Author Archives: tacopepper

          In 1954, a young man from Tupelo, Mississippi made his way to the musical epicenter in Memphis.  Working with producer Sam Phillips, who ran Sun Studios, the voice of Elvis Aaron Presley quickly garnered attention with his version of “That’s Alright”, the song most of us look back on as Elvis’s entrance to aContinue reading “Elvis Presley “The Sun Sessions” (1954)”

          For at least 30 years, I have maintained that my favorite singing voice of all time is Ray Charles, and nothing on this collection leads me astray in that belief.  As soon as Ray leaned into the first track, “The Sun’s Gonna Shine Again”, a huge smile came across my face and I knewContinue reading “Ray Charles “The Birth of Soul” (1954)”

          On today’s album, American crooner icon Frank Sinatra makes his debut with the 1954 album “Swing Easy!”.  This album wasn’t found on any Top 100/500 list, but I had to include it for three simple reasons.  First, my initial collection only included one Sinatra album, which seemed insufficient given his massive influence on aContinue reading “Frank Sinatra “Swing Easy!” (1954)”

          Day Three brings me to another icon of mid-century American music, jazz saxophone master innovator Charlie Parker.   The album “Yardbird Suite” from 1953 is rated as the #5 selection on gq.com’s list of 100 best jazz albums.  As will be the case with some of these older finds, I could not find this exactContinue reading “Charlie Parker “The Magnificent Charlie Parker” (1953)”

          On Day Two, we stay in the American south, moving ahead 13 years to look at the music and life of Hank Williams.  Rated as album # 132 by Rolling Stone on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, “Hank Williams 40 Greatest Hits” lays the next major foundation of aContinue reading “Hank Williams “40 Greatest Hits” (1950)”

     Who can say where popular music, rock and roll music, or music, really began?  For the purpose of this exploration, I am choosing to start where much of the music I grew up loving found its roots.  The influence of American blues musicians on the industry worldwide can not be overstated.  While much ofContinue reading “Robert Johnson “King of the Delta Blues Singers” (1937)”

     January 1, 2021.  The beginning of a new year, hopefully a much brighter one for all of us.  2020 caused all of us to slow down, shut down, contemplate, and start over in many ways.  As this new year begins, the world still awaits the real return of live music.  It has appeared brieflyContinue reading “The Beginning”

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right. You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click theContinue reading “Introduce Yourself (Example Post)”

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right. You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click theContinue reading “Introduce Yourself (Example Post)”

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right. You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click theContinue reading “Introduce Yourself (Example Post)”