Sure sign of Spring…

There are more inches of snow on the ground than I’d like to admit, and the temperature this morning was 9 degrees… but…

As I work today, I bask in the glow of the first Spring Training game on the radio. The Indians are winning, the multitude of great young prospects are on display, and until the last strike is called, all is right with the world.

Go Tribe!

Stressed? Victim of a stroke? We can help!

I have always contended that Americans are overstressed and need a “trip to yesterday” every now and then to decompress. Our “tag line” is that our music will take you back to a time when you didn’t have a care in the world.

A new medical study, published today validates my suspicions and takes it even further.

A daily dose of one’s favorite pop melodies, classical music or jazz can speed recovery from debilitating strokes.

When stroke patients in Finland listened to music for a couple of hours each day, verbal memory and attention span improved significantly compared to patients who received no musical stimulation, or who listened only to stories read aloud,the study reported.

Those exposed to music also experienced less depression than the other two control groups.

Three months after a stroke, verbal memory was boosted by 60 percent in music listeners, and by 29 percent n non-listeners. The differences held true after six months as well.

The lead author of this study, published in the Oxford University Press Journal Brain, is Teppo Sarkamo, a neuroscientist at Helsinki University.

Sarkamo’s findings bolster a growing body of research pointing to the benefits of music and music therapy for conditions including autism, schizophrenia and dementia.

But this is the first time music alone has been shown to have a positive effect on victims of brain injury such as stroke, he said.

“Everyday music listening during early stroke recovery offers a valuable addition to the patients’ care, especially if other active forms of rehabilitation are not yet feasible,” said Sarkamo.

Sixty victims of left or right hemisphere cerebral artery strokes were randomly divided into the three groups in a single-blind trial between March 2004 and May 2006.

Most of the patients, whose average age was just under 60, had problems with movement, as well as cognitive processes such as memory and focusing their attention.

Every day one group listened to at least two hours of self-selected music, “The idea was to include only music with lyrics the patients could understand,” said Sarkamo. A second group listened to audio books, and a third to neither.

The 54 patients who completed the study were subjected to a battery of cognitive and psychological tests.

Sarkamo speculates that three mechanisms in the brain account for the startling impact of song and melody.

One is an enhanced arousal of a part of the brain implicated in feelings of pleasure and reward that is stimulated by the release of dopamine, a hormone and neurotransmitter.

Previous research has shown that increased dopamine enhances alertness, speed of information processing, attention, and memory in healthy humans.

Music also directly stimulates the damaged areas of the brain, as well as the more general mechanisms related to “brain plasticity,” the ability of the brain to repair and renew its neural networks after damage.

Sarkamo cautioned that his findings should be replicated by other larger-scale clinical trials before music is systematically integrated into the recovery regimen of stroke patients.

And music listening may not work for all stroke victims, he cautioned.

But if validated, the study points to an easy and cost-effective therapy for recovering stroke patients.

When you hear certain songs, you’re right back at the Prom, or in your best friends basement listening to 45’s, or enjoying Grandma’s apple pie. Forget the troubles of the day, three minutes at a time… you’ll feel better after you click here —> TUNEDEX MEMORIES

Baby Steps…

The past two weeks have been a BLUR. Between readying more cuts for the play list and working with software support, the days have just flown by. I’m happy to report that graphics as well as supporting information about each cut (if I’ve entered them) is now finally being displayed at our website at http://songsyoushouldhaveheard.com

I prepare each file individually and when I have pictures and comments, enter them into the .mp3 header. This is known as “tagging”. Several support sessions have been necessary to get us to this point. The program comes with a standard “template” which includes many corny graphics and buttons for Amazon.com. It was never my intention to create this station to sell CD’s. Besides, more than half of what we play cannot be easily obtained.

50’s and 60’s artists seem to fade in and out of availability. Many of the CD’s that have the songs you’re looking for are foreign pressings from vinyl. Only the larger labels like Ace and Bear Family buy the rights for the original studio material. Sadly, this is due in part to a lack of interest here in the states. The interest in this music is still very strong in Europe, Japan and Australia. Thanks to the Internet, we’ll be serving those markets with a lot of material they never heard and didn’t know existed.

If you’ve followed the videos I’ve posted here at the blog, you know that I’ve got a few vintage commercials in the collection. I knew that YouTube would provide to me the audio I was seeking. Ironically, in a two day period, three listeners actually asked me if I could add some old commercials to the broadcast. Great minds think alike I guess, because I had already had a stack of them done. When I get a couple hundred put together, I will add them and intersperse them in the rotation. Much like the vintage radio jingles, they will add another shot of nostalgia and bring back the memories.

It took a long time to get to this point. I’m more interested in creating the sound I’ve heard in my head over the last 10 years or so as opposed to “rushing to market” too quickly with the station not what I wanted it to be. So once again, please be patient, and also, please send me follow-up comments.

Chuck Benjamin

Chubby Checker – Still Twistin’

Go to Chubby’s website, aptly entitled http://chubbychecker.com and you’ll find 30 second snippets of his songs. There’s also a great discography section with pictures of all his original picture sleeves and URL’s to see Chubby on YouTube. Chubby’s back on the charts with “Knock Down The Walls” which you can get at Amazon.com and Itunes.com. “The Twist” climbed to #1 in both 1960 and 1962, an accomplishment still unique in Billboard history.

Chubby’s one of our favorites – listen for him on TUNEDEX MEMORIES!

Play List Adds 2/08

2/26/08

Joey & the Continentals – Rudy Vadoo • A local Cleveland band that also recorded under the name the G.T.O.’s. This song you should have heard was on Claridge in 1965.

Impalas – Oh What A Fool • Peaking at #86 on the Hot 100 back in 1959 – the follow-up 45 on Cub to “Sorry (I Ran All The Way Home).

Paris Sisters – Lonely Girl • The fabulous flipside of the girls version of Dream Lover. Smash records from 1964.

2/25/08

Angels – Little Beatle Boy • A 1964 song you should have heard on Smash records.

Annette – Ma He’s Makin’ Eyes At Me • The fabulous flipside of “Tall Paul” on Disneyland records from 1959.

Velvets – Laugh • The follow-up to “Tonight” and the only other Hot 100 song by the group. Virgil Johnson on lead for this Monument recording that peaked at #90.

2/16/08

Peaches & Herb – The Ten Commandments Of Love • Peaking at number 55 back in 1966, this is the third of four versions of this song to hit the Hot 100.

Four Graduates – May I Have This Dance • With Bob Miranda on lead, here is a 1964 song you should have heard from the group that evolved into the Happenings.

Everly Brothers – So It Was (So It Always Will Be) • Don and Phil give us a 1963 effort that bubbled under at position 116 for Warner Brothers.

2/15/08

Four Lovers – Girl In My Dreams • This group led by Frankie Valli evolved into the Four Seasons when joined by Bob Gaudio from the Royal Teens. This is the fabulous flipside of the 1956 RCA-Victor charted single “Apple Of My Eye”.

Jeffrey Foskett – Through My Window • A very talented singer/songwriter who tours with the Beach Boys and Papa Do Run Run. This song you should have heard was released in 1996, but has ALL the classic qualities and sound of a Beach Boys classic.

Lovin’ Spoonful – Me About You • This song peaked at number 91 on the Hot 100 back in 1969. The writers tried hard though, as it also charted by the Mojo Men, and bubbled under in 1970 by the Turtles.

2/14/08

Cumberland Three – Come Along Julie • This group featured a young John Stewart, emulating the sound of the Kingston Trio. This song you should have heard was on Roulette records.

Gisele MacKenzie – The Star You Wished Upon Last Night • This song peaked at number 42 on the Hot 100 1n 1956 for the former “Hit Parade” singer.

Marcy Jo & Eddie Rambeau – The Lover’s Medley • This dynamic duo bubbled under the Hot 100 chart at position 132 with this Swan label 45.

2/13/08

Sue Thompson – If The Boy Only Knew • This was the 1962 fabulous flipside of “Have A Good Time” on Hickory records.

Royal Guardsmen – Wednesday • This song peaked at #97 on the Hot 100 by the group unfairly labeled as a “novelty” act .

Norman Fox & the Rob Roys – Dream Girl • A classic doo wop song you should have heard from the Capitol label back in 1959.

2/12/08

Elegants – It’s Just A Matter Of Time • This song you should have heard is an unreleased ABC-Paramount cut with Vito Piccone on lead. It was released on 45 in 1974 on the Bim-Bam-Boom label.

Neil Diamond – Two-Bit Manchild • This Uni label 45 hit the Hot 100 back in 1968, peaking at number 66.

Dion – Little Miss Blue • This was the fabulous flipside of “Lonely Teenager” – Laurie 45, 1960.

Hear all these songs and more on TUNEDEX MEMORIES!