5 Songs May 24, 2024

A bit of soul, a little jazz, a nod to the 20s from 2013, and a singer/songwriting titan

The Miracles – “I Gotta Dance to Keep From Crying” 1963 available on The Best of Smokey Robinson & the Miracles. Smokey sure sang or wrote a lot of songs about trying to cover up his sorrows with laughter and dancing. This early one, written and produced by Holland / Dozier / Holland, isn’t nearly as rich as “Tears of a Clown” would be, but the gist is there – his girl has left him, but he can’t let on that this has affected him, so he’s gonna be the life of the party. He’ll dance the Monkey, he’ll do the Twist, he’ll do the Bird, and he’ll do the Fly. I guess the Bird is the same dance the Trashmen sang about, but I don’t remember any songs about the Fly. At any rate, this record is pure early Motown pleasure, with a hot dance beat, a whole lot of party sounds in the background, Smokey’s exuberant vocals, and a part that gets a little bit softer before it gets louder.

Elvis Costello – “It Had To Be You” 2013 from Boardwalk Empire Volume 2: Music from the HBO Original Series. Where has this album been these past eleven years? It’s filled with (loosely defined) contemporary artists including David Johansen, Liza Minnelli, St. Vincent, and Patti Smith singing songs from the 1920s accompanied by the extremely retro stylings of Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks. Costello has a blast here imagining himself to be Bing Crosby. He’s certainly crooned before, but he makes the extra effort to slide notes and words as if he’s an alto saxophone. “It Had to Be You” was composed by Isham Jones with lyrics added by Gus Kahn. Those lyrics make for one complicated love song. I was familiar with the chorus, but I never noticed the verse before. Put them together, and you’ve got a guy who is happy to be sad about his lover, who can’t stop himself from doing what she wants him to do, and wouldn’t trade her for anyone else even if that person “might never be mean/ Might never be cross, or try to be boss.”  Costello adds another verse to the song which I can’t trace on lyrics sites, though it merely reiterates what we’ve already learned. Fascinating stuff.

Buddy Rich – “BR Blues” 1962 from Blues Caravan. The jazz bins in record stores are chock full of good records that don’t get much respect, and thus sell for very little money. Buddy Rich was a celebrity as well as a drummer, and he was apparently not well liked because of his abrasive personality. But, he could play really well, and he put together a sharp little sextet for this date on the Verve label. Rich himself wrote this catchy and swinging little blues-based number. In just three minutes we get the tight head followed by sharp solos from Sam Most on flute, Rolf Ericson on trumpet, and Mike Mainieri (much later of 80s fusion group Steps Ahead) on vibraphone, then a restatement of the theme by the full group. Rich drives the rhythm while playing hard, the only way he knew, while pianist Johnny Morris and bassist Wyatt Ruther keep the harmonic foundation. It’s not an important record in the history of jazz, but it sure gives plenty of pleasure.

The Main Ingredient – “I Want to Make You Glad” 1975 from Rolling Down a Mountainside. This is a triumph of production, taking an admittedly enticing wisp of a song and turning it into something magnificently powerful. I admit to a twinge of “ugh” when Cuba Gooding, Sr. sings the first line, “You’re such a young girl.” But considering he was barely 30 when this record came out, and that any woman in her 20s would qualify as young at the time, I’ll forgive it, especially when the record just piles on strings and harmonies and three-note bass lines that feel like hugs. Gooding is taking on a big responsibility for the happiness of this sad young woman, and he at least convinces me that he can give her reason to be glad to be alive. Especially with the help of those other singers in the group, who sometimes harmonize with him, sometimes stay off the center of his line, and sometimes just swell up with the strings to make me glad to hear the record.

David Olney – “This Side or the Other” 2018 from This Side or the Other. David Olney was a giant in the singer/songwriter field, though with the exception of his remarkable “If My Eyes Were Blind,” I didn’t pay any attention to him until very late in his life. He famously died on stage in January, 2020, just before the pandemic hit. This gentle waltz describes a love connection which seems inevitable, though the possibility exists it won’t be finalized until after death. Pedal steel, strummed guitar , accordion, vibraphone, bass, and brushed drums make up the swooning music, as Olney sings his steadfast declarations of love, occasionally joined by a haunting female voice in harmony. There’s also a simple harmonica solo that adds to the feel nicely.