by Nomad
For a lot of us, the last day of the year brings reflection before we march forward into the fog. For that reason, for this special Sanity Sunday, I searched for the appropriate kind of meditative music.
I don't think I've done bad for a guy from Slab Fork, West Virginia."From 1970 to 1985, Withers dominated the pop music world with award winners like 1980's "Just the Two of Us" and Grammy-award song like 1971's "Ain't No Sunshine" and 1972's "Lean on Me."
"I figured out that you didn't need to be a virtuoso to accompany yourself."
"...beautiful vocal and instrumental layering, solemn and thoughtful lyrics, and a rousing chorus. The song’s stoic themes are also given a heavier weight with the impressive, breathy power of Thornton’s voice."Hard to disagree with that.
The news was later confirmed by his longtime bandmate Donald Fagen. In a statement, Fagen said "I intend to keep the music we created together alive as long as I can with the Steely Dan band."In memory of Becker's passing, here are five Steely Dan songs. I have so many favorites that I had to limit it to five. Hope you enjoy them. Hard to believe this music came from the 1970s.
"I've had to get in and out of music a couple of times, because music didn't always mean a living. You don't make that much in bars; I still have memories of those nights, playing for $25 a night, with nobody listening."
He was a gentle man highly interested in all kinds of music, from classical and jazz to Brazilian, Latin and American popular music. Even then he was a great talker when the subjects were music and women.If that photo is anything to go by, I am sure he was a hit with the ladies. Make no mistake, Jobim was a serious artist.
Generally speaking, he was much more intelligent than most musicians, but he respected the ones he considered talented and intelligent. Usually, he lost patience easily when someone argued things without a musical base, with nonsense arguments.