CoronaVinyl Day 378 (V): Billy & The Beaters by Billy Vera & The Beaters

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "V," and my last album at the moment by a "V" artists is Billy Vera & The Beaters' 1981 album Billy & The Beaters.

Back in February 2021, I listened to Billy Vera's Retro Nuevo album and told you all about him and the song "At This Moment," which wasn't on Retro Nuevo, but was on By Request, the "best of" album that I told you about in April 2021.  So yes, I own three Billy Vera records.

As I mentioned last April, By Request was released on the heels of the success of "At This Moment" being featured in Family Ties, and it contained songs that were all recorded in 1981, most of which are from the Billy & The Beaters album that I am featuring today.

It's live album recorded in January 1981 at the Roxy in LA, and I won't go into the band's backstory, which, again, can be found in the post from last April.

Billy & The Beaters isn't on Spotify, so I'm just going to post the "best of" compilation that I posted last April, which has seven of the eight songs on Billy & The Beaters.  For your own edification, here is the track listing on Billy & The Beaters:

Side 1
1.  "Strollin' With Bones"
2.  "Corner of the Night"
3.  "I Can Take Care of Myself"
4.  "At This Moment"
5.  "Millie, Make Some Chili"

Side 2
1.  "Sometime Will School You, Someone Will Cool You"
2.  "Strange Things Happen"
3.  "Here Comes the Dawn Again"

The album went to #118 on the Billboard album chart.  "I Can Take Care of Myself" cracked the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching #39.  "At This Moment" only got to #79 in 1981, but of course went to #1 six years later.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "At This Moment"
Based on my previous two posts about Vera albums, it should come as no surprise I'm picking this one. 

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Here Comes the Dawn Again"
The album ends with a nearly 12-minute blue-eyed soul ballad that turns into a soulful jam.

Hair Band Friday - 1/28/22

1.  "Garden of Eden" by Guns N' Roses

2.  "American Dream" by Vixen

3.  "Runaround" by Van Halen

4.  "On the Loose" by Europe

5.  "Smokin' in the Boys Room" (Alternate Guitar Solo - Rough Mix) by Mötley Crüe

6.  "Can't Live Without You" by Scorpions

7.  "Go For The Throat" (live) by Y&T

8.  "All Or Nothing" by Ratt

9.  "Here I Go Again" by Whitesnake

10.  "Red Hot" by Shotgun Messiah

CoronaVinyl Day 377 (T): Around The World With Three Dog Night by Three Dog Night

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "T," and I went with Three Dog Night's 1973 live album Around The World With Three Dog Night.

Three Dog Night was one of the most successful mainstream rock bands of the late '60s and early '70s.  When they released this album, they were riding a streak of 14 consecutive Top 20 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, nine of which were Top 10 songs, including three #1s ("Mama Told Me Not to Come" in 1970, "Joy To The World" in 1971, and "Black and White" in 1972).

Around The World With Three Dog Night is a two-LP rollicking live album that showed the band could rock hard, wail, and jam just as easily as they could play a popular pop rock song.  It features many of the aforementioned Top 20 hits, along with a few deep tracks and some jam/solo tracks that have descriptive titles like "Organ Solo," "Drums Solo," and "Jam."

The album went to #18 on the Billboard album chart, which was actually their lowest-charting album (studio, live, or compilation) up to that point.

The album wasn't on Spotify -- or I should say, I found it in a search, but I couldn't play any of the songs -- but someone made a YouTube playlist with all the songs from the album, so that's what I embedded below.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "One Man Band"
The key to a good live show and a good live album is to start off with a bang, and this does that, with a song that is presumably ironic, since there were seven guys in the band. 

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Eli's Coming"
The crowd calls for this one, and the band delivers.  It's a fast-paced, soulful rock song with calls and responses, whipping into a frenzy, presumably because Eli normally has erectile dysfunction.

Favorite Song on Side 3:  "Joy to the World"
It's hard for me to choose a song that doesn't start with "Jeremiah was a bullfrog," so I didn't not choose a song that starts with "Jeremiah was a bullfrog."

Favorite Song on Side 4:  "Jam"
I love a good live '70s rock jam, and this is a good one.

CoronaVinyl Day 376 (S): Color Me Barbra by Barbra Streisand

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "S," and my most recent haul of records from my neighbor included several Barbra Streisand albums, so I'm going with her 1966 album Color Me Barbra, the companion album for a March 1966 TV special she had that was broadcast in color (which was still a new thing back then).

Streisand, of course, has been a star of stage and screen for six decades and is one of the most successful female artists and one of the best-selling artists of any gender identity of all-time.  If you consider her Special Tony Award as a Tony, she is one of three people to get a PEGOT (Peabody Award, Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony).  Her list of achievements is second to none.

Color Me Barbra is indicative of her early work.  It's generally show tunes or traditional pop, meant to highlight her voice, which sounds older and fuller than one might expect for a 24-year-old.  This isn't the kind of music I particularly enjoy, but I can appreciate it for what it is.

The album went to #3 on the Billboard album chart, and it was nominated for Grammys for Album of the Year and for Best Female Vocal Performance.

Interesting tidbit:  She was high school classmates with both Neil Diamond and Bobby Fisher.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "Minute Waltz"
A version of Chopin's "Minute Waltz" with lyrics, Streisand fires off lyrics at a breakneck pace before slowing down.  Also, it's two minutes, which is kind of bullshit.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Where Am I Going?"
This is a show tune from the Broadway musical Sweet Charity, and Babs really belts it out.

Retro Video of the Week: "Paradise By The Dashboard Light" by Meat Loaf

For the second week in a row, we lost a rock and roll icon, as Marvin Lee Aday, better known as Meat Loaf, succumbed last week to a virus he refused to vaccinate against.  Meat Loaf was a star of stage and screen over the years, but it was his bombastic debut album, 1977's Bat Out of Hell, written by Jim Steinman and produced by Todd Rundgren, that propelled him into international superstardom.  The album has gone 14x platinum in the U.S. and sold over 43 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all-time.

And while 1977 is technically outside the parameters of Retro Video of the Week, I'll make an exception, and the video was played often on MTV in its early years.  "Paradise By The Dashboard Light" is arguably Meat Loaf's most famous song, though it barely cracked the Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 (hitting #39).  It's been in my head since he died last week.  Probably the greatest rock and roll duet, the female parts are sung by Ellen Foley, who played prosecutor Billie Young on the second season of Night Court before being replaced by Markie Post.  Amazingly, she recorded her part in one take.

The song is in three parts, with the male and female reminiscing about how they almost banged in a car when they were teenagers, and then she makes him promise to love her forever.  He obliges, presumably to get laid, but then immediately regrets it and prays for the end of time so that he can relieve himself of his promise.

In addition to Foley, the backing contributors to the song are as solid as they come.  Yankees announcer and future Hall of Famer Phil Rizzuto provides the baseball announcer parts.  Among others, Rundgren plays guitar, Steinman plays keyboards, Edgar Winter plays sax, and E Street Band members Roy Bittan and Max Weinberg play piano and drums, respectively.

Foley declined to participate in the video or the Bat Out of Hell tour, so the woman in the video is singer Karla DeVito, who lip syncs Foley's parts and who also toured with Meat Loaf for Bat Out of Hell.  

CoronaVinyl Day 375 (R): History of Otis Redding by Otis Redding

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "R," and while I've featured a combined Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix Experience live album from the Monterey Pop Festival during CoronaVinyl, I came to the blinding realization today that I hadn't done a solo Otis Redding album.  With that, I went with his 1967 compilation album History of Otis Redding, which was released a month before his tragic death and was the only compilation album released in his lifetime.

Redding is my favorite soul singer.  Recording for Stax Records in Memphis, he was backed by the likes Booker T. & The MGs, The Mar-Keys, The Memphis Horns, and Isaac Hayes, complementing Redding's wonderful voice and great songwriting.  History of Otis Redding features some of his biggest hits from 1962 to 1967, though not his biggest hit, "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay," which was released posthumously in 1968 and went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The album went to #9 on the Billboard album chart and #1 on the Billboard R&B album chart.  Note that the order of songs on the album is different than what is shown on the album cover.  The album itself isn't on Spotify, but someone put together a playlist with the songs on the album, so that's what's embedded below.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "These Arms of Mine"
Redding's first song released as a Stax artist and first charting song on the Billboard Hot 100 (#85) and the Billboard R&B singles chart (#20) was "These Arms of Mine," released in 1962.  It's a soulful ballad that showcases Redding's voice, backed by Steve Croppers doo-wop-esque pianos (and other MGs as well, of course).  Also, it's featured in the sex scene in Road House, so that's the icing on the cake.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "I Can't Turn You Loose"
It was a tough call between "I Can't Turn You Loose" and Redding's cover of Sam Cooke's "Shake," but I went with the former.  Released as a single, it's an uptempo soul song with rat-a-tat drumming by Al Jackson and that signature guitar riff from Cropper and horn riff that, when sped up, served as the intro music for The Blues Brothers.

CoronaVinyl Day 374 (P): Collaboration by Shawn Phillips

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I meant to post this Friday, but things got away from me, so I've been listening to this album for two days now.  Today's CoronaVinyl category is "P," and I went with the fifth studio album from singer-songwriter Shawn Phillips, 1971's collaboration.

Phillips is one of those guys who touched a lot of more famous musicians (figuratively) and was highly regarded in the music world, but never had mainstream success.  He got his start in the '60s folk scene in New York.  He taught guitar to a young Joni Mitchell.  He collaborated with Donovan on a few of his biggest albums and wrote the melody to "Season of the Witch.  he sang backing vocals on The Beatles' "Lovely Rita."  He recorded an album with Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, and Chris Wood of Traffic.  He played at the Isle of Wight festival in 1970.  He was supposed to be the lead in the original Broadway production of Jesus Christ Superstar.  He collaborated with Herbie Hancock on an album in the late '70s.

Collaboration is a mix of folk, prog, classical, and pop.  Sometimes, his music reminds me of Jim Croce, sometimes Jethro Tull, sometimes Richie Havens, sometimes Neil Diamond, sometimes America.  Collaborating with Phillips on the album were cellist and arranger Paul Buckmaster, who was the orchestral arranger for David Bowie's "Space Oddity," several of Elton John's early albums, both "Moonlight Mile" and "Sway" from my favorite Rolling Stones album, Sticky Fingers, Harry Nilsson's "Without You," Carly Simon's "Your So Vain," and many others.  Peter Robinson played pianos and organs on the album.  He played with Phillips on nine albums and was a successful session musician and arranger in his own right in the '70s and '80s before becoming a successful film and TV score composer from the '80s to the present. 

Phillips continued to make music into the mid '90s, when he decided to give it up to become an EMT.  He has released another album in 2002 and then another four between 2012 and 2017.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "Moonshine"
This is an uptempo folk song that reminds me of America.  Phillips's voice sounds like it was recorded in a small bathroom or something, but it has an ethereal echo-ey quality to it.  Also, it's about moonshine, so that's cool.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "8500 Years"
This one's a little more rocking, with a Hunky Dory era Bowie and early Jethro Tull vibe.

Hair Band Friday - 1/21/22

1.  "Still Loving You" by Scorpions

2.  "Rocket" by Def Leppard

3.  "Love Ain't No Stranger" by Whitesnake

4.  "Spreading the Disease" by Queensrÿche

5.  "Beyond the Realms of Death" by Judas Priest

6.  "Spellbound" by AC/DC

7.  "One Good Lover" by Ratt

8.  "Bad Reputation" by Vixen

9.  "The Way It Is" (live) by Tesla

10.  "Ready to Rumble" by Jetboy

CoronaVinyl Day 373 (O): Stay the Night by Jane Olivor

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I don't have any more albums by "N" artists, so today's CoronaVinyl category is "O," and one of the albums I acquired from my neighbor was Jane Olivor's third studio album, 1978's Stay the Night.

Olivor was a singer who got her start singing in cabarets and gay nightclubs in New York in the early to mid '70s.  Stay the Night is a collection of syrupy pop ballads.  It's not really my cup of tea, in that it's not a strong English or Irish breakfast tea with cream and sugar.  Her cover of The Chifons' "He's So Fine" from the album went to #77 on the Billboard Hot 100 (her highest-charting single), and the album itself went to #108 on the Billboard album chart.

The same year, her duet with Johnny Mathis, "The Last Time I Felt Like This," from the film Same Time, Next Year was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe.  She released another couple albums over the next few years, but then took a step back from music, both because of issue with stage fright and then to care for her husband, who had been diagnosed with cancer.  She got back into recording in the mid '90s and released a few more albums over the following decade.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "Can't Leave You 'Cause I Love You"
The first side ends with a power ballad, with Olivor passionately belting out the choruses.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Let's Make Some Memories"
The second side kicks off with an upbeat pop song that could easily be the theme song to a late '70s sitcom about a young married couple just looking to make it in this crazy world.

CoronaVinyl Day 372 (M): The Turning Point by John Mayall

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I forgot to hit "publish" yesterday, but yesterday's CoronaVinyl category was "M," and I went with John Mayall's 1969 live album, The Turning Point.

Mayall, of course, was one of the prime forces behind the British blues rock movement of the '60s.  Over the years, his band The Bluesbreakers featured the likes of Eric Clapton (before he left to form Cream), Peter Green (who would go on to co-found Fleetwood Mac), and Mick Taylor (before he joined The Rolling Stones), and Harvey Mandel (formerly of Canned Heat) on lead guitar.  Bassists included Jack Bruce (who left to join Manfred Mann and would later form Cream with Clapton and Ginger Baker) and John McVie (who left to form Fleetwood Mac).  Drummers included Mick Fleetwood (who was only in the band for a few weeks before he, McVie, and Green formed Fleetwood Mac) and future Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention and Journey drummer Aynsley Dunbar.

By 1969, Mayall had dropped the Bluesbreakers name and was just going by his own name.  With a new backing band, he changed musical directions, deciding to strip things down and ditch the screaming electric guitars and drums

In July 1969, the band played at the Fillmore East in New York and recorded the show for what would become The Turning Point, which was released a couple months later.  It's still blues, but it's not what you'd expect from Mayall if you were familiar with his mid to late '60s output.  The songs are all written or co-written by Mayall, and they're earthy and ethereal at the same time, harkening back to the Delta blues of the '30s, but with a few more instruments.  Mayall's voice always sounded older and more bluesy than what you might think a then-thirtysomething Brit might sound like.

Mayall, who is now 88, has continued to make music over the past five decades and even released an album as recently as last year.  In 2005, he was made an OBE.

The Spotify version of The Turning Point has three bonus tracks.

Favorite Song on Side 1:  "The Laws Must Change"
This is the first song on the album, and per the back of the album cover it's "a few personal observations of police vs. youth and the drug situation."  Johnny Almond has a nice little flute solo.

Favorite Song on Side 2:  "Room to Move"
This is definitely the liveliest song on the album, with Mayall wailing on the harmonica and audible foot stomping going on.