When the Harmonicats’ “Peg o’ My Heart” was released in 1947, the harmonica instrumental would have been just another catchy tune on the radio were it not for the surreal, atmospheric reverberation that drenched it. Producer Bill Putnam’s use of an echo chamber (specifically, a microphone and loudspeaker placed in the studio’s bathroom) was probably the first artistic use of artificial reverb in music, and it lent an eerie dimension to the song. The record hit No. 1 on the charts 65 years ago today and stayed there for most of the summer.
No mere gimmick, Putnam’s innovation begat a new twist in humans’ ongoing effort to tame the forces of echo, a quest that has shaped the architecture of ziggurats, cathedrals, and concert halls. As it happened, the otherworldly reverberations of the lavatory at Putnam’s Universal Recording studio in Chicago fit nicely into this millennium-long tradition.
“My dad was really intrigued by artificial reverb,” says his son, Bill Putnam Jr., who took over his father’s business with his brother, James Putnam. “I would say haunted, but not in a bad way.”
The bigger they are, the harder they fall. That old expression came to mind when I read the headline of a recent press release:
‘Grand Funk Railroad, Boston, Kansas at Aberdeen Proving Ground, August 11’
These three bands have sold a combined total of over 70 million records! Back in the day, each band could have filled a stadium of 50,000 on its own. Today, when I called the box office at the Aberdeen Proving Ground to ask if they’d sold out the 10,000 tickets available for the Aug. 11 show, the answer was, “Heck no. We’ll have tickets the day of the event.” Maybe it’s not exactly the same as playing the state fair or that Spinal Tap moment when they find themselves opening for a puppet show, but it sure is a huge step down. This hit me particularly hard because Grand Funk Railroad was one of my favorites as a teen, and just about the first concert I ever saw.
So try imagining this: It’s 2042. What three bands will be playing the state fair circuit?
Muse?
Jay-Z?
Modest Mouse?
Just imagine your three-band nightmare fantasy and share it with us in the comments.
When she was a kid, NPR listener Christina Pappas hated her dad’s taste in music. (Still does, she says.) But her hatred was centered on one particular song: “Werewolves of London” by Warren Zevon.
“I’d hear it on the radio, or my dad would play it on the CD player, and I’d go on these very long, elaborate rants about this song, and it’s what’s wrong with the world today,” Pappas says. “You know, if our parents are listening to songs with this kind of nonsensical lyrics, then how can we ever hope to inherit a better world for them — very melodramatic rants.”
Pappas says she’s since come to appreciate Zevon’s other songs, but at the time, her hatred for “Werewolves” was more something to “goad [her] dad with,” a running joke that’s been going on for more than 20 years. Then her father got a cell phone.
“My dad’s a truck driver now, and whenever he’s on the road and hears this song, he will call me, no matter what time of day, usually not too far into the night,” Pappas says. “And he will blast the song into the phone and I will begin one of my rants, and then we’ll have a good laugh together. And then we’ll just chat and catch up, so it’s also a good way to make sure that we talk to each other at least once or twice a week.”
Christiana Pappas and her dad.
‘Wolfing’
Her family now calls it “wolfing,” and in college, her roommates didn’t understand. At one point, a voicemail message containing nothing but the chorus to “Werewolves in London” almost resulted in a call to the police in case it was a stalker.
“I had to say, ‘No, no. This is not a stalker. This is my father,'” Pappas says, laughing.
Even before Christina Pappas got engaged, the next running joke was that “Werewolves of London” would play at her wedding.
“I told my father when I called his home — when I was engaged — the first thing I said to him was, ‘Just so we’re clear, I am not dancing to ‘Werewolves of London’ at my wedding,'” she says. “He kind of laughed and said, ‘Oh, come on.’ I said, ‘No, it’s not happening.’ My stepmother reminded him that it was my day and not his, and he agreed that whatever song I chose — that’s what we would dance to.”
Embracing The Inevitable
As the wedding drew nearer, Pappas says she just couldn’t see herself dancing to “What a Wonderful World” as planned. On her wedding day, she could no longer avoid the inevitable.
“Once that opening bass line started playing to that song, my dad froze,” Pappas says. “And he looked at me and I just smiled and said, ‘This is the only song we could ever dance to.’ And he started crying and I started crying. I can honestly say that’s probably the second time in my life I’ve seen my father tear up. We danced to ‘Werewolves of London’ — we danced and sang along to ‘Werewolves of London.'”
Forbes has just released its list of the world’s highest paid DJs and it’s enough to make every lonely singer-songwriter bashing out tunes in their basement want to go have a good cry.
Topping the list was Dutch DJ Tiesto, with estimated annual earnings of $22 million.
Tiesto figures the internet is responsible for his success.
“I think what really changed was social media,” Tiesto told Forbes, explaining what helped make him so big. “Twitter, Facebook really helped a lot.”
The second highest earner was one Sonny John Moore, known to some people as the guy who sung in that From First to Last screamo band for awhile, but is known to way more people as awkward-haircutted DJ Skrillex. He made an estimated $15 million.
Soon-to-be-done-touring act Swedish House Mafia ranked third with $14 million, while anti-button-pusher Deadmau5 was able to push enough buttons to earn $11.5 million, good for sixth place.
Also making the top ten were David Guetta, Steve Aoki, DJ Pauly D, Kaskade, Afrojack and Avicii.
Forbes came to their estimated numbers by tracking recorded music sales, endorsements, merch sales, live shows and television earnings.
Forbes’ top ten highest paid DJs:
#1 Tiesto $22 million
#2 Skrillex $15 million
#3 Swedish House Mafia $14 million
#4 David Guetta $13.5 million
#5 Steve Aoki $12 million
#6 Deadmau5 $11.5 million
#7 DJ Pauly D $11 million
#8 Kaskade $10 million
#9 Afrojack $9 million
#10 Avicii $7 million
Steve Hackett was the lead guitarist of Genesis from 1970-77, after which he released a series of solo albums interspersed with side projects such as the supergroup GTR, which he formed with Yes’ Steve Howe.
I believe this song was inspired by Hackett’s breakup with second wife Kim Poor, who designed most of his album covers.
Sad and glorious, it’s the kind of song that deserves loud listening in a quiet place. If this song is a kiss off, it’s the most beautiful one you’ll ever hear.
“Maybe Katie”, from the last really good Barenaked Ladies album (2003’s Everything to Everyone) is one of the most infectious pieces of pop of its decade. The lyric is a little nudge toward romance, directed at someone who’s a little too hard to please. The arrangement is a deft combination of power pop chords, synthesizers and harmonies, underpinned by BNL’s ubiquitous strummed acoustic. Oh, and listen for a subtle bit of accordion around 1:56. These guys crafted their recordings with a lot of sonic detail. It’s just a pop song, but one that gives the ear a lot to do.
Every Moment Has A Song 