KENNY ROGERS (1938 - 2020)

Kenny Rogers, a gifted musician who found his greatest success as a country singer who crossed over to the pop charts throughout the 1980's, has passed away on March 21st at the age of eighty-one. "The Gambler", the song which would become Rogers' signature tune, was written by Don Schlitz and had shopped it around for an artist to record it. After several singers taking a stab (including Johnny Cash), it would be Rogers's version that would became a worldwide smash in 1978. It would reach number one on the country chart, crossed over to the pop chart and would win the singer a Grammy for Best Male Country Vocal Performance. Even a series of television movies starring Rogers was inspired by the character of this song.

Rogers was born in Houston, TX, the fourth of eight children to Edward and Lucille Rogers. He learned to play the bass guitar and formed his first band as a teen in high school with a doo-wop group called the Scholars. Rogers found his first taste of commercial success in 1957 with the single, "That Crazy Feeling", a minor solo hit, with him making an appearance on the television show, American Bandstand. With not much happening for him after that, he would join the jazz outfit, the Bobby Doyle Three playing bass and later became a part of the folk group, The New Christy Minstrels in 1966.

Not content with his place in this band, Rogers, along with several other members, Mike Settle, Terry Williams, and Thelma Camacho left to form, the First Edition the following year. The band's sound merged country, rock and pop and scored their first hit, "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)", a psychedelic pop song with Rogers singing lead vocals that reached number five on the pop chart. More hits followed including "Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love To Town", "Reuben James", "Something’s Burning" and "Tell It All Brother" until The First Edition ended in 1976. After going to work again as a solo artist, Rogers had his first major commercial success with "Lucille" which reached number one on the country chart and number five on the US pop chart in 1977.

Following "The Gambler, Rogers became one of the hottest artists of the '80's with hits on the pop and country charts. Some of his popular songs include "Coward of the County", "Through The Years", "She Believes In Me", "You Decorated My Life" and "Lady", the singer's only number one song on the pop chart as a solo artist which was written and produced by Lionel Ritchie. He also had crossover hits with duets with Dolly Parton ("Island In The Stream", written and produced by the Bee Gees), Kim Carnes ("Don't Fall In Love With a Dreamer") and Sheena Easton (a cover of Bob Seger's, "We've Got Tonight").

While Rogers' career did slow down in the 1990's, he did reach the top of the country charts for a final time in 2000 with "Buy Me a Rose". He recorded his last studio album, "You Can't Make Old Friends" in 2013 with the title track, a duet with Dolly Parton, earning a Grammy Award nomination.

25 SONGS THAT MATTER NOW

For the annual New York Times magazine music issue, the focus is on twenty-five songs that matter right now. People are well known to be notoriously fickle; a hot song can swiftly become an inescapable earworm that reaches the top of the global pop charts by a compelling, newly discovered artist who is considered "the real deal". But that song and the performer can just as quickly be easily forgotten by a mass audience in a matter of a year. Sometimes even less.

The songs that have been selected for this issue which range from wildly popular ("Truth Hurts", "Hot Girl Summer", "Old Town Road") to far more obscure ("Ricky", "Stupid Horse", "953") all have something in common. Each track is from musicians who are less concerned about mainstream success (which some of them still have managed to find) and much more centered on creating fresh, bold sounds which clearly express their unique vision. I think it's safe to say that many of these artists will be around for quite awhile.

With this year's edition, you will not only be able to read about these songs but you can now listen to them at the same time. All you will need to do is open Google Lens on your phone, pointing your camera at each tune in this issue and you will be able to hear the music as well as see video and animation. Or you can also click below for the NYT music issue interactive experience online:

NYT magazine: 25 Songs That Matter Now

SONGS FOR A PANDEMIC

This Coronavirus pandemic, creating a frightening global disruption and forcing us to isolate from each other, has left many of us feeling lonely, frustrated and very scared. But human beings are resilient and we will get through this although it most certainly will be challenging. I want to do my little part and have put together a collection of songs that I hope will inspire anyone when they are feeling incredibly down, offering hope and encouragement during those dark times. Please stay strong, stay safe and remember that this too shall pass.

NEW SOUNDS

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE

Justin Timberlake provided his voice for a character in the 2016 animated feature, "Trolls" and contributed a smash hit single, "Can't Stop The Feeling!" for the soundtrack. Now for the forthcoming sequel, "Trolls World Tour" (due in U.S. theaters on April 10th), Timberlake is back in the movie and has dropped a new single for the soundtrack. "The Other Side" is a bold, funky pop track that has the singer teaming with SZA (who we are still anxiously awaiting her follow-up to her 2017 debut album). This is a fine return to form after venturing out in to a Southern Americana sound with his last album, "Man of The Woods".



DIXIE CHICKS

After fourteen long years, the country music trio, Dixie Chicks have finally come back together to release new music. With Jack Antonoff on board as producer and co-writer, Natalie Maines and sisters, Emily Strayer and Martie Maguire have re-teamed to deliver "Gaslighter", the first single and title track of their upcoming eighth studio album. This catchy ditty seems to have been clearly inspired by Maines' recent ugly divorce from actor, Adrian Pasdar with implications of lying and emotional abuse. The album, which is due in May, is said to combine the band's early bluegrass music with the more countrified pop sound of their later records.



KATY PERRY

Katy Perry has delivered to us a new song, "Never Worn White". This lovely ballad (co-written with producer, Johan Carlsson) is about never before having the opportunity to wear wedding white but is ready to do so now with the man she truly loves. And if that man was Orlando Bloom, who would say no?  The music video for the song has Perry glowing and looking beautiful covered in flowers and in a long, flowing gown. And there is a message at the end of the clip which Perry reveals that she's has an upcoming joyful delivery.

STUPID LOVE

Lady Gaga, after spending a little time focusing on an acting career and achieving great success (which included an Oscar), has finally returned to her Little Monsters with new music. While it had leaked a few weeks ago, "Stupid Love" is now officially released with Gaga returning to the EDM-inspired sound that first brought her fame. Written with Bloodpop, Tchami and Max Martin, Gaga delivers a song with big vocals and throbbing beats that will get your feet a-moving.

While I would love to shout-out that this is a triumphant return by the singer, "Stupid Love" feels anti-climatic. Much like Taylor Swift's first single from her long-awaited new album last year, "Lover", Lady Gaga's new song features lyrics and a song structure that is far too simplified coming from an artist of her standing. Perhaps a few more listens might help me appreciate "Stupid Love" better yet that didn't change my feelings about Swift's "Me!". I'm still looking forward to see what else Gaga will come up with for her upcoming sixth studio album which appears it will be called "Chromatica"(with this title appearing at the end of the music video). And the clip (boldly announced to have been shot entirely on an iPhone 11 Pro by director, Daniel Askill) is set in a post apocalyptic, hyper-colored world with Gaga surrounded by young, multi-ethnic dancers who seemed to have wandered in from Burning Man.

NUMBER ONE FLASHBACK

Simon & Garfunkel held the number one position on the pop charts during this week in 1970 with "Bridge Over Troubled Water". This single would remain in this top spot for a total of six weeks and has become the duo's signature song. Written by Paul Simon, he was inspired by the line, "I'll be your bridge over deep water if you trust me" from the spiritual "Mary Don't You Weep" made famous by the Swan Silvertones with their 1958 recording. Simon had convinced Art Garfunkel to sing the song alone although his partner felt that Simon's vocal on the demo was far more effective.

The almost five-minute length of "Bridge" was considered problematic as most pop songs at the time were no longer than three minutes. But the duo's label, Columbia went ahead and released the complete version to radio and successfully broke that unwritten rule. "Bridge Over Trouble Water" became ranked as the number one song of 1970 by Billboard magazine and would win Simon & Garfunkel Grammy Awards for Record and Song of The Year.

This song is certainly one of Simon & Garfunkel's biggest hits and has been covered by many artists over the years. One of the most notable versions was by Aretha Franklin who completely reworked "Bridge" by delivering a full-on gospel rendition. Franklin's take also became very successful, reaching number one on the r&b chart, number six on the pop chart, selling over two million copies and won her a Grammy for Best Female R&B Performance.

Here is a live version of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" from Simon & Garfunkel during their 1981 New York performance in Central Park:



And as a bonus, here is Aretha doing a stirring live version of "Bridge" in 1971 in San Francisco:

TO DIE FOR

Sam Smith had released a collection of songs throughout the previous year and had hits with "Dancing With a Stranger", a duet with Normani; "How Do You Sleep?", a cover of the disco classic, "I Feel Love" and "Promises" with Calvin Harris. Now 2020 will finally see the release of their third studio album, "To Die For". The direction of this record will be focused less on the ballads which they are best known for and more on straight-forward pop-dance songs, The non-binary artist has just released the title track (co-written with their long-time collaborator, Jimmy Napes and Stargate) which happens to be one of their trademark ballads about heartbreak. The video for the song is an inventive film which features Smith as a lonely mannequin head in a store window who watches various happy couples passing by it. And to promote the song and the upcoming album due in May, Smith recently opened up a pop-up wig shop in the Soho area of London.