Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Hymn Of The Seventh Galaxy” by Return To Forever featuring Chick Corea Pianist extraordinaire, Chick Corea, got his professional start playing with the likes of Cab Calloway, Blue Mitchell, Herbie Mann, Willie Bobo and Mongo Santamaria. He went on to replace Herbie Hancock in Miles Davis’ band and played with him from 1968 through 1971 during a crucial time when Miles was moving away from straight-ahead jazz, and toward a more psychedelic rock sound. He appeared on Davis’ seminal albums Filles de Kilimanjaro, In A Silent Way, Bitches Brew, Black Beauty and Miles Davis At Fillmore. After leaving Miles’ ranks with Dave Holland, he formed Circle with Anthony Braxton and Barry...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#882 in the Series) is Waylon Jennings, Dreaming My Dreams Carved in granite, right there alongside Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Hank Williams on the country Music Mount Rushmore, and only two albums removed from virtually inventing the Outlaw Country movement with Honky Tonk Heroes, an album of stripped down honky tonk songs mostly penned by his friend Billy Joe Shaver, Waylon Jennings released Dreaming My Dream, which was to become his first number one record. Released in 1975, the record was in part a tribute album featuring “Are You Sure Hank Done it This Way?,” a tribute to Hank Williams which was to become Waylon’s signature song and one of the few...

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Wake Me Up” by Elvis Costello & The Roots After the release of Elvis Costello’s last two T. Bone Burnett-produced albums, he was ready to throw in the towel on his recording career seeing no point in going back into the studio to create new records that nobody would hear. And as a long-time Costello fan of 36 years who suffered through those albums, I was beginning to sadly think that it might’ve been the right decision. Fortunately, inspiration struck in the oddest of places while guesting on the Late Night With Jimmy Fallon TV show where The Roots have been the house band since the show’s inception several years ago....

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#881 in the Series) is Judee Sill, Judee Sill A charter member of the “should have lived longer” Pearly Gates hall of fame, a musical muse to the Laurel Canyon cosmic cowboy congregation in the 70s’ with a tonal purity that would make Eva Cassidy blush, Judee Sill, an angel that flew too close to the sun also holds the distinction with her debut self-titled record of having the first proper full-length release on David Geffen’s Asylum label. Beating out musical luminaries the likes of Jackson Browne, Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt and Tom Waits, Closing Time was released on Asylum, Sill earned debut honors largely on the strength of her songwriting.  Her song...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#880 in the Series) is Smashing Pumpkins, Siamese Dream In my favorite film, Almost Famous, Lester Bangs, as played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, warns his young protégé, William Miller, about the trappings of writing “sanctimonious stories about the genius of rock stars.” Going on to say “they will ruin rock ‘n’ roll, and strangle everything we love about it.” Well, at the risk of sounding sanctimonious this is a piece about the genius of rock stars and one rock star in particular, Billy Corgan, and The Smashing Pumpkins 1993 masterpiece Siamese Dream. 1993 was a magical year in music and more specifically, to what many people would refer to as “college,” or “alternative”...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#879 in the Series) is Aztec Camera, Frestonia This is not only a cool album, but a very cool “must listen to album.” Roddy Frame was the genius behind the project called Aztec Camera he started at age 17. They released six records as a band, with interchangeable parts and he was central in songwriting, playing and producing. I have all six and only discovered this early this year, even though it was released in late 1995, and is the last Aztec Camera record, but in my humble opinion, their best. If you have a short attention span, take tracks one, eight and ten for a spin and you will be hooked enough...

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Hot Stuff” by The Rolling Stones Today’s Song Of The Day comes from the Rolling Stones’ 1976 album Black And Blue. Next to Goats Head Soup, the album stands as one of the most maligned Rolling Stones releases of the 1970s. That assessment is totally unfair since the album actually is one of the most varied and forward looking records in their catalog, featuring two superb ballads, two terse rockers and several songs that add reggae, soul, funk and disco into the mix. Many of the record’s songs stemmed from studio jams that were recorded while trying out new guitarists to replace Mick Taylor, and guitarists Wayne Perkins and Harvey Mandel...

  I’m sure you’ve all been wondering what the late Kurt Cobain’s favorite fifty albums were. Here is his own hand written list. Now you know. I’m sure you feel better. Oh, while you here. Have you ever wondered how the baby was on the cover of Nirvana’s debut Nevermind? He’s now all grown up and we have a story on who he is and what he’s doing now. He even recreated that famous album cover. Well, kind of… Here’s that piece.  Here’s another piece that we did on Nevermind. It includes my story about hanging out with Kurt on the tour for the album. Here’s that piece.      Bookmark on Delicious Digg this post Recommend on Facebook...

  Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#878 in the Series) is Robbie Fulks, Gone Away Backwards (Bloodshot) Gone Away Backward, the latest release from Americana, Roots Rock artist Robbie Fulks not only marks a triumphant return to Bloodshot records, the label that gave him his first significant exposure, but also represents a sort of back to the future homecoming, with the same sort of down home songwriting and storytelling that made him a critics darling going back to the mid 1980’s. Trying to capture the essence of Robbie Fulks is a bit like trying to catch a butterfly in mid-air with one hand.  It takes a lot of dexterity and a bit patience, but as you slowly open your...

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Sheila Take A Bow” by The Smiths The Who called them “odds and sods.” These were the songs that didn’t fit on their proper albums. Typically, they were non-album singles, B-sides and stray tracks recorded for outside compilations, movie soundtracks and other projects that either didn’t fit, or were never considered for, inclusion on their proper albums. They were also songs that may not have been released all over the world, but were only released, for whatever reason in specific regions. The “odds and sods” compilation album made for an easy stop-gap project between new albums, creating more revenue for the artist and new product for the labels to market. At...