Episode 56. Happy Birthday to moi! (A festive pop diva playlist)
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I was born this very day a specific number of years ago. My friends know exactly whe this landmark event took place. Today also marks the rollout of Season Two of Countermelody complete with a brand new theme song, once again sung by my girl Claudia Muzio. In celebration of these events, I’ve decided to give you a playlist of a few of my favorite pop divas, my association of some of whom stretches all the way back to my childhood. And what a motley assortment it is! Judy Garland, Edith Piaf, Barbara Cook, Eartha Kitt, the recently deceased Juliette Gréco, ABBA, Barbra Streisand, Bonnie Raitt, Billie Holiday, Eurythmics, Jackie DeShannon, Dolly Parton, Laura Lee, Yma Sumac, Nicole Croisille, Linda Ronstadt, Freda Payne, Joey Heatherton, Dinah Washington, Dalida, Aretha, and of course my beloved Dusty. I’ve even thrown a few guys into the mix! This is a playlist worthy of any diva-loving late-middle aged homosexual that any lover of sometimes good music and mostly fantastic singing can enjoy. And you will enjoy it, dagnabbit. Cuz it’s my birthday and I said so!
Countermelody is a podcast devoted to the glory and the power of the human voice raised in song. Singer and vocal aficionado Daniel Gundlach explores great singers of the past and present focusing in particular on those who are less well-remembered today than they should be. Daniel’s lifetime in music as a professional countertenor, pianist, vocal coach, voice teacher, and journalist yields an exciting array of anecdotes, impressions, and “inside stories.” Occasional guests from the “business” (singers, conductors, composers, coaches, and teachers) lend their distinctive insights. At Countermelody’s core is the interaction between singers of all stripes, their instruments, and the connection they make to the words they sing. Please visit the Countermelody website (www.countermelodypodcast.com) for additional content. And please head to our Patreon page at www.patreon.com/countermelody to pledge your monthly support at whatever level you can afford. Bonus episodes available only to Patreon supporters are currently available!
RECORDINGS HEARD IN THIS EPISODE
Claudia Muzio: Eternamente [Enzo Mascheroni]
Yma Sumac: Remember [Les Baxter]
Billie Holiday: All or Nothing at All [Arthur Altman, Jack Lawrence]
Marlene Dietrich, Burt Bacharach: Honeysuckle Rose [Fats Waller, Andy Razaf]
Renata Scotto: Over the Rainbow (The Wizard of Oz) [Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg]
Helen Morgan: More than You Know (Great Day) [Vincent Youmans, Billy Rose, Edward Eliscu]
Daniel Gundlach: I Don’t Know How to Love Him (Jesus Christ Superstar) [Andrew Lloyd Webber, Tim Rice]
Norman Luboff Choir: You Go to My Head [J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie]
Eurythmics: I’ve Got a Life [Annie Lennox, David A. Stewart]
Cyndi Lauper: Heading West [Cyndi Lauper, Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly]
Cher: Just Like Jesse James [Desmond Child, Diane Warren]
Linda Ronstadt: When Will I Be Loved [Phil Everly]
Jackie DeShannon: The Weight [Robbie Robertson]
Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand: Get Happy/Happy Days Are Here Again [Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler; Milton Ager, Jeck Yellen]
Dinah Washington: I Wanna Be Around [Sadie Vimmerstedt, Johnny Mercer]
Tony Pastor, Rosemary Clooney: Saturday Night Mood [Chummy MacGregor, Harry Harris]
Céline Dion: Pour que tu m’aimes encore [Jean-Jacques Goldman]
Edith Piaf: Paris (L’homme aux mains d’argile) [André Bernheim]
Juliette Gréco: Je suis comme je suis [Joseph Kosma, Jacques Prévert]
Joni Mitchell, James Taylor: California [live at the BBC 1970] [Joni Mitchell]
Hamilton Camp: Here’s to You [Hamilton Camp]
Charles Trenet: La Mer [Charles Trenet]
Sven Ratzke: Ich überleb’s (I Will Survive) [Freddie Perren, Dino Fekaris; Georg Danzer (German lyrics)]
Scissor Sisters: Whole New Way [Jason Sellards, Scott Hoffman, Stuart Price]
Aretha Franklin: Chain of Fools [Don Covay]
Freda Payne: Band of Gold [Edythe Wayne (Brian Holland, Lamont-Dozier, Eddie Holland), Ron Dunbar]
Laura Lee: Rip Off [William Weatherspoon, Angelo Bond]
Dalida, Alain Delon: Paroles, paroles [Gianni Ferrio, Leo Chiosso, Giancarlo Del Re; Michaële (French lyrics)]
Dolly Parton: Crimson and Clover [Tommy James, Peter Lucia]
ABBA: Angeleyes [Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus]
Alanis Morissette: You Oughta Know [Alanis Morissette]
Dusty Springfield: Tupelo Honey [Van Morrison]
Eartha Kitt: I Want to Be Evil [Lester Judson, Raymond Taylor]
Barbra Streisand: Down with Love [Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg, arr. Peter Matz]
Les Baxter: Simba [Les Baxter]
Joey Heatherton: Gone [Smokey Rogers]
Barbara Cook: Ain’t Love Easy [Carol Hall]
Nicole Croisille: Si l’on pouvait choisir sa vie [Jacques Demarny, Henri Djian]
Bonnie Raitt: Sweet and Shiny Eyes [Nan O’Byrne]