Decade of Difference

Harold Arlen is an American composer, arranger, pianist and vocalist who penned classic pop tunes including “Over the Rainbow,” “I Love a Parade,” “Come Rain or Come Shine,” plus many others during his prolific career from the late 1920s to the 1950s.

The son of a Jewish cantor and pianist, Arlen showed exceptional musical talent from an early age, developing an early appreciation for ragtime music. By 14, he had dropped out of school to form a band and supported himself until his mid-20s as a performer.

In 1929, he had his first successful composition, writing “Get Happy” in collaboration with Ted Koehler. The pair would have several successful collaborations through the 1930s with songs featured at Harlem’s Cotton Club and with scores for Broadway musicals.

In the 1930s, Arlen married and moved to California where he focused his attention on movies. In 1938 he was hired along with lyricist Yip Harburg to score the MGM film The Wizard of Oz. They won an Academy Award for “Over the Rainbow,” a song that the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) would vote as the number 1 song of the 20th century.

In the 1940s Arlen teamed with Johnny Mercer for more classic songs, including “That Old Black Magic” and “Accentuate the Positive.” After returning to New York Arlen adopted the adult son of his brother to establish an heir to extend his copyright. Arlen died in 1986 and in tribute Irving Berlin said “He wasn’t as well known as some of us, but he was a better songwriter than most of us and he will be missed by all of us.”

Is there any artist more associated with love than Barry White? Whether it is his solo work or his compositions performed by the Love Unlimited Orchestra, White has made himself the king of Valentine’s Day. With 20 gold and 10 platinum singles, White has sold more than 100 million records worldwide.

Born in Texas and growing up in L.A., White was given his mothers last name of Carter as his parents were not married, but later he changed it to his fathers name of White. White voice took on its trademark sound when he was 14, but he had no interest in singing until he heard Elvis Presley at 16. At that time, he was in jail serving a sentence for stealing $30,000 in Cadillac tires.

After his release, White pursued a career in music, recording and producing before being hired as an A&R man. His big break came in 1972 when he began working with a Supremes-like girl group, Love Unlimited. He wrote and produced their soul hit “Walkin’ in the Rain with the One I Love.” This led to the creation of a 40-piece backing group for the girls, the Love Unlimited Orchestra. 1974s “Love’s Theme” was a number 1 hit for the group.

After Whites success with Love Unlimited, he wanted to produce a male vocalist. He wrote some songs and recorded some demos himself to establish the style he was seeking. His record company encouraged White to step on stage and become the performer.

White recorded six top 10 singles in the ’70s and 12 that hit the top 10 on the R&B charts. While he was not back on the pop charts again except for once in 1994, he continued to succeed on the R&B charts through 1999. Barry White won two Grammys. Barry White died in 2003 of cardiac arrest. In its obituary for the musician, the BBC said that “the rich timbres of one of the most distinctive soul voices of his generation, about which it was once said: ‘If chocolate fudge cake could sing, it would sound like Barry White.’”

Missouri-born Sheryl Crow turns 60 today. The singer-songwriter grew up in Missouri excelling in high school as an all state track athlete and member of the national Honor Society and the FFA while also winning a beauty contest and performing as a band majorette.

After graduating from the University of Missouri, she worked as a music teacher and performed on the side. A friend convinced her to record in his basement studio, and it was enough to land some lucrative advertising jingles, and from there she landed a spot as a backup singer on Michael Jackson’s Bad Tour.

Her first record in 1992 was abandoned, as she was not satisfied with the result. By 1994, she recorded again with a casual collective that called themselves the Tuesday Music Club. The album was slow to develop, but “All I Wanna Do” was an unexpected smash late in the year, and the album won three Grammys.

After suffering through a period of deep depression, Crow had a successful end to the century, winning two more Grammys with her album The Globe Sessions. She won again in 2001 for Best Female Rock Performance for another single released from the album.

A 2003 greatest hits compilation also included a cover of the Cat Stevens-written “The First Cut Is the Deepest,” which became her highest charting single since 1994.

Over the decades, Crow has been active in numerous charitable and activist causes, including relief efforts in Congo and promotion of transcendental meditation. A series of high profile relationships including Eric Clapton, Owen Wilson and Lance Armstrong all ended and Crow has adopted two boys.

Photo Credit: Sarah Danziger

Alyndra Segarra grew up in the Bronx and developed an appreciation for doo-wop and Motown music before immersing herself as a teen in hardcore punk. Leaving home at 17, she spent time crossing the country hopping freight trains before settling in New Orleans.

It was there she created the first version of Hurray for the Riff Raff which released two independent albums. By 2014, she had received enough interest to sign a major record deal, leading to the release of Small Town Heroes. It was her first album backed by a full band. Drawing on her time busking in New Orleans, the album had a southern folk feel without the southern drawl.

In 2017 Hurray for the Riff Raff released The Navigator, a concept album that is quasi-autobiographical and partially based on David Bowie’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars.

For this year’s new album, Life on Earth, Segarra has abandoned her banjo and Applachian folk for survival themed self styled “nature punk,” favoring slick electro pulse and soulful vocals.

Releasing on the 18th, the new album features a song about a tree. Rhododendron brings up images of Lou Reed in the vocals. Another track features accompaniment from a tree loaded with wind chimes.

Ray LaMontagne started his recording career in 2004 with a style of modern folk that is simultaneously lush and earthy, recalling artists like Nick Drake and Van Morrison. From this start, he broadened his style to include elements of ’60s pop and country rock, and added horns and strings.  Each of his first three albums, which incorporated his changing style, reached the top 5 on the Billboard charts.

Born in New Hampshire to a mother of six who moved frequently in pursuit of employment, LaMontagne always found himself as the new kid in school. His interest was mostly in Dungeons & Dragons rather than school work, but he did manage to complete high school and ended up in Maine, working in a shoe factory.

Waking one morning to Stephen Stills’ Treetop Flyer on the radio, LaMontagne decided on the spot that he would become a singer-songwriter. A 1999 demo tape impressed record executives, leading to his debut in 2004.

Ray LaMontagne’s first three albums each expanded on the sound and style of the previous record, but for his fourth, he chose to take production control of the record and recorded it in two weeks in his home studio. God Willin’ & the Creek Don’t Rise earned a Grammy for Best Contemporary Album.

LaMontagne has continued his musical explorations by alternating between self-produced home recorded albums and releases using outside producers, including My Morning Jacket’s Jim James and Dan Auerbach.

Describing himself as a very private person, LaMontagne rarely gives interviews, preferring to live quietly on his Massachusetts farm.

In the big bang of music that occurred in Southern California in the mid ’60s, there was a band that contributed greatly to the scene while never gaining the acclaim they deserved. Arthur Lee had moved from Memphis to L.A. and as a teen started a band called the Grass Roots. Since there already was another, more successful band called the Grass Roots, Lee changed his band’s name to Love.

They played LA clubs, covering tunes as diverse as Jimi Hendrix and Burt Bacharach. When record executive Jac Holtzman saw their act he signed them immediately. The band attracted famous fans with their live show including the Velvet Underground and the Doors, but their first album was a poor seller.

The band’s third album took more than a year to make, unusually long for that era – and it sold even worse than the earlier records. Over time, the album gained recognition, identified as a classic from the Summer of Love era of music.

After one more Love album on which Jimi Hendrix appeared, Arthur Lee embarked on a solo career. Lee recorded two records in the ’70s while contributing music to movies. Various attempts to reunite Love failed in the ’70s and ’80s.

Lee released one more solo record in 1981 and then one credited to Arthur Lee and Love in 1992 before his erratic personal life caught up with him. In 1996, Lee was convicted of negligent discharge of a firearm, and since he had previously been convicted of arson and drug offenses, California’s three strikes law required a prison term. Lee was sentenced to 12 years.

After 5 ½ years, Lee was released with his conviction overturned and the prosecutor found guilty of misconduct. By this time, Lee’s bandmates in Love had died, but he formed a new Love and went on tour. Lee was struck down by Leukemia in 2006.

Katie Crutchfield spent three years performing with her twin sister Allison in the band P.S. Elliot. After the sisters relocated to different cities the band became unworkable, leading each to pursue their own projects. Katie began recording as Waxahatchee, named after the creek running near her home in Birmingham, Alabama.

She recorded her first album in about a week, alone in her bedroom in Alabama. American Weekend told stories of personal relationships, devastation and longing and generally received positive reviews.

This set the stage for 2013’s Cerulean Salt, which received more praise and was a much bigger seller. Soon Waxahatchee was on tour, first with Tegan and Sara and then as a headliner.

Waxahatchee began a move away from her low-fi sound on 2017’s Out in the Storm and continued that progression with 2020’s Saint Cloud. The latest album also comes from a time of changes in her life. Crutchfield gave up drinking and relocated to Kansas City, and the album focuses on her struggles dealing with alcoholism. Paste, Rolling Stone and Pitchfork were among the many music publications to list the album amongst the top 10 releases of 2020.

Waxahatchee has just released a five song EP of songs written for the AppleTV+ animated series El Deafo, a process that she called in a statement “an amazing experience all around.” Madi Diaz opens her current tour, including tonight’s show at the National. The pair released a reworked version of Diaz’s “Resentment.” Crutchfield says about the song that “This specific song hits me so hard every time I hear it, and having the chance to sing harmonies with Madi is always a true thrill.”

Australian singer and actor Natalie Imbruglia turns 47 today. Bursting out on the international stage in 1997 with “Torn,” the song was number 1 on the US Airplay charts for fourteen weeks; it reached #2 in the UK and was the most played song on Australian radio since 1990.

Imbruglia was born and raised in Sydney to a family of Italian descent who could trace their time in Australia back to an ancestor who was a convict on the First Fleet, the eleven ships that brought the first European and African settlers to Australia.

Dropping out of school to pursue acting at sixteen, Imbruglia appeared on TV and then moved to London in 1994. It was there she was convinced to record some demo tracks, including a first version of “Torn.”

Imbruglia’s single “Torn” was initially released only as a single. When the album Left of Middle followed, it sold quickly in large numbers – now over 7 million copies.

An edgier approach on her following album White Lilies Island was not as successful commercially, and her third album was not accepted by her record label, leading her to go independent. She continued to have hits in Europe through the 2000s, but in the 2010s focused more attention on her acting, landing a spot as a judge on the Australian X Factor and appearing in several movies.

Imbruglia is experiencing a comeback of sorts – with her early work sampled in recent releases by Lorde and Saint Ettienne. She has released a new album – last year’s Firebird, which returns stylistically to the sound of her first album.

Johnny “Guitar” Watson was a master of reinvention. In the 1950s, Watson was an accomplished blues guitarist – one of the best on the West Coast. When those skills stopped paying the bills, he reinvented himself as a funk hipster with successful singles in the ’70s.

As a fifteen-year-old, he began playing piano in L.A., recording his first single a year later as Young John Watson. Within a year, he moved from piano to guitar and recorded a series of R&B singles in the ’50s and early singles that found their way onto the charts. Shifting once again to piano, he recorded a jazz album in 1964.

Another series of blues infused singles followed in the late ’60s that were popular in the UK before Watson disappeared for a few years.

Johnny “Guitar” Watson returned to the public eye in the mid ’70s with a totally different look and sound. R&B and the blues were fading, so Watson reinvented himself as a funk performer. Decked out in ’70s pimp-style outfits complete with bell-bottom suits, platform shoes, gold teeth, oversized fedoras, and Elton John-like shades, his Texas blues melded into bass heavy funk.

Watson’s funk era peaked in 1977 with A Real Mother For Ya, his highest charting single on both the R&B and pop charts. In 1980, he stepped away from music to deal with the shooting death of longtime collaborator Larry Williams, but he returned with a Grammy nominated album in 1984.

In 1995, Watson received a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, a recognition of the artist’s influence on a following generation of musicians. Watson was in the midst of another comeback when he was struck down and died from a heart attack onstage in Japan.