You know, the guy who used to (try and) do this every week and then decided pretty much that I had enough and wrapped my love for new music and put it on the shelf, to be revisited for nostalgia and then go back to the decades worth of gems that my musical ear has collected?
And how is the world treating everyone? Yeah, I now. But more on this later.
When we last talked, it was the dawn of a new year and new decade, one full of hope and promise. Many of us made resolutions, which most lately we broke weeks, days or even hours later. And I was on the fence regarding continuing this blog or not.
Traditionally, after I look back on a year, I take a break, a hiatus if you will. Not only to appreciate the prior year's music (that I listened to, at least) and put it all in perspective, but to come up for air, as I spent a good amount of hours not only writing the blog, but compiling my new music list, which I put in chart form, and transfer to my iTunes and iPod for listening at home or in my car. While for most people, the blog is read more for what I say and not what I'm currently listening to, it's the latter that actually gives me a reason for even being here.
And I was going to give it up entirely. As I had been substituting in our local school district for two or three times each week, it gave me little time for thinking about doing a blog or listening to new music. Plus I had gone away for a couple of weeks up north, purportedly to ski but wound up geocaching, hanging out at a hotel's polar ice bar, or at a pub up there with friends, as well as a nice weekend in Rhode Island.
January ended, and to be honest, I didn't miss this. The current Top 40 pop scene went from bad to worse, and, judging from the high school kids whose classes I had subbed, it's not going to get better anytime soon. Maybe I, in fact, am too old. I got nostalgic when I played by Top 200 of the 2010's, but realized that if I started the same for the 2020's, would I make it to the end? By 2029, would be 73 years old, if I am, indeed still alive.
My project to upload onto my computer, all of my favorite songs of my life continued. I added my Top 100 songs from 1978 and 1979 onto iTunes, giving me continuous playlists of such lists from 1964 through 1983. I also had previously done 1992 through 1996 and, thanks to the blog, 2010 to the present. What I listened to in my car during those trips as well as to the school were my lists from 1964 through 1968. I tried to play my current playlist (the way I left it, back in mid-December) and it did nothing for me, despite some great music on it. Thing is, I could listen to my favorite songs of 1966 with no problem, but if I tried to, listen to, say 2015, I would feel bad in that I had some good (and some bad) times then (thank you, social media), and now I'm throwing all that in the trash. After all, the music industry still goes on in 2020.
But then there are things that tried to motivate me. Two legendary New York morning jocks passed away.....Don Imus, who pioneered the morning "shock jock" motif, and Harry Harrison, who was more traditional, but nonetheless a legend, both left us in the last three months. Neal Peart, the drummer for Canadian rockers Rush, passed in January, as well as pop and country legend Kenny Rogers, just a couple days ago. And while it's increasingly irrelevant to me, we had the Super Bowl halftime show and the Grammys, which featured mostly new or classic pop artists, with no representation for indie or alt-rock music.
In my last regular blog, I mentioned that record that Mariah Carey set on the Billboard Hot 100 for the longest climb to the top spot...26 chart weeks, 16 real-time years, with "All I Want for Christmas is You", and I warned that she could set another dubious record---disappearing completely from the list from the top the following week. And yes, after three weeks at the top, that exactly happened, one that can't be broken, only tied.
Then, I thought about my favorite bands, local and otherwise. During the holidays, my friend and veteran Jersey musician Paul Czekaj delivered, in person, his new CD, The Painter of the Sky. Winnetka Bowling League came out with a new video for "CVS". Shannon Marsyada continued to post that she was recording new music; ditto for Hegazy. Tom Corea was set to start a new project with a new band. A couple people asked me if I was still doing my blog; I told them either "yes" (to avoid further conversation), or that it was "on hiatus".
March came, and I still hadn't done a thing....in fact I was going to make the permanent decision to put that in the past.
Enter the Corona Virus.
Originating in China at the beginning of the year, it had started spreading across the globe, and it was just a matter of time that it would make its way to our shores. Now a pandemic, the COVID-19 virus had caused a virtual shutdown of our country. Schools are either closed, or students are remotely learning from home, non-essential businesses have shut down, and the stock market as taken a tumble. The positive cases have increased, in many cases, doubled by day and the deaths are mounting. We are now, pretty much "quarantined", and practicing "social distancing", and my wife and myself, except for an essential errand or two, are pretty much hanging around the homestead, giving me time to catch up on many things.
I started catching some of SiriusXM's Alt-nation channel again, and while some of the songs, really don't do it for me, many of them have. I thought to myself, that perhaps it's finally time to dive back into it. My friend Anthony, one of those who have, at times followed my blog and the music associated with it, posted that he really wanted to get into more of what is new.
But perhaps the deal-maker was how divided this country was. It had been for most of the decade since I started this blog, but in particular for the last few years. And while you'd think that the world-wide crisis in the wake of COVID-19 would reunite everyone, it has resulted in finger-pointing along political and ideological lines. When it resulted in battles with people who have inspired me, both with music and the creation of the blog itself, I thought, well, music always brought all of us together, and perhaps if I could go back and start over, maybe we can agree on something, namely artistry and music, to do the trick once more. I have the extra time, and since we don't know what this will all blow over....people have been saying weeks, or even through the summer months, perhaps, it's time to at least update the new music list.
Below, you will find my Scenes 'n' Soundwaves 100 for this week. I am treating this like I never skipped a beat, my "weeks on list" is only incremented by one, similar to what I did when I came out of my fall 2014 hiatus. As for the future of this blog, it will be on a week-by-week basis, pretty much when I feel like it, and will stop at any time. This could be the only one, or the first of many. While I know most of my friends have left anything musically new behind decades ago, I miss it, and perhaps abruptly throwing it away at the end of 2019's may have been premature. I will continue to support new music, in particular up-and-coming artists that I have been following.
My first 2020 playlist still shows the hold overs from December: Michael Kiwanuka still leads with "Hero", while Tennis' "Runner" jumps to #2. These two artists actually showed up on WEQX's (alternative station in Manchester Vermont) current playlist, although with different songs. Songs being played nationally make big moves: Tame Impala's "It Might Be Time" and Of Monsters and Men's "War" take big moves. And while Winnetka Bowling League's "CVS" is out, I will add that once "Slow Dances" (42-15 this week) peaks.
JERSEY-BEAT: Local artists are doing well. Thanks to his new CD, Paul Czekaj's title track from that release, which I reviewed back in October, finally is able to enter the list; it is the Top Debut at #47. The second highest is from another Jersey-based artist, The Outcrops. We had seen them live at last year's "Mayfest" in Hackettstown New Jersey, and the band regularly plays at venues across North Jersey. Their single, "Lost Days', charts at #59 here. Jersey acts make it a trifecta as the third-highest is from Donna Missal, with "Lost Days". This is not from her This Time debut but a stand-alone release, at #65. Add to that, ScreenAge's "Vague" still at #8, and Morris County's Christina Alessi, whose two-year old "The Truth's Upon Us" has made a slow climb, finally cracks the top 20 in its 19th chart week. .
I have, from time to time, indicated where some of these artists are playing, especially in our area. With the virus canceling any events, concerts or gatherings, it eliminates any public appearances. But our friends in the twin-sister band Hegazy have found a way around that. They have performed live in many venues, mostly in their home borough of Staten Island or in Manhattan. However, on March 25, they will be doing live virtual show on Facebook and Instagram from 8:00 to 8:45 PM. It affords those who haven't seen them perform live yet (and given the city local and late starting times, it's pretty impossible for me), a chance to see what they're all about. I have been blogging about them for almost a decade and are worth catching!
To my readers, be vigilant, stay at home if are you able to, hunker down, listen to music (new or old), do some spring cleaning, or catch up on your favorite TV shows, but whatever you do, please be safe, and we'll get through all this together!
Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100
March 21, 2020
|
This
Week
|
Dec 13
|
ARTIST-Title
|
Weeks on List
|
|
1
|
1
|
NUMBER ONE:
"Hero"
Album: Kiwanuka
(4 weeks at #1)
|
8
|
|
2
|
4
|
4
|
|
|
3
|
3
|
7
|
|
|
4
|
2
|
9
|
|
|
5
|
14
|
6
|
|
|
6
|
5
|
15
|
|
|
7
|
6
|
12
|
|
|
8
|
7
|
12
|
|
|
9
|
9
|
9
|
|
|
10
|
12
|
10
|
|
|
11
|
10
|
10
|
|
|
12
|
11
|
11
|
|
|
13
|
8
|
14
|
|
|
14
|
24
|
TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:
"Wars"
Album: Fever Dream
|
8
|
|
15
|
42
|
MOVER OF THE WEEK:
Album: Cloudy With a Chance of Sun (EP)
|
3
|
|
16
|
19
|
10
|
|
|
17
|
27
|
19
|
|
|
18
|
17
|
11
|
|
|
19
|
39
|
5
|
|
|
20
|
23
|
27
|
|
|
21
|
29
|
8
|
|
|
22
|
15
|
12
|
|
|
23
|
33
|
7
|
|
|
24
|
20
|
20
|
|
|
25
|
34
|
9
|
|
|
26
|
38
|
5
|
|
|
27
|
31
|
9
|
|
|
28
|
36
|
7
|
|
|
29
|
21
|
12
|
|
|
30
|
26
|
10
|
|
|
31
|
35
|
9
|
|
|
32
|
16
|
16
|
|
|
33
|
41
|
8
|
|
|
34
|
18
|
10
|
|
|
35
|
40
|
5
|
|
|
36
|
43
|
8
|
|
|
37
|
28
|
22
|
|
|
38
|
46
|
4
|
|
|
39
|
22
|
11
|
|
|
40
|
49
|
7
|
|
|
41
|
50
|
5
|
|
|
42
|
45
|
6
|
|
|
43
|
48
|
7
|
|
|
44
|
65
|
3
|
|
|
45
|
30
|
12
|
|
|
46
|
58
|
4
|
|
|
47
|
---
|
TOP DEBUT:
Album: The Painter of the Sky
|
1
|
|
48
|
62
|
4
|
|
|
49
|
32
|
14
|
|
|
50
|
61
|
6
|
|
|
51
|
44
|
26
|
|
|
52
|
55
|
20
|
|
|
53
|
47
|
21
|
|
|
54
|
71
|
3
|
|
|
55
|
59
|
16
|
|
|
56
|
68
|
9
|
|
|
57
|
51
|
26
|
|
|
58
|
52
|
15
|
|
|
59
|
---
|
1
|
|
|
60
|
74
|
3
|
|
|
61
|
64
|
25
|
|
|
62
|
73
|
3
|
|
|
63
|
80
|
3
|
|
|
64
|
53
|
20
|
|
|
65
|
---
|
1
|
|
|
66
|
56
|
9
|
|
|
67
|
81
|
6
|
|
|
68
|
---
|
1
|
|
|
69
|
57
|
15
|
|
|
70
|
---
|
1
|
|
|
71
|
77
|
37
|
|
|
72
|
---
|
1
|
|
|
73
|
70
|
7
|
|
|
74
|
84
|
4
|
|
|
75
|
---
|
1
|
|
|
76
|
25
|
5
|
|
|
77
|
60
|
21
|
|
|
78
|
13
|
6
|
|
|
79
|
76
|
23
|
|
|
80
|
67
|
12
|
|
|
81
|
54
|
15
|
|
|
82
|
37
|
5
|
|
|
83
|
---
|
1
|
|
|
84
|
72
|
24
|
|
|
85
|
69
|
8
|
|
|
86
|
75
|
16
|
|
|
87
|
63
|
4
|
|
|
88
|
79
|
26
|
|
|
89
|
85
|
22
|
|
|
90
|
87
|
33
|
|
|
91
|
66
|
5
|
|
|
92
|
82
|
12
|
|
|
93
|
88
|
23
|
|
|
94
|
90
|
36
|
|
|
95
|
86
|
25
|
|
|
96
|
89
|
12
|
|
|
97
|
78
|
2
|
|
|
98
|
83
|
16
|
|
|
99
|
91
|
15
|
|
|
100
|
92
|
18
|
|
|
Songs with the greatest increase in favorite points over the prior week.
● Songs with 25 or more plays on my iPod/iTunes.
▲ Songs with 50 or more plays on my iPod/iTunes.
¨ Songs with 100 or more plays on my iPod/iTunes.
The “Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100” is a list of current and recent song playlist which I am listening to.
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