Trombone Shorty "Do To Me"

It's amazing how much math comes up in the process of picking songs for mvyradio.

I'm not saying there is a hard, fast equation for picking music.

And honestly, the values placed on things are sometime a bit arbitrary.

But I did do a little bit of calculating, when trying to decide if we should play the new Trombone Shorty single.

Troy Smith is an Amazing horn player and he's a great composer.

Plus. Plus.

He's only an adequate singer. And I've got a stack of CDs featuring great vocalists in the "considering" pile.

Minus.

The lyrics are written by Ryan Montbleau.

Plus.

The R&B groove he lays down isn't in-the-pocket mvyradio. But we do usually make room for a little bit of that flavor, on a playlist that otherwise needs to favor straightforward singer-songwriters to stay true to the station's heritage sound.

Slight minus, slight plus.

Peeking around the country, many different radio stations are playing this track. So it's working. People are responding.

Plus.

Trombone Shorty is Amazing and there is always incentive to support true, quality artists.

Plus.

Advantage: new Trombone Shorty, on mvyradio!


Hear the song on Youtube.

Trombone Shorty "Backatown"

I've written before about what happens when the year comes to an end, and the record industry (but not the radio industry) goes in to hibernation.

And here we are again.

I actually look forward to this lull period, because it affords us the opportunity to look back at records we passed over for some reason.

There are only so many spots on a playlist. We keep 50-something new songs in rotation at mvyradio. Sure, you could do more. But the more songs you add, the less play each one gets. So we try to keep that number consistent.

And within that group of 50-something, we make a real effort to keep things eclectic. A few rockier songs, a few poppier songs, a few alternative songs, a few heritage artists, a few unknowns, etc.

Getting added to the playlist is not just about a great song. It's about how the song fits into the current big picture.

We love to have a good couple of R&B flavored songs in the mix, but if you put in too many, well, it's like Hot Sauce. A little gives it some kick. Enough makes the chili rock. Too much ruins the whole pot.

I can't remember if that was the exact reason we passed over this excellent Trombone Shorty album. But when I started asking staff members about which albums they felt we should give a second look, this was the most popular candidate. And the current playlist is certainly lighter on the groove-based records.

So here 'tis, for the season.





And pick up a Trombone Shorty Christmas song.

Trombone Shorty "O Holy Night"

The Life Is Good Festival happens in Canton, MA this weekend. So this week's blog posts feature artists appearing on the bill.

What great musical artifacts get lost due to the failure of the TV shows they appear on?

Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip seemed like a winner of a show, on paper. Written by Aaron Sorkin in his first post-West Wing TV effort. Starting Bradley Whitford and Matthew Perry. A Saturday Night Live like setting. It should have worked, right? But it didn’t. It was canceled after one season.

It had potential. It had some compelling storylines, like the one on the Christmas episode about how the house band on the show had members calling in sick on purpose, to give out-of-work, displaced-by-Katrina musicians some work. The episode culminates with the New Orleans musicians invited to perform a horn-ensemble version of “O Holy Night.”

It’s beautiful. And if the show had been a hit, I bet the song could have become a perennial holiday favorite.

But mostly it’s forgotten, save for the likes of me and skip2myLouO. (jump to the 2:10 mark for the song)

You can find a free download of this song on this blog.

Trombone Shorty performs this weekend at the Life Is Good Festival.