Feed Your Ears

[Luigi]

Miqedem is an Israeli group. Here they sing the 23rd psalm in Hebrew. The music is newly composed. The instruments include keyboard, bass, and drums - pretty standard - along with a couple of Middle Eastern instruments, the cura and the saz. Subtitles are in Hebrew and English. 

 

[dUSt]

The Electric Prunes are an American psychedelic rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1965. Incorporating psychedelia and elements of embryonic electronic rock, the band's sound was marked by innovative recording techniques with fuzz-toned guitars and oscillating sound effects. At the suggestion of manager Lenny Poncher and Hassinger, The Electric Prunes agreed to record a concept album that integrated Gregorian music into psychedelic pop, with the belief it would launch them into commercial success. Poncher recruited David Axelrod, a formally classically trained musician, to compose all of the material for the project. The result, Mass in F Minor, was a complex arrangement of religious-based rock, which was sung entirely in Greek and Latin. Although the band did record the songs "Kyrie Eleison", "Gloria", and "Credo", the intricate orchestration proved to be too difficult and time-consuming for the group. As a consequence, Hassinger enlisted the Canadian group The Collectors, among other session musicians, in completing the album, although Lowe, Tulin, and Weakley did contribute to every track. Mass in F Minor was released in January 1968 and reached number 135 on the Billboard 200. An eerie version of the opening track, "Kyrie Eleison", became somewhat of an underground favorite when it appeared in the soundtrack for the counterculture film, Easy Rider.

[dUSt]

 

Release of an Oath is the fourth studio album credited to The Electric Prunes, released in 1968. It was composed and arranged by David Axelrod, and band members played little part in its recording. The work follows the musical pattern of their Mass in F Minor, also composed by Axelrod. Despite the subtitle and popular name, the remaining tracks of the album are based on a mix of Christian and Jewish liturgies. Although credited to the Electric Prunes, the album is largely the work of composer and producer David Axelrod and a group of session musicians. The rights to the name "The Electric Prunes" were owned by producer David Hassinger, who was encouraged by the success of the previous album, Mass in F Minor, also written and arranged by Axelrod but issued as by the Electric Prunes, to assemble a new line-up of the band. He found an existing Colorado group, Climax, who formed the basis of the "new" Electric Prunes.

[Luigi]

8 hours ago, dUSt said:

 

This is really good, and really interesting. I've heard of the Electric Prunes, but I didn't know anything about them or their music... I might have heard "I Had Too Much to Dream Last Night" before, but that's about it. IT's interesting that "O Happy Day" and "Spirit in the Sky" went up the pop charts in the same era (1967 and 1969 respectively. 

[Luigi]

Judy Collins recorded a folk-y version of "Ghost Riders in the Sky" (as opposed to a a Country & Western version or a Hollywood version). The song itself was written in 1941. It's a cowboy's vision of hell, with a message from one of the damned warning him to change his ways. It's somewhat on the corny side, but it has a great sing-along-at-the-top-of-your-lungs chorus. 

 

 

[Luigi]

"Yes, Jesus Loves Me" is so well-known that it's trite. But Aaron Neville breathes new life into it (with help from his brothers, of course). I particularly like the intro - I'm not sure what instrument is being played, but it gives the impression of a music box. In my town, we've seen a number of children murdered over the last three or four years; I think this should be played at the funeral of every child that dies by violence. 

 

[Luigi]

"Non Nobis Domine" from Kenneth Branagh's film version of Shakespeare's Henry V. The lyrics are a very old prayer (Not to us, Lord, but to Your name be glory given), but the music is not from Shakespeare's time or Henry V's time - it was composed for the movie. It starts with a single voice and builds throughout, becoming a military anthem, and then an all-stops-out symphonic chorus. This clip includes the whole scene from the movie, which gives it good context; if you want just the music, start at 3:30. The final chorus comes after the instrumental interlude. 

 

[Luigi]

Sister Rosetta Tharpe is considered The Godmother of Rock & Roll. She was raised singing in the church (Church of God in Christ), and she was among the very first electric guitar players. A lot of her repertoire was church songs, even when she was singing to secular audiences. This is her rendition of "Wait Until My Change Comes," based on the Book of Job. In this video, she's performing in France; her vocals and guitar work are pretty much straight up rock & roll, but the backing musicians go much more ragtime-y for their solos. 

 

[Luigi]

I'm sure we all remember Joan Osborne's "One of Us." It's still worth listening to. It was written by Eric Bazilian of The Hooters. He never has revealed his position on faith, religion, or the rest of it. Still, he raised the question of God's existence, on pop radio. And I remember thinking - the first time I heard it - well, Yeah, Yeah, God is one of us!

 

[Luigi]

This is The Animals from 1965 singing "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood." It's not a religious song as such; it's really the singer talking to his girlfriend about himself. But there are religious references sprinkled throughout - angel, soul, sinful, O Lord - indicating that Christian assumptions were just part of the national (American and British - The Animals were a British group) culture in 1965. 

 

[Luigi]

A straight-up country (in the best sense of the word) song released in May '23. Easy to listen to. "Daddy Never Had a Chance in Hell" by Paul Pace. 

 

[Luigi]

This is a Polish Marian hymn, "Błogosławiona Matka Boga" (Blessed Mother of God) sung in that distinctively Slavic style - it's still SATB, with strong voices, the men provide drone notes (in harmony) while the women sing melody (in harmony), and some counterpoint, too! The chorus is one line (but song twice each time), and the verses are also one line. The Polish lyrics are available if you click on "More" in the description; the English translation is provided in the first Comment. 

 

[Luigi]

"God Is Alive, Magic Is Afoot."

Leonard Cohen wrote the words, as a poem, in his first novel, which revolves around Kateri Tekakwitha (but is also postmodern sexually graphic). I don't know if St. Kateri's character (she was beatified but not canonized when the novel was written) recites this poem in the novel. In any case, the  poem/song should stand or fall on its own merits, regardless of the novel.

Buffy Sainte-Marie 'improvised [the poem] into a song' according to Chris Thile, the mandolin virtuos). Thile calls this a 'semi-sacred song.' I include the lyrics because they're kind of minimalist and repetitive, and because the trippy sound effects sometimes interfere with catching the words. I think I like this song, but I'm not completely sure. 

God is alive, magic is afoot
God is alive, magic is afoot
God is afoot, magic is alive
Alive is afoot, magic never died

God never sickened
Many poor men lied, many sick men lied
Magic never weakened, magic never hid
Magic always ruled, God is afoot
God never died

God was ruler
Though his funeral lengthened
Though his mourners thickened
Magic never fled
Though his shrouds were hoisted, the naked God did live
Though his words were twisted, the naked magic thrived
Though his death was published 'round and 'round the world
The heart did not believe

Many hurt men wondered, many struck men bled
Magic never faltered, magic always led
Many stones were rolled but God would not lie down
Many wild men lied, many fat men listened
Though they offered stones, magic still was fed
Though they locked their coffers, God was always served

Magic is afoot, God rules
Alive is afoot, alive is in command
Many weak men hungered
Many strong men thrived
Though they boasted solitude, God was at their side
Nor the dreamer in his cell
Nor the captain on the hill

Magic is alive
Though his death was pardoned
'Round and 'round the world
The heart did not believe

Though laws were carved in marble
They could not shelter men
Though altars built in parliaments, they could not order men
Police arrested magic, and magic went with them
For magic loves the hungry

But magic would not tarry, it moves from arm to arm
It would not stay with them, magic is afoot
It cannot come to harm, it rests in an empty palm
It spawns in an empty mind, but magic is no instrument
Magic is the end

Many men drove magic, and magic stayed behind
Many strong men lied
They only passed through magic and out the other side
Many weak men lied, they came to God in secret
And though they left him nourished
They would not tell who healed
Though mountains danced before them
They said that God was dead
Though his shrouds were hoisted, the naked God did live

[Luigi]

Don Williams had a #1 Country hit with "I Believe in You" in 1980. It's basically a love song - that's about all that ever hits #1 on the charts. But it's in the form of a series of "I believe" statements, so you can look at it as a sort of pop culture creedal statement. Williams has a warm, relaxed baritone voice that's very easy to listen to. 

 

[Luigi]

This happened last October in King's Cross railway station in London. It's got a mall and all kinds of stuff including a piano where travelers can hear - or play - various kinds of music.