Listening in privacy and relative quiet while driving on the freeway I've been flabbergasted at the excellence of some oldtime popular music. I stumbled across it on radio stations 1260 am and 540 am (amplitude modulation - had to slip that in: I used to be a Ham Operator-Station owner - which is different from FM, aka frequency modulation) in Los Angeles and no doubt heard quite a distance away, unlike most FM.
Have you ever heard of Jackie de Shannon? My spelling could be way off, which won't help, but I don't even know where to look for her name, not being into research or googling not one little bit.*** Wow could she sing! She sang like a soprano opera singer but with every word clearly enunciated. Even better, she created a character. The very young Barbara Streisand could create a character, but if the character was supposed to be alone, Streisand couldn't or wouldn't create that: she never sounded private. She sure could sing 'Send In The Clowns,' partly because she wasn't supposed to be alone. If Jackie de Shannon were to have sung that same song the last line would have melted every heart, even those made of stone. (It's something like, 'Don't bother....they're here.')
The young Frank Sinatra was a marvellous showoff with his voice alterations. Astounding. Older, he was a better actor while singing, but he'd lost his young technical sliding around with his voice. The radio stations don't waste much time indentifying the artists so most of what I've listened to I cannot name.
I'm very glad and happy that old movies and older popular music is still available somewhere, somehow. Thanks Ted Turner for TCM (to say nothing of CNN). And thanks for whoever owns 1260 and 540 AM Radio in Los Angeles. Bravo/Brava!!!
Barry
***
Hey Barry, I found something about Jackie De Shannon, I hope you find in there something that you like or heard.
Here is the link.
Jackie DeShannon Appreciation Society
If you want I can google some more for you.
BEA
(Please note she dates from the 1960s - Barry)
I simply couldn't resist asking Bea for permission to add this to my journal entry. Reason? most of the time I feel like a music ignornamous, and recognizing excellence so immediately made me feel good. Thanks again, Bea!
Barry
5 comments:
Yep, some of that old stuff is pretty damned good. (And at the risk of sounding like the old fool) It's a lot better than some of the crap that passes for "music" nowadays.
Jimmy
Hey, Barry.... I know I'm showing my age here, but I remember Jackie well. Very strong and distinct voice. She sure could ' Put a little love in your heart.' Tina http://journals.aol.com/onemoretina/Ridealongwithme
Hi Barry isn't it just wonderful when you can hear the words being sung....which these days is nigh impossible...I had Bryn Terfels DVD for Christmas and it is lovely....clear as a bell....I'm so glad we can still get hold of the older popular music because some of it is brilliant.....Ally
> "Hi Barry isn't it just wonderful when you can hear the words being sung....which these days is nigh impossible...I had Bryn Terfels DVD for Christmas and it is lovely....clear as a bell....I'm so glad we can still get hold of the older popular music because some of it is brilliant.....Ally"
Comment from ally123130585918 - 1/6/06 8:39 AM
Thanks for your Comment, above. When I started to write
my entry on old popular music I expected to get to the
larger subject, and impossibly difficult subject, of what determines what music will become popular at any one time.
I think, as when I listen to Nat King Cole from long ago
lots of music back then was slow, and gentle, and dreamy,
and private. I liked that then, and I still like it, but where is
that 'temperature' pop music today? Gone? Completely?
Not even Country, Folk, or Western seems so innocently
loving and longing as if was back then. More's the pity.
Barry
Hi Barry,
I was really young in the 1960's, LOL! So young that I don't remember much of those years. But one thing I always remember is that my older siblings listened to music and it stuck in me. I guess those were the impressional years of mine.
I help when I can.
BEA
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