Some things are just… good, right? You might not love everything David Benoit has released (I don’t, frankly) but “Rue de Soleil” from his 1997 CD American Landscape calls for repeated listening.

Ab major, the muted key. David sets this gentle, evocative, melody in Ab, then colors it with a snare gently kissed by brushes, and a set of beautiful finger cymbals. The nylon guitar solo wisely refrains from stepping too far from the gorgeous theme. And the upright bass…the heartbeat that keeps everything grounded.

Initially, I thought I’d write a blog about the epic achievements of Gary Lewis and the Playboys. Like you, I’m sure, I pondered the possibilities: should I concentrate on Gary’s fraught relationship with his pap, Jerry, or focus on one of his massive hits—“This Diamond Ring,” “Count Me In,” or (my favorite) “Save Your Heart for Me”?

My wife and I recently spent a week in California. Have you ever played on the courts at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club? A tennis player’s dream! I took a lesson from a talented young teaching pro from San Diego State, then played a set and a half against him before finally throwing in the towel.

I just downloaded The One: The Life of James Brown by R.J. Smith onto my Kindle, and preparing to dive into this biography has got me thinking. Our world is so different from the one that The Famous Flames and the young James Brown inhabited. Segregation conferred a moral authority that gave defiant Black men like James Brown and the incomparable Malcolm X the power to shape culture in ways that seem almost unimaginable today.

When someone brings up Luther Vandross, which of this great singer’s hits enters your mind? “Never Too Much.” Ah, you knew Luther at the beginning, when he was migrating from the Manhattan jingle scene into the pop/R+B world he would dominate for decades. “A House Is Not a Home”? Then you know that Dionne Warwick was an early idol of his, and that he recorded this gorgeous Bacharach/David song as an homage to her.  

It makes no sense… me, my age, James Blunt, his; but not only do I love Blunt’s hit single “You’re Beautiful,” I consider it my own personal property. And here’s why.

It must have been 1978. I was on the subway in Manhattan when I beheld a young woman—not classically beautiful, but a queen, a treasure I wanted to hold—and said nothing. I vowed that if I ever saw her again, I’d be braver.

Several years ago, Steve Epstein—who has about as many Producer of the Year Grammy Awards as Pete Sampras has Grand Slam titles (actually, more)—sent me the soundtrack recording he’d produced of the musical The Light in the Piazza. I listened once to the score, written by Adam Guettel (who also contributed the lyrics), and fell in love with the song “Love to Me,” but hurried through the rest of the recording. Several days ago, I decided to write a blog about the unique qualities of this gorgeous song, delivered by Matt Morrison, who would later become known to millions for his starring role in the television show Glee.

David Balakrishan has a problem with the Turtle Island Quartet. Well, not really.  The group, which he founded a quarter of a century ago, has won a pair of Grammy Awards in the last several years and their latest release Have You Ever Been…? is amassing critical praise. Robert Friedrich, who tracked, mixed, and mastered the project at Skywalker Sound, has been nominated for a Grammy award.

Did you attend the fabled Woodstock Festival? Not one of the lame remakes, but the original three days of peace and music that turned a tiny upstate New York agricultural town into the center of the universe for a couple of spins of the earth’s axis?

Stars. Sure, we need ’em! But our industry is built on great players. Their contributions-both live and in the studio-fuel the business and inspire the front man (or front woman).

Baron Raymonde is one of those musicians. He grew up in Scarsdale, NY, traveled south on Route 62, and earned both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in jazz performance from the University of North Texas before returning to Manhattan in the late 1980s.

Flipping through the channels last night I landed on the just released documentary, The Wayman Tisdale Story. If you don’t know the Tis’ tale, it’s quite remarkable. He was supremely blessed until, well, until he wasn’t.

They may not command the media coverage that benefits Beyonce, or rack up the royalties that help justify Justin Timberlake’s concert fees, but the world of “serious” music is peopled with performers of color and character, and composers who supply them with scores. Case in point: Eric Nathan.

“Walls Of Light,” a chamber piece Eric wrote several years ago, just won the League Of Composers award. It’s an interesting piece, which you can listen to on his website. Currently living in Ithaca, NY, where he’s pursuing a doctorate degree in composition at Cornell University, the 27 year old Nathan spoke with me about his art, his use of technology, and his early background.

Are you familiar with the work of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Roger Reynolds? I know I’ve heard some of his material before, but just a few hours ago my friend Carl Jacobson posted a Spotify link, and I’ve been in a trance ever since. I can’t quite figure out his sense of form-and honestly, I don’t care. His textures are overwhelmingly compelling!

Perched in mid-career, David Starobin has a resume that brims with achievement.  The guitarist came of age in the late 1960’s, a time when his instrument was leading the assault against earlier forms of popular music. He picked up the guitar as a small child and experimented with rock bands during his teens, but David Starobin would find his initial success as a young master of the “classical” guitar. 

Established on the concert stage by his mid-20’s as a master of the much beloved but limited concert repertoire, Starobin became a champion of new music. In 1981 he and his wife Becky formed Bridge Records.