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Everyday is Christmas (Deluxe Edition) (Album of the Day)
While the wish that EVERYDAY IS CHRISTMAS might seem unattainable outside the North Pole, Sia's 2017 album offers reason to listen to holiday songs throughout the year. The Australian singer-songwriter has made a career out of defying expectations, and the Atlantic collection, produced by longtime collaborator Greg Kurstin, is no exception – all the material here is original. Songs like “Santa's Coming for Us,” “Snowman” and “Underneath the Mistletoe” have the feel of familiar favorites even as they broaden the Christmas canon, capturing the season's moods with a variety of approaches from bouncy indie sounds to heartfelt balladry. As the cover photo suggests, you'll have plenty of fun with this set - EVERYDAY IS CHRISTMAS is a perfect pop stocking stuffer.
Christmas With Yolanda Adams (Album of the Day)
Texas-born singer Yolanda Adams has been called the First Lady of Modern Gospel, and the performances on CHRISTMAS WITH YOLANDA ADAMS make it clear she deserves that title. The follow-up to her Grammy-winning breakthrough MOUNTAIN HIGH … VALLEY LOW, the 2000 Elektra collection features a couple of secular chestnuts (including “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”), but most of the ten selections are carols and traditional songs such as “The First Noel” and “It Came Upon a Midnight Clear.” Superb accompanying musicians add R&B and jazz-tinged settings to Adams' rich and passionate vocals on this Billboard Gospel Album chart-topper, and CHRISTMAS WITH YOLANDA ADAMS will make your spirit soar.
Music from the Motion Picture SPARKLE (Album of the Day)
Starring Irene Cara in the title role, SPARKLE told the story of the rise and fall of a Harlem girl group at the end of the 1950s. Though it was remade decades later with Whitney Houston in the lead, the film's greatest claim to fame is likely its wonderful soundtrack, a meeting of two R&B giants: Aretha Franklin and Curtis Mayfield. With Mayfield producing and writing all the material, the 1976 collection shows the Queen of Soul in all her majesty on eight songs including “Hooked on Your Love” and Top 40 hit “Something He Can Feel” (both of which would later be covered by En Vogue).Aretha Franklin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on this day in 1987, and the gold-certified MUSIC FROM THE MOTION PICTURE SPARKLE was one of her biggest successes of the late 1970s.
More of the Monkees (Album of the Day)
When it was clear that Monkees records were taking off, producer Don Kirschener, songwriters Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart and Micky, Davy, Mike and Peter themselves all had their own ideas of what they should sound like. On the group's second album, MORE OF THE MONKEES, that meant a dozen fine songs, including Boyce & Hart's “I'm Not Your Stepping Stone,” a brace of Brill Building tunes (Gerry Goffin & Carole King's “Sometime In The Morning,” Neil Diamond's “I'm A Believer,” which started a 7-week run at No.1 on the Singles chart on this day in 1966) and a pair of Nesmith numbers: “Mary Mary” and “The Kind Of Girl I Could Love.” MORE OF THE MONKEES became the group’s most successful album, racking up a staggering 70 weeks on the Billboard chart – 18 of them at #1.
The Colour of Spring (Album of the Day)
Talk Talk was one of the most intriguing British groups of the 1980s, rising from New Romantic-syled roots to synth-pop success to experimental music. THE COLOUR OF SPRING captures the band near the peak of that arc, reaching the U.K Top 10 on the strength of such originals as “Living in Another World” and international hit “Life's What You Make It.” Producer Tim Friese-Greene (and such guests as Steve Winwood and Robbie McIntosh) lend a hand to the core trio of singer/keyboardist Mark Hollis, bassist Paul Webb and drummer Lee Harris on these eight adventurous-but-accessible tracks. Hollis was born on this day in 1955, and in his honor we'll cue up one of Talk Talk's best, THE COLOUR OF SPRING.
Hit to Death In the Future Head (Album of the Day)
We're not quite sure what the title to the Flaming Lips' HIT TO DEATH IN THE FUTURE HEAD means, but if U.K. group The Futureheads drew their name from it, that's a good endorsement of the album. As the final collection with drummer Nathan Roberts and guitarist Jonathan Donahue (who left for Mercury Rev), the set marked a change in the Lips' lineup, but the music was transitional as well. The 1992 release shows the Oklahoma band sneaking up on the accessibility that would make them alternative rock stars a little further into their tenure with Warner Bros. - there are appealing melodies in songs like “Gingerale Afternoon (The Astrology of a Saturday),” and frontman Wayne Coyne's vocals are stronger than ever (though for you indie purists, there's also a half-hour of noise on the hidden bonus track). We'll cue up HIT TO DEATH IN THE FUTURE HEAD now to wish Coyne a happy birthday.
Please (Album of the Day)
When Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe struck up a conversation about electronic music in a London hi-fi shop, neither could have guessed that as Pet Shop Boys they would become one of the most successful duos in U.K. history. The five years that elapsed between that 1981 meeting and debut album PLEASE were well spent; Tennant's stint with Smash Hits magazine and PSB's work with New York producer Bobby Orlando provided plenty of inspiration for these 11 originals, which include singles “Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money),” “Love Comes Quickly,” “Suburbia” and “West End Girls,” which reached #1 on the British chart on this day in 1986. Filled with sly lyrics, infectious rhythms and memorable melodies, the platinum-certified PLEASE was a Top 10 hit on both sides of the Atlantic.
Dixie Chicken (Album of the Day)
The L.A. music scene was a busy one in the early 1970s, and even a band as talented as Little Feat could get lost in the shuffle. After their first two albums for Warner Bros. earned raves from critics and fellow musicians – but relatively meager sales – the group reorganized, bringing in a new guitarist, bassist and additional percussionist. It was just the kick in the pants Little Feat needed; the album that followed in January 1973, DIXIE CHICKEN, may be the Feat's finest. Featuring some of founder Lowell George's most memorable songs (including “Two Trains,” “Fat Man In The Bathtub” and the title track) and a funky New Orleans feel, the collection is both relaxed and sophisticated.
Warren Zevon (Album of the Day)
By the time Warren Zevon cut his self-titled major label debut in 1976, the performer had a decade in the music business under his belt - singing in a folk-rock duo, penning commercial jingles and leading the Everly Brothers' band, among other duties. The years of experience and associations paid off handsomely on WARREN ZEVON, which boasts a superb set of songs and all-star support from the likes of producer Jackson Browne and members of Fleetwood Mac, The Beach Boys and Eagles. Warren's 11 sardonic originals include “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead,” “Hasten Down The Wind,” “Poor Poor Pitiful Me” and “Carmelita” (the latter three all covered by Linda Ronstadt), and bristle with biting wit. Warren Zevon was born on this day in 1947, and his eponymous Asylum album shows one of SoCal's darkest singer-songwriters in a very flattering light.
The Everly Brothers Show (Album of the Day)
In 1970, the Everly Brothers got their own program on ABC-TV (as a summer replacement for The Johnny Cash Show), and to capitalize on the exposure, released their first-ever live album. Recorded at the Grand Hotel in Anaheim earlier that year, THE EVERLY BROTHERS SHOW closed out their Warner Bros. contract with two LPs-worth of classic hits, newer material and covers. The show had a rather conceptual structure, opening with country songs underlining Phil and Don's roots and moving to an 18-minute medley illustrating rock's dizzying evolution. This fascinating look at the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers in concert shows the brothers' legendary harmonizing was as brilliant on stage as in a studio. Phil was born on this day in 1939, and in his honor we'll give THE EVERLY BROTHERS SHOW another spin.