A Measure In Time

I have always enjoyed music by Chaka Khan. From her days with Rufus singing, “Tell Me Something Good”, and “Sweet Thing”, to her early solo career, “Ain’t Nobody”, and a little later with the infamous Prince-penned, “I Feel For You”, the blazing, “Through The Fire”, and another of my favorites, “Love Of A Lifetime”. So it is no surprise to me that I am really digging her 2007, Funk This.

Funk This is just a fantastic CD from start to finish. The Queen of Funk Soul with her contralto voice simply rip up some of the greatest funk I have heard in a while. Just listen to duet “Disrespectful” featuring Mary J. Blige. Two of the most powerful female voices in R&B today, warning a lover under no uncertain terms that he better watch his Ps and Qs if he is going to remain a part of her life, in a way that only these two incredibly-voiced women could do.

Even though the ballad, “Angel” was one of the two released singles along with “Disrespectful”, so many other tracks stand out as incredibly strong and simply wonderful whether Chaka is singing her own background vocals or whether she has harmonic assistance by others including her own daughter, Indira Khan.

Check out the great duet with former Doobie Brother, Michael McDonald, on “You Belong To Me”, or Chaka’s rendition of Prince’s “Sign ‘O’ The Times” with the echoes of “I’m Every Woman” near the end - a song that must touch close to home for Chaka with all of her work with The Chaka Khan Foundation. Or even her take on Jimi Hendrix’s, “Castles Made Of Sand” with impressive guitar by Jesse Johnson. The opening track, “Back In The Day” features a raw Chaka voice reminiscing the past, while my favorite track remains, “Will You Love Me?” with its solid harmony backing vocals and its funky beat .

I was surprised to see that the producers of this CD were no less than Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis - two names I hadn’t seen in quite some time and well known for their successful producing of work in the 1980s most noticeably Janet Jackson and trumpeter, Herb Alpert. Not to mention their days as members of The Time with frontman Morris Day. The expertise of these two obviously helped to make Funk This the excellent CD that it is.

Its rare that I like a CD from start to finish and even more rare when it is of the soul, R&B, or funk genres, but I cannot rave enough about Chaka Khan’s latest. It will not disappoint!

Check out this phenomenal lady’s website at:

www.chakakhan.com

Her personal foundation, The Chaka Khan Foundation, was created to assist women and children at risk with a special focus on education and kids with autism.

www.chakakhanfoundation.org/

Thanks, Chaka, for helping people get through the fire, and for keeping alive the soulful funk that only you do so well.

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One of my brothers recently made some nice comments on my blog about some posts that he had read. I should probably mention that he, and another brother, are die hard Michigan State University fans. Upon reading my blog on October 31st regarding Halloween songs, the mention of Michael Jackson’s infamous “Thriller” prompted him to send me a link to a YouTube video featuring the MSU marching band.

The music video that accompanied Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” back in 1983 is so well known and easily recognizable that many a person in my age group knows the Thriller zombie dance move for move (alas, I am not one of them). I remember once watching a friend and her two siblings flawlessly recreate all of the dance moves from the video at a party!

Lo and behold, Michigan State University’s awesome marching band not only plays “Thriller”, but listen as the crowd goes crazy while the band members, as a whole, recreate the famous moves from the Jackson video.

There are many truly great university marching bands out there, and I give them lots of credit for not only being able to play their instruments well, but also for the athleticism that it takes to be a marching band member. But when a marching band can really tap into something that so many people can relate to and recognize, you have a real winning combination.

This is yet another example of the strong influence of music and how big a part it plays in our lives.

Kudos to the Spartan Marching Band (SMB) for the fun they created that day, for their performance excellence, and to the talented individuals that make up the 300 member team.

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Nikka Costa has been singing since she was a young girl. The lively redhead released a version of “(Out Here) On My Own” of Fame fame in Italy when she was 9-years-old back in 1981. You can even hear a sample of her youthful singing on her 2001 Everybody Got Their Something CD with the brief filler track, “Nikka Who?”.

The now 36-year-old daughter of the late arranger, Don Costa, had been releasing music internationally since that young age and only had her first U.S. release with the successful, Everybody Got Their Something. She just released her third American CD, Pebble To A Pearl in October of 2008.

I recently had the opportunity to listen to her second U.S. release from 2005, Can’tneverdidnothin’ .

Nikka’s singing style, ever since her hit “Like A Feather” from 7 years ago, seems to me to have an energy reminiscent of Janis Joplin although Nikka’s voice is a lot less smoke and whiskey laced. And with Can’tneverdidnothin ‘, I found myself thinking that some tracks had the laid back funk style of the music similar to Prince revolutionaries, Wendy and Lisa. (Just listen to the chorus of “Around The World” and tell me that you don’t hear the influence of these underrated talents. Very funky - not to mention the sleigh bells in the background.) Imagine my surprise when I discovered that not only was Wendy Melvoin playing an awesome rockin’ guitar on opening track “Till I Get To You” (definitely a new way to consider the alphabet!), but that Prince, himself was present on several tracks, uncredited. It is said that his guitar playing can be heard near the end of the “Around The World” track, and it sure sounds like His Royal Purpleness.

Also present on Nikka’s second American release is Lenny Kravitz. Lenny is credited on a few tracks for drums and bass.

The very simply created and performed final track, “Fatherless Child” conveys the heartbreak of a woman who had lost her father (Don Costa died in 1983 of a heart attack when Nikka was 10-years-old) and you can almost hear Nikka’s voice crack as she sings the line, “…and I’ll try to make you proud…”.

By far, my favorite track is a cover of Ailene Bullock’s (sister of Tina Turner), “Funkier Than A Mosquita’s Tweeter”. The song begins with percussion performed by musicians Satnam Ramgotra and David Chegwidden that makes you think you are beginning to listen to an Eastern influenced jam. The real party begins around 2 minutes into the song as drums and guitar kick in while Nikka chews out the subject at hand. Towards the end is a brass infusion that tops off this jam like a pair of cherries on an already delicious sundae.

I look forward to hearing Nikka’s latest, Pebble To A Pearl. She just keeps getting better and better!

Keep tabs on this great musician at her official website.

www.nikkacosta.com

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While listening to the Fuel Records CD entitled, “An Introduction To Django Reinhardt”, I am being treated to some wonderful, swinging jazz played by the late Belgian Gypsy guitarist along with some of his fellow musicians. Django’s style of playing represented what I consider true smooth jazz - not the R&B or soul that is called smooth jazz these days. For folks who are already Django fans, his mastery of the guitar is not news, but perhaps this inspiring musician is news to some of my readers.

Jean “Django” Reinhardt was born in Belgium in 1910 but spent much of his life in France and became a player of guitar, banjo, and the violin. In his late teens, he survived a house fire that left him seriously injured, including first and second degree burns, some of which damaged the third and fourth fingers of his left hand. Refusing to let the injuries stop him from playing, Django learned to play all of his solo guitar work with the first and second fingers of his left hand while the two damaged fingers were taught to play chord work.

Django formed a quintet, Quintette du Hot Club de France, that featured among its members, Django’s brother, Joseph Reinhardt on rhythm guitar, and a long time collaborator, violinist Stephane Grappelli.

As a sometime guitarist myself, I was curious to see how Django compensated for the loss of the use of all four fingers to play his left hand solo work.

The way Django’s fingers fly over the neck of his guitar at around the 1:20 minute mark absolutely amazes me! With four capable playing fingers on my own left hand, I cannot play nearly as fast or as smooth as this guitar legend!

Django played a number of other composer’s compositions during his years as a guitarist, but he also composed many works of his own. One of the most notable is a song entitled, “Nuages” (the word for “clouds” in French). A lovely slow-swing, almost haunting song. You can almost imagine yourself lying on a patch of grass somewhere, looking up at the blue sky as the clouds roll by.

Another Reinhardt piece, “Belleville” (a piece in which he plays electric guitar) reminds me of the style of music played in the 2003 animated French film, The Triplets of Belleville. The film actually featured a caricature of Django playing guitar with a band during the opening musical number, “Belleville Rendez-vous” .

Django was just as comfortable playing a nylon-stringed classical guitar as well as an electric guitar (even though the electric version was not as quickly embraced by his fans).

The Fuel Records collection of Django’s playing is truly a treat to listen to, and a great introduction to this legendary player.

Django passed away in 1953 at the age of 43 due to a brain hemorrhage. One of his sons, Babik, was also a notable guitarist (who passed away in 2001).

I think that Django contributed to the world of music double fold. The music that he left behind has been inspiring to any number of players. Sons have been name after him and songs have been written as a tribute to him. But Django is also an inspiration to anyone who wishes to play music who may have suffered a loss due to some accident or who may have some other disability that may make their ability to play more difficult or require some unique change of playing method.

Music is a powerful passion for many people, and when you have that incredible passion for music, nothing will stop you from playing…

…short of a brain hemorrhage.

Thank you, Django!

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Often associated with the sounds of Christmas, (or that cute Hershey’s Kisses commercial that you see around the holidays), handbell choirs are definitely a team effort. Having belonged to two handbell choirs back in the 1990s, I had the pleasure of creating some of the most beautiful sounds along with a group (or two, in my experience) of like-minded individuals. I say like-minded in the sense that not only do you really need to pay attention to when your four notes occur (two naturals and two accidentals usually - sometimes more if you play the smaller bells and play two in each hand), but you need to be very aware of the players around you and the musical score itself. As a member of a handbell choir, you are a part of a musical team.

When you play a single instrument like the piano, guitar, or violin, you are responsible for that instrument in its entirety on your own. As a member of a handbell choir, it is as if you all are playing one massive instrument with multiple “controls” and each “control” is a crucial part of the final product (the song). If you fail to play when your notes appear in the scored music, it affects the entire performance by the team.

Handbells first came to the United States in 1902, and the majority of the bronze instruments used by choirs today in the States are manufactured in Pennsylvania.

There are many playing techniques that are used besides the most common which is a simple sway/swing-like forward ringing of the bell. Bells can be malleted, plucked, shook, etc. to create different sounds and affects. I can remember playing a particular passage in a piece of music where all of the players manually plucked the clappers inside the bells creating a staccato affect that was quite cool!

You can read a lot about the playing techniques, origins, and characteristics of handbells at the Wikipedia website.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handbell

Without a doubt, when it came to playing holiday music with the handbell choirs I participated in, my favorite piece to play was “Carol Of The Bells” composed by Ukranian composer, Mykola Dmytrovych Leontovych. (Many might know “Carol Of The Bells” thanks to a more modern version as performed by Trans-Siberian Orchestra with its rocking electric guitar and high energy.)

I was trying to find a decent clip from the YouTube website to demonstrate a handbell choir playing “Carol Of The Bells”, and although the sound quality seemed poor on many of them (maybe due to the difficulty in recording such a unique instrument), the clip I am including here is impressive in that the performance of the piece is very good, and they utilize the playing technique of plucking the bells very well in this performance.

There are many communities and church handbell choirs throughout the country and often times they are accepting new members. Joining a handbell choir is an excellent group function, a great way to participate in your community, and an excellent resource to improve your musical skills. And it just feels good to play! If you prefer to be a spectator, support your local handbell choirs and try to appreciate the work behind what you are seeing.

(I think I hear some ringing in my ears…)

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I came across a CD one day by a singer named, Cesária Évora. I picked up this CD because the titles of several of the songs appeared to be in Portuguese and I have a special love for Brazilian music and thought that Ms. Évora was perhaps a Brazilian singer. After conducting some research, and listening to the language being sung on the CD, “Säo Vicente Di Longe”, I discovered that not only is Ms. Évora not Brazilian, but from the Republic of Cape Verde, and the language that she sings is what is called, Cape Verdean Creole.

Cape Verdean Creole sounds like Portuguese, as Portuguese is the native language of Cape Verde, but Portuguese is used in more formal aspects of communication and Cape Verdean Creole tends to be what is spoken “on the streets”. It is a somewhat more simplified style of Portuguese in which there is some dispute as to its origin. You can read more about the language of Cape Verdean Creole at the Wikipedia website.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Verdean_Creole

That being said, I have read that Cesária Évola, or “the barefoot diva” as she has been dubbed due to her preference to perform with no shoes on, specializes in a form of musical song, sung in her native Cape Verdean Creole called morna.

Morna is defined as similar to the American blues, yet having a lento (or slow) tempo, typically a 2-beat bar, and utilizes in musical jargon what is called the “circle of fifths”. Some of that is a bit beyond my personal musical knowledge, but I understand that morna is widely considered the national music of Cape Verde and concerns itself with song topics like love, love of homeland, the sea, leaving home, the returning to home, and in general, saudade - an untranslatable Portuguese word that many consider to be similar to the ideas of yearning, longing, regrets, nostalgia, and things of that nature often too intense to describe and near impossible to translate but often sung about.

Instrumentation that is commonly used in morna music consists of violin, guitar, cavaquinho (a small guitar-like, 4 stringed instrument), clarinet, accordion, and often times acoustic bass and some kind of percussion.

I am still very new to the Cape Verdean style of morna music and am anxious to hear more, and have also found that I enjoy Senhora Évola’s solid, soothing, possibly alto or contralto voice.

Here is Cesária Évola singing the title track from her CD, “Säo Vicente Di Longe”.

Considering the fact that I thought Cesária Évola’s music was something other (Brazilian) than what it really is (Cape Verdean morna), this has been a wonderful new musical discovery for me that I truly just stumbled upon. I hope you enjoy it as much as I and if you have any additional knowledge about this style of music…

…I’d love to know more about morna!

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Ahh yes. Sharon turns 40 today. Born on the morning of November 8th of 1968. A year of great music and incredible turmoil in our world. I always used to take pride in the fact that The Beatles’ White Album was released in the year of my birth because it was always one of my favorites. And of course, that rockin’ tune “Birthday” was on that very album. How did they know? Aww guys…you shouldn’t have!

Most of us know the traditional birthday song - ad nauseum - but I thought I would do a little research on other birthday songs that have appeared in popular music.

There was “Happy Birthday” by Altered Images, a 1980s Scottish Punk band, “Happy Birthday” by Concrete Blonde, and “Sixteen Candles” (can we make it 40?) by The Crests. I have seen a number of other birthday songs listed on the Internet that I have never heard before by groups like Blur, The Fall, Cibo Matto, The Innocence Mission, among others. There’s even “It’s Johnny’s Birthday” - a brief birthday greeting that ends in a helium and high speed finale as recorded by George Harrison and company on the All Things Must Pass album. And I am sure that there are plenty of obscure ones out there as well.

And of course, “It’s My Party” by Leslie Gore, but I don’t think I will be crying this year.

I also found an extensive list of lyrics for birthday songs from around the world and it got me to thinking about Brazil as I have visited there a few times. The lyrics to their birthday song are different, but the melody is the same, and the sentiment is the same.

Parabéns pra você

Nesta data querida

Muitas felicidades

Muitos anos de vida!

Parabéns pra você

Nesta data querida

Muitas felicidades

Muitos anos de vida!

É pique! É pique! É pique, é pique, é pique!

É hora! É hora! É hora, é hora, é hora!

Rá-tim-bum!

(Wish I could celebrate my 40th in tropical Brazil! Maybe for the 50th…)

This year, for the big 4-0, your musical blog author will be in Pennsylvania to celebrate with her significant other, and then, probably a belated celebration with family upon my return to Michigan. I sure wish everyone I love could all be in the same place for a big bash, but alas…

There’s no party, and maybe I WILL cry if I want to!

Nah. But I simply refuse to climb over any hills. I am a far from being old. I am thinking of 40 as a new beginning. Out with the old, in with the new. Oh wait…I think I need to save that one for New Year’s.

Okay everyone…time to sing!

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I thought it might be a good idea to create a new page here on my blog that would be a source of sites that have good to excellent forums for various bands or music genres. I am only just beginning to create a list as I only belong to a few myself.

I am asking my readers, and all music fans out there to help me out if they would. What music-related forums do you go to where you can have great dialogue about the bands and music that you love? And I would prefer to keep off of the list those forums that have a lot of immaturity or flaming on them if possible. I know many forums will have that and a lot of the time it cannot be avoided, but some forums are without a doubt more mature and informative than others. Some are just plain trash. Please help me find and identify the best of the best!

What made me think of this list is one of the forums that I go to for information regarding the ongoing career of Sergio Mendes, the Brazilian artist who helped make Bossa Nova music huge in countries outside of his native Brazil in the 1960s - like here in the the States with his Sergio Mendes and Brasil ‘66 albums. The A&M Corner Forum is a site where you will find separate forums for Sergio Mendes, trumpeter Herb Alpert, and 1970’s AM radio mega stars, The Carpenters. All of these recording artists recorded on the A&M label (formed in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss).

I have found that there are some very informed folks on the Sergio Mendes forum at A&M Corner and I know that if I am ever seeking information regarding Sergio, Herb, or the Carpenters, The A&M Corner is the place to go.

www.amcorner.com

I am just beginning to visit another music-related forum called Muzic Forums, but I have not visited enough to know whether or not it is a good source for information on all genres as it claims. Give it a look and let me know what you think.

www.muzicforums.com

I am sure that there are plenty of music fans out there who frequent forums for their favorite artists. Let me know what they are, where they are, and if you think they are a good source of information regarding your artist of choice, and if they are worth a visit for other interested fans.

I have a friend whom I know used to frequent a forum for the singer Janis Ian (famous in the 1970s for her hit, “At Seventeen”, and who still makes fantastic music to this day). Janis, herself, accesses the forum and periodically will post a thing or two.

www.janisian.com/forum/

I would like to create this list here for my readers as a sort of “one-stop-shopping” idea for music lovers to be able to find a forum for their favorite musical genre or band. Your input would be wonderful, and let me know why you like the forums that you frequent.

Look for this additional page near the “About Me” section! Happy posting!

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Yeah…I like Donny and Marie. Their variety show lasted for a number of seasons and it was popular, and they were popular. But my dream team of the 1970s was Captain and Tennille. From their first album, the infamous Love Will Keep Us Together in 1975, to the handful of others that followed, I couldn’t get enough. I was definitely hooked.

In the 1970s, variety shows had become quite popular between the Osmonds, Sonny and Cher, The Carol Burnett Show, etc. Captain and Tennille got their chance in 1976. According to TV.com, the Captain and Tennille variety show ran from September of 1976 though March of 1977 on ABC-TV. Apparently, the show ended, not due to unpopularity, but because the husband and wife team chose to focus more on their recordings and opted out of another season on TV.

Like many variety shows of the time, silly sketches filled some of the time on the show, along with obvious lip-syncing of many of their best hits and other songs that they never recorded themselves but that were popular at that time. Some of the many guests of that one season of television fun included, John Travolta (now remember…he was a recording artist, not just a television and movie star), Penny Marshall, Bob Hope, Leonard Nemoy, The Sylvers, Muhammad Ali, Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart, David Gates of Bread, Don Knotts, Vincent Price, and more.

When Dick Clark took over production of the show a little more than halfway through the season, you can sense a switch in format that focused more on the music and less on the goofy sketch comedy. Toni performed tributes to Neil Sedaka (Captain and Tennille recorded a number of his songs including the hits, “Love Will Keep Us Together”, and “Lonely Night (Angel Face)”), as well as The Carpenters, and Elton John among others.

I received the 3 DVD set, (that was released by Respond 2 in 2005), as a gift for Christmas last year. It really took me back to the 1970s when waiting for that one night a week to see my favorite musical duo was the highlight of my television watching. It was good, clean, musical fun with a number of big names (from those days), and I honestly never thought I would ever see this briefly run show again in my lifetime. Imagine my joy at receiving this DVD set, especially when there was at least one night or two when Mom sent me to bed early and I missed the show altogether!

While reading a few of the reviews online regarding the DVD set, one of the reviewers mentioned that at times it seemed like parts of the show were edited. I had noticed that also. I don’t know why parts of the shows might have been edited out, but perhaps it had something to do with the DVD packaging and trying to “fit it all/most of it in”, or maybe even copyright issues for some things. Perhaps it is a question that I could try to pose to the Captain and Ms. Tennille, themselves, and get to the bottom of it. (Maybe I will try that…)

In any case, this 3 DVD set of the Captain and Tennille Show brought back a lot of sweet, fun memories for me from a time when life just didn’t seem as complicated. (Must have something to do with aging!) Lots of great music. Lots of great stars. Lots of good fun.

And I even still have my vinyl copy of Por Amor Viviremos (Love Will Keep Us Together in Spanish)…

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When people discover that I am a musician, I am often asked “What exactly do you play?”. I always say a little bit of this and a little bit of that, but I am an expert at nothing. Perhaps, more like an advanced novice. My primary instruments (the ones that I have had any kind of lessons on) are guitar and oboe.

When the instrument, the oboe, is mentioned, I often receive a puzzled expression followed by, “What does an oboe look like?”. The easiest explanation for me to the musically challenged is, “It looks a little like a clarinet, but it is a double reed instrument. Not a single reed instrument like the clarinet or the saxophone. It has different keys and fingering and it is more difficult to play. It is the instrument that tunes the orchestra. And it is melodically beautiful!”

Often times, people don’t know what an oboe sounds like. I’ve tried to think of a few popular music examples to point out for such an additional inquiry (of course, this is assuming that I am nowhere near my own oboes to demonstrate personally). Some songs that come to mind…”As Tears Go By” by Marianne Faithful, “I Got You Babe” by Sonny and Cher, “Crazy For You” by Madonna, “Superstar” by The Carpenters (a lot of Carpenters music featured the oboe and its big sister, the English Horn), “Kiss From A Rose” by Seal, among others. Many times, oboe is included as an embellishment to a song and unless you know what you are listening for, you may miss the contribution made by this beautiful woodwind instrument.

The oboe consists of three joints - the upper and lower joints and the bell. The Baroque ancestor of the oboe from the mid-17th century was called a hautbois, and somewhat different in appearance to the modern day oboe. A large majority of oboes are made from grenadilla wood, while some players prefer the softer woods of rosewood and violetwood. Many student oboes (like my Yamaha 211) is constructed of a plastic resin that prevents cracking. I would gather that most professional players in the big orchestras in our country play one of the wood variations because they are found to produce a warmer sound and are of a much higher quality. But they must be well cared for as wood oboes will crack if temperatures vary greatly.

The mouthpiece of the oboe consists of what is called a “double reed”. The double reed is a gouged piece of cane that is folded in half, tied to a metal “staple” or tube that fits into the upper joint. Before inserting the reed into the instrument, the cane is shaped and “fine tuned” by the reed maker or advanced student and the top piece is clipped off to open up the reed so that it can be blown into. The opening is small, and the air required to play the oboe through that small reed is vast. Playing the oboe is usually compared to singing due to the similarity in breath control that is needed to play the instrument. My teacher used to ask me to envision myself as a human bagpipe!

The difference between a student instrument and a professional model is primarily the amount of keys on the instrument. Professional models are usually considered “full conservatory” key systems and contain more keys than a student model. Pro models usually have the low Bb key, additional octave keys, and trill keys. I have found that my student model has been quite sufficient in order for me to play 2nd oboe in the two groups I had the pleasure of playing in as well as the few other oboe gigs I have participated in.

Oboes are more prominent in classical music than any other genre although as mentioned above, the oboe has been used in pop music and even jazz.

There are many sources online that give a much more thorough history of the oboe and the other instruments in the oboe family (English Horn, oboe d’amore). Some include:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oboe

http://www.public.asu.edu/~schuring/Oboe/oboeinfo.html

And a wonderful society for double reed players (including bassoonists) -

The International Double Reed Society (includes plenty of articles, a forum where there is a plethora of players to inquiry, and more)

http://www.idrs.org/

In the right hands, the oboe is one of, if not the, most melodically beautiful instruments. A highly recommended CD of such a master player would be:

“Classic Discoveries For Oboe” by Cynthia Koledo Dealmeida (Principal Oboist of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra) - on the Boston Records label.

And now you know a little about the oboe!

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