Month: January 2023

Krezip Releases New Single and Announces New Album

“Krezip” is a Dutch band from “Tilburg” formed in 1997. They broke through, playing all original songs, at the nationally televised Pinkpop festival in 2000. The band has since had several successful albums and numerous hit singles in the Netherlands, as well as live success, playing at festivals in Belgium and Germany. In 2008 Krezip made headlines when they announced they would be breaking up in 2009. At that point, even though they had been active for 12 years, the band members’ average age was only 27.

On 28 January 2019, news broke that “Krezip” would return to the stage for Pinkpop 2019. That news was followed by a new single the following day and, later that year, a new album.

The band were planning to do only one reunion album accompanied by a short tour, however, the pandemic threw a spanner in the works. While Krezip waited to get back on stage, ideas for new music were born. Accordingly Krezip have announced another new album, called Any Day Now, is due to be released on 7 April 2023. Their brand new single, In The Water, is new this week on RadiJohan.

Tell Me Your Plans

“The Shirts” were formed in 1975 in Brooklyn, New York. The group made their record debut in 1976 with three songs on a compilation album, Live at CBGB. Their career really took off after singer “Annie Golden” played a role in the successful musical Hair. Their first album, The Shirts, was released in 1978 and included the single, Tell Me Your Plans. The song became a big hit, but only in the Netherlands, where it reached number 4 in the Top 40, and Belgium, reaching number 6.

The band went on to tour Europe opening for Peter Gabriel, at his request.

RadiJohan Top 10 on 28 January 2023

TWLWArtistTitle
104Dea MatronaRed Button
9NewSix60Never Been Tonight
810The White BuffaloNot Today
73Lewis Capaldi Pointless
68TenThe Tidal Wave
59Jelly RollShe
46Cats In Space1,000,000 Miles
35RouletteReady For Friday Night
21 Bishop BriggsSuperhuman
12Tuk Smith & The Restless HeartsEverybody Loves You When You’re Dead

Watch this week’s Top 10 by clicking the play button below.

If You Got a Problem, Billy Can Help

“Billy Swan” is an American country singer-songwriter who learned drums, piano and guitar and began writing songs as a child. He is best known for his 1974 single, I Can Help. The story goes that Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge had bought Billy Swan a small “RMI” organ as a wedding present. Billy was fiddling around with it when the chorus of I Can Help “appeared.” Twenty minutes later he had written the lyrics.

In the USA I Can Help topped the “US Billboard Hot 100” as well as reaching number 1 on the Country chart. The song was a hit throughout most of Europe and also reached number 1 in Australia and New Zealand.

I Can Help is generally recognized as being Billy Swan’s only major hit single release. However, he continued to have success as a songwriter for other artists and as a session musician.

A Reminder the Clock is Always Ticking

Austrian symphonic metal band “Visions of Atlantis” have released another single from their excellent 2022 album Pirates. Vocalist Clémentine Delauney states:

”We are so excited to be able to release a video for ”Clocks” as we love this song and we noticed that it quickly became one of our fans’ favorites as well! We could tell from the crowd’s response every time we started to play this song live last year! So here is a fun portrait of what enjoying life as a pirate can be about, remembering the clock is ticking… Let’s all make a golden play out of 2023!”

Clocks by Visions of Atlantis is new this week on RadiJohan.

Introducing Foxton and Hastings

Bruce Foxton is an English singer, songwriter and musician whose career in music spans more than 40 years. He came to prominence in the 1970’s as bassist and backing vocalist of “The Jam.” Between 1977 and 1982 The Jam released 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the United Kingdom including four number one hits.

Russell Hastings is a British guitarist and vocalist who teamed up with Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler (both former members of The Jam) and together formed “From The Jam” in 2007 to keep performing The Jam’s songs.

Foxton and Hastings have recorded three albums of original material together: 2012’s Back in the Room, 2016’s Smash the Clock and their new album, The Butterfly Effect.

Their new single, She Said, is new this week on RadiJohan.

Charlie Dore – Pilot of the Airwaves

Pilot of the Airwaves is a song by English singer-songwriter “Charlie Dore.” It was released in as a single in 1979 from her album Where to Now. This ode to an unnamed DJ became a big hit reaching number 13 on the US Billboard chart in 1980. The song also charted in Australia, New Zealand and Canada and, even though it received heavy airplay in the UK, it didn’t do nearly as well there.

This song is another example of a classic hit that is largely ignored by commercial radio today but still gets played on RadiJohan.

Jethro Tull Flötes On

Progressive Rock legends “Jethro Tull” will release their brand new album RökFlöte in April. The new album will be the follow-up to 2022’s The Zealot Gene, which gave Jethro Tull their first Top 10 album in the UK for 50 years. RökFlöte will be a 12-track album based on the characters and roles of some of the principle gods of the old Norse form of paganism, while at the same time exploring the “RökFlöte,” or rock flute, which Jethro Tull has made iconic. 

Jethro Tull are a British rock band formed in Blackpool, England, in 1967. The group’s leader, founder, primary composer, and only constant member is Ian Anderson, a multi-instrumentalist who mainly plays flute and acoustic guitar, and is also the lead vocalist.

The new album’s first single takes inspiration from the god Ymir, the proto-being, a primeval being, who was born from venom that dripped from the icy rivers called the Élivágar and lived in the grassless void of Ginnungagap.

Jethro Tull’s Ginnungagap, is new this week on RadiJohan.

RadiJohan Top 10 on 21 January 2023

TWLWArtistTitle
10NewThe White BuffaloNot Today
9NewJelly RollShe
810TenThe Tidal Wave
72Dermot KennedyKiss Me
66Cats In Space1,000,000 Miles
59RouletteReady For Friday Night
41Dea MatronaRed Button
35Lewis CapaldiPointless
23Tuk Smith & The Restless HeartsEverybody Loves You When You’re Dead
14Bishop BriggsSuperhuman

Watch this week’s Top 10 by clicking the play button below.

Saturday Night Fever Hits The World

This week in 1978 the soundtrack album to the movie “Saturday Night Fever,” starring John Travolta, hit number 1 in the US. It is one of the best-selling albums in history, and remains in the top 10 biggest-selling soundtracks of all time. The album stayed at number 1 of the US album chart for 24 straight weeks from January to July 1978 while in the UK it spent 18 at the top.

Producer Robert Stigwood approached the Bee Gees to write songs for the movie after its filming had already taken place. At the time the Bee Gees were working on producing their next album but, not wanting to let the opportunity pass them by, wrote a few songs during a weekend and tweaked some songs they had already started working on, including “Stayin’ Alive.