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“Songs In The Key of Life” A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Oct 4 One of the all-time great albums dropped 50 years ago this week: Stevie Wonder’s “Songs In The Key of Life.” It is our reason to smile. The groundbreaking, double album immediately went to No. 1, where it stayed for 13 weeks. It won the Grammy for Album of the Year. The Library of Congress deemed it “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” when it was inducted into the National Recording Registry. It is one of the best-selling albums of all time. Wonder, a musical prodigy, signed with Motown Records when he was just 11 years old and had his first hit at 13. The genre-spanning singer-songwriter soon abandoned the Motown sound in favor of one driven by keyboards and synthesizers to produce his own brand of soul, R&B, pop, funk, and gospel. All of which can be heard on “Songs In The Key of Life.” The album is stuffed with so many big hits and hidden gems, it was hard to pick just one. We deci...

  “I’ll Be There For You” A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Sep 27 Credit: Getty Images The theme song for the hit sitcom “Friends” is a famous earworm for a reason. It is an infectious, upbeat anthem to friendship. We were reminded of “I’ll Be There For You” because the show, which ran for ten seasons on NBC, premiered 32 years ago this week. The song and its famous hand claps are this week’s reason to smile. It is hard to believe that it’s been more than three decades since Chandler, Joey, Monica, Phoebe, Rachel, and Ross over-caffeinated at Central Perk, and three decades since we first heard The Rembrandts’ theme song, which was an accidental hit for the duo. “Friends” creators David Crane and Marta Kauffman originally asked the band R.E.M. to use their ode to happiness, “Shiny Happy People,” for the theme song. When the creators got turned down, they decided to write their own song with the help of professional songwriter Alee Willis. Crane and Kauffman said they l...

‘Thank God I'm A Country Boy’ A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Mar 8 Credit: Getty Images Happy Sunday! This week’s reason to smile is one of those toe-tapping, infectious, high-energy songs that you may not know the words to, but by the second verse, you’re singing along just the same. It is John Denver’s celebration of all things country, “Thank God I’m a Country Boy.” The song was written by John Martin Sommers, a member of Denver’s band, in December 1973. Denver recorded it 52 years ago today. It simultaneously reached number one on the country charts as well as the Hot 100. The song is a classic Texas two-step, which may account for why it makes you feel like getting up to swing your partner. You can feel the audience buy-in during this live performance, driven by Denver’s joyful vocals and his fast-paced fiddle, replacing his ubiquitous guitar. Denver was one of the most popular and best-selling country and folk singer-songwriters of the 1970s. AllMusic has c...

Roger Daltrey A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Mar 1 Credit: Getty Images During a German bombing raid of London 82 years ago today, Irene Daltrey gave birth to a baby boy. Her son became rock legend Roger Daltrey, whose powerful voice and charismatic stage presence made The Who one of the most influential bands of the 20th century. Daltrey is this week’s reason to smile. Almost every major music award and accolade has been bestowed on Daltrey and his bandmates — Pete Townshend, Keith Moon, and John Entwistle. In addition to winning multiple Grammys, the band was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Daltrey and Townshend were given Kennedy Center Honors, and Daltrey was included on  Rolling Stone’ s list of 100 greatest singers. Most recently, he was knighted by King Charles III. The Who had numerous hit songs, but we chose “My Generation” to highlight because it captures the exuberance and revolutionary spirit of the 1960s. Maybe it will inspire th...

  ‘Stand by Me’ A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Feb 22 The song “Stand by Me” by Ben E. King was a huge hit when it was released in 1961. It found a second life in the late 1980s when it appeared on the soundtrack of “Stand by Me,” a film directed by Rob Reiner. Twenty-six years after the song was released, it topped the charts for a second time. And 39 years later, it is our reason to smile. King, a rhythm and blues singer-songwriter, was the lead singer of The Drifters, one of the most prolific hit-makers in the early days of popular music. Their songs included, “Under the Boardwalk,” “Save the Last Dance for Me,” and “Up on the Roof.” But not “Stand by Me.” King recorded and released it as a solo hit after the Drifters passed on it. The song isn’t just popular at weddings and graduation parties. It is numbered among the Recording Industry Association of America’s 25 Songs of the Century. The original recording was inducted into the National Recording Regis...

‘Everyday People’ A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Feb 15 Sly and the Family Stone. Credit: Getty Images “Everyday People” is a protest song wrapped in joy. The sunny pop song admonishes without anger, suggesting we celebrate our differences. It is a message many people need to hear right now. The song was released 57 years ago this weekend and became Sly and the Family Stone’s first No. 1 hit. It is this week’s reason to smile. The rock-pop-funk band emerged from the Bay Area in 1968, preaching a message of peace and equity. Sly and the Family Stone was the first racially integrated band in rock history. Their hit, “Everyday People,” reflected their ethos. Musically and lyrically, the song uses a variety of techniques to deliver its theme of inclusivity. The use of the cadence of the playground taunt “na na-na boo boo” mocks the futility of hating each other for being who we are. The song also includes the lyric “Different strokes for different folks,” cementing i...

  Joni Mitchell A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Feb 8 Credit: Getty Images Joni Mitchell, the Canadian-American singer-songwriter, is considered one of the all-time greats, and I agree. She effortlessly mixes folk, pop, jazz, and rock, blending them with her ethereal voice. She has been praised for her intimate lyrics and distinctive compositions. Mitchell is our reason to smile. Twenty-six years ago today, she released the album “Both Sides Now.” It included beautifully orchestrated covers of jazz standards and reimagined versions of two of her biggest hits, “A Case of You” and “Both Sides Now.” More than 30 years after releasing “Both Sides Now” on her “Clouds” album, she re-recorded the song with a full orchestra, but brought the key down to suit her new alto range. I am partial to her original, stripped-down version of the song, in her clear soprano, accompanied by only a guitar. This version was recorded in 1970 at the Isle of Wight Festival. Let us know...

Happy Birthday, Dolly! A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Jan 25 Credit: Getty Images Happy birthday to my dear friend, Dolly Parton. She turned 80 years young this week. To celebrate that milestone, she re-recorded one of my favorite songs of hers, “Light of a Clear Blue Morning.” It is our reason to smile. The new recording features some of music’s biggest stars, many of whom also happen to be Parton’s close friends: Miley Cyrus, Queen Latifah, Reba McEntire, and Lainey Wilson. David Foster is on piano, and the Christ Church Choir of Nashville provides beautiful harmonies. Parton wrote the song in 1976, calling it her “song of deliverance,” after a painful split from her longtime business partner Porter Wagoner. Of the new rendition, Parton said in a statement, “I wrote ‘Light of a Clear Blue Morning’ during a season when I was searching for hope, and 50 years later that message still feels just as true. As I celebrate my 80th birthday, this new version is my way o...

An Unlikely Friendship A Reason To Smile Dan Rather and Team Steady Jan 18 Credit: Getty Images While researching this week’s reason to smile, we came across an item about Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan. Fifty-seven years ago, the duo recorded Dylan’s “Girl From the North Country.” The duet appeared on Dylan’s  Nashville Skyline  album. The two  sang the song on the premiere episode of “The Johnny Cash Show,”  helping the album become a bestseller. It turns out that by the time they recorded the song, they had been great friends for years. In 1963, Cash became aware of Dylan when his breakout album  The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan  was released. “I thought he was one of the best country singers I had ever heard. I always felt a lot in common with him. I knew a lot about him before we had ever met,” Cash later said. The two became pen pals before they ever met in person. “I wrote him a letter telling him how much I liked his work. I got a letter back and we ...