Jumpin' At The Woodside

This week's Five4Friday... a New Year's Eve theme starting off with Frank Sinatra and the Count Basie Orchestra live from the Sands on "Where Or When". Next Joel Alme, a very soulful Swede, with 2010's "If You Got Somebody Waiting." We lost a great voice recently in Joe Cocker, who had a one-of-a-kind style and will be sorely missed. Here he is on the classic "Feeling Alright". Couldn't be New Year's without a good ol'-style drinking song, The Lumineers with "Ain't Nobody's Problem". Closing this week out is The Black Crowes and Tedeschi Trucks Band with a live performance of "Turn On Your Lovelight" from Alpharetta, GA, on 7/20/2013. Happy New Year and... Salud!

This week's Five4Friday ... some of my favorites from Woodside Christmas I and II . For me, the all-time greatest Christmas song is Nat King Cole's rendition of "The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)". Next up Ray Charles' signature take on "Winter Wonderland", which was also used in the film "When Harry Met Sally". Harry Connick, Jr.'s "Sleigh Ride" puts the BIG in big band with a rousing version of Leroy Anderson's orchestral piece composed in the 1940s. Billy Squier's 1980s MTV-era classic "Christmas Is the Time To Say 'I Love You'" never goes out of style. And bringing it home, Kenny Loggins' "Celebrate Me Home". Good tidings, good cheer and Merry Christmas to one and all - Salud!

This week's Five4Friday... Christmas songs that aren't really Christmas songs. The first track has a great spirit of love and joy, and it's his birthday, Frank Sinatra's live performance of "Fly Me To The Moon". While I could have included George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" from the same album "All Things Must Pass", I like the life and love quality of "What Is Life". It has a "George Bailey" simple every-man tone. Lenny Kravitz "Let Love Rule" an obvious choice for the season. "God Only Knows" by The Beach Boys from the film "Love Actually" has become almost synonymous with the holiday, and includes jingling sleigh bells in the opening. Wrapping things up is Elvis Costello & The Attractions' "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding". It's Christmas, so a gift of a bonus track is in order. Three Dog Night's "Joy To The Worl...

This painting (above) was found tucked away in a closet in my grandparents' home a number of years ago. While it looks like it could be one of my great grandfather Thomspon Alexander Foster's paintings, it's unsigned and there is no identifiable information on the back. I liked the painting and decided to hang it in my home along with other works by my great grandfather. It was rumored that my grandmother, on my Dad's side, had once asked my Mom's grandfather Thompson to paint something for her. Could this be that rumored painting? If it was, why was it unsigned? While it's believed that Thompson signed all his works with his own unique signature, he sometimes included the year and sometimes did not. So in my mind there was a chance this was one of his, but there was no way of knowing for sure. For many years I wondered who painted this fall scene that hung on my bedroom wall. From time to time I'd give the painting a closer examination to see if m...

This week's Five4Friday begins with JJ Grey And Mofro reminding us to preserve our natural resources with this live version of "Lochloosa" from JJ's live effort "Brighter Days". In memory of Faces and Small Faces keyboardist Ian McLagan , who passed away this week, 1967's "Itchycoo Park" is next. In 1969 when lead singer/guitarist Steve Marriott left to form Humble Pie, the remaining members changed their name to the Faces when Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood joined the group. Grace Potter and The Nocturnals give a rocking beat to Beyonce's "Why Don't You Love Me" ... Beyonce' never sounded so good. Also this week, we lost saxophonist Bobby Keys , who played on classic sessions with The Rolling Stones, Faces, Humble Pie, John Lennon, George Harrison and many more. The Rolling Stones "All Down The Line" from their landmark recording "Exile on Main St." is this week's 4th track. Finally, David...

This week's Five4Friday is the conclusion of my two-part Thanksgiving/family/home/love theme. Sappy I know, but hey it's the holidays. Frank Sinatra's take on the classic "Swinging On a Star" kicks things off. Bob Dylan's "The Man In Me" and its ties to "The Big Lebowski" film seem to fit right in. Alicia Keys' "If I Ain't Got You" has been a staple on my run playlist, and is in my list of all-time top 20 songs. Some old-school Philly love up next with The O'Jays' 1972 track "Love Train". Joe Alterman closes things out with "The First Night Home" that inspires visions of fireplace gatherings on chilly eves. - Salud!

This week's Five4Friday is part 1 of a two-part Thanksgiving theme that concludes next Friday. Dean Martin’s “You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You” starts things off. The Martin classic always reminds me of Thanksgiving, probably because awhile back I converted some old home movies to video and I inserted this song with images of a long drive through a fall Pennsylvania countryside. The new-old song “Kansas City” is next by The New Basement Tapes made up of Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate Drops), Taylor Goldsmith (Dawes), Jim James (My Morning Jacket), Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons) and produced by T Bone Burnett. Their “newish” album features tracks based on recently discovered lyrics written by Bob Dylan in 1967. Pearl Jam’s “Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town” has a seasonal feel as it describes the scene of returning home and meeting someone you once knew. This week’s 4th track is U2’s live version of “Where The Streets ...

In honor of Veteran's Day, this week Five4Friday is dedicated to the men and women who proudly served our country, along with those currently serving and their families. We salute you and yours with some tracks that you may not have heard before, or even if you have maybe not in this context. This week’s tracks include... Spirits of the Red City - “Lead Us” Ark Life – “Proud of Me Out There Mama” Jackson Browne – “Doctor My Eyes” Tedeschi Trucks Band – “Darling Be Home Soon (Live)” Rod Stewart – “Seems Like a Long Time” While I didn't intend to include yet another Tedeschi Trucks song, their cover of Lovin' Spoonful's “Darling Be Home Soon” was too good not to include. -  Salud!

First up, Vince Guaraldi Trio's "Cast Your Fate To The Wind", which of course pairs well with the season's falling leaves. The story goes, TV producer  Lee Mendelson heard this song while traveling in a taxi,  and subsequently hired  Guaraldi to score the upcoming   Peanuts  Christmas special. The rest as they say is history. Next, Keira Knightley's "Coming Up Roses" from the soundtrack of the recently-released film " Begin Again ". While the film is set during a NYC summer, the strings  give it a nice autumnal tone. Also this week,  Interview magazine released photos of a topless Knightley that the actress took to protest the Photoshopping (or retouching) of women's photos . The Charlatans have a new single and album due out soon, and this track "I Don't Want To See The Sights" is from their 1992 release "Between 10th & 11th". Warren Haynes recently announced the latest dates for his 26th annual Christm...

This week's old-school groove was inspired by Joss Stone, who on Thurs. took part in the UK's Poppy Appeal vigil, which supports current/former British military personnel. During the vigil, she held a picture of her great-great-grandfather who fought in WWI.  Joss recently posted a comment about Raphael Saadiq's "Staying in Love", and with lyrics like "falling in love can be easy, but staying in love is too tricky," is a great kickoff for a "tricky love" theme. Next up is Mike Mattison's new solo effort "You Can't Fight Love". If his voice sounds familiar it's because he sings with the Tedeschi Trucks Band. Speaking of "tricky love", the David Porter & Isaac Hayes penned "Trick or Treat" recorded by Otis Redding in 1966 fits the bill. Joss herself is next with her funky rocker "Incredible" from her 2009 "Colour Me Free!" album. The last spot could have been any number of songs...

This week starts off with Dizzy Gillespie's rendition of "Lullaby of the Leaves". It has a dark foreboding tone that sets the mood for the next track. Neil Young confirmed this week on The Stern Show that "Down By The River" was written during a period he suffered from a very high fever. To me, the storyline feels like it was ripped straight from "The Walking Dead". Regardless, this acoustic version by Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds sounds great and Tim adds some nice spooky riffs. Ben Harper's deep track "Glory & Consequence" seems to fit nicely following the haunting tracks preceding it. The Black Keys always seemed to leave me wanting more and not delivering a payoff. That changed with the next track "Little Black Submarines", it has a great payoff and is a good lead up to one of Neil Young's all-time classic rock tracks. If the lyrics of "Rockin' In the Free World" don't grab you by the throat, y...

I launched a new music series called Five4Friday back on October 10 . Essentially five tunes hand-picked by me for the week, and posted to MixCloud on Friday evening. This is the first post in the series. I'm limited to 1,000 characters in the MixCloud description so going forward I'll be sharing longer posts here with more info about each track.  This mix reached 23rd in the MixCloud Alternative Rock chart and 100th in the Rock chart. Five4Friday - 10/10/2014 by Thewoodside on Mixcloud Five tunes for a Friday... this week kicks off with a jazz classic by Les McCann & Eddie Harris, followed by two relatively new tunes by Serena Ryder and Benjamin Booker. The Derek Trucks Band's powerful cover of Bob Dylan's "Down In The Flood" is up next, and finishing up the mix is the band forty, a three-man group formed in Boston in the 90s. They sounded like a blend of Nirvana and Husker Du, but unfortunately their time was cut short when the lead s...

What better way to kick off the long holiday weekend than sharing this year's summer mix  - 35 tracks, clocks in at about 2 hours and 14 minutes, and spans 47 years of music. I may take some heat for a few selections, but I ask you listen from top to bottom before passing judgment. Oh, What a Beautiful Morning - Ray Charles & The Count Basie Orchestra (2006) Happy - Pharrell Williams (2013) You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb - Spoon (2007) Miss You - The Rolling Stones (1978) Catch the Sun - Doves (2000) Lazy Fo Acre - Mofro (2001) Let's Get Drunk & Get It On - Old 97's (2014) Brown Eyed Girl - Van Morrison (1967) Call Me - St. Paul & The Broken Bones (2014) Lido Shuffle - Boz Scaggs (1976) Forever My Friend - Ray LaMontagne (2005) Thunder Island - Jay Ferguson (1978) Flowers in Your Hair - The Lumineers (2012) Super-Connected - Belly (1995) The Wind Cries Mary - Jimi Hendrix (1967) Love Vibration - Josh Rouse (2003) Riptide - Vance Joy (2013) Plus...

Not every day you stumble across physical evidence of a past crossroads in your life. Today while cleaning out some old boxes I found a job offer letter from a company in Wayne, Pa, sent to me in 1999. My choice at the time was either to take this job at a new company, or stay at my current company if they matched the offer. They did. It was a tough choice, and I remember at the time I felt like I was making the right choice. I ultimately wanted to stay where I was as our division was about to be spun off into a new company, and it seemed like big things were on the horizon. Dot Coms were booming and everyone was cashing in, so it seemed like everything was going my way. About a year later, the Dot Coms went bust. January 2001, I found myself in a conference room where most of our company, myself included, received the news we were being let go via speakerphone. I eventually got back on my feet, but I sometimes wonder what my life would have been like had I taken that job offe...