William's Song a Day Blog - est. September 2007

From: A New Time - A New Day ; Year: 1968; Genre: Psychedelic Soul Don't know wot it is like elsewhere in the world, but today marks the start of Daylight Savings Time over here, which really sucks. I felt the need to pick something more appropriate for the occasion. One of the first tracks that came to mind was The Chambers Brothers' classic Time Has Come Today , which I had already picked. However, on the followup album they had this apt title track, which absolutely fit wot I needed, and love those lead vocals a lot. Whilst I have never gotten full-on into this band, every time I hear one of their tracks immediately I like it. I definitely will have to delve further into their catalogue.    Hear A New Time - A New Day on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Lou Christie - Lightnin' Strikes     My song pick 2 years ago today: Rose Royce - Keep On Keepin' On   My song pick 3 years ago today: Bob Marley & The Wailers - Midni...

From: Machine Gun ; Year: 1974; Genre: Soul/Funk/Rock Just had some Lionel Richie on my mind; I decided for today's pick that I'd go way back to the Commodores' debut studio record with this track that caught my ear. I tell ya, if you are used to only their mainstream hits you are in for a surprise. A lot heavier and funk/rock driven, but great to hear!      Hear The Zoo (The Human Zoo) on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Cameo - Am I Bad Enough     My song pick 2 years ago today: John Denver - Mother Nature's Son   My song pick 3 years ago today: Rossington Collins Band - Don't Misunderstand Me   My song pick 4 years ago today: ABBA - Just a Notion   My song pick 5 years ago today: Jigsaw - Freud Fish   My song pick 6 years ago today: Rush - Faithless   My song pick 7 years ago today: Our Lady Peace - Starseed My song pick 8 years ago today: David Bowie - Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) My son...

From: Movements 2 ; Year: 2006; Genre: Funk/Soul Thinking about choosing something from Tobias Kirmayer's Movements series of deep funk and soul cuts. This one seems to be among the rarer songs from the compilations; all I can really find out about it is that it was recorded at the end of the 1960 and released in either '70 or '71. He really did a service to us fans of these obscure and forgotten tracks; apparently an original 45rpm single runs upward of $90 plus as far as I can tell. Anyway, if you like some real raw, unfiltered funk this one will be right up your alleyway. Don't be surprised if you start moving to this groove; some amazing drumming and bass and then some.   Hear Got to Get Myself Back to Louisiana Pt. 2 on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Three Dog Night - Chest Fever     My song pick 2 years ago today: Them - Gloria   My song pick 3 years ago today: Vince Guaraldi - Red Baron   My song pick 4 years ago tod...

From: Close Company ; Year: 1984; Genre: Soul/Funk Had a bunch of Lou Rawls' songs on my mind today; this is one I truthfully thought I had already picked, but it is understandable with how much I play this song in particular. I have said it before, but for me, no matter the track, Lou Rawls' voice is one of the most comforting. It's just a bonus that this one has that funky bumping rhythm that makes you want to get up and face the world.    Hear Ready Or Not? on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: The Wootens - Your Style     My song pick 2 years ago today: Rare Earth - Big John Is My Name   My song pick 3 years ago today: The Moody Blues - In My World   My song pick 4 years ago today: Oomph! - Kennst Du Mich?   My song pick 5 years ago today: Rare Earth - 6-3-4-5   My song pick 6 years ago today: Commodores - Nightshift   My song pick 7 years ago today: Pallas - Throwing Stones at the Wind My song pick 8 ...

From: Ponderous ; Year: 1991; Genre: Jazz Fusion/Funk Trying to think of a different song to pick today, but this one that I have not heard in ages just keeps playing in my brain, so, what the heck? Right? I remember hearing this one a lot back then on the radio; I really think it is the overall weirdness and genre defying sound that really made this one, and others from the group, as popular as it was. Well, that and the hilarity of the narrator's inner monologue.   Hear Spaz Attack on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: The Winery Dogs - Gaslight     My song pick 2 years ago today: Herbie Hancock - Palm Grease   My song pick 3 years ago today: Wayne Shorter - Blues a la Carte   My song pick 4 years ago today: Sam & Dave - Soul Man   My song pick 5 years ago today: Hawkwind - The Phenomenon of Luminosity   My song pick 6 years ago today: The Cure - A Forest   My song pick 7 years ago today: The Temptations - ...

From: Voodoo Lounge ; Year: 1994; Genre: Blues Rock Started playing in my mind for wotever reason and decided that I would go ahead and choose it today. While definitely not the best material from the band, they really leaned heavy into wot they've always been best with: bluesy structure and unique guitar riffing from both Richards and Wood, which did, in fact make this such a good song from that time; heard it a lot on the radio and elsewhere.   Hear Love is Strong on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Jethro Tull - March, the Mad Scientist     My song pick 2 years ago today: Gilbert and Sullivan - When I Was a Lad   My song pick 3 years ago today: Honey Cone - Want Ads   My song pick 4 years ago today: Max Roach - Little Folks   My song pick 5 years ago today: War - Groovin'   My song pick 6 years ago today: Cab Calloway - The Ghost of Smokey Joe   My song pick 7 years ago today: Spiral Starecase - More Today T...

From: Return to the Kingdom of Fife ; Year: 2023; Genre: Power Metal/Symphonic Metal I just cannot help but to love this band and their epic theatrics and larger-than-life cacophony that would be at home in any opera. Yeah, it might be camp and pretentious, but their delivery and singalong choruses really brings the listener/audience into the heroic tale.     Hear Holy Flaming Hammer Of Unholy Cosmic Frost on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Mr. Mister - Kyrie     My song pick 2 years ago today: "Weird Al" Yankovic - Jerry Springer   My song pick 3 years ago today: Helloween - From Out of Nowhere   My song pick 4 years ago today: Black Sabbath - Lord of This World   My song pick 5 years ago today: Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Cowgirl in the Sand   My song pick 6 years ago today: Band of Horses - Infinite Arms   My song pick 7 years ago today: Paris - Heart of Stone My song pick 8 years ago today:...

From: A Momentary Lapse of Reason ; Year: 1985; Genre: Progressive Rock I always have an most likely always will have a special place for this record; it is one of my top, I'd say three, of their studio releases. This track in particular really leans into the sound and arranging that made much of their best material. That 12/8 loping time signature throughout the majority of the song really lends itself to the feeling of a march toward insanity. Being punctuated by, wot sounds like cellos and bass strings, or at least a facsimile thereof, enhances that feeling so the keys, guitars and vocals can hang over the top to make for an interesting dynamic. The mid section where the full band kicks in and becomes louder musically actually gives a temporary reprieve from the insane loping march of madness towards oblivion, which funnels into a saxophone solo in the standard 4/4 time, but inevitably the insane march returns.       Hear The Dogs of War on YouTube.    ...

From: The Hungry Years ; Year: 1975; Genre: Rock  Found out that Neil Sedaka passed away yesterday. I was surprised to see that he was 86 years old; thought he was younger. I've never really been a huge fan of his more noted hits from the late 1950s through the 1960s, which consisted of sugary teenage love songs mostly. He was also a prolific songwriter, penning quite a few hits for other artists over the years as well. However, wot I remember most was his resurgence in popularity during the middle into late 1970s, which is when I was quite young and my Mom and Dad always seemed to have the radio on; his music of that time period got a lot of airplay. Anyway, I thought it would be a great idea to choose another one of his hits from that time that I remember so well. He certainly could write a killer hook, and he did a great job surrounding himself with some amazing talent in the form of Elton John's backing vocals, Steve Cropper on guitar, and Leland Sklar on bass amongst many ...

From: The Kick/Beautiful Day ; Year: 2006 (1972); Genre: Soul/Funk Really felt like hearing something from The Rhythm Machine for this final Friday of the month. I am not 100% sure the original year this track was released; about 20 years ago it was put out as a single in Germany, but as far as I can find, it seems to have been first released in 1972. Wotever the case, it is an incredible piece of funky soul from an amazing band that sadly did not make a lot of music outside of a single studio album and two or three singles.   Hear The Kick (Part 1 & 2) on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Genesis - Get 'Em Out by Friday     My song pick 2 years ago today: Eric Clapton - Behind the Mask   My song pick 3 years ago today: Exile - Heart & Soul   My song pick 4 years ago today: U2 - 40 (How Long)   My song pick 5 years ago today: Phil Collins - I Don't Care Anymore   My song pick 6 years ago today: The Flying Bur...

From: Born in the U.S.A. ; Year: 1984; Genre: Rock Here is one that I've been meaning to pick for a while now; finally getting around to it. Cover Me is one of the earlier hits off of this landmark album, which, truthfully, plays more like a "Greatest Hits" record than a normal mainstream rock disc. Heck, It'd probably be quick and easier to name the non-hit songs from the album, but even at that they probably get a bunch of play on the radio, streaming, in stores, jukeboxes, etc as well. Without a doubt people one or two-hundred or more years from now will still be listening to it; and much of "The Boss'" others as well. Anyway, this one was originally written by Bruce for Donna Summer, however, his management decided that it would be a big hit if he recorded it himself, and they were right I suppose. Every time I put this one on I am taken aback by Max Weinberg's drumming, which is amazing normally anyway, but in my opinion he doesn't get the ...

From: Hot Heat And Sweet Groove ; Year: 1968; Genre: Soul/Funk Was really enjoying some music from Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band this morning and decided that I should choose another one of their songs. Kinda strange, but while I absolutely love their music, I never really looked into the specifics of the band. I discovered, to my amazement, that this band has gone through a few name changes and thus, makes "connecting the dots" so to speak, a little more challenging. Charles Wright was originally in a number of Doo-Wop groups early on, but this band apparently started out as "Charles Wright and the Wright Sounds," which began in 1962; around '66 and '67 they seemingly went by the name "The Soul Runners." At some point in '67 to '68 they became this incarnation that recorded today's pick and album and by 1970 became the most successful incarnation that was the verbose "Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd ...

From: Feedback ; Year: 2004; Genre: Blues Rock/Hard Rock I cannot even begin to count the amount of times I have said "I thought for sure I picked this song already" or something similar, but I am stating that once again and probably will many more times.... Had this album of cover songs from Rush on my mind and had another track in mind, however, when I noticed this one was not chosen as of yet, I jumped at it. This is of course a cover of pure piece of Americana music as deep into the very soul of it as it gets. Originally written and recorded by the great musical titan Robert Johnson back in the 1930s and played, recorded, inspired and loved by Bluesmen, Blueswomen, and every musician who plays music even slightly related to that foundational genre. Rush's cover though, is a direct cover of the classic hard blues rock rendition by Cream. Whilst it is a great cover and the musicianship and overall ability is out-of-this-world by Peart, Lifeson, and Lee, in my personal ...

From: Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds ; Year: 1978; Genre: Progressive Rock/Space Rock Had this album on my mind last night once again; thought I'd go with another one, or in this case two from this epic retelling of the H.G. Wells classic set to music. The Red Weed  is split into two parts and actually "sandwiches" another track: The Spirit of Man . The second part is especially cool in that you get to hear the late-great Phil Lynott as the character Parsons Nathaniel, which is pure awesomeness! The music and the dialogue work absolutely perfect together to keep the listener engaged.   Hear The Red Weed (Part 1)  on YouTube.   Hear The Red Weed (Part 2) on YouTube.       My song pick 1 year ago today: Explorers Club - Impact 4 – Time Enough     My song pick 2 years ago today: Marcus Miller - Keep 'Em Running   My song pick 3 years ago today: Iain Matthews - Darkness, Darkness   My song pick 4 years ago tod...

From: Days of Future Passed ; Year: 1967; Genre: Progressive Rock/Symphonic Rock Whilst driving around this morning I had this song come on and it has stuck in my brain ever since, which is certainly not expected from genres such as from this record. I believe that I have stated before that the 'Moodies were my "gateway drug" into all music progressive and I've never wavered in my love of the band. It is kind of superficial to say with all of the amazing and beautiful songs on the record, but this is one of the prettiest, especially with the orchestral accompaniment, which I believe was actually Mike Pinder overdubbing all of the "instruments" played on the Mellotron , but there was a proper orchestra on the record as well, mostly in the interludes. Pinder's Mellotron was one of the main cornerstones for the band's emerging sound and those contributions really show why Days of Future Passed and their subsequent songs are such landmarks in studio reco...

From: The Best of The Animals ; Year: 1966; Genre: Hard Rock Had this great tune on my mind on and off for the last few days; one of my favourites from the Animals, so I'm certainly choosing it. It's My Life was originally recorded and released as a single the year prior, but made it on their Best Of album later as well as some EPs apparently. As with their contemporaries like The Kinks and Paul Revere & the Raiders, they were one of the hardest-hitting almost proto-metal bands in the mid 1960s. Sure, there were others that played even louder and heavier from that era, but Eric Burdon just had that "punk" sensibility and could deliver a devastating soulful vocal is such a way that still resonates with people of all ages all these years later.   Hear It's My Life on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Earth, Wind & Fire - Kalimba Story     My song pick 2 years ago today: IQ - Promises (As the Years Go By)   My song pick 3 ye...

From: The Jimmy Castor Bunch ; Year: 1979; Genre: Funk For this Funky Friday I wanted to choose another one from the late-great Jimmy Castor and his band. In this song that is funky soul with a splash of jazz, he seems to be singing about a "beast" whose description sounds a lot like Godzilla, or some similar Kaiju monster, which actually works perfect with such a danceable and funky groove.   Hear Don't Do That! on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: The Steve Miller Band - Space Cowboy     My song pick 2 years ago today: Nena - Jung Wie Du   My song pick 3 years ago today: Klaatu - The Loneliest of Creatures   My song pick 4 years ago today: The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Voodoo Child (Slight Return)   My song pick 5 years ago today: Chet Atkins and Merle Travis - Nine Pound Hammer   My song pick 6 years ago today: Blondie - One Way or Another   My song pick 7 years ago today: Faith No More - The Real Thing ...