In a continuation of our discuss of the Music Therapy Playlists on the Beyond Radio website, we start in a fun place and mention an oft covered song. After that a talk that includes my high school reunion, Meat Loaf and a musical. From there the best comedy song of all time (IMO) leads to a dark place and then leads to Yacht Rock, so in the end we are all still happy, except maybe my friend Brian.

A Soul Pop band fronted by 2 siblings was discovered through a variety of sources and ends in a great origin story. Then an 80’s icon leads to a favorite bonding song among my friends which is a re-discovery for Jeff that he calls a gem.

Finally Queen gets a mention again (in almost every episode LOL) but the real centerpiece is Adam Lambert.  Somehow we do end in Billie Eilish territory (but in a good way).

My Personal Chart, April 29, 2000

See the chart here

The companion Spotify playlist has all the songs discussed in the blog.

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Here’s a YouTube playlist with the songs from Part 1

My Personal Chart, April 29, 2000, Part 1

Part 1, Brotherly trios and 2 degrees of Separation

Hanson/This Time Around (1)

For those who know me well or follow our podcast Beyond Radio Presents, my love of the sibling band Hanson is well documented. Earlier this year the band spent 6 weeks at #1 on my personal chart with the orchestral version of the 1997 hit “Where’s The Love” from their 2018 album “String Theory”. We discuss this on the first episode of Castlist 005, “Old Man Grammy Rant, All Time Rave and Music Therapy For the Masses”.

This week in 2000 the band was in its second week at #1 with “This Time Around”, the first single from the album of the same name that would be released the following week. It went on to spend 5 weeks atop my chart. It was a bit of an evolution from their 1997 debut. This song had a more pronounced rock feel, setting them apart from the other so-called boy bands of the era. It is ends in a rollicking blast that I absolutely loved.

The song reached #20 on the Hot 100 but the release of the album was ill timed. In May 2000, their record label Mercury merged with the Def Jam label. The band kind of fell through the cracks with Def Jam not allocating much in the way of promotional funds for the album or tour. The album did manage to go gold but the band actually self-funded their tour.  They were dropped in 2003 after the label rejected over 80 songs from the band, saying they were not marketable.  Since then they have released 6 albums on their own label, the first one, “Underneath” reached #25 on the Billboard 200 and at the time was the best-selling independent album release.

Outside the U.S. the first single from the album was “If Only”, a song that was closer to the sound of the hits from their breakthrough hits. It reached #9 in Australia and #15 in the UK. It would eventually reach #5 on my chart. The song features John Popper of Blues Traveler on harmonica. They reciprocated the favor in 2015 on a Blues Traveler album with the song “Top Of The World”.

A funny connection to the album, it was co-produced by Mark Hudson who was from another brotherly trio, the Hudson Brothers. They were featured on the Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour and then had their own summer variety show on CBS in 1974 (and a Saturday morning kids show that fall). Their Beatlesque “So You Are A Star” peaked at #21 on the Hot 100 that September. One of the brothers, Bill, was married to Goldie Hawn from 76-82 (and father of Kate Hudson) and then Cindy Williams from 82-2000. Mark Hudson also co-wrote Aerosmith’s “Livin’ On The Edge” (my favorite song by them), in addition to 11 other songs by the band.

9 songs from the album would hit my personal chart over the course of the next 15 months. This includes one of my all-time favorite songs “Runaway Run”. The last time I created my personal all-time favorites list was 2001 (slowly working on an update). At that time three of their songs made the top 100 (‘Around’ at #90, “Where’s The Love” at #24 and “Runaway Run” at #17). This song has my hands down favorite bridge of any song, 50 seconds of pure bliss. Interesting that the bridge has a string section backing it, arranged by David Campbell, who was brought in for the orchestral arrangements of “String Theory” 18 years later. Campbell is Beck’s father. This should have been released as a single.

Not among the 9 songs that hit my chart back then, the most rocked out song on the album, “In The City”, is debuting on my personal chart this week. It starts by sounding like a Jethro Tull song, with a little 2000 era scratching. 60’s guitar and harmonica (with a frenzied harmonica solo bridge). I remember it from the time but 2 decades later it sounds fresh and fabulous. This would be fantastic live. They could possibly hit #1 on my chart again in 2020.  

Johnny Lang, a young singer and blues guitarist (he was 19 at the time) was also a guest player on this album. I would think probably on this song.  He had reached #8 on my personal chart in 1999 with “Still Rainin’”. In 2007 he went on to  win a Grammy for Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album for his 2006 release “Turn Around”. Another of my all-time favorite artists, Keith Urban, also debuts on my personal chart this week with his version of Steve Winwood’s “Higher Love” from the “One World: Together At Home” concert.