Happy Birthday, Sir Paul McCartney!

🎶 Resilience. Reinvention. McCartney. 🎸

On June 18th, 1942, the iconic Paul McCartney was born.

A lesser-known chapter in Paul McCartney’s career offers one of the most valuable lessons in perseverance.

By the mid-1980s, McCartney was adrift. His concept album “Give My Regards to Broad Street” flopped. His album “Press to Play” didn’t connect. He had no Beatles, no Wings. The press had cooled on blaming Yoko Ono—and now, some even accused Paul of breaking up The Beatles.

Meanwhile, George Harrison, his “baby brother,” scored a No. 1 hit with “Got My Mind Set on You” and co-founded the supergroup The Traveling Wilburys.

Many would have faded into nostalgia. Paul didn’t.

Instead, he pressed on, throwing himself into The Beatles Anthology project, finding a new band, and rebuilding.

Today, McCartney fills stadiums and inspires generations, not just because of what he did in the 1960s, but because he never let the 1980s define him.

Slumps happen. Narratives shift. But if you stay creative, open, and keep moving forward, great things are ahead.

I’ll end this post with my favorite Paul song, “Mrs. Vandebilt” because it gives great life advice within a fun song with a killer bass line.

What’s the use of worrying? What’s the use of hurrying? What’s the use of anything?

George Harrison and Gypsy Jazz

The Beatles Channel on SiriusXM goes deep. I heard an episode of Dark Horse Radio last night that featured gypsy jazz guitar player Robin Nolan. Nolan reinterprets some of George’s best songs, and the song that struck me was Nolan’s interpretation of “Wah-Wah.” What an ambitious and cheeky idea to reinterpret a full-blown ode to the electric guitar run through a wah-wah pedal into an acoustic gypsy jazz gem! (listen here). If that wasn’t enough, Nolan plays the songs on George Harrison’s guitars!

As related aside . . . I was lucky enough to grow up to live near the legendary guitar store, Mandolin Brothers. For a music-obsessed, Beatles-obsessed boy growing up in Staten Island, frequenting a store where Paul McCartney and George Harrison purchased instruments was special.

As another related aside, I love that SiriusXM’s tagline on The Beatles Channel is 24/8. Get it?

#gypsyjazz #thebeatles #georgeharrison #darkhorseradio #siriusxm

Artwork/Image by PencilComic J Mauro

Trivia Challenge – 90s Music Edition

Test your 90s music knowledge: Trivia Challenge 90s Music Edition https://mailchi.mp/5f0e1a7c3925/trivia-question-2264713?e=31287162d6

Trivia Music Challenge – Week 2

Here is this week’s Trivia Challenge. https://mailchi.mp/f1c8164b23fb/trivia-question-2264061?e=%5BUNIQID%5D

Ashley’s Roachclip – Song of The Day

Modern Retro Groove Experience’s Song of the Day: The Soul Searchers’ “Ashley’s Roachclip.” #hiphopbuildingblocks #sotd

 

An Open Letter to NYC – Song of The Day

Modern Retro Groove Experience’s Song of the Day: Beastie Boys’ “An Open Letter to NYC.” #neverforget

Miike Snow – iii Micro Review

It’s easy for the perfect pop-song “Genghis Khan” to seduce you. It has a contagious drum beat, breathy vocals about jealousy, and a catchy and witty chorus that anyone can relate to. Who hasn’t gone a little Genghis Khan over a lover? Plus, the video is brilliant.

Miike Snow is an all-male trio from Sweden who lean heavily on synthesizers and Andrew Wyatt’s falsetto singing, sometimes electronically manipulated. Almost all of the songs depart from the upbeat pop song that is “Genghis Kahn,” but that doesn’t mean the album isn’t worth exploring. It is full of strong, melodic songs such as the album’s first single, “Heart Is Full.” The song is built around a sample of Marlena Shaw’s song, “Waiting For Charlie To Home.” The sample lends a desperate tone to Wyatt’s pleading throughout the song to avoid a broken heart.

“My Trigger,” the album’s opener, is ripped right out of the electro-funk era of the late 70s and early 80s. It has all the markings of a perfect pop song — whimsical lyrics, a great hook, and an upbeat x-factor that envelopes the song. “The Heart Of Me” transports you back to the latter parts of the 80s borrowing from Nu Shooz and Information Society. “I Feel The Weight” is a heavily-produced, heartfelt song that works as an intermission for the album’s later songs.

iii earns its place in pop culture with an album that should not go unnoticed. You likely won’t hear many of the album’s songs on terrestrial or satellite radio, so it will be an affirmative act on your part to check out iii and Miike Snow’s goodness. The musicality of the album and its lyrics make exploring iii worth the effort.

Future Islands – “The Far Field” Micro Review

Be warned: Future Islands will knock you on your ass. This band’s sound is imbued with raw emotion in every song. The raw emotion derives from the lead singer, Samuel T. Herring, who fully commits lyrically and vocally to the infusion of vunlerability in every song (see, for example, the viral video “Seasons” live on The Late Show, where the band blows away Letterman and everyone else in The Ed Sullivan Theatre). The band’s atmospheric keyboards, New Order-like bass lines, and tight drum rhythms provide a unique palate for Herring’s imposing voice. Other than bass, the band doesn’t have a guitar player, and that certainly contributes to Future Island’s unique sound.

I am confident that the songs on Future Islands’ “The Far Field” will move you. The lyrics are most certainly about love — new, lost or otherwise. “Aladdin” opens the album, fading in dreamy music and then hitting you over the head with Herring’s sledgehammer voice. Herring and the band guide you through the album one beautiful song after another. “North Star” tells about the protagonist’s commitment to wake up beside his lover no matter the distance or circumstances that separate them. Herring demonstrates on “Shadows” that his intensity is contagious, a song in which Blondie’s Debbie Harry accompanies him. “Shadows” rivals Blondie’s “Union City Blue” and “Fade Away and Radiate” as Harry’s most vulnerable recorded vocal performance.

It is extremely difficult for me to be objective about this band and album. There isn’t any song on the album or in the band’s repertoire that I don’t enjoy. The songs on this album bring me to another place where sadness and awe of the beautiful melodies intersect. Future Islands’ will likely transport you to the same place. I recommend spending a lot of time with “The Far Field” this summer.

Kudos To Kmart – Dinn Daa Daa

Kudos to Kmart for recently featuring George Kranz’s masterpiece, “Dinn Daa Daa” in one of its commercials for this summer. Kmart is officially the funkiest box store for Summer 2017. If you don’t recognize the song on its own, perhaps you recognize it from MARRS’ “Pump Up The Volume.” #kmartftw

Saint Motel – saintmotelevision

The first single, “Move,” on Saint Motel’s new album — “saintmotelevision” — is a strong combination of straightforward, catchy lyrics, interesting vocal phrasing, and an upbeat music. “Move” best demonstrates the band’s sound, which is vastly augmented by trumpet and baritone saxophone. In fact, the music sounds like a modern-day Average White Band or Pigbag. “saintmotelevision” is so much more than “Move,” however.

The album has several well-crafted pop songs that equal or surpass the strength of “Move. “”Destroyer” is a witty song with an infectious chorus  — “I don’t break hearts, no that’s not me, I destroy them.” The album also includes this year’s wittiest song — “For Elise” — which is a tribute to the women who inspired landmark songs. Marilyn Monroe, Patti Boyd, Linda McCartney (referred to as Linda Eastman), Lola, and Candy Darling. The song isn’t pure gimmick, though. It stands with the entirety of the strong songs on “saintmotelevision.”

Start-to-finish, Saint Motel’s recent album is one of the best in 2017, thus far. Spend the time listening to the entire album; this one comes with a “get it” recommendation. The band is touring this year, continuing in this country on July 27th and appearing in The Capital District Region on November 18th.