#doo wop museum

[doo-wop-city]

Stella Star Meets Wildwood Video Archive's Joey Contino

Doo Wop City has a freelance historian known as Joey Contino. I’m a longtime fan of his work. Joey Contino works tirelessly, dedicated to producing and collecting video footage of Wildwood, so that crucial aspects of Wildwood history are not lost to future generations in The World of Tomorrow. On a hot, balmy August, Joey Contino greeted the public at the Doo Wop Museum. I enthusiastically…

[jules-has-notes]

Sh-Boom — VoicePlay music video

VoicePlay as a group has its roots in barbershop music, so tackling a doo-wop classic was a natural fit. But being the innovative bunch they are, they couldn't just recreate the sound of the original recording. It's a feel-good song, and they had to have a little extra fun with it. With some retro inspiration and a dash of 21st century zhuzhing up, they delivered a real bop.

Details:

title: Sh-Boom (Life Could Be a Dream)

original performers: The Chords

written by: James Edwards, Carl Feaster, Claude Feaster, James Keyes, & Floyd McRae

arranged by: Geoff Castellucci & Hannah Juliano

release date: 30 August 2019

My favorite bits:

the slightly static-y, muffled sound and muted colors of the intro section to pay homage to the original version

Earl's clear, sweet timbre on the lead vocals

using Layne's percussion entrance as a transition to full audio

that lovely bell chord leading into the second verse

the steady swingy-ness of the rhythm section

Geoff gesturing along with the delayed ♫ "a-bove" ♫ while waiting to continue his bass line

the cool record-skip effects they added

the lovely descending riff Earl puts on ♫ "so fine" ♫

that bouncy little descending bass transition into the second chorus

J.None coming in slightly early on a belted ♫ "above" ♫

Layne slipping in some more modern record scratching and electronic sounds as the rhythm of the lyrics gets more adventurous

Geoff's scoop up into the lead melody and lyrics

that slightly dissonant harmony behind Geoff's first line

the rhythmic freedom in Earl's belted ♫ "I'm the only one you love" ♫

J's adorable head waggle as the trio starts "ya-da-da"-ing

the center trio's coordinated pop up into falsetto

that crunchy ending chord

the captions describing Layne's final descending ingressives as a "slow wind down like a tired robot with a hangover" 🤖 💤

additional props to Eli for wearing some darn snazzy shoes, knowing that they'd be very visible from where he's perched

Trivia:

In a departure from their usual studio spaces, VoicePlay filmed this video at Oliver's Classic Cars in Winter Park. It was a combination of a vintage automobile showroom / museum, and an event venue. The guys were quite taken with it.

Their camera operator for the shoot, Chadd Winston, was an old friend from the theme park performance circuit. Among their many shared jobs, he had been in the City Sounds street singers rotations at Universal Studios with the guys in the early 2000s, both with Eli in Japan, and with the 4:2:Five/VP boys in Orlando.

The cover art was once again designed by Rek Dunn.

The Chords' songwriting for this piece was inspired by the sounds of their neighborhood, and many of the seemingly nonsensical lyrics refer to people and places they heard every day.

VoicePlay's version of the song was recorded 65 years after the original topped the Billboard charts in 1954.

The video premiered on Geoff's mom's birthday, and he made sure to give her a shoutout in the YouTube comments. (Aww.)

Their Sing-Off colleagues, Street Corner Renaissance, had recorded their own version of the song back in 2012.

[lboogie1906]

Robert Knight (April 24, 1945 - November 5, 2017) was born Robert Henry Peebles in Franklin, Tennessee. He made his professional vocal debut with the Paramounts, a racially integrated doo-wop quintet during the Civil Rights era comprised of friends at the all-Black Natchez High School and all-white Franklin High School. They signed with Dot Records in 1960 and released the single, a minor hit titled “Free Me” in 1961.

He continued performing with the Paramounts during his high school years. He concentrated on his academics and graduated from Natchez High School. He graduated from Tennessee State University with a BS in chemistry. He sang with the a cappella doo-wop vocal trio called the Fairlanes.

His first single was a country soul hit titled “Everlasting Love”. It peaked at #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #14 on the Billboard R&B chart. It rose to #26 in Canada and #40 in the UK. The song remained on the charts for longer outside the US.

His compositions “Blessed Are The Lonely,” and “Isn’t It Lonely Together,” both reached #97 on the Billboard Hot 100. The latter single peaked at #85 on the Canadian Single chart. His recording “Love on a Mountain Top” reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100, it was re-released and made it to #19 UK. “Love on a Mountain Top” was his last release.

He worked in several capacities to earn a living. This included employment as a chemical lab technician, a chemistry teacher, and a grounds crew member, all on the campus of Vanderbilt University.

He was featured in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s exhibit “Night Train to Nashville: Music City Rhythm and Blues.” He performed for the Baby Boomer Legends benefit concert at the Franklin Theatre. None of his recordings were as successful as “Everlasting Love,” his only top 40 hit. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[cyarsk52-20]

It’s time to give the ladies of Hip-Hop their flowers! In honor of Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating female MCs whose powerful bars not only entertained the masses but also confronted misogyny head-on. From Queen Latifah to Nicki Minaj to Lil' Kim, the rap game was forever changed and consequently elevated the moment queens decided to spit on the mic. In an industry where women are often overlooked and counted out, these Hip-Hop icons influenced generations of women and shifted the culture with their unforgettable and impactful bars.

While there are plenty more women with equally powerful bars, here are a few from some of our favorite rappers.   WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE Doja Cat 

"I mean I could be the leader, head of all the states/I could smile and jiggle it 'til his pockets empty, I could be the CEO, just look at Robyn Fenty/And I'ma be there for you 'cause you on my team, girl, Don't ever think you ain't hella these n****s dream girl/They wanna pit us against each other, When we succeedin' for no reasons/They wanna see us end up like we Regina on Mean Girls" - Doja Cat "Woman" (2021) 

Latto

"Got my own bag, I don't need yours (Hell nah), Cinderella, red bottoms, no chores (Yeah)" - Latto "On God" (2020)  Megan Thee Stallion

"Got more milkshake than Kelis, Ain't met a n***a who can handle me/I think I should be in museums 'cause this body a masterpiece" - Megan Thee Stallion "Sex Talk" (2019) Cardi B

"Once a good girl, watch me turn diva/Here goes my heart, I put it on speaker" - Cardi B "Ring" (2018)  Remy Ma

"See the avenues is listening, the streets is watchin'/But I live by the code and I'mma die by the code/And can't nobody say that Remy ever told me nothin'" - Remy Ma "Gangsta B*tch" (2014) Nicki Minaj

“Cause we dope, girls we flawless, we the poster girls for all this” - Nicki Minaj "Feeling Myself" (2014) Lil' Kim

“I don’t bend easy, budge or break/ Trust me, you don’t want it with the female Scarface” - Lil Kim "I Know You See Me" (2005) Trina

“I’m representin’ for the b***hes/ All eyes on your riches” - Trina “Da Baddest Bitch” (1999)  Lauryn Hill

"Babygirl, respect is just a minimum, N****s f**ked up and you still defending them/Now Lauryn is only human, Don't think I haven't been through the same predicament/Let it sit inside your head like a million women in Philly, Penn., It's silly when girls sell their soul because it's in" - Lauryn Hill "Doo Wop (That Thing)" (1998) Queen Latifah & Monie Love 

"We are the ones that give birth/To the generations of prophets because it's ladies first" - Queen Latifah and Monie Lovie "Ladies' First" (1989)

Sent from my iPhone

[huahsu]

YEAR OF THE BUTTERFLY

previous years: A SONG THAT DEGRADES EACH TIME YOU PLAY IT :: 2018 A CHURCH AND JOHN LENNON’S “IMAGINE” :: 2017 SIKH DEVOTIONAL MUSIC :: 2016 SPOOKY BLACK :: 2015 this year: I’ve spent the past few months working on a book that I’ve always wanted to write but never figured I’d make the time for. At a really basic level, it’s about listening to music with friends. A couple weeks ago, I devoted a few days to reading a stack of books and articles about the emotional experience of music. They were written by philosophers, critics, cognitive scientists, historians. I took from them two overarching questions. First, what does it mean to assign a piece of music a feeling, like “happy” or “sad?” Is the song itself “sad,” or does it just model a kind of sadness proximate to how we feel? What elements of a song do this? The fraying of a voice? Minor keys? Tempo? Is it all a trick of memory? None of the answers really satisfied me, since music is such an intimate thing. A song makes us feel a way for reasons that are often either blindingly obvious or remote and mysterious. An expert can tell you that humans are wired to feel joy when a certain configuration of notes are struck in tandem, but maybe it just reminds you of looking at the front door.

The other question was whether music itself facilitates any unique emotional possibilities--a mode of feeling that we can’t get anywhere else. Music doesn’t mimic the real world, it doesn’t make arguments. One writer suggested that the thrill of music was its capacity to remind you, foremost, that music can thrill you. In essence, each time we hear something new and feel something, we are being reminded of all the times we’ve felt this way before. We’re living in the echo of a former enchantment. Maybe you’ll hear it again, process it, assign it a genre or context, and the mystique evaporates. But music is one of those things that doesn’t happen on our time. We don’t stand in front of it and train our gaze on this quadrant or that. We don’t flip back to make sure we didn’t miss something. You can’t slow it down as it is happening, you merely let it happen. 

In the spring, the Museum of Chinese in America in Manhattan showed “The Moon Represents My Heart,” an exhibition I worked on with MOCA’s curators, Herb and Andrew. The basic idea was to look at all the ways music had enriched immigrant life, from early opera troupes touring America’s Chinatowns to karaoke bars, church choirs, and after-school violin lessons, fifties doo-wop trios to garage punks and self-taught dance music producers. There’s no legible tradition of Chinese American music so we just wanted to present it as a textured and everyday thing--the experience of the fan could be as legitimate as that of a Mando-pop superstar. While working on the show, people would often ask me for a playlist, but I didn’t really have any to share. It wasn’t really about the music itself, which could sound derivative or amateur to some. It was about the fact that they sought to express themselves through music, in contexts that made them outliers and oddballs. I came to love all the music in our show because of that second-hand thrill--that sense that these moments had been deeply meaningful to everyone in the room. 

You can hear it in the voice of Stephen Cheng, who ended up being the show’s most memorable star. He put out a rocksteady gem in the sixties and then spent the next decade in New York trying to get the Dragon Seeds, his Chinese “folk-rock” band, off the ground. Cheng died years ago, but Andrew found his children, who brought some reels of unreleased music to the museum. I remember staring at them, wondering what was on them. It was a kind of anticipation and wonder that I often miss, when the operative feeling I associate with music-listening on the internet is the frenzy of opening and closing windows, clicking links, proving my humanity to a captcha.

Stephen’s singing wasn’t great, but it was perfect. His version of “Yesterday,” all warbly and over-the-top, has now supplanted the original for me. Somehow, we played some of Stephen’s songs on the radio, including one about butterflies and love. Somehow, one of the people listening was a butterfly expert, and he was about to marry another butterfly expert. Who knew such a song was possible, the groom-to-be told me. Stephen was too obscure to be properly forgotten. Or maybe his song was just dormant all these years. It awaited just the right listener, and now, over forty years later, he would get his propers, sandwiched somewhere between the vows and Kool and the Gang, a couple minutes of people scratching their heads, searching for the right smile, saying Can you believe this? to one another.

### TEENAGE DREAM

Warren Defever/His Name is Alive, All the Mirrors in the House

EXCELLENT USE OF “P.S.K.” Kindness feat. Robyn, “Warning” EXCELLENT USE OF A TELEPHONE Mavi, “Guernica” TECHNICALLY 2018, BUT TAIWAN’S ANSWER TO COIL, JOY DIVISION, ETC SEN, “The Cicada” SAME (2018) BUT TAIWANESE DREAMBOAT VIBES Linion, “Can’t Find” ANOTHER, KINDA BILLY BRAGG-Y Wayne’s So Sad, “Wanderer’s Guide to Taipei” SUMMER IN TAIWAN, AND SO I BOUGHT A LOT OF CDs, INCLUDING THE LIMITED EDITION SIGNED 9M88 DEBUT 9m88, “Love Rain” THEY ARE VERY INTO THE “FUTURE SOUL” THING Andrea, “You Better Kiss Me” THIS GUY HAS THE SAME NAME AS MY COUSIN Yo Lee demos LOTS OF BACKPACKS Hsien, Lately AMAZED TO SEE LIM GIONG REISSUES THERE, THIS IS THE DANCE ALBUM HE RECORDED IN 1994 IN THE UK BEFORE BRINGING RAVE CULTURE BACK TO TAIWAN Lim Giong, Entertainment World (IF YOU ARE UNFAMILIAR WITH LIM GIONG, THIS IS THE GREATEST SONG EVER Lim Giong, “A Pure Person) AND HERE’S 9m88 COVERING “PLASTIC LOVE” 9m88, “Plastic Love” AIR SUPPLYERS Oso Leone, Gallery Love Sunset Rollercoaster, Vanilla Villa I ENJOYED THIS WHEN IT CAME OUT BUT HONESTLY FORGOT IT CAME OUT THIS YEAR, OR THAT I ENJOYED, BUT FOR THE LONGEST TIME MY “2019″ EMAIL DRAFT JUST READ “CHIEF KEEF HNIA KAIL MALONE (sic)” Chief Keef and Zaytoven, GloToven

ANOTHER DEVASTATING DUO Pink Siifu and Akai Solo, Black Sand

MYSTIC CHORDS OF MEMORY Kali Malone, The Sacrificial Code Clarice Jensen, Drone Studies I AM A SLOW WALKER, BUT I NEVER WALK BACKWARDS Michael Vincent Waller, Moments ana roxane - ~~~ A THOUSAND POINTS OF LIGHT Caleb Giles, Under the Shade Medhane, Own Pace WE ARE THE ONES WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR Angel Bat Dawid, The Oracle Art Ensemble of Chicago, We are on the Edge READ JOSEPH JARMAN Joseph Jarman, Black Case I and II RESPECT YOURSELF Helado Negro, This is How You Smile Deb Never, “Swimming” LET’S DO IT AGAIN Tommy Holohan & Casper Hastings- RVE001 Eris Drew, Raving Disco Breaks LET’S DO IT AGAIN AGAIN, BUT SMEARED Burial, Tunes 2011-2019 OR PERHAPS YOU WERE THERE Callisto, Guidance is Eternal, Part I PERHAPS YOU WERE THERE FOR MICROHOUSE AND PEAK MEGO AND BLOGS Barker, Debiasing AT A WAREHOUSE PARTY, ABLE TO HEAR TOO MANY FLOORS, ROOMS, SOUNDS AT ONCE, IN A GOOD WAY Dies Smely, “Neptune Rises” AT A WAREHOUSE PARTY, BUT THINKING ABOUT PLUNDER, THE TRAIL OF TEARS, THE SANCTITY OF EARTH Kelman Duran, 13 Month A KIND OF BLUE Steve Hiett, Down on the Road by the Beach POSSIBLY MY MOST PLAYED ALBUM, 2019 Galcher Lustwerk, Information R.I.P. PRINCE, FOREVER AND ALWAYS Serpente, Parada Moodymann, Sinner Nelson Bandela, Purprain THE OPPOSITE OF “I AM A GOD” Nelson Bandela - “i'm mortal” YOU GOT ME Shane Eagle feat. Santi and Bas, “Vanya” HARD TO BELIEVE JAZMINE SULLIVAN REMAINS SO OVERLOOKED Kindness feat Jazmine Sullivan, “Hard to Believe” WATCH FOR THE HOOK Quando Rondo, “Gun Powder”

ANTE UP Polo G feat Lil Tjay, “Pop Out” “PANTS GON BE SAGGIN TIL I’M FORTY” Freddie Gibbs and Madlib, “Thuggin”

“WHY THEY LET THE TERMINATOR WIN THE ELECTION?” Sault, “Why Why Why Why Why”

HOLLOW BONES Showbiz and Milano, “Guillotine” LADI LUV, “GOOD TO THE LAST DUB” City Girls, “Act Up” MONEY BOSS PLAYERS Benny the Butcher feat 38 Spesh and Jadakiss, “Sunday School” Roc Marciano, “Richard Gear” WARP 30 (1989-2019) Droop-E, “The Droop-E Way” INTERSTELLAR SPACE, PROBABLY KILLER LIVE Blacks’ Myths, Blacks Myths II ALICE NEVER WENT ANYWHERE Sam Wilkes, “Sivaya” Alice Coltrane, Live at the Berkeley Community Theater 1972 RIYL: LYRICHORD, EFFECTS PEDALS Seungmin Cha, Nuunmuun RIYL: EFFICIENCY, INTERLUDES Solange, “Binz” “WHO HERE IS STILL LISTENING TO JOHNNY MAY CASH’S “DRUGS” IN 2019?” Playboi Carti, “Molly” “MOLLY” CZ Wang and Neo Image, “Just Off Wave”

YOU’VE SUBSCRIBED TO “UK STREETSOUL YOUTUBE PLAYLIST” Apiento feat Harriet Brown, “Down That Road” WHERE WERE U IN 2092? Jai Paul, “He”

LIL B, INNIT Voldy Moyo, Paper World SCREAMADELICA Vampire Weekend, “Harmony Hall” Humeysha, Nusrat on the Beach FOLKTRONICA Aldous Harding, “The Barrel” TOO PURE Springfields, Singles 1986-1991 MY AQUARIUM Rod Modell, Captagon ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE Vagabon, Vagabon 4-TRACK TWEE BEDROOM COVERS OF BLINK-182′S DUDE RANCH Colleen Green, Blink-182′s “Dude Ranch” as Played by Colleen Green

KINDA AS THOUGH A PART OF MY 2016-19 LP PURCHASES FORMED THEIR OWN BANDS Anunaku, Whities 024 75 Dollar Bill, I Was Real Joshua Abrams and Natural Information Society, Mandatory Reality

JUST 30 OR SO GECS Cool Fang, Sparring I’M A DEADHEAD BUT FOR STANDING ON THE CORNER SOTC Art Ensemble, SOTC Double Bass Ensemble * Merciful Allah Black Hole Theater * 4/24/19 SOTC Art Ensemble, Variation 9 * Merciful Allah Black Hole Theater * 4/27/19

SONG OF THE SPRING, SUMMER, WINTER, YEAR, STILL UNDEFEATED

[sinceileftyoublog]

Hamilton Leithauser Live Preview: 5/12, KEXP YouTube

BY JORDAN MAINZER

From his early days in The Walkmen to his solo material and collaborative album with Rostam Batmanglij, Hamilton Leithauser’s songs worked because he could elevate his sneer to a wail. That voice--equal parts sly and desperate--could both carry a tune and carry the tune, on the weight of its shoulders. His latest solo album The Loves of Your Life is instrumentally dense, his voice often layered atop a bed of prototypical barroom piano, crisp snares, and jangling guitars. Inspired by people he knew and strangers he’s come across, centered around NYC, the record succeeds at being the tight-spaced urban album it purports to be. Leithauser wrote, recorded, and mixed it in The Struggle Hut, a studio he built, and the record’s stories offer an appropriate illustration of upper-middle class interpersonal drama in the backdrop of a city. 

On string-laden, jazzy opener “The Garbage Men”, for instance, he sets the scene of the nervous, unemployed city dweller: “You say ‘I’ll find a job’ / That’s right, laughing like you do / Chewing your fingers to the bone / And spitting your nails into the pool.” He immediately contrasts this character with the title bohemian of “Isabella”, whose Manhattan rent is paid for by her parents. With fluttering vocal harmonies and falsetto, Leithauser sings of the character’s free spirit, blissfully unaware of the gentrification of where she now strolls: “Gonna waltz up Ninety Fourth Street / In a wide-eyed trance.”

As a member of The Walkmen, Leithauser always toed this line between suave appearance and a gritty undertone. His indie rock band always did the extremely late Aughts/early 2010′s thing of wearing nice-looking suits to perform, though unlike a band like The National, Leithauser was always quick to point out that they were Mossimo (Target) or Kirkland (Costco) brand. The stories on The Loves of Your Life are similarly self-aware in terms of their cheeky illustration of unsustainable wealth. He sings of days betting on stocks when working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on “Don’t Check the Score”, and of a character who similarly hides from potential problems on “Here They Come”. The people in this created world--the loves of your life, essentially--are privileged enough to be able to push their problems down the line, but unable to buy their way out of them.

It’s important to note that Leithauser doesn’t seem to be the same guy who sang, “I used to see the sights / Now I dream of the time / I was holding onto you / For a lack of anything to do.” He sings with empathy instead of spitting with anguished vitriol and plays with natural deftness. The Loves of Your Life is a family affair, recorded with the vocal harmonies of his wife Anna Stumpf (and even children Georgiana and Frederika on final track “The Old King”), along with an impressive list of non-blood-relative collaborators, including Jon Batiste. If the treble-heavy Walkmen were tight, the looseness hinted at on I Had A Dream That You Were Mine comes into full force with warm familiarity on The Loves of Your Life. A disco beat and Latin percussive flourishes fit on “Cross-Sound Ferry (Walk-On Ticket)”, while the wah wah psychedelic frills of “The Other Half” complement its ascending doo wop melodies. Leithauser could have made the same record for the rest of his life, and probably well, but he expands his palate here.

Of course, given the strength of that voice, I’m curious to hear what the tracks will sound like stripped down, Leithauser’s singing upfront, on today’s KEXP livestream performance.

[shogikappa]

I find that one of the things making me unable to sleep is stress and lack of calmness, so these days I try to listen to various kinds of relaxing music to help me calm down, ease my brain, and sleep to. Below I will describe the kinds that work for me. I started with ambient music and later moved to space ambient/space music. At first I found that music with beats too audible were just distracting for me, so I went with ambient. However I found many ambient pieces just plain boring to listen to, and while it does manage to calm my mind, I don't know about helping me sleep. I later listen to space music, which is a mind of ambient music you'd hear in some space museums or so. Moon-tone's Touhou space ambient arrangements are nice examples I listen to. Next I ventured to something with more salient beats (I also tried some of the Shadows' pieces with less salient beats, and that's an honorable mention in the realm of relaxing surf/rock n roll). Some chill/easy listening organ jazz do the trick, but not the very dancy kind of jazz. The beats are generally more gentle than more dancy music so they're a nice candidate. Doo Wop ballads are my current experimentation. Doo Wop is a genre popular in the 50s, perhaps Earth Angel and Let's Twist Again are famous examples. Ballad because slower is more relaxing. It has more salient beats perhaps at times than organ jazz, but they tend to be pretty slow. It's categorized by nonsensical backing vocals that go "doooo wop wop" and often uses the chord progression I VI IV V. My favourite Doo Wop ballad song is I Won't Stand in Your Way by Rockabilly revival band Stray Cats.

[joi-in-the-tardis]

Sweetheart ask: 8, 14, 34, 43, 73, 88, 90, 93 (I'm so glad you never seem to mind my long lists of asks, because I'm rubbish at restraining myself with them 😅)

Hahaha! Does that mean we’re just enabling each other?

8. Best trip you’ve ever been on?

I’m going to be lame and say every for-fun trip I took last year.  Both trips to WA and the one to TN were visiting with dear friends and I’m so happy I could do that.  The startling part about visiting WA was how much I did not want to leave.

I’m tacking on going to the American Museum of Natural History with my best friend and her mom.  That was definitely a highlight: somewhere I’ve always wanted to go (and will go back!) with two of my favorite people.

14. Song that makes you happy? How about one that calms you down when you’re in a bad place?

I grew up listening to 50′s and 60′s music and doo-wop drains all of the tension right out of my body.  I recently figured out that I can ask my echos to play doo wop as a station and I am one happy camper.  Dear neighbors: sorry not sorry.  I find it hard to be unhappy when I’m listening to doo-wop.

As for a song when I’m in a bad place... Soon or Never by Punch Brothers

34. Who makes you happy?

Gosh, you guys make me happy by giving me space to be me and making me feel included.  My workmates make me happy by joining in my shenanigans. My best friend makes me happy because we’re so much alike we just gel (to the point that we kinda frighten people lol but we’re too charming and disarming to be actually scary).  There are people in my life that have the most beautiful smiles and attitudes.  Just being near them makes me happy.  I am very fortunate to have so many happy people in my life.

43. Would you be a fairy, a mermaid, a vampire, a siren, a or an angel?

I think a mermaid.  Then I could hang out with all of the aquatic critters that I love so much.

73. Do you like hugs?

Hmm... I like a hug I can see coming from people I’m close to.  I despise an unexpected hug from someone I don’t know very well.  I absolutely do not like being randomly grabbed and hugged.  Touching is important for me, but it is also linked very much to trust.

88. Do you read a lot? What’s your favorite book?

I used to.  I would like to.  My attention span is not what it used to be.  I really, really enjoyed The Dresden Files series several years ago.  I read through them all in a couple months.  I’m actually considering re-reading them.

90.  What’s your favorite personality trait you have?

My child-like sense of wonder and curiosity.  I’m still wide-eyed and giggly in front of a dinosaur skeleton.  I’m in awe whenever I see the stars.  I’m enthralled by the things that could still be in the deep ocean, just waiting to be discovered.  I could sit for hours and listen to whatever fascinates someone else just so I could share that, too.  It’s the biggest thing that drew me to, and keeps me in love with, The Doctor because despite all that they’ve been through: the universe is still full of wonder and new things to know and experience.  

93. Do you worry a lot?

Eh, I’m a brooder, mostly.  Which is like worrying, I suppose.  

I think.  Overthink.  A lot.

Send me a Sweetheart Ask?

[doo-wop-city]

Neon at Night: September 1967

With the summer drawing to a close last year, we knew that a lot of the neon signs would be extinguished for a long winter’s hibernation. So, my husband Ray and I drove around and took a few pictures of the neon signs in their busy season. These photos were taken on September 15th, 1967. (…Or, was that 2023?) We just got back into town over the Rio Grande bridge, so we started with the neon Wawa…

[policeadult92-blog]

I’ll Be There For You, When You Can’t Find the Door?

Nestled within the archives of the Detroit Historical Society are a pair of surprising pop culture artifacts–copies of the draft lyrics for both the theme song of the 90s T.V. hit Friends, and for the Pointer Sisters’ 1984 single “Neutron Dance.”  The Detroit connection for these two songs may not be readily apparent to many, but if you check the sleeve of your well-worn copy of the Pointer Sister’s album Break Out, and pay close attention to the end credits of Friends, you’ll find the common factor is proud Detroit native Allee Willis.  Willis’ signature works may be her collaborations with Earth, Wind, and Fire, including their funk classic “September.”  However she has worked with a myriad of other artists, ranging from Bonnie Raitt to DMC, and Patti LeBelle to the Del Rubio Triplets.  In fact, you very well may have recently joined Willis as one of the 5,000 Detroiters who contributed their voices to her recent anthem for the city, “The D,” which she recorded over the course of five years at various events across the area, including stops at both the Detroit Historical Museum and the Dossin Great Lakes Museum.  Willis, hot on the heels of being honored with a Distinguished Detroiter award at the 2018 Detroit Music Awards, agreed to answer a couple questions for our blog about the draft lyrics, her creative process, and her other works.

On page 20, the chorus to “I’ll Be There For You” begins to shape up.

Across 27 typewritten pages, the lyrics to what eventually would become the 45-second Friends theme, “I’ll Be There For You,” reveal an involved process.  Willis began by working directly from the show’s pilot; “I watched the pilot and wrote down every characteristic of every character and then tried to make up lines about them.”   From these concepts flowed a litany of possible frustrations felt between the characters—ranging from dealing with the smells of second-hand aroma therapy to the tolls of freeloading roommates—contrasted with the now iconic affirmation of support expressed in the chorus.  Willis explained, “when you’re writing for something so specific as a TV theme you try every possible permutation of every line that you like. The only thing the producer of the show told me was that the title was to be ‘I’ll Be There for You.’ So I had at least 25 different choruses to sing for the producers with that line in it and at least 50 verses when I presented it to them.” About these unused lines, she continued, “if a line is really great and doesn’t get used in a song I catalog it and usually end up using it in something else. But the Friends lyric had to be so specific and so simple that I didn’t save any of those lines for further use.”

With Willis’ lyrics to set the tone, Friends drew millions of viewers each Thursday between 1994 and 2004.  Image courtesy imdb.com.

Reading the drafts today, there’s almost a sense of inevitability each time one of the final lyrics first appears.  Willis describes how these breakthroughs played out during the writing process; “The first line I got that I knew was a keeper was ‘Your job’s a joke, you’re broke, your love life’s DOA.’  I always liked internal rhymes, especially on long lines.  And the ‘A’ in ‘DOA’ is a great syllable to hold if the note is long. Second one I got that I knew was a keeper was ‘Well it hasn’t been your day, your week, your month or even your year.’  Something was falling apart in the lives of all the characters and I liked making a play on a common phrase.”

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In her notes, Willis mentions performing early versions of the theme for the show’s producers on the studio lot.  While reading the lyrics, it’s tempting to attempt to sing along yourself to see how these early drafts might have sounded.  When asked if these nascent versions of the theme followed the now familiar final melody, Willis responded, “The melody, written by Michael Skloff, remained the exact same from the time it was written to what we ended up with. I usually write both music and lyrics but I needed one more song to fulfill my publishing deal, which I was eager to get out of. So I agreed to just write the lyric. I never expected it to be a hit.”

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Willis’ “Neutron Dance” is widely remembered for scoring the chase through the streets of—appropriately—Detroit near the beginning of the 1984 classic Beverly Hills Cop.  However it was originally conceived for a very different movie, Walter Hill’s cult “rock & roll fable” Streets of Fire.  Befitting that film’s bleak yet musical retro-futuristic setting Willis bridged the concepts of 1950s doo-wop with nuclear devastation, and brought in a bit of her own experiences.  Willis elaborates, “I hadn’t seen Streets of Fire before writing the song but was told that people were trying to escape a nuclear holocaust. So I knew that the hook line had to have something to do with fire, explosion, or nuclear something.”

Even within that premise, Willis made the song’s themes personal and easily relatable.  She reveals, “The entire song was written in under an hour. It was very autobiographical. It was the first time in years that I had gone without hits and I wanted to write a song about not giving up and that if your life isn’t working it’s up to you to make a change. Someone could push the button tomorrow and we’d all be up in smoke so get off your ass and do something—i.e. Do the Neutron Dance. When we (co-wrote with Danny Sembello) finished the song in 58 minutes we had everything but the title.”

Willis brainstormed a series of concepts evocative of nuclear war, before settling on “Neutron Dance.”

Among the photographic reproductions of her handwritten notes, Willis included the page where she brainstormed possible titles; “As a working title we had ‘I’m just burning on the barbecue.’ I knew the ‘I’m just burning’ was right but knew ‘barbecue’ couldn’t stay, especially because the song wasn’t about barbecue. I kept wanting to use the word ‘neutron’ and was driving down the 405 freeway in LA one day and the words just popped into my head like a glowing neon sign. ‘Neutron Dance’ seemed appropriate as it got the burning point across but added some fun with the use of the word ‘dance’.”  Willis explains that the song was “thankfully rejected” from Streets of Fire, and instead recorded by the Pointer Sisters.  It was this version which made its way onto the Grammy-winning Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack.  Perhaps as an auspicious sign, in that movie, Eddie Murphy’s Axel Foley sports a t-shirt from Mumford High School, Willis’ alma mater.

Beverly Hills Cop opened with a chase through the streets of Detroit set to the Pointer Sisters’ “Neutron Dance.”  Image courtesy imdb.com.

Of course, I also had to ask Willis about the endearing legacy of “September.”  Every September 21st, the song leaps back to the forefront the popular consciousness, making its presence known both over the radio waves, and in recent years as a trending topic on social media.  Was this annual relevance by design?  And just what was the significance of that date anyway?  Willis explained, “The only thing I knew about September when I started writing it with Maurice White, who had already started the music with the Earth, Wind & Fire guitar player Al McKay, was that he wanted ‘September’ as the title. We wrote it the first day we met. We tried singing every date of the month but the 21st felt the best. I only found out a month ago from his wife, almost 40 years after the song was written, that September 21st was the due date of their son. But at that time as far as I knew it was just the date that sang the best.”

Along with the lyrics, Willis also donated copies of several records that she worked on, including this 45 of Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September” from 1978.

Last month, ahead of schedule, September became a topic of hot debate when Taylor Swift released a fiercely maligned country-tinged cover of the funk classic.  Willis was initially supportive of news of the cover, but her response became more measured upon hearing it.  Willis has promised to address the controversy in her upcoming performance, “Allee Willis Loves Detroit,” at the City Theatre on May 18th and 19th.  When asked for a hint as to how she’ll be tackling the Swift situation, Willis shrewdly responded, “For that you’re going to have to come to the show! No teasers. I will just say that the show is very very funny, stuffed with hits, filled with detailed stories about how the songs were written, I auction off stuff from my vast pop culture collection, and I guarantee it’s unlike any other songwriter show you seen before. And I talk about Taylor Swift. Prepare for a wild evening!”

Source: https://detroithistorical.wordpress.com/2018/05/18/ill-be-there-for-you-when-you-cant-find-the-door/

[detroithistoricalsociety]

I’ll Be There For You, When You Can’t Find the Door?

Nestled within the archives of the Detroit Historical Society are a pair of surprising pop culture artifacts–copies of the draft lyrics for both the theme song of the 90s T.V. hit Friends, and for the Pointer Sisters’ 1984 single “Neutron Dance.”  The Detroit connection for these two songs may not be readily apparent to many, but if you check the sleeve of your well-worn copy of the Pointer Sister’s album Break Out, and pay close attention to the end credits of Friends, you’ll find the common factor is proud Detroit native Allee Willis.  Willis’ signature works may be her collaborations with Earth, Wind, and Fire, including their funk classic “September.”  However she has worked with a myriad of other artists, ranging from Bonnie Raitt to DMC, and Patti LeBelle to the Del Rubio Triplets.  In fact, you very well may have recently joined Willis as one of the 5,000 Detroiters who contributed their voices to her recent anthem for the city, “The D,” which she recorded over the course of five years at various events across the area, including stops at both the Detroit Historical Museum and the Dossin Great Lakes Museum.  Willis, hot on the heels of being honored with a Distinguished Detroiter award at the 2018 Detroit Music Awards, agreed to answer a couple questions for our blog about the draft lyrics, her creative process, and her other works.

On page 20, the chorus to “I’ll Be There For You” begins to shape up.

Across 27 typewritten pages, the lyrics to what eventually would become the 45-second Friends theme, “I’ll Be There For You,” reveal an involved process.  Willis began by working directly from the show’s pilot; “I watched the pilot and wrote down every characteristic of every character and then tried to make up lines about them.”   From these concepts flowed a litany of possible frustrations felt between the characters—ranging from dealing with the smells of second-hand aroma therapy to the tolls of freeloading roommates—contrasted with the now iconic affirmation of support expressed in the chorus.  Willis explained, “when you’re writing for something so specific as a TV theme you try every possible permutation of every line that you like. The only thing the producer of the show told me was that the title was to be ‘I’ll Be There for You.’ So I had at least 25 different choruses to sing for the producers with that line in it and at least 50 verses when I presented it to them.” About these unused lines, she continued, “if a line is really great and doesn’t get used in a song I catalog it and usually end up using it in something else. But the Friends lyric had to be so specific and so simple that I didn’t save any of those lines for further use.”

With Willis’ lyrics to set the tone, Friends drew millions of viewers each Thursday between 1994 and 2004.  Image courtesy imdb.com.

Reading the drafts today, there’s almost a sense of inevitability each time one of the final lyrics first appears.  Willis describes how these breakthroughs played out during the writing process; “The first line I got that I knew was a keeper was ‘Your job’s a joke, you’re broke, your love life’s DOA.’  I always liked internal rhymes, especially on long lines.  And the ‘A’ in ‘DOA’ is a great syllable to hold if the note is long. Second one I got that I knew was a keeper was ‘Well it hasn’t been your day, your week, your month or even your year.’  Something was falling apart in the lives of all the characters and I liked making a play on a common phrase.”

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

In her notes, Willis mentions performing early versions of the theme for the show’s producers on the studio lot.  While reading the lyrics, it’s tempting to attempt to sing along yourself to see how these early drafts might have sounded.  When asked if these nascent versions of the theme followed the now familiar final melody, Willis responded, “The melody, written by Michael Skloff, remained the exact same from the time it was written to what we ended up with. I usually write both music and lyrics but I needed one more song to fulfill my publishing deal, which I was eager to get out of. So I agreed to just write the lyric. I never expected it to be a hit.”

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Willis’ “Neutron Dance” is widely remembered for scoring the chase through the streets of—appropriately—Detroit near the beginning of the 1984 classic Beverly Hills Cop.  However it was originally conceived for a very different movie, Walter Hill’s cult “rock & roll fable” Streets of Fire.  Befitting that film’s bleak yet musical retro-futuristic setting Willis bridged the concepts of 1950s doo-wop with nuclear devastation, and brought in a bit of her own experiences.  Willis elaborates, “I hadn’t seen Streets of Fire before writing the song but was told that people were trying to escape a nuclear holocaust. So I knew that the hook line had to have something to do with fire, explosion, or nuclear something.”

Even within that premise, Willis made the song’s themes personal and easily relatable.  She reveals, “The entire song was written in under an hour. It was very autobiographical. It was the first time in years that I had gone without hits and I wanted to write a song about not giving up and that if your life isn’t working it’s up to you to make a change. Someone could push the button tomorrow and we’d all be up in smoke so get off your ass and do something—i.e. Do the Neutron Dance. When we (co-wrote with Danny Sembello) finished the song in 58 minutes we had everything but the title.”

Willis brainstormed a series of concepts evocative of nuclear war, before settling on “Neutron Dance.”

Among the photographic reproductions of her handwritten notes, Willis included the page where she brainstormed possible titles; “As a working title we had ‘I’m just burning on the barbecue.’ I knew the ‘I’m just burning’ was right but knew ‘barbecue’ couldn’t stay, especially because the song wasn’t about barbecue. I kept wanting to use the word ‘neutron’ and was driving down the 405 freeway in LA one day and the words just popped into my head like a glowing neon sign. ‘Neutron Dance’ seemed appropriate as it got the burning point across but added some fun with the use of the word ‘dance’.”  Willis explains that the song was “thankfully rejected” from Streets of Fire, and instead recorded by the Pointer Sisters.  It was this version which made its way onto the Grammy-winning Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack.  Perhaps as an auspicious sign, in that movie, Eddie Murphy’s Axel Foley sports a t-shirt from Mumford High School, Willis’ alma mater.

Beverly Hills Cop opened with a chase through the streets of Detroit set to the Pointer Sisters’ “Neutron Dance.”  Image courtesy imdb.com.

Of course, I also had to ask Willis about the endearing legacy of “September.”  Every September 21st, the song leaps back to the forefront the popular consciousness, making its presence known both over the radio waves, and in recent years as a trending topic on social media.  Was this annual relevance by design?  And just what was the significance of that date anyway?  Willis explained, “The only thing I knew about September when I started writing it with Maurice White, who had already started the music with the Earth, Wind & Fire guitar player Al McKay, was that he wanted ‘September’ as the title. We wrote it the first day we met. We tried singing every date of the month but the 21st felt the best. I only found out a month ago from his wife, almost 40 years after the song was written, that September 21st was the due date of their son. But at that time as far as I knew it was just the date that sang the best.”

Along with the lyrics, Willis also donated copies of several records that she worked on, including this 45 of Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September” from 1978.

Last month, ahead of schedule, September became a topic of hot debate when Taylor Swift released a fiercely maligned country-tinged cover of the funk classic.  Willis was initially supportive of news of the cover, but her response became more measured upon hearing it.  Willis has promised to address the controversy in her upcoming performance, “Allee Willis Loves Detroit,” at the City Theatre on May 18th and 19th.  When asked for a hint as to how she’ll be tackling the Swift situation, Willis shrewdly responded, “For that you’re going to have to come to the show! No teasers. I will just say that the show is very very funny, stuffed with hits, filled with detailed stories about how the songs were written, I auction off stuff from my vast pop culture collection, and I guarantee it’s unlike any other songwriter show you seen before. And I talk about Taylor Swift. Prepare for a wild evening!”

I’ll Be There For You, When You Can’t Find the Door? Nestled within the archives of the Detroit Historical Society are a pair of surprising pop culture artifacts--copies of the draft lyrics for both…

[billandteds]

10 and 12 for the romantic asks! 💕💞

10. what are your go-to love songs?

oh!! i’ll admit that i have quite a few of these (i have many private and unprivated playlists on the subject), but some off the top of my head are romeo and juliet - dire straits, i wanna be your lover - the cascades, can’t take my eyes off you - frankie valli, every breath you take - the police, i feel fine - the beatles, your song - elton john (i’m convinced that this is one of the best ballads i’ll ever hear), san francisco - the mowgli’s, junk of the heart (happy) - the kooks, earth angel - the penguins, hold my girl - george ezra, endlessly - the cab, love you madly - cake, earth angel - the penguins, end of the day - one direction and so on… i really could go on so if anyone wants to hear me talk about my exhaustive list of gushy tunes pls ask.. i tried to vary all of these in terms of style etc so hopefully there’s something for everyone, from 50s doo-wop to 90s alt rock to the indie music of today. let me know if anyone likes any of these!! the types of love they talk about are different too, not all are exuberant happiness. and i thought it best to leave out the orchestral stuff 💕

12. what would be your ideal date?

oh……. going into london is lovely, maybe if the other person took me to a gallery or a museum they really love or something?? or if we could go to the library and pick out books for each other or tell stories that the stories in front of us inspire. or just !!! anything. anything at all: i have a habit of not much minding what i do with a person as long as we’re laughing or discovering things about each other. even just a mad battle in mario kart could be perfect. perhaps trying something they never before have. anything so long as we’re both in the moment. i’ve always said fairgrounds would woo me. preferably anywhere in a cold place where we have to duck into a coffee shop in order to warm up because we’re starting to see our breath in the air and laughing becomes uncannily similar to an old cupboard coughing out its dust. something to give a shared experience. 

[trascapades]

🎙🎶 #ArtIsAWeapon #HipHopHeads! The @uhhmuseum Universal Hip Hop Museum & @njpac @soundsofthecity_ present #EPMD celebrating the 30th anniversary of their album "Strictly Business," tomorrow July 19. Also featuring music by Mixtape King Doo Wop, @brusewane and DJ twins @djsamiraandkayla, hosted by @busybeedaoriginalbb. Free. SHOWTIME 5PM SHARP!! 1 CENTER STREET, NEWARK NJ #njpac #freeconcert #UHHM #hiphop #epmd #strictlybusiness #hiphopculture #music #dance #peace #love #unity #celebration #hiphopheads #soundsofthecity #outdoorconcert #universalhiphopmuseum #TraScapades #ArtIsAWeapon (at NJPAC / Center Street)

[1962dude420-blog]

Today we remember the passing of Ritchie Havens who Died: April 22, 2013 in Jersey City, New Jersey

Richard Pierce Havens was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music encompassed elements of folk, soul, and rhythm and blues. He had an intense and rhythmic guitar style (often in open tunings), and played soulful covers of pop and folk songs. He was the opening act at Woodstock.

Born in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, Havens was the oldest of nine children. He was of Native American (Blackfoot) descent on his father's side and of the British West Indies on his mother's. His grandfather was Blackfoot of the Montana/South Dakota area.

Havens's grandfather and great-uncle joined Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show, moved to New York City thereafter, and settled on the Shinnecock Reservation on Long Island. Havens's grandfather married, then moved to Brooklyn.

As a youth, Havens began organizing his neighborhood friends into a street corner doo-wop group. At age 16, he was performing with the McCrea Gospel Singers.

Havens' live performances earned widespread notice. His Woodstock appearance in 1969 catapulted him into stardom and was a major turning point in his career. Despite Havens' recollection that he performed for nearly three hours, the actual recording and setlist reflect that he played about fifty minutes. Havens recalled that he was told to continue playing because many artists scheduled to perform after him were delayed in reaching the festival location with highways at a virtual standstill. Havens recalled being called back for several encores. At the end of his set, Havens improvised a song based on the old spiritual "Motherless Child" that became "Freedom".

In an interview with Cliff Smith, for Music-Room, he explained: I'd already played every song I knew and I was stalling, asking for more guitar and mic, trying to think of something else to play – and then it just came to me ... The establishment was foolish enough to give us all this freedom and we used it in every way we could.

The subsequent Woodstock movie release helped Havens reach a worldwide audience. He also appeared two weeks later at the Isle of Wight Festival, in late August 1969.

Following the success of his Woodstock performance, Havens started his own record label, Stormy Forest, and released Stonehenge in 1970. Later that year came Alarm Clock, which included the George Harrison–penned hit single, "Here Comes the Sun". This was Havens's first album to reach Billboard's Top 30 Chart. Stormy Forest went on to release four more of his albums: The Great Blind Degree (1971), Live On Stage (1972), Portfolio (1973), and Mixed Bag II (1974). Memorable television appearances included performances on The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. On the latter program, the audience reacted with such enthusiasm that, when the applause continued even after the commercial break, Carson asked Havens to return the following night.

Havens also began acting during the 1970s. He was featured in the original 1972 stage presentation of The Who's Tommy, as Othello in the 1974 film Catch My Soul, in Greased Lightning alongside Richard Pryor, and in Bob Dylan's Hearts of Fire.

Havens increasingly devoted his energies to educating young people about ecological issues. In the mid-1970s, he co-founded the Northwind Undersea Institute, an oceanographic children's museum on City Island in The Bronx, New York City. That, in turn, led to the creation of the Natural Guard, an organization Havens described as "...a way of helping kids learn that they can have a hands-on role in affecting the environment. Children study the land, water, and air in their own communities and see how they can make positive changes from something as simple as planting a garden in an abandoned lot."

In July 1978, he was a featured performer at the Benefit Concert for The Longest Walk, an American Indian spiritual walk from Alcatraz to Washington, D.C. affirming treaty rights, as a result of legislation that had been introduced to abrogate Indian treaties.

In 2000, Havens teamed with the electronic music duo Groove Armada for the retro 1970s-style song, "Hands of Time". The song was featured on the soundtrack of the film Collateral; that song was also used in the films Domino, A Lot Like Love, Tell No One and in the Cold Case episodes The Badlands & Street Money. Havens was also featured on "Little By Little" and "Healing" on the band's third album, Goodbye Country.

In 2000, he published They Can't Hide Us Anymore, an autobiography co-written with Steve Davidowitz. Havens maintained his status as a folk icon and continued to tour. In 2002 he sang, uncredited, Dylan's "The Times They Are a Changin'" in the TV series The West Wing (Season 4, Episode 7). Also in 2002, he released Wishing Well, followed by the 2004 album Grace of the Sun.

In 2003, the National Music Council awarded Havens the American Eagle Award for his place as part of America's musical heritage and for providing "a rare and inspiring voice of eloquence, integrity and social responsibility."

On October 15, 2006, Havens was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame.

In 2007, Havens appeared as "Old Man Arvin" in the Todd Haynes film I'm Not There. In a front-porch jam scene, he is shown singing the Bob Dylan song "Tombstone Blues" with Marcus Carl Franklin and Tyrone Benskin. Havens' version of the song also appears on the I'm Not There soundtrack. In February 2008, Havens performed at The Jazz Café in London.

On April 22, 2013, Havens died of a heart attack at the age of 72. The BBC referred to him as a "Woodstock icon", while Stephen Stills of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young said Havens "could never be replicated". The Daily Telegraph stated Havens "made an indelible mark on contemporary music", while Douglas Martin of The New York Times reported that Havens had "riveted Woodstock".

Pursuant to Havens's request, he was cremated, and his ashes were scattered from the air over the original site of the Woodstock Festival, in a ceremony held on August 18, 2013, the 44th anniversary of the festival's last day.

Havens was survived by his wife Nancy, three children, five grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Richie Havens among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.