CHRIS STAPLETON - "STARTING OVER"

 "Starting Over" (Chris Stapleton) - 4:17

OMG !!!   I guess you'd have to tag Stapleton as a country artist, but here's one of those cases that make you believe labels just don't matter.  

Stunning in every way ...  and it has a bass line to die for.

And here's a link to the promotional video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3svABDnmio

MARY ANN REDMOND - "BOYS OF SUMMER"

Boys of Summer  (Don Henley - Mike Campbell)

I've been a Mary Ann Redmond fan since the late-'80s.  I've probably seen her perform three dozen times and among my proudest possessions are one of her concert flyers from show at The State Theater and a photo of the two of us.  She graciously allowed my wife to take a picture of the two of us at a performance The Mary Ann Redmond Band made in Great Falls.   My wife still makes fun of me for having looked like a love struck teenager in the photo.

Anyhow, if you are a child of the '70s you've probably heard the Eagles original hundreds, if not thousands of times.  I certainly have, to the point the song's been reduced to background noise.

And then I stumbled across Mary Ann Redmond's drastically rearranged version of the tune.  The basic melody is still there and still recognizable, but ... well just check it out for yourself.

Great video production too boot and it features an old Cadillac.

When life get's back to normal, Mary Ann Redmond is one of those acts you owe it to yourself to see.

https://www.facebook.com/maryann.redmond.12/videos/10220384739482842/

DEL AMITRI - "JUST BEFORE YOU LEAVE"

"Just Before You Leave" (Justin Currie - Iain Harve) - 5:15

I was working at home and had YouTube randomly playing songs in the background.  Out of the background noise this song just came screaming at me. 

Del Amitri was one of those mid-'80s bands that were constantly on my stereo and those countless hours of exposure mean Justin Currie's voice is instantly recognizable to my ears.  The thing is I probably hadn't listened to a Del Amitri in a decade  ...  My loss.

Released in 2002 (so I'm 18 years late to the party), "Just Before You Leave" is simply gorgeous.  Kicked along by a Currie's purring vocals, Big Kev's driving bass line and Andy Alston's stabbing organ licks this may be the best soul song ever recorded by a Scottish band.  Imagine what Curtis Mayfield would have sounded like had he been born and raised and Glasgow and you'll get a feel for the sophisticated soul vibe these guys captured.  I could listen to this song 20 times in a row and not get sick of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xFBj9EZVcQ

THE MIGHTY CLOUDS OF JOY - 'TIME'

"Time" (Dave Crawford) - 3:18

OMG - I'd owned this LP for a decade and never gotten around to playing it. Sunday morning I was adding a photo of the LP to my BadCatRecords website and decided to give it a  spin.  Good thing the basement blinds were shut,or my neighbors would have seen a 60 year old white guy shaking his fat ass to this amazing tune. If you thought the Mighty Clouds of  Joy were just another pompous Gospel group,check this track out.  The best of Philadelphia International and secular moves ...

Check it out: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlZD3sjZUgg

THE MALIBOOZ -"CAUGHT A WAVE"

"Caught a Wave" (John Zambetti) - 3:43

I'll keep these comments real short - addictive, top-rank dreamy beach rock.  Imagine the best Brian Wilson song that Brian Wilson never wrote.

For anyone interested,YouTube has a promotional clip at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTgXusqo5jM

THE MAD LADS - "PASS THE WORD (THE WORD IS LOVE)"

"Pass the Word (The Word Is Love)" (John Gary Williams - William Brown - Dale Warren) - 6.04

Okay you can skip the first 2:46 of this one since it's nothing but mindless spoken word jive.   That said, if you get through the extended intro to the real song, you'll be rewarded with one of the best slices of  mid-'70s group soul you've ever heard.  Kicked along by a pounding piano riff, John Gary William's Gospel-soaked voices, and the group's silky smooth harmony vocals, this one built and built to the point  your turntable threatened to explode.

Check it out courtesy of YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiTYbrgKM3U

NILS LOFGREN - "VALENTINE"

"Valentine" (Nils Lofgren) - 4:28

I'm not a gigantic power ballad fan, but I'll make an exception for this tune.  One of the prettiest tunes Lofgren ever wrote and having Bruce Springsteen on vocals, makes it even sweeter. Plus,the lyrics are only mildly cringe worthy.

The tune was released as a single in the US (in the US it was issued by Rykodisc as a promotional CD single) and throughout the world in 7" and 12" formats. There's even a promotional video for it (standard,cheesy '80s vibe - seems like 50% of all MTV videos were filmed on the Bonneville Salt Flats), but in spite of the significant marketing efforts, the tune attracted little attention.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfdNjdWYgwU