Colorjoy, Deb Continue "Battle"; Inside Castaways' 40+ Year "Dream Merchant"; Tonez, Rhonda Lead Debuts (SNS weeks of 5/14 and 5/21/2023)

 Between the three of them, they account pretty much for the soundtrack of the 2020's thus far, so it's not surprising that Emily MacMahon and Sam Notovny, both of the New Jersey alt-pop/rockers Colorjoy, and Carolina Beach Music sensation Deb Browning have been battling for the number one spot on the Scenes and Soundwaves 100 for the past several weeks.    Just two weeks after Colorjoy's "Golden Age", the title track from their new album, dethroned Deb's "Think I Found Forever" after a three-week run, only to have Ms. Browning's song retake the top spot, "Beautiful People" in turn knocks out "Forever".  

The full performing band of Colorjoy, which debuted their new album Golden Age at New York City's Delancy nightclub.   The band returns to the top spot on the SNS 100 for a second time, with "Beautiful People"

That gives Colorjoy their second number one, and ties Say She She for the most chart toppers in 2023 thus far, with two.     It's also lead singer, keyboardist and guitarist Emily MacMahon's ninth straight number one song:   six with her prior band ScreenAge, one solo effort, and now the two with Colorjoy.   It also gives Sam his eighth as he was also in ScreenAge.     

ScreenAge, a quartet which included Emily and Sam, had my #1 songs of 2020 and '21 with the original "Blue Eyed Addiction" and "Think Again", respectively, while Ms. Browning's "3 More Minutes" took the title last year.     So, it definitely wasn't surprising that both are on top of the chart these past few weeks, especially since both Colorjoy songs and "3 More Minutes" were released in successive weeks back in March.

Colorjoy had an album release party on May 12 at New York's Delancy club; they played with a full band, including a saxophone section.  And yesterday, May 20 as I write this, were to perform at the Love, Unity Fest in West Orange (hopefully inside, as it rained all day).     I sampled the album last week, and it's definitely a winner, with different styles being showcased.     Some standout tracks include "Apathy" and "Cigarettes and Vanilla" which seem to be getting some buzz; I will add a track or two to my playlist in coming weeks.    Meanwhile, the five advance tracks are doing well on SNS.   Aside from "Beautiful People" at the top, and the title track currently at #7; "Drops Of Honey" is #25; The revamped "Blue Eyed Addiction" is #35, and "Vacant Side" is #61.     

Meanwhile, Deb is still doing very well.    "Think I Found Forever" is at #2, her Six Piece Suits duet, "It Don't Get Better Than This" is #34 after 28 weeks, and is still at the top of many beach music charts.   Finally, her previous solo outing, "3 More Minutes" is still hanging in there at #84 after 49 weeks.   That puts her in a five-way tie for the longest running song on our chart, including her own "Stop Messin' With My Man", which achieved it during two chart runs.   If "Minutes" hangs on for one more week, it will have fourth place all to itself.

The Carolina Queens "The Shoop Shoop Song", which also includes Ms. Browning and 13 other female beach music songstresses, moves to #3 and is within striking distance of the top spot.  The song also enters the national Beach Music Top 40 and the Smokin' list this week.  Goldie Boutilier's "Cowboy Gangster Politician" moves 7-4 and Marlisa Kay Small's "Anyway" jumps 10-5.   The Main Event, featuring Sharon Woodruff jumps 20-9 with their take on "Love Makes The World Go Round", while, after several near-misses, Orbis Max finally makes the Top 10 with "R U OK"..

HEY, MR. TIME MERCHANT:  Ten of the top eleven songs this week are either by females, male-female duets, female-led bands, or those featuring females.    Ironically, the song that is by all males is "Mr. Dream Merchant" by The Castaways, currently at #8.  It's ironic because the current incarnation of the band features Karen Clayton as lead singer, who won the CBMA award last year for best female vocalist.   

However, last week it all made sense when I got an email from beach music aficionado Chris Jones, who discovered that "Mr. Dream Merchant"---a 1967 hit for Jerry Butler, as well as a top 40 pop, #1 R&B hit for New Birth in 1975--was cut by The Castaways in 1982!    Thus, I am spinning a 41 year-old record.   Seems that Jones owns the original 45rpm vinyl record of the song, whose flip side is "I Get The Sweetest Feeling".   Jones mentions that in the early 1980's, beach music had somewhat of a revival, including in Atlanta,Georgia, and the songs were played in the summer of '82.   He goes on to explain that the city had 13 clubs which featured beach music and bands of the genre.    "Hotlanta", indeed!

Current photo of beach music band The Castaways, with Karen Clayton (center).   A 1982 single, "Mr. Dream Merchant", sans Ms. Clayton, has hit the top 10 on the SNS 100.

So, how did I wind up with the song?    Normally I look for new stuff, or music that was released within the last few years.  I will make an exception for acts that I know or have met, who had music out 10 or 20 years ago, if they hadn't released anything since.    Three videos for "Mr. Dream Merchant" were put on YouTube, one from March 2022, and two from March of this year.    And I could have sworn I saw the song on one of the current beach music charts, but now I'm unable to find it!   

But the song, especially this version of it, has this timeless quality to it, and given the beach genre's propensity for recording music in that retro style, it really fits into what the genre is all about today.   And given that last year's "Merry-Go-Round" by Jerry Powell and the Carnival Band was originally cut in 1977, and more significantly, we had a national hit last summer that was originally released in 1985 (Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill"), it just shows that music does have an unlimited shelf life.   And given that the influx of remakes, which also include "Love Makes The World Go Round", "Love Really Hurts Without You" (This week's Impact award, giving Marlisa Kay Small two songs in the top 20), "Ain't Nobody" and "The Shoop Shoop Song", not to mention the current incarnation of the 1960's pop group The Cowsills on my list, it again shows music is indeed timeless.

Thee Sacred Souls, a new group that also pays homage to vintage R&B, have the Mover of the Week with "Love Is The Way" (44-25).

DEBUTS:   It seems that much of the beach music artists who broke through on my chart last year are now issuing follow-ups.   That is true of the top two entries on the SNS 100 this week.     The Tonez, who hit #12 last year with "Me and My Music", grab the Top Debut this time around with "Caught Up".   Guided by the soulful vocals of lead singer Laura Kepley, this one has the classic beach beat punctuated by horns.   The good-time beat should assure of another big blog and beach chart hit and even exceed the prior song.

Rhonda McDaniel is coming off her song with The Carolina Coast Band, "The Thing About You", which topped the SNS 100 for three weeks and stayed on the chart for 39.    She steps out on her own with "Say A Prayer".   While the prior song was pretty tight, on this one the texture is much looser, and her awesome voice comes up funkier.     The song harkens back to the R&B funk music of the early 1970's with the likes of Alston Records, a popular R&B label in the late 1960's and early 1970's. 

While "Flowers" remains near the top of the Billboard Hot 100, it's time for a follow-up.   Miley Cyrus has released two singles since, "River" and "Jaded", both from her current album Endless Summer Vacation.  While "River" is more rhythmic and probably more in tune with the current pop scene, I'm going with "Jaded", as it's in her more intimate soulful style which made "Midnight Sky" or "Malibu" big blog hits.  It probably won't scale the heights of the Hot 100 (it's peaked at #56 thus far), but should be a big hit here.

Has it been nine years since we heard from The Gaslight Anthem?    Their last blog entry was 2014's "Get Hurt" which reached #17 here that year.   The band, hailing from New Brunswick, New Jersey deliver their first song since, "Positive Charge".   It's a driving blend of indie folk, heartland rock and alternative, and it comes from the heart.    We need more Jersey bands on here, so it's very welcome addition. 

Soon as I say that, we go back to North Carolina for the next entry, "Quarry" by a band called Wednesday.  No, it's  not beach music, but an alternative-oriented throwback to the "shoegaze" sub-genre of the early 1990's, and they're from Asheville, at the other end of the state.     Led by Karly Hartzman, they've released five albums going back to 2017.  And no, they are not related to a Canadian band of the same name which had a top 40 hit in 1974 with a cover of "Last Kiss".    Several spins should propel it upwards.

Foo Fighters return with "Rescued".    It's hard to believe that the band has been together for almost thirty years, and a successful second act for Dave Grohl.   While their last album still scored at alternative radio, it only produced three mid-charters here.    On "Rescued", the band seems to go back a bit as this is more rock-oriented than recent efforts, along the lines of "Rope", a #1 blog-topper back in 2011.

French band Phoenix enters with "After Midnight".  No, not the Eric Clapton song, but a chugging effort recalling some of the band's earlier material.   The song features Clairo, the Massachusetts songstress who scored three blog songs in 2021, and she adds spice to their latest.    While the band has done well at radio in recent years, they've slumped here, but this could be their best in a while on my blog.    Finally, Talk's 'Run Away To Mars", which had a five-week run last year peaking at #64, gets another chance as it's a Tremor at #101.

MINI BREAK:  As this blog is late, and I will be away next week, this is a "double issue" dated May 14 and 21.     The next issue will be dated May 28.   However, this marks the first week(s) of my annual "Song of the Summer" contest, which will again run through mid-September.    It's a good bellwether of the year-end chart; three of the last four songs of the summer went on to score year-end #1's.

Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100 Playlist

May 14 / 21, 2023

This Week	Last Week	ARTIST-Title	Weeks on List
1	2	NUMBER ONE: COLORJOY "Beautiful People"● Album: Golden Age	9
2	1	Deb Browning - Think I Found Forever▲	10
3	4	The Carolina Queens - The Shoop Shoop Song (It's In His Kiss)	8
4	7	Goldie Boutiiler - Cowboy Gangster Politician	10
5	10	Marlisa Kay Small - Anyway	6
6	5	Rick Strickland and Lesa Hudson - Got it Right (The First Time)●	17
7	3	Colorjoy - Golden Age▲	11
8	6	The Castaways - Mr. Dream Merchant	11
9	20	The Main Event Band ft. Sharon Woodruff - Love Makes The World Go Round	4
10	12	Orbis Max with Lisa Mychols ft. Ed Ryan - R U OK	8
11	8	Say She She - In My Head●	12
12	11	Depeche Mode - Ghosts Again	12
13	13	Jimmy Ogburn's Salt Luvs Pepper ft. David Cornelius - Love Me Like I Love You	12
14	14	The Heavy - Hurricane Coming	9
15	19	Drugdealer - Valentine	6
16	9	Devon Gilfillian - All I Really Wanna Do●	13
17	15	The Arcs - Keep On Dreamin'	7
18	18	Steve Lacy - Helmet	10
19	36	TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK: MARLISA KAY SMALL and JERRY THOMAS WEST "Love Really Hurts Without You" (Single Only)	3
20	17	Rev. Bubba D. Liverance and the Cornhole Prophets - Ti Ta Ti Ta Ti Ta Ta▲	18
21	23	Hannah Goodall - The Girl Who Once Loved You	6
22	25	Colorjoy - Drops of Honey	6
23	24	Beck - Thinking About You	12
24	16	Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Wolf	10
25	44	MOVER OF THE WEEK: THEE SACRED SOULS "Love Is The Way" (Single Only)	3
26	21	Allie Privette - Ain't Nobody	13
27	26	Hannah Jadagu - Say It Now	14
28	22	Arlo Parks - Weightless▲	14
29	30	Juliet Callahan - Depth of Soul	6
30	28	Miya Folick - Bad Thing	7
31	34	SZA - Kill Bill	11
32	31	Pink Slips Band - Ought To Be A Song	9
33	29	Inhaler - Love Will Get You There	11
34	32	Deb Browning and  Six Piece Suits - It Don't Get Better Than This	28
35	58	Colorjoy - Blue Eyed Addiction (Renewed Version)	3
36	38	The National - Tropic Morning News	9
37	27	Sam Fender - Spit of You	13
38	43	I-42 Band - Beach Fever On My Mind	6
39	33	Tim Izzard - Walk the Walk	16
40	37	Edie Bens - Don't Love You Anymore	12
41	39	Hozier - Eat Your Young	8
42	35	Death Cab For Cutie - Pepper	15
43	40	The Blue Stones - Don't Miss	11
44	52	Jerry Powell - One More Summer Night	4
45	42	Donna Missal - Flicker	8
46	50	The Heavy Heavy - Go Down River	4
47	51	Tim Izzard - Alice Pearl	5
48	54	Tennis - Forbidden Doors	4
49	53	Metric - False Dictotomy	5
50	57	TYTILLIDIE - Body On Me	7
51	49	Milky Chance - Living In a Haze	7
52	41	Jenna Ren - Fools Gold	15
53	65	Grouplove - Hello	5
54	56	Michigander - Superglue	10
55	61	Lizzo - Special	6
56	46	Say She She - Trouble●	26
57	59	Portugal. The Man - Dummy	7
58	68	Ed Sheeran - Eyes Closed	5
59	78	Allison Ponthier - Hollywood Forever Cemetary	2
60	71	The Beths - Watching the Credits	4
61	76	Colorjoy - Vacant Side	3
62	45	Marsha Morgan and Sylvia Johns Ritchie - Boys Will Be Boys	7
63	69	The Cowsills - Rhythm Of the World	5
64	63	The Revivalists - Kid	12
65	72	Jenny Lewis - Psychos	5
66	60	Stephen Sanchez - Until I Found You●	18
67	70	Linkin Park - Lost	11
68	48	Miley Cyrus - Flowers▲	18
69	47	The Wombats - Dressed to Kill	9
70	84	Hanna Jadagu - What You Did	2
71	67	Starbuck - I Love Doing Nothing	14
72	74	JW Francis - Swooning	5
73	79	Wayne Free - Our Paradise	3
74	55	Danielle Ponder - So Long	10
75	81	Isn't It Always - Laced Love	4
76	---	TOP DEBUT: THE TONEZ "Caught Up" (Single Only)	1
77	62	Caroline Rose - Miami	14
78	64	The Arcs - Eyez	15
79	73	Tame Impala - Wings of Time	9
80	82	boygenius - Not Strong Enough	3
81	66	Stephen Sanchez - Evangeline	11
82	---	Rhonda McDaniel - Say A Prayer	1
83	92	What's Left? - Do It To Me	2
84	77	Deb Browning - 3 More Minutes●	49
85	---	Miley Cyrus - River	1
86	94	Moon Taxi - Classics	2
87	80	St. Paul and  the Broken Bones - Sea Star	5
88	83	The Carolina Blue Dots - Your Love	4
89	97	The Hold Steady - Grand Junction	2
90	---	Gaslight Anthem - Positive Charge	1
91	89	Blake Shelton - No Body●	30
92	98	Gary Lowder and Smokin Hot - I'll Be Loving You Always	3
93	---	Wednesday - Quarry	1
94	75	Nick Waterhouse - Late In the Garden	10
95	95	Goose - Hungersite	4
96	---	Foo Fighters - Rescued	1
97	91	Lainey Wilson - Heart Like a Truck	23
98	101	Donna Missal - Out Of Me	1
99	86	Ria Mae - The Old Me	18
100	---	Phoenix ft Clairo- After Midnight	1

Tremors:

101.  Talk, "Run Away To Mars"

102.   The 1975, "Oh Caroline"

103.   Morgan Wallen, "Last Night"

  

Songs with the greatest increase in favorite points over the prior week.   ● Songs with 25 or more plays on iTunes/iPods ▲   Songs with 50 or more plays. ▲Song garnered most plays on Spotify in current or past month.  ● Song among top 3 most plays on Spotify in current or past month.

Songs on the SNS 100 are included on the following public Spotify playlists

 

Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves Top 40:  Contains songs in positions 1-40 on the SNS 100

Scenes Up and Coming:  Songs below #40 that are moving up the chart.

Scenes Recurrents: Songs which have dropped below the top 40 but are still on the SNS 100

 

 

Tremors:

 

Tremors: Songs which have steady or increasing points but not enough to chart on the SNS 100.