What are you listening to now ??

[Oztalgian 3,296]

On 9/11/2023 at 5:46 AM, MRS B said:

I have only ever been to the Royal Albert Hall once and was very lucky to see Yehudi Menuhin.

I remember seeing Yehhudi Menuhin on the Morecambe and Wise show.

[Oztalgian 3,296]

12 hours ago, benjamin1945 said:

Feel like doing 'Cart-wheels' across the floor.......

I was feeling kind of seasick

But the crowd called out for more

 

Absolute classic Ben, in my opinion the best of all time.

[Cliff Ton 10,467]

22 hours ago, benjamin1945 said:

Thought about time we had a nice piece of true 60s memeranda.............

Feel like doing 'Cart-wheels' across the floor.......

 

I like Whiter Shade but I always preferred the follow-up, Homburg, which has been somewhat overlooked. Lyrically it's very similar; i.e. surreal and weird.

 

 

[Jill Sparrow 10,307]

A Whiter Shade of Pale has specific references to works by J S Bach: Wachet Auf! and the Air from the suite in D.  I'd never heard of Homburg but just had a quick listen. The chord structures being played by the piano are a class above the usual tonic-dominant-tonic found in pop music. Someone in the group understands dominant sevenths and even inversions. Quite interesting if you ignore the melody. I know nothing about the group but perhaps someone had been trained in harmony?

[Cliff Ton 10,467]

I believe the classical influences were mainly due to the organist Matthew Fisher. He knew all about that kind of thing, and was the person responsible for the Bach bits in WSoP.

[Jill Sparrow 10,307]

Apparently, he did a year of classical training at the London Guildhall School of Music. He'd have needed grade VIII theory to get in there so, yes, he'd have a reasonable grasp of chord structure.

[benjamin1945 16,160]

My first beatles record purchase........still got it.........

 

[benjamin1945 16,160]

lllLOVED the way they dressed back then bought all the same gear...to Strutt in'' Cuban heals..Collarless jacket slim Jim...Oh how times have changed...

[benjamin1945 16,160]

 

[Cliff Ton 10,467]

There was a 2 hour programme on Sky Arts last night (I'd seen it before) which is basically the history of The Beatles. As well as the music, it also talks about their influence on social history; teenagers having their own music and fashions etc.....the first generation who didn't just copy their parents.

 

 

[roger peatman 337]

THE BEATITLES

A song I've written and recorded recently in tribute - guess how many titles ?

https://www.soundclick.com/artist/default.cfm?bandid=837951

[DJ360 6,730]

Last night, Saturday into Sunday, I was idly watching the 60s channel on TV and trying to wake up enough to go to bed.. when they showed Joe Cocker singing his version of 'With A Little Help From My Friends'. As ever.. I found myself wondering who the backing vocalists were, so finally decided to look it up...

 

Madeline Bell.. no surprise there, plus other well known British girl singers.. but one name stood out..  Rosetta Hightower.

 

I recalled that Rosetta was the lead singer in the early 60's US girl group The Orlons. They scored in the US with 'Wah Watusi', but p ossibly their biggest impact in the UK was the 1962 hit 'Don't Hang Up, which I remember being pretty popular among the more 'cool' members of the lower school at High Pavement.

 

 

 

Also this 'B' side by the Orlons became a huge hit in the UK  for the Searchers..

 

 

 

So.... Rosetta moved to the UK and next I heard of her was this 1968 single.. which we played a lot 'down the 360'..

 

 

Sadly Rosetta has left us.

 

From 'Wiki'

 

Quote

 

Hightower left the group in the late 1960s to pursue a solo career in the UK.^[1] She joined the ranks of the then-popular female session singers who backed many hit songs.^[4] This group included Madeline Bell, Lesley Duncan, Kiki Dee, and Sue and Sunny. She recorded with Joe Cocker on his With a Little Help From My Friends album.^[5]

Moving permanently to England in 1970, Hightower married musician-producer Ian Green. She represented the US in Belgium for the first international singing contest ever held.^[6][7] She released numerous singles and at least two albums. In 1971, she was a backing vocalist for John Lennon's "Power to the People".^[8]

Death

Rosetta Hightower Green died in Clapham, London, on 2 August 2014, aged 70.^[9] Her son, Ian Green, Jr., works as Paul Oakenfold's main co-producer and remixer.^{[citation needed]}

 

 

I just love these 'Music Family Trees'

 

RIP Rosetta.

 

[Brew 5,419]

16 minutes ago, DJ360 said:

Joe Cocker singing his version of 'With A Little Help From My Friends'

Not a great fan but that one I do like... For some strange reason I find most singers, though I listen infrequently, I actually like are only good for one or two tracks, the rest usually pretty mundane.

[Beekay 5,151]

22 hours ago, roger peatman said:

THE BEATITLES

A song I've written and recorded recently in tribute - guess how many titles ?

https://www.soundclick.com/artist/default.cfm?bandid=837951

Had a listen Roger, cool song mate!

Never realised I converse with somebody famous.

[DJ360 6,730]

 

9 hours ago, Brew said:

For some strange reason I find most singers, though I listen infrequently, I actually like are only good for one or two tracks, the rest usually pretty mundane.

 

It depends very much on the artist with me, or sometimes the period in their career.  Broadly speaking, I tend to like people's early work, as I suppose it is their uniqueness, or 'stand out from the crowd' quality which brings them to attention in the first place.

 

There are exceptions all over the place.

 

Among my favourites..Sarah Vaughan rarely puts a foot wrong, such that I could happily listen to her singing the Telephone Book.

 

I still idolise Joni Mitchell,especially her first 8 or 9 albums though her later works, from 'Mingus' onwards don't really 'grab me' as much.. then she went and produced a couple 'stunners' much later..

 

Van Morrison is a very 'Marmite' singer, but I like him and when in the mood I can just let whole albums wash over me for hours, without necessarily listening too closely.

 

Jennifer Warnes is one of the most underrated singers on the planet and has been around since the 60s, but her stand out albums are 'Shot Through the Heart', the perfect 'Famous Blue Raincoat' and 'The Hunter'.  I wouldn't be without any of them

 

On the other hand a few of my favourite songs were almost 'One Hit Wonders', for people who, though capable performers.. never quite broke through into the 'Big Time'. Songs like 'The Dark End of the Street', by James Carr, 'Mockingbird' by Inez and Charlie Foxx, 'You Better Move On', by Arthur Alexander, popularised here by the early Rolling Stones, but written by Alexander..who was known more as  writer but was a decent singer... I could go on.. ('ad nauseam'..)

 

I still think that Ray Charles was the single most influential and capable 'popular' musician of the 20th Century. However, his early output from the late 1940s/early 1950s on the Downbeat and Swingtime labels is of little more than 'historic' interest to me, most notable at the time being his obvious attempts to emulate the 'sound' of his hero, Nat 'King' Cole.

But when adopted by Atlantic Records, he 'took off' with a great slew of recordings covering raw blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, gospel, ballads, early rock and roll and 'proto' soul. etc.,etc. These showcased not only his amazing vocals, but his huge instrumental talent, especially on piano/keyboards. Charles continued to put out amazing stuff via ABC-Paramount from the early 1960s.

 

Joe Cocker, along with countless others, was heavily influenced by Ray Charles and when you think about it, it comes through in his 'quiet scream'.  I only have a compilation by Cocker, but apart from 'Friends', a couple of others stand out for me. I especially like the intense emotion he brings to Dylan's 'Just Like A Woman', even though he gets the lyrics wrong.

 

 

I'm also pretty fond of this:

 

 

Incidentally, I never knew until now that 'You Are So Beautiful' was written as a tribute to 'The Lord', by the legendary Billy Preston. It works either way I suppose.

 

And of course, teaming up Joe Cocker with the peerless Jennifer Warnes was always going to work ..

 

 

[roger peatman 337]

1 hour ago, Beekay said:

Had a listen Roger, cool song mate!

Never realised I converse with somebody famous.

 

Thank you very much.

[benjamin1945 16,160]

Back to 1974 and a bit of  Nottingham ...........brilliant group and should have had more Hits......

[DAVIDW 1,683]

10 hours ago, DJ360 said:

 

 

 

Incidentally, I never knew until now that 'You Are So Beautiful' was written as a tribute to 'The Lord', by the legendary Billy Preston. It works either way I suppose.

 

 

 

It's funny I always thought Dennis Wilson of The Beach Boys wrote that. Seems he was an uncredited co-writer of it but he usually performed it at live concerts.

 

[benjamin1945 16,160]

Very talented was Freddie.......very funny with a great voice.........such a sad ending...........

[Oztalgian 3,296]

Just nipped out to put some fuel in the car $2.00 a litre, good job we get good mileage. Anyroadup there was a program on the radio about male crooners and who was your favourite?

Some that come to mind for me are of course the Chairman of the Board, Frank Sinatra. The Velvet Fog, of course, Mel Torme, Perry Como, there are many others but my  favourite is Tony Bennett and his all time classic. What is yours?

 

[DJ360 6,730]

13 hours ago, DAVIDW said:

It's funny I always thought Dennis Wilson of The Beach Boys wrote that. Seems he was an uncredited co-writer of it but he usually performed it at live concerts.

 

Well we learn something new every day!

 

There seems to be some debate over the 'Wilson connection', with even Brian Wilson apparently denying it.. though I'm far from sure how reliable Brian is these days. I guess we'll never know for certain.

 

Also, according to 'Wiki', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Are_So_Beautiful the song was dedicated by Preston to his Mother.. not 'The Lord'.  I picked that up I think from this video by Phil Driscoll..who I'd never previously heard of, and is rather too 'evangelical' for my tastes, but oddly enough, just happens to sound a lot like Ray Charles.. when singing...

 

 

 

 

[DJ360 6,730]

27 minutes ago, Oztalgian said:

my  favourite is Tony Bennett and his all time classic. What is yours?

 

How long have you got? 

 

I like Bennet, but I'd also put in a vote for:

 

 

 

and:

 

 

 

and:

 

 

 

and:

 

 

 

And my absolute favourite, from a bit earlier.

 

 

 

Sorry.. got a bit carried away....

[Brew 5,419]

57 minutes ago, Oztalgian said:

Just nipped out to put some fuel in the car $2.00 a litre, good job we get good mileage.

 

Ooo you bad man, bad!

[Brew 5,419]

34 minutes ago, DJ360 said:

Sorry.. got a bit carried away

 

Do we not have crooners of our own?  Munro, Humperdinck, Valentine, Hilton., Vaughan.. I'm sure there must be more,

[DJ360 6,730]

Well yes..  The only one of those I personally rate was Matt Munro, but the others were pretty popular in their day.