Newsflash!

My Old Songs Revived — Fire and Fall Back

May 22, 2017

Going back over the songs I recorded on Fire and Fall Back (solo acoustic/voice), I find that I must, after the space of, what, 8 years+?, reinvent the songs in order to sing them, so great has been the change in consciousness. It is like singing the songs of another person. Which is entirely true. But some (not all) of the songs (I speak of my own) are still worth singing.

Anyone who has undergone a radical life change will get what I mean, I am certain. It is not simply vocal pitch and tone, which has deepened considerably and become less nasal and more resonant (and was already going through the change at the time of recording — I can hear it now). It is the state of consciousness which was recorded then, and is not available to me now.

So those songs of my own which I can still understand and express, but with the new understanding, I will adapt to this new person who is singing them, who is still me, nonetheless. A delightful discovery!

The New (or should I say updated) Solo Act

May 17, 2017
My new (or I should say updated) solo act (guitar/voice) is all melody and story. I won’t be limiting myself to any one genre or era, but instead delve into the vast catalog of American popular music from the 1920s to the present day, pulling out gems that I think have been forgotten or just misplaced. Our — by which I mean, our American — collective catalog is that rich and deep.
 
I’ll be playing an even mix of original material, showtunes, classic country, folk rock, bossa nova, novelty numbers and many more. It will be eclectic and many people won’t have ever heard some of these songs. And I’ll link all these disparate songs together.

More New Songs Added to the Solo Show Repetoire

April 23, 2017

New songs for the solo show:

Luther Played the Boogie Woogie (Johnny Cash)
You Do Something to Me (Sammy Davis, Jr.)
Wichita Lineman (Glen Campbell)
Me and My Shadow (Peggy Lee)
Jim and Jack and Hank (Alan Jackson)

Although I’ve known Wichita Lineman since it came out in ’67 (when still in the womb, of course), I’d never been able to do the song justice with just guitar and voice, but suddenly, I heard it — a Eureka moment after prolonged gestation. It took me 6 months to discover the right arrangement for La Mer (Charles Trenet). Far longer for this song!

More Great Songs Added to the Repetoire This Week

March 23, 2017

New songs added to the solo show repetoire:

I See the Want To in Your Eyes (Conway Twitty, 1974)
Who’ll Chop Your Suey? (Cleo Brown, 1936)
It Won’t Be Long (The Beatles, 1963)
Detour Ahead (Billie Holiday, 1949)
Careless Love (Snooks Eaglin, 1958)

And a couple of new originals, as well, to be recorded this year.

Richie Kaye on WBCQ

March 15, 2017

WBCQ will play my slapstick version of Walter Donalson’s “Makin’ Whoopee,” recorded many years ago. I’d not released it before. I found it lingering on an old hard drive and, yes, it made me laugh. So pleased it will go out on the airwaves and my thanks to the management (you know who you are!).

If you never heard me do Jimmy Durante, Barry White and Judge Judy in the same clip, you’re in for a treat. Well, you’re in for something, anyhow.

For fans in Europe and Japan, listen in tomorrow (March 16, 2017) between 2300 and 2330 UTC on 7390 kHz. For those stateside, that translates to 5:00-5:30pm Eastern. If you don’t have a shortwave radio, you can listen here.

I’ll be in great company with lots of novelty songs you’ve not heard in decades. Grab an ice cold Cheerwine or a hot toddy if you’re still stuck in the northeast and be prepared to laugh.

Grand Central Terminal

February 27, 2017
I spent a good deal of time performing in Grand Central Terminal with Tony LaVorgna in the Music Under New York program.   Yes, I’m a busker.  It’s a marvelous building: 
 
Cathedral ceilings and marble floors do wonderful things for a sax/clarinet. Not that I intend to go back to Noo Yawk. But I would love to have a drink in the Campbell Apartment when it reopens on May 1.

Trio Plays at Houston Business Journal Book of Lists Party 2017

February 21, 2017
My trio plays the Houston Business Journal Book of Lists party later today (2/21/17) at the Marriott Marquis (Houston), Texas Ballrooms, 5:30-8:30pm.
 
If you’re in business in Houston, it’s an opportunity to network with 300+ executives. Single tickets @ $90.00 available as a walk-in or here:
 
If you attend, please stop by and say hi. With the great and wonderful Ernesto Camilo Vega (clarinet/saxophone) and Sam Kuslan (voice/piano).

Reba McEntire

February 9, 2017

I always liked Reba McEntire’s voice and stage personality, but now I admire her. If you love and respect your audience, you want to please them. Today on TV:

Behar asked McEntire, “If you ever went on a political rant in the middle of your act, what would happen?”

“My fans would be shocked,” the two-time Grammy-winner said. “I take it this way: they have paid their hard-earned money to come in there and fill a seat — parking, getting something at the concession stand, go and eat before the concert — I am there to entertain them, to take their worries away from them, so when they walk out, they can kind of have a little lift in their step and go, ‘Aw, that was such a great break from all the problems I have to deal with during daily life.’ So I’m not going to give them my political views.”

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