One
of my favorite albums released last year came from a talented south suburban
singer-songwriter named Lisa McClowry. Spyglass Hill is an album
of easy listening love songs featuring full band and orchestra-augmented arrangements
underscoring McClowry’s smoky, sensual, emotive pipes. The centerpiece is "There
Will Never Be Another You," a showstopping big ballad of depth and beauty
that still brings a tear to my eye nearly a year after I first heard it. "Purest
Ecstasy" is another highlight, a Sarah McLachlan-esque bit of exotic percussion
mood. And "Take Me Back To Yesterday" is an upbeat bit of pop perfection
that should have found its way onto Top 40 radio last year without a problem
(except for the fact that this is a completely independent release and didn’t
have the push of a major label like Arista or Warner Bros. or RCA behind it
– so radio never noticed it). Why am I going on about an album that’s a year
old? Because in making Spyglass Hill, McClowry hooked up with ex-Devo
leader and "Rugrats" score composer Mark Mothersbaugh. The two penned
a warm, slow ballad called "Through The Eyes of a Child," which didn’t
originally appear on Spyglass Hill, but instead found a home on the soundtrack
to the Rocky and Bullwinkle movie last year. This month, McClowry has
reissued Spyglass Hill with the addition of "Through The Eyes of
a Child." That song will also play a part in the March of Dimes Walk-A-Thon
happening across the U.S. this last weekend in April. McClowry will be performing
both the National Anthem and "Through the Eyes of A Child" the day of the walk
here in Chicago. She’ll also be donating part of the proceeds of Spyglass Hill
to the March of Dimes. So if you didn’t catch the disc last year, look it up
now at http://www.lisamcclowry.com.
You can also listen to samples at http://www.mp3.com/lisamcclowry.
Oldies collectors can now get the works of Memphis early rock/R&B acts Ace Cannon and Bill Black’s Combo from The Right Stuff label. The Best of Ace Cannon The Hi Records Years and The Best of Bill Black’s Combo The Hi Records Years both feature 18 tracks taken from the late ‘50s and early ‘60s just after Bill Black stepped down from his role as a bassist for Elvis Presley. Cannon played sax for the Combo briefly before making his own mark with a couple early ‘60s hits in "Tuff" and "Blues (Stay Away From Me)." At one point these artists had exposure through Ed Sullivan and their records were all across the country on the jukebox circuit. But there are probably very few who remember the gigs that the Bill Black Combo did opening for the band that would eclipse the whole Memphis hit machine: The Beatles. Black died of a brain tumor in 1965, but his records (and his band) carried on. Among the instrumental organ-sax led hits collected on this disc are the Top 20 hits "White Silver Sands," "Blue Tango" and "Don’t Be Cruel," a lyric-less remake of the Elvis hit that Black also played on.
