bloggie blog » Music

I Try

Kevin — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 20:49:17 +0000

For some reason, the song I Try by Macy Gray has popped up my on radar recently, including a very fun closing bit in an episode of The Office from last season that I just recently saw, the one where Andy appears in a community theater presentation of Sweeney Todd. Great episode! But anyway, back to the song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsTk2xp0nvY

Macy Gray sings, “I may appear to be free, but I’m just a prisoner ….” And I think that lyric shows the problem and the wonder of this song. It’s a song that is strong and free, an uninhibited performance by a woman with a solid grasp of her talent. And yet it’s a song about the way in which she’s weak. This strong-weak dichotomy is kind of awesome. It leads me to think the song makes no sense, yet the song keeps pulling me in. Feel me?

Sad Song

Kevin — Wed, 25 May 2011 04:41:12 +0000

So, The Cars are back. My first reaction: Seriously? My second reaction: “Let’s go!” Boy, does this take me back to the day when I pored over the paper insert of their self-titled debut album. Their latest single can be seen on the YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxqxNzlEFM4

If you like “Sad Song” with its classic Cars clicky eighths and Ric Ocasek’s vintage voice, you can download it for free from iTunes. The Cars are dead, long live The Cars! (Does not apply to Benjamin Orr, RIP.)

Lovesong

Kevin — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 23:20:04 +0000

Adele may be this era’s Dusty Springfield. It’s too early to say that definitively, but I’ll toss that out there. Anyway, Adele’s new album has one cover song on it, The Cure’s Lovesong. See the original music video (embedding disabled) and a video of Adele’s cover version (below). Worth taking several minutes to listen back to back!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_k8vtbJxOdw

Taxi

Kevin — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 04:09:12 +0000

Recently, I finished work on An American Dream. It’s a short film where I play a taxi driver who picks up a fare that he recognizes. When I first read the script, I thought it was a familiar story, and I was right! Director Ryan Velásquez says his dad was a Harry Chapin listener, and the script was inspired by Harry’s song Taxi. Take a look, take a listen — this is Harry’s last recorded concert. (Please note that An American Dream is drug-free.)

(Nothing But) Flowers

Kevin — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 21:29:07 +0000

I’m a long time listener to Coverville, a podcast of cover songs. Just recently I heard etgilles’s cover of “(Nothing But) Flowers” and it really struck me. The Talking Heads were smart and the writing was powerful, but this version really brought home the ironic lyrics of this song. You can download this song plus many other Talking Heads covers here, or listen below. Good stuff.

06 (Nothing But) Flowers.mp3

Jonathan Coulton number three

Kevin — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 16:22:47 +0000

Jonathan Coulton’s excellent cover of Baby Got Back and his original song Code Monkey have been favorites of mine for years. Recently, I have undertaken a project of listening to more of his songs in order to find another gem. I may have found it in Town Crotch.

My “undertaking” has simply been to listen to Thing a Week in its entirety. I recommend it to you, and what could be easier? The free 52-week podcast by the creative force who calls himself JoCo is still available on iTunes. Let me know if there’s a “thing” of his that you think is better than the 3 I mention here!

The late, great Lena Horne

Kevin — Fri, 14 May 2010 17:15:13 +0000

Lena Horne was a wonderful singer. Her most famous song, I suppose, is Stormy Weather, which I was introduced to via M*A*S*H. (Dang, that show made me smart. Do sitcoms do that anymore?)

But Lena also sang some cheesy, fun lounge classics. On this day of her funeral, take a moment to enjoy these two songs that appeared on the Ultra-Lounge compilations. Wives and Lovers. It Had Better Be Tonight.

RIP, Lena. Rest in peace.

Fun with iCaroler

Kevin — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 21:33:42 +0000

As mentioned previously, I downloaded a very fun iPhone app called iCaroler (iTunes link). It’s a great way to start the Christmas season! You play with carolers, muting or highlighting the Victorian singers in your choir while they sing very fun arrangements of some Christmas favorites. I don’t know why it’s fun, but it is!

It’s even better when multiple people play with your carolers. A friend squealed, “I love it!” after just a few seconds of setup between iPhones.

That was a few days ago. This morning she texted me: “I’m having serious iCaroler withdrawl!” Enough said — worth 99¢ right there!

I just bought a black shirt

Kevin — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 05:41:36 +0000

Some months ago, I met with a color specialist and learned what colors look best on me. Since then, I’ve bought brown not black, cream not white, gold not silver. No royal blues, no grays, nothing cool. Warm, warm, warm.

But here’s the thing. Most uniforms (literal or figurative) are cool. Waiter, cop, Maytag man, lawyer: the trend is for cool colors. Sure, some cops and lawyers wear brown, but you know what I’m saying.

So why did I buy a black shirt? Because the choral group I’m in wears all black, and I didn’t have a black shirt, and black is the uniform of large on-stage ensembles.

It’s for this. Which is, shall we say, cool.

Cheap Trick, Poison, Def Leppard

Kevin — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:47:54 +0000

Dudes. I haven’t been to a big rock concert in many years. Elton John at Madison Square Garden (in 2000?) was probably the last big one, at which point I remember saying that I was never going to a large indoor rock concert again. I have kept my self-promised and managed to enjoy some serious 80s rock by going to an outdoor concert featuring Cheap Trick, Poison and Def Leppard. Dudes. Dudes.

What more can I say? You can look up my Tweets from last night, but there’s not much to share except a few observations:

Cheap Trick’s logo has stood the test of time best.
There were no mullets.
The crowd was younger than I would’ve guessed.
The bass player for Poison didn’t make it, so they got the guy from Cinderella. (So much for your theory, Danny. That positively proves they’re totally different bands.)

An awesome time signature

Kevin — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 06:17:32 +0000

Progressive Congressman Promotes Bill in 7/8 Time

I loves me some Onion Radio News pretty much every day, but it tickles my fancy even deeper when it mentions odd time signatures and wah wah pedals. The music geek inside of me is very happy. And the political geek.

You say you don’t know Doyle Redland of the Onion Radio News? Click the above link now immediately right away soon ASAP stat this very second! And subscribe to the podcast! Doyle Redland is the best curmudgeonly fake newscaster on this planet!

What is 7/8 time, you say? It’s the time signature used for Money by Pink Floyd, from the album Dark Side of the Moon.

Question for y’all: Are there other popular songs in 7/8?