Friday, November 29, 2013

Charles Bradley released “Changes”

Changes

Charles Bradley

Writer(s): Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Bill Ward (see lyrics here)


Released: November 29, 2013


First Charted: --


Peak: -- (Click for codes to singles charts.)


Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US + UK)


Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 19.2 video, -- streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

I’m a sucker for a good cover. It’s even better if the performer seems to be from such a different genre that one can’t imagine how he or she was even exposed to the song. When it comes to that criteria, it’s hard to outdo an obscure soul singer opting to cover a heavy metal song by none other than the kings of the genre – Black Sabbath.

Black Sabbath originally released the song “Changes” on their 1972 album Vol. 4. The song was a rare foray into ballad territory for the band. Guitarist Tony Iommi reportedly stayed up all night snorting cocaine SF and composed the song’s piano melody while experimenting in the studio WK1 learning to play piano. SF Bassist Geezer Butler added lyrics inspired by drummer Bill Ward’s split with his wife. The band’s singer, Ozzy Osbourne, has called the song “heartbreaking” and critic Barney Hoskyns described it as “forlornly pretty.” WK1

In 2003, Ozzy recorded the song again as a duet with his daughter, Kelly. The song with some revised lyrics about a father and daughter drifting apart, SF reached #1 in the UK. Critics weren’t as enamored with their version. In a 2009 Village Voice article, it was ranked one o the worst songs of the decade. WK1

A decade later, soul singer Charles Bradley recorded a version which was released as a single on Record Story Day Black Friday. He said, “That song is very emotional to me. I didn’t want to learn that song…but…the story…made me think about talking with my mother, bonding…The last 12 years of her life, she actually told me things that got me stronger.” SF

Kitty Empire of The Observer compared Bradley’s voice to Al Green WK2 while Pop Matters’ Steve Horowitz called him “the closest living equivalent to [James] Brown.” WK2 The song was featured as the theme song for Big Mouth, an animated Netflix series and appeared in the first season of Big Little Lies, an HBO series. WK2


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First posted 5/7/2020; last updated 7/17/2022.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Idina Menzel “Let It Go” released

Let It Go

Idina Menzel

Writer(s): Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez (see lyrics here)


Released: November 25, 2013


First Charted: December 4, 2013


Peak: 5 US, 47 RR, 9 AC, 20 A40, 11 UK, 18 CN, 16 AU, 8 DF (Click for codes to charts.)


Sales (in millions): 9.0 US, 2.4 UK, 14.38 world (includes US + UK)


Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 4889.02 video, 665.92 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

The Disney animated movie Frozen earned more than a billion dollars on its way to becoming not just the highest-grossing film of 2013, but (at least for a time) the highest-grossing animated film of all time. The soundtrack also did astonishing well, spending thirteen weeks atop the Billboard album chart and selling four million copies.

Idina Menzel provided the voice of the character Queen Elsa in the movie and sang “Let It Go,” which became the film’s inescapable hit. The husband-and-wife songwriting team of Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez wrote the song with her in mind, calling her “one of the most glorious voices of Broadway and an icon in musical theater.” WK

In terms of the context of the song, they wanted a song that presented Elsa as someone coming to terms with her gift instead of as a villain. In the movie, Elsa sings the song after she loses control of her ability to generate ice. She rejoices that her secret is now out and she can use her power freely and shed the expectations others have of her as a queen. WK Menzel described the song, saying, “It’s about finding that thing that makes you different that’s going to make you special and extraordinary.” SF

While Menzel was a Tony-winning Broadway actress, she wasn’t a known entity in the world of pop music. The plan had been to release a pop version of the song by Demi Lovato (as performed over the film’s closing credits). However, it was Mendel’s version which took off and became what The Boston Globe’s Yvonne Abraham called “musical crack” which “sends kids into altered states.” WK Menzel became the first Tony winner to reach the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100. It was the first Disney song in nearly two decades to reach the top ten. The last time had been Vanessa Williams with “Colors of the Wind” from Pocahontas in 1995.

The song won the Oscar for Best Song as well as a Grammy for Best Song Written for Visual Media. The song made writer Robert Lopez a member of the exclusive EGOT club for people who had won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony.


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First posted 8/16/2023.

Sunday, November 24, 2013

American Music Awards 2013

image from neontommy.com

Here are the 2013 winners from the American Music Awards:

  • Artist of the Year: Taylor Swift
  • Icon Award: Rihanna
  • New Artist of the Year: Ariana Grande
  • Single of the Year: Florida Georgia Line with Nelly “Cruise”
  • Top Soundtrack: Pitch Perfect

Cruise

POP/ROCK

  • Favorite Male Artist : Justin Timberlake
  • Favorite Female Artist : Taylor Swift
  • Favorite Band, Duo or Group : One Direction
  • Favorite Album: One Direction Take Me Home

COUNTRY

  • Favorite Male Artist : Luke Bryan
  • Favorite Female Artist : Taylor Swift
  • Favorite Band, Duo or Group : Lady Antebellum
  • Favorite Album: Taylor Swift Red

SOUL/R&B

  • Favorite Male Artist : Justin Timberlake
  • Favorite Female Artist : Rihanna
  • Favorite Album: Justin Timberlake The 20/20 Experience

RAP/HIP-HOP

  • Favorite Artist : Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
  • Favorite Album: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis The Heist

FAVORITE ARTISTS – OTHER GENRES

  • Alternative Rock: Imagine Dragons
  • Latin: Marc Anthony
  • Electronic Dance Music (EDM): Avicii
  • Adult Contemporary: Maroon 5
  • Contemporary Inspirational: Matthew West


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Friday, November 22, 2013

50 years ago: The Beatles released With the Beatles

First posted 4/7/2008; updated 9/19/2020.

With the Beatles

The Beatles


Released: November 22, 1963


Peak: -- US, 121 UK, -- CN, -- AU


Sales (in millions): -- US, 1. 0 UK, 1.0 world (includes US and UK)


Genre: pop/rock


Tracks:

Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. You can check out the Beatles’ complete singles discography here.

  1. It Won’t Be Long [2:13]
  2. All I’ve Got to Do [2:02]
  3. All My Loving [2:07] (3/28/64, 45 US, 1 CN, 1 AU)
  4. Don’t Bother Me (George Harrison) [2:28]
  5. Little Child [1:46]
  6. Till There Was You (Meredith Wilson) [2:14]
  7. Please Mr. Postman (Georgia Dobbins/William Garrett/Freddie Gorman/Brian Holland/Robert Bateman) [2:34]
  8. Roll Over Beethoven (Chuck Berry) [2:45] (3/21/64, 68 US)
  9. Hold Me Tight [2:32]
  10. You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me (Smokey Robinson) [3:01]
  11. I Wanna Be Your Man [1:59]
  12. Devil in Her Heart (Richard Drapkin) [2:26]
  13. Not a Second Time [2:07]
  14. Money (That’s What I Want) (Janie Bradford/Berry Gordy) [2:49]

Songs by John Lennon and Paul McCartney unless noted otherwise.


Total Running Time: 33:07


The Players:

  • John Lennon (vocals, guitar)
  • Paul McCartney (vocals, bass)
  • George Harrison (guitar, vocals)
  • Ringo Starr (drums, vocals)

Rating:

4.163 out of 5.00 (average of 23 ratings)


Quotable: “This is the one that turned the world upside-down…With the Beatles both affirmed promise and proclaimed genius” – CdUniverse.com


Awards for With the Beatles:

Meet the Beatles

The Beatles


Released: January 20, 1964


Peak: 111 US, -- UK, 1 CN, -- AU


Sales (in millions): 5.7 US, -- UK, 7.0 world (includes US and UK)


Genre: pop/rock


Tracks on Meet the Beatles:

Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. You can check out the Beatles’ complete singles discography here.

  1. I Want to Hold Your Hand (11/29/63, 1 US, 1 UK, 1 CN, 1 AU, sales: 4 million)
  2. I Saw Her Standing There [2:55] (1/13/64, 14 US, 1 CN, 1 AU, gold single)
  3. This Boy (11/29/63, B-side of “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” 53 US, 10 CN)
  4. It Won’t Be Long [2:13]
  5. All I’ve Got to Do [2:02]
  6. All My Loving [2:07] (3/28/64, 45 US, 1 CN, 1 AU)
  7. Don’t Bother Me (George Harrison) [2:28]
  8. Little Child [1:46]
  9. Till There Was You (Meredith Wilson) [2:14]
  10. Hold Me Tight [2:32]
  11. I Wanna Be Your Man [1:59]
  12. Not a Second Time [2:07]

Songs by John Lennon and Paul McCartney unless noted otherwise.


Total Running Time: 26:43


The Players:

  • John Lennon (vocals, guitar)
  • Paul McCartney (vocals, bass)
  • George Harrison (guitar, vocals)
  • Ringo Starr (drums, vocals)

Rating for Meet the Beatles:

4.618 out of 5.00 (average of 5 ratings)


Awards for Meet the Beatles:

The Beatles’ Second Album

The Beatles


Released: April 10, 1964


Peak: 15 US, -- UK, 1 CN, -- AU


Sales (in millions): 2.0 US, -- UK, 3.0 world (includes US and UK)


Genre: pop/rock


Tracks on The Beatles’ Second Album:

Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. You can check out the Beatles’ complete singles discography here.

  1. Roll Over Beethoven (Chuck Berry) [2:45] (3/21/64, 68 US)
  2. Thank You Girl [2:01] (4/12/63, B-side of “From Me to You,” 35 US)
  3. You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me (Smokey Robinson) [3:01]
  4. Devil in Her Heart (Richard Drapkin) [2:26]
  5. Money (That’s What I Want) (Janie Bradford/Berry Gordy) [2:49]
  6. You Can’t Do That [2:39] (3/16/64, B-side of “Can’t Buy Me Love,” 48 US, gold single)
  7. Long Tall Sally (Enotris Johnson, Richard Penniman, Robert Blackwell) [2:00] (6/19/64, Long Tall Sally EP, 1 CN)
  8. I Call Your Name [2:09] (6/19/64, Long Tall Sally EP, 1 CN)
  9. Please Mr. Postman (Georgia Dobbins/William Garrett/Freddie Gorman/Brian Holland/Robert Bateman) [2:34]
  10. I’ll Get You [2:05]
  11. She Loves You [2:20] (8/29/63, 1 US, 1 UK, 1 CN, 3 AU)

Songs by John Lennon and Paul McCartney unless noted otherwise.


Total Running Time: 26:43


The Players:

  • John Lennon (vocals, guitar)
  • Paul McCartney (vocals, bass)
  • George Harrison (guitar, vocals)
  • Ringo Starr (drums, vocals)

Rating:

4.217 out of 5.00 (average of 9 ratings)

About With the Beatles:

”This is the one that turned the world upside-down. Released as its creators evolved from pop group to phenomenon, With the Beatles both affirmed promise and proclaimed genius.” CDU While it shares “several similarities with its predecessor – there is an equal ratio of covers-to-originals, a familiar blend of girl group, Motown, R&B, pop, and rock, and a show tune that interrupts the flow of the album,” STE the album “is a sequel of the highest order – one that betters the original by developing its own tone and adding depth.” STE This time around, The Beatles demonstrated a “growing toughness,” SP With the Beatles “not only rocks harder, it's considerably more sophisticated.” STE

“The heart of [the album] lies…in…the originals” STE which “are well-crafted and tuneful.” DBW “No band in the history of rock music can boast…sing[ing] harmony like these guys…Those nasal, working-class accents just manage to melt into some of the most beautiful combinations of notes ever.” DC ”The Lennon-McCartney writing team was gathering steam and beginning to knock out pop classics as if they were pulling them out of thin air.” AZ “A slew of memorable…compositions embraced pop at its most multi-faceted, robust, melancholic, excited, and wistful.” CDU The group “had acquired a unique sound in the blend of John's and Paul's voices, while George was coming on by leaps and bounds as a guitar player.” AZ “It was clear that, even at this early stage, the Beatles were rapidly maturing and changing, turning into expert craftsmen and musical innovators.” STE

“They could deliver rock & roll straight [such as on] I Wanna Be Your Man,” STE which “is a good original Beatles’ song [with] a decent energetic Ringo vocal.” AD After “observing the tremendous audience response that Ringo [got] whenever he [sang] ‘Boys’, John and Paul…pen[ned this] new number” TB with Ringo in mind. It was also a song “which Rolling Stones' manager Andrew Loog Oldham had coaxed from the band earlier.” DC

It Won't Be Long is one of the album’s “propulsive rockers.” STE It “is a Beatle-mania crowd-pleaser” AD “with it's yeah yeah yeah's” GA and is “unremarkable musically but fairly remarkable vocally, especially the swoon-some harmony at the end.” AD

They could also “twist it around with a little Latin lilt [such as on]Little Child, one of their most underrated early rockers” STE that “makes good use of the harmonica.” AD

All My Loving, a “sprightly pop/rocker,” STE “is about as good a song as the Beatles have ever released. It has one of those Beatlesque melodies that is sure to stick in your head for a long time.” GA “The little country guitar break in the middle is delightful. It shows The Beatles beginning to think a little more about their songs, even at this early stage.” AD

There were also “richly melodic…slower songs [such as] Not a Second Time,” STE which “benefits from piano in the mix.” AD

That song and “sweet ballads [like] the achingly gorgeous All I've Got to Do,” STE showcased “great Lennon vocals.” DBW This is “a semi-successful attempt at rewriting the Burt Bacharach/Hal David song ‘Baby It's You’ which they covered on Please Please Me.” GA It “has a nice structure about it [and] it's a good song that shows practice makes, if not perfect, then at least a little better than before.” AD

”The midtempo pop number Don't Bother Me,” GA which is George Harrison’s first contribution, ”is a standout, with its wonderfully foreboding minor-key melody.” STE

Since the Beatles covered so much ground with their originals, their covers pale slightly in comparison, particularly since they rely on familiar hits.” STE Only Devil in Her Heart by American all-girl group The Donays TB “qualifies as a forgotten gem.” STE Still, “the band was always remarkably competent even when covering the most vapid material” JA and, after all, “the group always turns in thoroughly enjoyable performances.” STE

There are a couple of “high-energy 50s rock 'n' rollers” JA like Roll Over Beethoven, “a surprisingly stiff reading,” STE in which “Harrison does a dead-on Chuck Berry guitar lick,” GA and Money (That's What I Want), which “is slightly bizarre with its jazzy parts and all, but once John lets his vocals loose, you're slightly pinned back to the wall.” AD

The Beatles also cover a couple of modern R&B hits “such as Lennon's soaring interpretation” STE of You Really Got a Hold on Me, originally recorded by The Miracles. “The guitars are less to the fore varying the sound of the album when it needed a little sonic variation. Piano comes in (played by George Martin apparently)” AD and ”with able backup singing by McCartney and Harrison [the song is] out of the stratosphere.” GA

The Beatles complete a trilogy of Motown covers (“Money” and “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me” being the other two), with their “playful” GA version of The Marvelettes’ Please Mister Postman. They “try to replicate those girl group harmonies, and actually do an ok job. John's double-tracked lead vocal is pretty strong.” AD

Paul does a “respectable job” GA on the “endearing” cover of Till There Was You, “the near-standard hit from the show The Music Man.” TB It “is a lovely lilting Spanish flavoured song” AD that demonstrates how the Beatles “listened to a lot of different kinds of music to come up with their unique sound.” GA

With the Beatles freed artists to record their own material, and the course of pop was irrevocably changed.” CDU “This album successfully shows a band with plenty of talent and charisma. It is a testament to the Beatles that one of their lesser albums is this good.” GA “This is probably the best document of the Beatles as high-energy, three-guitar rock and roll band.” DBW


About Meet the Beatles:

Vee-Jay Records had released Introducing the Beatles, its version of the Beatles’ UK debut Please Please Me, and went largely unnoticed until Beatlemania hit American shores in the beginning of 1964. That meant that Meet the Beatles, Capitol Records’ version of With the Beatles, was the true introduction to the Beatles for most Americans.

While it was common practice in the UK to treat singles and albums as separate entities, American audiences wanted the hits on the albums. Most notably that meant adding I Want to Hold Your Hand, the song that launched Beatlemania in the United States. That also meant adding This Boy, the original B-side of the UK single, and I Saw Her Standing There, the B-side in the U.S. and a cut from Please Please Me.

To meet demand for shorter running times for albums, that also meant excising five cover songs from the original UK album – “Please Mr. Postman,” “Roll Over Beethoven,” “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me,” “Devil in Her Heart,” and “Money (That’s What I Want).”


About The Beatles’ Second Album:

Those five songs found their way on to the next American release, The Beatles’ Second Album, which also gathered the She Loves You / I’ll Get You single and two cuts from the Long Tall Sally EP – the title song and I Call Your Name.

Chopping up the original UK album actually made for two more unified albums. Meet the Beatles focused more on original material while The Beatles’ Second Album was centered around covers which had largely already become rock-n-roll standards.

In 2004, the Capitol Records Vol. 1 box set gathered the U.S. albums Meet the Beatles, The Beatles’ Second Album, Something New, and Beatles ‘65 on CD for the first time.

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