Seven Song Spin: Ascending Through A

Building on last week's B-flat-only playlist, this week I've chosen tunes that ascend through the scale and come full circle. Enjoy!

This entire playlist can be found here.

Furious chase: I've never seen On Dangerous Ground but this Bernard Herrmann cut "Death Hunt" makes it sound like it must be lit. I can't think of many other pieces by him, even in Psycho or White Witch Doctor, that sustain this level of head-smashing frenzy. Starts with a B-minor chord, ends on A minor.

Global prog pop: I happened to discover this Dutch band, the Mysterons, while I was looking recently for the Bomb the Bass track "Bug Powder Dust," subject of a recent playlist; the Mysterons also have a song with that title. Happy accident! I have a new favorite band, and among the many tunes of theirs I've grown to love is "Turkish Delight," which starts in a spidery B-minor, then ascends to a jazzy section in D, only to close on a shiny E major chord.

Sweet harmony: I'm pretty sure I first heard this on Fresh Air, I don't recall the context (something to do with Frank Loesser, I believe). Any chance to hear him sing his own work, I will jump at; that he's singing it here with the great Doris Day is just icing, for a delicious rough-and-smooth combo. This is one is in F.

Rings a bell: A friend put this on a mixtape—er, CD—some years ago, and I was so out of touch with pop music that I didn't register it as a cover (even though I'd seen the infamous original video with Beyoncé). Now I think of Pomplamoose's version of "Telephone" as the original. Sorry not sorry! Also in F.
  
Keys and cups: I was already something of a Tom Waits fan when a friend played this for me, and it never fails to make me smile. How does he make the instrument itself sound wasted? I don't know. This is in a bright if broken-sounding F# major.

Same as it ever as: This track from the essential Dust to Digital collection Goodbye Babylon is a particular favorite, and I have an especially soft spot for it because I once played it at my son's birthday party when he perhaps 2 or 3. I vividly remember a moment when he looked up at me and clocked, "Hey, that's my dad," and I smiled and sang back to him a song about my inevitable death. This one is in G.

Heaven help us all: Not many songs include shout-outs to both Jesus and transcendental meditation, but then not many artists are Stevie Wonder. His "Jesus Children of America" closes us out where we (sort of) began: in A-minor.