July also saw the birth of Guru (Gang Starr), and that crazy motherfucker Woody Harrelson. Two people who might not be anything other than entertainers, but they sure as hell are gonna entertain us. So good for them…us.

And unfortunately, if you’re born, you’re bound to die as well. Ernest Hemmingway decided to end his life on July 2, with a shotgun. The writer was awarded the Nobel Prize in Litterature in 1954, and has written a lot of classics including «The Old Man and The Sea» and «For Whom The Bell Tolls». Scott LaFaro (Bill Evans Trio) died in a car crash on the 10th, and Ty Cobb, the legendary baseball player, passed away on the 17th. During his professional career he set approximately 90 MLB records and kept most of them for over half a century. Some were still his at the end of 2019. He died a very rich man according to Wikipedia.

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THE ALBUMS

Now, let’s get back to the music, shall we.

Julie London is not really making my kind of music, but she has a beautiful, and soothing voice. She started out in the movies after she was discovered while working as an elevator operator in 1943, and went on to have a pretty successful acting career. In 1955 she released her debut album and would go on to record 32 albums. She was named as the most popular female singer in ‘55, ‘56, and ‘57 by Billboard and that makes sense considering the kind of slow, sexy jazz/big band music she delivered. «Whatever Julie Wants» is probably an ok album, but I have no idea at what point I would like to listen to it.

Ella Fitzgerald is a non-stop recording machine. «Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie!» is this month’s (probably) release. And she is continuing in her own footsteps. I’m a bit lost for words for Ella right now, so all I can say is that she still sings well, still does her thing, and it’s not a bad record.

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MILES DAVIS – STEAMIN’ WITH THE MILES DAVIS QUARTET

Miles Davis can safely be called a musical genius. He is, according to The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, the greatest leader/catalyst in the history of jazz, and I’m not gonna dispute that at all. Mostly because I’m not totally familiar with all his work, and a little bit because he sounds better than most other jazz artists.

I’m still not convinced by jazz as a genre though. There’s been a couple of artists, and albums, that have won me over, but it’s still difficult to decipher all this jamming. Miles Davis is one of the guys that manages to convince me that there is something here though. Whether it is because he is such a great composer, or if his song/compositions are just easier to listen to is hard to say, however, there is something here that makes me nod my head every now and then.

«Steamin’ With the Miles Davis Quartet» was recorded all the way back in 1956, but wasn’t released until now (or August). Another jazz legend, John Coltrane, plays the sax, and the quartet works like a well-oiled machine that doesn’t care that there are bumps in the road. Their improvisational skills are out of this world, and I would love to truly understand how a jazz mind works. It’s pretty impressive if this really is just improvisation.

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HARRY BELAFONTE – JUMP UP CALYPSO

«The King of Calypso» has wowed the world with his happy-go-lucky music for half a decade now, and he continues to do so with «Jump Up Calypso». Harry Belafonte started out as an actor, and began his singing career when he was signed by RCA-Victor after his role as Joe in the movie «Carmen Jones». Belafonte was at the forefront of the calypso craze in the ‘50s, and led the way with hits like Jamaica Farewell, Mary’s Boy Child, and the mega-hit Banana Boat Song. His album «Calypso» (1956) was the first ever album to sell over one million copies, and it spent 31 weeks at the top of the US charts. After this album his career was set and he kept pumping out calypso hits that managed to cross over to markets appealing to pop, jazz, and folk fans. He also had a strong connection with the ethnic population in the US.

Between ‘56 and ‘62 almost all his albums charted, and the record «Harry Belafonte at Carnegie Hall» spent over three years on the charts, and «Harry Belafonte Returns to Carnegie Hall» almost managed the same feat. So to say that he was successful is an understatement.

I actually thought I hated calypso music, but it turns out I don’t. I feel the rhythm on a couple of these tunes, and it actually makes me happy. So I’ve misjudged my own musical taste a bit here, and that’s kinda interesting. I’m not gonna start buying up all the calypso in the world, but there are some songs that will get played on the deck in my backyard during this summer for sure. Jump In The Line is the best one on here, and probably the only one I’ve heard before, Sweetheart From Venezuela and Go Down Emmanuel Road are pretty good, and I enjoy Angelina. Some of the others are boring as hell, some are stupid, and some are quite alright.

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FATS DOMINO – LET THE FOUR WINDS BLOW

The last recording I wrote about from Fats was Walking To New Orleans, and I really loved that one. Subsequently, it was going to be his last major hit, but not the end of his great career. Mr. Domino earned his nickname at the tender age of ten, but I guess it wasn’t meant to be an insult as he kept it for the rest of his life. Fats quit school when he was 14 years old so that he could play at bars at night and work in a factory during the day, and in the mid-‘40s he joined the band of a guy called Dave Bartholomew who quickly understood that this kid shouldn’t be a sideman in a band. Together Fats and Bartholomew would co-write most of his material and would set off a great career together.

Fats Domino actually outsold every ‘50s rock ‘n’ roll pioneer except Elvis Presley, selling over 65 million copies of his music through the years. But even so, he didn’t become the major superstar that some of the other guys ended up as. Nonetheless, he is a staple in music history and should not be overlooked by anyone.

«Let The Four Winds Blow» is a cool and relaxed record that mostly showcases Fats’ great voice. It has a calmness to it that makes it seem so effortless. I’d recommend this album pretty easily to anyone who hasn’t really listened to Fats, cause even though it might not be packed with #1 hits and million sellers, it’s a quality piece of work. Your Cheatin’ Heart, Let The Four Winds Blow, Along The Navajo Trail, and Won’t Come You On Back would be a good place to start on this one.

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THE EVERLY BROTHERS – BOTH SIDES OF AN EVENING

The duo’s fifth studio album was released at the height of their career but it didn’t do as well as they hoped I guess. If my information is correct the album was released at a time when The Everly Brothers had left their publishing company and lost their usual songwriters, including themselves as the publishing company owns the rights to any songs written by Don and Phil Everly. A pretty weird situation to end up in.

But the biggest problem for the brothers is that it’s pretty apparent that the material isn’t what it used to be. You can’t really hide behind an album right? So they are showcasing a pretty mediocre collection of tracks here, and their fall from stardom is continuing.

The album is split up into two parts where side A is supposed to be (For dancing), and side B is (For dreaming). This makes for an even worse album if you ask me. Side A at least has some kick to it, but I’m losing interest as soon as you have to turn the record over. Too bad, boys.

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THE SINGLES

Bobby Vee released Take Good Care of My Baby, the first single from his 1962 album by the same name, and it proved to be a good song for him. It reached the #1 spot in several countries and spent around 15 weeks on the US charts. It’s a decent song, catchy, and upbeat, but it’s not worthy of too much praise as it has this dull ‘50s-teenage vibe to it. Not my favorite thing. Roy Orbison lets everybody know how a ballad should be done with Crying. A song that would end up as Billboard’s 4th best song of the year, but not reach the top spot on the charts. It has also been used in a lot of movies and TV shows over the years.

Dick and Dee Dee get their first hit with The Mountain’s High. It reached #2, only held out by Bobby Vee. Linda Scott releases an ok country tune called Don’t Bet Money, Honey, Hank Locklin feels sorry for himself on Happy Birthday To Me, and John Leyton delivers a pretty good spaghetti western/pop song called Johnny Remember Me.

The Supremes gives us their second single on Tamla Records (third overall), and their last as they’re getting ready to move over to the mothership, Motown Records. Berry Gordy has written the song Buttered Popcorn, and if we just look at the lyrics it feels quite a bit different from whatever else is out there at the moment. I guess it’s a kind of love song. Either I’m lost in translation, or maybe I just don’t get it, but it sounds like they‘re just singing ‘bout a man’s favorite snack, nothing else really. What’s funny about the song though is when they sing ‘’buttered popcorn, cause it really sounds like ‘’ba-ra-pa-pa’’, and I think that it’s intentional. Like, they didn’t wanna make another song with ‘’ba-ra-pa-pa’’, so they just wrote a completely random text just to use the words ‘’buttered popcorn’’ as a gag or whatever. The B-side, or the other A-side, Who’s Lovin’ You, which was curiously enough released by The Miracles on the same label just last month, is definitively a better song. And that one has Diana Ross on lead vocals.

The last single this month is from Paul Revere & the Raiders. They have issued a lot of local singles before this one, like Beatnik Sticks, but Like, Long Hair is the first one to break into the Top 40. The song is a fast-paced, piano-based, rock‘n’roll instrumental tune. It’s cool. Mos def.

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THE CHARTS

The only thing worth mentioning from the new arrivals in the Top 10 is that Floyd Cramer’s San Antonio Rose might as well have been written as a theme song to a Nintendo game from the ‘90s. If you remove the strings, or at least tone them down a bit.

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Petter Milde

This Band Could Be Your Life