailer for “Sound City”, then listen to one of the first songs released from the CD featuring Paul McCartney rocking as hard as he has since “Helter Skelter”.

Here’s a link to page on the Sound City Studio website that lists every album recorded there: Sound City Recordings.  It is an amazing list,  and the very first album ever recorded there was Spirit’s masterpiece “Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus”.  If you’re not familiar with that album or have forgotten what a tour de force it was, listen to “Nature’s Way” and “Mr. Skin”.

Buy music:

Music Websites – Wolfgang’s Vault, Daryl’s House and Tiny Desk Concerts

It’s probably fair to say that the granddaddy of all music websites is Wolfgang’s Vault.  If by any chance you’re not acquainted with it, discover this gold mine. In 2003 rock fan and businessman Bill Sagan bought the archives of legendary rock music promotor Bill Graham’s production company, archives which had collected dust for over a decade following Graham’s death in 1991.  In addition to uncovering an huge collection of mint condition photos, tickets, posters and other memorabilia from three decades of concert promotion, Sagan came upon an amazing treasure trove – thousands of live concert recordings.  Since Wolfgang’s Vault launched, recordings beyond Graham’s collection have been added as well.

You can sample the site for free, but if you check out the “Performers” list on the “Concert Vault” section of the website, you’ll see why a membership is the best money a rock music fan could ever spend.  And by the way, “Wolfgang” refers to Graham’s given name when he was born in Berlin before World War II.

http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/

In 2007 Daryl Hall of Hall & Oates launched “Live from Daryl’s House”, a web series of performances featuring Daryl and his band hosting an incredibly broad range of artists.  Among the dozens of episodes, for example, are sessions with Nick Lowe, Cee lo Green, and Neon Trees.  See our earlier post for a link to an episode featuring Allan Stone and Daryl Hall

http://www.livefromdarylshouse.com/

A potpourri of unknown and well-known artists cram into a corner at the offices of National Public Radio for its “Tiny Desk Concert” series.  You can hear stripped-down sets from blues giant Robert Cray, electro-pop favorite Passion Pit, and the late Chuck Brown – Godfather of Go-Go. And do check out the unknowns too.

http://www.npr.org/series/tiny-desk-concerts/