Old-school news, just in time
by Kevin Burton If you’re like most people, when you think of a nice day, you’re thinking about picnic weather, right? Well I’m not like most people. My nice days have a soundtrack to them. I am a son of the Midwest. What you call spring and summer, I call tornado season. …
Continue reading “I Love A Rainy Night And I Like Eddie Rabbitt”
by Dictionary Scoop Are you a cool cat? Or a groovy alligator? The Age of Jazz had a vast cultural influence on both American music and culture, but one of its most curious aspects was “jive talk”” the quirky jargon it birthed. Largely influenced by jazz singer Cab Calloway – who authored at least two dictionaries …
by interestingfacts.com Each musical instrument has its own amazing facts and stories. Here are astounding facts from the world of musical devices, both familiar and unusual. 1-The Piano Defies Classification What type of musical instrument is a piano? When a piano is played, each key controls a hammer that strikes a tuned string …
by Kevin Burton In my alternate Motown universe there is a lot more Martha Reeves and a lot less Diana Ross. There is also at least a little more Mary Wells. It’s Wells we focus on today. Sixty years ago, Wells’ “My Guy” became the first Motown record to hit number one on …
by Kevin Burton I have read maybe two dozen books about the Beatles on talking book. But I didn’t know this. In books by and about other contemporary artists, the Beatles emerge, as a yardstick, a cultural happening, a turning point. But not so much as a syllable about this. Until very …
Continue reading “A Female Version Of The Beatles? Who Knew?”
by Kevin Burton My father wanted me to study computer programming in college. He had that charming way of pushing his desires for himself onto other people. I wanted to be a journalist – an unblinking champion of the truth and a painter with words. I had that charming way of evaluating ideas …
Continue reading “Studies Say Music Is The Way To Brainpower”
by Kevin Burton Some memories have a soundtrack and this one has the best. On April 29, 1976 the Cleveland Cavaliers played in what they now call The Miracle of Richfield. It was the first playoff berth for the Cavs, who were born as an NBA expansion team in 1970. In the first …
Continue reading “Come On Cavs! Recalling Miracle Of Richfield”
by Kevin Burton I’m still hanging on to a notion, planted by a Steely Dan song. If you know some of that Steely Dan imagery, that sounds kind of dangerous. Let me explain. I love Steely Dan and I love “Deacon Blues.” I have judged the United States as a nation because …
Continue reading “Playing Musical Instrument Good For The Brain”
by Kevin Burton The headline to an article in The Independent called Gerry Rafferty a “bipolar alcoholic industry misfit.” His biographers including his daughter Martha dispute none of that. The article was printed on the occasion of the 2021 release of “Rest In Blue” an album of Rafferty demos polished and completed by …
Continue reading “Gerry Rafferty Was Born 77 Years Ago Today”
by Kevin Burton International Songwriters Day was observed yesterday and I’m staying on that theme. This post is a service to all you songwriters, or really any kind of writers, out there. But who am I kidding, it’s also to keep my head in the game and stoke those musical fires again. …
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