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

From: When the Eagle Flies ; Year: 1974; Genre: Progressive Rock After reading an article about Steve Winwood and his music it got me in the mood to listen to some more. When the Eagle Flies was basically the final studio album from Traffic, not counting the one-off 1994 reunion album Far from Home . Walking in the Wind has a great, infectious groove with Winwood's amazing organ and synth playing on top; such a nice track to have going whilst working.    Hear Walking in the Wind on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Megadeth - Killing Time     My song pick 2 years ago today: Chicago - Colour My World   My song pick 3 years ago today: Devo - Shout   My song pick 4 years ago today: Ebony Rhythm Band - Get Yourself Together (Smiling Phases/Sunshine of Your Love Medley)   My song pick 5 years ago today: Genesis - Harold the Barrel   My song pick 6 years ago today: The Kinks - Apeman   My song pick 7 years ago...

From: Mr. Fantasy ; Year: 1967; Genre: Psychedelic Rock I grew up hearing the cover version of this song by Three Dog Night , but eventually came across the original from Traffic. It ended up that I really love both versions, but in different ways due to the different approaches and arrangements of the piece.     Hear Heaven is in Your Mind on YouTube.       My song pick 1 year ago today: The Moody Blues - Gypsy (Of a Strange and Distant Time)   My song pick 2 years ago today: Alice in Chains - Again   My song pick 3 years ago today: Toad the Wet Sprocket - Walk on the Ocean My song pick 4 years ago today: Soundgarden - 4th of July My song pick 5 years ago today: Carmen - Dancing on a Cold Wind My song pick 6 years ago today: Jane's Addiction - Three Days My song pick 7 years ago today: Grand Funk Railroad - Some Kind of Wonderful My song pick 8 years ago today: The Isley Brothers - The Pride (Parts 1&2) My song pick 9 years ago today...

From: Traffic ; Year: 1968; Genre: Rock I'm kind of surprised that I had not chosen this original version of Feelin' Alright? as of yet, but better late than never I guess. This version is a bit less heavy than the most popular cover by Joe Cocker, but has incredible musicianship throughout.   Hear Feelin' Alright? on YouTube.         My song pick 1 year ago today: Bad Company - Ready for Love   My song pick 2 years ago today: Tesla - Not Fragile My song pick 3 years ago today: Jigsaw - Ready to Ride My song pick 4 years ago today: Billy Joel - Big Man on Mulberry Street My song pick 5 years ago today: INXS - Suicide Blonde My song pick 6 years ago today: Pleasure - Bouncy Lady My song pick 7 years ago today: Pearl Jam - Once My song pick 8 years ago today: Rush - Lock and Key My song pick 9 years ago today: Porcupine Tree - Time Flies My song pick 10 years ago today: David Bowie - Life on Mars? My song pick 11 years ago today: Lorenzo ...

From: Blind Faith ; Year: 1969; Genre: Blues Rock Had this album playing in my head most of last night; figured it was a sign I was to pick another one from it. Steve Winwood, Eric Clapton and company really do a good job on this track; it's a great song that's for sure. Hear Sea of Joy on YouTube. My song pick 1 year ago today: Ultravox - Reap the Wild Wind My song pick 2 years ago today: The Fixx - One Thing Leads to Another My song pick 3 years ago today: Kansas - Miracles Out Of Nowhere My song pick 4 years ago today: Wilson Pickett - I'm a Midnight Mover My song pick 5 years ago today: Beat Crusaders - Slip Out My song pick 6 years ago today: Boston - The Launch/Cool the Engines My song pick 7 years ago today: Stratovarius - Dreamspace My song pick 8 years ago today: Queensrÿche - Promised Land My song pick 9 years ago today: Ed Bogas & Merl Saunders - The Riot My song pick 10 years ago today: J. S. Bach - BWV 870 - Prelude and Fugue...

From: A Very Special Christmas 3 ; Year: 1997; Genre: Christmas Music Well, Christmas is finally here and I had to wrack my brain to come up with a song to pick, so I looked again at the A Very Special Christmas series of albums and decided on this solemn piece from Mr. Steve Winwood. Hear Christmas Is Now Drawing Near At Hand on YouTube. My song pick 1 year ago today: Louis Armstrong and the Commanders - Cool Yule My song pick 2 years ago today: Trans-Siberian Orchestra - This Christmas Day My song pick 3 years ago today: Bob Rivers - Joy to the World My song pick 4 years ago today: The Jive Turkeys - Get Down Santa My song pick 5 years ago today: John Lennon & Yoko Ono and The Plastic Ono Band - Happy X-Mas (War Is Over) My song pick 6 years ago today: Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Midnight Clear My song pick 7 years ago today: Jethro Tull - A Winter Snowscape My song pick 8 years ago today: Elvis Presley - Blue Christmas My song pick 9 years ago today...

From: Mr. Fantasy ; Year: 1967; Genre: Psychedelic Rock Heard one of their songs on the radio yesterday, I didn't have any other bands in mind to pick a song from, so I'm going ahead and picking one. Hear Smiling Phases on YouTube. My song pick 1 year ago today: Van der Graaf Generator - The Emperor In His War Room My song pick 2 years ago today: Blue Öyster Cult - Feel the Thunder My song pick 3 years ago today: The Temptations - War My song pick 4 years ago today: Eric Stuart Band - Lipstick & Barbed Wire My song pick 5 years ago today: Band of Horses - A Little Biblical My song pick 6 years ago today: Kansas - Portrait (He Knew) My song pick 7 years ago today: Nightwish - Passion and the Opera My song pick 8 years ago today: Seven Mary Three - Cumbersome My song pick 9 years ago today: Bachman-Turner Overdrive (BTO) - Let It Ride My song pick 10 years ago today: Queen - Flash My song pick 11 years ago today: Joe Cocker - When The Night...

From: John Barleycorn Must Die ; Year: 1970; Genre: Progressive Rock This is a pretty cool instrumental piece from the pen of Steve Winwood with the band Traffic. It's one you might or might not remember, it does not get a lot of play on classic rock radio, but it's still a great song all in all in my opinion. Hear Glad on YouTube. My song pick 1 year ago today: Megadeth - Rattlehead My song pick 2 years ago today: Parliament - Everything Is on the One My song pick 3 years ago today: Symphony X - Iconoclast My song pick 4 years ago today: John Fogerty - The Old Man Down the Road My song pick 5 years ago today: Jefferson Airplane - 3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds   My song pick 6 years ago today: Metallica - Orion My song pick 7 years ago today: Jethro Tull - No Lullaby My song pick 8 years ago today: Cyndi Lauper - The Goonies 'R' Good Enough My song pick 9 years ago today: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Into The Great Wide Open My song...

From: The Second Album ; Year: 1966; Genre: Rock/Soul Just in the mood for something from Steve Winwood today; doesn't get much better than this soulful rock cover of the reggae track from Jackie Edwards. Hear Keep On Running on YouTube. My song pick one year ago today: Blue Öyster Cult - Searchin' for Celine My song pick two years ago today: Queen - Thank God It's Christmas My song pick three years ago today: Faster Pussycat - House of Pain My song pick four years ago today: Dire Straits - Skateaway My song pick five years ago today: Charlie Parker & Dizzy Gillespie - Bloomdido My song pick six years ago today: Molly Hatchet - One Man's Pleasure My song pick seven years ago today: Hawkwind - High Rise My song pick eight years ago today: Joachim Witt - Bataillon 'd Amour My song pick nine years ago today: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Ohio My song pick ten years ago today: Donovan - Sunshine Superman

From: Back in the High Life ; Year: 1986; Genre: Rock/Pop/Soul Had another artist in mind to pick a song from today, however for some reason I wanted to choose this rather famous tune from Mr. Winwood; mid-late '80s incarnate. Hear Higher Love on YouTube. My song pick one year ago today: Helloween - Lay All Your Love On Me My song pick two years ago today: The Drifters - There Goes My Baby My song pick three years ago today: Soundgarden - Spoonman My song pick four years ago today: Jethro Tull - Heavy Horses My song pick five years ago today: The Monkees - Daydream Believer My song pick six years ago today: Muse - Resistance My song pick seven years ago today: Jethro Tull - From A Deadbeat To An Old Greaser My song pick eight years ago today: Fleetwood Mac - Oh Well My song pick nine years ago today: Aerosmith - Janie's Got A Gun

From: I'm a Man ; Year: 1967; Genre: Blues Rock In the mood for something with Steve Winwood in it on this Labour Day weekend. I absolutely love every band that Steve Winwood was in, and the Spencer Davis Group is classic. I'm a Man , which is driven by that incredible sounding Hammond Organ and rhythm section is one of their best in my opinion. Hear I'm a Man on YouTube. My song pick one year ago today: Savatage - Streets My song pick two years ago today: Rammstein - Feuer und Wasser My song pick three years ago today: David Bowie - Let's Dance My song pick four years ago today: Rush - Distant Early Warning My song pick five years ago today: David Bowie - Oh! You Pretty Things My song pick six years ago today: Santana - Every Step of the Way My song pick seven years ago today: Megadeth - Washington is Next! My song pick eight years ago today: Rammstein - Stripped

From: The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys ; Year: 1971; Genre: Rock/Hard Rock/Funk Rock Just in the mood for something from Steve Winwood and traffic; you gotta love that amazing funky groove. Hear Rock 'n' Roll Stew Parts 1&2 on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Chris Squire - Lucky Seven My song pick two years ago today: Fleetwood Mac - The Chain My song pick three years ago today: The Grateful Dead - Casey Jones My song pick four years ago today: Fleetwood Mac - Rhiannon My song pick five years ago today: Return To Forever - The Magician My song pick six years ago today: The Gipsy Kings - Hotel California My song pick seven years ago today: The Fifth Dimension - Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In

1629 Blind Faith - Had to Cry Today From: Blind Faith , Year: 1969 Genre: Blues Rock I'm having one of those days and this song from the very bright and short-lived 'supergroup' Blind Faith felt good to listen to this morning. While I'm not really in the mood to go on much about things today, I will say that I do like this song a lot. Hear Had to Cry Today on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Jethro Tull - By Kind Permission Of My song pick two years ago today: Peter Gabriel - Down To Earth My song pick three years ago today: Edgar Winter Group - Free Ride My song pick four years ago today: Janis Joplin - Me and Bobby McGee +

1308 Steve Winwood - The Finer Things From: Back in the High Life, Year: 1986 I'm getting used to new blog software, so I apologize for any errors that might occur in advance. Okay then, on to my song pick today. I've had some of Steve Winwood's music running through my mind off and on over the last little bit and I'm finally getting around to picking one of them today. I actually had another one of his songs in mind, but unfortunately it didn't have a video available on YouTube or other services, so I picked this equally awesome song instead. It's a nice, rather upbeat tune for a Saturday. Watch the music video on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Tarja Turunen - I Walk Alone My song pick two years ago today: Link Wray - Rumble My song pick three years ago today: The Carter Family - Wildwood Flower

1041 Traffic - The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys It's not a bad song that has been running through my mind most of the morning, and well... early afternoon. Anyway, the light Jazz mixed with Progressive Rock sounds of this track is an excellent song to fit my mood today; a very nice piece of music indeed. Here is part on of the studio version on YouTube. Here is part two of the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance on YouTube. My song pick a year ago today: Hawkwind - Silver Machine My song pick two years ago today: Savatage - Complaint In The System +

This is quite an odd song if you look at it a certain way. It is a traditional British Folk song concerning the processing of grains to make things such as bread and alcohol. However, it was written as such to make the listener believe that the grain is a person getting tortured to death in a truly horrific manner. I have always loved Traffic's version of the song, they did song a great service. The vocal harmonies are just amazing and tight, they mix excellently with the progressive acoustic sound of the song. Here is the studio version on YouTube. +

I have always loved Steve Winwood's music; for me one of the best chapters has to be his music with Blind Faith. For those not acquainted, this was a supergroup consisting of: Steve Winwood, Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, and Ric Grech. This is one of those songs that that you can easily listen to in almost any mood. Of course, with this excellent lineup the musicianship and arrangements are spectacular. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a performance circa '69 on YouTube. +

Last night my wife and I were watching the movie " Flight of the Phoenix " and this song was prominently featured. I really like it and did not have another one in mind, so I decided to make it my pick. This is another song where Steve Winwood really shines on the Hammond organ; it is the featured instrument of the song. The bass line is also very integral to the song gives it a danceable factor. Here is a music video on YouTube. Here is a live performance on YouTube. +

Needing a good uplifting and fun song today; Mr. Winwood did not fail me. This song is at least in my top five compositions by Steve Winwood if not my favourite. It has an interesting quality about it, the sound is not dated and feels fresh even though it is twenty years old; a nice mix of soul and rock. What is amazing is watching him perform live; this guy does it all on stage. Probably the best aspect of his live performances is watching him play the organ whilst singing. You see him playing intricately on the manuals and playing the pedalboard as well while singing; simply mindblowing. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is the music video on YouTube. +

I have always loved Steve Winwood's music and in my opinion he is one of the greatest musicians of our time. It is a really cool grooving blues song with good lyrics, which makes it listenable for the masses as well as for the musician and musical connoisseur; very much an excellent song. Here is the studio version on YouTube. Here is a live performance by Steve Winwood on YouTube. +