As soon as I finish a show, my thoughts turn to the next one and the next mood, feeling or emotion to focus on. Less than a week after “Sublimity” aired, I was chatting with a dear friend, Esme Germaine Snow Chôquet-Torres, and just casually mentioned that I hadn’t even begun to think about what I’d focus on for June. Esme suggested “Queer Joy” and that was all the spark I needed to focus on “Pride,” given that June is not only Pride Month, but 2020 also marks 50 years since the first Pride marches, which occurred on June 28, 1970, the first anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising of 1969.
While deciding to focus on LGBTQ pride was a no-brainer, figuring out what music I was gonna play was a bit more difficult to sort out (as is always the case for me as a DJ). The first song that came to mind for the show was also the most well known, “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” recorded in 1967 by Frankie Valli and written by Bob Crewe. As legend has it, the inspiration for “Eyes,” regarded as one of the greatest love songs of any era, was Crewe admiring the naked body of his lover. Normally, I don’t highlight such big hits, but “Eyes” has a backstory that not a lot of people seem to know, and something that was obscured entirely in the film version of “Jersey Boys,” where Clint Eastwood makes what had to be a conscious decision (particularly since it strays from the original musical) to portray the crafting of the song not as an expression of gay love, but instead as a tribute to Valli’s daughter, even though her actual death occurred 13 years after the song was recorded.
After “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” emerged as one of the songs I 100% knew I was going to play, I started to think about focusing on artists who performed in the years before Pride became such a visible celebration of LGBTQ folks. As someone who is especially drawn to music recorded prior to my birth in 1975, one of many things I’ve always been fascinated by is the gendered performance (or more specifically what Judith Butler calls “performativity”) of artists whose sexual orientation was either not well known at the time or hidden because they lived a closeted life. In contrast to the present era where there is more tolerance/acceptance for LGBTQ identity and expression, prior to the 1980s it was exceedingly rare for performers to be fully “out,” and to be able to publicly embrace that aspect of their lives. I toyed around with the idea of playing music that would have been played at the Stonewall Inn jukebox (which we know about in detail because of the archival work of the Stonewall Rebellion Veterans Association, which you can find here), but ultimately decided to broaden the scope, though still with an emphasis on artists/recordings prior to 1970.
In addition to allowing me to engage in a bit of musical archeology, and discovering a few artists or performances I hadn’t heard before (I still trip out that despite being a major Jazz head for most of my life, I’d never heard Billy Strayhorn’s voice until I tracked down the version of “Lush Life” featured here in the second set), having that time frame to draw on also made it possible for me to pay short tributes to a couple of icons who had passed recently, Little Richard and Phil May of the Pretty Things.
While I have no idea how long I’ll be doing “Moods In Free Time,” or how many times I’ll repeat a specific mood/feeling, I can 100% guarantee that every June we’ll focus on “Pride.” For now, enjoy these sounds…
Moods In Free Time 006: Pride – 06-25-2020
Playlist – Moods In Free Time 006: Pride
{Opening theme} The Visitors – The Juggler – In My Youth (Muse)
~~~~ Break ~~~~
Frankie Valli – Can’t Keep My Eyes Off Of You – Solo (Philips)
Dusty Springfield – Something For Nothing – Love Songs (Rhino)
Lesley Gore – The Old Crowd – Lesley Gore Sings Of Mixed-Up Hearts (Mercury)
Pretty Things – I Want Your Love – Get The Picture? (Fontana)
Jackie Shane – Any Other Way – Any Other Way (Numero)
Nina Simone – Do I Move You? – Sings The Blues (RCA)
Little Richard – The Rill Thing – The Rill Thing (Reprise)
~~~~ Break ~~~~
Sister Rosetta Tharpe – Let It Shine – Gospel Truth (Mercury)
Secos e Molhados – Amor – Secos e Molhados (Continental)
Wilma Burgess – Misty Blue – Sings Misty Blue (Decca)
Chris Connor – Something To Live For – Chris Connor (Atlantic)
Billy Strayhorn – Lush Life – Lush Life (Red Baron)
James Booker – Blues Minuet/Until The Real Thing Comes Along – Junco Partner (Island)
~~~~ Break ~~~~
Chavela Vargas – Macorina – Noche Bohemia (Orfeon)
Andy Bey – I Know This Love Can’t Be Wrong – Experience & Judgement (Atlantic)
David Bowie – Right – Young Americans (RCA)
Labi Siffre – I Got The… – Remember My Song (EMI)
Janis – To Love Somebody – I Got Dem Ol Kozmic Blues Again Mama! (Columbia)
~~~~ Break ~~~~
{closing theme} Tony Williams – Wild Life – Believe It (Columbia)