PopMusicNotes’ Top Pop Singles of 2011

Posted by John Hill on January 2, 2012
Posted in: singles, year-end. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . 3 comments

After a year where much of my attention was diverted in other directions, I still have something to say about the singles that kept infecting my brain throughout 2011. I have been saying for a couple of years that it was a matter of time until dance music returned to the mainstream, and 2011 made that official. This list is very American, and a bit more mainstream pop than I normally go, but that’s just where my head was this year. As always, a few points of clarification:
- Songs had to have been released (or re-released) in 2011
- While I limit artists to one track per year, Rihanna, Kelly Clarkson and Robyn all make a second appearance due to being a featured artist
- Chart position listed is for the Billboard Hot 100 peak position unless otherwise noted

25. What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger)/Kelly Clarkson (US #64 to date) – While the record label was promoting “Mr Know It All” prior to the release of Kelly’s Stronger CD, a leak of “What Doesn’t Kill You” hit the Internet, and it was all over with. Bloggers lost their minds, complaining that this should have been the lead single instead of good-but-not-great track “Mr Know It All.” Then again, that “horrible” lead single ended up going Top 10. “What Doesn’t Kill You” should follow its predecessor into the upper reaches of the Hot 100 with a killer hook and a driving beat after the holidays pass as long as her Ron Paul endorsement doesn’t cause her any backlash.

24. We Found Love/Rihanna (US #1) – Rihanna was pumping out singles this year faster than rabbits have babies, but there’s no doubt that “We Found Love” was the best of all those tracks. Pairing her with Calvin Harris originally seemed like a gimmick, but the combo worked better than most would have guessed, and it’s probably not hard to imagine Calvin now having a similar career in the US as David Guetta now has, with superstar guest vocalists coming out of the woodwork to appear on a hit single. Besides, the musical phrase of the year goes to this track for the chorus “we found love in a hopeless place.” Good luck getting the song out of your head.

23. Don’t Kick the Chair/Dia Frampton feat Kid Cudi (Not Charted) – While most people were talking about the judges on The Voice, there was still a singing competition going on with some solid talent competing for the initial season’s title. Dia Frampton released “The Broken Ones” as her official debut single after coming in second on The Voice, but the label teased “Don’t Kick the Chair” prior to the release of Red and I was instantly hooked. The title refers to a phrase Frampton uses to say “stop your complaining,” and I took that to heart. It probably doesn’t hurt that Dia has some experience recording thanks to her sisterly duo Meg and Dia, but Red is a solid album that American Idol probably wishes they could get their winners to record.

22. The Living Proof/Mary J Blige (Not Charted) – One of my favorite Mary J. Blige songs is “Not Gonna Cry,” which appeared on the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack. That song was just as powerful as a stand-alone song as it was for the moment it represented in the movie. “The Living Proof” did the same thing for 2011′s feel-good movie “The Help,” and showed once again that Mary does subtle just as well as she does over-the-top emotion.

21. Til Death – Wynter Gordon (US Dance #3) – Wynter Gordon was the dance diva rookie of the year with her album With the Music I Die. While you might know her voice from singing the hook on Flo Rida’s “Sugar,” she came into her own in 2011, placing three singles into the US Dance charts top five, including the #2 hit “Til Death.” With the right single and label push, Wynter could be ripe for crossover success, and “Til Death” might be the song to do it.

20. Storm Warning/Hunter Hayes (US #84, Country #15 to date) – He sings, he plays, he writes, he makes a killer cappuccino! Well, I have no proof of the final item, but you can hear all of the other items on his major-label self-titled CD, as well as on his first hit single. Hunter takes the best elements of pop-country music and makes them his own without it sounding calculated or cheesy. As we already noted, Hayes is well on his way to assuming the niche created by the likes of Bryan White and Rascal Flatts.

19. I Got You/Martha Wash (Not Charted) – The producers of American Idol have more often than not provided their champions with some seriously lightweight songs as their debut singles, but more often than not those songs are quickly overshadowed by legitimate hits. If they really want to find a solid song that captures that confetti moment at the end of the season, they couldn’t do much better than Martha Wash’s “I’ve Got You,” which felt like a coronation song to me the first time I heard it. Martha’s still got the pipes, but she found an empowering ballad that helps show a softer side I haven’t heard since her version of “Someone Who Believes In You” from the early 90s.

18. Moves Like Jagger/Maroon 5 feat Christina Aguilera (US #1) – I sat and watched the initial performance of “Moves Like Jagger” on The Voice in June, and I thought it was a joke. The subject matter, the whistle, the outfits…I thought it was a hot mess. Someone must have thought it was stellar, though, because it instantly went to #1 on iTunes. Airplay soon followed, and then once the visual spectacle was removed from the equation, I started to like the song. And then, I began to love the song. It was worming its way into my head, but I really didn’t care. Even Christina’s vamping on the final chorus was enjoyable. Maroon 5 needed a boost after the last few singles flopped, so it’s been good to see them stretch musically and be rewarded for taking a chance.

17. Put Your Hands Up/Kylie Minogue (US Dance #1) – When Aphrodite came out in 2010, I was taken with the album from start to finish, with the exception of “Better Than Today,” which I still dislike to this day. “Put Your Hands Up” was a joyous romp in the middle of the album, but I thought it would remain an album cut. Enter Pete Hammond, who remixed “Hands” to sound like something from Kylie’s SAW days, and the song ended up becoming Kylie’s fifth #1 in a row on the US Dance chart.

16. Heaven/Emeli Sandé (Not Charted) – Does R&B need a new Queen? If so, Emeli Sandé may be the woman to fill the gap. With its “Funky Drummer” beat propelling it along, “Heaven” feels like a throwback to some of the best dance records of the 90s, but with a deeper soul thanks to Sandé’s passionate plea. “Heaven” soared onto the UK charts, along with feature spots on Top 10 records by Professor Green, Wiley and Chipmunk. Emeli’s album Our Version of Events arrives in the UK on February 13, and the US release should be in June.

15. I Wrote the Book/Beth Ditto (Not Charted) – If you had told me in 2010 that Beth Ditto would release a full-fledged house track in 2011, I would have laughed and said “I WISH!” Fortunately for me and all her fans, that wish was granted in the form of “I Wrote the Book,” which appeared on a four-track EP released in early 2011. Proving she doesn’t have to sing pop punk to be fierce, Beth made the dance diva transition with ease. Extra points for the amazing video that paid tribute to Madonna’s “Justify My Love” while still maintaining her own personality. Next thing you know, a Gossip song will be used in a perfume commercial. Oh wait…

14. Never Will Be Mine/Rye Rye feat Robyn (Not Charted) – In a year where one of the biggest rappers was the larger-than-life Nicki Minaj, it was a great counterpoint to hear a rapper with the lyrical skills of Rye Rye get down to the basic task of using rap to tell a story and set a mood. She succeeded in spades with “Never Will Be Mine,” whose chorus was built around Robyn’s “Be Mine.” In fact, Robyn sang the hook and appeared in the video, leading to another round of “Robyn might get a hit in the US” hope. Alas, we found disappointment in a hopeful place, but Rye Rye’s full-length album should drop sometime in 2012.

13. Bright Lights Bigger City/Cee-Lo (Not Charted) – When Cee-Lo became half of Gnarls Barkley, no one ever anticipated that the group would have a hit as major as “Crazy” was, but that turned out to be the only hit the group had off of their two albums. Fast forward five years, and history repeated itself as “Bright Lights Bigger City” failed to capitalize on the protracted success of “F**k You.” Despite performing the song on multiple shows (including his own The Voice), the song never caught on in the US and never made an appearance on the Billboard Hot 100, even after Wiz Khalifa was added on to a remix version. “Bright Lights” became my going out on Friday/Saturday night song, as well as one of my favorite remixes of the year courtesy of the Shapeshifters.

12. Good Life/OneRepublic (US #8) – So here’s a rarity in the music business: an album released in 2009 saw its biggest hit occur in 2011. While artists like Rihanna and Britney Spears turn out new albums before the last record is fully over, OneRepublic slowly but steadily released quality single after quality single. In the US, they dropped “All the Right Moves” in 2009, “Secrets” in 2010, and then “Good Life” in 2011, and the track became the biggest record in four years for the Colorado-based band. While the song itself is an uplifting, midtempo track with a catchy hook, the downside was that it seemed to usher in a rash of whistle-featuring singles.

11. Give Me Everything/Pitbull (US #1) – Over the past few years, Pitbull has been the go-to guy for pop artists looking to add a hip-hop vibe to their single releases, helping out the likes of Jennifer Lopez and Enrique Iglesias. Even though he’s scored top 10 records on his own, Pitbull decided to follow that model, enlisting Ne-Yo, Nayer and Afrojack for the first #1 pop hit of his career with “Give Me Everything.” While Pit’s flow was on point as always, Ne-Yo’s vocals soared on the chorus, propelling the track on radios around the world and ending up as the most-played song on the radio in the US in 2011.

10. Rumour Has It/Someone Like You/Glee Cast (US #11) – So there were three Adele singles in 2011 that were released, and all were worthy of inclusion. Well, I get to include two of the three thanks to this brilliant mash-up from the third season of Glee. While I’m not a fan of the show, it is hard to deny that their interpretations of current songs are occasionally worthy of hitting the pop charts, and “Rumour Has It/Someone Like You” fits that bill. The way the two songs are woven together just works, and the visual of the performance just heightens the impact of the song. Both Naya Rivera and Amber Riley excel on the track, and the cast picked up their highest charting song since “Loser Like Me” reached number six in March 2011.

9. Don’t You Wanna Stay/Jason Aldean feat Kelly Clarkson (US #31, Country #1) – Every once in a while I get it right, and the first time I saw Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson sing “Don’t You Wanna Stay” together, I knew it would be a hit. A year later, and not only did the song get to #1 on the Country chart, but it also sold over a million copies and reached the Pop Top 40. You would never know that “Don’t You Wanna Stay” was written for a solo singer because Aldean and Clarkson sell it as a duet so convincingly. If Kelly ever decides to give up pop for country music, she will become one of the biggest female singers in the business instantly.

8. Come On/Will Young (Not Charted) – While much of the blogosphere has anointed Will Young’s first single from Echoes for their end-of-year lists, I am much more drawn to single number two, “Come On.” Will’s voice is perfectly suited for heartbreak, and “Come On” puts that emotion on display as he realizes his love is about to leave him. Despite fears that his career might be waning, Echoes went into the UK album chart at #1, proving that real talent can come out of music reality shows.

7. Otis – Jay-Z/Kanye West (US #12) – When Watch the Throne came out in mid-2011, I thought the second single “Otis” would be their best chance at a mainstream hit, but who could have guessed that a slot on the Victoria’s Secret would launch an unlikely track like “Ni**as in Paris” into the Billboard Hot 100 top five? Based on an extended sample of Otis Redding’s “Try a Little Tenderness,” I still grin listening to these two master MCs brag on their skills while demonstrating why they can do just that. This is some serious rappers’ delight.

6. Call Your Girlfriend/Robyn (Not Charted) – I continue to be frustrated by the way the US remains shut to Robyn’s music. Not even an opening slot on Katy Perry’s tour or an appearance on Saturday Night Live in December could get this song to chart, although it did surface on the iTunes charts for a hot minute. Robyn needs just one solid break, and then I am positive every single released over the past six years could be released in the States to sell millions of copies and dominate the radio. That would be justice. This final salvo from the Body Talk trilogy was pure pop abandon…being the other woman has never sounded so reasonable.

5. Super Bass/Nicki Minaj (US #3) – If you had asked me mid-year what track of Nicki’s would be on my year-end, it would have been “Moment 4 Life,” with Young Money labelmate Drake along for the ride. However, it would turn out to be Pink Friday bonus track “Super Bass” that rocked my world. Nicki showed in 2011 that you could be pop AND street on the same album, and she did that on her own terms. Like Drake, Nicki cultivates a persona that can’t be fully pinned down, and she ruled the sales and airplay charts as a result. The hook alone was worth the price of admission, but it was her playful rap delivery that sealed the deal.

4. Disco Moment/Bright Light Bright Light (Not Charted) – The slow trudge to 2012 and a full-length Bright Light Bright Light record seemed a little bit closer in 2011, thanks to the single release of “Disco Moment.” In fact, my favorite piece of mail this year was the envelope that contained the autographed single. Rod Thomas’s tale of confronting the end of a relationship conveyed both the angst and the relief of a toxic situation coming to a close. If you’re looking for an heir to the Pet Shop Boys’ place in pop and dance music, allow me to suggest Bright Light Bright Light.

3. Pumped Up Kicks/Foster the People (US #3) – A confession: I didn’t give Foster the People much attention initially because I felt they fit into the hipster group of the moment, but after hearing “Pumped Up Kicks” a couple of times, I quickly changed my mind. The song was worked to Alternative radio in 2010, but 2011 was when the track blew up at pop radio and battled for song of the summer against lesser singles. How a song that sounds happy and perky on the surface but talks about gun violence underneath the surface became a Top Five hit, I have no idea, but I’m not mad about it.

2. Take Care/Drake feat Rihanna (US #9 to date) – I spent much of 2011 waiting for Drake to leak his next track for the world to peruse, and I was rarely disappointed. The problem with hearing samples that you love from an upcoming album is that you are probably going to be disappointed with the remaining tracks not worthy of leaking. Fortunately, that wasn’t the case with Take Care, which debuted at #1 on the album chart. Just prior to the release, Drake and Nicki Minaj performed “Make Me Proud” on Saturday Night Live, which the song went Top 10 the next week. In any other situation that song would have made my year-end list, but then Take Care was released, and Drake’s duet with Rihanna on the title cut blew me away. To this day I am amazed that Drake gets away with these downright dance pop tracks and still keeps his street cred, but I hope he keeps doing it. “Take Care” is just a piano and bass thump away from being a House anthem, and all I wanted for Christmas was a fully-realized House remix. Check out Mike Irish’s remix if you want an idea of what I’m talking about, but if anyone knows Frankie Knuckles, please pass on my request.

1. Set Fire to the Rain/Adele (US #7 to date) – In an album full of classics, it was hard to pick just one song to include, but since she technically only released three singles in 2011 (“Someone Like You” and “Rumour Has It” were the other two), I didn’t have to deliberate too hard. Although “Someone” turned into a massive hit and “Rumour” held a couple of radio formats over in between official singles, “Set Fire to the Rain” sounded unique and fresh on the radio when it hit the US airwaves in November. For my money, it’s the most powerful and passionate performance from 21, and deserves to be as big a hit as “Someone Like You.”

Gonna Wish I Had a Storm Warning

Posted by John Hill on December 27, 2011
Posted in: new artist, new releases, youtube. Tagged: , , , . 2 comments

Okay…first, watch the video below. We’ll discuss it on the other side:

Now that we have that out of the way, let’s talk about Hunter Hayes, whose above-viewed “Storm Warning” recently hit the Top 20 of the Billboard Country Songs chart with a bullet. The angle that many music journalists are taking to discuss Hayes is to talk about how, at only twenty years of age, he has co-written every song, played every instrument, and sang every note on every song of his album. Great achievement, and definitely worth mentioning. However, if it’s on Pop Music Notes, you know we’re going to talk about the pop quotient.

Back in the 1990s, there was a country singer named Bryan White who played country music with a pop sensibility and scored a few number one records. While the ladies of country music were scaling the pop charts, Bryan got left behind, and eventually the country hits dried up. His one claim to pop music fame was singing the male part on Shania Twain’s 1998 smash “From This Moment On,” but he was edited out of the pop edits of the song. No respect! Check out “Love is the Right Place” from 1997 and hopefully you’ll hear the same similarities with “Storm Warning” that I do:

Just about the time that Bryan’s career was winding down, a group called Rascal Flatts got going in a big way. Their debut self-titled disc came out in 2000 as I was preparing for my move to Colorado, and “I’m Moving On” saw me off as I drove out of Atlanta on my way to Denver the following year. Rascal Flatts have had some crossover success (“Life is a Highway,” “What Hurts the Most,” “Bless the Broken Road”), but for the most part they are still considered a country group. However, recent collaborations with Justin Bieber and Natasha Bedingfield haven’t helped the perception among some country fans that they are just a pop band with a fiddle and a steel guitar in the back of the closet.

So back to Hunter Hayes, who released his self-titled major-label debut in November 2011 and is preparing to hit the road in 2012 opening for Rascal Flatts. The album is a solid effort, although it is a bit generic in spots. For me, the big concern is that I don’t see or hear an individual voice emerging. Then again, the guy is only 20, and has plenty of time to grow into his own perspective. There’s a strong foundation on this album, and hopefully it does well enough to afford him the opportunity to record a follow-up that lets Hunter show through instead of his influences.

Why Teena Marie Matters

Posted by John Hill on December 26, 2011
Posted in: commentary, death, personal, Uncategorized. 10 comments

Today marks the one year anniversary of Teena Marie’s passing. When I heard about her death (via Twitter, like we do), I was stunned. Even thought she hadn’t had a hit in a few years, she was still releasing albums and touring, and I easily could have imagined her becoming the grand dame of R&B. Leaving this world as soon as she did should not have even been an option.

For those of you who don’t know, Teena was not only a white woman who found success singing R&B, she was also a pioneer in the business, inadvertently leading the charge on how artist contracts were drawn up and how artists were paid. While that in itself is something to be proud of, I would be surprised if that’s a victory she would have even claimed. From the way she chased down a recording contract to the innovative way her career laid itself out, Teena Marie was no one’s puppet. She was her own woman, and even when being molded by a producer and writer as strong-willed as Rick James, her power never flagged. In fact, James was gasoline to Marie’s flame, and there is no stronger proof of this than their duet “Fire and Desire” from his 1981 album Street Songs. The clip below is a rare video of the two of them in their prime performing “Fire” live, and the passion between those two fiery souls must have been amazing to witness live:

While I knew the music that Teena Marie was making in the early 80s, it wasn’t until 1984′s Starchild with the #4 pop hit “Lovergirl” that my attention was fully captured. Starchild hit high rotation on my tape deck, but it was “Out on a Limb” that quickly became my jam. I was 15 years old, but somehow this woman’s ode to an amazing love resonated with me. We speak about “the best” this and that, but for me, “Out on a Limb” is one of the greatest R&B ballads of the past 50 years. It was timely and timeless, all at the same time, and Teena’s delivery elevated it above just a solid song into a blueprint of how you sing a ballad. Singers like Shirley Murdock owe Teena Marie a great debt for utilizing her influence in making their own hit records. While the song was not a hit at the time, it quickly became a Quiet Storm staple on R&B stations across the US.

Surprisingly, some of Teena Marie’s most enduring songs were never hits. Along with “Out on a Limb” is “Deja Vu (I’ve Been Here Before),” a song that appeared on her first album Wild and Peaceful. Despite it never being a single, it is a signature Teena Marie track that remained a favorite at her concerts up until her death last year. You would never know that the song was written by Rick James by the way she sang it because the conviction of her delivery made it her own from the opening lines: “I’m young and I’m old/I’m rich and I’m poor/I feel like I’ve been on this Earth many times before.”

No matter what adversity or challenges she experienced in her life, it was clear that music was her passion instead of her job and nothing would deter her from sharing it with the world. We should all be that lucky. Rest in peace, Lady Tee. Your memory and your music lives on.

Looking Out for Number One

Posted by John Hill on December 5, 2011
Posted in: charts, news, songs, videos. Tagged: , , . Leave a Comment

There was a lot of hoopla earlier this year over the fact that the Billboard Hot 100 saw its 1000th Number One record (Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way), but I have to admit I thought it would just be a passing footnote. Luckily, the folks over at Billboard thought otherwise and are currently marking that milestone with a video a day through the month of December talking to artists and producers about those hits.

Fun fact: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, the dynamic duo behind Janet Jackson’s early success, didn’t have much interest in making “When I Think of You” a hit, but Janet’s brothers instantly saw its potential. Check out Jimmy’s description of that conversation below:

Other artists featured so far include Kelly Clarkson, Hanson, BoB and Def Leppard. I’m hoping they are able to hook up some stories going all the way back to the 50s, but it’s still a great concept even with the more contemporary songs they’ve featured so far.

This Sparrow Found Her Wings

Posted by John Hill on October 27, 2011
Posted in: holiday, new artist, new releases. Tagged: . Leave a Comment


Goodbye leaves of fall
So long
Miss you

If you think that Denver is just for the Fray, OneRepublic, 3OH!3, and Dynasty, you’re missing out. Not only does Denver have some big name musicians calling it home, there is also a sizable indie/underground music scene that any minute now someone else may burst out of (Matt Morris, anyone?). Add to that bursting list singer-songwriter Katey Laurel, who this month released “Two Birds” on iTunes and CD Baby.

The premise is simple: two people are separated by distance, and one plans to “drive across the Plains” so they can spend the winter together. However, it’s the mix of this story with the two birds visual that makes the song work, as the listener has no problem picturing those two birds “sitting on a wire” or nestled in a nest, adding more impact than just a simple “I’ll drive to you” premise.

“Two Birds” succeeds not only because of its lyrical clarity, but also because of the simple yet effective production. One listen will transport you to that time between the brightness of autumn and the pure white of winter where you know the snow is coming, and in your mind you are mentally preparing. All it takes is two guitars to propel the song along, and the rest of it just flows. “Two Birds” isn’t a Christmas song per se, but it evokes some of the same emotions that make the more mellow holiday songs a welcome addition to your playlist come November and December.

There’s no plan at the moment for a full-length album, so you will have to go back to her early 2011 CD From Here if you want to hear more, or check out one of her Colorado/New Mexico shows in November or December. Then you can say “I knew Katey Laurel when…”

So We Are History, Your Shadow Covers Me

Posted by John Hill on August 2, 2011
Posted in: commentary, death, new releases. Tagged: . Leave a Comment

The world is spinning constantly, ushering one event in as it shows the last event the door at breakneck speed. Despite knowing this fact, I was struck this afternoon about all of the events that have occurred in the world and in my life since I heard that Amy Winehouse died ten days ago. Let’s be honest right upfront: while I was a fan, I wasn’t a die-hard follower. Back to Black got some serious rotation in my mixes when it came out, but I had not revisited the album recently. As for Frank, that one passed me by on its original release, and I only gave it a passing glance upon finding out that Back to Black was not Amy’s debut.

With all of that said, I can say with a clear conscience that even with my less-than-obsessive following I knew that Amy Winehouse was a force to be reckoned with. In the hands of almost any other vocalist, Back to Black would have sounded like a tribute at best or karaoke at worst, but Amy Winehouse owned those lyrics with her passionate and world-weary vocals from start to finish. Many of the ladies that have followed in her footsteps have already stumbled badly (Duffy, anyone?), but if you can say anything positive about Amy, it is that not rushing out a third album would have helped her immensely when that disc finally hit the stores and the Internet. Sadly, it is now guaranteed that if the disc sees the light of day, it will be an instant best seller.

The saddest part of all the media coverage has been the people empowered to say “she got what she deserved.” Granted, she set herself up by writing, recording and releasing a song like “Rehab,” but some of the things that have been said show just how cold the anonymous posters can be when emboldened to do so. That may be a topic for another day, but it still deserves mention because in my opinion she doesn’t deserve it.

So what do we have to show for having had Amy Winehouse in this world for 27 years? For one, we have a renewed interest in 60s girl groups, which is never a bad thing. Beehives, for better or worse, made a brief comeback. Ghostface Killer got played on the radio via the “You Know I’m No Good” remix, and I’ll never complain about that. Sadly, we now have some brilliant music being released in tribute to Amy. While some of these are simply covers that are meant to memorialize a talented performer, at least one reinterprets one of Amy’s greatest songs in an unexpected way.

Ronnie Spector wrote for Rolling Stone magazine one of the most personal tributes to Amy Winehouse that I read in the aftermath of Amy’s death, but it was the musical tribute that truly moved me. Spector, who performed “Back to Black” live with Amy in the audience, recorded a cover of the song that reinterprets it from a dark and moody girl group ballad to a smoky dancefloor anthem that is begging remixes while standing on its own as an unexpected revelation. According to Rolling Stone, the cover will be released as a charity single, but for the time being I’m playing the song over and over as a reminder of both Amy Winehouse’s writing talent and as a testament to the vocal power of Ronnie Spector. If there is any silver lining to Amy’s passing, may it be the exposure she directed toward the originators of the sound that made her popular, and the respect those pioneers are showing her in return.

Lift “My Heart”

Posted by John Hill on July 22, 2011
Posted in: singles, videos. Tagged: . Leave a Comment

I am a sucker for a lush circa-1970s bassline sample, so it’s no surprise that I was instantly hooked on Estelle’s new jam “Break My Heart,” which features Rick Ross on the rap. It has a Mary J. Blige “My Life” vibe to it which is ALWAYS welcome, and has turned out to be one of my songs for the summer. While Estelle’s vocals might not be everyone’s cup of tea, she always brings the flavor in my book. Check out the beautifully-shot video below…

The long-awaited follow-up CD to 2008′s Shine is All of Me, but we’ve been hearing that since 2009. The best I can find for a release date currently is a Warner Japan release on September 28 through Amazon, which would be about right with a Top 25 single rising at Urban radio currently. Either way, the teasers we’ve heard over the last two years serve as a reminder that All of Me can’t hit the street soon enough. Does it seem possible that Estelle was the subject of one of my first blog posts three years ago?

What More Can I Say?

Posted by John Hill on July 20, 2011
Posted in: upcoming, videos. Tagged: , , . 4 comments

Music should move you. It may seem like that’s a given, but when you listen to a lot of music, it’s easy to take that fact for granted. I haven’t been MOVED by much lately, so when something has that impact on me, I stop and take notice. Such is the case with “Otis,” sample number one from Jay-Z and Kanye West’s upcoming Watch the Throne, due on August 1st in digital form and August 5th on a physical CD.

It’s not a complex track, but its impact is potent. Otis Redding’s passionate vocals from “Try a Little Tenderness” imbue the cut with enough soul to fill an album, yet “Otis” only lasts 3 minutes. Jay is slick, Yeezy is bragging, and the track sets the tone that all competitors should think twice before attempting to steal the Throne. Every time you think hip-hop has lost its way, a track comes along to say “we honor the past while pushing toward the future.” “Otis” does just that.

Songs for Japan

Posted by John Hill on March 25, 2011
Posted in: new releases. Tagged: . 1 comment

I usually don’t do full-on blatant posts for new releases, but with the reality of natural and man-made disasters becoming more and more devastating in Japan, I think this is a good exception. An all-star compilation of 38 tracks encompassing multiple record labels is available starting today through iTunes worldwide, with both artist and iTunes proceeds going directly to the Japanese Red Cross.

The society will use the funds for the ongoing provision of immediate relief and for eventual recovery support to the affected population. The artists participating on “Songs for Japan,” the music labels and music publishers have waived their royalties and proceeds from the worldwide sales of the album to ensure that the JRCS receives as much support as possible from this global initiative.

Even if you own a majority of the tracks, donating $10 to the effort and receiving something in return is about as great of a deal as I can think of. As @xolondon mentioned on Twitter this morning, there is a previously unreleased Starsmith Remix of “Born This Way” that might help blunt the impact of so many previously available tracks downloading to your computer, but at the end of the day, it is about the assistance. If you want to do more, you can donate additional funds to the Red Cross here. Check out the track listing below:

1. John Lennon “Imagine” (Remastered)
2. U2 “Walk On” (Radio Edit)
3. Bob Dylan “Shelter From The Storm”
4. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Around The World” (Live)
5. Lady Gaga “Born This Way” (Starsmith Remix)
6. Beyonce “Irreplaceable”
7. Bruno Mars “Talking To The Moon” (Acoustic Piano Version)
8. Katy Perry “Firework”
9. Rihanna “Only Girl (In The World)”
10. Justin Timberlake “Like I Love You”
11. Madonna “Miles Away” (Live)
12. David Guetta “When Love Takes Over” (feat. Kelly Rowland)
13. Eminem “Love The Way You Lie” (feat. Rihanna) [Clean Version}
14. Bruce Springsteen "Human Touch"
15. Josh Groban "Awake" (Live)
16. Keith Urban "Better Life"
17. Black Eyed Peas "One Tribe"
18. Pink "Sober"
19. Cee Lo Green "It's Ok"
20. Lady Antebellum "I Run To You"
21. Bon Jovi "What Do You Got?"
22. Foo Fighters "My Hero"
23. R.E.M. "Man On The Moon"
24. Nicki Minaj "Save Me" (Clean Version)
25. Sade "By Your Side"
26. Michael Buble "Hold On" (Radio Mix)
27. Justin Bieber "Pray" (Acoustic)
28. Adele "Make You Feel My Love"
29. Enya "If I Could Be Where You Are"
30. Elton John "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me"
31. John Mayer "Waiting On The World To Change"
32. Queen "Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)" [Remastered]
33. Kings Of Leon “Use Somebody”
34. Sting “Fragile” (Live In Berlin)
35. Leona Lewis “Better In Time”
36. Ne-Yo “One In A Million”
37. Shakira “Whenever, Wherever”
38. Norah Jones “Sunrise”

When the Thunder Calls For Me

Posted by John Hill on February 26, 2011
Posted in: reviews. Tagged: . 2 comments

Adele became one of the most unexpected success stories of 2009, having upset favorites like Lady Antebellum and the Jonas Brothers for Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards. Propelled by her two Grammy wins (she also won Best Female Pop Performance) and her appearance on Saturday Night Live in October 2008, Adele’s debut CD 19 went on to sell over 900,000 copies in the US and close to two million copies worldwide. Because of this success, all eyes were on Adele as she prepared to release her sophomore release 21 in early 2011. Thankfully, she exceeded all of those expectations with a CD that is light years beyond what most 21-year-olds could comprehend, much less produce.

Adele Rocks It Out

Lead single “Rolling In the Deep” kicks in with a driving beat that eggs on Adele’s vocal to a bluesy, soulful sound that wasn’t as prominent on 19. Second track “Rumour Has It” has a 60s influence that matches the best tracks by contemporaries Duffy or Amy Winehouse while still sounding contemporary and relevant. Some of the credit for this goes to producer Ryan Tedder, who brings some of his more unique instrument choices to the track. However, most of the credit goes to Adele’s voice, which can be husky and weathered on a track like “Rumour Has It,” but sharp and clear as a bell on “One and Only.”

Adele Remains True

Ryan Tedder also co-wrote “Turning Tables,” which harkens back to Adele’s first CD 19 in part due to producer Jim Abbiss. Even though “Turning Tables” sounds much like “Chasing Pavements,” the listener can still hear growth and maturity as Adele sings “Next time I’ll be braver/I’ll be my own savior/When the thunder calls for me.” Rather than asking how she should respond, Adele knows herself and how to proceed.

Another song that fits the power ballad model that many of Adele’s fans know and love is “Set Fire to the Rain,” produced by Fraser T. Smith. Much like his earlier work on James Morrison’s “Broken Strings,” Fraser T. Smith takes a song that would simply be a run-of-the-mill ballad in the hands of most producers and creates a smoldering track that seems to burn upon contact with Adele’s precise vocals. The restraint shown by Adele singing “Set Fire to the Rain” up until the end is impressive, considering that vocalists with less skill and ability would vamp every line of the song to compensate.

The Heart of the Matter

While you could break down how Adele has progressed sonically and vocally, it all comes down to the vulnerability and sincerity displayed in her music. The wounds are still fresh as Adele sings “Nevermind, I’ll find someone like you” in the song of the same name, and you know as well as she does that this might be true or this might be a brave face. Even on her cover of The Cure’s “Love Song,” Adele still brings her own context and perspective, giving a more sensitive delivery that is true to who she is.

No matter how you relate to the material, Adele taps into something that few singers ever achieve in their entire career, let alone by the time they reach their early 20s. To release a career-defining album with the class and sophistication of 21 that seems genuine and authentic is a testament to both the artist and the material. The musical world is Adele’s to explore, and those of us who count ourselves as fans will continue to be the winners as she continues to evolve.