Why The Music

This week's Sound Ideas is "Hey Eugene" by Pink Martini, an incredible group I stumbled onto years ago. They put out their first album in 1997, but didn't record another for seven years! This is their third, as you'll hear if you get a chance to listen to Sound Ideas this week. Thomas Lauderdale, who leads the 12 peice ensemble, and China Forbes, their lead singer, have created a fasinatingly diverse sound that I just love.

Now I tell you that to tell you this: A very dear friend of mine has accused of me of liking everything since I usually have positive things to say about the artists we profile on Sound Ideas. Not true. There have been CDs we've done on Sound Ideas that I haven't liked a lot. One example is the late Ray Charles album "Genius Loves Company", a series of duets the legendary singer did before he died. It made me sad because you could hear how frail his voice had become and some the duets just didn't work for me, like the one with Willy Nelson. I got hammered by more than a few people for dissing the great Ray Charles!

But I admit I like almost all of the music we showcase on Sound Ideas. And the reason is I try to pick stuff that is good, even if it's from a genre that I don't listen to much. With the dozens of new CDs that come out every week I can only choose one to profile. So I want it to be good music. I get a lot of help with that, both from listeners and colleagues who suggest things to me all the time. I also try to do as much research as I can before I pick an album.

Sound Ideas is one of the most enjoyable parts of my job because, as my friend says, I get to expand my musical pallet every week. I only hope I've exposed you to something new you may not have considered before.

Thanks for listening!!!