Originally Posted Saturday, July 27, 2013
Some things never change. Smooth jazz, for example. For some reason, Michael Franks popped into my head while I was showering. I found myself saying "sanpaku." I wasn't certain what it meant, but it seemed apropos of. . . nothing. When I dried off, I Googled Mr. Franks. I wondered what his music sounded like now. Whoa! It was 1975 all over again. Here is one of his latest songs (link). Not one lick seemed different. I had liked "The Art of Tea" when I heard it and even bought some of the subsequent albums. But holy smokes, Franks makes Burt Bacharach and Herb Albert sound like rappers. His tribute to Jobim strips all of South America away. All I could think of was the cheesy lounge band "Sausalito" in "Lost in Translation" or when Griffin Mill takes June to the spa resort in "The Player."
By the way, sanpaku is kind of creepy (link).
I guess we have to blame smooth jazz on Wes Montgomery and maybe even The Crusaders, but Chet Baker may have something to do with it as well. Not when he was playing trumpet (link), but maybe when he sang (link). I like Baker, but he may have started a tsunami of easy listening. And suddenly, I'm hearing the soundtrack to "The Long Goodbye" in my head. But no, Jack Sheldon is a million miles from Michael Franks. Shit, this song still sounds good (link). Still. . . I don't know into which category of music if falls.
O.K. This was just a strange afternoon musical interlude from Radio Selavy. Thank you for tuning in.
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