Tag: USA

Bob Kuban + the In-Men | The Cheater

Bob Kuban and the In-Men were an “eight-piece rock ‘n’ roll band from St. Louis, Missouri … (They) were a classic one-hit-wonder Top 40 group, with ‘The Cheater,’ which reached number 12 in the US pop charts in 1966, (AllMusic). Also in 1966, the group scraped the bottom of the charts with two follow-ups, ‘The Teaser’ (number 70) and a cover of the Beatles’ ‘Drive My Car’ (number 93). ‘The Cheater’ had something of a blue-eyed soul flavor with the vibrant horn arrangements and Scott’s almost black vocal approach.

The In-Men were formed in 1964 and made their first record in 1965 … Kuban continued to perform in St. Louis for weddings and other social affairs with his band, the Bob Kuban Brass.”

After starting in F# major, there’s an half-step upward shift after the bridge (1:23 – 1:38). As the track nears its end (2:17), there’s another half-step modulation for the final verse.

Rufus Wainwright | Zing Went the Strings of My Heart

In 2006, “Rufus Wainwright did something extraordinary – even bizarre: he performed a cover version of an entire concert,” (The Guardian). “Judy Garland’s 1961 performance at Carnegie Hall is a legendary night in showbiz, marking a comeback after a period of ill-health and addiction in order to claim her crown as the world’s greatest entertainer.

Wainwright, who had his own crystal-meth-afflicted dark night of the soul in the late 90s, decided to sing the whole thing from beginning to end, including the parts where Garland forgets the words (in You Go to My Head), on the very boards the resurgent diva trod. Part homage, part exorcism, part formidable technical exercise, it was also an experiment: what would happen when the voice of the present sings the songs and evokes the spirits of the past?”

One of the most energetic tunes of the show, “Zing Went the Strings of My Heart,” shows off the big band accompaniment beautifully. Wainwright turns in a rock solid vocal performance; freed from his usual self-accompaniment duties on piano or guitar, his energy is channeled into belting his vocals in a manner worthy of Garland’s memory. To say he’s not much of a hoofer would be a huge understatement, but Wainwright is in on the joke as he tosses off a goofy dance break during the tune’s midsection. The tune shifts up a half step at 2:26.

Garland’s original 1961 Carnegie Hall performance:

Duane Eddy | Rebel Rouser

“Duane Eddy, a pioneering guitar hero whose reverberating electric sound on instrumentals such as ‘Rebel Rouser’ and ‘Peter Gunn’ helped put the twang in early rock ‘n’ roll and influenced George Harrison, Bruce Springsteen and countless other musicians,” died last month, (NPR). “With his raucous rhythms, and backing hollers and hand claps, Eddy sold more than 100 million records worldwide, and mastered a distinctive sound based on the premise that a guitar’s bass strings sounded better on tape than the high ones.

‘I had a distinctive sound that people could recognize and I stuck pretty much with that. I’m not one of the best technical players by any means; I just sell the best,’ he told The Associated Press in a 1986 interview. ‘A lot of guys are more skillful than I am with the guitar. A lot of it is over my head. But some of it is not what I want to hear out of the guitar.’ He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. Eddy was not a vocalist, saying in 1986, ‘One of my biggest contributions to the music business is not singing.'”

“Rebel Rouser” (1958) rose to #6 on the Billboard Hot 100, #8 on the Canadian pop chart, and #8 on the R+B Best Sellers chart. Starting in E major, the tune shifts up a half step at 1:01, 1:19, and 1:37.

Leon Russell | Lady Blue

“Leon Russell became part of an elite group of studio musicians called the Wrecking Crew and played on hundreds of hit records in the 1960s,” (LeonRussell.com). In addition to serving as a session player for dozens of artists, “as a songwriter, Leon’s songs have hit the charts across all genres and have been covered by a diverse range of artists. Ray Charles recorded ‘A Song For You,’ B.B. King had a hit with ‘Hummingbird,’ The Carpenters with ‘Superstar,’ and Joe Cocker with ‘Delta Lady.’ The Carpenter’s cover of “Superstar,” written by Leon and Bonnie Bramlett, went to #2 on the pop music charts. George Benson won the ‘Record of the Year’ Grammy in 1976 for his cover of Leon’s song, ‘This Marquerade,’ and it became the first song in music history to hit #1 on the jazz, pop, and R&B charts.”

Billboard reviewed Leon Russell’s album Will o’ the Wisp in 1975: “… with the vocals moving back toward the drawling, bluesy style most fans prefer but at the same time showing a sophistication he never displayed before. The same may be said for the songs, which are ballads or mid-tempo for the most part, though there is some fine blues rocking. Basically, the material here is what makes the set exceptional, including several cuts that rival the intensity of his brilliant ‘Song For You.’ There’s lots of help from Mary McCreary on backup vocals and some fine Memphis musicians. Key here, however, is that Russell seems to have taken himself seriously … he can write with the best when he tries. This time he’s trying.”

Built in F major overall, the mid-tempo track shifts at 1:38 into a brief bridge. The key shifts up to G major and there’s a subtle shift in the groove as well. At 2:01, the original key returns.

Bunny Sigler | Sunny Sunday

“Walter ‘Bunny’ Sigler—a songwriter, singer, and producer … helped pioneer soul music’s ‘Philly Sound’ along with Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff in the early 1970s,” (Pitchfork) … “Sigler was best known for songs such as ‘Let the Good Times Roll and Feel So Good’ and ‘Girl Don’t Make Me Wait.’ He began his recording career in 1959 and went on to work with numerous acts, including Patti LaBelle, The O’Jays, and Lou Rawls. He often performed with the funk/disco group Instant Funk.

Later in life, Sigler collaborated with the Roots on their Game Theory track ‘Long Time.’ His songs were sampled by Jay-Z, OutKast, Nelly, Kelly Rowland, and many more. ‘He wrote classics that stood the test of time,’ Questlove wrote in a remembrance … ‘He was the DEFINITION of cool, man.'”

“Sunny Sunday” (1967) starts in G minor, then shifts to Ab minor for the second verse at 0:45. A brief bridge touches on Ab major before transitioning to the next verse, this time in A minor. The tedium of the workweek and and the relative shortage of leisure time with loved ones never sounded so good!

The Association | Along Comes Mary

“With the two smashes ‘Along Comes Mary’ and ‘Cherish,’ The Association became one of the hottest new bands of 1966, the singles charting at #7 and #1 respectively,” (RichieUnterberger.com). “It was no surprise that their debut album, featuring both of those songs, was also a big success, rising to #5 and remaining their highest-charting LP ever, with the exception of their Greatest Hits compilation.

 … With its dynamic interplay between (the) lead and the rest of the band’s vocal harmonies, as well as an intriguing lyric that jammed about as many syllables as were possible to fit into individual lines of a pop song in 1966, the song took a few months to catch on nationally.” The single reached the top 10 in both the USA and Canada.

The intro and (very short!) verse are in A minor. The first section of the chorus, heard for the first time at 0:31, shifts to A mixolydian. By 0:52, the end of the chorus has reverted to A minor. Another verse starts at 1:05 and the pattern continues.

Michael McDonald | You Are Everything

“You Are Everything” was originally recorded and released in 1971 by the Philadelphia soul group The Stylistics, and written by Thomas Bell and Linda Creed, who both helped pioneer the Philadelphia soul sound. The track, which was also covered by Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye, is included on American singer Michael McDonald’s 2003 album Motown, comprised entirely of covers.

It winds through many different keys, starting in Db for the intro and shifting to Bb when the vocal enters at 0:26. There is a modulation to Eb for the first chorus at 0:57, and then a downward mod to C for the second verse at 1:20. The last chorus, starting at 1:52, is in F.

Postmodern Jukebox | Criminal

“Imagine wandering into a nightclub somewhere on the outskirts of time. A classic jukebox in the corner plays timeless music with oddly familiar modern lyrics, incongruously marrying the 21st-century party vibe of Miley Cyrus or the minimalist angst of Radiohead with the crackly warmth of a vintage 78 or the plunger-muted barrelhouse howl of a forgotten Kansas City jazzman,” (Concord.com). “The dance floor is full of revelers twerking in poodle skirts, while at the bar, well-heeled hipsters balance a martini in one hand with a smartphone in the other.

If such a place actually exists, no doubt the soundtrack is Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox. Founded by pianist and arranger Scott Bradlee in 2009, the ensemble reimagines contemporary pop, rock, and R&B hits in the style of various yesteryears, from swing to doo-wop, ragtime to Motown – or, as Bradlee himself puts it, ‘pop music in a time machine.’ The band parlayed a series of YouTube videos shot in Bradlee’s Queens living room into massive success, accruing more than 450 million YouTube views and over 2 million subscribers, an appearance on Good Morning America, and performances at packed houses across the globe.”

On PMJ’s 2016 cover of “Criminal,” according to the tune’s Youtube description, “the sultry Ariana Savalas returns to take Fiona Apple’s 1997 hit … back a half century, to the heyday of the torch song.” The tune is built primarily in A minor with forays into C minor, but there are moments when the bass line moves chromatically, not diatonically — only adding to the slinky feel of the lyrics. The bridge (2:49 – 3:16) shifts to Eb minor, driven by Dixieland filigree. At 3:16, an upward shift leads to a closing chorus, this time in D minor.