The Not-Pop Jukebox

I've posted about the Nils Landgren Funk Unit before and I probably will again. I don't think I've ever waxed adoringly on the funky, jazzy sax prowess of Maceo Parker. As a transition between the two, and as a shining example of why talented people should collaborate, let's have the former playing--nay jamming their faces off--with the latter.

The Chicken has been around a while. James Brown released it as a B side first but Pee Wee Ellis wrote the thing to begin with. As with so many great songs, musicians picked it up and made it their own over the decades. The bones stay the same but the body of the song changes with every player and each solo along the way. Enjoy!

Cedar Walton died today (though it may well be yesterday for some of you by now). While I know a great many people think of him as a pianist, when I hear his name I think if the sadly short "Mobius" album. He played the synthesizer, with a great many talented folks, and covered Blue Trane with an original arrangement of his own.

Now, songs like this explain why I love jazz. Not only do you get wildly talented musicians making things up as they go along, you generally get horns and when you find a song you love it often goes on for ten minutes. (In case you couldn't tell, that was a hint that this song lasts ten funky, jazzy, brassy minutes.) Enjoy, and do let me know if you have a favorite Cedar Walton song.

I tend to think of Booker T Jones as I know him with the MGs: bluesy soul, heavy on the organ. His solo work, however, tends to be heavier (though, naturally, still chock full of the ol' Hammond). As a perfect example, have a listen to the funky instrumental groove called Potato Hole from the album of the same name. Technically "Potato Hole" isn't a solo album at all as Booker T fronts Drive By Truckers instead of The MGs, but that's just semantics, right?

Whatever the case, I know you can't resist a song title like Potato Hole, my darlings. Go ahead, click it. Have a listen. You know you want to.

I find it shameful that more people don't know what a stellar voice Bobby McFerrin has. Heed the lesson, those of you yearning to have just one massive hit: it will haunt you for the rest of your life. For a true taste of the compositional and vocal talent this man possesses, try Bang! Zoom! instead. It's jazzy and layered and lovely and wouldn't chart on a dare. That's just how I like my favorite music, you know. With luck you'll like it half as much as I do, because that's still a lot.

Here's a boogie-starter for your Friday night: Herbie Hancock. I'll bet you never thought you'd read that! And yet here I am, suggesting that a Afro Boogie will be a great jump-start for your weekend. Get down with your bad self!

I'd like to change the lyrics for _My Favorite Things_ to include a song that kicks me in the face on first listen and makes me run over here to share it with you. That's what happened with Lila Downs this morning. I was considering posting what I think is the best cover of La Bamba ever when I tripped over Shake Away. Since I was already chair dancing, I thought I'd keep going and the song gave me plenty to keep my shakin' it.

Then there was the theme, which brought Florence + the Machine to mind, with the bonus image of shaking it off like a rattlesnake. And then...then...well, then, my dears Lila Downs nailed me to my chair, open-mouthed, while she pulled off the same thing Bobby Darin did in Blue Skies, maybe even better. That note, that power, that strength!

Have a listen, my darlings, and see if you're as pleasantly stunned with Shake Away as I have been.

If you've been to The NPJ in the last long while, you might have noticed my adoration of Janelle Monae. Thus I squealed like a little girl getting a pony when +Caren Kelleher pointed me at the video for Q.U.E.E.N., uploaded a whole two days ago.

Why, you may be wondering, am I calling this a True Confession post? Well, with two and a half million views in two days I'm pretty sure she can now be considered popular. But the best part? The song made me dance my booty off, drool over her coat, groove to the horns, and then raise my fist. Keep in mind the message: the booty don't lie.

Sorry, I'm too interested in watching this again to be coherent. Watch, love, and share. Happy Friday!

Many moons ago, when the Del McCoury Band and the Perservation Hall Jazz Band released their album "American Legacies", I posted the only song I could find on-line at the time, Jambalaya. Mullensburg Joys, however, was the song that I desperately wanted to share with you.

Even if you're a fan of neither bluegrass nor Dixieland jazz, you have to be amazed at how the two styles merge into one fantastic, enormous band of awesome. Now, it just so happens that part of the reason I wanted to share this song was the whole reason that they recorded it in the first place: it's known by nearly identical names in either genre and is a standard in both. That's your daily dose of music education and horns, all in one post. Happy Tuesday!

When a funk all-star songs a song about The Jazz Greats you know it's going to be good. And when that funkster is Bootsy Collins it's got to be goofy. In case you need a reason to listen, try the lines, "If the funk gets too hot for your rump, turn the other cheek bump." It's Friday on Thursday, which means that's all the reason you need. Have a listen, get your groove on with the jazzy horns, and let me know what you think.

I started out the day intending to share with you the BB King version of Knock Me a Kiss. Thankfully for all of us, I stopped to listen to the original before I posted. Much as King rocks, Louis Jordan owns this song. How can you listen to that chorus and not make a smoochy face? Even Ella Fitzgerald couldn't outdo him on this one.

So, as we approach the weekend, I offer this up to you all as the perfect serenade song. Follow Louis Jordan's pouty approach and I can guarantee the object of your affection will knock you a kiss after the second chorus! [Please note that this guarantee is not backed by anything other than my own snark and that video evidence of your having tried and failed will be required by me.]

I hated to include the full credits for this song in the post title, but you should know that Buckjump features The Rebirth Brass Band and The 5th Ward Weebie playing with Trombone Shorty--or the other way around. As real life interfered with my listening pleasure this evening and I spent the evening at a massive band concert, that's all the introduction I'm giving you. Well, that and I can only hope my son can one day play something that jams this hard. Enjoy!

Have you heard? Bongos Ikwue will have his first US release in February! It's likely you're not familiar with the talented and musically diverse Ikwue, but happily I'm here to help you understand how excited you should be to hear this news.

I've included the title track from the new album, Wulu Wulu. As an added bonus, it's a studio video so you can see it performed live. I dare you all to listen to it and not smile. It's a lovely mishmash of jazz, afrobeat, funk, and blues that you can't help but love. Sadly, I can't find previews anywhere of the rest of the album (and the official site is yet under construction) but I'll keep and ear out and bring you more, assuming the rest of the songs are as wonderful.

If you just can't wait, there are a few of Bongos Ikwue's older songs, mostly from the 70s, on Grooveshark. Features? Horns, guitars, and--naturally--Bongos.

I was going to just post a good song today, Black and White from INXS, but then I got to wondering what other songs there were out there with that title. That led me to develop this list specifically selected to induce genre whiplash. It's got Django Reinhardt, Static X, Three Dog Night, Eminem, and five more on top of the INXS song I meant to share. Enjoy, and let me know if I missed your favorite Black and White song. (Please note that Michael Jackson's song contains an "or" and thus is not eligible for this list even though I do like it.)

Today is the anniversary of Stephen Foster's death, that pioneering gent so far ahead of his time that he tried to make a living as a songwriter and died, penniless and destitute, at the age of 37. Even if you have never heard of the man I guarantee you know at least one or two of his songs. He was that influential, eventually, he just couldn't make any money.

For today, let's have takes by well-known folks on Stephen Foster's well-known songs. I've started with a fantastic version of Old Folks at Home by Ray Charles titled Swanee River Rock. Then Taj Mahal's bluesy, harmonica-filled Oh, Susannah, Sam Cooke's soulful I Dream of Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair, and noddle around with Dave Brubeck and his quartet offering their take on Camptown Races. Finally, we come around full-circle to Louis Armstrong back on Old Folks at Homes.

Spare a thought for the music makers among us today and, the next time you download something that's "pay what you like", throw in an extra buck for them. You never know who's going to be the next lynchpin in the musical vocabulary of a country or even the world.

For those of you who missed it, Dave Brubek died today just one day short of his 92nd birthday. If you're not a jazz fan you may not be familiar with his work but you're missing out on some amazingly creative music. Take this opportunity to get out on the Internet and have a listen.

To get you started I'll share a song of his that I've loved as long as I can remember, an increasingly long time. Blue Rondo a la Turk showcases Brubek's fascination with unusual rhythms and the sorts of flights that make up great jazz in between. Have a listen and spare a moment of silence for one of the most talented musicians of the 20th Century.

It's still a little early for it, in my world, but I've mentioned before how much I love Angels We Have Heard on High and I've found a completely different version for you all to enjoy. Johannes Linstead takes a lovely, acoustic jazz run through the song, strong on melody but with plenty of noodling to add interest to your holiday background music.

Linstead has a new album out, too, called "Tales of a Gypsy". That one isn't on Grooveshark yet but it's well worth a listen. The glowing reviews will attest to that, if you don't trust me (but I know you do, darlings). The new album shows a lot more fire and fun than some of his older work.

For now, let's stick with a new take on something we already know and love. Okay, I do and you're stuck with me here. Merry Season to you all!

What's Up, What's Up, my darlings? I've brought you Nils Landgren Funk Unit to funk up your Saturday. You just can't beat some Swedish funk of a weekend evening.

In truth, the Funk Unit is as much jazz as it is funk, with a little swing sensibility thrown into the mix. You know what a sucker I am for a horn section and Nils Landgren has them in spades, grooving and jamming and generally making me dance like a fool.

Enjoy What's Up, What's Up. If you like it, you might want to move on to House Party and Stuff Like That. Do let me know what you think or if you have a favorite Nils Landgren Funk Unit tune to share!

To be fair, my kids like the Me First and the Gimme Gimmes version of Country Roads and they tolerate the John Denver original because they already know all the words. Seeing them sing along if it pops onto the muzac somewhere is truly a treat, particularly if there are some older folks around who still remember John Denver as that sweet boy and never realized he was high most of the time.

But I couldn't post Me First without John Denver, and then when I went to get them I bumped into Toots & the Maytals doing a great reggae version. Well, you know I couldn't stop at three so I started finding more.

I apologize in advance for the David Hasselhoff cover. I just couldn't resist (okay, you're right: I didn't try very hard). The Foggy Mountain Rockers have a pretty good groove going but the lead singer sounds like English is his second language, so bizarre is his accent. Heck, for all I know it is.

The jazzy version from Chick Corea et al sounds pretty much nothing like Country Roads, which makes it just about par for the course. The Olivia Newton-John cover makes you want to stab yourself in the eye with a pixie stick, so very sweet it is, while Ray Charles does a pretty weird country version that just leaves you shaking your head and wondering what meds he was on that day.

Naturally, Willie Nelson does a lovely job, as does Dolly Parton, at least after the shrieking banshee opening that she either stole from or inspired in Olivia Newton-John. And then there's Rednex. Yup, there they are, like Mannheim Steamroller taken over by hillbillies. Enjoy, all!

It came to my attention recently that I had a number of songs with the same name, namely Oh No. Naturally, I had to make a playlist and find more. Thus it is that I can bring you Nada Surf, Gogol Bordello, Dr. Dog, and Frank Zappa all on one post.

Note that not all of these songs are great. They are all, however, not bad enough to make you say, "Oh, no!" If you stick with it that far, you can enjoy Chico DeBarge and Camper Van Beethoven mixed with Haypenny, Zeds Dead, and Mooney Suzuki. I think I got them all, but have a look at the list below if you want to make sure. I left off Andrew Bird's Oh No as I've already posted it but if you're still hungry for more after these ten do click over and have a listen.

I don't know why I don't listen to more Herbie Hancock. It seems half the time I hear him somewhere I enjoy it but I never seek him out for an extended listen. That's just foolish!

Stitched Up is an excellent case in point. I half-heard it in a noisy restaurant, managing only to catch two lines near the end. Google obligingly offered up the name of the song and I immediately listened to it three or four times, dancing with hubby and generally loving the song.

And so, as I embark on a long-delayed gorging on Herbie Hancock's catalog I'll just leave Stitched Up here for you to all enjoy. Get your toes ready for tapping before you hit play.