Exceptional Musicians Name Their Top 10 Favorite Songs, Chapter Three: Steve Madaio

Steve Madaio

This is the third in a series of blogs about the top 10 favorite songs of some of the best musicians performing today.  Steve Madaio is a music legion.  Steve along with David Sandborn performed on stage at Woodstock with the Butterfield Blues Band. He has toured and recorded with the legendary Janis Joplin, and enjoyed two world tours with The Rolling Stones.  Steve has also toured and recorded with Stevie Wonder, John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt, Madonna and Barbra Streisand to name just a few!

Steve loves the "Great American Songbook" especially the ballads.  Often when performing, he mentions when a particular song is on his personal top 10 list.  His fans, and I'm one of them, can now see his list----in no particular order.

                                        Steve Madaio's Top 10 Favorite Songs
1.  "Tenderly"
2.  "I Can't Get Started"
3.  "Smile"
4.  "Shadow of Your Smile"
5.  "When I Fall In Love"

6.  "The Nearness of You"
7.  "Body and Soul"
8.  "Over The Rainbow"
9.  "Imagine"
10. "Alfie"

Pre-Release CD Review: Kara Grainger's "Shiver And Sigh"

If you like down-home country Blues sung in the style of Bonnie Raitt, then Kara Grainger's new CD, "Shiver and Sigh" is the perfect CD for you.  Australian native, Kara Grainger is a powerhouse talent. She sings, plays guitar and writes her own songs.  This is the 3rd CD for this triple-threat star who writes great songs that only improve when she sings them.  Now living in Los Angeles, Kara started learning the guitar at age 12.  She has had a long performing history and while still relatively young, Kara has honed her skill over the years and now has arrived on the music scene in a big way.

When I listened to her sing, I heard the influence of Bonnie Raitt, and that's a good thing.  The fact that Kara writes her owns songs only makes her presentation more impressive.  Kara wrote 5 out of the 11 tracts on this CD.  She also sings a soulful interpretation of Robert Johnson's "C'mon In My Kitchen" and Al Jackson Jr/Timothy Matthews "Breaking Up Somebody's Home". Supporting Kara are a stellar group of seasoned musicians: Kirk Fletcher and Josh Sklair on Guitar, Mike Finnigan on Keys, Hutch Hutchinson on Bass, Kimi Bott and James Gadson on Drums, Lenny Castro on Percussion Mitch Grainger on Harmonica, Pauli Cerra on Sax Paul Litteral on Trumpet and George Stanford on Trombone. I have to mention that David Z was the producer/engineer and he did a superb job putting this CD together.  Everything works on this CD,  the songs, the vocals by Kara, the supporting musicians and the producer who put all the parts together to achieve this wonderful Country Blues CD.

This CD will be release on July 16, 2013.

Pre-Release Review: Bonnie Bishop's "FREE"

Usually when I review a new CD from an artist new to me, I need to hear the cuts a few times in order to get a feel for the artist and his or her performance. That was not necessary for the new CD from Bonnie Bishop called "Free". Bonnie Bishop is a very special singer/songwriter/musician loaded with talent. When she sings her songs she paints pictures that our alive with emotion and truth. Only singers that have experienced the kind of stories in her lyrics could make them this believable. Bonnie started touring in 2002 and released four regionally-acclaimed albums over a period of six years during which she received a nomination for "Vocal Performance of the Year". She is simply a "great singer". Bonnie's soulful and raspy voice contains parts of Janis Joplin and her musical hero, Bonnie Raitt and maybe a little Adele also.

In 2008, Bonnie moved to Nashville to focus on her songwriting career. This was an excellent decision because all the songs she has written on this album are outstanding. I could think of several singers who  would have no  problem turning any one of these songs into popular hits. According to Bonnie, "My music evolved because I fundamentally changed. My experiences in the last few years, however painful, taught me humility and personal accountability." It seems that this life experience also taught Bonnie how to sing and write music like a big time musical star!

Bonnie recently had the thrill of having her mentor, Bonnie Raitt record a song she co-wrote with Al Anderson, "Not 'Cause I Wanted To" on Raitt's new album "Slipstream". According to Bonnie Raitt,"Bonnie Bishop is so talented, and very special. She's an amazing presence.  I think she's going to be a big star." I join Bonnie Raitt in stating that Bonnie Bishop's time has arrived. The release of this Album on October 9, 2012 will announce to the world that the next major singer/songwriter/musician to take center stage is Bonnie Bishop.