WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.339 So today, we are looking at a really specific 00:00:05.339 --> 00:00:08.179 mechanism in the music industry. Yeah, the anatomy 00:00:08.179 --> 00:00:10.380 of a career pivot. Right. Because if you look 00:00:10.380 --> 00:00:14.580 at the year 1966, the landscape of popular music 00:00:14.580 --> 00:00:18.000 is just undergoing this radical, almost aggressive 00:00:18.000 --> 00:00:20.160 transformation. Absolutely tectonic. Everything 00:00:20.160 --> 00:00:22.460 is shifting. Exactly. And caught right in the 00:00:22.460 --> 00:00:25.280 center of that tectonic shift is a voice that 00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:27.679 you almost certainly recognize. Even if you just 00:00:27.679 --> 00:00:29.960 know from television later on. Yeah. Exactly. 00:00:30.579 --> 00:00:33.219 But today we are exploring the legendary Della 00:00:33.219 --> 00:00:36.600 Reese, specifically focusing on her 1966 studio 00:00:36.600 --> 00:00:39.460 album. I like it like that. Yes, I like it like 00:00:39.460 --> 00:00:41.899 that. And we are putting this entire project 00:00:41.899 --> 00:00:43.640 completely under the microscope. We're going 00:00:43.640 --> 00:00:45.539 to unpack what actually happens in the recording 00:00:45.539 --> 00:00:48.700 booth, the boardroom and even the trade magazines 00:00:48.700 --> 00:00:51.700 when an artist with a massive established background 00:00:51.700 --> 00:00:54.899 in pop and jazz just decides to pivot hard into 00:00:54.899 --> 00:00:57.420 blues standards. It's such a sharp left turn, 00:00:57.500 --> 00:01:00.420 even the title itself. I like it like that, is 00:01:00.420 --> 00:01:03.439 stylized completely in lowercase. Lowercase with 00:01:03.439 --> 00:01:06.260 an exclamation point at the end. Right. Which 00:01:06.260 --> 00:01:09.099 immediately signals a deliberate break from formality. 00:01:09.280 --> 00:01:12.629 It's a total aesthetic choice. It is. So... Our 00:01:12.629 --> 00:01:15.750 mission for this deep dive is to completely deconstruct 00:01:15.750 --> 00:01:18.069 this album. We're looking at the mechanics of 00:01:18.069 --> 00:01:21.890 a label jump, the inherent friction of having 00:01:21.890 --> 00:01:24.170 a manager take over as the creative producer. 00:01:24.290 --> 00:01:26.650 Is it always a risky move? Highly risky. And 00:01:26.650 --> 00:01:28.650 we're also going to look at the fascinating reality 00:01:28.650 --> 00:01:30.670 of what happens when the people trying to sell 00:01:30.670 --> 00:01:34.209 a record in 1966 fundamentally disagree with 00:01:34.209 --> 00:01:37.129 the historians evaluating that same record decades 00:01:37.129 --> 00:01:39.489 later. It really is the ultimate case study in 00:01:39.489 --> 00:01:42.159 the tension between art and commerce. we're treating 00:01:42.159 --> 00:01:44.620 this 12 -trap album not just as a collection 00:01:44.620 --> 00:01:48.159 of songs, but as a physical artifact of an industry 00:01:48.159 --> 00:01:50.280 in transition. Definitely. By looking closely 00:01:50.280 --> 00:01:53.099 at the specific personnel involved, the producers, 00:01:53.260 --> 00:01:56.019 the arrangers, the songwriters, and contrasting 00:01:56.019 --> 00:01:58.280 that contemporary hype with the retrospective 00:01:58.280 --> 00:02:01.019 criticism, we start to really see the gears of 00:02:01.019 --> 00:02:03.260 the 1960s music business turning. We're going 00:02:03.260 --> 00:02:05.920 to examine the very deliberate choices made to 00:02:05.920 --> 00:02:09.240 engineer a specific sound. And whether that engineering 00:02:09.240 --> 00:02:12.319 resulted in a genuine artistic statement or just 00:02:12.319 --> 00:02:14.699 a calculated commercial commodity. OK, let me 00:02:14.699 --> 00:02:17.319 attack this. Because to understand why I like 00:02:17.319 --> 00:02:20.639 it like that is such a fascinating pivot, we 00:02:20.639 --> 00:02:23.379 really have to establish the baseline of power 00:02:23.379 --> 00:02:25.400 Della Reese brought to the table. Right. She 00:02:25.400 --> 00:02:28.259 wasn't a rookie. Not at all. She was not a developing 00:02:28.259 --> 00:02:30.979 artist trying to find her footing. By the time 00:02:30.979 --> 00:02:33.800 we hit the mid -1960s, she is operating from 00:02:33.800 --> 00:02:36.020 a position of undeniable commercial strength. 00:02:36.319 --> 00:02:38.219 Which was largely built during her tenure at 00:02:38.219 --> 00:02:41.360 RCA Victor. Exactly. That RCA Victor era is the 00:02:41.360 --> 00:02:44.139 bedrock of her industry capital. And to quantify 00:02:44.139 --> 00:02:46.719 that power, you just have to look at one specific 00:02:46.719 --> 00:02:51.139 data point from the year 1959. The single. Yes. 00:02:51.360 --> 00:02:53.159 She releases a single called Don't You Know? 00:02:53.280 --> 00:02:55.659 And it climbs all the way to number two on the 00:02:55.659 --> 00:02:59.240 U .S. Hot 100. Number two. Let's just let's contextualize 00:02:59.240 --> 00:03:01.379 what a number two hit on the Hot 100 actually 00:03:01.379 --> 00:03:03.919 meant at the end of the 1950s. It meant everything. 00:03:04.020 --> 00:03:07.020 Yeah. That isn't a niche jazz chart or a regional 00:03:07.020 --> 00:03:09.699 rhythm and blues chart. That is the mainstream 00:03:09.699 --> 00:03:12.580 undisputed metric of American popular culture. 00:03:12.939 --> 00:03:15.719 Exactly. Holding the number two spot on the Hot 00:03:15.719 --> 00:03:19.960 100 in 1959 requires a staggering volume of physical 00:03:19.960 --> 00:03:22.599 unit sales. people physically going to stores 00:03:22.599 --> 00:03:24.979 and buying the 45. Buying the wax, yeah. And 00:03:24.979 --> 00:03:27.139 it requires ubiquitous radio syndication across 00:03:27.139 --> 00:03:30.360 every major market. It means your voice is essentially 00:03:30.360 --> 00:03:33.479 inescapable. You are a proven blue chip commodity. 00:03:33.520 --> 00:03:35.659 You are. And she didn't just have a flash -in 00:03:35.659 --> 00:03:38.120 -the -pan moment with that single either. She 00:03:38.120 --> 00:03:40.780 capitalized on that momentum at RCA Victor by 00:03:40.780 --> 00:03:43.539 building out a really substantial, diverse catalog. 00:03:43.639 --> 00:03:45.780 He was working constantly. Constantly. She recorded 00:03:45.780 --> 00:03:47.879 a steady stream of studio albums. She recorded 00:03:47.879 --> 00:03:51.240 live albums. She proved she could move LP units, 00:03:51.539 --> 00:03:54.210 not just the shorter 45 RPM singles. Which makes 00:03:54.210 --> 00:03:56.830 her next move so compelling to look at. You have 00:03:56.830 --> 00:03:59.009 this massive success, this proven track record 00:03:59.009 --> 00:04:02.330 at RCA Victor. And then we hit 1965. The jump. 00:04:02.509 --> 00:04:05.069 The label jump. She leaves RCA and signs with 00:04:05.069 --> 00:04:07.389 Larry Newton at the ABC Paramount label. And 00:04:07.389 --> 00:04:09.810 a label jump for an artist of that tier is never 00:04:09.810 --> 00:04:12.430 just a change of stationary. It is a massive 00:04:12.430 --> 00:04:15.189 strategic realignment. High stakes. Very high 00:04:15.189 --> 00:04:17.889 stakes. When Larry Newton brings her over to 00:04:17.889 --> 00:04:20.949 ABC Paramount, there is an implicit understanding. 00:04:21.160 --> 00:04:23.360 that they are either going to breathe new life 00:04:23.360 --> 00:04:26.699 into her existing pop jazz formula, or they are 00:04:26.699 --> 00:04:29.879 going to utilize her massive vocal talent to 00:04:29.879 --> 00:04:32.319 break into new stylistic territory. And their 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:35.160 initial strategy seems to be, well, establishing 00:04:35.160 --> 00:04:38.319 a solid, perhaps slightly safe beachhead. Right. 00:04:38.360 --> 00:04:40.279 Playing it relatively cool at first. Because 00:04:40.279 --> 00:04:44.000 in 1965, her very first release for the new label 00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:47.240 drops. It's titled Newman and Here, De La Reese. 00:04:47.639 --> 00:04:49.879 And for this introductory statement at ABC, they 00:04:49.879 --> 00:04:52.379 put a highly established producer at the helm. 00:04:52.540 --> 00:04:55.139 Bob Thiel. Bob Thiel. And having Bob Thiel produce 00:04:55.139 --> 00:04:58.579 that initial 1965 record makes perfect sense 00:04:58.579 --> 00:05:00.980 from a label perspective. You want a steady hand 00:05:00.980 --> 00:05:03.920 to transition an RCA star into the ABC Paramount 00:05:03.920 --> 00:05:05.720 ecosystem. You don't want to scare off the fans 00:05:05.720 --> 00:05:07.939 who followed her? Exactly. It is about establishing 00:05:07.939 --> 00:05:10.300 trust both with the artist and with that existing 00:05:10.300 --> 00:05:12.540 consumer base. But the stability doesn't last 00:05:12.540 --> 00:05:15.480 at all. By the very next year, 1966, they are 00:05:15.480 --> 00:05:17.879 preparing her second album for the label. The 00:05:17.879 --> 00:05:20.360 subject of our focus today, I like it like that. 00:05:20.579 --> 00:05:23.220 And there is an immediate seismic shift in the 00:05:23.220 --> 00:05:25.699 personnel. Bob Thiel is out. The producer's chair 00:05:25.699 --> 00:05:28.240 is empty. And the person who steps into that 00:05:28.240 --> 00:05:30.759 role is Lee Majid. Now, Lee Majid is not just 00:05:30.759 --> 00:05:33.660 a random studio hire. No. Lee Majid is Della 00:05:33.660 --> 00:05:36.660 Reese's manager. What's fascinating here is the 00:05:36.660 --> 00:05:39.439 psychological and professional tightrope of that 00:05:39.439 --> 00:05:42.220 dual role. Think about the fundamental duties 00:05:42.220 --> 00:05:45.060 of a manager versus a producer. They're completely 00:05:45.060 --> 00:05:49.639 different jobs. Entirely. The manager is a fiduciary. 00:05:49.779 --> 00:05:52.360 Their mandate is to maximize the artist's earning 00:05:52.360 --> 00:05:55.360 potential, to negotiate the most favorable terms 00:05:55.360 --> 00:05:57.759 with Larry Newton at the label, and to ensure 00:05:57.759 --> 00:06:00.240 the artist's brand remains commercially viable. 00:06:00.480 --> 00:06:02.740 They're looking at the macro level, the market 00:06:02.740 --> 00:06:05.399 landscape. Right. But the producer is supposed 00:06:05.399 --> 00:06:07.680 to be the artistic compass. They're in the booth 00:06:07.680 --> 00:06:10.300 focusing on the micro details. How does the brass 00:06:10.300 --> 00:06:13.220 section sound? Is the vocal take emotionally 00:06:13.220 --> 00:06:15.519 resonant? Does this arrangement actually serve 00:06:15.519 --> 00:06:17.980 the song? So when you merge those two roles into 00:06:17.980 --> 00:06:20.439 one person, when Lee Medjid puts on both hats, 00:06:20.920 --> 00:06:22.879 you are inherently blurring the line between 00:06:22.879 --> 00:06:25.199 creative expression and commercial calculation. 00:06:25.720 --> 00:06:29.199 You have to. Every artistic choice made in that 00:06:29.199 --> 00:06:31.879 studio is now filtered through the lens of a 00:06:31.879 --> 00:06:34.699 manager who is acutely aware of what is currently 00:06:34.699 --> 00:06:36.819 selling on the charts. Let me push back on that 00:06:36.819 --> 00:06:39.129 for a second, though. Isn't it possible that 00:06:39.129 --> 00:06:42.149 a manager who intimately knows the artist's capabilities 00:06:42.149 --> 00:06:44.730 and trusts their talent more than anyone might 00:06:44.730 --> 00:06:47.029 actually be the best person to produce them? 00:06:47.209 --> 00:06:49.089 How do you mean? Well, they don't have to waste 00:06:49.089 --> 00:06:51.629 time translating the artist's vision to a third 00:06:51.629 --> 00:06:54.490 -party producer. They already share a brain in 00:06:54.490 --> 00:06:57.689 a business sense. It is entirely possible. And 00:06:57.689 --> 00:06:59.930 history is full of manager producers who have 00:06:59.930 --> 00:07:03.029 facilitated masterpieces. But the inherent risk 00:07:03.029 --> 00:07:05.759 is the loss of objective friction. The pushback. 00:07:05.920 --> 00:07:08.480 Exactly, the pushback. A great producer often 00:07:08.480 --> 00:07:10.540 challenges an artist, pushes them out of their 00:07:10.540 --> 00:07:12.379 comfort zone, or tells them a commercial idea 00:07:12.379 --> 00:07:15.160 is actually artistically hollow. When the producer 00:07:15.160 --> 00:07:17.319 is also the person whose percentage cut relies 00:07:17.319 --> 00:07:20.379 on the album being a massive hit, the temptation 00:07:20.379 --> 00:07:23.720 to chase contemporary trends rather than artistic 00:07:23.720 --> 00:07:27.339 timelessness is incredibly high. And that dynamic 00:07:27.339 --> 00:07:29.480 is the central lens through which we have to 00:07:29.480 --> 00:07:31.620 view the blues style they decided to adopt for 00:07:31.620 --> 00:07:33.459 this record. Because it wasn't a subtle shift. 00:07:33.600 --> 00:07:36.779 No, it was a hard pivot. And Majid isn't executing 00:07:36.779 --> 00:07:39.720 this vision alone. He knows he needs a musical 00:07:39.720 --> 00:07:42.680 architect to translate this strategy to the studio 00:07:42.680 --> 00:07:45.959 floor. He needs a tactician. Right. And the liner 00:07:45.959 --> 00:07:48.959 notes for the album explicitly credit another 00:07:48.959 --> 00:07:52.480 crucial figure, Bobby Bryant. Bryant is brought 00:07:52.480 --> 00:07:55.060 in to serve as both the arranger and the conductor. 00:07:55.310 --> 00:07:57.110 The arranger is the person who actually builds 00:07:57.110 --> 00:08:01.149 the house. If Majid says, we are doing a blues 00:08:01.149 --> 00:08:04.310 heavy record, Bobby Bryant is the one who decides 00:08:04.310 --> 00:08:06.509 what the rhythm section is going to play, where 00:08:06.509 --> 00:08:08.689 the horn stabs are going to land, and how the 00:08:08.689 --> 00:08:11.050 tempo is going to swing. He is making the blueprints 00:08:11.050 --> 00:08:13.449 real. He takes the theoretical concept of a blues 00:08:13.449 --> 00:08:15.930 style and writes the actual charts for the musicians 00:08:15.930 --> 00:08:18.089 sitting in the room. The fact that Majid and 00:08:18.089 --> 00:08:20.189 Bryant share such a prominent billing on this 00:08:20.189 --> 00:08:22.089 project highlights that this wasn't just some 00:08:22.089 --> 00:08:24.370 loose, let's see what happens jam session. Not 00:08:24.370 --> 00:08:27.269 at all. This was a highly structured, orchestrated 00:08:27.269 --> 00:08:30.430 effort to pivot Della Reese's sound. And that 00:08:30.430 --> 00:08:32.909 structure is incredibly apparent when you look 00:08:32.909 --> 00:08:34.990 at how they built the physical track list. The 00:08:34.990 --> 00:08:37.750 architecture of a 12 -track vinyl album from 00:08:37.750 --> 00:08:41.990 1966 requires a level of deliberate pacing that 00:08:41.990 --> 00:08:45.330 is just completely foreign to the modern playlist 00:08:45.330 --> 00:08:47.429 era. You can't just shuffle it. We have to... 00:08:47.529 --> 00:08:49.909 analyze the psychology of the sequence, side 00:08:49.909 --> 00:08:52.470 one and side two. They have to hook the listener, 00:08:53.110 --> 00:08:55.990 sustain their attention, and convince them to 00:08:55.990 --> 00:08:58.029 physically interact with the turntable. They 00:08:58.029 --> 00:09:00.149 have to want to flip the record over. Right. 00:09:00.269 --> 00:09:02.669 And the overarching aesthetic they chose to glue 00:09:02.669 --> 00:09:05.769 these 12 tracks together was an explicit lean 00:09:05.769 --> 00:09:07.850 into blues standards. They didn't just write 00:09:07.850 --> 00:09:10.669 12 new blues songs. They packed the album with 00:09:10.669 --> 00:09:13.389 covers of established, heavy -hitting compositions. 00:09:13.809 --> 00:09:15.710 And covering established standards is a very 00:09:15.710 --> 00:09:18.309 specific type of music currency. It provides 00:09:18.309 --> 00:09:20.330 immediate context for the listener. Let's look 00:09:20.330 --> 00:09:22.370 at the specific composers they chose to tackle. 00:09:22.649 --> 00:09:24.330 This is where the ambition of the project really 00:09:24.330 --> 00:09:27.509 shows. They include a cover of Billy Eckstein's 00:09:27.509 --> 00:09:30.470 Fool That I Am. And then serving as absolute 00:09:30.470 --> 00:09:32.990 pillars of the album, we have two tracks written 00:09:32.990 --> 00:09:36.269 by the iconic Johnny Mercer. Track one, opening 00:09:36.269 --> 00:09:39.070 the entire album, is Travel in Light. And later 00:09:39.070 --> 00:09:42.490 on, we have Drinking Again. Let's analyze the 00:09:42.490 --> 00:09:44.870 decision to open the album with Johnny Mercer's 00:09:44.870 --> 00:09:47.779 Travel in Light. Mercer is an absolute titan 00:09:47.779 --> 00:09:50.340 of American songwriting. His work is ingrained 00:09:50.340 --> 00:09:52.399 in the cultural subconscious. Everyone knows 00:09:52.399 --> 00:09:54.960 a Mercer tune. By placing his composition as 00:09:54.960 --> 00:09:57.220 the very first thing the listener hears, when 00:09:57.220 --> 00:10:00.200 the needle drops on side one, Majid and Bryant 00:10:00.200 --> 00:10:02.779 are making a declarative statement. It's an anchor 00:10:02.779 --> 00:10:05.679 of legitimacy. It really is. It tells the traditional 00:10:05.679 --> 00:10:07.419 jazz and pop audience, the people who bought 00:10:07.419 --> 00:10:10.559 the RCA Victor Records, don't worry, we are still 00:10:10.559 --> 00:10:12.840 engaging with the great American songbook. We 00:10:12.840 --> 00:10:15.279 are still operating at the highest level of compositional 00:10:15.279 --> 00:10:18.100 quality. We haven't abandoned you. Right. But 00:10:18.100 --> 00:10:21.059 it also allows Della Reese to reinterpret a familiar 00:10:21.059 --> 00:10:24.240 text through this new orchestrated blues lens. 00:10:24.779 --> 00:10:27.519 It is much easier to introduce a new sonic style 00:10:27.519 --> 00:10:30.440 to your audience if the underlying song is already 00:10:30.440 --> 00:10:33.490 a trusted friend. But the pressure of that, if 00:10:33.490 --> 00:10:36.090 you are going to record Traveling Light or Billy 00:10:36.090 --> 00:10:40.690 Eckstein's Fool That I Am in 1966, you are acutely 00:10:40.690 --> 00:10:43.850 aware that your audience has already heard legendary 00:10:43.850 --> 00:10:46.470 definitive versions of these songs. Oh, the definitive 00:10:46.470 --> 00:10:48.710 versions were already out there. You are actively 00:10:48.710 --> 00:10:52.649 inviting direct comparison to the absolute greats. 00:10:52.669 --> 00:10:55.950 That is the gambit. If you succeed, you elevate 00:10:55.950 --> 00:10:58.480 yourself to their peer group. You prove that 00:10:58.480 --> 00:11:00.919 your vocal chops can handle the heaviest material 00:11:00.919 --> 00:11:03.100 in the genre. And if you fail. If you fail, you 00:11:03.100 --> 00:11:06.799 sound like a lounge act doing an imitation. Maded 00:11:06.799 --> 00:11:09.590 acting as the manager producer. Clearly believe 00:11:09.590 --> 00:11:12.269 Della Reese had the vocal sheer force to not 00:11:12.269 --> 00:11:14.970 just survive those comparisons, but to weaponize 00:11:14.970 --> 00:11:17.809 them to prove her blues authenticity. But they 00:11:17.809 --> 00:11:20.129 didn't solely rely on the safety net of Mercer 00:11:20.129 --> 00:11:22.149 and Eckstein. This is the detail in the track 00:11:22.149 --> 00:11:24.330 list that completely shifts how I view this album. 00:11:24.509 --> 00:11:26.509 The original credits. Yes. Della Reese wasn't 00:11:26.509 --> 00:11:28.730 just a vocal interpreter on this project. She's 00:11:28.730 --> 00:11:32.009 actively credited as a songwriter. Which completely 00:11:32.009 --> 00:11:33.970 alters her agency in the creation of the album. 00:11:34.309 --> 00:11:36.649 She holds writing credits on two distinct tracks. 00:11:36.929 --> 00:11:39.669 We have Every Evening credited to Dee Reese, 00:11:39.889 --> 00:11:42.090 and I ain't ready for that, also credited to 00:11:42.090 --> 00:11:44.590 Dee Reese. And the placement of these originals 00:11:44.590 --> 00:11:47.490 is vital. Both of them are on Side 1. If we connect 00:11:47.490 --> 00:11:50.330 this to the bigger picture of album sequencing, 00:11:50.809 --> 00:11:52.990 putting the artist's original compositions on 00:11:52.990 --> 00:11:56.009 the A -side is a massive vote of confidence from 00:11:56.009 --> 00:11:58.809 the label and the producer. Because Side 1 is 00:11:58.809 --> 00:12:01.990 where the commercial battle is won or lost. Exactly. 00:12:02.029 --> 00:12:04.269 You open with Johnny Mercer to hook the audience. 00:12:04.549 --> 00:12:07.629 You establish the blues atmosphere. And then... 00:12:07.639 --> 00:12:10.639 seamlessly woven into that same sequence, you 00:12:10.639 --> 00:12:12.720 introduce Dee Reese, the songwriter. You sneak 00:12:12.720 --> 00:12:15.139 it in right past the gate. You do. It forces 00:12:15.139 --> 00:12:17.679 the listener to evaluate her original work on 00:12:17.679 --> 00:12:20.500 the exact same terms as a Mercer standard. It 00:12:20.500 --> 00:12:22.840 is a brilliant way to establish artistic credibility. 00:12:23.120 --> 00:12:24.919 And she is in good contemporary company on the 00:12:24.919 --> 00:12:27.440 writing side, too. The track list also highlights 00:12:27.440 --> 00:12:30.159 two compositions by Dee Washington. We have If 00:12:30.159 --> 00:12:32.539 It's the Last Thing I Do, placed early on side 00:12:32.539 --> 00:12:34.860 one, and If I Never Get to Heaven, featured on 00:12:34.860 --> 00:12:37.360 side two. So you have this remarkably balanced 00:12:37.360 --> 00:12:40.120 ecosystem on the vinyl. You have a historical 00:12:40.120 --> 00:12:42.740 weight of Mercer and Eckstein, the contemporary 00:12:42.740 --> 00:12:45.980 contributions of Washington, and the deeply personal 00:12:45.980 --> 00:12:48.480 original statements from Reese herself. It's 00:12:48.480 --> 00:12:51.360 bulletproof on paper. It really is a carefully 00:12:51.360 --> 00:12:54.980 curated portfolio designed by Lee Magid and Bobby 00:12:54.980 --> 00:12:58.519 Bryant to present Della Reese as a comprehensive 00:12:58.519 --> 00:13:01.299 blues artist. Someone who can respect the history, 00:13:01.740 --> 00:13:03.720 sing the contemporary hits, and write her own 00:13:03.720 --> 00:13:07.000 chapters. It is a phenomenal theoretical strategy. 00:13:07.159 --> 00:13:09.379 You can just see the logic perfectly laid out 00:13:09.379 --> 00:13:11.740 on the manager's whiteboard. But theory has to 00:13:11.740 --> 00:13:13.980 survive the reality of the marketplace. And the 00:13:13.980 --> 00:13:16.820 critics. Always the critics. When the album was 00:13:16.820 --> 00:13:19.840 finally released in February 1966, the reaction 00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:22.960 it sparked was intensely polarizing. And it provides 00:13:22.960 --> 00:13:25.179 us with a perfect case study in how the immediate 00:13:25.179 --> 00:13:27.299 commercial metrics of the music industry often 00:13:27.299 --> 00:13:29.600 clash violently with the long -term evaluations 00:13:29.600 --> 00:13:32.679 of music historians. Let's dive into the critical 00:13:32.679 --> 00:13:35.500 whiplash. The dichotomy between the trade magazines 00:13:35.500 --> 00:13:39.659 in 1966 and the retrospective jazz critics is 00:13:39.659 --> 00:13:42.440 the most revealing aspect of this entire deep 00:13:42.440 --> 00:13:44.879 dive. It shows us exactly exactly what the industry 00:13:44.879 --> 00:13:47.960 valued in the moment versus what historians value 00:13:47.960 --> 00:13:50.450 in hindsight. Let's start with the immediate 00:13:50.450 --> 00:13:52.990 reaction because the contemporary hype was palpable. 00:13:53.450 --> 00:13:55.929 The trade magazines, the publications read by 00:13:55.929 --> 00:13:58.470 label executives, radio programmers, and record 00:13:58.470 --> 00:14:00.730 store owners were entirely on board with this 00:14:00.730 --> 00:14:03.149 pivot. They loved it. Cashbox magazine reviewed 00:14:03.149 --> 00:14:06.909 the album right at launch in February 1966, and 00:14:06.909 --> 00:14:09.649 their assessment was purely focused on momentum. 00:14:10.169 --> 00:14:12.029 They noted the backing of Bobby Bryant and the 00:14:12.029 --> 00:14:14.090 rhythm section, and they explicitly predicted 00:14:14.090 --> 00:14:16.409 that the album could be a strong candidate for 00:14:16.409 --> 00:14:19.639 chart honors. Chart honors. That specific phrasing 00:14:19.639 --> 00:14:22.000 is the Rosetta Stone for understanding trade 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:24.879 magazines in the 1960s. It sounds so formal now. 00:14:24.960 --> 00:14:27.899 It does. But Cashbox is not a literary journal 00:14:27.899 --> 00:14:30.720 analyzing the poetic depth of the lyrics. They 00:14:30.720 --> 00:14:33.639 are a business publication. Their job is to tell 00:14:33.639 --> 00:14:35.299 record stores what is going to move inventory. 00:14:35.600 --> 00:14:37.779 When they say chart honors, they are validating 00:14:37.779 --> 00:14:40.360 Lee McGidd's entire managerial strategy. They 00:14:40.360 --> 00:14:42.840 are saying the pivot worked. They are saying 00:14:42.840 --> 00:14:45.379 the pivot is monetizable, they hear the arrangements 00:14:45.379 --> 00:14:47.440 Bobby Bryant put together, they hear the power 00:14:47.440 --> 00:14:49.820 of Reese's vocal delivery, and they recognize 00:14:49.820 --> 00:14:52.220 a product that fits perfectly into the commercial 00:14:52.220 --> 00:14:55.559 demands of 1966 radio. And Billboard magazine 00:14:55.559 --> 00:14:58.139 was even more enthusiastic and a lot more visceral 00:14:58.139 --> 00:15:00.580 in their description. Their review from March 00:15:00.580 --> 00:15:04.879 1966 praises her great gospel style. And then 00:15:04.879 --> 00:15:07.299 they summarize the record as an exciting package 00:15:07.299 --> 00:15:10.759 of both raunchy, hot, funky blues ballads. We 00:15:10.759 --> 00:15:13.480 really need to pause and examine the phrase raunchy, 00:15:13.480 --> 00:15:16.259 hot, funky. I am obsessed with this detail. It 00:15:16.259 --> 00:15:19.980 is clearly a 1966 print typography error. It 00:15:19.980 --> 00:15:23.039 has to be. It is painfully obvious that the reviewer 00:15:23.039 --> 00:15:25.899 wrote raunchy, endy, funky blues ballads, and 00:15:25.899 --> 00:15:27.659 someone at the printing press made a mistake 00:15:27.659 --> 00:15:30.799 setting the type immortalizing hod funky into 00:15:30.799 --> 00:15:33.120 the historical record forever. It's the charm 00:15:33.120 --> 00:15:35.840 of analog media. Exactly. But even looking past 00:15:35.840 --> 00:15:37.779 the typo, look at the vocabulary Billboard is 00:15:37.779 --> 00:15:41.159 employing. Exciting, raunchy, funky. Think about 00:15:41.159 --> 00:15:43.860 those adjectives in contrast to the polished, 00:15:44.299 --> 00:15:47.440 pristine pop jazz image of a vocalist who had 00:15:47.440 --> 00:15:51.279 a number two Hot 100 hit in 1959. Raunchy and 00:15:51.279 --> 00:15:53.940 funky are earthy terms. They imply sweat, They 00:15:53.940 --> 00:15:56.139 imply a groove. They imply something slightly 00:15:56.139 --> 00:15:58.559 dangerous and heavily commercial. It's a grittier 00:15:58.559 --> 00:16:01.379 brand. Yes. Billboard is confirming that the 00:16:01.379 --> 00:16:04.399 blues style Majid and Bryant engineered is hitting 00:16:04.399 --> 00:16:07.360 the listener on a physical rhythmic level. It's 00:16:07.360 --> 00:16:10.000 the ultimate validation for a manager. Majid 00:16:10.000 --> 00:16:12.500 takes over as producer, pivots the sound to something 00:16:12.500 --> 00:16:15.240 heavier and bluesier, and the two biggest trade 00:16:15.240 --> 00:16:17.759 magazines in the country immediately declare 00:16:17.759 --> 00:16:20.299 it a funky, exciting candidate for the charts. 00:16:20.809 --> 00:16:24.429 In 1966, this album is a success story. But the 00:16:24.429 --> 00:16:27.230 verdict of 1966 is not the final verdict. And 00:16:27.230 --> 00:16:29.210 this is where the historical perspective radically 00:16:29.210 --> 00:16:31.230 alters the narrative. Here comes the whiplash. 00:16:31.470 --> 00:16:33.129 When you remove the album from the immediate 00:16:33.129 --> 00:16:35.850 commercial pressures of the 1960s charts and 00:16:35.850 --> 00:16:38.269 evaluate it purely as an artistic statement within 00:16:38.269 --> 00:16:41.090 the jazz and blues continuum, a very different 00:16:41.090 --> 00:16:43.870 picture emerges. Enter the retrospective criticism. 00:16:44.690 --> 00:16:46.809 We have to look at the assessment of Wilfried 00:16:46.809 --> 00:16:49.700 Wald. the author of a biographical guide to the 00:16:49.700 --> 00:16:52.580 great jazz and pop singers. He represents the 00:16:52.580 --> 00:16:54.740 historian's viewpoint here, and his evaluation 00:16:54.740 --> 00:16:59.100 of I like it like that is brutal in its specificity. 00:16:59.360 --> 00:17:02.019 He completely rejects the enthusiasm of Billboard 00:17:02.019 --> 00:17:05.039 and Cashbox. Completely. Friedwald's critique 00:17:05.039 --> 00:17:08.000 is centered on the concept of authenticity, and 00:17:08.000 --> 00:17:10.960 his choice of words is devastatingly precise. 00:17:11.559 --> 00:17:15.150 He called the album an occasionally overly jukeboxy 00:17:15.150 --> 00:17:17.369 attempt to bring out Reese's blues strengths. 00:17:17.670 --> 00:17:20.869 Overly jukeboxy. That is such a loaded, weaponized 00:17:20.869 --> 00:17:23.490 term in the context of music criticism. Let's 00:17:23.490 --> 00:17:25.650 break down why that is an insult coming from 00:17:25.650 --> 00:17:28.029 a jazz historian. Well, to a trade magazine, 00:17:28.230 --> 00:17:30.150 being suitable for a jukebox is the ultimate 00:17:30.150 --> 00:17:32.450 compliment. It means people in bars and diners 00:17:32.450 --> 00:17:34.369 are willing to feed quarters into a machine just 00:17:34.369 --> 00:17:36.589 to hear your song. It means mass appeal. Right. 00:17:36.630 --> 00:17:39.490 It means cash flow. But to a historian like Friedwald, 00:17:40.109 --> 00:17:43.470 jukeboxy implies pandering. It implies that the 00:17:43.470 --> 00:17:46.349 music was manufactured to trigger a cheap, immediate 00:17:46.349 --> 00:17:49.369 response, rather than offering complex, lasting 00:17:49.369 --> 00:17:52.470 artistry. It suggests that Lee Magid wasn't trying 00:17:52.470 --> 00:17:55.150 to capture De La Rees' soul, he was trying to 00:17:55.150 --> 00:17:57.130 capture the loose change of the American public. 00:17:57.470 --> 00:17:59.690 And Friedwald doesn't stop there. He elaborates 00:17:59.690 --> 00:18:02.690 on this jukeboxy attempt by claiming the album 00:18:02.690 --> 00:18:06.029 was actively evoking Dinah Washington and Aretha 00:18:06.029 --> 00:18:08.660 Franklin. Now on the surface, Being compared 00:18:08.660 --> 00:18:10.980 to Aretha Franklin or Dinah Washington sounds 00:18:10.980 --> 00:18:12.880 like the highest praise a vocalist could ever 00:18:12.880 --> 00:18:15.339 receive. You would think. But in the context 00:18:15.339 --> 00:18:18.200 of Friedwald's critique, evoking is a polite 00:18:18.200 --> 00:18:21.019 synonym for imitating. Exactly. He is accusing 00:18:21.019 --> 00:18:23.519 the album of being derivative. He is looking 00:18:23.519 --> 00:18:27.000 at the landscape of 1966. Aretha Franklin and 00:18:27.000 --> 00:18:29.259 Dinah Washington were the undisputed titans of 00:18:29.259 --> 00:18:32.059 that soulful, blues -driven sound. Friedwald 00:18:32.059 --> 00:18:34.279 is essentially arguing that Lee Majed, acting 00:18:34.279 --> 00:18:37.099 as the manager producer, looked at what was dominating 00:18:37.099 --> 00:18:39.480 the market, looked at his artists and said, we 00:18:39.480 --> 00:18:41.279 need you to sound exactly like them. What on 00:18:41.279 --> 00:18:44.299 this costume? Precisely. He is criticizing the 00:18:44.299 --> 00:18:47.380 album, not for lacking talent. He actually concedes 00:18:47.380 --> 00:18:49.279 in his review that her performance on the ballads 00:18:49.279 --> 00:18:52.259 is outstanding, but for lacking originality. 00:18:53.200 --> 00:18:55.940 He views the up -tempo blues tracks as a calculated 00:18:55.940 --> 00:18:59.170 costume rather than a genuine evolution. And 00:18:59.170 --> 00:19:01.210 that sentiment seems to be echoed by the broader 00:19:01.210 --> 00:19:03.869 retrospective community. If we look at the aggregator 00:19:03.869 --> 00:19:07.549 AllMusic, they handed the album a dismal two 00:19:07.549 --> 00:19:10.250 out of five stars. Ouch. And perhaps the most 00:19:10.250 --> 00:19:12.029 damning part of that rating is that they didn't 00:19:12.029 --> 00:19:14.150 even bother to write a review to justify it. 00:19:14.190 --> 00:19:17.130 It was just quietly relegated to two -star status. 00:19:17.329 --> 00:19:19.869 A silent two -star rating from an archival site 00:19:19.869 --> 00:19:22.230 suggests that they view the album as inessential. 00:19:22.430 --> 00:19:25.569 a footnote in her broader career rather than 00:19:25.569 --> 00:19:27.809 a defining masterpiece. So you have this incredible 00:19:27.809 --> 00:19:30.450 tension. A manager produces an album that is 00:19:30.450 --> 00:19:32.970 lauded as an exciting raunchy chart contender 00:19:32.970 --> 00:19:36.289 in its own era, but is later dismissed as a pandering 00:19:36.289 --> 00:19:39.369 jukeboxy imitation by the gatekeepers of jazz 00:19:39.369 --> 00:19:42.190 history. It's a fascinating paradox. But regardless 00:19:42.190 --> 00:19:44.410 of how history would eventually judge it, in 00:19:44.410 --> 00:19:48.210 the spring of 1966, ABC Paramount had a product 00:19:48.210 --> 00:19:51.029 to sell. And the mechanics of how they sold it, 00:19:51.089 --> 00:19:53.859 the physical rollout of the artifact is just 00:19:53.859 --> 00:19:56.920 as fascinating as the music itself. Let's examine 00:19:56.920 --> 00:19:59.500 the single strategy. The life cycle of an album 00:19:59.500 --> 00:20:03.019 in the 1960s was entirely dependent on the strategic 00:20:03.019 --> 00:20:05.619 deployment of singles. You didn't just put the 00:20:05.619 --> 00:20:07.519 record on shelves and hope for the best. You 00:20:07.519 --> 00:20:09.680 had to actively work the market over a period 00:20:09.680 --> 00:20:12.279 of months. And their opening move is very telling. 00:20:12.720 --> 00:20:15.940 In February 1966, the exact same month the full 00:20:15.940 --> 00:20:18.619 LP hits the market, they release the lead single. 00:20:18.960 --> 00:20:21.569 The A -side they choose is Taint nobody's business 00:20:21.569 --> 00:20:24.140 if I do. Choosing that specific standard as the 00:20:24.140 --> 00:20:26.559 lead single is a highly calculated, relatively 00:20:26.559 --> 00:20:28.720 safe choice. It's familiar. It is an established 00:20:28.720 --> 00:20:31.279 blues classic. It immediately communicates this 00:20:31.279 --> 00:20:33.700 stylistic pivot of the album to radio programmers. 00:20:33.980 --> 00:20:36.779 It's recognizable, it's comfortable, and it provides 00:20:36.779 --> 00:20:38.960 an easy on -ramp for listeners. But the B -side 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:41.160 is where the real strategy lies. The B -side 00:20:41.160 --> 00:20:43.319 to that February single is, I ain't ready for 00:20:43.319 --> 00:20:46.259 that. Which, as we discussed earlier, is one 00:20:46.259 --> 00:20:48.579 of the tracks credited to Dee Reese. This is 00:20:48.579 --> 00:20:51.339 a classic industry Trojan horse. I love that 00:20:51.339 --> 00:20:53.880 concept. Let's explore how that actually works. 00:20:54.240 --> 00:20:56.059 The label knows that radio stations are going 00:20:56.059 --> 00:20:58.480 to play the A side. People are going to buy the 00:20:58.480 --> 00:21:01.619 45 RPM record for the classic standard they recognize. 00:21:02.559 --> 00:21:05.200 But once that physical piece of vinyl is in the 00:21:05.200 --> 00:21:07.500 consumer's home, they are inevitably going to 00:21:07.500 --> 00:21:08.920 flip it over. You're going to play the other 00:21:08.920 --> 00:21:11.740 side eventually. Exactly. By placing Reese's 00:21:11.740 --> 00:21:14.359 original composition on the B side of the lead 00:21:14.359 --> 00:21:17.319 single, they are guaranteeing that millions of 00:21:17.319 --> 00:21:20.019 people will be exposed to her songwriting. It 00:21:20.019 --> 00:21:22.779 is a way of forcing her original artistry into 00:21:22.779 --> 00:21:25.599 the market, riding on the coattails of a safe 00:21:25.599 --> 00:21:28.660 cover song. It's brilliant. It serves the commercial 00:21:28.660 --> 00:21:31.140 need for a hit while simultaneously serving the 00:21:31.140 --> 00:21:34.019 artist's need for creative validation. And then 00:21:34.019 --> 00:21:36.000 we see the pacing of the rollout. They let the 00:21:36.000 --> 00:21:38.460 February single do its work, they let the album 00:21:38.460 --> 00:21:40.779 percolate in the culture, and they wait until 00:21:40.779 --> 00:21:43.319 June 1966 to strike again with the follow -up 00:21:43.319 --> 00:21:46.059 single. That four -month delta is a masterclass 00:21:46.059 --> 00:21:48.619 in extending the commercial lifespan of a project. 00:21:48.799 --> 00:21:51.400 In June, they release, if it's the last thing 00:21:51.400 --> 00:21:53.799 I do, as the A -side. This is one of the tracks 00:21:53.799 --> 00:21:56.420 penned by D. Washington. And they back it with 00:21:56.420 --> 00:21:59.900 a B -side called A Stranger on Earth. By June, 00:22:00.319 --> 00:22:02.779 the initial burst of album sales from the dedicated 00:22:02.779 --> 00:22:05.559 fan base has likely subsided. The first single 00:22:05.559 --> 00:22:07.720 has peaked and is falling off the radio rotation. 00:22:08.269 --> 00:22:10.630 Dropping a second single four months later is 00:22:10.630 --> 00:22:12.950 designed to reignite the entire campaign. It 00:22:12.950 --> 00:22:15.049 gives the sales team an excuse to call the record 00:22:15.049 --> 00:22:17.549 stores again. Exactly. It gives radio a fresh 00:22:17.549 --> 00:22:19.630 track for the summer, and it reminds the general 00:22:19.630 --> 00:22:22.710 public that the album exists. It proves that 00:22:22.710 --> 00:22:25.230 ABC Paramount was fully committed to working 00:22:25.230 --> 00:22:27.750 this blues -style pivot for the long haul. And 00:22:27.750 --> 00:22:29.549 their commitment wasn't just temporal, it was 00:22:29.549 --> 00:22:32.549 technological and geographical. The release formats 00:22:32.549 --> 00:22:34.690 alone tell a huge story about the state of the 00:22:34.690 --> 00:22:38.269 industry. In February 1966, ABC Paramount issued 00:22:38.269 --> 00:22:41.730 the LP in both mono and stereo formats simultaneously. 00:22:42.009 --> 00:22:45.009 This was a vital commercial necessity at that 00:22:45.009 --> 00:22:47.470 specific moment in time. The transition from 00:22:47.470 --> 00:22:50.549 monorail to scariophonic sound was not instantaneous. 00:22:50.869 --> 00:22:52.829 I think we often forget that. We assume once 00:22:52.829 --> 00:22:55.230 stereo was invented, everyone just switched overnight. 00:22:55.549 --> 00:22:58.309 Far from it. Stereo was the premium product. 00:22:58.599 --> 00:23:01.519 It offered spatial separation, a richer, more 00:23:01.519 --> 00:23:04.019 immersive listening experience for audiophiles 00:23:04.019 --> 00:23:06.980 who could afford the new expensive home console 00:23:06.980 --> 00:23:09.200 setups. The fancy living room setups. Right. 00:23:09.579 --> 00:23:12.200 But mono was still the undisputed king of mass 00:23:12.200 --> 00:23:15.500 consumption. AM radio stations, which drove the 00:23:15.500 --> 00:23:18.420 majority of single sales, broadcast entirely 00:23:18.420 --> 00:23:21.500 in mono. Millions of teenagers and casual listeners 00:23:21.500 --> 00:23:24.619 only had inexpensive mono record players. So 00:23:24.619 --> 00:23:27.480 if you only release in stereo, you are alienating 00:23:27.480 --> 00:23:29.859 a massive percentage of your potential buyers. 00:23:30.319 --> 00:23:32.740 Precisely. By absorbing the significant cost 00:23:32.740 --> 00:23:35.380 of mastering, pressing, and distributing two 00:23:35.380 --> 00:23:37.859 separate versions of the album, ABC Paramount 00:23:37.859 --> 00:23:39.920 was ensuring that they captured every single 00:23:39.920 --> 00:23:42.019 dollar available in the marketplace. They were 00:23:42.019 --> 00:23:43.539 covering all their bases. And they were covering 00:23:43.539 --> 00:23:46.299 the globe, too. The distribution network for 00:23:46.299 --> 00:23:48.700 this album was immense. It wasn't just a domestic 00:23:48.700 --> 00:23:51.400 release on ABC Paramount. The record was also 00:23:51.400 --> 00:23:53.579 distributed internationally through labels like 00:23:53.579 --> 00:23:56.240 His Master's Voice and Ampar. The involvement 00:23:56.240 --> 00:23:59.980 of His Master's Voice HMV is particularly significant. 00:24:00.200 --> 00:24:04.640 That label had massive cultural cache and distribution 00:24:04.640 --> 00:24:07.220 power in the United Kingdom and across Europe. 00:24:07.660 --> 00:24:10.519 Huge reach. Ampar functioned as the international 00:24:10.519 --> 00:24:13.759 arm for ABC. This demonstrates that the label 00:24:13.759 --> 00:24:17.400 didn't view Delarise's blues pivot as a localized 00:24:17.400 --> 00:24:19.960 American experiment. They believed that this 00:24:19.960 --> 00:24:23.319 exciting raunchy sound had international viability. 00:24:23.519 --> 00:24:27.140 They were exporting the 1966 American blues pop 00:24:27.140 --> 00:24:29.440 aesthetic to the rest of the world. Which makes 00:24:29.440 --> 00:24:31.619 the final piece of the album's physical legacy 00:24:31.619 --> 00:24:34.319 so incredibly satisfying. Because for all the 00:24:34.319 --> 00:24:36.420 international distribution and all the contemporary 00:24:36.420 --> 00:24:39.160 trade magazine hype, we know that history eventually 00:24:39.160 --> 00:24:41.799 marginalized the album. The Jazz Purists won 00:24:41.799 --> 00:24:44.099 the historical narrative. Right. The two -star 00:24:44.099 --> 00:24:46.400 news and the jukeboxy insults took their toll, 00:24:46.799 --> 00:24:48.940 but the album refused to disappear entirely. 00:24:49.259 --> 00:24:51.079 For all the vinyl crate diggers and physical 00:24:51.079 --> 00:24:53.420 media purists out there listening, this record 00:24:53.420 --> 00:24:56.220 actually had a resurrection. It did. The archival 00:24:56.220 --> 00:24:59.339 data shows a very specific, very telling reissue. 00:24:59.619 --> 00:25:03.400 Soca 1984, an astonishing 18 years after it was 00:25:03.400 --> 00:25:05.799 initially released, I like it like that, was 00:25:05.799 --> 00:25:08.740 reissued on the Jasmine label. If we connect 00:25:08.740 --> 00:25:10.779 this to the bigger picture of musical legacy, 00:25:11.480 --> 00:25:14.599 a reissue on a label like Jasmine speaks volumes. 00:25:14.940 --> 00:25:17.759 Because they aren't a massive corporate conglomerate 00:25:17.759 --> 00:25:20.480 looking for a guaranteed platinum hit. Exactly. 00:25:21.000 --> 00:25:23.420 Jasmine was a label that specialized in catering 00:25:23.420 --> 00:25:26.839 to highly specific, dedicated niches of jazz 00:25:26.839 --> 00:25:29.500 and vocal enthusiasts. The fact that they chose 00:25:29.500 --> 00:25:32.140 to license, remaster, and physically press this 00:25:32.140 --> 00:25:35.519 specific album in 1984 means that a market still 00:25:35.519 --> 00:25:37.700 existed for it. someone still wanted to buy it. 00:25:37.960 --> 00:25:40.440 It means that Will Friedwald's assessment, while 00:25:40.440 --> 00:25:42.980 valid from a critical standpoint, didn't represent 00:25:42.980 --> 00:25:45.220 the entirety of the listening public. It proves 00:25:45.220 --> 00:25:47.240 that there were people in the mid -1980s who 00:25:47.240 --> 00:25:49.940 didn't care if the album was a calculated manager 00:25:49.940 --> 00:25:52.559 -driven attempt to evoke Aretha Franklin. They 00:25:52.559 --> 00:25:54.920 just wanted to hear Della Reese belt out Traveling 00:25:54.920 --> 00:25:57.680 Light and Every Evening Blues. The sheer power 00:25:57.680 --> 00:26:00.420 of her performance outlasted the cynical context 00:26:00.420 --> 00:26:02.920 of its creation. It is the ultimate vindication 00:26:02.920 --> 00:26:06.000 for the artist. Critics can dissect the intentions 00:26:06.000 --> 00:26:08.460 of the producer, they can mock the typographical 00:26:08.460 --> 00:26:11.079 errors of the trade magazines, but they cannot 00:26:11.079 --> 00:26:13.240 erase the emotional connection a listener makes 00:26:13.240 --> 00:26:17.339 with the vinyl. The 1984 reissue proves that 00:26:17.339 --> 00:26:20.099 the jukeboxy sound Lee majored chased actually 00:26:20.099 --> 00:26:23.470 had enduring undeniable appeal. It really forces 00:26:23.470 --> 00:26:26.390 you to reevaluate the entire concept of a commercial 00:26:26.390 --> 00:26:29.529 compromise. So we have pulled apart every thread 00:26:29.529 --> 00:26:32.910 of this 1966 artifact. We started with an artist 00:26:32.910 --> 00:26:35.089 sitting at the absolute peak of the pop tarts 00:26:35.089 --> 00:26:37.390 at RCA Victor, and we followed her through a 00:26:37.390 --> 00:26:40.029 strategic label jump to ABC Paramount. We debated 00:26:40.029 --> 00:26:42.109 the inherent friction of Lee Majors replacing 00:26:42.109 --> 00:26:44.430 Bob Thiel. Navigating the treacherous waters 00:26:44.430 --> 00:26:46.549 of being both the business manager and the creative 00:26:46.549 --> 00:26:48.829 producer. We analyzed the architecture of the 00:26:48.829 --> 00:26:51.579 track list from the anchoring weight of to the 00:26:51.579 --> 00:26:53.799 strategic deployment of her own original writing. 00:26:54.039 --> 00:26:56.299 We experienced the critical whiplash, standing 00:26:56.299 --> 00:26:58.299 in the crossfire between the chart honor predictions 00:26:58.299 --> 00:27:01.420 of Cashbox and the overly jukeboxy dismissals 00:27:01.420 --> 00:27:04.279 of later historians. And finally, we tracked 00:27:04.279 --> 00:27:06.960 the physical vinyl itself from its dual mono 00:27:06.960 --> 00:27:09.380 stereo launch through its four -month single 00:27:09.380 --> 00:27:12.000 strategy, all the way to its quiet resurrection 00:27:12.000 --> 00:27:15.630 on the Jasmine label in 1984. So what does this 00:27:15.630 --> 00:27:18.369 all mean for you, the listener? Why does dissecting 00:27:18.369 --> 00:27:22.309 a forgotten pivot from 1966 matter to how we 00:27:22.309 --> 00:27:25.230 understand music today? It matters because the 00:27:25.230 --> 00:27:27.750 mechanics of the industry have evolved, but human 00:27:27.750 --> 00:27:30.829 nature and corporate strategy have not. The story 00:27:30.829 --> 00:27:34.089 of I Like It Like Dat is the definitive blueprint 00:27:34.089 --> 00:27:36.690 for understanding how an artist's catalog is 00:27:36.690 --> 00:27:40.390 actually built. It is never just a magical, uninterrupted 00:27:40.390 --> 00:27:43.430 flow of pure inspiration. It is a grueling series 00:27:43.430 --> 00:27:46.170 of calculated risks. It involves label executives 00:27:46.170 --> 00:27:48.869 demanding a return on investment, managers trying 00:27:48.869 --> 00:27:51.309 to secure relevance in a rapidly changing market, 00:27:51.710 --> 00:27:53.410 and artists trying to slip their own authentic 00:27:53.410 --> 00:27:55.529 voice into the gaps between the cover songs. 00:27:55.710 --> 00:27:57.789 What a critic deems a derivative failure might 00:27:57.789 --> 00:28:00.109 just be the exact sound a niche audience will 00:28:00.109 --> 00:28:02.630 cherish for decades. This raises an important 00:28:02.630 --> 00:28:04.349 question and it is the thought I want to leave 00:28:04.349 --> 00:28:06.730 you with today. We have spent this deep dive 00:28:06.730 --> 00:28:09.710 dissecting how a 1966 attempt to capture the 00:28:09.710 --> 00:28:12.690 popular blues sound was retrospectively attacked 00:28:12.690 --> 00:28:15.309 for being too commercial, for trying too hard 00:28:15.309 --> 00:28:18.650 to evoke the titans of the era. At what exact 00:28:18.650 --> 00:28:20.849 point does adapting to the cultural zeitgeist 00:28:20.849 --> 00:28:23.490 stop being viewed as a brilliant strategic move 00:28:23.490 --> 00:28:26.910 by a manager and start being condemned as a hollow 00:28:26.910 --> 00:28:29.529 artistic compromise? The line between brilliant 00:28:29.529 --> 00:28:32.809 pivot and jukeboxy pandering is razor thin. It 00:28:32.809 --> 00:28:35.349 is almost invisible. So the next time you are 00:28:35.349 --> 00:28:37.349 listening to the reigning pop star of our current 00:28:37.349 --> 00:28:39.549 era, the artist currently dominating the streaming 00:28:39.549 --> 00:28:41.950 charts, and they suddenly announce a pivot into 00:28:41.950 --> 00:28:44.049 a completely new genre, whether it's a country 00:28:44.049 --> 00:28:46.589 album, a dance record, or a rock revival, ask 00:28:46.589 --> 00:28:48.849 yourself this. When the historians look back 00:28:48.849 --> 00:28:51.289 at this moment in 50 years, will they praise 00:28:51.289 --> 00:28:54.250 the artist as a fearless, genre -defying visionary? 00:28:54.650 --> 00:28:56.410 Or will they look at the producers, look at the 00:28:56.410 --> 00:28:58.029 market trends, and dismiss the whole project 00:28:58.029 --> 00:29:01.269 as an overly jukeboxy attempt to cash in on the 00:29:01.269 --> 00:29:03.400 sound of the moment? History is a harsh critic, 00:29:03.680 --> 00:29:06.019 but as we learned today, the music itself always 00:29:06.019 --> 00:29:08.619 has the final word. Thank you for joining us 00:29:08.619 --> 00:29:11.099 on this incredibly deep dive. Keep questioning 00:29:11.099 --> 00:29:13.200 the consensus, keep looking past the reviews, 00:29:13.380 --> 00:29:15.599 and keep exploring the history hidden in the 00:29:15.599 --> 00:29:17.859 grooves of your favorite records. We will see 00:29:17.859 --> 00:29:18.539 you next time.