NEW SOUNDS

JAMES BLAKE

The British musician, James Blake is probably best known for his innovative work behind the scenes, handling production for a wide number of artists which includes Jay-Z, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean and Beyoncé. But Blake had been making music as a solo performer long before his success as a go-to-producer. After living in Los Angeles for the last ten years, Blake decided to return to his native England. This move helped inspire his latest studio album, "Trying Times" and it is his first recording since departing from Republic Records and joining indie label, Good Boy Records. On the album, Blake reflects on some of the turmoil he had experienced with LA living and settling into a more tranquil state of being back in his home country. Unlike what he has usually done with other artists he had worked with, Blake is able to push even further his disjointed collection of fragmented sounds and beats to transform them into beautifully flowing, hypnotic songs rippling with his expressive, angelic vocals. A brilliantly deconstructed soul record, "Trying Times" takes you on a emotional musical adventure, one that is calmly offbeat and soothingly chaotic.





ELLA LANGLEY

I had become aware of country artist, Ella Langley from her charming single, "You Look Like You Love Me", a duet with Riley Green two years ago. This breakthrough along with a second single, "Weren't for the Wind" from her debut, "Hungover" made this twenty-six year old performer from Alabama one of the biggest new acts in country music of 2025. Now Langley is back with the catchy single, "Choosin' Texas" (co-written and co-produced with Miranda Lambert) that not only went to number one on the country chart but also reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart and even became a major hit globally. Her upcoming second studio album, "Dandelion" will be co-executive produced by Langley, Lambert and Ben West and due out on April 10th. Another recently released single, "Be Her" is also moving up the country and pop charts.





DIONNE WARWICK

One of the true living legends of popular music, Dionne Warwick has been making music professionally for an incredible sixty-five years. Now the iconic eighty-five year old artist has announced a new album, "Dwets" (pronounced "duets") and it will officially become her final recording. Warwick's son, Damon Elliott, is producing the album and Diane Warren has written all of the songs for this collection which will most certainly be a heartfelt and celebratory finale to Warwick's amazing recording career. While the complete list of duet partners and the exact release date of "Dwets" will be announced soon, the first single has been released and features actress and singer Cynthia Erivo on the song, "Ocean in the Desert". This lovely ballad is about friendship and support during difficult times. And Warwick, who does plan to slow down after this album, has stated that she will still be around for the occasional live performance.

BURT BACHARACH (1928 - 2023)

With his musical partner, lyricist Hal David, Burt Bacharach composed some of the greatest and most enduring pop songs of the twentieth century. This gifted pianist and producer passed away on February 8th at the age of ninety-four of natural causes. While these compositions from Bacharach and David may best represent the era in which they were created during the swinging '60's, they have since gone on to become timeless classics, songs that still captivate with their offbeat rhythms and complicated arrangements yet remain extraordinarily catchy.

The New York City raised Bacharach was started on piano lessons as a child, encouraged by his creative mother. But as he got older, he became more interested in jazz than classical music. After serving in the army for two years, Bacharach went to work as a pianist and conductor for singer, Vic Damone who he has first met while they were both serving in Germany. This lead to other jobs as a pianist for other noted performers of the day, accompanying Steve Lawrence, The Ames Brothers and Joel Grey.

Bacharach's first major break came in 1956 when he was recommended to actress Marlene Dietrich who was about to begin touring with her nightclub act. As her musical arranger and conductor, they would work together on and off until the early 1960's.

After joining the songwriting factory at the Brill Building, Bacharach first met Hal David with the team writing together their first two hits; "The Story of My Life" which became a number one song on the US Country chart in 1957 for Marty Robbins and the top-five pop hit, "Magic Moments" recorded by Perry Como. Despite these early successes with David, Bacharach worked with other writers, most notably Bob Hilliard with this team's songs, "Any Day Now (My Wild Beautiful Bird)" and "Mexican Divorce" becoming charting pop hits. It was during the recording of the later song in 1962 with The Drifters that Bacharach would first meet the singer that would change the course of his career.

One of the background singers during that recording session was Dionne Warwick who stood out with her formidable vocal abilities, impressing Bacharach enough to hire her to record his demos. By 1962, Bacharach and David had officially become a songwriting team and started their own production company, signed to Scepter Records. And their first artist was Warwick who released her debut album, "Presenting Dionne Warwick" in 1963. Beginning with "Don't Make Me Over", this trio had a long string of worldwide pop hits which included "Anyone Who Had a Heart", "Walk On By", "I Say a Little Prayer", "Do You Know the Way to San Jose?", "Message to Michael", "I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself" and "Alfie". Many of these songs were covered by other singers, most notably Cilla Black, Sandie Shaw and Dusty Springfield, who would also find success on the pop charts with their versions.

Bacharach-David also went on to write music for films ("The Look of Love" for "Casino Royale", "What's New Pussycat?" and the Oscar-winning "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" for "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid") and the stage (the 1968 musical, "Promises, Promises"). Bacharach would work on his own projects during this time as well, making a name for himself and creating some visibility as a personality with several television specials, talk show appearances and released solo albums. But the recording of the score for the 1973 film musical version of "Lost Horizon", a critical and commercial disappointment, lead to the dissolution of the creative partnership between Bacharach and David with each suing the other and Warwick filing a lawsuit against them both.

Bacharach went on to find a new songwriting partner, singer/lyricist Carole Bayer Sager who would later become his third wife in 1982. Some of the songs they wrote together included "Heartlight", "Making Love", "On My Own" and "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" (co-written with Christopher Cross and Peter Allen) which won the 1981 Oscar for Best Original Song. And "That's What Friends Are For" (originally recorded by Rod Stewart in 1982 for the soundtrack of the film, "Night Shift")  would reunite Bacharach and Warwick in 1985 with this number one song, that featured Gladys Knight, Elton John, and Stevie Wonder, was a charity single with all proceeds going for AIDS research.

After his marriage to Bayer Sager ended in 1991, Bacharach continued to work over the years with one of his most notable musical collaborations was with Elvis Costello, releasing an album together "Painted From Memory" in 1998 and later working on several tracks for Costello's 2018 album, "Look Now". One of Bacharach's last projects was in 2020 when he collaborated with multi-instrumentalist, Daniel Tashian on the EP, "Blue Umbrella".

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

John Prine, the Grammy Award-winning, Americana singer/songwriter sadly lost his battle against COVID-19 and passed away from complications on April 7th at the age of seventy-three. He was certainly a brave fighter, having previously battled against throat and lung cancer while also having heart issues. Prine received the Recording Academy's Lifetime Achievement Award at this year's Grammys after years of writing wonderful songs filled with humor and thoughtful insights on the human condition. I have to admit I had never heard any of Prine's recordings but I am familiar with his songs. Two of my favorites are Bonnie Raitt's 1974 cover of his "Angel From Montgomery", a song about a married, middle-aged woman looking for an "angel" to help her escape from a life of desolation. The other is "Hello In There", a heartbreaking tune about aging that Bette Midler recorded for her debut album back in 1972.





Here are a few unexpected pairings that provide some wild musical duets I found as I traveled down a YouTube rabbit hole that I would like to share:









And finally here is Finneas, the recent winner of the Grammy Award for Producer of The Year (for his work on his sister, Billie Eilish's album) who is showing off his skills as a performer. The single, "Let's Fall In Love For The Night", from his debut EP, "Blood Harmony" which was released last year, now has a music video that was recently released. This fun and whimsical clip perfectly enhances the song, giving off a vibe that makes it feel like it would fit right in place with the movie, "La La Land":

IT TAKES TWO, TOO

Here is another collection of some of my favorite songs featuring collaborations between two great musical artists:

"Almost Paradise (Love Theme from "Footloose")" - Ann Wilson & Mike Reno (1984) mp3

"Easy Lover" -  Phil Collins & Philip Bailey (1984) mp3

"If This World Were Mine" - Cheryl Lynn & Luther Vandross (1982) mp3

"How Many Times Can We Say Goodbye" - Dionne Warwick & Luther Vandross (1983) mp3

"Endless Love" Mariah Carey & Luther Vandross (1994) mp3

"The Closer I Get To You" - Beyoncé & Luther Vandross (2003) mp3

"You & I" - Crystal Gayle & Eddie Rabbitt (1982) mp3

"Let It Be Me" - Jerry Butler & Betty Everett (1964) mp3

"I'm Your Angel" - Céline Dion & R. Kelly (1998) mp3

"Tramp" - Otis Redding & Carla Thomas (1967) mp3

HAL DAVID (1921 - 2012)

Along with his long-time musical partner, Burt Bacharach, Hal David wrote some of the world's most beloved pop songs, most during the 1960's, that are still being performed to this day. Mr. David passed away yesterday at the age of 91

David and Bacharach met while they were part of a large team of writers working at the Brill Building who wrote pop songs to sell to publishers. Their first big hit recording together was in 1957 with "Magic Moments" performed by Perry Como.

In 1959, they were introduced to a young singer named Dionne Warwick and the team was quite impressed with the range of her voice and how easy she could handle their complicated melodies. The trio had their first success with "Don't Make Me Over" in 1962 which was followed by a long string of hit songs for them. David and Bacharach created hits for other notable performers including Dusty Springfield, Tom Jones, B.J. Thomas and The Carpenters.

This successful duo broke-up after the difficult work on the disastrous musical remake of "Lost Horizon" in 1973. Shortly thereafter, David and Bacharach sued each other and Warwick sued them both for breach of contract. The cases were eventually settled out of court in 1979 but this dynamic trio eventually made up and came back together in 1992 to record one final song, "Sunny Weather Lover".

Here are just a few of the notable songs by Hal David and Burt Bacharach:

"Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" - B.J. Thomas (1969)

"What the World Needs Now Is Love" - Jackie DeShannon (1965)

"One Less Bell to Answer" - The Fifth Dimension (1969)

"Wishin' & Hopin"" - Dusty Springfield (1964)

FOCUS ON: DIONNE WARWICK

It would be easy to simply classify Dionne Warwick as a just a pop singer but that would be completely inaccurate. She transformed seemingly simple songs and elevated them with that sultry alto and infused them with sass, style, and class but most importantly, passionate soul. As a performer, she was subtle and low-key but that didn't make her any less of a powerfully, dynamic entertainer. Dionne Warwick, with the invaluable assistance of composers, Hal David and Burt Bacharach, best represented the pop sound of the 1960's

She was born Marie Dionne Warrick in 1940 and raised in East Orange, New Jersey. Her family was heavily involved in the music industry as her father, Mancel Warrick was a gospel record promoter for Chess Records and her mother, Lee Drinkard Warrick was the manager of her family gospel act, The Drinkard Singers (which included Lee's sister, Emily or "Cissy", who later became the mother of Whitney Houston).

It was inevitable that Dionne would begin singing and she performed her first solo at the age of six in church as well as occasionally performing with the Drinkard Singers.

In 1958, Dionne formed a gospel group called The Gospelaires with Myrna Utle, Carol Slade and Warrick's younger sister, Delia who would later become professionally known as "Dee Dee" Warwick. They first performed at the famous Apollo Theater and won the weekly contest. Various singers came and went including Cissy Houston and Doris Troy, who had a solo hit in 1963 with "Just One Look" that featured the group on background vocals. The Gospelaires would eventually evolve into The Sweet Inspiration and would become much sought after background singers, most notably for Elvis Presley.

While recording background vocals for The Drifters's song, "Mexican Divorce (Single/LP Version)", the composer, Burt Bacharach was impressed by Dionne's voice and her presence and asked if she was interested in doing some demos to be used to pitch the songs to record labels. Florence Greenberg, president of Spector Records heard the demos but was much more excited about signing the girl who was singing them.

Dionne released her first single, "Don't Make Me Over" in 1962 and it became a top forty hit as well as reaching the top five on the r&b charts. Dionne Warrick became "Warwick" when her single had her name misspelled and she decided to keep it. With the help of Mr. Bacharach and his writing partner, Hal David, she would go on to have many other popular, chart-topping hits throughout the rest of the sixties, including "Anyone Who Had A Heart", "I Say A Little Prayer", "Do You Know The Way To San Jose" and "Walk On By" which would become her signature song.

By 1971, Dionne left Spector and signed with Warner Bros. Records for five million dollars which, at the time, was the most ever received by a female recording artist. However, her reliable writers and producers, David and Bacharach had a falling out and ended their partnership. So Dionne was forced to work with a variety of other producers which led to five unsuccessful albums, most likely due to the fact that they didn't know how to properly use Ms Warwick. The only significant hit she had during this period was, "Then Came You (Remastered LP Version)", a duet with The Spinners in 1974 that actually became Dionne's first number one pop song.

Her contract with Warner Bros. ended in 1977 and was not renewed. Frustrated and ready to leave the music business, Dionne received an offer from Clive Davis to join his label, Arista Records. Her first album was simply titled, "Dionne" and was released in 1979. The first single, "I'll Never Love This Way Again", which was produced by Barry Manilow, returned Dionne back to the top ten, reaching number five on the charts. The next single, "Deja Vu", co-written by Issac Hayes, also became a hit. She would go on to win two Grammy Awards that year for both songs.

Her next albums on Arista were best sellers due to Clive Davis cleverly teaming Dionne up with top producers who could properly guide her music including Barry Gibb, Luther Vandross (a huge fan) as well as reuniting her with Burt Bacharach. He also had her perform musical collaborations with other artists who respected and admired her such as Jeffrey Osborne, Johnny Mathis and the team of Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight and Elton John for the number one smash hit, "That's What Friends Are For", a charity single which the proceeds went to benefit AIDS research.

In 1980, Dionne was approached to host a television special called, "Solid Gold "79" which counted down the top fifty hits of that year. In the fall of that year, "Solid Gold" became a weekly series in which she hosted the first season and would later return to host another season in 1985.

Dionne Warwick has completed thirty-five albums to date and she is, second only to Aretha Franklin, the most charted female vocalist with 56 songs hitting the Billboard Hot 100 from 1962 and 1998.

Dionne married actor, William Elliott in 1966 but they divorced less than a year later. The couple reconciled and remarried in 1967 before divorcing again in 1975. They had two children who have followed in the family musical tradition; David is a singer/songwriter and Damon is a music producer.

Here are a few of Ms Warwick's greatest hits:

Anyone Who Had a Heart (1963)

I Say A Little Prayer (1967)

Are You There (With Another Girl)? (1965)

I'll Never Love This Way Again (1979)

Heartbreaker (1982)

This is Dionne and her famous friends performing "That's What Friends Are For" in 1985:

MUSIC AND THE MOVIES: PART ONE

I heard the theme song from "Flashdance...What A Feeling" on the radio a little while ago and it made me wonder:

"When was the last time a song from a film became a hit and made it on the pop charts?"

I was struggling to come up with something and I think it might have been Eminem and his rap song, "Lose Yourself" from his film, "8 Mile" (which actually won the Oscar for Best Original Song) but that was eight years ago.

The right piece of music could be an important part of a film that helped create the perfect mood or feeling as well as being just a great song you want to listen to. There is an obvious hunger for this type of music considering the success of the television shows like, "High School Musical" and "Glee" and their multiple soundtracks.

Unfortunately, there is no longer much thought put into creating a distinguishable song for a movie anymore and the songs that are used today tend to be something you would never want to listen to again. It's too bad but maybe this will make a comeback.

For this post, I'm going to focus on movie songs from the 1960's and 1970's. I think this was the golden age of songs created specifically for a film and a time when people actually loved the music enough to buy the movie's soundtrack. These songs were played regularly on the radio and became pop hits.

Let's go back and enjoy a few of the tunes that became just as memorable as the films they were used in:

Alfie - Dionne Warwick (1966)

Theme From "Valley Of The Dolls" -  Dionne Warwick (1967)

Mrs. Robinson - Simon & Garfunkel (1967)

Theme From "Mahogany" (Do You Know Where You're Going To?) - Diana Ross (1975)

Night Fever - Bee Gees (1977)

"You're The One That I Want" - John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John (1978)

And here is a selection of the theme songs from the James Bond, agent 007 films:

Diamonds Are Forever - Shirley Bassey (1971)

Live And Let Die - Paul McCartney & Wings (1973)

Nobody Does It Better - Carly Simon (1977)