This is a song I’ve been meaning to showcase for a while. It’s a sneaky number that has often been stuck in my head for days on end. With the world in lock down, I thought many of you might find the title and lyrics a bit comforting. 

Over the last seven years, John Gudenzi has been releasing catchy, at times psychedelic music under the Quantum Keys moniker. His songs are thoughtfully crafted, and it’s truly a travesty he hasn’t received the attention he deserves.

For more information, including his wonderful (hard to do I might add) versions of two Beatles classics, see below: 
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https://quantumkeys.bandcamp.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAqGdrHBOhw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgZJyOJMjbo

​Long before Kenny Rogers was a restaurateur, an actor, a “gambler,” a studio musician, or a psychedelic band leader, he was an aspiring Doo Wop singer in Houston Texas with The Scholars.  After they broke up, Rogers recorded and released a series of solo singles (as Kenneth Rogers) for the Kix and Carlton labels.

“I've Got A Lot To Learn” was written by Eddie Curtis and recorded and released in 1958 by Rogers. It’s a classic Doo Wop number that demonstrates not only the solid vocal range Rogers possessed, but his potential as an engaging entertainer.

Over my years working in the music business I’ve met quite a few “industry legends,” and none was as nice or friendly. Kenny Rogers was gracious with his time, and everyone around him, from stage hands to guitar techs, including his bus driver who drove him for over 20 years, and at one point lived on his property, had nothing but kind things to say about him.
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Kenny Rogers passed away on Friday. He sold over 165 million albums and is considered one of the most successful musicians and entertainers of all time. When asked during an interview if he gambled, he smirked, “I can lose enough to depress me, but I can’t win enough to excite me.”

Like many of you, I’ve also been closely watching the spread of the Covid 19 virus. As the numbers continue to rise I couldn’t help but think of Stephen King’s The Stand and its detailed vision of how society would handle an apocalyptic pandemic. Now that schools are closed indefinitely and the streets feel eerily empty, his vision doesn’t seem that far off.

The first song that popped into my head after the WHO listed this as a pandemic was not REM’s “It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” but one that showed up in the 1994 ABC TV miniseries of King’s Novel. It was from an early scene where actress Molly Ringwald finds an old record player in the garage and her Crowded House album. The scene and music perfectly captured the moment, where all that was left were her memories and a fellow surviving neighbor’s embrace.

I actually never liked this song when it was originally released in 1986. Maybe it was my childhood crush on Molly Ringwald or the way the scene was directed, but after listening to it depicted that way, my mind was changed.
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This is a crazy moment in time and I hope people can find a way to take care of each other instead of fighting over hand sanitizer and toilet paper.  

In 1962 teenaged friends, Keith Coley, and Gilmore Grant started singing together in Kingston, Jamaica. Two years later they met Delroy Denton and formed The Silvertones. Throughout the late 60’s and early 70’s they recorded some wonderful sides for Duke Reid and Lee “Scratch” Perry. Some of my favorite work of theirs, though, was with Studio One producer Clement “Coxsone” Dodd. The songs were backed by his fantastic house band (Sound Dimension) and always struck that chord between cheerful sunny skies and somber loss.   
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“Make a Joyful Noise” is a perfect example of this. Released in 1977 and written by Dodd and Denton, it’s a song like many from the island that referenced Christianity and redemption. It’s also a song that often tears me up with such an honest vocal performance and the line “And you’ll never walk alone.”

Last Monday we lost David Roback to cancer. He was the guitarist, songwriter and founding member of Mazzy Star.  He was also a one-time bandmate of Susanna Hoffs (The Bangles) and a prominent figure within the Paisley Underground music scene of southern California; a scene that gave homage to 60’s psychedelia, and one that Prince drew influence from when he named his Paisley Park Record label.

I never got into Roback’s previous band Opal, but after listening to “Halah,” I couldn’t ignore Hope Sandoval’s bitter sweet dreariness, or Roback’s nearly perfect guitar performance. Three years later, after they released their follow up album So Tonight That I Might See, I was in love. Here was a record perfectly tempered for self-serious make out sessions or gin and tonic stir sticks.

David Roback and Mazzy Star will not just be remembered for their timeless single “Fade into You,” but because they dodged the corporately sponsored “counter culture” mosh pits of the 90’s and were there for the melodramatic and lovesick.