Tuesday, June 10: I’m Alive is the 1993 release from singer-songwriter Jackson Browne. After spending much of the 1980s focusing his efforts on socially conscious songs via albums such as Lives In The Balance and World In Motion, I’m Alive saw Browne return to matters of the heart on songs such as “Sky Blue and Black” and “My Problem Is You.” This resulted in one of Browne’s best-received recordings in a decade. We’ll hear selections from that release as well as from June featured artist Bob Mould’s new release Beauty and Ruin.
Wednesday, June 11: We’ll celebrate the birthday of Bernard Purdie, the world’s most recorded drummer. Purdie has recorded in the jazz, funk, rock and pop worlds and we’ll hear selections from across his career on Strange Currency, including pieces he recorded with Steely Dan, The Last Poets, Hall & Oates, and Larry Coryell.
Thursday, June 12: We celebrate the birthday of legendary keyboardist Chick Corea with selections from his work with Bela Fleck, Return To Forever, and as a solo artist.
Friday, June 13: Currently a member of The Cure, guitarist Reeves Gabrels first achieved notice as a member of Tin Machine, a band formed in the late 1980s featuring David Bowie. The pair would work together for well over a decade, recording some of Bowie’s most adventurous records. In 1995 Gabrels released The Sacred Squall of Now, an album featuring guest appearances from Bowie, Frank Black (Pixies), and actor Gary Oldman. We’ll hear from that record as well as from The Cure’s 1985 album The Head on the Door.
Saturday, June 14: After a promising debut album in 1967 Pink Floyd floundered stylistically after the departure of founding member and frontman Syd Barrett. The band would release a series of experimental if sometimes flawed recordings between 1968 and the 1973 breakthrough album Dark Side of the Moon. One of those records was 1970’s Atom Heart Mother--a record that is often derided by the band but remains a fan favorite. We’ll hear selections from that as well as singer-songwriter Todd Snider’s 1994 debut, Songs for the Dailey Planet.
Monday, June 16: Chrissie Hynde has led the band The Pretenders since 1979 but has just now released her first-ever solo album, titled Stockholm. We’ll hear selections from that as well as music from Similar Skin, the latest from Umphrey’s McGee. The band’s past albums have been known for their genre-hopping but this new recording finds the group focusing on straight-forward rock ‘n’ roll.
