The Definitive 1000 Songs Of All Time 1955 to 2005: Number 412

Number 412

Phoebe Snow

"Every Night"

(1978)

.
.

411

.........Genre: R&B...........

413

1977:http://crowbarred1000.blogspot.com/search/label/1977

On the right is an image for the year 1977, which has been compiled from what has appeared so far in The Definitive 1000. Now, I have been tinkering with the year 1977, no not in a God like manner [because why would i pick 1977? c'mon] but rather try an interesting experiment [nay, feature] with not only linking all the songs from the year in the countdown to their respective pages but to add the music so you can hear it without leaving the page. This concept should make for an interesting play list! One day i will get around to the other years but for the moment its 1977 ......... Let me know what you think? You might have an idea to ask me to link the songs to the videos too [why did i say that for?-Doh] ~ crowbarred

remember me?
Renowned for her elastic contralto and jazz scat vocal gymnastics, singer Phoebe Snow was born Phoebe Laub on July 17, 1952, in New York City. During her childhood in Teaneck, NJ, she initially studied piano, but switched to the guitar in her teens, writing poetry that gradually mutated into her first songs. Overcoming her stage fright, Snow began playing Greenwich Village clubs in the early '70s, honing an eclectic set that spotlighted both folk and pop sounds as well as jazz, blues, and even torch songs. After signing to Leon Russell's Shelter label, Snow issued her self-titled debut LP in 1974; on the strength of her Top Five smash "Poetry Man," the album itself rose to the number four position. A tour with Paul Simon followed, along with an appearance on his hit "Gone at Last"; after returning to the studio, Snow emerged in 1976 with Second Childhood, another highly successful effort that, like its predecessor, achieved gold-selling status. Despite a flurry of records throughout the latter half of the decade, including 1977's It Looks Like Snow, 1977's Never Letting Go, and 1978's Against the Grain, Snow receded from view as the 1980s dawned, and following the release of 1981's Rock Away, she did not record again for eight years.

Circa 21st century

Upon signing to Elektra, Snow resurfaced in 1989 with Something Real, followed by a series of New York club appearances as a member of ex-Steely Dan frontman Donald Fagen's all-star New York Rock and Soul Revue. Apart from lending her voice to a number of radio and television advertisements, Snow again fell silent in subsequent years, although in 1994 she appeared at Woodstock with a gospel group additionally comprised of Mavis Staples, CeCe Peniston, and Thelma Houston. Three albums were recorded and released during the late '90s and the 2000s: 1998's I Can't Complain, 2003's Natural Wonder, and 2008's Live in Woodstock. ~ [Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide]

Every Night?

Phoebe Snow should have, could have, had hits with her covers of Paul McCartney's "Every Night" and the Roches' "The Married Men," but by her fourth Columbia album and fifth release overall, the company seems to have been content to let her records find their audience without pushing them. (Actually, "Every Night" did hit number 79 in the U.K.) Maybe they'd given up trying to figure out whether she was a folk singer, a pop singer, a soul singer, or a jazz singer, and forgot that she was a great singer. The decision to add Barry Beckett as co-producer with Phil Ramone helped add an R&B depth and fervor, but Against the Grain was just a more impassioned effort than its predecessor. That didn't keep Columbia from dropping Phoebe Snow when it didn't hit, though. ~ [William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide]

For Paul Simon see Number 468 & #742

For Steely Dan see Number 463 & #907

For Paul McCartney see Number 583

So, What does RS think of Phoebe Snow?

Unlike her fellow Jersey rebel, Bruce Springsteen, Phoebe Snow connected directly with her audience the first time out. Her debut recording received almost no advertising and publicity, yet it climbed, slowly but inexorably, into the Top Ten. And unlike Patti Smith, the other Jersey-bred new star of the last Jersey-dominated year, Snow made her mark without having to perform for a cult audience. In fact, she hardly performed at all. She dropped from sight after a short tour with Jackson Browne and then, while Columbia fought with Shelter, her first record company, for exclusive rights to her future, she got married, got pregnant, had a baby and wrote most of the original songs on Second Childhood. from the review of "Second Childhood" ~ [Source: RS 210 1976]

For Bruce Springsteen see Number 817

Rolling Stone magazine deemed their '412th Song of all Time' was "Ode to Billie Joe" by Bobby Gentry. Bobby Gentry has not appeared in The Definitive 1000

Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs ranked this song at Number (On our cover? When?) and the Album ranked at Number (How come we don't remember her then?)

This song has a total Definitive rating of 78.2 out of 108