Retro Video of the Week: "Next Year" by Foo Fighters

As we close out this rather fucked up year, I thought it was appropriate to feature a song about the future, so I went with Foo Fighters' "Next Year" from their 1999 album There is Nothing Left to Lose.  The song is Britpoppy, and it was used as the opening theme song to the early 2000s TV show Ed.  The video version is shorter than the album version and includes some backing vocals that aren't on the album version, but the message -- and the delicious fills -- are the same.  You can use this as a theme song for when your family is begging you to visit, despite the fact that COVID is raging and they don't follow any of the guidelines.  Just say, "I'll be coming home next year."  And feel free to add, "assuming we're all vaccinated."

CoronaVinyl Day 190 (Z): I Am What I Am by Pia Zadora

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "Z," and I only have three albums by "Z" artists.  Since I've already featured ZZ Top's Eliminator and Rob Zombie's Electric Warlock Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser, that leaves Pia Zadora's I Am What I Am.

This is another album that I must have acquired as part of a larger lot of vinyl I purchased, as I wouldn't knowingly spend money on this -- even if there is a precariously placed rip in the album cover that make it look like she's smoking a fat joint.  I have nothing against Pia Zadora, but her style of music just isn't my bag.  Zadora was primarily an actress, and has the unique distinction of winning a Golden Globe Award as Best New Star of the Year and Razzies for both Worst New Star and Worst Actress for the same role (her role in the 1982 film Butterfly).

In the early '80s, she began making music.  While she had released some pop music, 1986's I Am What I Am was her second album in a row where she sang standards and was backed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra.  The album isn't available on Spotify or YouTube, and I don't really feel like listing the tracks, since there are 15 songs.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "I'm Beginning to See The Light"

This is a cover of the Duke Ellington song (also recorded by Ella Fitzgerald, Bobby Darin, and many others).

Favorite song from Side 2:  "The Lady is a Tramp"
This is a cover of the Frank Sinatra classic.

CoronaVinyl Day 189 (Y): Polka Time by Frankie Yankovic and His Yanks

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "Y," and I say why not play some polka?  I'm going with the 1966 album Polka Time from Frankie Yankovic and His Yanks.

As anyone who's hitched a ride from Scranton to Chicago in a rental truck with the Kenosha Kickers, polka musicians are generally jovial, nice people.  Yankovic was not merely considered polka royalty, but rather America's Polka King and the most well-known purveyor of Slovenian-style polka (or any style, for that matter).  From an early age, he learned the accordion and became a professional musician in the Cleveland area.  In World War II, he was a flamethrower operator in the U.S. Army.  He received a Purple Heart due to frostbite and the resulting gangrene suffered during the Battle of the Bulge, and he nearly had to have his fingers and feet amputated, but he refused, as he knew having no fingers would inhibit his ability to play the accordion.  Thankfully, he recovered and avoided amputation.

After the war ended, Yankovic enjoyed musical success for decades.  In 1986, he won the inaugural Grammy in the Best Polka Recording category, and although he and Weird Al Yankovic are not related, they did collaborate on some of each other's songs.

Polka Time is exactly what you'd expect from a polka album.  It makes you wish you were sitting in a beer garden or a giant tent, hammering down beers while you sway happily to accordion-based music.  The album isn't on Spotify, and I couldn't find it on YouTube either, so I'm just going to embed Frankie Yankovic and His Yanks' Greatest Hits, also released in 1966 -- even though none of the songs on the Greatest Hits are on Polka Time.  For those polka fans out there, here is the track listing for Polka Time.

Side 1
1. Clarinet Polka
2. Ferryboat Serenade
3. The Woodpecker Song
4.  Tinker Polka
5.  When You Wore A Tulip (And I Wore A Big Red Rose)

Side 2
1.  Barbara Polka
2.  Linger Polka
3.  June Night
4.  When It's Springtime In The Rockies
5.  Three O'Clock In The Morning

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Woodpecker Song"

It's a polka about woodpeckers!

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Barbara Polka"
It's a polka about Barbara!

CoronaVinyl Day 188 (W): Whispers by Jackie Wilson

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "W," and I'm going with Jackie Wilson's 1966 album Whispers.

Nicknamed "Mr. Excitement" because of his legendary and energetic stage shows, Wilson got his start in the '50s as Clyde McPhatter's replacement as the lead singer of Billy Ward & The Dominos, before going solo in 1957.  Whispers was his 17th studio album, which is insane, considering he had only been a solo artist for nine years at that point.  Then again, back then, musicians churned out music at a much more rapid pace than they do these days.  Hell, U2 has been around for 40 years and has only released 14 studio albums.

By 1966, Wilson had established himself as one of the biggest soul stars in the world, but he was in a bit of a dry spell, not having a Top 40 hit since 1963.  Wilson's albums were never huge successes, but rather, he relied on 45s and singles for his success.  Whispers only reached #108 on the Billboard album chart and #15 on the Billboard R&B album chart, but it was still somewhat of a rejuvenation for his career.  Three songs from the album charted on the Billboard Hot 100, with "Whispers (Gettin' Louder)" reaching #11 (and #5 on the Billboard R&B singles chart), "I Don't Want to Lose You" reaching #84 (and #11 on the R&B chart), and "Just Be Sincere" reaching #91 (and #43 on the R&B chart).  All in all, the album is a great collection of '60s soul songs, and Wilson's voice is silky smooth as always.

The following year, Wilson would release one of his most well-known and beloved songs, "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher," which would prove to be his last Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.  In total, Wilson had 24 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, six of which reached the Top 10.  He also had 16 songs that reached the Top 10 of the Billboard R&B singles chart, including six #1s.

In 1975, Wilson had a massive heart attack on stage while singing "Lonely Teardrops" at concert in New Jersey with several other acts organized by Dick Clark.  He was resuscitated by a member of The Coasters, but he had lost so much oxygen to his brain that he fell into a coma for several months.  Even after he regained consciousness, he was essentially in a vegetative state, until he died in 1984 from pneumonia at the age of 49.  He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "My Heart is Calling"

This song is a great '60s soul song that sounds like it could have very well been a Motown song.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "I Can Do Better"
This one is an uptempo song in which Wilson is essentially wooing a woman by telling her that he can do everything better than her current man.  And there are some subtly delicious drum fills at the beginning of the song.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Hopewell Stay Frosty

The last in the beer advent calendar is, thankfully, a winter lager, courtesy of local brewery Hopewell.  Stay Frosty is a fitting name, considering the temperature dropped from 50 degrees yesterday to a negative windchill today.  It's a solid winter beer, being malty and all -- a good finish to the last 24 days of beer fun.  All in all, I would have liked more winter beers in the advent calendar, particularly at the expense of IPAs, but I had a pleasant December of beer drinking nonetheless.  Merry Christmas!

-Name:  Stay Frosty

-Brewery:  Hopewell Brewing Co.

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  6.0%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  You're pretty fucking excited about Santa Claus stopping by tonight.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  4

Retro Video of the Week: "I Wish It Would Be Christmas Everyday" by Wizzard

It's the last Retro Video of the Week before Santa comes to deliver toys to all the good boys and girls, and because I'm in a festive mood, I'm going to give you a video that technically falls outside the parameters of Retro Video of the Week, as it was not released during the MTV Era.  But fuck it, it's Festivus, so I'll do what I please.

Roy Wood was a co-founder of the late '60s British rock band The Move, which was one of those bands that was popular in the UK, but never quite caught on in the U.S.  The Move kind of morphed into the Electric Light Orchestra, which we all know colloquially as ELO, and Wood was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of ELO in 2017.  Wood left ELO in 1972 to form Wizzard, one of the early British glam bands.

You may recall that last week, the Tuesday Top Ten was devoted to '70s British glam Christmas songs.  At the top of the list was Wizzard's 1973 hit "I Wish It Would Be Christmas Everyday."  As mentioned in my post and the article, there was a revival of holiday music in the early '70s in the UK, largely thanks to glam bands.  Wizzard's "I Wish It Would Be Christmas Everyday" and Slade's "Merry Xmas Everybody" were both released in December 1973 and became huge hits.  The latter hit #1 on the UK pop charts and the former hit #4.  "I Wish It Would Be Christmas Everyday" has been a British holiday favorite since then, ranking second in a 2012 ITV poll for the nation's favorite (or favourite, as it were) Christmas song.  It has also been a staple on the Christmastime UK pop chart, climbing into the Top 40 of the UK pop chart in 12 of the last 14 years (and the last ten), including #16 this year.

"I Wish It Would Be Christmas Everyday" has become one of my favorite holiday songs.  It's just so damn catchy and happy, and the video is equally as fantastic.  There's Wood, who's only 27, but looks like he's 127.  And there are two drummers, one of which is a nutcracker and the other of which looks like a super happy Gene Shalit.  And there are the sax players, one of which looks like Lenny from Laverne & Shirley and the other of which looks like a combination of the Maharishi and Merlin.  And there's the keyboardist, who looks like an arctic version of Carnac the Magnificent.  And there are the children.  We can't forget the children.  Sure, they're like 50 now, but then, they were playing their asses off on those toy saxophones.  Enjoy, and happy Festivus!

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Pipeworks/Right Bee Right Beside the Unicorn

Beer #23 in the beer advent calendar -- the penultimate beer -- is a collaboration between Pipeworks Brewing and Right Bee Cider called Right Beside the Unicorn.  It's a sour brewed with apples, and the name is a portmanteau of Right Bee and the fact that Pipeworks has many beers with "unicorn" in the title. It's not terrible, but it's still a sour.  I will say that Pipeworks is one of my favorite breweries.  It's too bad this wasn't Rudolph vs. Unicorn, their excellent peppermint-infused imperial stout, but I'm not airing any grievances.

-Name:  Right Beside the Unicorn

-Brewery:  Pipeworks Brewing Co. and Right Bee Cider

-Location:  Chicago, IL (both)

-ABV:  5.4%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  You find tinsel distracting.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.75

CoronaVinyl Day 187 (V): Billy Vaughn Plays the Million Sellers by Billy Vaughn

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "V," and I don't have all that many albums by "V" artists, but three of them are by Billy Vaughn, so I might as well get the first out of the way.

I'm not sure how or when I acquired my three Billy Vaughn albums, but presumably it was part of a larger lot of records I bought at some point.  Vaughn was an orchestra conductor, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist, who mainly thrived in the '50s and '60s.  His music is generally jazz, orchestral, and traditional pop.  Basically, it's the kind of music your rock-n-roll-hating grandparents would have listened to in the '50s and '60s, while telling your parents, aunts, and uncles "this is how music should sound."

Today's selection is his 1960 album called Billy Vaughn Plays the Million Sellers.  It's a collection of "million selling" songs by other recording artists, played by Vaughn and his orchestra.  It reached #15 on the Billboard album chart, and it's all string-heavy orchestral music, very much what you would hear in the score of an old movie -- or that would have been played at the Overlook Hotel's grand ball in July 1921.

All in all, Vaughan had a good bit of success.  He charted 15 albums in the Top 20 of the Billboard album charts, including one #1 (1960's Theme From a Summer Place).  He also had 14 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 or its predecessor, including four Top 10 songs.

Spotify doesn't have the album, but there is a YouTube "video" with the entire album, so I embedded that below.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Holiday for Strings"

Given that it's Festivus, this song seemed like an appropriate selection.  It's also a little bit more peppy than the generally sappy and syrupy feel to the rest of the songs on the album.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "In the Mood"
Glenn Miller's classic big band standard "In the Mood" is always a good time, and Vaughn and his orchestra give it a good whirl.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Revolution Fistmas

Beer #22 in the beer advent calendar has become a Chicago holiday classic:  Revolution's Fistmas.  It's a red winter ale brewed with ginger and orange peel.  In past years, I haven't been a big fan of this, as it's been a little too hoppy for my tastes, but either they changed the recipe this year or my tongue has changed because I like it a lot better this year than I usually do.  The nose is still hoppy -- or a little sprucey, anyway -- but it has more maltiness and spice than I remember.  It's a Festivus Eve miracle!

-Name:  Fistmas

-Brewery:  Revolution Brewing

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  6.5%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  You're forced to watch It's a Wonderful Life by yourself because your family is a bunch of Potters.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  4.25

CoronaVinyl Day 186 (U): We Are The World by USA For Africa

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "U," and other than UFO's Phenomenon, which I've already featured in CoronaVinyl, my only other "U" album is the seminal We Are The World by USA For Africa.  If you didn't know, in addition to being released as a single, there was a full album released in 1985 that featured "We Are The World" and nine other songs, mostly by artists who sang on the title track.

For those were are too young to know or were living under a rock in 1985, back in early 1985, around 50 musicians and entertainers, collectively calling themselves USA For Africa, gathered at A&M Studios in Hollywood to record "We Are The World."  As any fellow child of the '80s knows, this song was massive.  Written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, it is a philanthropic anthem to provide food and other support to several countries in Africa that had been ravaged by famine.  I won't bother going through a list of everyone who sang on the song, but you can click here to see the list.  It's a veritable who's who of '80s pop/rock stars and actors.  I remember watching the video as a kid and being amazed that all of these gigantic stars got together in one room.  The song hit #1 in 17 countries and has sold over 10 million copies worldwide.  More importantly, it has helped raise over $60 million for African humanitarian relief.  

As if the single wasn't great enough, the full album has songs from many of the contributing musicians, as well as some others who weren't part of the song.  There are songs from Prince, Bruce Springsteen, Tina Turner, Chicago, Huey Lewis & The News, Steve Perry, Kenny Rogers, and The Pointer Sisters, as well as a Canadian charity song for the Ethiopian famine called "Tears Are Not Enough" by a group of Canadian musicians and entertainers that called themselves Northern Lights -- which included the likes of Neil Young, Bryan Adams, John Candy, Joni Mitchell, Geddy Lee, Burton Cummings, Anne Murray, Oscar Peterson, Paul Shaffer, and many others.  Click here for a list of all the performers.

The full album isn't on Spotify, but a YouTube playlist with the full album is embedded below.  Here is a track listing:

Side 1
1.  "We Are The World" by USA For Africa
2.  "If Only For The Moment, Girl" by Steve Perry
3.  "Just a Little Closer" by The Pointer Sisters
4.  "Trapped" (live) by Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band

Side 2
1.  "Tears Are Not Enough" by Northern Lights
2.  "4 The Tears In Your Eyes" by Prince & The Revolution
3.  "Good For Nothing" by Chicago
4.  "Total Control" by Tina Turner
5.  "A Little More Love" by Kenny Rogers
6.  "Trouble In Paradise" (live) by Huey Lewis & The News

All in all, it's a great album, and it was predictably a success.  It reached #1 on the Billboard album chart after only two weeks -- matching a record set by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones -- and stayed #1 for three weeks.  It also topped the album charts in The Netherlands, Norway, and Switzerland, and was Top 10 in Australia, Austria, Germany, New Zealand, and Sweden.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "We Are The World" by USA For Africa

I had to go with the title track.  It's such a classic and such an iconic song from the '80s.  I think my favorite part is the back and forth between Bruce Springsteen and Stevie Wonder starting around the 4:55 mark.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Total Control" by Tina Turner
Turner was in the midst of a major career revitalization at this point, and "Total Control" shows why she was killing it.  It's a gritty, soulful song that showcase's Turner's fantastic voice.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: 18th Street Best Patio Pils

Beer #21 in the beer advent calendar was a nice, refreshing pilsner from 18th Street, which is Northwest Indiana's second-biggest brewery behind Three Floyds.  They originally started with a brewpub in Gary, and then added a much larger space in Hammond.  I've been to the Gary location, and it's pretty cool.  They make great beers, and the Best Patio Pils is a very solid pilsner.  I feel the same way about pilsners as I do about kölsches.  They're almost always good, but I'm never knocked out by them.  Still, this would be a great beer on a hot summer day, and I'm just glad it wasn't another hoppy advent calendar selection.

-Name:  Best Patio Pils

-Brewery:  18th Street Brewery

-Location:  Hammond, IN

-ABV:  4.9%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  You're looking forward to the days getting longer starting tomorrow.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.75

CoronaVinyl Day 185 (T): Greatest Hits by The Temptations

 For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "T," and we're going to continue the Motown train and go with The Temptations' first Greatest Hits album, released in 1966.

Like The Miracles, The Four Tops, Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell, and The Supremes, all of whom have been featured during CoronaVinyl, The Temptations' music is part of the fabric of both the '60s and modern pop music.  Unlike many of the foregoing groups, The Temptations didn't have one specific lead singer.  For instance, of the twelve songs on this album, Eddie Kendricks is the lead singer on five (one with Melvin Franklin on co-lead vocals), David Ruffin is the lead singer on six, and Paul Williams on one.

This Greatest Hits album features some of the biggest and most well-known hits from their period where they were certainly more pop-focused, before pioneering psychedelic soul and tackling more serious subject matter a couple years later.  Eleven of the twelve songs were previously released on Temptations' albums, and "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep" was released as a single a couple months before the album was released.

And the liner notes on the back of the album are written by Bill Cosby!  My favorite line in Cosby's comments is the following:  "In my estimation there are three things that improve with time, #1 . . a good tobacco, #2 . . a woman, #3 . . and the Temptations' performance."

The album went to #5 on the Billboard album chart and #1 on the Billboard R&B album chart.  Spotify didn't have the album, and I couldn't find a playlist on YouTube, so here is a list of the songs (as well as their peak positions on the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard R&B singles chart):

Side 1
1.  "The Way You Do The Things You Do" (#11; #1)
2.  "My Girl" (#1; #1)
3.  "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" (#13; #1)
4.  "Don't Look Back" (#83; #15)
5.  "Get Ready" (#29; #1)
6.  "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep" (#3; #1)

Side 2
1.  " Since I Lost My Baby" (#17; #4)
2.  "The Girl's Alright With Me" (N/A; #39)
3.  "My Baby" (#13; #4)
4.  "It's Growing" (#18; #3)
5.  "I'll Be In Trouble" (#33; #22)
6.  "Girl (Why You Wanna' Make Me Blue)" (#26; #11)

All in all, the group had 37 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including four #1s.  On the Billboard R&B singles chart, they have a record 70 Top 40 hits, fourteen of which went to #1.

So that you're not left without anything to listen to today, I'm just posting a playlist that someone made on Spotify that has a bunch of the songs.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Get Ready"

On a top-heavy Side 1, I decided on "Get Ready."  It's is a great '60s soul/R&B song with a driving beat, penned by the great Smokey Robinson.  Kendricks handles lead vocals in his signature falsetto, and the rest of the group's backing vocals and harmonies fill everything in nicely.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Since I Lost My Baby"
Another one written by Robinson (and Warren Moore), this one is soulful and sentimental, with Ruffin's baritone taking lead vocals.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Goose Island Lost Palate and Marz Floridaweiss

Beer #19 in the beer advent calendar was a selection from Chicago's OG craft brewery, Goose Island (though it's now, of course, part of InBev).  Goose Island makes a lot of great beers, and unfortunately, this one is a hazy IPA, so it wasn't really to my liking.  It did seem to have a little spice to it, so I gave it an extra .25 in my rating.

-Name:  Lost Palate

-Brewery:  Goose Island Beer Company

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  6.3%

-IBU:  45

-Good for drinking if:  You need a palate (pun intended, motherfuckers!) cleanser before switching to winter beers for a Zoom holiday party.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.5

Beer #20 comes courtesy of one of my favorite local breweries, Marz, which is located down in Bridgeport, not too far from Comiskey.  Marz does a lot of great things, and as you might expect, I'm a fan of their darker, maltier stuff, like the Mecha Marzilla imperial milk stout, the Maple Vanilla Munchies porter, and the Paczki Stout pastry stout (and the several variants thereof).  This one is their Floridaweiss, a not-too-sour sour, made with passion fruit, guava, mango, and pineapple.  I generally don't like sours, but this isn't terrible, and at 8%, its tropical flavors belie its sneaky strength.

-Name:  Floridaweiss

-Brewery:  Marz Community Brewing Co.

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  8.0%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  You want to get bombed while pretending tomorrow isn't the first day of winter.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.5

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Old Irving Cinnamon Prost

Beer #18 in the beer advent calendar was a delightful return to a more winter-appropriate style.  Old Irving Brewing's Cinnamon Prost is a white stout -- which is always a bit of a mindfuck -- brewed with cinnamon, vanilla, and lactose.  It's just as delicious as it sounds, and it certainly has the right level of IBUs for my liking.

-Name:  Cinnamon Prost

-Brewery:  Old Irving Brewing Co.

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  7.0%

-IBU:  10

-Good for drinking if:  You've always thought to yourself, I love Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but I really wish it could get me drunk.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  4.25

Hair Band Friday - 12/18/20

1.  "Hells Bells" by AC/DC

2.  "Every Minute Every Day" by Scorpions

3.  "Sometimes She Cries" by Warrant

4.  "Stand Up and Shout" by Dio

5.  "Suicide Solution" by Ozzy Osbourne

6.  "Paradise" (live) by Tesla

7.  "Feels Like Love" by Danger Danger

8.  "Under the Gun" by Lita Ford

9.  "Dance the Night Away" by Van Halen

10.  "No Mercy" by L.A. Guns

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Illuminated Dagger Flute

Beer #17 in the beer advent calendar has my favorite can so far.  It has two Gene Simmons lookalikes salivating over what appears to be an Egyptian dagger.  Perhaps it's a subtle nod to the contributions of Vinnie Vincent to KISS.  He was the Egyptian Ankh, after all.  Anyway, it's a citra IPA, so I didn't like the inside of the can.

-Name:  Dagger Flute

-Brewery:  Illuminated Brew Works

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  6.0%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  all hell's breakin' loose.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3

CoronaVinyl Day 184 (S): Where Did Our Love Go by The Supremes

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "S," and I haven't yet featured a Supremes album, despite the fact that I have three of them, so now's as good a time as any.

In 1964, The Supremes released their second studio album, Where Did Our Love Go, and in doing so, the so-called "Motown Sound" that would dominate the rest of the decade was introduced to the world.  Where Did Our Love Go featured the group's singles and B-sides from 1963 and 1964, including the group's first three #1 songs on the Billboard Hot 100:  the title track, "Baby Love," and "Come See About Me."  With that feat, The Supremes became the first artist/group in history to have three Billboard #1 hits from the same album.

The album was #1 on the inaugural Billboard R&B album chart in January 1965, and it also reached #2 on the Billboard album chart for four consecutive weeks, held out of #1 by The Beatles' North American counterpart to Beatles For Sale, the Beatles '65 album.  At the time, it was the highest-charting album for an all-female group.

I know I've featured many Motown albums during CoronaVinyl, and I guess I can't reiterate enough what great pop music was being generated from Motown in the '60s.  In addition to the pop songwriting genius of Holland-Dozier-Holland, Smokey Robinson, Norman Whitfield, Harvey Fuqua, and the many other great Motown songwriters, Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballard played a huge part in Motown's national and international success -- and, more importantly, helped pave the way for other African-American R&B and soul acts to find crossover success.  

Now that we're more than 50 years removed from the '60s, I think it's easy to forget (or maybe you didn't know in the first place!) how huge The Supremes were.  They were the most successful American group of the '60s, and remain the most successful American vocal group ever.  From late 1963 through the end of the decade, The Supremes had 25 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including 18 Top 10 songs, and 12 #1 songs -- including the very last #1 song of the '60s, "Someday We'll Be Together."  They were second only to The Beatles in terms of chart success in the '60s.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Where Did Our Love Go"

The title track and first track on the album is a classic and, in my mind, it is the epitome of the Motown Sound.  It's pure pop ecstasy, courtesy of Holland-Dozier-Holland's innovative and counterintuitive songwriting and production.  While Diana Ross sings verses, Mary Wilson and Florence Ballard are singing the chorus in the background at the same time.  It shouldn't work because they're basically singing over each other, but it ends up having the opposite effect, where you can't help but sing the chorus.  And when the song is over, you're still singing "baby baby, where did our love go?"

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Your Kiss of Fire"
This is one of the few songs on the album not written by Holland-Dozier-Holland.  It was written by Robert Gordy (Berry's brother) and Harvey Fuqua.  I just like the imagery of "your sweet kiss of fire" and the fact that this song beckons it.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Dovetail Kölsch-Style Ale

Beer #16 in the beer advent calendar is from another great local brewery, Dovetail.  They specialize in continental European-style beers traditionally brewed in Germany, Czechia, Belgium, and Austria.  That means it's one of the few breweries I can go to -- or, more accurately, could go to before COVID -- where I don't have to worry about the draft list being dominated by hoppy beers.  They don't make any!  This one is their Kölsch-Style Ale.  Like the pilsner, the kölsch is one of those styles of beer that is almost always good, but you never drink a kölsch and say, "This is the best beer I've ever had."  But that's okay.  This is light, crisp, refreshing, and crushable, as most kölsches are.

-Name:  Kölsch-Style Ale

-Brewery:  Dovetail Brewery

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  4.6%

-IBU:  24

-Good for drinking if:  You're watching Christmas Vacation for the third time this month.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.75

Retro Video of the Week: "When My Heart Finds Christmas" by Harry Connick, Jr.

This week's holiday-themed Retro Video of the Week comes courtesy of New Orleanian crooner Harry Connick, Jr.  In 1993, Connick released a Christmas album called When My Heart Finds Christmas, which ended up being a huge success.  It was the top-selling holiday album in the U.S. in 1993, and has since gone triple platinum in the U.S.

At some point, I acquired this CD, but I don't think it's something I would have intentionally purchased, so maybe it was my wife's and it just got mixed in with mine.  Either way, I'm familiar with it.  The album is mostly traditional and/or popular Christmas songs -- like "Sleigh Ride," "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer," "O Holy Night," and the like -- but there are also four original Connick compositions:  the title track, "(It Must've Been Ol') Santa Claus," "The Blessed Dawn Of Christmas Day," and "I Pray On Christmas."

I was hoping there would be a video for "(It Must've Been Ol') Santa Claus," which is my personal favorite on the album, as it has a nice New Orleans jazz feel.  But alas, you'll have to settle for the title track, which has an official video.  It's sentimental and stringy -- just like everything else in the '90s.  Wait, what?

CoronaVinyl Day 183 (R): Can't Slow Down by Lionel Richie

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Sadly, I don't have any albums by Queen or any other "Q" artist, so we're skipping from "P" to "R."  Today's CoronaVinyl selection is Lionel Richie's hit 1983 album Can't Slow Down.

Richie, of course, had been the lead singer and one of the founding members of The Commodores.  He left the band in 1982 to pursue a solo career.  Can't Slow Down was his second solo album, and it ended up being his biggest success.

The album was pretty much an immediate smash upon its release, and it sustained its magic for several years.  Here are some amazing stats about the album:

• It went to #1 on the Billboard album chart, spent 59 consecutive weeks in the Top 10 (including the entirety of 1984), and spent a total of 160 weeks on the chart (i.e., the Top 200).  
• It was the #3 album on the Billboard Year End chart for 1984 and #22 in 1985.  It was also #1 on the Billboard R&B album Year End chart for 1984.
• It was the best-selling album in 1984 in Australia, the Netherlands, and the UK.
• It hit #1 on the album charts in Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and the UK, and reached the Top 5 on the album charts in Germany, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland.
• It was #6 on the decade-end album chart for the 1980s in Australia.
• All five singles from the album reached the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, R&B singles, Billboard Adult Contemporary charts.
• "All Night Long (All Night)" - #1 (all three; also #5 on Billboard Dance singles chart)
• "Hello" - #1 (all three)
• "Stuck On You" - #3 (Hot 100); #3 (AC); #8 (R&B) (also reached #24 on the Billboard country singles chart)
• "Running With the Night" - #7 (Hot 100); #6 (R&B and AC)
• "Penny Lover" - #8 (Hot 100 and R&B); #1 (AC)
• The songs were also big hits internationally:
• "All Night Long (All Night)" - #1 in Australia, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, and South Africa, and Top 10 in seven other countries
• "Hello" - #1 on eleven international pop charts, and Top 10 on an additional six.
• "Stuck On You" - Top 5 in Canada and Ireland, and Top 40 on an additional five countries' charts
• "Running With the Night" - Top 10 on five other charts, and Top 40 on an additional six countries' charts
• "Penny Lover" - Top 10 in Belgium and Ireland, and Top 40 on an additional six charts
• "All Night Long (All Night)" was also ranked #96 on Billboard's All-Time Singles chart (1958-2018), and "Hello" was #389.
• By 1986, it had sold an astounding 15 million copies, and currently has sold over 20 million copies worldwide, including over 10 million in the U.S.
• In addition to some fantastic session musicians, Steve Lukather of Toto plays guitar on "The Only One" and "Running With the Night," Jeff Porcaro of Toto plays drums on "Running With the Night," and Richard Marx sings backing vocals on "All Night Long (All Night)," "Love Will Find a Way, "The Only One" and "Running With the Night."
• The album won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year at the 1985 Grammy Awards, beating out Cyndi Lauper's She's So Unusual, Prince's Purple Rain, Bruce Springsteen's Born in the U.S.A., and Tina Turner's Private Dancer.

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention the fact that the album cover is a gate-fold cover, which, when opened -- as shown above -- reveals a full-length, seemingly superfluous photo of Richie on either a stripper pole or nearing the bottom of a joyous firepole slide.  Whatever is going on there and no matter why the record company decided that it needed to make a gate-fold album cover to feature this photo, it's magnificent.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "All Night Long (All Night)"

This is one of the most beloved '80s songs.  I mean, who can hate this song?  No one, that's who.  In addition to being a great pop song, Richie performed the song at at the closing ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics in L.A.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Running With the Night"
Despite the fact that it was a Top 10 song, "Running With the Night" is somewhat forgotten in the Lionel Richie pantheon, but it's a funky pop song, and Steve Lukather has a nice guitar solo as well.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Bell's Light Hearted Ale

Beer #15 in the beer advent calendar was another hoppy one, but at least it's from one of my favorite breweries, Bell's.  It's the Light Hearted Ale, which is a "lo-cal IPA" that is a lighter, more sessionable version of their Two Hearted Ale.  At only 3.7% and 110 calories, this would be a good summer beer for those of you who like hoppy beers.  It's not as over-the-top hoppy as some of the other selections thus far in the calendar, but it's still not something I would go for.

-Name:  Light Hearted Ale

-Brewery:  Bell's Brewery

-Location:  Comstock, MI

-ABV:  3.7%

-IBU:  36

-Good for drinking if:  You're about to hear the most annoying sound in the world.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.5

Tuesday Top Ten: '70s British Glam Christmas Songs

Believe it or not, last week I had planned to do a Tuesday Top Ten of my favorite '70s holiday songs, several of which most certainly would have been British glam songs.  Things got away from me for whatever reason, so I didn't post a Tuesday Top Ten, but I'm glad I didn't because the good folks at Riot Fest did the work for me.  Later last week, I came across this article titled "Our Top 10 Tracks For a Very 70s Glam Rock Christmas."  

As the article points out, for whatever reason, there was a bit of a revival of Christmas songs in the UK in the '70s -- with Brits waiting the bated breath to see which song was #1 on the pop charts on Christmas -- and glam was right on top of it.  Glam stalwarts like T. Rex, Slade, Wizzard, Roxy Music, Sparks, and Mud all put out Christmas songs (though T. Rex's song wasn't discovered until the '90s).

Here is the list.  I'll let you read the article to find out about each song, since I can't do them justice like the author has done.  Also, the article has an embedded video of each:

10.  "Wombling Merry Christmas" by The Wombles
9.  "Stop The Cavalry" by Jona Lewie
8.  "Make a Daft Noise for Christmas" by The Goodies
7.  "Thank God It's Not Christmas" by Sparks
6.  "Giddy Up (Sleighride)" by Roxy Music (as The Dumbells)
5.  "Lonely This Christmas" by Mud
4.  "Christmas Bop" by T. Rex
3.  "Hey Mr. Christmas" by Showadaddy
2.  "Merry XMas Everybody" by Slade
1.  "I Wish It Would Be Christmas Everyday" by Wizzard

As the author says, it would be a "fool's errand" to try to pick which of the top two should be number one, as both are classics.  Both were released in 1973, with Slade topping the UK pop chart with "Merry XMas Everybody," and Wizzard's "I Wish It Would Be Christmas Everyday" coming in at #4.  Both were instant holiday classics and remained beloved.  I will say that Wizzard's video is a little bit more insane -- with a then 27-year-old Roy Wood looking like he's in his 90s dressed as some glammed-out Father Christmas -- so I'm fine with it getting the nod.

Needless to say, if you're looking to punch up your holiday playlist with some new (to you) songs from across the pond, these are great songs to add.

CoronaVinyl Day 182 (P): Zenyatta Mondatta by The Police

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "P," and my choice is The Police's third studio album, 1980's Zenyatta Mondatta.  I believe I got this from a co-worker as part of a Secret Santa exchange at work 16 or 17 years ago, along with a couple other vintage albums, making it the best Secret Santa haul I ever got.

Zenyatta Mondatta is kind of the last album of The Police's initial era that was influenced at least in part by reggae, dub, and punk, before they moved to a more pop sound, though this album does have its share of pop.  The title itself is just jibberish that the band made up because it rolled off the tongue nicely.

The album did well commercially, topping the album charts in the UK and Australia, the band's second #1 album in both countries.  It was also the breakthrough album for the band in the U.S., going to #5 on the Billboard album chart, becoming the band's first album to crack the Top 20 in the U.S.   Elsewhere, it also reached the Top 5 on the album charts in Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.  It also earned the band two Grammy Awards, one for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for "Don't Stand So Close to Me" and another for Best Rock Instrumental Performance for "Behind My Camel," the latter of which was written by guitarist Andy Summers, and Sting hated the song so much he refused to play bass on it (Summers played the bass) and buried the tape of it in the garden outside the studio.

It also features two of the band's most well-known songs, "Don't Stand So Close To Me" and "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da."  The former -- which is a very poignant COVID song -- went to #1 on the UK pop chart, and the latter went to #5.  Both songs went to #10 on the Billboard Hot 100, making them the band's first songs to go higher than #32 in the U.S. 

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Canary in a Coalmine"

This is a punchy, uptempo reggae-ish song, with the band's signature three-pronged vocals, with Summers and Stewart Copeland backing Sting.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Man in a Suitcase"
This kind of seems like the counterpart to "Canary in a Coalmine."  It's a poppy, reggae rock song, which is the kind of Police song I generally liked more than their poppier or softer stuff.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Bold Dog Tilly Reserve

Beer #14 in the beer advent calendar was both unexpected and interesting.  It was Tilly Reserve from local brewery Bold Dog.  As you can see from the can, it is a "wine barrel-aged mango papaya hefeweizen."  I love hefeweizens, but I've had some inconsistent experience with wine barrel-aged beers.  Some have been good.  Some not so much.  Thankfully, this one fell into the former category.  It is aged in both cabernet and chardonnay barrels, and it paired well with the wheatiness, giving it some dryness.  I didn't taste too much mango or papaya, but that might have been offset by the wine.  Whatever it had going on, I liked it.

-Name:  Tilly Reserve

-Brewery:  Bold Dog Beer Company

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  5.0%

-IBU:  15

-Good for drinking if:  You're watching the most entertaining NFL game of the year.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  4

CoronaVinyl Day 181 (O): Definitely Maybe by Oasis

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

Today's CoronaVinyl category is "O," and I only have one album by an "O" artist that I haven't yet featured, Oasis's 1994 debut album Definitely Maybe.

This album was one of the defining albums of the '90s, kickstarting the Britpop movement, rejecting the gloom of grunge in the process.  It shot straight to #1 on the UK album chart in its debut week, and it became the fastest-selling debut album of all-time in the UK.  Four songs from the album reached the Top 40 on the UK pop chart, including two Top 10 songs:  "Cigarettes & Alcohol" (#7), "Live Forever" (#10), "Shakermaker" (#11), and "Supersonic" (#31).  It has since maintained its status as one of the most beloved British albums ever, even beating out Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band as the greatest album of all-time in a 2006 NME readers poll.

While the album only reached #58 on the Billboard album chart and didn't feature any charting singles in the U.S., "Supersonic" (#11) and "Live Forever" (#2) both charted well on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, setting the band up for their future success in the U.S.

The version I have is the 25th anniversary edition, released last year.  As you can see, like the version of (What's The Story) Morning Glory? I have, it is split into four sides on picture discs.  It also has an extra song ("Sad Song" on Side 2) to make it an even 12 songs.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Rock 'n' Roll Star"

The first track starts the album off with a bang.  It's as if Noel Gallagher knew the trajectory of the band and wanted to announce it to the world.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Up In The Sky"
The opening riff has a Revolver-era Beatles quality about it.  "Up In The Sky" is a lesser-known Oasis gem, but it represents everything that made them great.  A nice, uptempo catchy rock song.

Favorite song from Side 3:  "Supersonic"
This was the band's first single, and it's a good one.  I love the beginning of the song, and that kind of descending guitar crunch.  And although I hate gin, I love the line in the opening verse "I'm feeling supersonic / Give me gin and tonic."

Favorite song from Side 4:  "Married With Children"
While this would be better if it had a No Ma'am reference, it's still a nice little acoustic alt-rock song.

It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Beers 11-13

I haven't posted about my daily beers since Thursday, but rest assured, I've been keeping pace with my beer advent calendar.  Beer #11 was a "Sabro hopped oatmeal stout" called Batch Two Was Better! from another local brewery, Alarmist.  I love oatmeal stouts, but this one was hopped up enough that I didn't love it.

-Name:  Batch Two Was Better!

-Brewery:  Alarmist Brewing

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  7.0%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  For some reason you want an oatmeal stout to be hoppy while you're watching the comedic results of a flatulent horse.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.75

Beer #12 was a "festive red ale" from one of my favorite local breweries, Maplewood, which is one of the nearest breweries to where I live.  The beer is called Royal Tannenbaum, which might be my new favorite name for a winter beer, even if the hoppiness and spruce tips weren't particularly appealing to my palate.  If you're a fan of dark, heavy beers (as I am), Maplewood has some really good ones, like their Cuppa series (my favorite is the Cuppa Stuffff, which is an imperial stout that tastes like Oreos), Fat Pug (their milk stout), Morbidly Obese Pug (their imperial milk stout), Krispie Cakes (which isn't dark or particularly heavy, but tastes like Rice Kripsie treats), and Silver Morning (their winter doppelbock).

-Name:  Royal Tannenbaum

-Brewery:  Maplewood Brewing Co.

-Location:  Chicago, IL

-ABV:  6.6%

-IBU:  N/A

-Good for drinking if:  You died tragically rescuing your family from the wreckage of a destroyed sinking battleship.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  3.25

Beer #13 was a classic:  Boulevard's Unfiltered Wheat.  It's a great, hazy American wheat beer, which, at 4.4%, is definitely crushable.  I love a good wheat beer, and this is no exception.

-Name:  Unfiltered Wheat

-Brewery:  Boulevard Brewing Co.

-Location:  Kansas City, MO

-ABV:  4.4%

-IBU:  14

-Good for drinking if:  You're looking for a refreshing break from the heft of winter beers.

-Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments):  4