ELDER MUSIC: Anything
Sunday, 18 November 2018
This Sunday Elder Music column was launched in December of 2008. By May of the following year, one commenter, Peter Tibbles, had added so much knowledge and value to my poor attempts at musical presentations that I asked him to take over the column. He's been here each week ever since delighting us with his astonishing grasp of just about everything musical, his humor and sense of fun. You can read Peter's bio here and find links to all his columns here.
With Nothing, Something and Everything out of the way, that means that now Anything goes. So it shall be.
It’s obvious that I should start with Anything Goes, the song written by COLE PORTER.
Although many have recorded the song, to me, having the writer sing his own song is always my first preference. And so it is today. This is Cole’s version.
Although far from the best singer in the world, KRIS KRISTOFFERSON sure can write a good song. He’s a pretty good actor too, but that’s going a bit off topic.
Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again) originally turned up on his “The Silver Tongued Devil and I” album. A while ago, he went back into the studio and rerecorded many of his famous songs, including this one.
That album is called “The Austin Sessions”, and it’s that version I’m using today.
♫ Kris Kristofferson - Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again)
KEELY SMITH is most remembered for her partnership with Louis Prima.
However, after that partnership sundered as well as their marriage, Keely went on to have quite a decent solo career. From that later career we have I Would Do Most Anything for You.
♫ Keely Smith - I Would Do Most Anything For You
ELVIS gets into act with a song fairly early in his career, if 1962 can be called fairly early for him.
It’s a song I was only vaguely aware of called Anything That's Part of You. This was the b-side (remember when records had two sides?) to Good Luck Charm, and is notable for the distinctive sound of Floyd Cramer playing the piano, and I think it’s a really nice song.
♫ Elvis - Anything That's Part of You
From the previous generation of performers, someone who was also quite influential in his own way is BOB WILLS.
Bob’s music was also part of the various streams that lead to rock & roll, but this track is probably not one of those. It just goes by the name of Anything.
TIMI YURO had one really big hit, but she also had quite a few others that made the charts back in the sixties.
Her song today isn’t one of those, it turned up on one of her albums and is called Be Anything (But Be Mine).
♫ Timi Yuro - Be Anything (But Be Mine)
The SONS OF THE SAN JOAQUIN obviously modeled themselves on the Sons of the Pioneers.
They are a family band with two brothers and a son, and they harmonise and otherwise sing beautifully. Their repertoire is mainly cowboy songs and the like. One of those is That’s Why I'll Never Want To Be Anything But A Cowboy.
♫ Sons of the San Joaquin - That s Why I'll Never Want To Be Anything But A Cowboy
There were several contenders for the song I Can’t Give You Anything but Love. In the end I went for MEL TORMÉ.
It was a tough call as it’s one of the most recorded songs in history. Even I don’t have all of those, but of the many I have I liked Mel’s the best. Sorry Billie, you missed out today. A rare occurrence.
♫ Mel Tormé - I Can't Give You Anything But Love
HOWARD TATE was a soul singer who wasn’t particularly well known by the general public.
He was well known in the music industry though, and Janis Joplin recorded a couple of his songs. He had a number of charting songs in the sixties and retired from the music biz in the late seventies.
An enterprising DJ rediscovered him early this century which led to a second career until his death in 2011. Howard’s contribution is You Don't Know Anything About Love.
♫ Howard Tate - You Don't Know Anything About Love
BONNIE RAITT was destined to be a musician.
Her father was the Broadway actor and singer, John Raitt and her mother was the pianist, Marjorie Haydock. Bonnie received a guitar for Christmas when she was eight years old and hasn’t looked back.
Later, instead of studying in college, she’d hang around blues clubs and gig with various blues legends. That paid off as she’s one of the world’s great slide guitarists. Although she probably doesn’t believe this, she sings I Don't Want Anything to Change.
♫ Bonnie Raitt - I Don't Want Anything To Change
Anything you can do - I can do better
I can do anything better than you!
(Annie get Your Gun)
Posted by: leslie | Sunday, 18 November 2018 at 08:54 AM
Another eclectic range of music. Something for everyone. For me it's Mel Torme and Cole Porter.
I love Cole's music for the beautiful melodies as well as the lyrics that tell a story. His music brings out the lost feeling of romance in me and it's nice to remember.
I disliked Bob Wills and his ilk when I was an opinionated teenager, but find today that he did have a nice voice.
Posted by: Darlene Costner | Sunday, 18 November 2018 at 09:30 AM
Darlene, that fine singing voice is Tommy Duncan. Bob Wills is the one making the intrusive comments throughout.
Posted by: Peter Tibbles | Sunday, 18 November 2018 at 12:21 PM
Thanks for the correction. I still don't like the original country/western music due to twangy guitars and stupid lyrics. My bad, as they say.
Posted by: Darlene Costner | Sunday, 18 November 2018 at 04:04 PM
I really enjoyed today's music. Thank you.
Posted by: Nan | Sunday, 18 November 2018 at 04:04 PM
I've never been a Country music fan either though understand many of those partial to the twangy music and beer joint lyrics haven’t been too appreciative of Country’s evolving into a more Pop style from the original.
I do like the orchestral recording, lyrics and voice of Charlie Rich singing, “Every Time You Touch Me I Get High.”
I did like some pure western music the Sons of the Pioneers with Roy Rogers sang Tumblin’ Tumbleweed, Cool Water. Many years later when I became therapist a post-stroke person I treated sometimes talked of remembering Rogers, that the person said was writing, but I think probably just working on, Tumbleweed on their living room piano — which I verified to be true later with the daughter since sometimes memory was an issue since the stroke.
After we moved to Calif. we happened to be driving past Roy Rogers museum, so on a whim stopped to show kids Trigger, the horse (stuffed). A Jeep came flying up, parked next to us, and Roy Rogers leaped out, quickly ran inside. As a kid I liked him. My husband had been a Gene Autry fan — Autry also sang western music and had a museum here in So Cal, too.
A friend, Dr. Jimmie Rogers (not the country musician Jimmie Rodgers) has been a big Country fan, collected all sorts of material through his lifetime. In fact, he had large vans of it accepted for inclusion in a CW library being compiled at one of the Carolina Universities to which it was trucked. He interviewed some of later CW stars i.e. Cash. He also wrote a book, with a later revision about the CW music, musicians and song lyrics years ago.
Early Elvis was in the early fifties when he was first playing all the little southern burgs and I recall Jimmie taking his date to see him. She/they were impressed, but then Elvis was now making black artists music acceptable for all.
Recall some Midwestern Hayride country music stars that were popular in a multi-state area on WLW-TV live programs including Helen and Billie Scott, Bonnie Lou.
Posted by: joared | Monday, 19 November 2018 at 10:43 AM
I enjoy listening to country music, but what I really loved was listening to Cole Porter whose musical production is fantastic
Posted by: Conceição Brito - Portugal | Tuesday, 11 December 2018 at 11:31 AM