Alcorn McBride Knowledge Base

When we first designed the Digital Audio Machine we decided a fun way to show it off would be to hook it to our office phone system's music on hold input. Since our president, Steve Alcorn, is in charge of wasting time (among many other pressing duties), the task of selecting music fell to him. Some of his more memorable choices included Madonna's 'Spank Me' from Dick Tracy, and Monty Python's Cheese Shop routine. Over the years lots of callers complimented us on the selections, and a surprising number even asked to be put back on hold until the song ended! It was originally our plan to update the selections periodically, but that seemed like too much trouble, so we decided to wait until the hard drive in the old DAM died. So we waited. And waited. The damn thing wouldn't die. One night our building was hit by lighting, which blew up everything in the equipment closet. Except the DAM and its hard drive. Well, it's been more than ten years, and we don't even remember how to encode for MPEG-1 anymore, so by golly, we're changing this thing out whether it's dead or not. Since Steve is still in charge of wasting time (and is also now in charge of generating useless documentation), here is a list of our all-new music on hold, and why he chose it. (Incidentally, since the new AM4 in the closet uses CompactFlash, it might be a couple centuries before we update this list again...) 1963 - Rachael Yamagata - Happenstance My favorite iTunes feature is iMixes, which let you discover music that other listeners have put into playlists along with songs you already like. In a world where record label promotion is becoming rare, this is a great way for undiscovered artists to develop a fan base. I found Rachael while searching for people who liked Charlotte Martin, my favorite performer. A Better Place To Be - Harry Chapin - Greatest Stories Live This is Harry Chapin's best story-song. It's about kindness to strangers, even if they happen to be one-night stands. I really like this live version, even though he almost blows the first line! I hope you weren't on hold long enough to hear this entire nine-minute song. Alcorn McBride Promo - Alcorn McBride - mp3.com At one time this trance ditty was the top download on mp3.com. Alcorn McBride licensed it for our commercials, so it may sound familiar if you own one of our video products. All About Ruprecht - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels This Broadway show is based upon the movie. In All About Ruprecht, two con men attempt to discourage an amorous lady by pretending one of them has slightly frayed DNA. Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life - Monty Python's Spamalot Originally from Monty Python's Life of Brian, this number was reworked for the Broadway show. As Long as You're Mine - Wicked This is, simply put, the best musical ever written. I could have selected any number from the show, but this one makes the most sense as a stand-alone song. Breakfast at Tiffany's - Deep Blue Something - Home I love the odd start-and-stop syncopation of this alternative hit. Dance Ten, Looks Three - A Chorus Line This may be the only song ever written about plastic surgery. Don't be the Bunny - Urinetown, The Musical The only thing more remarkable than someone making a musical called Urinetown is that it was a hit. Driving (Acoustic Mix) - Everything But The Girl - Adapt or Die, 10 Years of Remixes A girl and a piano. What more could you want? Another iTunes discovery. Elaborate Sets (Aida Parody) - Forbidden Broadway - 2001 a Spoof Odyssey (The Un-Original Cast Recording) This series of CDs spoofs Broadway shows. Often their comedic renditions are performed as well as the original number; that's certainly the case with this parody of Disney's Aida. As you'll recall, that show had a troublesome hydraulic pyramid that was eliminated before the Broadway opening, but it survives in this parody. It's a great show, by the way. Emmanuelle In The Mirror - Pierre Bachelet - Emmanuelle Emmanuelle 2 Theme - Francis Lai - Emmanuelle 2 If you recognize these songs, shame on you. They're from the soft-porn Emmanuelle films. Enough To Be On Your Way - James Taylor - Hourglass It seemed like James Taylor came back from near-obscurity to record two of the best albums of the 90s. This is the only song I can think of that's about cremation. Fifty Ways to Kill Your Lover - Toxic Audio - Captive Audience I never liked the Pal Simon song much, but this parody by Orlando 'a cappella group' Captive Audience is quite funny. There are no sounds other than human voices in this recording. Flight of the Bumble Bee - Woody Phillips - Toolbox Classics Okay, if we get complaints about these songs, this will be the one. It's like spending two minutes at the dentist. Woody Phillips is an accomplished classical musician who also happens to like woodworking. He combined the two interests to make this recording, which uses only tools from his garage. Frankenstein - Marcus Miller featuring Kirk Whalum - Silver Rain I really like this jazz version of Edgar Winter's classic. The bass player is on fire. I also have a version of this song on accordion, but I decided to spare you. Grandma's Song - Billy Elliot The Musical This musical is based upon the surprise hit film about a coal miner's boy who wants to be a ballet dancer. The songs are by Elton John. I don't know if it will make the jump to Broadway, as this is the only song I could find with just one swear word in it. Has Been - William Shatner - Has Been It's ironic that William Shatner recorded his wonderful Has Been album right before his career took off again. I love a guy who doesn't take himself too seriously! Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh - Allan Sherman I remember this song from when I was a kid. I didn't like camp, either. In Parentheses - Charlotte Martin - In Parentheses Charlotte Martin is an incredible composer, singer and pianist. In fact, she's my favorite performer. Why isn't she famous? Go to iTunes right now and check her out! LA Song - Beth Hart - Screamin' For My Supper Okay, there's a good chance if you're reading this list that this is the song you're looking for. It's probably still stuck in your head, isn't it? I think a lot of us ex-Angelinos have these mixed feelings. Leave the Light On - Beth Hart - Leave the Light On This is a brilliant -- but very disturbing -- song about child abuse. Beth Hart is another of my iTunes discoveries, but the two selections here aren't representative of her usual style, which has been compared to Janis Joplin and Robert Plant, Mine to Remember - WAZ - Mine To Remember E.P. I associate this song with painting ceramics because it was on the bgm at Studio 6. One of the best alternative ballads of the 90s. Nocturne - Yo-Yo Ma - Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone Ennio Morricone is the composer of many spaghetti western sound tracks including The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, and Once Upon a Time in the West. Yo-Yo Ma can make a cello weep, and that's exactly what he does on this album of Ennio's movie scores. Notice Me, Horton - Seussical The Musical This is a darn good musical, although Cathy Rigby's national tour was better than this Broadway cast album. Relax (come fighting) - Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Welcome To The Pleasuredome Yes, this song is about orgasms. Roller Coaster Blues - Chase Masterson - Thrill Of The Chase I met Chase Masterson in Las Vegas, where she was promoting her two CDs at the StarTrek convention (Chase played one of the Dabo girls on Deep Space Nine). She's quite a charming person, although this is probably the filthiest song I've ever heard. Semi-Charmed Life - Third Eye Blind - Third Eye Blind A bouncy, somewhat raucous alternative number I included here just to wake you up. Also, this is as close as I get to listening to rap. She's so High - Tal Bachman - Tal Bachman I really like the falsetto vocal in this song, and the weird guitar riff. Take A Pebble Edit - Emerson Lake and Palmer - Emerson Lake and Palmer Keith Emerson isn't just Rock's best pianist, he's a world class pianist. He gets to strut his stuff on this ELP debut album, which also features some impressive Jazz drumming by Carl Palmer. Tangerine - Mike Jones - Stretches Out Mike Jones plays piano like he's two people. He's the warmup act for Penn and Teller, and Penn (in disguise) plays upright bass with him before the show. But there's only one piano on this track. Honest. Incidentally, this was recorded in front of a small audience who were told not to applaud, but they couldn't help themselves! Tenterfield Saddler - Hugh Jackman - The Boy from Oz When Hugh Jackman isn't being a wolverine, he's a pretty good Broadway performer. This touching song was written by Peter Allen, and is about his grandfather and father. Peter was married to Liza Minnelli at one time, and this autobiographical show is filled with songs from the 70s you'd recognize. I first heard this number performed by a lounge singer in Australia, and it has stuck with me all these years. The Cello War - Steve Alcorn - Original Music I've always loved cellos, and wrote this song myself in 1991 to answer the question, 'Would they make good weapons?' The Diva Dance - The Fifth Element - OST by Eric Serra The other reason you might be looking at this list is to figure out what this song was. It seems so familiar, and yet, where would you have heard a song that combined opera and electronics (and sung by someone blue)? In Bruce Willis' best movie, The Fifth Element. The Way You Look Tonight - Rod Stewart - It Had to Be You...The Great American Songbook I know, he can't sing. But I love Rod Stewart's version of this song. I used it as the soundtrack for a film about my daughter's school, and it still brings a tear to my eye. Trapelo Road - Jamie Robertson - No Excuse Jamie Robertson has worked with me at Disney, Linn, and Alcorn McBride, where he was one of the architects of our show control system. He's a great engineer, but an even better composer and guitarist. Visit him at robertsonics.com. Twisted - Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark Not your typical Joni Mitchell song. And why isn't there a driver on the top of double-decker buses, anyway? Walk Dance - Los Angeles Guitar Quartet - Air and Ground This song answers the question, 'What would happen if you drank an entire pot of coffee before your guitar solo?' Whispering Jesse - John Denver - The Harbor Lights Concert A sad song about growing old, something that John Denver, unfortunately, didn't get a chance to do. Wild Horses - Charlotte Martin - On Your Shore A haunting rendition of the Stone's song by my favorite performer. Visit iTunes and buy it! Yeesha's Joyride - Jack Wall - Myst Revelation This is the score for the opening scene of Myst IV, by Jack Wall. Sixty seconds of orchestral brilliance. A good game, too.