Art is the music we make from the bewildered cry of being alive. ~Maria Popova
03 Apr 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: china doll, havelock
Havelock: “China Doll” (2020)
London-based, still-unsigned Havelock is a guy worth keeping an eye on in the near future.
Single “China Doll” from his four-track EP TRY B4U BUY, channels the trippy electronic flourishes typical of his previous release into a subdued, soulful vibe.
28 Mar 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: kate bush, this woman's work
Kate Bush: “This Woman’s Work” (1988)
Written for the 1988 John Hughes film She’s Having a Baby, “This Woman’s Work” accompanies the film’s climactic scene, in which Jake (played by Kevin Bacon) learns that his wife Kristy (Elizabeth McGovern) is having life-threatening complications during childbirth.
The melancholy song’s lyrics match the subsequent montage in beautiful, heartrending fashion, and are sung from the point of view of a helpless Jake as he recalls their happy times together during what seems an interminable wait for news of his wife and baby.
Kate Bush wrote the song specifically for the film, and matched her words to visuals which had already been filmed.
A slightly edited version appeared on her album The Sensual World the next year, and when the song was released as a single it was tweaked yet again. A fourth version of the song appeared on Bush’s 2011 album Director’s Cut.
This is the original 1988 version from the She’s Having a Baby soundtrack. The film itself comes highly recommended too.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2015/11/04/songs-you-may-have-missed-566-2/
28 Mar 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: bourbon and the truth, pete gardiner
Pete Gardiner: “Bourbon and the Truth” (2020)
And right before I wrote a song that mattered
The industry turned into glass and shattered
23 Mar 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: the marshall tucker band, this ol' cowboy
The Marshall Tucker Band: “This Ol’ Cowboy” (1974)
Though Marshall Tucker Band were usually categorized as southern rock, at their best–and they’re at their best here–they weren’t easily pigeonholed.
Tasty Toy Caldwell guitar licks, jazzy chords and a breezy vibe complement a philosophical, carefree lyric on a song that deftly straddles genres. A radio edit of “This O’ Cowboy” charted at #78 in early 1975.
Where We All Belong was a double album, with one record of new material and another featuring smoking live performance cuts.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2012/04/21/songs-you-may-have-missed-87/
15 Mar 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: here's the thing, sports team
Sports Team: “Here’s the Thing” (2020)
First: This song literally took twenty seconds to become my latest infatuation.
Second: I sent it to my Gen Z son, who responded thusly, and I quote: “The lyrics are basically the panicked cry of my generation tbh”
Third: Realizing what I thought was just a fun song may actually be a generational anthem, I searched for band bio info to discover:
Sports Team have been playing huge headlining tours in England, selling out venues such as Electric Ballroom and Kentish Town Forum, were named Elle Magazine’s ‘Band to Watch’ in their March issue, had front man Alex Rice featured in British Vogue’s Top Boys, and had Annie Mac feature this particular tune on BBC Radio 1 as her Hottest Record in the World.
Folks, this is all prior to releasing their debut album, which is due next month.
And here I’ll repeat my rant/lament that so much great music receives airplay in Europe but finds no place on American pop radio, dominated as it is by mumble rap, bro country and EDM. Occasionally something fresh breaks through the gridlock of the sound-alikes, but not often enough if we’re missing out on stuff like this.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2025/07/06/songs-you-may-have-missed-786/
14 Mar 2020 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: donnie iris, sweet merilee
Donnie Iris: “Sweet Merilee” (1981)
Donnie Iris had four Top 40 singles in his career, including one as front man of one-hit wonders the Jaggerz (1970 chestnut “The Rapper”).
Although “Sweet Merilee” was not one of those Top 40 singles (stalling at #80) in this writer’s opinion there weren’t many tunes of its era that top it.
This song has everything. Bumpin’ bassline, great harmonies, a top notch guitar solo, and fiery vocals by one of pop’s underrated belters.
In Pittsburgh Donnie Iris is a god. And while I’m not typically taken by the hype when it comes to local acts, he’s the exception. Iris’ first two solo albums, 1980’s Back On the Streets and King Cool, its follow-up in ’81, deserve wider recognition. Both albums are crammed with earworm pop rock co-written by Iris and keyboardist Mark Avsec.
Iris unfortunately failed to hang on to a major label deal, perhaps due to his breaking into the youth-dominated New Wave era as a guy of relatively advanced age. And the Iris-Avsec writing partnership cooled off too. But for a span of two years and two albums, few produced better pop rock.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2012/11/09/cellarful-of-noise-samantha/
Every Moment Has A Song 