Set List Influence - Rush
Set List Inspiration - Duran Duran
Any season is fit for the wild boys to play it.
Monday, April 14, 2025
Birthday Season - Astronaut
Birthday season is well under way with the mystical magic of April settled in. The British royals celebrate in April. My family celebrates in April. I grew up with friends celebrating in April.
As for me, my season came around two weeks early. I was expected in mid-May but surprised my parents at the end of April. The 29th has worked for me since.
As I've grown, so too have my favorite musicians and bands...such as Duran Duran who really put a stamp on 1980s pop music and beyond...
...and beyond is what NASA would say. Astronaut is the Duran Duran album you may be thinking of.
Let's go from there.
Astronaut was released in September 2004. Lift off goes from there. Follow Wikipedia to read more.
Track List -
1. (Reach Up for The) Sunrise
2. Want You More!
3. What Happens Tomorrow
4. Astronaut
5. Bedroom Toys
6. Nice
7. Taste the Summer
8. Finest Hour
9. Chains
10. One of Those Days
11. Point of No Return
12. Still Breathing
Certified Gold in the UK
While not released in the month of April, I associate enjoyment most at this time of year. My late paternal grandmother was born in April and she was more than happy to purchase a copy as a gift. In a shy way, I don't normally associate her era with modern genres uniquely defined by Duran Duran.
And so for the love of my grandmother, Duran Duran, and lucky April, Astronaut is an album to cherish now and beyond.
Sunday, April 13, 2025
Jazz Master - Duke
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington
April 29, 1899 - May 24, 1974
American jazz pianist, composer, & leader of his Duke Ellington Orchestra from 1924 to end of life
Noted for performances at the Cotton Club in Harlem
Noted genres - Jazz, Swing
Inducted into DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame (1956)
Honorary Doctorate of Humanities from Milton College (1964)
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (1966)
14 Grammy Awards & Total 25 Grammy Nominations
Honorary Doctor of Music Degree from Yale University (1967)
Presidential Medal of Freedom (1969)
Honorary PhD from Berklee College of Music (1971)
Honorary Doctor of Music from Howard University (1971)
Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (1971)
Legion of Honor by France - Highest civilian honor (1973)
Honorary Degree in Music from Columbia University (1973)
Posthumous Induction into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame (1978)
Posthumous Induction into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame (1992)
Posthumous Pulitzer Prize Special Award for music in 1999
Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Gennett Records Walk of Fame
Duke Ellington Recordings
Grammy Hall of Fame -
- "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)"
Recorded in 1932 ... Inducted in 2008
- "Cocktails for Two"
Recorded in 1934 ... Inducted in 2007
- Ellington at Newport (Live album)
Recorded in 1957 ... Inducted in 2004
- "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue"
Recorded in 1956 ... Inducted in 1999
- Far East Suite (Concept album)
Recorded in 1967 ... Inducted in 1999
- Black, Brown and Beige (Extended work)
Recorded in 1944 ... Inducted in 1990
- "Black and Tan Fantasy"
Recorded in 1928 ... Inducted in 1981
- "Take the "A" Train"
Recorded in 1941 ... Inducted in 1976
- "Mood Indigo"
Recorded in 1931 ... Inducted in 1975
My interest in music is not narrowed to one genre. My current iTunes library reflects classical to alternative to hard rock to somehow anything in between. Jazz, though, is a dominant presence...smooth jazz generally speaking. "Rhapsody in Blue" and "Sing, Sing, Sing" are uniquely noted as historic icons, alongside Miles Davis and nods to contemporary jazz musicians.
My love for jazz, from smooth to classic to swing to so on, begins with one name - Duke Ellington.
From one April 29th to another, may Duke's big band play it!
Saturday, April 12, 2025
The Truth About Love
6th album
Released in September 2012
Genres considered - Pop, Pop Rock
Lyrical themes - Love, Monogamy, Sexuality
No. 1 in 8 countries, including Australia, Canada, Germany, and Sweden
No. 1 on Billboard 200
7th best-selling album of 2012
Over 7 million copies sold worldwide as of 2016
No. 1 in the U.S.
No. 1 New Zealand
No. 2 in the UK
No. 4 in France
No. 1 in Austria & Switzerland
Top 10 in Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, etc.
"Try" - Top 10 in several countries, including Australia, Canada, Germany, the UK, and the U.S.
Grammy Nomination (Best Pop Vocal Album, 2013)
Juno Awards Nomination (International Album of the Year, 2014)
Review Scores -
AllMusic - 4.5/5 Stars
The A.V. Club - B-
Billboard - 4.5/5 Stars
Chicago Tribune - 2.5/4 Stars
Entertainment Weekly - A
The Guardian - 4/5 Stars
Rolling Stone - 3/5 Stars
Slant Magazine - 3/5 Stars
Spin - 7/10
Track Listing -
1. Are We All We Are
2. Blow Me (One Last Kiss)
3. Try
4. Just Give Me a Reason
5. True Love
6. How Come You're Not Here?
7. Slut Like You
8. The Truth About Love
9. Beam Me Up
10. Walk of Shame
11. Here Comes the Weekend
12. Where Did the Beat Go?
13. The Great Escape
Certified Gold in Finland, France, Hungary, & Spain
Certified Platinum in Austria, Ireland, & Italy
Certified 2x Platinum in Brazil, Denmark, Mexico, Poland, Sweden, & Switzerland
Certified 3x Platinum in Germany, the UK, & U.S.
Certified 4x Platinum in New Zealand
Certified 6x Platinum in Canada
Certified 9x Platinum in Australia
Who is Pink?
Alecia Beth Moore-Hart
Stage Name - Pink
b. September 8, 1979
Genres considered - Pop, Pop Rock, R&B
Can't Take Me Home - Debut Solo Album (2000)
Trustfall - Latest album (2023)
Full Discography
Over 135 million records sold worldwide
Pink is one of the world's best-selling music artists with roughly 60 million albums & 75 million singles sold.
Awards -
3 Grammy Awards
2 Brit Awards
1 Daytime Emmy Award
7 MTV Video Music Awards
2 MTV Europe Music Awards
President's Award for "her outstanding achievement in songwriting and global impact on pop culture and the entertainment industry"
IHeartRadio Music Award Icon Award
2013 Woman of the Year at the Billboard Women in Music
Billboard Icon Award ... Billboard Legend of Live
No. 10 on VH1'a 100 Greatest Women in Music
No. 27 on Forbes' The Celebrity 100 (2010)
Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Honored by the Songwriters of North America
Pink is the most played female artist of the 21st Century in the UK
The above are accolades alone. Read further on Wikipedia.
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