TAKE TWO: LIONEL RITCHIE

I recognized the steady, Caribbean beat of "All Night Long" almost immediately, hearing it either on the SiriusXM '80's channel or pulsing in the background of some store, and then realized that this Lionel Ritchie hit was almost forty years old. As the song played on, I also knew that this would certainly become a chart-topper today, despite the hip-hop and throbbing EDM that dominates much of the pop music scene at the moment. In fact, much of Ritchie's musical output would still be embraced by people if they were released today. The reason I believe is that the songs Lionel Ritchie created are classically structured and emotionally driven, allowing them to remain timeless by avoiding the over-produced spectacle and trendy concepts which is the norm in pop music right now.

After briefly considering to become a priest, Ritchie continued on a musical path while attending the Tuskegee Institute. He had joined several bands before connecting with a group of musicians that would become Commodores in 1968. They eventually were signed to Motown Records and found immediate success with the title track off their 1974 debut album, "Machine Gun", a funky instrumental that reached the top-ten on the r&b chart and number twenty-two on the pop chart. Commodores continued with funk music for a while before shifting more towards soul, leading to their first number one r&b hit in 1976 with "Just to Be Close to You", a love ballad that Ritchie wrote and performed lead vocals.

While the band continued to score with the funky dance tracks, "Brick House" and "Lady (You Bring Me Up)", it was the alluring love songs that Ritchie wrote which included "Sweet Love", "Easy", "Sail On", "Still" and "Three Times a Lady" that took Commodores to the next level, crossing over to the top of the pop charts. And these popular songs made Ritchie a very sought-after songwriter. After having written the number one hit for country artist, Kenny Rogers with "Lady" in 1980 and the chart-topping love ballad, "Endless Love" (for the film of the same name) which he traded vocals with Diana Ross the following year, Ritchie decided it was time to move on from Commodores. 

Ritchie released his self-titled debut solo album in 1982. There were three smash singles, "You Are", "My Love" and the US number one hit, "Truly" which helped continue him on course as an incredible hit-maker and major pop artist. Ritchie's follow-up album, "Can't Slow Down" certainly lived up to it's title. The album featured five top-ten hits (including two, "All Night Long" and the ballad, "Hello" reaching the top of the US Billboard Hot 100 chart), sold over twenty million copies worldwide and went on to win the 1983 Grammy for Album of the Year.

Ritchie continued writing for other projects as well with 1985 being a banner year for him. He helped take Ross back to the pop charts by writing and producing "Missing You", a loving tribute to Marvin Gaye, which also went to number one on the r&b chart; writing and performing "Say You, Say Me" for the movie, "White Nights" which went to number one on the US pop chart and won Ritchie an Oscar for Best Original Song and teaming up with Michael Jackson to create the charity single, "We Are The World" that assembled an all-star cast of popular musicians of the day to perform, selling over twenty million copies with the proceeds going towards providing food and relief to starving people in Africa.

His 1986 album, "Dancing on the Ceiling" was well received with five popular singles but did not achieve the same level of commercial success like his previous solo albums. Following a tour to promote the album, Ritchie decided to retreat from the music business for a little while. But it would be ten years before he would return with a new studio album, "Louder Than Words".  During his time away, soul music had evolved into groove-driven, urban contemporary and Ritchie's 1996 collection was an attempt to update his easy-listening r&b sound, working with Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Babyface and David Foster.  Yet the album failed to generate much attention.

Ritchie has continued to work since then, releasing several albums (including "Tuskegee", a well-received collection from 2012 with Ritchie teaming up with several country music artists to perform together many of his popular songs) and touring across the globe. The now seventy-three year old artist can be seen currently as one of the judges on the revival of the television singing competition show, "American Idol", appearing since 2018. And he will be inducted later this year into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Some may consider the soulful balladry of Lionel Ritchie a bit old-fashioned. But his songs have made an indelible impact in music, continuing to influence and be enjoyed by each new generation. I have selected two of my favorite songs from Mr. Ritchie and while they may not be his best known, these songs do display his amazing skill of combining pop, classic soul with a touch of country to create his unique sound.

ATOPOS

After five years, the brash, melodious voice of Björk has returned to captivate us with new music. "Atopos", which is a Greek word for "strange", is the first release from the Icelandic singer's forthcoming tenth album, "Fossora" due out on September 30th. As to be expected from her previous idiosyncratic work, this intriguing song is a strange jumble of sounds and thoughts. With an experimental techno beat disrupted by violent bursts of six bass clarinets, "Atopos" loosely interprets the concept of atopy which is trying to describe emotions that are inexpressible in words. The music video for "Atopos" is a visual wonder with the expressive performer dazzling us with wacky yet beautifully alluring costumes and make-up.

Largely written while in quarantine during the pandemic back in her native Iceland, Björk has stated that "Fossora" (which is a femininized version of the Latin word for "digger") is a "mushroom album", referring to the new collection as more warm and earthy, far removed from the electro-based dreamscape from her 2017 album, "Utopia", as she copes with transition, with the fifty-six year old artist dealing with the recent loss of her mother and her children growing up and leaving the nest.

HOLY FVCK

Although she has only just turned thirty in August, Demi Lovato has had a very complicated life, filled with glorious highs and devastating lows. Beginning her professional career as a child actor on the Disney Channel before moving on to find even more acclaim as a pop music artist, struggling in between with serious problems involving addiction, mental health issues, sexual trauma and gender identity. The singer has been very open regarding her troubles throughout, even participating in a recent docu-series, "Demi Lovato: Dancing With The Devil" which deals with her personal and musical journey.

Over the course of her recording career, Lovato has experimented with genres, dabbling in rock, r&b, dance and power-pop. Now with her latest, "Holy Fvck", the singer has gone full punk-rock on her eighth studio album. But Lovato clearly has something to say with the album, dealing directly and honestly with her continuing struggles with substance abuse, relapse and sexuality, using the dark, edgy sound to effectively express her rage and frustrations. Lovato has stated that "Holy Fvck" feels like her most authentic album, wanting to push herself musically and lyrically. I think she has certainly accomplished that with a collection that really reveals her pain and a strong desire to recover from her past. Lovato has just begun a tour through North and South America to support the album, so be sure to check her out while she's out on the road.

NEW SOUNDS

For her first foray back to music since her emancipation from a fourteen year long involuntary conservatorship, Britney Spears has come back in a major way with a duet with Sir Elton John. It has been seven years since her well-received ninth studio album, "Glory" that Spears released any new recorded music, largely due to her recent refusal to continue her career while under complete control by her father. "Hold Me Closer" is a dance-pop song that combines elements of John's songs, "Tiny Dancer", "The One" and "Don't Go Breaking My Heart". John's husband, David Furnish actually suggested this collaboration and it certainly was an inspired idea. While it's wonderful how John has been very supportive in helping Spears get her footing back into music, the song feels like tiny, baby steps forward from both singers. The pop princess and the veteran musician's wispy, over-processed vocals are heavily buried in the dance mix and "Hold Me Closer" is far too similar to John's previous remixed hit with Dua Lipa, "Cold Heart" from last year. It's great that Spears is feeling comfortable to resume her career and this should give her the encouragement to continue but "Hold Me Closer" remains a disappointing endeavor, lacking the fireworks you would have expected from this team-up.



CHAKA KHAN

Chaka Khan has dropped a new song, "Woman Like Me" and it's a very welcome return by this legendary r&b performer. The edgy ballad (produced by Gregg Pagani who also co-wrote it with Francesca Richard and Jeffrey Anderson) is a stirring anthem on female empowerment, a powerful reminder to men that women should mean more to them than just a sexy plaything, deserving their complete admiration and respect. Khan, who has been dazzling us with her sassy, sultry voice since the the mid '70's, first with the funk band, Rufus before venturing out as a solo artist, just signed a deal with SRG-ILS Group to release her music so hopefully a new album is on the horizon.



LOLAHOL

If Lolahol looks familiar, she probably should. She is Lourdes Leon, the oldest child of pop superstar, Madonna who is following her mother into music. Released through her own record label Chemical X, "Lock & Key" is Lolahol's debut single, a dance-club ready tune with Leon providing breathy, sensual vocals. The music video for the song features Lolahol traveling through New York City and moving seductively on the beach that will certainly make her mother proud. And while the twenty-five year old artist doesn't necessarily plan on making music her career, also having interests in modeling and dance, she is curious to see where this will take her.

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

After the global critical and commercial success of her dazzling, post-disco collection, "What's Your Pleasure?" from 2020 (which certainly helped us get through the pandemic), Jessie Ware is back with some new music. The British artist has just dropped "Free Yourself", another uplifting dance track with Ware teaming up with renowned electro-pop producer and DJ, Stuart Price (Madonna; Kylie Minogue; The Killers; Dua Lipa) for the first time. The music video for "Free Yourself" is set with Ware being a spiritual leader telling her queer congregation to open up and let their freak flag fly wild and proud. This appears to be the first single from Ware's upcoming fifth studio album although no details have been released. She will be in North America this fall on tour, opening up for Harry Styles on some dates and headlining her own concerts. Be sure to check this amazing artist out if you can.



Here are a few new songs with music videos that deliver the perfect summer vibe:

Built around Rick James' 1981 classic, "Super Freak", Nicki Minaj has released another single with "Super Freaky Girl", a slick, playful track that feels reminiscent of her sound from the early days of her career. This is the fourth song that Minaj has dropped this year (following "Do We Have a Problem?", "Bussin" and "We Go Up") yet there is still no word on when her fifth studio album will be released or if any of these songs will actually appear on this record. Two things we do know is that Minaj will be this year's recipient of the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards on August 28th which she will appear with a live performance. Minaj will also be a part of a six-part HBO Max docu-series about her life very soon although no exact date has been confirmed.

And finally to honor the memory of Lamont Dozier, one third of the songwriting team of Holland–Dozier–Holland, who passed away on August 8th at the age of eighty-one. Dozier, along with brothers Brian and Eddie Holland, was responsible for helping to shape the Motown sound by writing many of the songs for the soul music label that crossed over to become worldwide pop hits. The Detroit born and raised artist had begun his career as a performer yet didn't find much success. By 1962, he teamed up with The Hollands who also hadn't had much luck as singers to write for the local-based recording company. Their first top-ten pop hits were for Martha & The Vandellas with "Come and Get These Memories", "Heatwave", and "Quicksand". But it wasn't until 1964 when the team got their first number one song with "Where Did Our Love Go?" for a struggling girl group on Motown, The Supremes. Holland–Dozier–Holland would go on to write and produce nine more number one songs for the trio as well as for other artists on the label like Marvin Gaye, The Four Tops, the Miracles and The Isley Brothers, eventually amassing twenty-five number one songs during their career.

After the songwriting team left Motown in 1968 over a dispute about profit-sharing and royalties, they founded Invictus and Hot Wax Records which produced hits for acts like Freda Payne, Honey Cone, Chairmen of the Board, and 100 Proof Aged in Soul. Dozier left the Holland brothers in 1973 to work on his own projects, releasing several solo albums as a performer with his most popular charting song being "Trying to Hold on to My Woman" in 1974. He continued to work as a songwriter, returning to the pop charts in 1984 by writing "Invisible", the hit song for British singer, Alison Moyet. He also co-wrote several songs with the British soul group, Simply Red. Dozier teamed up with Phil Collins to write "Two Hearts" for the soundtrack for the 1988 movie, "Buster" (which starred Collins) that was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song. And Holland–Dozier–Holland were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. Here is a very small sample of the music co-created by Lamont Dozier:

OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN (1948 - 2022)

I am very sad to hear that Olivia Newton-John, who I consider to be one of our greatest pop singers, has passed away at the age of seventy-three. The British-born, Australian-raised performer was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992 and had been bravely been battling against this disease ever since yet sadly succumbed on August 8th.

Performing professionally as a singer since she was a teenager, Newton-John had first joined an all-girl singing group, Sol-Four with some of her fellow classmates which lead to becoming a regular on "The Happy Show", an Australian children's program, where she was billed as "Lovely 'Livvy". It was during her appearance on another television show, "The Go Show" where Olivia met two people who would become very important to her career; Pat Carroll, who would become her singing partner and John Farrar who later became the writer/producer of much of her music. 

Newton-John and Carroll went to England and became the singing act, "Pat and Olivia" in 1967 and toured the country. Yet when Carroll's work visa expired, she had to return to Australia and Newton-John reluctantly decided to stay in Britain to continue her music career. It eventually paid off when she met American producer, Don Kirshner in 1970 who hired her to join his band, Toomorrow he created and to star in a sci-fi musical movie featuring the group, much like he had done co-creating the television series, "The Monkees". This film nor the singing group was much of a success yet it did lead to Newton-John being signed to as a solo artist.

Newton-John's debut album, "If Not For You" was released in 1971, a collection of cover songs by contemporary artists of the day. The title track (which was originally written and recorded by Bob Dylan) became Newton-John's first breakthrough single, reaching the top-forty on the US pop and number one on the adult-contemporary chart. This was just the beginning of an extraordinary career with many hits songs on the country, AC and pop charts with "Let Me Be There", "If You Love Me, Let Me Know", "Please Mr. Please", "Have You Ever Been Mellow?", "Something Better to Do", "Sam" and "I Honestly Love You" which became her first number one song in the US on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1974.

Then her career soared even further after she was cast in the movie adaptation of the Broadway musical, "Grease" in 1978. This musical became the biggest box-office hit of the year and the soundtrack spent twelve non-consecutive weeks at number one and featured three top-five singles; "Hopelessly Devoted to You", "Summer Nights" and "You're the One That I Want", a duet with co-star, John Travolta. She made another movie, "Xanadu", a musical-fantasy in 1980 that was the last feature film appearance by dance legend, Gene Kelly. Despite this movie becoming a major flop, the soundtrack for "Xanadu" was a huge smash with the title track (with Electric Light Orchestra), "Magic" and "Suddenly" with Cliff Richard, the popular British pop star who became a friend and mentor of Newton-John's early in her career.

The following year, Newton-John released the album and single that would become the biggest seller in her career as a solo artist. "Physical" would spend ten weeks at the top of the US pop chart and with "Make a Move On Me" reaching the top-five, the album, "Physical" went on to sell over two million copies. The sexually suggestive song was enhanced by a playful music video that was set in a gym with a funny twist ending. Other hit songs followed with "Heart Attack", "Twist of Fate" (from the soundtrack of "Two of a Kind", a disastrous 1983 movie that reteamed Newton-John and Travolta) and "Soul Kiss" before her popularity on the pop charts cooled down by 1989.

But Newton-John did not slow down, continuing to work over the years with recordings, television appearances, movie roles (including playing a lesbian ex-con country singer in "Sordid Lives" in 2000), tours and a Las Vegas residency. The last single Newton-John released was in January 2021 with "Window in the Wall", a duet with her daughter, Chloe Lattanzi.

Olivia Newton-John may not have ever been a critic's darling as she wrote very little of own material. But no one could deny her amazing gifts as a vocalist and interpreter of songs. Newton-John was an universally adored hitmaker whose voice was warm, nimble and versatile, explaining why she had achieved such outstanding success back and forth between pop, country and easy listening. Always radiating positive energy and a good spirit, Olivia Newton-John was a special and unique presence in popular music with her loss will be incredibly missed forever.

RANDOM SIGHTS + SOUNDS

The US Supreme Court's recent overturning of Roe V. Wade has left many Americans frustrated and angry. This disturbing turn of events has inspired many artists to creatively express their feelings about this decision, some through music. Pink had tweeted strongly worded opinions regarding this reversal of abortion rights, then was told by some online trolls to just "shut-up and sing". So the singer promptly went and did just that, writing "Irrelevant" with Ian Fitchuk who produced the track. This protest song pushes back against people telling her that as a woman or entertainer, her thoughts and opinions are not important and feels she has every right to be heard. The music video for "Irrelevant" visually displays various protests from many different movements, ranging from civil rights, LGBTQ, #MeToo as well as a call to end gun violence.

Billie Eilish was in the middle of her world tour in support of her second album, "Happier Than Ever", performing in Manchester, England when she received word of the Supreme Court's decision. She had debuted a new song, "TV" during the concert, which had been written with her brother, Finneas O'Connell. They had written part of the song earlier and after Roe V. Wade was overturned, "TV" was completed to include their distressed thoughts about what has happened to women's rights. The song was recorded along with another new track, "The 30th" but instead of waiting until the next album, they were promptly released as an EP, "Guitar Songs".



Here is a collection of some new music from some of my favorite artists:

And a tribute to William "Poogie" Hart, the smooth lead vocalist for the soul group, The Delfonics who has passed away on July 14th at the age of seventy-seven. With his brother, Wilbert Hart and Randy Cain, the trio enjoyed their biggest success during the late 1960's and early 1970's with the hit singles, "La-La (Means I Love You)", "Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide from Love)" and "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)". Founding member "Poogie" Hart (who had co-written many of the band's songs with their producer, Thom Bell, one of the creators of the "Philadelphia soul" sound) had continued performing with The Delfonics over the years, most recently in 2020.