ALLEE WILLIS (1947 - 2019)

The Grammy-Award winning songwriter, Allee Willis passed away suddenly on December 24th from cardiac arrest. The seventy-two year old Willis had just been inducted in to the Songwriters Hall of Fame last year.

Some of the music this talented writer helped create includes Earth, Wind and Fire's "September" and "Boogie Wonderland"; "Neutron Dance" by the Pointer Sisters (for the "Beverly Hills Cop" soundtrack which she won her first Grammy), "What Have I Done to Deserve This?" by Pet Shop Boys featuring Dusty Springfield and "I'll Be There for You" by The Rembrandts which was used as the theme song for the still-popular sitcom, "Friends". Willis also co-wrote the songs for the Broadway musical of "The Color Purple" and received Tony-Award nominations and a Grammy win for her work.

Born Alta Sherral Willis in Detroit, she would go hang out outside of Motown Records to listen to the artists record their soon-to-be hits as a teenager. Willis went to college to study journalism but moved to New York after graduation and was drawn to singing and songwriting, She did record an album, "Childstar" in 1974 but it failed to get any attention. Not long after, Willis decided to give up performing, move to Los Angeles and focus on being a songwriter.

Willis was hired by A&M Records in 1977 as a writer and her first chance encounter was an introduction to Verdine White, the bass player for Earth, Wind and Fire. Through him, Willis would meet his brother, Maurice, the founder and leader of the band. They worked together writing "September" and this 1978 now-classic became her first hit song. This opened doors for Willis and she would go to work with a wide variety of artists including Rita Coolidge, Crystal Gayle, Sister Sledge, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Patti LaBelle, Cyndi Lauper and Taylor Dayne.

Willis would later become known for her North Hollywood home, designed by William Kesling, where she threw wild parties and filled with pop culture artifacts which helped her become affectionately referred to as "the Queen of Kitsch". In honor of this great talent, here are a few of my favorite songs written by Allee Willis:

POST MALONE: AN APPRECIATION

I have to say that I haven't paid much attention to Post Malone although he is certainly one of the biggest acts in pop music right now. While I know it's not fair or right but I think it has been mostly due to his physical appearance: the face tattoos, the grills on his teeth and his overall look of just rolling fresh out of the gutter. For me, it was all a little off-putting.

But I have to admit that I really like the music of the twenty-four year old performer who was born in New York and raised in Grapevine, TX. From his breakout single, "White Iverson" in 2015 to his latest top-ten hit, "Take What You Want" which features heavy-metal legend, Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott, Malone's easy blend of hip-hop, r&b, country, and indie rock makes him a thrilling and dynamic force in contemporary music.

Born Austin Richard Post, his father had been a disc jockey when he was young and introduced his son to a wide variety of music. Following in his father's footsteps, Post did some DJing before learning to play guitar and joining a heavy-metal band as a teen. After dropping out of college and moving to LA, he joined a group of musicians and producers, drifting towards rap and hip-hop.

This lead to the self-released single on SoundCloud, "White Iverson" (which in part was a reference to basketball player, Allen Iverson) and the single quickly reached a million plays. Record labels came courting with Malone signing with Republic Records and his debut studio album, "Stoney" released in 2016. Several hit singles followed with "Congratulations"(featuring Quavo), his first number one, "Rockstar" (featuring 21 Savage), "Psycho" (featuring Ty Dolla Sign), "Better Now", "Wow" and "Sunflower" from the 2018 animated film, "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse". To date, Post Malone has sold an estimated sixty million records in the U.S.

To respectfully honor this artist and publicly acknowledge my poor initial judgement, here is a showcase of the exceptional sounds of Post Malone:

NUMBER ONE FLASHBACK

"Escape (The Piña Colada Song)" by Rupert Holmes reached the top of the U.S. pop chart during this week back in 1979 and would remain there, becoming the last number one song of the decade.

Holmes was born David Goldstein in Northwich, Cheshire, England to an American father and British mother. When he was six, the family moved to the States to Nanuet, New York where David began to pursue music, learning to play several instruments. By the time he was twenty, he had become a sought after session musician where he worked on record production, wrote jingles and songs and scored feature films.

Holmes soon went to work as a solo artist and recorded his debut album, "Widescreen" which was released in 1974. While it was not much of a success, it did catch the attention of Barbra Streisand who asked him to help write and produce some tracks on her 1975 album, "Lazy Afternoon". This lead to Holmes producing for other artists and releasing more solo albums. But his own material continued to fail to chart.

It was not until his fifth studio album, "Partners in Crime" that Holmes had a breakthrough with the single, "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)" which would become a worldwide hit. "Escape" is a classic story-song about a man, bored with his marriage, deciding to put out a personal ad in search of a new lover. He proceeds to rattle off a list of what he's searching for including someone who likes that sweet cocktail. And if you have never heard the song, I won't spoil the ending but let's just say that the woman our protagonist meets during the secret rendezvous is someone he knows very well. Holmes had another top-ten hit from the album with, "Him" but that would bring a quick end to his pop music success.

He soon turned his attention to the theater and wrote the book for the musical, "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" in 1985. The play would win Holmes two Tony Awards for Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score. He continued to create for the stage with original shows, "Say Goodnight, Gracie" and "Accomplice"; a play based on "A Time To Kill and musical versions of "Robin and The 7 Hoods", "The First Wives Club" and "The Nutty Professor".

Enjoy this live version of Rupert Holmes performing his number one smash, "Escape":

YOLA: WALK THROUGH FIRE

One thing I love about the Grammy Awards is that there will be a nomination that will place an overdue spotlight on an extraordinary talent who has released an incredible record that has not gotten all the attention it deserves. This year that performer is Yola, a musician from Bristol, England who received four Grammy noms including Best New Artist. And while many would be quick to assume she was singing r&b or gospel, Yola has actually been nominated for Best Americana Album for her debut release, "Walk Through Fire".

Born Yolanda Quartley, her parents did not approve of her wanting to be musician, preferring their daughter to find a more practical profession. But Yola confidently persevered and went on to join a country soul band, Phantom Lamb as lead vocalist. They recorded their self-titled debut album in 2008 but the band split up not long after their follow-up, "The Pines" in 2012.

Wasting no time, Yola went to work as a solo artist and eventually released an EP, "Orphan Offering" in 2016. This recording showcase brought her plenty of buzz and to the attention of Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys. Shocked that no label hadn't already signed her, he offered Yola the opportunity to record on his label, Eye Sound Records. Auerbach went on to co-write and produce "Walk Through Fire", a collection which displays Yola as a distinctive artist of American roots music with soulful songs filled with heartbreak and survival.

She has gained some big-name admirers like Elton John, Kacey Musgraves (who had Yola as an opening act for her on tour) and Brandi Carlile who made her an honorary member of the all-female, country supergroup, The Highwomen. I admit I was not aware of Yola before but I can now say I am a big fan. Here is a little taste of Yola from her Grammy-nominated album with my favorite song, "Faraway Look", a live version of the track, "It Ain't Easier" and an absolutely incredible cover of John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" which is on the deluxe edition of "Walk Through Fire":

50 SONGS FOR A NEW LOS ANGELES

Since I have lived here longer than any other city in my life, Los Angeles is now what I consider home. It has changed quite a bit since I moved here and nothing has been more noticeable than the Hollywood and Downtown areas. When I first arrived, I had visions of a Los Angeles that I had seen in the movies and television. But the city had fallen on rough times by the time I got here with Hollywood filled with dilapidated buildings and hookers standing where movie stars once strolled. And just like what happened with New York City, developers eventually pounced on these rundown areas and have rebuilt them into livable neighborhoods and exciting destinations with new massive buildings continuously rising everyday.

Musicians have always been inspired by the City of Angels, writing songs that would help the world understand the beauty of Los Angeles yet also reveal the darkness that lurks behind the sunshine. The LA Times have put together a playlist of fifty songs which best represents the sound of 21st century Los Angeles. Some are familiar tunes from well-known artists while others are musical musings by more obscure performers. Each song is presented with key lyrics and a little background of the song.

Click below to read the article:

50 Songs For a New L.A.

And here is a small selection from this list that are my favorites:

NEW SOUNDS

CELINE DION

The grande dame of pop music, Celine Dion, after recently ending her second Las Vegas residency, has quickly decided to get back on the road to see the world instead of the world coming to her. She is preparing to tour in support of her latest album, "Courage" which is her first English language release in seven years and the first without the guidance of her husband and manager, René Angélil who passed away in 2016 after a lengthy battle with cancer. It is not surprising that many of the songs from the album focus on finding strength during difficult challenges and tragic loss. And while she has enlisted the aid of several contemporary musicians, songwriters and producers (which includes Sia, Greg Kurstin, Skylar Grey, StarGate, David Guetta, Eg White and Sam Smith) to help work on the album, Dion has wisely not strayed too far from the sound that has made her career. Be sure to catch Dion on her first world tour (which began in September) in a decade. Here are two of the singles from the album, "Imperfections" and the title track which seems to be the song which deals the most directly with her personal loss:




KESHA

After having her career sidelined due to a long legal battle with her former producer, Dr. Luke over emotional and sexual abuse since 2014, Kesha was finally able to return to music with an album, "Rainbow" in 2017. The record revealed a more serious side to the wild party girl persona and brought her new-found respect and acclaim including her first Grammy nominations. Now the thirty-two year old singer has returned with some more music and it seems like she's ready to get back to having some crazy fun. The first single from Kesha's fourth studio album, "High Road" (due in January) is "Raising Hell" and features the Queen of Bounce, Big Freedia to provide her trademark rap. With a gospel influence thrown in with her familiar pop-EDM sound, Kesha seems to have embraced her past while moving forward musically to create a whole new sound. Here is the music video for "Raising Hell" which plays up the gospel theme with Kesha appearing as a beloved televangelist. But the clip turns dark when her husband is abusive and she decides to bring an end to the abuse permanently. Also listen to the follow-up single, "My Own Dance" where she celebrates her freaky nature:





And we wrap up with a surprising new song from Sam Smith. The performer, who has struggled with gender all of his life, recently has come out as non-binary. Smith has been working on material for their upcoming third album but have been dropping new singles in the meantime. The latest is a cover of the classic Donna Summer anthem, "I Feel Love" and this version pushes their voice to the test. It's certainly not ground breaking or really necessary but it's fun:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TINA TURNER

It's hard to imagine but the one and only Queen of Rock & Soul, Tina Turner has just turned eighty years old. She had a birthday on November 26th and has been in the news lately due to the recent arrival to Broadway of the jukebox musical, "Tina: The Tina Turner Musical" which covers her extraordinary life. While she has had a few health problems over the last few years, Turner made an appearance at the opening night of the show earlier this month and she looked absolutely fantastic.

If you are a fan, then you are well aware of her history; a teenage Anna Mae Bullock met Ike Turner, changed her name to "Tina" and together became one of the hottest r&b acts. She suffered many years of emotional and physical abuse from Ike before finally breaking free. Heavily in debt, she had to start over. But after working hard, Turner would go on to become an even bigger star, selling millions of records across the globe.

In honor of this true legend and to celebrate all that is Tina, here are a few of my favorite musical highlights from this iconic performer (including a fan-made clip featuring an overview of Turner's amazing career) :

2019 GRAMMY AWARD NOMINATIONS

After years of the Recording Academy being accused of being way out of touch by giving familiar veteran performers most of the major nominations for the Grammy Award while the music of contemporary artists were largely being shut out, this year the nominations for one of the highest honors in music seem to have gotten closer in closing that gap. Artists that are creating exciting cutting edge music like Bon Iver, Lana Del Rey and Vampire Weekend each received multiple nominations in the top categories while women have finally made strides in getting recognized for their work with five of the eight Album of The Year nominees are by female artists.

R&B/hip-hop sensation, Lizzo leads the pack with the most nominations with eight for her breakout single, "Truth Hurts" and third album, "Cuz I Love You". For the first time in Grammy history, there are two artists to receive nominations in the top four categories, Album of The Year, Song of The Year, Record of The Year and Best New Artist with Lizzo being one and alt-rocker, Billie Eilish being the other performer. The seventeen year old had a great year with her debut studio album, "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" becoming a critical hit and major seller. She follows with the most nominations with six along with another new artist, Lil Nas X who merged hip-hop and country to have the crossover smash, "Old Town Road" with a little assist from Billy Ray Cyrus. Ariana Grande, H.E.R. and Finneas O'Connell, Eilish's brother who co-wrote and produced her album, all received five nominations.

The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards will air Sunday, January 26, 2020 at Staples Center in Los Angeles with Alicia Keys returning as host. Here is a partial list of the 2019 Grammy Award nominations:

Album of The Year:

"I, I" — Bon Iver
"Norman Fucking Rockwell!" — Lana Del Rey
"When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" — Billie Eilish
"Thank U, Next" — Ariana Grande
"I Used to Know Her" — H.E.R.
"7" — Lil Nas X
"Cuz I Love You (Deluxe)" — Lizzo
"Father of the Bride" — Vampire Weekend

Record of The Year:

"Hey, Ma" — Bon Iver
"Bad Guy" — Billie Eilish
"7 Rings" — Ariana Grande
"Hard Place" — H.E.R.
"Talk" — Khalid
"Old Town Road" — Lil Nas X Featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
"Truth Hurts" — Lizzo
"Sunflower" — Post Malone & Swae Lee

Song of The Year:

"Always Remember Us This Way" — Natalie Hemby, Lady Gaga, Hillary Lindsey and Lori McKenna, songwriters (Lady Gaga)
"Bad Guy" — Billie Eilish O'Connell and Finneas O'Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish)
"Bring My Flowers Now" — Brandi Carlile, Phil Hanseroth, Tim Hanseroth and Tanya Tucker, songwriters (Tanya Tucker)
"Hard Place" — Ruby Amanfu, Sam Ashworth, D. Arcelious Harris. H.E.R. and Rodney Jerkins, songwriters (H.E.R.)
"Lover" — Taylor Swift, songwriter (Taylor Swift)
"Norman Fucking Rockwell" — Jack Antonoff and Lana Del Rey, songwriters (Lana Del Rey)
"Someone You Loved" — Tom Barnes, Lewis Capaldi, Pete Kelleher, Benjamin Kohn and Sam Roman, songwriters (Lewis Capaldi)
"Truth Hurts" — Steven Cheung, Eric Frederic, Melissa Jefferson and Jesse Saint John, songwriters (Lizzo)

Best New Artist:

Black Pumas
Billie Eilish
Lil Nas X
Lizzo
Maggie Rogers
Rosalía
Tank and the Bangas
Yola

Best Pop Solo Performance:

"Spirit" — Beyoncé
"Bad Guy" — Billie Eilish
"7 Rings" — Ariana Grande
"Truth Hurts" — Lizzo
"You Need to Calm Down" — Taylor Swift

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance:

"Boyfriend" — Ariana Grande and Social House
"Sucker" — Jonas Brothers
"Old Town Road" — Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
"Sunflower" — Post Malone and Swae Lee
"Señorita" — Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello

Best Pop Vocal Album:

"The Lion King: The Gift" — Beyoncé
"When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" — Billie Eilish
"Thank U, Next" — Ariana Grande
"No. 6 Collaborations Project" — Ed Sheeran
"Lover" — Taylor Swift

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album:

"Sì" — Andrea Bocelli
"Love (Deluxe Edition)" — Michael Bublé
"Look Now" — Elvis Costello and The Imposters
"A Legendary Christmas" — John Legend
"Walls" — Barbra Streisand

Best Dance Recording:

"Linked" — Bonobo
"Got to Keep On" — The Chemical Brothers
"Piece of Your Heart" — Meduza featuring Goodboys
"Underwater" — RÜFÜS DU SOL
"Midnight Hour" — Skrillex & Boys Noize featuring Ty Dolla $ign

Best Dance/Electronic Album:

"LP5" — Apparat
"No Geography" — The Chemical Brothers
"Hi This Is Flume (Mixtape)" — Flume
"SOLACE" — RÜFÜS DU SOL
"Weather" — Tycho

Best Rock Performance:

"Pretty Waste" — Bones UK
"This Land" — Gary Clark, Jr.
"History Repeats" — Brittany Howard
"Woman" — Karen O and Danger Mouse
"Too Bad" — Rival Sons

Best Rock Album:

"Amo" — Bring Me The Horizon
"Social Cues" — Cage The Elephant
"In The End" — The Cranberries
"Trauma" — I Prevail
"Feral Roots" — Rival Sons

Best Alternative Music Album:

"U.F.O.F." — Big Thief
"Assume Form" — James Blake
"I,I" — Bon Iver
"Father Of The Bride" — Vampire Weekend
"Anima" — Thom Yorke

Best R&B Performance:

"Love Again" — Daniel Caesar and Brandy
"Could've Been" — H.E.R. featuring Bryson Tiller
"Exactly How I Feel" — Lizzo featuring Gucci Mane
"Roll Some Mo" — Lucky Daye
"Come Home" — Anderson .Paak featuring André 3000

Best Traditional R&B Performance:

"Time Today" — BJ The Chicago Kid
"Steady Love" — India.Arie
"Jerome" — Lizzo
"Real Games" — Lucky Daye
"Built For Love" — PJ Morton featuring Jazmine Sullivan

Best R&B Album:

"1123" — BJ The Chicago Kid
"Painted" — Lucky Daye
"Ella Mai" — Ella Mai
"Paul" — PJ Morton
"Ventura" — Anderson .Paak

Best Urban Contemporary Album:

"Apollo XXI" — Steve Lacy
"Cuz I Love You (Deluxe)" — Lizzo
"Overload" — Georgia Anne Muldrow
"Saturn" — NAO
"Being Human In Public" — Jessie Reyez

Best Rap Performance:

"Middle Child" — J. Cole
"Suge" — DaBaby
"Down Bad" — Dreamville featuring J.I.D, Bas, J. Cole, EARTHGANG and Young Nudy
"Racks In The Middle" — Nipsey Hussle featuring Roddy Ricch and Hit-Boy
"Clout" — Offset featuring Cardi B

Best Rap/Sung Performance:

"Higher" — DJ Khaled featuring Nipsey Hussle and John Legend
"Drip Too Hard" — Lil Baby and Gunna
"Panini" — Lil Nas X
"Ballin" — Mustard featuring Roddy Ricch
"The London" — Young Thug featuring J. Cole and Travis Scott

Best Rap Album:

"Revenge of the Dreamers III" — Dreamville
"Championships" — Meek Mill
"I Am > I Was" — 21 Savage
"Igor" — Tyler, The Creator
"The Lost Boy" — YBN Cordae

Best Country Solo Performance:

"All Your'n" — Tyler Childers
"Girl Goin' Nowhere" — Ashley McBryde
"Ride Me Back Home" — Willie Nelson
"God's Country" — Blake Shelton
"Bring My Flowers Now" — Tanya Tucker

Best Country Duo/Group Performance:

"Brand New Man" — Brooks and Dunn with Luke Combs
"I Don't Remember Me (Before You)" — Brothers Osborne
"Speechless" — Dan + Shay
"The Daughters" — Little Big Town
"Common" — Maren Morris featuring Brandi Carlile

Best Country Album:

"Desperate Man" — Eric Church
"Stronger Than The Truth" — Reba McEntire
"Interstate Gospel" — Pistol Annies
"Center Point Road" — Thomas Rhett
"While I'm Livin'" — Tanya Tucker

Best Jazz Vocal Album:

"Thirsty Ghost" — Sara Gazarek
"Love & Liberation" — Jazzmeia Horn
"Alone Together" — Catherine Russell
"12 Little Spells" — Esperanza Spalding
"Screenplay" — The Tierney Sutton Band

Best Jazz Instrumental Album:

"In The Key Of The Universe" — Joey DeFrancesco
"The Secret Between The Shadow And The Soul" — Branford Marsalis Quartet
"Christian McBride's New Jawn" — Christian McBride
"Finding Gabriel" — Brad Mehldau
"Come What May" — Joshua Redman Quartet

Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album:

"X 100PRE" — Bad Bunny
"Oasis" — J Balvin & Bad Bunny
"Indestructible" — Flor De Toloache
"Almadura" — iLe
"El Mal Querer" — Rosalía

Best Americana Album:

"Years to Burn" — Calexico And Iron & Wine
"Who Are You Now" — Madison Cunningham
"Oklahoma" — Keb' Mo'
"Tales of America" — J.S. Ondara
"Walk Through Fire" — Yola

Best Bluegrass Album:

"Tall Fiddler" — Michael Cleveland
"Live In Prague, Czech Republic" — Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver
"Toil, Tears & Trouble" — The Po' Ramblin' Boys
"Royal Traveller" — Missy Raines
"If You Can't Stand The Heat" — Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen

Best Traditional Blues Album:

"Kingfish" — Christone "Kingfish" Ingram
"Tall, Dark & Handsome" — Delbert McClinton and Self-Made Men
"Sitting On Top Of The Blues" — Bobby Rush
"Baby, Please Come Home" — Jimmie Vaughan
"Spectacular Class" — Jontavious Willis

Best Gospel Album:

"Long Live Love" — Kirk Franklin
"Goshen" — Donald Lawrence Presents The Tri-City Singers
"Tunnel Vision" — Gene Moore
"Settle Here" — William Murphy
"Something's Happening! A Christmas Album" — CeCe Winans

Best World Music Album:

"Gece" — Altin Gün
"What Heat" — Bokanté and Metropole Orkest conducted by Jules Buckley
"African Giant" — Burna Boy
"Fanm D'ayiti" — Nathalie Joachim with Spektral Quartet
"Celia" — Angelique Kidjo

Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media:

"The Lion King: The Songs" — Various artists
"Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon A Time In Hollywood" — Various artists
"Rocketman" — Taron Egerton
"Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse" — Various artists
"A Star Is Born" — Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper

Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media:

"Avengers: Endgame" — Alan Silvestri
"Chernobyl" — Hildur Guðnadóttir
"Game Of Thrones: Season 8" — Ramin Djawadi
"The Lion King" — Hans Zimmer
"Mary Poppins Returns" — Marc Shaiman

Best Music Video:

"We've Got To Try" — The Chemical Brothers
"This Land" — Gary Clark, Jr.
"Cellophane" — FKA twigs
"Old Town Road (Official Movie)" — Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus
"Glad He's Gone" — Tove Lo

Producer of The Year (Non-Classical):

Jack Antonoff
Dan Auerbach
John Hill
Finneas O'Connell
Ricky Reed

TAKE TWO: ASHFORD & SIMPSON

It's hard to say what Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson are really best known for. The duo first started their careers separately as songwriters before coming together and eventually joining the Motown staff to help create such classics as "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", "California Soul", "You're All I Need To Get By","Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing" and "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)". But Ashford & Simpson also wanted to perform their own music and began a recording career. They would achieve some success as performers with one of their biggest hits was "Solid" in 1984.

Ashford was born in Fairfield, SC and Simpson in the Bronx, NY. Their paths would cross in Harlem at a church in 1964 with them later deciding to team up to write songs and perform. While they didn't have much initial luck as a singing act, some of the songs they wrote with former Ikette,  Jo "Joshie" Armstead became popular. One of this team's biggest songs was for Ray Charles with "Let's Go Get Stoned" which went to number one on the U.S. R&B chart in 1966. That year, Ashford and Simpson were invited to join Motown as writers and producers, leaving their mark with several charting hits for Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell, the Marvelettes, Martha Reeves & the Vandellas and Diana Ross.

Ashford & Simpson still wanted to become known as performers. Simpson recorded two solo albums with Motown who failed to give them much of a promotional push. The couple decided it was finally time to leave the label after they had recorded an album singing their versions of the many songs they wrote for Motown yet the company refused to release it.

After getting married in 1974, Ashford & Simpson signed with Warner Bros. Records as recording artists. The duo found modest success with their albums and charted on the r&b chart with the singles, "Send It","Don't Cost You Nothing", "It Seems to Hang On", "Is It Still Good to Ya", "Found a Cure" and a collaboration with Quincy Jones on his album, "Sounds...and Stuff Like That!!" with the single, "Stuff Like That" which reached number one in 1978.

They signed with Capitol Records in 1982 and it was during this period where the couple would achieve their greatest success. "Solid", which could perfectly describe the couple's relationship, would become an incredible hit, crossing over to the US pop chart and reaching the top-five in several countries. In 2009, Ashford & Simpson would do a fun rewrite of the song to honor President Barack Obama, calling it "Solid (As Barack)". The couple would continue to write and produce for other artists including Gladys Knight and the Pips, Roberta Flack, Stephanie Mills, Teddy Pendergrass and Chaka Khan's 1978 classic, "I'm Every Woman".

In 2011, Nickolas Ashford passed away from complications of throat cancer at the age of seventy. He is survived by Simpson, now seventy-two, and their two daughters, Nicole and Asia. In honor of this legendary musical duo, here are two of my favorite songs from Ashford & Simpson:

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

Mikaela Straus came out loud and proud last year with her first single, "1950" under her professional moniker, King Princess. This song, about imaging the time when people had to keep their sexuality a secret, brought the now twenty year old Bronx native plenty of attention. This lead to her meeting musician/producer, Mark Ronson who featured her on a track on his latest album, "Late Night Feelings" and signed her to his label, Zelig. Now King Princess has just released her debut studio album, "Cheap Queen". This self-described genderqueer singer-songwriter explores issues facing today's LGBTQ youth and creates pop anthems that will not only speak to them but anyone feeling alone and isolated.





Here is a selection of some new songs that perfectly merges together music and image:









During this year's "Black Girls Rock!" celebration, three of hottest female dance vocalists from the '90's came together to perform their big hits from the era. Check out Robin S. ("Show Me Love"), Crystal Waters ("Gypsy Woman") and CeCe Peniston ("Finally") who take us back and deliver glorious live renditions of their songs.



And we close with some thrilling duets by some great singers. We have Mamas & Papas vocalist, Cass Elliot teaming up with John Denver on a cover of the melancholy ballad, "Leaving On a Jet Plane". Cheryl Lynn and the very missed Luther Vandross delivering some vocal dynamics on their live version of Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's "If This World Was Mine" during an appearance on "Soul Train".

PONY

The latest artist to challenge traditional country music is Orville Peck. Self-identified as queer and performs with his face obscured with an elaborate mask, Peck delivers a modern twist to his classic country influenced sound on his debut album, "Pony". His mug is not the only thing the singer is keeping covered as he has not publicly revealed his background beyond that "Orville Peck" is a pseudonym, he is from Canada and that he's older than twenty and younger than forty. However, in this day and age, nothing can remain secret for long. It has been uncovered that he is Daniel Pitout who was once the drummer of the Canadian punk band, Nu Sensae.

But let's keep the focus on his music. The collection of songs on "Pony" were inspired through many of his life experiences and some of the interesting folks he met along the way. Peck wants to challenge heteronormative expectations while offering a bold, alternative voice to country music. And with that, I think he has fully succeeded. The visuals are just as important to Peck as his music, as you can tell by these stylish music videos from this exciting new artist:

HEY, I'M JUST LIKE YOU

The identical Canadian alt-rockers, Tegan and Sara have been making music together for almost twenty-five years since they were young girls. The now thirty-nine year old musicians have just released a memoir, “High School” which looks back on their childhood and early musical beginnings. Each twin wrote alternating chapters from their own point of view.

And Tegan and Sara have also released their ninth studio album called “Hey, I’m Just Like You”. This record came together as they were writing the book when they found old cassette demo recordings they had made between the ages of fifteen to seventeen. The sisters decided to bring these unreleased songs to life. While they did do a little rewriting, Tegan and Sara kept the essence of those raw teenage emotions and re-recorded these songs with a mature production. It’s a really interesting concept and returns the duo back to their indie-rock roots. Have a listen to a couple of track I really like:

NEW SOUNDS

BRITTANY HOWARD

Alabama Shakes, the blues rock band, broke out in 2012 with their critically acclaimed debut, "Boys & Girls". After an extensive tour to promote that album, the group's follow-up, "Sound & Color" helped make Alabama Shakes even bigger. The album debuted in the US at number one, reached the top ten in several countries and won the band four Grammy Awards.

Following all of this success, the band's dynamic guitarist and lead vocalist, Brittany Howard decided to take a step back and put the band on hiatus so she could explore her own musical pursuits. She and her wife, Jesse Lafser hit the road, traveling around the country to experience modern-day America. This road trip lead to the Southern-based singer's first solo album, "Jamie" with the title named after her sister who passed away from a rare form of cancer as a teenager. With this record, Howard was inspired to go deeper in to her personal history and viewpoints to create her music. She also incorporates a little jazz, funk and hip-hop in to her songs. This is an exciting and bold new work from Howard. Here are a couple of tracks including the funky single, "Stay High" with the music video featuring actor Terry Crews:





RAPHAEL SAADIQ

One artist who I think is vastly underrated is r&b singer, musician, writer and producer, Raphael Saadiq. I don't think this incredibly gifted performer has gotten nearly enough attention that I think he deserves. The Oakland-born Saadiq (birth name Charles Ray Wiggins) began his career as part of the '90's neo-soul group, Tony! Toni! Toné! with his brother, D'Wayne Wiggins and their cousin, Timothy Riley. After they disbanded in 1996, he continued to create music as part of the short-lived r&b super-group, Lucy Pearl while co-writing and producing tracks for such artists like D'Angelo, Jill Scott, The Roots, Q-Tip, Joss Stone, Mary J. Blige and John Legend. Saadiq released his first solo album in 2002 with "Instant Vintage", a classic work yet not fully appreciated at the time.

For his fifth solo project, "Jimmy Lee", Saadiq has created a concept album that is deeply personal. The record is named after his brother who had contracted H.I.V. and later died from a drug overdose. The songs, inspired by other family losses in his life from addiction and tragedy, features the inventive production you expect from Saadiq yet the lyrics have a deep emotional complexity that you don't usually find in his work. Here is the clip for the single, "Something Keeps Calling" featuring Rob Bacon and a mini-documentary with Saadiq discussing the creation of his art and latest album:

IN MEMORIAM

EDDIE MONEY (1949 - 2019)

Eddie Money, the working-class rocker who found chart success in the 1970's and '80's, passed away on September 13th due to complications from esophageal cancer.

He was born Edward Mahoney in Brooklyn, NY and raised on Long Island. As teenager, he performed with several rock bands but after graduating from high school, Mahoney decided to follow in the family tradition and become a police officer. He briefly worked as a trainee at the NYPD before realizing he needed to follow his true passion; music.

In 1968, Mahoney moved to Berkeley, CA., changed his name to "Eddie Money" and played the club scene in the Bay Area. He struggled for a number of years to get noticed until his first big break came when he met music promoter, Bill Graham who helped get the fledgling singer signed to Columbia Records. Money's self-titled debut album was released in 1977 and became an immediate success, selling over two million copies, thanks to the top-forty singles, "Baby Hold On" and "Two Tickets To Paradise".

He would continue to enjoy popularity until the early 1980's when Money's career began to decline due to the distraction of his increased drug abuse. The singer made a major comeback in 1986 with the single, "Take Me Home Tonight". With the label taking more creative control of his music, Money was given this demo to perform which he didn't really like. But he was intrigued by a line in the song taken from The Ronnettes' classic 1963 hit, "Be My Baby". Money managed to track down and convince the then-retired Ronnie Spector to sing on the track. That would help make this tune Money's highest charting single, reaching number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and revitalize Spector's music career.

Money made an appearance on an episode of the Netflix series, "The Kominsky Method" last year and on "Real Money", a reality show that featured him and his family on AXS TV. He had also recently recorded a new album called, "Brand New Day" which was scheduled to be released last July but it was put on hold following his stage four cancer diagnosis. Listen to two of my favorites songs from the dynamic Eddie Money:





RIC OCASEK (1944 - 2019)

The co-creator, writer, guitarist and voice behind the new-wave rock band, The Cars, Ric Ocasek passed away on September 15th. He died of natural causes at the apparent age of seventy-five since there has been some dispute over the actual year of Ocasek's birth. Ocasek and his band had been just inducted in to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame last year.

Ocasek was born and raised in Baltimore, MD but his family moved to Cleveland, OH when he was sixteen. He had begun college in the state but dropped out after deciding he wanted to seriously pursue music. He met Benjamin Orr, a bass player and vocalist, and they formed a rock band together. The duo relocated to Boston and became a folk-rock group called, Milkwood which featured future Cars member, keyboardist Greg Hawkes. They did record one album but it failed to chart. The three musicians would become a part of other bands where they would meet guitarist Elliot Easton and drummer, David Robinson with them all becoming The Cars in 1976.

After signing with Elektra Records in 1977, The Cars released their self-titled debut the following year. With their unique sound that combined punk, rockabilly and power-pop, The Cars became noticed almost instantaneously and found chart success with such songs like, "Just What I Needed", "Let's Go", "You Might Think", "Magic", "My Best Friend's Girl", "Tonight She Comes" and "Good Times Roll" before the band called it quits in 1988.  Each member went on to pursue individual musical endeavors with Ocasek recording seven solo albums with his most successful being his second in 1986, "This Side Of Paradise". The surviving members of The Cars (Orr passed away in 2000) would reunite in 2010 with an album, "Move Like This" and a tour.

Ocasek is survived by six sons, two from each of his three marriages and his third wife, model Paulina Porzikova who he met in 1984 during the shooting of the music video for The Cars' biggest hit single, "Drive" and they married in 1989. But after almost thirty years of marriage, the couple had separated in 2017.

DON'T CALL ME ANGEL

For the soundtrack for the upcoming reboot of "Charlie's Angels", Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey have been impressively assembled for the first single, "Don't Call Me Angel". The ladies co-wrote this empowering track with producers, Max Martin and Ilya and this theme song is clearly inspired by Destiny's Child's "Independent Women" from the first "Charlie's Angels" film. Yet "Don't Call Me Angel" lacks a solid, cohesive sound than that tune. This was surely planned as a thrilling meeting of three of the most idiosyncratic female vocalists in pop music right now but they never seem to be working on the same page. Ms Grande is doing most of the heavy lifting by covering the hook and a verse while Ms Cyrus and Ms Del Rey essentially offer distinctive yet minor backing support. The best part of this collaboration is the music video directed by Hannah Lux Davis and look for the appearance of actress, Elizabeth Banks who directed and acts in the new "Charlie's Angels" feature:

NUMBER ONE FLASHBACK

Gloria Estefan had the number one song in the U.S. during this week back in 1989 with "Don't Wanna Lose You". This was the debut single from the album, "Cuts Both Ways" which was the first record to only feature her name after years of fronting the Latin band, Miami Sound Machine.

At this point, Estefan was one of the biggest pop artists in the world and this album (which would go on to sell over four million copies) would help keep her at the top. This classic love ballad, written by Estefan, would become one of her most popular songs, reaching the top-ten in seven countries and earning the Cuban-born singer a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Estefan even recorded a Spanish-language version of the song, "Si Voy a Perderte" which also reached number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Tracks chart.

It was during the tour for "Cuts Both Ways" that would seriously alter the singer's life. While on her tour bus near Scranton, PA., a semi-truck crashed in to it during a snowstorm which left Estefan critically injured. The accident required emergency surgery and titanium rods were implanted in her to stabilize her vertebral column. It took almost a year of painful physical therapy but Estefan made a full recovery and went back on the road to finish the tour.

ROLL WITH ME

You may remember Natasha Bedingfield, the British singer who first appeared in 2004 and delivered the international pop hit songs like "These Words (I Love You, I Love You, I Love You)", "Love like This", "Pocket Full of Sunshine" and "Unwritten" which earned her a Grammy nomination. She was quite active until around 2012 when Bedingfield seemed to put her recording career pretty much on hold.

It turned out that she had gotten married to Matt Robinson, an American businessman in 2009 and they had their first child later that year. While Bedingfield went out on small tours in Europe, did a little acting, wrote songs for movie projects and was a guest judge on the New Zealand version of "The X Factor" over these past years, there was no new music from the singer.

That has officially ended in 2019 as Bedingfield just released her first album in eight years with "Roll With Me". The now thirty-seven year old vocalist has teamed up with producer, Linda Perry, the former member of the rock band, 4 Non Blondes and who helped guide Pink and Christina Aguilera when they were ready to change directions in their music careers. This collection certainly doesn't abandon the pop-r&b sound that first brought her fame yet it adds interesting touches like reggae and offers a slightly more mature perspective to these songs. It is a very welcome return from a great artist. Have a listen to a few of my favorite tracks from Ms Bedingfield's fourth album:

NEW SOUNDS

NORMANI

After this former Fifth Harmony member has been contributing her vocals to several successful singles for other artists, Normani has just dropped her first solo single, "Motivation". As the first taste of her long-awaited debut album, this track (co-written with Ariana Grande and producers, Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh who produced this song) is taking us back with a slick, hip-hop flavored soul vibe that ruled the charts back in the '90's. And the music video for "Motivation" continues the homage with a tribute to the dance videos by some of the female artists who reigned in the 1990's.



MISSY ELLIOTT

Missy Elliott, one of the most unique and influential voices in hip-hop has finally returned with some new music. "Iconology" is the forty-eight year old rap legend's first collection of songs in fourteen years. With her long-time collaborator, Timbaland and Will Hendrix assisting her with production on this EP, Elliott has delivered four genre-bending songs that perfectly pick-up where she left off. The timing of this release is probably no coincidence since Elliott will be honored on Monday, August 26th with the Video Vanguard Award during the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards. Check out the ballad, "Why I Still Love You" and the video for "Throw it Back" which displays Elliott's eccentric style and visual innovation that helped earn her this award:

And we close with Ariana Grande who has somehow manged to become even bigger this year. The twenty-six year old pop sensation has yet another smash hit single with "boyfriend" that she has teamed up with Michael "Mikey" Foster and Charles "Scootie" Anderson of the production team and musical duo, Social House. This woozy pop-r&b jam is about not trying to label a relationship and redefine the concept of a romantic partnership. "boyfriend" is from Social House's debut extended play, "Everything Changed..." and the song could possibly be hitting close to home with rumors floating around that Grande is dating Foster.

THE 100 BEST SONGS OF 1969

Woodstock. The Manson Family murders. The Apollo 11 moon landing. The Stonewall riots. These were just some of the life-changing, mind-altering and Earth-shaking events that occurred fifty years ago this year. And this was the year when we began to see a shift in popular music. The era of factory-written, easy-listening expressions of life and love was being pushed away by singer/songwriters who were pushing the envelope to fuse together musical genres and communicate with unconventional ideas.

The staff of Billboard magazine have put together a list of the best one hundred songs that were released and charted in the year of 1969. As I went through the list (and I was a seven year old during this year), I found many songs that I loved and some that I had never heard of before. But what they all have in common is that they are all inventive and creative songs that helped shape and define a generation.

Click below to read the article:

The 100 Best Songs of 1969

And here are a few songs from this list that are my all-time favorites:

99. Friends of Distinction - "Grazing in the Grass"



89. Cass Elliot - "Make Your Own Kind of Music"



67. Blood, Sweat & Tears - "Spinning Wheel"



56. Tommy James and the Shondells - "Crystal Blue Persuasion"



44. Laura Nyro - "Save the Country"



24. The Foundations - "Build Me Up Buttercup"



5. Isaac Hayes - "Walk on By"

THE NEW ANTI-POP STAR

One of the hottest performers to have emerged this year is Billie Eilish, a seventeen year old Los Angeles native who just reached number one on the Billboard Pop Songs Airplay chart with her hit, "bad guy". She began her music career in the modern way by posting a song on social media that progressively helped build a following. In 2015, a fourteen year old Eilish recorded "Ocean Eyes", an atmospheric ballad written by her musician brother, Finneas O'Connell (who also co-wrote and produced her debut album, "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?"), which found modest international success. More singles and an EP followed which lead to Eilish being signed to Interscope Records and her first album was dropped last March which reached number one of the Billboard Album chart.

Eilish refreshingly has no interest in falling in line with what is expected of a pop star, particularly a female vocalist. Dark, brooding and offbeat, she often wears oversized clothing, wildly colored hair and toys with goth imagery. And her music features provocative and confrontational lyrics paired with bold, distinctive beats. While the young singer does bring to mind Lorde and Lana Del Rey with her quirky and ethereal vocals, Eilish is far edgier and delivers her own singular style. Here are a few of Eilish's singles including "lovely", her duet with Khalid and the video for breakout single, "Ocean Eyes":

SUMMER GIRL

While it would seem late in the season to release a song about summer, this terrific new single by the sister act, Haim is not exactly referring to the weather. "Summer Girl" was actually inspired by the band's producer Ariel Rechtshaid (who is also Danielle Haim's boyfriend) and his early-stage cancer diagnosis. She wanted to be his "summer girl" to bring him hope and light when he was feeling down during treatment and a song was created. The sisters enlisted musician, Rostam Batmanglij (formerly of Vampire Weekend) for help on the track and he contributed the distinctive saxophone part. Although they later felt it was a little too similar to the sound of Lou Reed's "Walk On The Wild Side", Haim resolved that by giving the late rocker a songwriting credit. And Rechtshaid himself added a few touches to complete the track. Take a look at the whimsical music video for "Summer Girl" directed by filmmaker, Paul Thomas Anderson and was shot at some sites familiar to L.A. residents at the New Beverly Cinema, Canter's Deli and on Ventura Blvd: