Category Archives: Music

Music

Play me a song, you’re the piano man

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(Concert Poster for The Action Design)

While over visiting Dark Orpheus I saw this meme and decided, as much time as I spend listening to music and watching music videos in my down time, I had to participate.

The Rules:

* List seven songs you are into right now.
* No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but they must be songs you’re really enjoying now, shaping your spring/summer.
* Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs.

What intrigued me was the “songs you are into right now“ aspect as well as the “shaping your spring/summer”.

I am certainly a child of the MTV Generation (as the old saw goes, back when there used to be music on MTV) and I have always been a fan of music videos. Further solidifying my adoration for visual music was the fact that I grew up without cable (the horror!!!) and so watching MTV, and later VH1, was a special treat that happened at other peoples’ houses and, even later in my college years, when Mary and I would babysit for the “rich folks”.

So…I’m listing my songs but also including the videos in case you want to watch them/listen to them. I decided to be 100% honest with this one, no cheating and adding more than 7 songs–that was difficult. I ended up picking 7 songs that I truly have listened to/watched a lot over the summer and/or have been in my head a bunch. Here’s a list with no pretension, just songs that are caught hold of me. Hope you enjoy…and would love to see you participate as well, either on your own site or in the comments here.

Continue reading Play me a song, you’re the piano man →

Music

Symphony ~Sarah Brightman

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Lured by the whispers of a 40% off coupon I found myself at Borders Books and Music yesterday, looking for something I did not need: another book to take home. After a cursory search which turned up battered copies of all the books I was interested in buying, I decided to visit the hospitality suite (aka, restroom) on my way out of the store (thinking to myself how I would be able to brag to Jeff that I managed to go into Borders with said coupon and not spend any money*). My path took me past the music aisle, however, and my journey was arrested: Sarah Brightman has a new cd out, and the packaging was eye catching to say the least.

Continue reading Symphony ~Sarah Brightman →

Music

Tuesday Tunes: K.T. Tunstall

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Ever on the lookout for something new musically, and needing something on this Tuesday to ignite the blood before work, I found that K.T. Tunstall does the trick. Her latest track to get radio play here in the U.S., Black Horse and the Cherry Tree, off her debut album Eyes to the Telescope, has the toe-tapping country quality of Little Big Town’s Boondocks mixed with a smoky jazz vocals that elevate this song above the usual top 40 fair.

K.T. Tunstall was born in St. Andrews, Scotland and was christened Kate Victioria by her adoptive parents, a couple of academics who were not into music at all and loved nothing more than to pack up the family and camp out. KT grew up knowing that she was adopted and felt it added mystery to her life. Growing up in a nonmusical family it appears that music was simply in her blood as she recalls being told that even as young as the age of four she would draw guitars and attempt to draw various notes and write songs. As a child of the 80’s KT was exposed to the powerful ballads of Whitney Houston and the like but says that this music did not connect with her. It wasn’t until she was given an album of Ella Fitzgerald’s music that she realized what music could really be. KT says Ella Fitzgerald became her vocal teacher and at the age of 16 she picked up a guitar and a lesson book and taught herself to play. This led to enrollment in the Royal Holloway college to further study music, thus another female singer/songwriter was born. Not long after she convinced a friend who played the mandolin to join with her in a battle of the bands competition. They won out…over 11 goth bands! Accolades continue to this day as her debut album has won numerous awards in the U.K.

So what makes KT stand out from the pack of similar female incarnations? I personally think alot of it hearkens back to her influences. KT takes inspiration from Lou Reed, Billie Holliday, Tom Waits, and the aforementioned Ella Fitzgerald. At her very best I think these influences flow through her music. When she entered the studio to record her first album she says she literally showed up with 100 songs. It wasn’t until she was in the studio that she created what is arguably the strongest song on the album, Black Horse and the Cherry Tree. The song has what KT says is most important in a song, groove, and it has that in spades. The song also shows off her metaphoric songwriting skills. Black Horse‘s lyrics may seem vague until you are informed by KT that it is a metaphor for choices and those moments when one has an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other. KT’s debut album is filled with a wide variety of songs showcasing her ability to write and perform a myriad of styles. I think she is at her best when the songs have a strong tempo and lean heavily on her guitar playing. KT has a rich, jazzy, sultry voice that makes for an enjoyable musical experience.

There are two places that you can go to listen to KT’s music and watch videos. If you have Rhapsody, that is the best. I encourage you to watch the video for Black Horse first and then watch the Rolling Stone live performance. Both videos are listed under the Video List heading. It is amazing to watch her perform live and experience just how strong a performer she is. She uses this unique tech set up to literally be a one-woman band that has to be seen to be believed. If you don’t have a subscription to Rhapsody you can also watch her videos on Launch here. There is a live performance on this one as well in which you can sort of see how she utilizes the peddle set-up to layer sound in her music but it is not as obvious as in the Rhapsody video. There are also interview videos in which you can listen to KT and her cool Scottish accent as she discusses her background and upbringing. With her first album just scratching the surface of her musical potential I look forward to following KT Tunstall’s growth as a musician. If you haven’t heard KT Tunstall, I encourage you to visit one of these places and watch and listen. Black Horse and the Cherry Tree will give you a shot of musical espresso to jump start the day.

Home, Music

Musical Interludes, With a Twang

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The musical buffet here at Stainless Steel Droppings accommodates all my tastes. The full bodied flavor of the operatic arias of Sarah Brightman. The lyrical richness of Tori Amos. The instrumental music of the newest Pride and Prejudice feeds my soul. Every song on the Evanescence debut album is like rock candy. 80’s music is my dessert, my drug. Disaffected chick music is ice cream at midnight; the sound of Def Leppard is sugary sweet and takes me back to my adolescence. Swing, Big Band, bluegrass, gospel, classical, celtic…its all good. And once in awhile I need the southern fried, grits and cornbread goodness of country music.

Yes, despite all the talk on the Droppings concerning sci-fi and fantasy literature and art, I do have a past rooted in the sands of the country. Although never a true “country boy” I grew up in rural Nebraska, had grandparents who tilled the land, I watched the real Dukes of Hazzard in its initial run…heck I even square danced during my early teenage years. And despite all my attempts to thwart it, living in Oklahoma for 11 years cultivated a liberal use of the term “you-all”. Thankfully that has mostly passed with time away from Sooner land but nothing has diminshed my enjoyment of country music. As much as I am a fan of the musical foodstuffs from back in my day, Alabama and John Anderson being particular favorites, I really enjoy the flavor of the new country. Thus I invite you to pull up a chair to sample some of the music that has most recently aroused my appetite. And before you say to yourself, “oh no, here is another of Carl’s meaningless diatribes” and turn the page remember that this is, after all, a blog, thus rendering all my posts meaningless…and any way, you might find something you actually enjoy.

Though not new to the country music scene the band Little Big Town is new to me. I first heard their talented harmonies while watching CMT’s Top 20 Countdown last week. Little Big Town is the nicely balanced quartet of Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Roads, Phillip Sweet and Jimi Westbrook. From their website: During its six-year existence, country group Little Big Town has been battered by a series of professional and personal setbacks that would have destroyed most bands. But the four members have clung to one another, unshakable in their belief that they have something special to offer. Indeed they do. The band is unique in its make-up in the fact that all four members handle lead vocals with equal capability, and that other than the addition of a drummer most songs are accompanied solely by the guitar playing of Phillip and Jimi.

Their debut release with Equity music, The Road to Here, has launched them into the forefront of the country music scene. The first single off the album is one of my new favorites, Boondocks. It is an unapologetic, foot stomping, melodious anthem to pride in one’s roots, played in the southern rock tradition of songs like Sweet Home Alabama. It is a great introductory track as it showcases all four members’ terrific voices and advertises the harmony that makes them such a wonderful band. Boondocks, with its guitar and banjo riffs, dares you to sit quietly in your seat and not sing along or tap your feet. Their most recent hit Bring It On Home is a slower tune that once again pulls you in with the melliflous vocal blending of this foursome. It is also a wonderfully romantic song that makes you want to hug your loved ones close. You can hear samples of their music at their site but I recommend going to the CMT site and listening to Boondocks and Bring It On Home while watching the videos. Of all the sites you can watch videos on CMT has the most clear, best streaming videos.

LeAnn Rimes has been a household name since her debut at the age of 13. Now 22, recently married, and settled in Nashville for the first time in her life the music on her latest album This Woman has the heart and twang of true country music. The music as well as the videos for the songs Nothin’ Bout Love Makes Sense and Somethings Gotta Give are both fun and infectious romantic songs. Mary and I enjoy seeing how artists interpret their songs in the video format and these two are very entertaining. Her other chart making release from this album (thus far), Probably Wouldn’t Be This Way is a beautiful but sad song with an equally stunning video that tells the tale of recovery after love lost. These videos can all be watched at the CMT site as well.

The next dish on the country music table is….Jon Bon Jovi?

That’s right, 80’s hair band aficionados, Jon Bon Jovi’s song Who Says You Can’t Go Home is currently riding the rock charts in a Bon Jovi only version but the much better version is the one on the country charts in which Jon teams with Sugarland front woman Jennifer Nettles. Like all Bon Jovi’s songs this has that bubble gum rock feel but this version, with the country guitar twang and Jennifer Nettles amazing vocals, becomes another toe-tapping ditty. Jon and Jennifer’s voices blend together very nicely and as the song goes on Jennifer’s vocals get more and more powerful. She really has a beautiful voice. On Bon Jovi’s CMT video page the second video down is the country version. Both videos have a really nice message to go along with the song.

And this segues nicely into my final course for the day (and all the non-country fans who have stayed with me thus far out of respect, or pity, say “Yee-haw!!!”) is the band Sugarland.

Sugarland’s trio all had separate careers that were steady but not at the level of success that they wanted. When Jennifer Nettles, Kristen Hall, and Kristian Bush got together they created something that literally made them an overnight sensation. Within 4 months of getting together they were doing their first gig and the crowd response was so great that they decided to get serious about things, made an album, and have been enjoying great success. Their music is described as “rootsy and lyrically sophisticated, but still catchy and accessible” to which I would agree. Their first hit, Something More, is an upbeat, guitar driven ode to getting the most out of life. Watching the video is fun only to see what an odd combination they are.

Well, that’s all folks! The buffet line is closed, dessert has been served, its time to sit back, relax, and enjoy some good music. If however you still feel a might peckish the CMT site has many, many morsels to treat the eyes and ears. Sara Evans, a beautiful mother of three, has a number of great songs and equally great videos to go with them: Suds in the Bucket, A Real Fine Place to Start, Perfect, Born to Fly, I Could Not Ask For More…all good. If you are an American Idol fan you can watch last year’s champ Carrie Underwood in her award winning video for Jesus, Take The Wheel as well as others. Another favorite is Trace Adkins. His video for the song Rough and Ready is especially fun and features one of the scariest looking dogs I have ever seen.

Happy Humpday everyone. Hope you survived today’s down-home cookin’. This post is dedicated to Jules and the Percolations clan. Our families share a similar passion for sitting at the computer and listening to the many and varied tunes to be found on Real Rhapsody. This diatribe started life as a simple email to Jules because I wanted her to check out the Boondocks song and then grew into today’s post.

If you were very astute you noticed that I highlighted the words ‘video’ and ‘videos’ to take you directly to each artists’ video page.