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BORN TO SING (Album of the Day)
The members of En Vogue - Terry Ellis, Cindy Herron, Maxine Jones and Dawn Robinson – couldn't have picked a more appropriate title for their 1990 debut album than BORN TO SING. Oakland, California's finest female foursome display the poise and talent of seasoned stars on the collection, effortlessly blending soul, hip-hop and New Jack Swing on such tracks as “Lies,” “You Don't Have To Worry” and the No. 2 crossover smash “Hold On.” Helping to marshal their outstanding harmonies is the production team of Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy, who'd scored their own hits as part of Club Nouveau. We'll wish Robinson a happy birthday with the Platinum-selling BORN TO SING.
TROUBLE IN PARADISE (Album of the Day)
Randy Newman's seventh studio album may have been titled TROUBLE IN PARADISE but it opens with one of the performer's most upbeat anthems - “I Love L.A.” If that signature song isn't entirely representative of the 11 originals that follow – in which razor-sharp lyrics skewer racists, yuppies and war-mongers – its accessibility is. With Warner Bros. hitmakers Russ Titelman and Lenny Waronker behind the board (and such guests as Paul Simon, Linda Ronstadt and Bob Seger behind mics), the 1983 collection displays the craftsmanship that would make the singer-songwriter one of the most sought-after composers for film and TV. TROUBLE IN PARADISE is among Randy Newman's very best, and we'll give it another spin now to wish the man a happy 80th birthday.
MARQUEE MOON (Album of the Day)
Television helped turn CBGB into a punk mecca, but when it came time to cut their debut album, the quartet were anything but fast and furious. Frontman Tom Verlaine (born on this day in 1949) meticulously mapped out the record, and when the band entered the studio, they were so well-rehearsed that most songs were recorded in one or two takes. Which isn't to say that MARQUEE MOON is sterile; guitarists Verlaine and Richard Lloyd bring a spirit of exploration that’s akin to the best jazz improvisation, even if the songs themselves - from opener “See No Evil” to “Prove It,” “Friction” and the near 10-minute title track - aren't far from garage rock. In the years since its 1977 release, outlets like Rolling Stone and NME have championed MARQUEE MOON as one of the greatest albums of all time.
MORRISON HOTEL - 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (Album of the Day)
With legal problems dogging their lead singer and a cool critical response to their previous album, The Doors were on the ropes in February 1970 when they came back swinging with MORRISON HOTEL. Rooted in R&B, the Elektra collection starts with the classic “Roadhouse Blues” and rarely lets up from there; “Peace Frog,” “Land Ho!” and “You Make Me Real” are among the other highlights. The 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of the quartet's fifth studio album includes multiple unreleased takes of the opener and “Queen of the Highway” as well as tough versions of Muddy Waters' “Rock Me” and Motown chestnut “Money (That’s What I Want).” Frontman Jim Morrison was born 80 years ago today and we'll mark the occasion with a visit to MORRISON HOTEL.
STRANGEWAYS HERE WE COME (Album of the Day)
The Smiths performed their last concert on this day in 1986; some 10 months later, the U.K. quartet's fourth and final album arrived in stores. The title of STRANGEWAYS HERE WE COME references a notorious Manchester prison and if it was recorded as the band was splintering, you wouldn't know it from the music, which stands as the group's most varied and elaborately produced. On the strength of such tracks as “Girlfriend in a Coma,” “I Started Something I Couldn't Finish” and “Stop Me if You Think You've Heard This One Before,” the collection went Gold on both sides of the Atlantic. Frontman Morrissey, guitarist Johnny Marr and drummer Mike Joyce have all called STRANGEWAYS HERE WE COME the best Smiths album - tt's a terrific finale for the indie icons.
FOXTROT (Album of the Day)
Genesis' fourth studio set, FOXTROT, did much to raise the progressive rockers' profile – it became their first album to chart in the U.K. and secured their first show in the U.S. (on this day in 1972). While the whimsical tone of past releases is still present, it's bolstered by the band's most forceful and focused playing yet. From punchy opener “Watcher of the Skies” to the near-side-long “Supper's Ready” closing suite, this ambitious collection touches on sci-fi, mythology, English history and social commentary with some of Peter Gabriel's most imaginative lyrics. Allmusic rightly said of FOXTROT “This is the rare art-rock album that excels at both the art and the rock, and it's a pinnacle of the genre (and decade) because of it.”
VERITIES & BALDERDASH (Album of the Day)
On his fourth studio set, Harry Chapin served up an appealing mix of VERITIES & BALDERDASH. The nine originals on the 1974 Elektra album range from the romantic (“I Wanna Learn a Love Song”) to the topical (“What Made America Famous”) to the comedic ("30,000 Pounds of Bananas"), with a No.1 hit - “Cat's In The Cradle” - included for good measure. With producer Paul Leka at the helm, the collection benefits from polished, ambitious arrangements and the work of top studio musicians; all of Chapin's other albums feature his touring band. The versatile singer-songwriter was born on this day in 1942, and we'll remember Harry Chapin with his most commercially successful release, VERITIES & BALDERDASH.
SABBATH BLOODY SABBATH (Album of the Day)
After a grueling world tour behind VOL. 4, and a month of fruitless sessions at Los Angeles' Record Plant, Black Sabbath decamped to Clearwell Castle in Gloucestershire, England, to work on their fifth album. With its dungeon and resident ghosts, the place was just what the band needed, and SABBATH BLOODY SABBATH brims with inspiration. “We'd managed to strike just the right balance between our old heaviness and our new, 'experimental' side,” noted frontman Ozzy Osbourne of the set, which features such classic originals as “Killing Yourself to Live” and the title track while upping the ante on arrangements by successfully incorporating orchestration and synthesizers (Yes' Rick Wakeman guests on “Sabbra Cadabra”). Released this month in 1973, the Platinum-selling SABBATH BLOODY SABBATH belongs in any heavy metal collection.
MINUTE BY MINUTE (Album of the Day)
The Doobie Brothers completed their transition from Northern California biker bar band to radio-friendly blue-eyed funk hitmakers with MINUTE BY MINUTE, released this month in 1978. While it still reflects the band's roots with the rocker “Don't Stop To Watch The Wheels” (sung by original frontman Tom Johnston) and the bluegrass-flavored instro “Steamer Lane Breakdown,” the Warner Bros. album is best remembered as the moment that Michael McDonald took center stage. The singer/keyboardist scored big time with the title track and “What A Fool Believes,” which topped the singles chart and went on to win Grammys for both Song and Record of the Year. The album itself went to No.1 on the chart, and the supremely listenable MINUTE BY MINUTE would become the Doobies' all-time top seller.
PANORAMA (Album of the Day)
The five original members of The Cars - Ric Ocasek, Benjamin Orr, Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes and David Robinson - made six studio albums together for Elektra Records and have sold more than 23 million albums in the U.S. alone. Cut with longtime producer Roy Thomas Baker, PANORAMA became the band's third consecutive Platinum set and peaked at #3 on the Billboard Album Chart. Boasting a darker, more experimental tone than its predecessors, the 1980 collection became a fan favorite thanks to songs like "Touch And Go," "Up And Down," and "Gimme Some Slack." PANORAMA offers a broad look at the New Wave hitmakers' strengths, and we'll give it another spin to wish guitarist Easton a happy 70th birthday.