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Tiger Bay (Album of the Day)
Saint Etienne's Bob Stanley once described TIGER BAY as “an album of modern folk songs done in twentieth century styles like techno and dub,” and the set's balance between retro songcraft and contemporary arrangements never falters. The British indie trio's third album includes such favorites as “Like A Motorway,” “Pale Movie,” the Billboard Dance Club-charting “Hug My Soul” and (for its U.S. Warner Bros. release) the joyous “I Was Born on Christmas Day.” Stanley and fellow keyboardist Pete Wiggs fill their songs with lovelorn wit and irresistible hooks, and vocalist Sarah Cracknell sends them into orbit with the buoyant charm of a '60s pop queen. A Top 10 hit in the band's native England, TIGER BAY has been issued and reissued with varying cover art and track lineups, and if fans argue over which is definitive, there's consensus that the 1994 collection captures Saint Etienne near the top of its game.
Born to Sing (Album of the Day)
En Vogue emerged from Oakland, California at the end of the 1980s to become one of the most exciting acts in R&B. Modeled after the girl groups of the 1960s but with a contemporary twist, the quartet – Terry Ellis, Cindy Herron, Maxine Jones and Dawn Robinson – already displayed the poise and talent of seasoned stars on their debut album, the aptly titled BORN TO SING. Helping to marshal the foursome's outstanding harmonies on such singles as “Lies,” “You Don't Have To Worry” and the No. 2 crossover smash “Hold On” is the production team of Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy (both veterans of hitmakers Club Nouveau). With its effortless blend of soul, hip-hop and New Jack Swing, the 1990 Atlantic collection was a platinum seller and earned the group a Best R&B Performance Grammy nomination, and we'll give BORN TO SING another spin to cap off Black History Month.
Live in Hollywood (Album of the Day)
Linda Ronstadt released more than two dozen studio albums during her stellar five-decade career but surprisingly never released a live album – until now. The new LIVE IN HOLLYWOOD includes 12 of the singer's favorite performances from a 1980 concert recorded for an acclaimed HBO television special. For the show, she was joined by an outstanding band: guitarists Kenny Edwards and Danny Kortchmar, drummer Russ Kunkel, bassist Bob Glaub, keyboardist Billy Payne (of Little Feat fame), pedal steel guitarist Dan Dugmore and backing vocalist Wendy Waldman. The hit-packed set list includes "Blue Bayou," "Poor Poor Pitiful Me," "It's So Easy," "You're No Good" and a trio of Top Ten hits from the then-current MAD LOVE album. LIVE IN HOLLYWOOD captures Linda Ronstadt at the peak of her reign as America's most popular female rock singer.
SONG OF THE DAY - "You Oughta Know" (Album of the Day)
Alanis Morissette had seen success as a teen pop star in her native Canada, but when "You Oughta Know" hit the airwaves in 1995, it announced a complete change of direction. Produced and co-written by Glen Ballard, the track was a ferocious blast of alternative rock, with Heartbreaker Benmont Tench and Red Hot Chili Peppers Dave Navarro and Flea backing Morissette as she eviscerates an ex-lover. The Top 10 hit paved the way for the phenomenal success of the singer-songwriter's JAGGED LITTLE PILL album, and went on to win Grammys for Best Rock Song and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. An anthem of catharsis, empowerment and reinvention, "You Oughta Know" is our Song of the Day.
SONG OF THE DAY - "Proud Mary" (Album of the Day)
“Proud Mary” was one of Creedence Clearwater Revival's signature songs, so credit Ike and Tina Turner with plenty of confidence for including it in their repertoire not long after the original's 1969 release. The anthem about a working man “rollin' on the river” fit the soul duo perfectly, and the Ike & Tina version reached the Top 10 and earned a Best R&B Vocal Performance Grammy. When Tina left Ike to go solo, she brought the song with her, and it became a highlight of her concerts and 1993 biopic What's Love Got To Do With It, for which it was re-recorded and released as a promotional single. “Proud Mary” resonates so strongly with Tina Turner's life story of endurance and triumph over adversity that it remains among her most beloved hits.
SONG OF THE DAY - "Edge of Seventeen" (Album of the Day)
Stevie Nicks was already a superstar for her work in Fleetwood Mac when she launched a career of her own and became one of the 1980s' greatest female rockers; “Edge of Seventeen” played a big part in that. The title came from the performer mis-hearing Tom Petty's wife speak of meeting her husband at the “age of seventeen” in a strong Southern accent, but the theme of the song changed to one of loss after the deaths in quick succession of John Lennon and Nicks' uncle Jonathan. With a distinctive Waddy Wachtel guitar riff and white-winged doves among its memorable imagery, the song was a highlight of Stevie's solo debut, BELLA DONNA, and just missed the Top 10 as a single release in 1982. Few songs about grief have the musical appeal of "Edge Of Seventeen," so we'll make the Nicks favorite our Song of the Day.
SONG OF THE DAY - "Express Yourself" (Album of the Day)
Madonna and producer Stephen Bray started their collaboration on LIKE A PRAYER with the track “Express Yourself”; it was an auspicious beginning for the multi-platinum collection. Couched in Sly Stone-esque funk flourishes, the Top 10 single is among the performer's most exuberant, and was accompanied by a big-budget video directed by filmmaker David Fincher. But what really makes the song resonate is its message. “I wrote 'Express Yourself' to tell women around the world to pick and choose the best for yourself,” said the singer in an interview. “It's my take on how men can express what they want - the same prerogative should be there for a woman, too.” On the eve of International Women's Day, heed Madonna's advice and “Express Yourself.”
SONG OF THE DAY - "Get Outta My Way" (Album of the Day)
Kylie Minogue 's “Get Outta My Way” was the second single from 2010's APHRODITE album, and shows the Australian pop-dance queen ready to take on the world four years after a breast cancer diagnosis. A raft of top producer-songwriters crafted the midtempo electro disco track, in which Kylie tells her man he'd better shape up or she'll ship out. Delivered with a defiant wink and infectious energy, the song was destined to “destroy every dancefloor between here and the furthest reaches of the universe,” as Entertainment Weekly put it, and indeed the single reached #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club chart. As we celebrate International Women's Day, Kylie Minogue leads the charge with the irrepressible “Get Outta My Way.”
Kick Out The Jams (Album of the Day)
As MC5 frontman Rob Tyner recalled in the liner notes to KICK OUT THE JAMS, “We were considered killer, righteous, high energy dudes who could pitch a whang dang doodle all night long.” Indeed, the Motor City quintet's debut album, cut live in 1968 in Detroit's Grande Ballroom (the band's hometown stronghold), is a no-holds-barred call to revolution that rocks from its notoriously expletive-laden start to finish. The dual guitar firepower of Wayne Kramer and Fred “Sonic” Smith, and the thundering rhythm section of bassist Michael Davis and drummer Dennis Thompson help make this one of the loudest, most intense live albums ever recorded – when Tyner sings “Motor City Is Burning,” these are the guys pouring gasoline on the fire. This seminal proto-punk set was released 50 years ago this month, yet its anti-establishment fury remains just as relevant – it's time again to KICK OUT THE JAMS.
T. Rex (Album of the Day)
Following four collections of hippie-folk under the moniker Tyrannosaurus Rex, singer-songwriter Marc Bolan and percussionist Mickey Finn shortened their name in 1970, announcing an increased focus on electric instrumentation. T. REX is a key transitional album; if still preoccupied with fantasy themes and less guitar-driven than follow-up ELECTRIC WARRIOR, Bolan's rock-star charisma is fully in place, as are producer Tony Visconti and back-up singers Flo and Eddie, who would figure prominently on future T. Rex hits. The songs are more pop-friendly than ever, with “Jewel,” “Seagull Woman” and “Beltane Walk” among the highlights (U.K. Top 10 single “Ride a White Swan” was included on the U.S. version of the album for good measure). While T. REX hints at glam-boogie glories to come, it's a thoroughly enjoyable set in its own right.