Franz Biebl - "Ave Maria (Angelus Domini)"

Franz Xaver Biebl was born in Pursruck, now part of Freudenberg, Bavaria, in 1906. He studied composition at the Musikhochschule in Munich. Biebl served as Choir Director at the Catholic church of St Maria in München-Thalkirchen from 1932 until 1939, and as an assistant professor of choral music at the Mozarteum, an academy of music in Salzburg, Austria, beginning in 1939, where he taught voice and music theory.

Biebl was drafted into the military beginning in 1943 during World War II. He was a prisoner of war from 1944 to 1946, being detained at Fort Custer in Battle Creek, Michigan. After the war, he moved from Austria to Fürstenfeldbruck, Germany, where he served as director of the town chorus.

Biebl's best-known work is his Ave Maria (1964), which sets portions of the Angelus as well as the Ave Maria. The piece was brought to the United States by the Cornell University Glee Club in 1970. The ensemble met Biebl while on tour in Germany, during a recording session at a radio network where Biebl was music director. Conductor Thomas A. Sokol was given a number of Biebl's works, premiering them after returning home.  The Ave Maria quickly gained popularity, most notably after becoming part of the repertoire of Chanticleer. Although it was originally scored for male voices, after "Ave Maria" became popular the composer himself rearranged the piece for SATB and SSA choirs as well.

So today, with divinity and hope hovering nearby, I choose Franz Biebl's  "Ave Maria (Angelus Domini)" as my, with angel's wings, hope like a lighthouse, a little fall of rain, song for a, maybe now, maybe never, maybe is almost as bad as if, Monday.

Edoardo Vianello - "Guarda Come Dondolo" & Jimmy Fontana - "Il Mondo"

He was prolific and incredible and had a way of activating a generation of people! He charged them and then set them loose on the world.

Edoardo Vianello is an Italian singer, composer and actor. He's considered one of the most popular Italian singers of the Sixties. SIAE estimated a sale of over 50 million records worldwide. As of 2006, songs of Vianello were included in the soundtracks of 64 films.

Born in Rome, Vianello started his career in 1956. He obtained his first successes in 1961, with Il capello and Pinne fucile ed occhiali, which both ranked second in the Italian Hit Parade.  Later he obtained several more great successes (including Guarda come dondolo, Abbronzatissima and O mio signore which charted 1 and I Watussi which charted 3, until the second half of the 1960s. After a less successful period, he re-launched his career in the 1970s founding the duo Vianella with his wife Wilma Goich. The main hit of the period was Semo gente de borgata, which ranked 7 in Hit Parade. In the late 1970s he reprised his solo career.

Jimmy Fontana on the other hand knew JUST how to make smooth music that everyone wanted to listen to. He sang about big ideas and big things and slowly changed an entire country's idea of music.

Born Enrico Sbriccoli in Camerino, Italy, he went to Rome, after graduating from school, to study Economics and Accounting, while teaching himself the bass and attending local jazz venues.[1] Eventually, he would devote himself completely to music. Early on in his career, he adopted the stage name Jimmy Fontana, taking the name of one of his idols, American musician Jimmy Giuffre, and the surname "Fontana" arbitrarily, as he related, out of the phone book.

He started his own jazz band, Fontana and his Trio, with piano, bass and drums, and around that time he met Leda, who would become his wife and with whom they would have four children, Luigi, Roberto, Andrea and Paola.

At the end of the 1950s, he turned to light music and began his solo career. His first success was "Diavolo" ("Devil") that won him third place in the Festival of Barcelona. With his song "Bevo" ("Drink"), in 1960, he won the Burlamacco Gold, a music competition in Viareggio. His first participation in the Festival of Sanremo came in 1961 with "Lady luna" ("Lady moon"), written by Armando Trovajoli and Dino Verde. His first single with RCA is "Non te ne andare" ("Don't go"), released in 1963 and written by Gianni Meccia and Lilli Greek.

In 1965, Fontana had his major success with "Il mondo" ("The world"), a song composed by Fontana and Carlo Pes, and arranged by Ennio Morricone, with lyrics by Gianni Meccia, which reached the top of the charts in Italy and other countries in Europe and charted in Latin America as well. The same year, he made his debut as an actor, appearing in two musicarelli, which are movies heavily featuring musical numbers, titled Viale della canzone ("Avenue of song") and 008 Operazione ritmo ("008 Operation rhythm").

So, today with charm and sunshine in equal measure, I choose a duo of Italians, Edoardo Vianello's  "Guarda Come Dondolo" & Jimmy Fontana's "Il Mondo" as my, break all the records, change your own ideas, let no limits be set, songs for a, get out and get proud, find the confidence inside, you are all you've ever needed to be Friday!

The Shangri-Las - "The Leader of the Pack"

Between 1964 and 1966 they charted with often heartbreaking teen melodramas, and remain perhaps best known for their hits "Leader of the Pack" and "Remember (Walking in the Sand)". The Shangri-Las had an iconic sound and through grit and determination rose to the top of the pops with their tough girl songs and catchy, singable melodies.

The Shangri-Las' "tough girls" persona set them apart from other girl groups. Having grown up in a rough neighborhood of Queens, New York, they were less demure than their contemporaries. Rumors about supposed escapades have since become legend, for example the story that Mary Weiss attracted the attention of the FBI for transporting a firearm across state lines. In her defense, she said someone tried to break into her hotel room one night and for protection she bought a pistol.[8]

Whatever truth these stories may have, they were believed by fans in the 1960s, and they helped cement the group's bad-girl reputation. According to Weiss, that persona helped fend off advances from musicians on tours.

So today, like a cool rider, I choose The Shangri-Las' "The Leader of the Pack" as my, rise to the lead, take life by the handle bars, let no one else tell you how to do you, song for a, go on and try me, cigarettes and satin pumps, shades and shadows Thursday!

Reid Lee - "Save The Best"

So, I've been asked to talk about the inspiration for the Video for "Save the Best" and I thought this blog might be the easiest format to kind of tell the story. 

My inspiration for“Save the Best” came to me as I was struggling through a very difficult emotional time. As I battled through a relationship with someone I loved dearly, I thought to myself, “If this love isn’t it, then where is the person I’m supposed to be with? Because whatever love I have left I want to save for them.”

A lot of my inspiration comes from personal life experience. Many of the songs off the album tell personal stories of what I like to think of as universal themes. Things every person goes through but how each of us feel them so differently. Other inspiration comes from things that have helped shape me, so maybe less autobiographical but certainly close to my core. Sharing music with my grandfather or watching my mother grieve the loss of my father, though I guess that’s just a question of point of view, or perception.

So, “Save the Best”, for me, is about the idea that at this age of my life, I can’t expect anyone that I fall in love with from here on out, to not have had a past. We’ve all been in love and we all have histories. So this song says“Save the rest of that love for me, and I’ll do the same, because I’m still trying to find you and I know you’re out there.” It’s a love song to a person you haven’t met yet. It honors the path we take to get there.

The inspiration for the music video for “Save the Best” started with writing the song  and thinking about the journey that we all go through to find the person we’re meant to be with, and what my journey has been like so far. Certainly I’ve been in love before, and I can only hope that it has helped to shape me and prepare me fore the Big Love, when it comes along. But love isn’t always healthy or good for you. As I went down memory lane with clearer eyes (and some therapy), I saw the reoccurring pattern of behavior in not only myself, but my partners as well. Stemming from alcoholism in my family and unfolding later in partners that reflected many of those same isms and symptoms from my childhood. It was an emotional journey for me to see these negative cycles and then learn how to break them.

It was important for me to bring this subject to light because so often LGBTQ abuse is swept under the rug, in so many same sex couples where abuse is prevalent it is rarely spoken about because the victim feels not only the shame of the abuse, but the shame of not being able to defend themselves from someone of their own gender; as if having the same gender should make them able to fight back or stop it. That’s simply not the case, abuse goes so far beyond gender, as any man who has been abused by a woman. The simple statistics are these:

·      44 percent of lesbians and 61 percent of bisexual women experience rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner

·      26 percent of gay men and 37 percent of bisexual men experience rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner

·      22 percent of bisexual women have been raped by an intimate partner,

·      40 percent of gay men and 47 percent of bisexual men have experienced sexual violence other than rape

So yes, in the Video for “Save the Best” I certainly am drawing from personally lived experiences. Abuse can be subtle, it can sneak into your life under the guise of affection, or jealousy, or worry;  and once it takes root, it grows quickly and can explode without warning. This video, for me, is about how the nebulous line between affection and aggression is like the wave on the sand, constantly moving; and just how uncomfortable living in that space can be. The shoreline is constant, but just because you’re dry at the moment doesn’t mean you won’t be flooded when the tide comes in. You can wake up one morning and realize that you’ve slowly let yourself drown because the water kept saying “I love you.”

If you, or someone you know, is the victim of domestic abuse please reach out to one of the following resources:

National Sexual Assault Hotline

1-800-656-HOPE (4673) 24/7

https://ohl.rainn.org/online/

The Anti-Violence Project

serving people who are LGBTQ

1-212-714-1124 Bilingual 24/7

GLBT National Help Center

1-800-246-PRIDE (1-800-246-7743)

http://www.volunteerlogin.org/chat/

Gay Men’s Domestic Violence Project

1-800-832-1901

FORGE

For Trans+ Survivors of Violence

1-414-559-2123

Raury - "Devil's Whisper"

Raury Deshawn Tullis, professionally known by the mononym Raury, is an American singer, songwriter and rapper from Atlanta, Georgia. He is known for his eclectic sound mixing soul, hip hop and folk, and his effervescent personality. 

He has something wild and untamed. Something that calls out to the rebels in all of us, and his ability to blue genres and cross boundaries is truly inspiring, especially in this month of inclusivity and acceptance. 

So today, with a wild heart, I choose Raury's "Devil's Whisper" as my, wild unknown, escape the ordinary, paint outside the lines, song for a, non-binary, non-conforming, unrelenting Wednesday! 

Shakey Graves - "Family & Genus"

Americana musician from Austin, Texas, Shakey Graves, unearths something beautiful in his down home folk feel.

His music is a cross between blues, folk and rock and roll – he performs at many large festivals and concert venues around the United States. Alejandro Rose-Garcia received his iconic stage name at Old Settler's Music Festival in 2007 after he and his friends jokingly gave each other Indian guide names over a campfire. After an inspired night of playing music, he decided to keep the name.

So today, with photographs like postcards, I choose Shakey Graves' "Family & Genus" as my, forget me not, listen to the memories, hear the truths of your elders, song for a, why not me, let change wash over you, try and try again, Tuesday.

Dean Martin - "King of the Road"

He was smooth, he was charming, he was crass, and he always had a mischievous twinkle in his eye. Dean Martin was the King of Cool, and had the charm and charisma to carry that title off. 

Dean Martin was an Italian-American singer, actor, comedian, and film producer. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed the "King of Cool" for his seemingly effortless charisma and self-assurance.

He and Jerry Lewis were partners as the immensely popular comedy team Martin and Lewis, and afterwards he was a member of the "Rat Pack", and a star in concert stages, nightclubs, recordings, motion pictures, and television. He was the host of the television variety program The Dean Martin Show (1965–1974) and The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast (1974–1984).

Martin's relaxed, warbling crooning voice earned him dozens of hit singles including his signature songs "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare", and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?".

So today, with confidence and charisma, I choose Dean Martin's "King of the Road" as my, wherever your road leads, take out your machete and make your way, let no man put asunder, song for a, go down every dead end just to say you have, from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm, break open your heart and let the love fall out, Monday. 

Louis Futon - "Surreal (feat. RKCB)"

I've been dancing to this song all day in my apartment, and it's been glorious. It makes you move and thrive and express, exactly like great music should. 

Hailing from Philadelphia, 23 year old Tyler Minford AKA Louis Futon has risen to prominence over the course of only two years. Heavily influenced by Hip-Hop, Louis Futon is the only producer ever to create official remixes for Logic, Mos Def, G-Eazy, Future, Wiz Khalifa, and more.

Regardless of his influences, Louis rebelliously declares, “Genres don’t define me.” From creating Trap and Future Bass rooted originals to changing the very DNA of some of Hip-Hop’s biggest hits, Louis is able to defy boundaries. Typically consisting of bright melodies and rhythmic electro-tones carried by Hip-Hop drums, Louis Futon has keenly carved out a genre that ironically adheres to none.

It just goes to show you that talent has not age, young or old, and magic can be made by coloring outside of the lines.

So today, with the groove in my bones, I choose Louis Futon's "Surreal (feat. RKCB)" as my, get that thing going, if not now - when, give it your best shot and laugh the entire time, song for a, the only failure is quitting, don't you dare give up, believing it to be true is half the battle Thursday.