The Great HTF Music Challenge (1 Viewer)

[John Dirk]

Yep, exactly. The producer here, Pete Hammond, was a mixer and studio engineer with the PWL label in the 80's that produced dozens of Europop hits for Rick Astley (Never Gonna Give You Up, Together Forever), Dead or Alive (You Spin Me Round, Brand New Lover), Kylie Minogue (The Loco-Motion cover), Bananarama (Venus, I Heard a Rumour), and many others. The Spencer video and song is a love letter of sorts to these artists and the producers.

Pete Hammond continues to produce songs with that same sound (which I love). I'm always amazed at the layers and layers of different sounds, especially if you listen with headphones. Below is his latest single produced for Peter Wilson.

Same overall sound all right but I happen to like it. I like musical tracks with a lot of layering so that I can hear different things upon multiple listening sessions. Songs like this can sound amazing, especially with good speakers.

 

[Malcolm R]

Same overall sound all right but I happen to like it. I like musical tracks with a lot of layering so that I can hear different things upon multiple listening sessions. Songs like this can sound amazing, especially with good speakers.

Hammond always advises his fans to "play very loud". There's usually a wicked bass line running under the kick drum that gets my subwoofer moving.

 

[sleroi]

One more John Prine song before I start listening to the last few pages. This seemed most apropos for the anniversary of his death, I just couldnt find the album cut quickly earlier. Im not a fan of this video presentation, but still love the song.

 

[John Dirk]

One more John Prine song before I start listening to the last few pages. This seemed most apropos for the anniversary of his death, I just couldnt find the album cut quickly earlier. Im not a fan of this video presentation, but still love the song.

Thank you for this. Just the pickup I needed after sitting in the dentists chair having tooth shrapnel flying all around me earlier.

 

[BobO'Link]

John Prine, "When I Get to Heaven" - This is a very fun track. I love the bar room piano.

 

[BobO'Link]

John Lennon - "Love":
This is one of the few Lennon songs I don't care for. Too slow and just not really engaging at all for me.

Paul McCartney - "Maybe I'm Amazed":
To me, Paul was the Dr. Dre of the Beatles, the one member the group absolutely could not do without. This song is just one of many supporting examples. Even with all of his fame, i still feel Paul is underappreciated.

So, "Love" is not your cup 'o tea. It *is* a bit schmaltzy.

Here's my favorite track from that album, actually one of my all-time favorite Lennon songs - I didn't post it earlier as it's not quite as "commercial."

John Lennon - "Working Class Hero":

 

[BobO'Link]

In the early 70s I'd just about written Paul McCartney off as a purveyor of nothing but Top 40 pop ditties. Sure, he'd had a few really good songs and big hits but it was mostly light fluffy pop stuff while Lennon tended towards the more gritty.

Then Paul formed Wings and things began to look even more dire with a couple of unremarkable albums delivering a couple of more of McCartney's Top 40 tracks with the rest being mostly forgettable. Then they released the classic album "Band on the Run" in late 1973. It spawned a couple of hits and is one of those albums where every track is good.

Paul McCartney and Wings - "Jet":



Paul McCartney and Wings - "Mrs. Vanderbuilt":



Paul McCartney and Wings - "Mamunia":

 

[BobO'Link]

Peter Wilson - "Forever Can Form Tonight" - Other than having a good vocalist this sounds like something you'd hear on a Disney Channel production. It's kind of formulaic.

 

[BobO'Link]

Lake Marie:
This is probably my favorite selection by this artist. He's a great story teller. The song intrigued me so much I had to know it's origin. Here is the artist himself explaining. Forgive me for breaking the rules as this is clearly not a musical selection.

I liked this. It's always interesting to learn how a story song came to life.

 

[John Dirk]

So, "Love" is not your cup 'o tea. It *is* a bit schmaltzy.

Here's my favorite track from that album, actually one of my all-time favorite Lennon songs - I didn't post it earlier as it's not quite as "commercial."

John Lennon - "Working Class Hero":

This one is definitely more true to who Lennon actually was with it's heavy political commentary and social criticism. He clearly needed McCartney to shine his brightest.

 

[John Dirk]

Paul McCartney and Wings

"Jet":
This one's good but, let's face it, without McCartney it would be unremarkable too.

"Mrs. Vanderbuilt":
Nice song. Paul just had a certain magic when it came to writing and composing.

"Mamunia":
This one is only "OK" for me. Again, Paul's vocals make it more palatable.

 

[RolandL]

A [perhaps] little known fact about Rap music is that it has always been overwhelmingly more popular with young middle class white males . Black people create the majority of it but have never been the largest demographic on the consumer end.

This is true as the music I hear from cars driving by my car or home is Rap. Even the band Roots on the Tonight Show plays mostly Rap. At the end of each Tonight Show they have a musical performance, many times a Rap singer so I usually turn it off then. Sorry, I don't care for Rap. All I hear is lots of bass and not much else. For a lot of the music today (not all), I don't hear any musical instruments.

Anyhow, at the end of the Tonight Show one night they had rapper (maybe mixing a bit of R&B and hip-hop) Rod Wave. The song was Tombstone but, I guess it was the sanitized version as all the offensive words were removed. Not bad, I didn't turn it off. Sorry you have to select the end of the clip to see him singing.

https://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/video/denis-leary-cristin-milioti-rod-wave/4338484

Other nights they had Demi Lovato..

Watch The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Episode: Demi Lovato, Alan Kim - NBC.com

Watch Demi Lovato, Alan Kim (Season 8, Episode 118) of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon or get episode details on NBC.com

www.nbc.com

and H.E.R ..

Watch The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Episode: Snoop Dogg, H.E.R. - NBC.com

Watch Snoop Dogg, H.E.R. (Season 8, Episode 119) of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon or get episode details on NBC.com

www.nbc.com

I enjoyed the music and surprise, they didn't wear revealing clothing. I have nothing against it, just refreshing to not see it once in while.

 

[John Dirk]

Here's another one of my Old School favorites. It's just a cool, fun song that pays tribute to some great artists. Those familiar with The Talking Heads may have heard of this group as they share a history.

Tom Tom Club - Genius of Love


The songs beat was later used for a Rap song by Dr Jeckyll & Mr Hyde, an 80's Rap duo known for rapping in business attire as opposed the sweat suits or jeans. This song was a staple during my DJ days.

Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde - Genius Rap​

 

[John Dirk]

Sorry, I don't care for Rap. All I hear is lots of bass and not much else. For a lot of the music today (not all), I don't hear any musical instruments.

You shouldn't be sorry for not caring for something as long as you gave it a try. Based on your specific comments though, I do suspect your sample size might have been limited.

Demi Lovato
I liked her voice but not so much the overall song. It just seemed superficial.

Rod Wave - Tombstone
I guess that would be fairly categorized as Rap but it's certainly not representative of the genre. I'm not knocking what the younger generation is doing, it just doesn't resonate with me.

H.E.R
She has an impressive voice. Sort of like Demi, I wasn't exactly moved by the lyrical content.

FYI - All of these songs were readily available on You Tube. It's better to link from there as the links you provided required forced advertisements.

 

[BobO'Link]

Tom Tom Club, "Genius of Love" - Hmmm... kind of a electronica meets reggae. It was OK and too long for what it is. I'd still skip it on a various artists compilation. Toward the end it was quite obvious the two in front were not playing those guitars.


Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde, "Genius Rap" - Same song as a rap? Are the lyrics the same? I don't normally pay attention to lyrics until I've heard a song a couple of dozen times so... and it's absolutely too long. This one didn't work for me.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Over 1,300 posts and I'm embarrassed to admit that it was only recently that I thought of adding this group to the thread. Living along the Gulf Coast of Texas most of my life, I've been following this band since the early '70s. I am referring to that little 'ole band from Texas. I am definitely more of a fan of their '70s catalog vs. the material that gave them national recognition in the '80s. Here are a couple of favorites from the early years...

From 1973's Tres Hombres...
ZZ Top - "Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers":



From 1975's Fandango...
ZZ Top - "Balinese":



Historical note:

Balinese Room - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

- Walter.

 

[John Dirk]

Tom Tom Club, "Genius of Love" - Hmmm... kind of a electronica meets reggae. It was OK and too long for what it is. I'd still skip it on a various artists compilation. Toward the end it was quite obvious the two in front were not playing those guitars.


Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde, "Genius Rap" - Same song as a rap? Are the lyrics the same? I don't normally pay attention to lyrics until I've heard a song a couple of dozen times so... and it's absolutely too long. This one didn't work for me.

LOL - I noticed the fake guitar much earlier.

No. The lyrics are entirely different. The original is a sort of tribute to artists the group felt inspired and enabled by. The rap song is just a standard fare song that borrowed a catchy beat and modified it a bit. There is at least one more version out there but I'll spare you as it is unremarkable.

 

[John Dirk]

From 1973's Tres Hombres...
ZZ Top - "Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers":



From 1975's Fandango...
ZZ Top - "Balinese":

I share your admiration for ZZ Top! It's not the type of music I would necessarily own but I do like their style and when I hear them I stop and listen along.

These are both really cool but I would say the first one edges the second one out by a nose.

This is one of my favorites. Perhaps a bit too commercial for your tastes?

 

[BobO'Link]

ZZ Top, "Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers" - I love every song from this album. It's the first of theirs I purchased.

ZZ Top, "Balinese" - Another good 'un from them. I like others from this album more but this one's good too.

ZZ Top, "Sharp Dressed Man" - If I'm in the car with the grandkids and I play this one they almost always say "Ooooo... the Duck Dynasty song!" and I reply "No... it's 'Sharp Dressed Man' - the show borrowed it."

I like all eras of ZZ Top - even when it's mostly drum machine stuff.

 

[BobO'Link]

While my favorite "song" from "Tres Hombres" is "Waitin' for the Bus/Jesus Just Left Chicago" I also really like

ZZ Top - "Hot, Blue and Righteous":


and "Precious and Grace":