As announced, I'm going to play DJ tonight and post a thread of records of all kinds—rock, pop, classical, country, show tunes, what have you—that have only one thing in common: they fill me with joy, and I hope they'll do the same for you.
I'll start off with a duet version by Ricky Skaggs and Waylon Jennings of "Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line." It's VERY hot, and great, great fun:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Buddy Rich and his big band play “Love for Sale” live in 1967. Dig that nuclear-powered single-stroke roll he plays at the very end:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, the overture to “The Fantasticks.” I played bass in the pit for this show in high school, and I always looked forward to hearing it. Take note, classical fans—it’s written in sonatina form:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, E. Power Biggs plays Bach’s G Major Fugue. It’s named “Fugue à la gigue” because that’s what it is—a jig. I love how it swings merrily along:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up.” Even if you think you can’t dance, put on this record and you’ll be on your feet before you know it:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Rodney Crowell’s “She’s Crazy for Leaving.” I defy you to listen to this song without grinning like a fool:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Dinah Washington’s “Evil Gal Blues.” That’s Milt Buckner playing all that funk on piano:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, the finale of Ravel’s String Quartet, performed live by the Hagen Quartet. It flies through the air like a happy hummingbird:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, the happiest sad song I know, Ray Price’s “Heartaches by the Number”:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Jule Styne’s overture to “Gypsy,” orchestrated by Sid Ramin and Robert Ginzler, which I posted earlier today and which inspired this thread. John Gielgud—yes, John Gielgud—said it was his number-one desert-island record:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Booker T. and the MG’s play “Red Beans and Rice” in concert. Two minutes of red-hot heat:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Peggy Lee sings “I’ve Got Your Number,” by Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leigh. Slinky, sly, sexy—wasn’t she something?
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Leonard Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic play the finale of Haydn’s Symphony No. 88 in concert. You’ll want to watch this one as well as listen. Why? Because Bernstein conducts it without using his hands:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, the greatest rock-and-roll record ever made, “Shakin’ All Over,” performed live in 1970 by The Who:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Benny Goodman and his band play Mary Lou Williams’ “Roll ’Em” live in 1938. That’s Jess Stacy on piano and Harry James on trumpet. Swing-era jazz at its most sublime:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Sam & Dave do their immortal thing. Take it away, gentlemen:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, the finale from Benjamin Britten’s “A Ceremony of Carols,” performed by David Willcocks and the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, with Osian Ellis on harp. I can’t hear this without getting something in my eye:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, happiness in a gentler key, courtesy of Doc Watson:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, @lomo212 (alias Lauren Molina) sings one of the Stephen Sondheim songs I love best, from the score of “Company”:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, some classic bluegrass from Bill Monroe, accompanied by none other than Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. It doesn’t get any better than this:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, Fats Waller and His Rhythm. Mr. Waller didn’t have to sing to put a smile on your face, and this glorious record proves it:
Next up in my Joyful Music thread, my all-time favorite rock group, The Band, performing live and kicking ass. Sing it, Levon Helm:
Time to wrap up my Joyful Music thread—I’ve got to get some dinner—with the Happiest Record Ever Made, courtesy of Count Basie and Joe Williams. I hope you all feel a little bit better for having listened in. See you around Twitter and Facebook:
One last word to all my friends out there: we'll get through this together if we "spread joy up to the maximum." Yes, I miss Mrs. T terribly, but she wouldn't want me—or any of us—to sit around and mope. All this music is for her, first and foremost. May she come back to me soon.
