What’s New? Lots.

new on pp banner hybrid 2-use this one, it's fixed

alan headshot from schoolBy Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio

Because there have been and continue to be fairly long periods of time without any posts in this space, I thought it would be a good idea to provide a short update on what’s new and happening, as the kids often say.

First, more new and new-to-you melodic pop nuggets continue to be added to Pure Pop Radio’s ever-growing playlist; why, just yesterday, I added a whole bunch of really terrific songs I think you’re going to love. More on that in a moment, or somewhere in the neighborhood of a paragraph or three.

A while ago, I let it be known on social media that I was having some health problems that were persisting and refusing to go away. That situation has not improved very much; if anything, it has gotten worse, leaving me with fairly substantial periods of time where I’m much too tired and in too much pain to do much of anything else. Yet, I remain positive and hopeful.

I’m dealing with a rough case of psoriatic arthritis that, combined with my ongoing battle with neuropathy, many years running, is causing me much anguish both day and night. These conditions are particularly hard to deal with during the current Covid-19 crisis, when I must visit with doctors online rather than in person. Some days, I’m unable to do very much other than sleep, deal with pain, and generally mope while sitting still, instead of working on Pure Pop Radio and this website.

All of the above is to say that, despite my ongoing medical situation, I will continue to add songs to the Pure Pop Radio playlist on as regular a basis as I can, and report on those adds in this space in a similar fashion. I will also work on reviews as I am able.

As regards to the new songs I said I added to the playlist yesterday, well, I’m pretty impressed with the lot of them: now playing in rotation are sweet and catchy new tracks from Geoff Palmer and Lucy Ellis, from their terrific and whole-lotta-fun album, Your Face is Weird. You’re going to love it.

But wait, there’s more new and new-to-you excellence playing on our air from:

Wilding’s The Death of Foley’s Mall, the excellent work of one Justin Wilding Stokes that I believe you will be hearing much of in the coming months. We’re playing five songs in rotation

The Death Of Foley’s Mall by Wilding

mylittlebrother’s Howl, a much-awaited masterwork from Will Harris and crew, from which we’re playing five songs in rotation

Janey by mylittlebrother

The always great Bill DeMain, who has covered probably the one Harry Nilsson song that you would never expect him to cover, from the movie Skidoo, about which much will be said later on; “Garbage Can Ballet” is the name of the tune, and it’s another masterful job by a Pure Pop Radio favorite artist

Garbage Can Ballet by Bill DeMain

Michael Carpenter and the Banks Brothers. This sterling country pop project, which is bursting with charm and melodic excellence, not to mention top-notch playing, is represented on our air by three most impressive, toe-tapping tracks

Kelly Jones, another Pure Pop Radio favorite, who has just released a super-fine EP with four great tracks, three written with the above-mentioned Bill DeMain

Big Dogs Die Young by Kelly Jones

J.P. Cregan, a terrific popster about whom I know almost nothing, but that will change pretty quick, I betcha (thanks to Coke Belda for the general heads-up)

Twenty by J.P. Cregan

Kenny Herbert, whose music I’ve been playing on the various incarnations of Pure Pop Radio for more than 20 years; his latest, an uptempo love song called “It’s Only Me,” is another instant classic from the musical bard of Scotland

https://music.apple.com/gb/album/its-only-me-single/1532003172

Hoodoo Gurus, speaking of classics; the Gurus have released another top track called “Get Out of Dodge,” with the Bangles’ Vicki Peterson and the Beach Boys’ John Cowsill in tow.

There is more, of course–much more, and I will hopefully be reporting on those adds shortly. Meanwhile…

Thanks for reading and thanks for listening to Pure Pop Radio and visiting this website for reviews of great melodic pop music. I am humbled that you take the time to see what I’m up to, and if it sometimes seems like I’m not up to much, I really, truly am.

See you again soon.

Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premier website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features.

Pure Pop Radio brings the greatest melodic pop music in the universe to your waiting ears, 24 hours a day.

Pure Pop Radio is Back on the Air!

By Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio

Pure Pop Radio is back on the air 24 hours a day, streaming the latest new and new-to-you melodic pop music to waiting ears across the universe.

Back after 18 months off the air, Pure Pop Radio is continuing its storied tradition of stocking our playlists full of great, treasured artists and artists new to the melodic pop scene. You want hits? We’ve got ’em. Deep tracks from favorite albums? We’ve got those, too. Tracks from artists new to your ears? Ditto. Melody and harmony? Stacks and stacks abound.

Consider this list of artists currently streaming in rotation on Pure Pop Radio: Caper Clowns, Bill Lloyd, Lisa Mychols and Super 8, Anton Barbeau, the 1957 Tail-Fin Fiasco, Empty City Squares, Roger Joseph Manning, Jr., Vanilla, Ray Paul, the Malibooz, Famous Groupies, Dolph Chaney, Bearkat, the Bye Bye Blackbirds, Dropkick, and a whole lot more (whew!).

We’ve got the latest hit-bound albums on our air. How about the Corner Laughers’ latest, Temescal Telegraph? How about Pop Co-Op’s Factory Settings? Want to hear something from Lannie Flowers’ Home? How about Coke Belda’s Coke Belda 4? Or the Vapour Trails’ Golden Sunshine? You get the idea. We’ve got it all.

We’ve got music from some of the great labels releasing melodic pop into the universe–from Kool Kat Musik, Omnivore and Big Stir to Futureman, Spyderpop and You are the Cosmos. Plus artists’ own boutique labels and plenty more where that came from.

It’s all here for you on Pure Pop Radio, as we continue to bring you the greatest melodic pop music in the universe, 24 hours a day. Tune in by clicking on the player below (check out the last few songs played, and don’t forget to save the player to your desktop or tablet).

Thanks for listening. Tune in now–your next favorite song, or one of your current favorites, is now playing…on Pure Pop Radio!

Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premier website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features.

Pure Pop Radio brings the greatest melodic pop music in the universe to your waiting ears, 24 hours a day.

Do You Hear What I Hear?

Do you hear what I hear? Be hear this Wednesday, December 11 for our survey of some of the best of this year’s pop Christmas releases.

Do you hear what I hear? Well, do you?

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Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premier website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. We’ve been around since the first weekly Pure Pop Radio shows, which began broadcasting in 1995, and the 24-hour Pure Pop Radio station, which ended last August.

Welcome to your number one home for coverage of the greatest melodic pop music in the universe from the ’60s to today.

Pure Pop Radio’s Holly Jolly Christmas Party Starts Monday, and You’re Invited!

By Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio

Have a holly jolly Christmas with Pure Pop Radio! We’re celebrating the season by continuing with our 2018 Festive Holiday Gift-Giving Guide, offering up reviews of new and new-to-you melodic Christmas pop songs. And we’ll be giving away some fun presents. It all begins this Monday, December 17! (Click here to join our Facebook event page.)

During our week-long Holly Jolly Christmas Party, we’ll be continuing with our 2018 Holiday Gift-Giving Guide, reviewing the latest holiday releases from Ronnie D’Addario, Lannie Flowers, Kai Danzberg, Michael Simmons, Dana Countryman, Brad Marino, and an amazing, top-flight Christmas album from Les Bicyclettes de Belsize, which also happens to be one of 2018’s best melodic pop albums. Plus lots more tuneful tunes from your favorite artists!

Plus, we’ll be spreading some festive holiday cheer by giving away some fun presents, so don’t miss a minute! The fun begins this coming Monday, December 17, right here on the Pure Pop Radio website. Don’t forget to bring your sleigh bells!

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Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premiere website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. We’ve been around since the first weekly Pure Pop Radio shows, which began broadcasting in 1995 and ended this past August. Welcome to your number one home for coverage of the greatest melodic pop music in the universe from the ’60s to today. Happy holidays!

These Gifts are Easy to Wrap! We’re Spotlighting Some of This Holiday Season’s Melodic Gift Possibilities

By Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio

How is your gift list coming along? Have you matched some (or all!) of the new and new-to-you releases we’ve spotlighted so far as part of our 2018 Festive Holiday Gift-Giving Guide to your melodic pop loving friends and family? Well, we’re not done suggesting just yet. In fact, here are some more suggestions…

Mick Terry | Days Go By
(Kool Kat Musik, 2018)
May I make a prediction, especially if I know in my heart of hearts that it will absopositively come true? Thank you so much. Here it is: Mick Terry’s Days Go By is this year’s standout pure melodic pop album. Every song is extremely catchy and performed with heart. There are enough hooks in these 10 songs to cover a gazillion fishermen on a two-week-long fishing trip. 

Whew. Yes, I am in love with this album. It captured me hook, line and sinker (okay, I’ll stop with the fishing puns). Mick Terry’s follow-up to 2010’s The Grown Ups was released only in England and only on vinyl, until Kool Kat Musik’s Ray Gianchetti welcomed it with open arms and released it this month on CD. Yay, Ray.

And yay you and me and every last living soul who craves pure pop music. Heck, everything I’ve done with pop music over the past 23 years has revolved around the pure sounds of melodic pop–the kind of pop that used to jump out of transistor radios way back in the when. What Mick Terry has done here is bring our ears back to those lovely days, when a click of the dial made us tap our feet and sway to the music.

Every one of these 10 songs are golden. Witness: “Emily Come Back,” an upbeat, poppy tune that’s sure to please and features this album’s title in the lyric. “Everybody’s Talking” is an upbeat, sixties influenced Motown-meets-Billy Joel song (think around the time of Joel’s An Innocent Man album), a toe-tapping classic if ever I heard one. “Friends Like That” is another upbeat gem with a great melody, handclaps, horns and a crazy, meaty guitar solo.

Witness, also, what I predict will wind up being my favorite song of the year: “Pop’s a Dirty Word,” in which the youngsters who think that’s the case get schooled by a succession of clever name drops who, along with their compatriots from far and wide, made pop one of the great things in life.

In this great song, Terry sings about the Dansette (a famous British brand of music players), “flippin’ over b-sides,” and name checks some of pop’s greatest artists, like Linda, Paul and Denny, Supertramp, and Todd Rundgren, and slips in some notice for the great pirate radio ship, Radio Caroline. There are some great lyrics here, my favorite being “Sweet Baby James Taylor/Beach Boys’ ‘Sail On Sailor’.” So great.

And, of course, there’s more, many more shining examples of how to make great, pure pop music on this incredible, wonderful Jim Boggia-produced album. Boggia and Terry quite simply are clicking together on all musical cylinders from first note to last. It’s a clear winner you won’t want to miss adding to your gift list.

black box Where to Get It: Kool Kat Musik, Mick Terry on Bandcamp

Fernando Perdomo | Zebra Crossing (2018)
Recorded in famed Abbey Road Studios and in Perdomo’s own Reseda Ranch Studios, the wearer of many musical hats’ fourth album is a rich tapestry of styles centered around the artist’s considerable composing and instrumental prowess. It’s a clear winner.

Highlights are many. The gorgeous ballad, “I’m Here,” is as good and classy an opening track as one could imagine; a strong melody and emotive vocals make the proceedings shine. The poppy “Sometimes I Feel Like Nothing at All,” cowritten by Beach Boys lyricist Stephen Kalinich, is an inviting tune topped by sensitive strings. And popster Ken Sharp guests on guitar on the should-be-a-radio-hit “Find Love,” a spectacular upbeat, McCartneyesque pop song.

Sharp also provides backing vocals on the nostalgic ballad “We Were Raised With Headphones On,” which features a lovely vocal turn from Perdomo. The title track stitches together varying tempos, stylistic turns and instrumental showcases (you will dig the lead guitar runs) for a truly dramatic and spectacular seven minutes that suggests time and again a Fab connection.

Speaking of Fab connections, an all-in, emotionally reverent cover of George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” credited to the Zebra Crossing All Star Band, finds guest vocalists Diane Birch, Shawn Lee, and Jason and Daphna Rowe and lead guitarist Perdomo taking center stage for a thrilling album closer. What better Beatles track to cover for an album named in tribute to the area in front of the studio the Fabs called home?

black box Where to Get It: Bandcamp, Amazon, Kool Kat Musik

Peter Baldrachi | “Change” (2018)
Long-time popster Baldrachi blazes through power chords and unbridled energy to tell the story of a partner who must learn to plow through that which is keeping her from enjoying life. There is hope, as a chorus of voices sings: “We’re gonna turn it around.” Certainly, the happy-peppy tune that Baldrachi has conjured up can contribute to that eventuality. It certainly keeps the ears tuned to this modern power pop classic.

black box Where to Get It: Bandcamp

Kirk Adams Band | Night Owls Boogaloo and Bottle Club (2018)
Pop 4’s Adams is a steady live player in and around his home base of St. Petersburg, FLA; the eight songs on this fantabulous EP emerged from on-stage jams and inspired ad libs. Clearly, blood, sweat, tears and a couple of scoops of imagination were all it took to create these catchy sonic blasts.

In the four-on-the-floor, guitar-driven “Mexican Wrestler,” a guy’s love gets scooped up by someone stronger than he. The rollicking Bakersfield-inspired Los Straitjackets-meets-Nick-Lowe rocker “Every Little Look” recalls the best of Walter Clevenger. The bluesy, Lennonesque love-song-at-all-costs “Drawn to You” features a great, emotional vocal from Adams.

But wait…there’s more. The lighthearted, genial “Alien Implant,” about a sci-fi-ish personal invasion, recalls the vibe of Paul Simon’s “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes.” And the EP closer, “Down Below,” is a tremendous blues shuffle with a fuzz guitar (or possibly a bass) that stands in for a trombone.

A can’t miss collection from an indie artist whose grip on ears everywhere should be firmer from here on out.

Where to Get It: Bandcamp

More Great 2018 Releases, Perfect for Gift Giving

We’ve reviewed many terrific 2018 releases recently, any of which would make great gifts for the melodic pop fans in your life. Here are just a few (click on the links to read our reviews and then add the releases to your shopping list):

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Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premiere website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. We’ve been around since the first weekly Pure Pop Radio shows, which began broadcasting in 1995 and ended this past August. Welcome to your number one home for coverage of the greatest melodic pop music in the universe from the ’60s to today. Happy holidays!

The Melodic Pop Treasures are Plentiful. Give ’em as Gifts This Holiday Season. We’ve Got Some Suggestions

By Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio

Our 2018 Holiday Gift-Giving Guide is in full swing, with reviews of new and new-to-you releases that make great gifts for your melodic pop-leaning family and friends. We lead today’s post off with a new song from New Jersey’s Fab Four…

The Weeklings | “Running Away” (Jem, 2018)
Something different from the Beatles-inspired fab foursome from New Jersey way? Sure, why not! Gritty, hard-hitting and a bit persnickety, and with just a few itty-bitty gear references (a bit of “I Am the Walrus,” a snip of “Revolution 9”), this is really more a faster, teeth-gritting take on the sound of the Rembrandts’ “My Own Way” from that band’s L.P. release (at least, that’s how I hear it). Lefty Weekling dishes up a growl of a lead vocal, and Smokestack Weekling makes every urgent whack of his drums count like they’re everybody’s business. It’s entirely possible I missed a whole heap of the usual contingent of Easter eggs that these boys usually bury in their works, but in the case of this blast of a tune in which the Weeklings mix it up, I don’t think that really matters. Taken at face value (and no, that’s not a Phil Collins reference), this is killer..

black box Where to Get It: Amazon, iTunes

Bill Lloyd | Working the Long Game (Spyderpop, 2018)
Bill Lloyd, one of melodic pop’s most distinguished practitioners of the art, has released one of the very best albums of the year with which you will fall in love.

Now that I’ve got that not-really-a-surprise statement out of the way, let’s dig in. Working the Long Game’s dozen melodic pearls, whether written solo or with top song scribes like 10cc’s Graham Gouldman, Cheap Trick’s Tom Petersson, and Wanderlust’s Scot Sax, are gorgeous, instantly classic gems of the Lloydian variety.

Perhaps the most endearing of this album’s top tracks is Lloyd’s cowrite with Graham Gouldman. “What Time Won’t Heal” is about letting love in again after a relationship withers away (“What time won’t heal/Love will repair/And if you open up your heart/You’ll find it there”). This is a very Gouldmanesque track sporting a lovely melody, which sounds for all the world like something that might have been penned and recorded back in the glorious 1960s. And you know that’s the kind of thing that floats this old pop fan’s boat.

“Yesterday,” cowritten with Petersson, is an outstanding, insanely catchy upbeat pop tune in which the events of the previous day, among which was the breakup of a relationship, are cataloged. The outlook for the new day is sunnier: “I won’t miss a day like yesterday.” In a perfect world, this song should be zooming up the charts and exploding at radio. And you’d better believe that if Pure Pop Radio were still streaming out to the masses, it would be. Lloyd shines on drums and guitars, and Petersson makes his bass sing.

“Interrupted,” another upbeat specimen, written with Sax, is another can’t-miss track that puts the spotlight on Lloyd’s energetic and expressive drumming and in-your-face guitar work (shredding is this tune’s buzzword). And the closer, “Shining,” is a beautiful ballad of the one-man-band variety that features some lovely sixties-inspired guitar lines and harmonies. The narrator sings about his true love and you will feel the emotion (“When I was there all alone/You pointed me home”).

Fall in love with one of this year’s best albums.

black box Where to Get It: Spyderpop, Kool Kat Musik, Amazon, CD Baby

Caper Clowns | A Salty Taste to the Lake (2018)
The mighty Caper Clowns, whose fantastic debut album was featured in these pages back in November 2016, are back with their sophomore long player, another well-crafted collection of top-flight melodic pop gems.

From the undeniably catchy opening confection “The Way I Dream,” which sports a clever acoustic guitar riff and an enchanting melody, to the pretty ballad “Kissing Daylight” and the upbeat, harmony-infused “Me for a Friend,” from which this album gets its title, A Salty Taste to the Lake is a winner all the way. Perhaps my favorite track is “Sacre Bleu,” a piano-based, harmony wonder that sounds like the kind of song radio should be embracing and sending up to the top of the charts.

I love Caper Clowns, and you will too. Pick up this second in what we hope will be a long line of great releases, and while you’re at it, add their debut to your collection. You won’t be sorry.

black box Where to Get It: Kool Kat Musik, iTunes, Amazon

Mothboxer | Open Sky (2018)
Dave Ody’s outfit stretches into some of the most creative, expression-filled songs of its long history on an album steeped in clever songcraft. A coming together and pulling apart experience built around surprising chord changes and elastic melodies, set against primarily alternative instrumental backings, Open Sky is aptly named. Because the canvas on which Ody is working is open and expansive.

“Sunshine Sound” leads the pack as a slow-to-mid tempo song set sound-wise vaguely in the Beach Boys’ Holland era. Songs like “We Could Be Right” bristle with an inventive melody and chord structure, ending in a guitar/drums battle. A number of songs fall directly into each other: “All that Goes Around” connects to “Never Enough,” an atmospheric ballad with lots of air and breathing space, which hits into “Million Miles Away,” perhaps the most immediate sounding song on the album, a piano-based tune with harmony vocals that shine.

And there’s more, many more delights to be discovered in Ody’s latest collection, including a song just added to the album at the very last minute because, well, it’s a late-blooming keeper with a great, catchy chorus. It’s a thumper with a great melody, and it’s called “Five Long Days.”

Open Sky is a keeper, maybe Mothboxer’s best.

black box Where to Get It: Open Sky is set for a December release. Watch this space, or visit the Mothboxer website for up-to-the-minute details on where to get this terrific album

More Great 2018 Releases, Perfect for Gift Giving

We’ve reviewed many terrific 2018 releases recently, any of which would make great gifts for the melodic pop fans in your life. Here are just a few (click on the links to read our reviews and then add the releases to your shopping list):

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Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premiere website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. We’ve been around since the first weekly Pure Pop Radio shows, which began broadcasting in 1995 and ended this past August. Welcome to your number one home for coverage of the greatest melodic pop music in the universe from the ’60s to today. Happy holidays!

Reviews | 9.27.18: The Toms and the Maladaptive Solution

review with graphic and by alan haber final sharpened smallestalan headshot from school

The Toms | “Life Raft” (2018)
the toms life raftFrom the upcoming new and much anticipated Toms album D7, Tommy Marolda’s enticing, acoustic, rhythmic tapestry, awash in warm sixties sensibilities, is a classic slice of songcraft and performance. “Life Raft” is about holding on, taking advantage of second chances, and doing whatever it takes to keep love alive (“The waves will carry us, it’s a long way home.”) A tremendous achievement from one of pop music’s greatest creators.


black box Where to Get It: Check back for purchase links

The Maladaptive Solution | “Consort (Queen of Everything)” (2018)
Consort Single CoverWhirling around songwriter and performer Brad Beard is the loose gathering of musicians who come together to infrequently record and release songs intended for a long-gestating project called Symphonies (To God). This latest musical missive, brought to life by Beard, Michael Carpenter, Jimmy Haber, Kylie Whitney and Michael Giblin, is a marvelous mid-tempo, Tom Petty-esque charmer about recognizing and celebrating one’s true love. Recorded in the United States and in Australia at Carpenter’s Love Hz studio, “Consort (Queen of Everything)” is an endearing pop-rock creation. I love it, and I bet you will too.

black box Where to Get It: The usual digital platforms on September 28 (check back for links to purchase)

radio1Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premiere website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. The 24-hour Pure Pop Radio stream, which ran from 2013 to August 25, 2018, succeeded the weekly Pure Pop Radio show, which began in 1995. Welcome to your number one home for coverage of the greatest melodic pop music in the universe from the ’60s to today. (For more About-type information, click here)

Reviews | 9.20.18: Danny Wilkerson, Jay Stansfield’s Charity Single, Dana Countryman and Scott McPherson, and Bryan Estepa

review with graphic and by alan haber final sharpened smallestalan headshot from school

Danny Wilkerson | Wilkerson (Spyderpop, 2018)
wilkerson album coverWorking together with Bleu, who produced this superlative pure pop platter and co-wrote the songs, Danny Wilkerson, the always-and-forever Pengwin, has whipped up a self-titled opus that is by far this year’s most affecting collection of catchy, melodic earworms.

Joined in the studio by Jellyfish’s Roger Joseph Manning Jr., Taylor Locke, Ducky Carlisle, the New Pornographers’ Joe Sieders, and Idle Jets’ Pat Buchanan, Wilkerson has crafted 10 slices of sweet-sounding pop that, like Frampton, have come alive. Wilkerson is a thing of wonder.

Any, and all, for that matter, of these dazzling songs could, and do, serve as examples of how to do it. Take the dynamic leadoff track, “Everybody Loves to Love,” a masterful piece of writing and statement of melodic purpose that begins drawing breath as if it were arranged by Burt Bacharach and goes on to incorporate a variety of tempos and approaches during its alluring five-and-one-half minutes. “I’m just looking for a sitar and a Hofner/A Rickenbacker and a giant stack of ahhs/Sweet harmony,” Wilkerson sings.

Take, also, the mid-tempo, slide guitar-powered charmer “You Still Owe Me a Kiss,” sporting a lovely melody, gorgeous harmonies, and expressive horns, or the hit-worthy, catchy, upbeat “Too Much of a Good Thing,” which, for my money, could have gone on another few minutes and would never even remotely have resembled too much of a good thing.

All told, Wilkerson is nothing less than a good thing. It is, in fact, a great thing, and another feather in the cap of the mighty Spyderpop record label. Don’t miss it.

Where to Get It: The Spyderpop Store, Kool Kat Musik, CD Baby, and iTunes

Jay Stansfield | “A Song for Edward” (2018)
jay standfield a song for edwardjay standfield a song for edward logoSongsmith Jay Stansfield, a longtime fixture on Pure Pop Radio, has done a very good thing: he has composed and recorded a wonderful, catchy pop song that celebrates the vibrant life of Edward Dee, a 10-year-old boy who was a bright light in his British community and suddenly passed away from meningitis and sepsis. Reading about Edward, who brought joy to everyone he came in contact with, and the fund created in his honor (you can do that here) will move you, I hope, to contribute to a most worthy cause.

All profits from the sale of “A Song for Edward” go to the Edward Dee Fund.

black box Where to Get It: Amazon, Google Play, iTunes, and Bandcamp

Dana Countryman and Scott McPherson | “You’re Still Number One” (Sterling Swan Records and Tapes, 2018)
dana countryman you're still number one coverBuddying up with Tiny Volcano caretaker Scott McPherson for one of this year’s sweetest vocal duets, Dana Countryman, the master of Seattle Retro-Pop, proves that there is no end in sight for just how good he can be. Atop a sprightly seventies disco-fyed, string-laden bed, anchored by Chad Quist’s period-happy electric guitar, Dana and Scott sing about the truest sort of love–the perfect pairing that makes life worth living. A lovely love letter to his wife Tricia, blessed with a gorgeous voice and a recording artist in her own right, Dana Countryman’s “You’re Still Number One” is a radio hit waiting to happen.

black box Where to Get It: Bandcamp

Bryan Estepa | “No Ordinary” | (Lilystars Records, 2018)
bryan estepa no ordinaryLast heard from this past April essaying, in grand fashion, George Michael’s “Heal the Pain” with Coke Belda, Bryan Estepa returns with this top-flight rocking original, a pep talk of-sorts for a guy who’s considering going all-in on a relationship (“She’s not so ordinary/Maybe the greatest/And gamble everything/ Till you’re seeing red”). You’ll dig the guitars, all electrified, and the melody too, because the whole thing sings. It’s great to have Bryan Estepa back. More, please.

black box Where to Get It: Bandcamp

radio1Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio is the premiere website covering the melodic pop scene with in-depth reviews of new and reissued recordings, and a wide variety of features. The 24-hour Pure Pop Radio stream ran from 2013 to August 25, 2018. Welcome to your number one home for coverage of the greatest melodic pop music in the universe from the ’60s to today.

Sounding Good!

pure pop radio radioPure Pop Radio’s Melodic Pop Stream Ends on August 25

alan headshot from schoolBy Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio

Twenty-three years after the start of Pure Pop Radio as a weekly program at Fairfax, Virginia cable radio station WEBR (then WCXS), the Internet’s premiere mix of melodic pop songs from across the decades is calling it a day.

august 25 graphicThis Saturday, August 25, Alan Haber’s Pure Pop Radio will stream its last set of melodic pop jewels. Through to the last strains of the very last song aired–one of 12,000 added to the station’s playlist since 2013–the bedrocks of the station’s mission will be heard. Melody, harmony, and hooks will be enjoyed, and smiles on the faces of listeners will be logged.

nick piunti temporary high album coverLJX115 David Myhr - Lucky DayIn addition to the latest sounds from (deep breath!) Fernando Perdomo, the Turnback, the Jangle Band, Azwel, Scott Brookman, Lannie Flowers, Danny Wilkerson, McPherson Grant, Optiganally Yours, Jeff Whalen, George Usher and Lisa Burns, Michael Slawter, Jeffrey Foskett and Jeff Larson, Sean Solo, Miami Dan and the Hayes Street Band, Tony Valentino, Deep Six, Nick Piunti, Bubble Gum Orchestra, the Crushing Violets, David Myhr, Michael Carpenter, the Weeklings, Poppermost, William Duke, Caddy, My Little Brother and Farrington (big exhale!), we’re playing, from our exhaustive archives, songs from…

bob of the pops front coverchris von sneidern sight and sound album cover…the Orange Humble Band, Timmy Sean, Bob of the Pops, Garfield’s Birthday, the Kennedys, Larry O. Dean, the Orange Peels, B and Not B, Pugwash, the Corner Laughers, Bill Lloyd, Phyllis Johnson, Pop 4, Gleeson, the Del Zorros, Parthenon Huxley, the Nines, All Day Sucker, Chris Brown, Ed James, Einstein’s Sister, Jamie and Steve, the Spongetones, Mitch Linker, Pop is Art, Cirrone, Longplayer, Tamas Wells, Winterpills, Wondermints, Chris Von Sneidern, Brandon Schott, Gary Ritchie, Blossom Toes, Harpers Bizarre, P.F. Sloan, the Association, the Bee Gees, the Beach Boys, and the Beatles…

…to name but a few!

We’re beaming to your Internet radio receptacle 24 hours a day until late this Saturday, August 25. It’s been an honor and a great pleasure serving you with the greatest pop music in the universe. Since that first day sitting at that board in that radio studio with just a stack of music and my wits, I’ve enjoyed every minute, and I hope you have too.

Next week, new content will begin appearing here on the Pure Pop Radio website. We start with a 40th anniversary celebration of a classic album from one of melodic pop music’s greatest artists, and move on to reviews and more features from there.

Don’t miss a minute!

ppr radio purple background - insetPure Pop Radio plays the greatest melodic pop music from across the decades, 24 hours a day (until August 25). Listen by clicking on the Live365 Listen Now button at left. Hear us once and you’ll be a listener for life. Join us, won’t you? You’ll be glad you did!
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Alan Haber’s Pop Tunes Deejay Show | Playlist: Show #59 | 7-19-18

alan headshot from schoolBy Alan Haber – Pure Pop Radio

Hey, Kats and Kittens! Dig this:

Alan Haber’s Pop Tunes Deejay Show #59 | 7-19-18

pop tunes disc smallThe Playlist:

1. Dana Countryman | Pop Tunes Theme
2. Harpers Bizarre | “The Biggest Night of Her Life” | Anything Goes, 1967

Set Two: The Weeklings Pop!
3. The Weeklings | “Baby, You’re a Rich Man” | Single, 2018
4. The Weeklings | “Breathing Underwater” | The Weeklings, 2015
5. The Weeklings | “One and One is Two” | The Weeklings, 2015
6. The Weeklings | “In the Moment” | Single, 2018

Set Three: New!
7. Nick Piunti | “No Return” | Temporary High, 2018
8. Bubble Gum Orchestra | “Tomorrow’s Overrated” | Zentopia, 2018
9. Farrington | “Hey Mr. Rock and Roll” | Single, 2018
10. Dana Countryman | “Summer Sand” | Single, 2018

Set Four: New Too!
11. Ginger Root | “Shmoopie” | Mahjong Room, 2018
12. Sean Solo | “In Love Again” | Depth Perception, 2018
13. Astral Drive | “Summer of ’76” | Astral Drive, 2018
14. Vanilla | “Itchykoo Park” | Single, 2018

Set Five: Mind Your NRBQs!
15. NRBQ | “Waitin’ On My Sweetie Pie” | High Noon – A 50 Year Retrospective, 2016
16. NRBQ | “Advice for Teenagers” | High Noon – A 50 Year Retrospective, 2016
17. NRBQ | “Imaginary Radio” | High Noon – A 50 Year Retrospective, 2016
18. Jim Boggia | “Listening to NRBQ” | Misadventures in Stereo, 2008

Set Close:
19. Matthew Sweet and Susannah Hoffs | “And Your Bird Can Sing” | Under the Covers Vol. 1, 2006

Bonus:
20. Harpers Bizarre | “You Need a Change” | Anything Goes, 1967 (With Dick Scoppetone Intro)

Plus: Alan’s Snappy Deejay Patter!

ppr radio purple background - insetPure Pop Radio plays the greatest melodic pop music from across the decades, 24 hours a day. Listen by clicking on the Live365 Listen Now button at left. Hear us once and you’ll be a listener for life. Join us, won’t you? You’ll be glad you did!

Pure Pop Radio’s signature shows, Pure Pop Radio: In Conversation (Wednesday, 9 pm ET) and Alan Haber’s Pop Tunes Deejay Show (Thursday, 8 pm ET), air exclusively on Pop that Goes Crunch Radio.