No, this isn’t a Hilary Duff flashback. This is a flashback to the mid-90s, when Toni Braxton ruled the Pop, Dance and R&B charts with hit after hit. She’s back after a few years away from the charts with “Yesterday”, her first single on Atlantic Records. At first listen, this song sounds like a lot of other songs that have been released over the past two years, and those comparisons are completely legit. But the song is a Toni Braxton song, and the vocals are 100% Toni. She’s not trying to sound like anyone else, because there isn’t anyone in the music game right now that can sound like Toni. The track is already Top 40 at Adult UC, and is rapidly climbing the R&B chart, so a pop crossover may not be that far-fetched. If ever there was a time where I would put money on a comeback, this is the one. What do you think?
You can pick up the single at her website. Rumor has it that the full-length is coming out sometime in early 2010.
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Does it seem possible that we are going on three months since Michael Jackson died? It kind of boggles my mind, as it seems like only a couple of weeks ago we were inundated with non-stop coverage of the circus surrounding his death, with all the fixins. It’s easy to forget that the buzz around MJ prior to his early demise was whether his London-based concert would even see the light of day, let alone be turned into a highly-anticipated theatrical release. But through all of the craziness and sadness, there are some key lessons that I’ve been able to identify.
– The circus rolls on, even after you die – This one takes on two meanings in the wake of June 25th, as not only did the media become all-MJ, all the time, but they even reported mysterious MJ sightings, trying to link Michael to Elvis and Tupac. Not only did they report on every crumb of detail they could find out about Jackson’s life, they even tried to find an heir to the throne, as it was briefly reported that Kanye West had already identified himself as the new King of Pop (quickly disproven, but still).
– What you won’t do, do for fame – Dad is pimping side businesses, associates are rushing to publish tell-alls, and other family members are rush-releasing five-year-old recordings (see LeToya) and “tributes” (see Jermaine). I suppose it’s not a knock on anyone, but some of it just comes off a bit desperate. Even alleged son Omer Bhatti, who rumors have apparently floated for years about him being Michael’s love child, surfaced for the memorial service and even sat in the front row with the rest of the family. Tribute tour with all of his offspring is sure to follow.
– Good music evolves with you – I have a lot of Michael Jackson music in my library, but I hadn’t gone out of my way to listen to it specifically for quite a while. The surfacing of “Rock With You” remixed by Freemasons did cause me to revisit a bit of “Off the Wall” about two years ago, including the epic Frankie Knuckles remix of “Rock”, but that was a short-lived theme. Michael’s been pretty prominently in the mix for the past few months, though. There are songs that I have rediscovered (“P.Y.T” was somehow missing from my collection), songs that I have new appreciation for (“Stranger In Moscow”, for one), and songs that I feel vindicated for loving the first time around, regardless of what everyone else thought (“Blood on the Dancefloor”). No matter how deep into the catalog I go, though (“Farewell My Summer Love”, anyone?), nothing can top the pure joy of Knuckles’s interpretation of “Rock With You”.
If it’s close to fall, then the heavyweights of the industry must be jockeying for position on the shelves of CDs for Christmas purchases. From a country standpoint, two of the more high profile releases in the next few months are Tim McGraw and Carrie Underwood. Carrie’s release Play On (due November 3rd) just got a nice PR bump due to a leak on the Internet, originally from a radio recording, but followed shortly after by a clean version. “Cowboy Casanova” has some similarities to “Before He Cheats”, but this recipe is 1/3 “Cheats”, spiced up with 1/3 “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” remixed, and blended in a 1/3 Shania Twain sassiness. At first listen, I was taken aback, but damn, if that’s not a catchy tune, I don’t know what is. Watch for this one on the Pop charts in the near future, as there’s got to be a non-country mix of this. (h/t Bill’s Top 40/Pop Blog)
Tim, on the other hand, is doing what he does best, with a clever set of lyrics talking about how much “pain” his relationship inflicts on him. The full-length disc out on October 20th is called Southern Voice, and it’s already up to preview on iTunes. You might recall the drama a year ago surrounding the release of this CD getting pushed back by Curb to make way for a miserably-selling Greatest Hits 3. We’ll have to wait and see what Tim’s next move is, now that his contract is fulfilled with Curb, but I can’t imagine he’s going to hang around. Originally I thought there might be a Live Nation deal in Tim’s future. Wouldn’t it be interesting if they set up a deal with Tim AND his wife, Faith Hill? Just food for thought.
Here’s the first single from Southern Voice entitled “It’s a Business Doing Pleasure With You”.
Remember the 80s, when European acts stood just as much of a chance at charting in the US as native-born acts? That’s not quite where things are at right now, with 8 out of 10 acts in the Top 10 fronted by Americans, and a ninth (Drake) hailing from Canada. The sole European at the top of the Hot 100 this week is Jay Sean, who had to get signed to an American label to chart, features American rapper Lil Wayne, and hasn’t even hit the UK charts yet with his hit “Down”. In fact, you have to go all the way down to #57 to find an all-European act (Cascada). That’s pretty pitiful, but these things go in waves if you look back at the history of the American charts. So do the Europeans have any shots at making it big in the US any time soon? Well, maybe…
– Cascada is the obvious choice, because “Evacuate the Dancefloor” is quickly flying up the pop charts. While Lady GaGa moves on to single #4 with the darker “Paparazzi”, Cascada takes the RedOne formula and throws in enough of a twist (along with a killer chorus) to stand up on their own. Even H1N1 can’t stop this jam from reaching the Top 40, and I predict that it will follow “Everytime We Touch” into the Top 10. Here’s the Wideboys remix of the track.
– Sweden has a history of exporting pop stars for U.S. consumption, and Agnes Carlsson seems to have as good a chance as any others. “Release Me” is already getting some club play here, and the single was officially released in mid-August on Geffen Records. It’s not hard to see this single taking a similar climb to the top of the charts like Leona Lewis did close to two years ago.
– A month or so ago, I would have predicted that David Guetta would be on that list with “When Love Takes Over”, but after barely scratching the surface of pop airplay lists, the life of that single is all but over. In it’s place is “Sexy Bitch”, featuring Akon. “Bitch”, or “Chick” in a radio-friendly form, is starting to make a move, but is it the novelty of the song or the track itself that is pushing the popularity? The single has re-entered the Hot 100 at #92 this week, and the full-length is looking at a Top 50 debut, so we can only sit and wait to see what happens.
– Isn’t it about time for the Sugababes to attempt another run at the American music scene? On paper, they seem to have a formula for success, but “Get Sexy” will not be the single to do the job. Now, if the lead single is “About A Girl”, then there’s a chance that they might out-do the barely-Top 40 performance of “Hole In the Head”, which remains one of the great injustices of the past 10 years on the Hot 100. I posted “Girl” a couple of weeks ago, so I’m gonna post “Hole” instead. Ah, memories.
The initial offerings from Jay-Z’s “Blueprint 3” haven’t done much to compel me to pick up the disc, but Hova’s remake of Alphaville’s “Forever Young” may have just changed that. If ever there was a track that Mr Hudson’s voice was destined to cover, this would be the one. And although I don’t think it will happen, “Young Forever” is just SCREAMING for a remix.
And just for good measure, here’s the original (peaked at #93 in ’85, got to #65 from a re-release in ’88)…
I have been in a slow drift away from country music recently, but on the recommendation of my friend Buck in Atlanta (who is currently writing for Project Q Atlanta), I checked out the new live disc from Sugarland. This duo, who actually began as a trio, started off as a breath of fresh air in country music, but got a bit stale for me on their last disc, Love on the Inside. Their live disc, Live on the Inside, proves that they can still be contemporary and relevant while remaining true to their country base. The record is primarily covers, but it’s what they choose that really makes it stand out. Two REM songs, the B-52s, Edie Brickell and New Bohemians, Beyonce (whose “Irreplaceable” they dueted on at the Grammys), and even Kings of Leon. It’s stunning how they can take a post-modern classic like Pearl Jam’s “Better Man” and reveal the country side of the track, but they do it over and over. If you don’t believe me, here is their version of REM’s “Nightswimming”, combined with their current single “Joey”.
I am pretty impressed that the first we are hearing of a new Saturdays single is via an official video, rather than a leaked track. The video is pretty throwaway, but the song is a good start for their upcoming CD. The song itself would seem to loan itself well to a ballad style, but after the first verse, a driving beat propels the track into the pop stratosphere, and there’s no looking back. If “Forever Is Over” is a sign of what’s to come on disc #2, sign me up!
So here we are, almost two-thirds of the way through the summer, but in some ways, it just hasn’t felt like summer to me, with a full-time course load in school and a pretty stressful work situation. But the elements wait for no man, so I might as well embrace it, even if it is belated. Everyone seems hell-bent to identify the song of the summer, and I’m just as guilty of that practice, so without further delay, here are a few of the songs that have been keeping me jamming in the car, at the gym, and at my desk this summer.
– Jordin Sparks/”S.O.S. (Let the Music Play)” – On paper, it looks like a trainwreck just waiting to happen, but on my iPod, it’s pretty brilliant. Single #2 on Jordin’s first CD was the superstar duet, but this time around, it’s a cover of a dancefloor classic. We all know the base song from Shannon that Sparks is paying tribute to, but there’s an extra somethin’ somethin’ going on here to keep you coming back for more.
– Mini Viva/”I Left My Heart In Tokyo” – Thanks to Paul at Fizzy Pop for bringing this one to my attention. It only took one listen for me to embrace this Xenomania-produced duo’s contribution to the summer soundtrack, but it was the Mike Waterman remix that sounds like a dead ringer for Mel and Kim that brought it home. Is there ANY chance they will see an American release? Methinks not.
– The Gossip/”Pop Goes the World” – Duane over at duanemoody.com and I have been singing this song’s praises since Music for Men was released, and while I was initially disappointed that it was not chosen as single #2 (see “Love Long Distance”), I am encouraged by the fact that it could be used as the song to break the band wide open here in the States.
– Pitbull/”Hotel Room Service” – It has been my experience the past few months that I am pretty much on my own when it comes to Mr 305, but he keeps coming out with these kickin’ jams that sample some great ’90s dance music, so I will keep on flying the flag for him. This one finds him picking up on the Bucketheads jam “The Bomb”, and while I don’t need some of the more crude lyrics, it’s really all about the choruses, and they are awesome.
– Don’t you hate it when a song comes along that you can’t get out of your head, and yet you can’t buy it to throw on your iPod? For me, that song this week is the soon-to-be second single from the Sugababes entitled “About A Girl”, courtesy of Idolator. I am digging this one much more than “Get Sexy”, even though that single has kind of grown on me, too. Here’s a live clip from Birmingham last weekend:
– Does it seem possible that Sandra Bernhard hasn’t released an album of new music in 15 years? Continuing to give credit where it’s due, Towleroad (and Modern Tonic) gave us a sneak peak of Sandra’s upcoming CD Whatever It Takes. Click through for a free sample of “All Around”, featuring Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders.
– Why is it that great albums like The Saturdays’ Chasing Lights can’t get a release in the States, but a mediocre record that didn’t even do that great in England like Gary Go does? I love “Wonderful”, but the rest of it just doesn’t sound all that distinct.
One last paper, and the summer semester is done. I love my schoolwork, but this degree can’t be over with soon enough.
– First MJ, then John Hughes. I was a bit stunned when the headline came up, then had a moment of denial, since “John Hughes” is a somewhat common name. But the man who single-handedly kept me at movie theaters through high school passed away today. Of course the movies were great, but for me, it was always about the music. How brilliant is the placement of Yello’s “Oh Yeah” in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off? Would Sixteen Candles have had the same punch without mood-setting music like the Thompson Twins’ “If You Were Here”? And is it possible that a group like Simple Minds would never have broken in the US with “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” without the help of The Breakfast Club? I seriously doubt it. Rest in peace, John, and thanks for inspiring me to hang around for the credits.
– If you haven’t checked it out yet, Yuri has our most recent diss discussion of Kelly Clarkson, Ryan Tedder, Beyonce, Mimi and Eminem. I’ve now been dubbed the “radio and records guy”, and I will wear that badge proudly. As a little epilogue to the Mariah saga, let me share with you the lame performance of “Obsessed” from last night’s episode of America’s Got Talent. Let’s just say the photo montage on the back wall had more life in it than she did.
– Almost two months later, I am still loving the Gossip’s Music For Men, and they have already unleashed single number two on the world in the form of “Love Long Distance”. The video premiered a few days ago, and it’s a very simple premise with some cool effects. Hopefully they are holding back on “Pop Goes the World” to coincide with the physical release of the CD here in the States in October.
– Paul’s already beaten me to the punch on this, but I fell in love with Elouise yesterday as she spoke with Larry Flick on Sirius-XM’s Out Q. She could not have been any sweeter or cuter if she tried, and I’m just as excited as Paul is for the release of “Another Day”, which is almost as epic as a song by her idol Shirley Bassey. And if you’re not checking Larry out in the morning, you really should. He had a great (and raunchy) interview with Nelly Furtado this morning in advance of her upcoming Spanish CD Mi Plan, and he plays a great mix of music from both sides of the Atlantic.
– One last video, and it’s our fine friend Chris Richardson. It would be great if it were new music, but instead, it’s a little comedy to end your day with.
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