The Daily Deep Cut

The editors at JamsBio like to think of ourselves as music fans first, not critics, and that’s the sensibility we strive for at JamsBio and that we seek in other sites as well. That’s why we’re so jazzed about Damn Fine Day, a site that each day profiles a deep album cut that’s been overlooked, but deserves a place in everybody’s collection. In the name of spreading the gospel about great music, we present “The Daily Deep Cut,” where we add our two cents about the songs featured on Damn Fine Day. Once you read our unique take, we’ll send you over to Damn Fine Day so you can stream the full track and download it if you like. Sometimes we might even suggest another deep track from the same album or present some other novel twist on what their hawking.

I love those artists who are viewed today as parodies of themselves or complete cheese but who harbor pasts chock full of great and edgy music. Phil Collins is probably one of the best examples of this. “Against All Odds” and the Disney Broadway schlock betrays the talent he displayed in his work with Genesis during the 1970s. Chances are most people aren’t even aware of the impressive past he’s hiding. The same is true of Dionne Warwick, a woman who’s best known for being an infomercial queen and ringleader of the horrible 1985 charity single, “That’s What Friends Are For.” Truth is, Dionne is a five-time Grammy Award-winning singer, actress, and activist who produced some rather stunning work in the 1960s in collaboration with the first rate talent of Burt Bacharach and Hal David.

The single featured today is a departure in that it was written by Andre and Dory Previn instead of Bacharach and David. Interestingly, the single was originally supposed to be recorded by Judy Garland. Without getting into the nitty gritty of the performance (which Kurt B. Reighley does quite well on Damn Fine Day), I just want to strongly recommend that people who are not familiar with Dionne Warwick’s early career jump on over to Damn Fine Day to listen to this wonderful track and read some more about what makes it a worthy addition to your collection.

And while we’re on the subject of Dionne, take a few minutes to seek out some of her work from the early 1960s, including the hit singles “Don’t Make Me Over,” “Anyone Who Had a Heart,” “Walk on By” and “Do You Know the Way to San Jose.” For fans of Dusty Springfield, Gladys Knight, and Aretha Franklin, these songs are must-hears.

No Comments »