Showing posts with label music. Show all posts

Pearl Jam, being my favorite band, I may be biased. Having said that, I think that even if you don't like Eddie's voice (as if that's possible) you have to respect the band's lyrics. Of course, that's just one reason, on a long list, why I respect them.

Lyrically though, they are on a different level. For the sake of this post, I'm going to focus on their new album, Backspacer. It is a short one, but it is still hard to pick a favorite song. So, if we're talking lyrics, which we are, Just Breathe is my favorite:

Yes, I understand that every life must end, uh-huh
As we sit alone, I know someday we must go, uh-huh
Oh I'm a lucky man, to count on both hands the ones I love
Some folks just have one, yeah, others, they've got none

Stay with me...
Let's just breathe...

Practiced all my sins, never gonna let me win, uh-huh
Under everything, just another human being, uh-huh
I don't wanna hurt, there's so much in this world to make me believe

Stay with me
You're all I see...

Did I say that I need you?
Did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn't I'm a fool you see
No one knows this more than me

As I come clean...
I wonder everyday, as I look upon your face, uh-huh
Everything you gave
And nothing you would save, oh no

Nothing you would take
Everything you gave...

Did I say that I need you?
Oh, did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn't I'm a fool you see
No one knows this more than me
And I come clean, ah...

Nothing you would take
Everything you gave
Hold me til I die
Meet you on the other side...

Well, Pearl Jam's long awaited next album Backspacer is only a month away! Sept 20th 2009 to be precise. Mind you any length of time between albums seems long to me. They have released their first song "The Fixer" off the album and it is awesome of course.

Take a listen and don't be afraid to tell me what you think; unless it's bad, then be afraid, be very afraid.

I recently posted on what I think is the saddest song ever, but here are some close runner ups:

Calling All Angels by Jane Siberry & K.D. Lang- Holy Jesus, this is a sad song if I've ever heard one. It makes me tear up every time I hear it.

My favorite part:

With Michael Jackson's death it makes me think about all the artists who were "gone too soon". Of course there are the obvious ones, like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain, but here's some loses I mourn:

Jeff Buckley- I was into a different type of music when Jeff Buckley came out, but as I've gotten older, I can appreciate the beauty of his music. I really think he was special. I hate that he died before we got to see where he could have gone. Sadly, he drowned at only 31 years old. That's how old I am now...so sad.




Mother Love Bone's front man, Andrew Wood. Mother Love Bone's member's Stone Gossard & Jeff Ament later came together to form Pearl Jam after Wood overdosed on heroin.

When I was in high school I had a Mother Love Bone video I would watch every single day. Even though I love Pearl Jam like no other, Andrew Wood's death still saddens me.



Shannon Hoon from Blind Melon. I loved them, especially him. He had everything going for him. I wish it would have been enough. Unfortunately, for those who don't know, it was drugs...again. It's certainly nothing we haven't seen before, but I wish people would learn from other's mistakes. It can happen to you.

I was watching VH1's The Great Debate and for saddest song they had Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven" vs. Sinead O'Connor's "Nothing Compares To You". Really? Can they even be serious. Eric Clapton took it, thank goodness. VH1 would have gotten a letter of outrage if he hadn't.

I'm not even a big Clapton fan, but that song would probably be my pick for saddest song ever because of the reason behind it. I know there's been songs about loss. Heck, the blues and country music are based on it, not to mention emo, but losing a kid is definitely the worst thing that could ever happen to a person on this earth.

Sinead O'Connor's "Nothing Compares To You" wouldn't even be in my top 100 saddest songs or any other for that matter. Though Prince did write it and I like me some Prince.

Of course, I do have some songs that are personally sad. Songs that remind me of my own losses that would also be up there, but they wouldn't necessarily mean anything to anyone else. In fact, I have a whole playlist dedicated to it. Now Adam Lambert is on there, which doesn't mean anything to me per say, but it fit within this list better than the others I've made. Enjoy!

This is a re-post. #1 artist, King of Pop, whatever you want to call him, this man was a genius. Kids today don't know that there was a time when he was the biggest deal in the world. He was my generations Elvis. I idolized him as a child. It is truly a sad day. He will be missed.

Okay, Jonathan Rhys Meyers has been added to my list of Actors with Voices. I had seen the movie August Rush when it first came out, but had forgotten about his singing voice until I recently heard one of his songs on Playlist.







Now, I know I didn't mention some more obvious people like Jared Leto from 30 Seconds to Mars, but he definitely belongs there as well.

Of course, I like to remember him like he was when I fist saw him in My So Called Life, more than how he is now. I know some girls just died a little inside after hearing that but they're probably too young to remember. Ooh, he was dreamy!

I've talked about opening acts who've surprised and amazed. Now, it's time to talk about bands I was aware of, who exceeded expectations. Mind you, these aren't going to be my favorite bands, hence low expectations.

Stone Temple Pilots- Actually, I do love Stone Temple Pilots, though I don't know that I would say favorite in reference to them. That being said, I thought they would put on a good show. However I was wrong--they put on a great show!

Scott Weiland is an awesome front man. Of course, he was probably high as a kite much like Elton John was when he was more of a showman. The fact of the matter is we never know who is or isn't high when they go out on stage.






Creed- Now I really liked Creed, but still, their concert over exceeded my expectations by miles. The energy in the crowd was intense. Everyone went crazy and though they were fairly new when I saw them, the crowd was like that of a band who'd been around decades. If you don't know what I'm talking about, then you seriously need to go to a concert with decade old fans--It's amazing!





Bon Jovi-I saw them at some summer thing with tons of other bands. Wasn't excited for them, though I do like them. So, I was pleasantly surprised by how awesome they ended up being.

I actually think they were an example of how true fans can make a show because they were clearly loved by many.




DC Talk - I've been a big fan of DC Talk since I was 14, but I was reluctant to go to their show because I'm not a hardcore Bible thumper. Frankly, I was right to be afraid because when I got there, everyone was chanting "We love Jesus. Yes, we do..." and felt a little out of my element. That aside, the show was amazingly good.




Aaron Carter- Yeah, I said it. Don't judge me. I took my niece to see him and Jesse Mccartney and Aaron blew Jesse out of the freaking water. That boy put on a show. He was dancing and flippin and really entertaining. Jesse, however, made everyone wait a long time for him like he was a diva or something and he sucked!

When I say "instrumentals" I don't mean it in the pure sense. Rather I mean the instrument accompanying a song. I know from the get go people will have some different opinions on this, but here are my favorites:

Favorite Guitar: Pearl Jam's "Sad". This YouTube version is a little rough, but you get the gist. I could re-start that song thousands of times in a row just for that intro.



Favorite Drums: Toadies "I Burn". In the beginning, the guitar starts the song off right, but it's the drums that take it home. I'm a big fan of the 80's type build up in songs, but not a huge fan of 80's music. Thankfully, this is 90's music and I loved the 90's.



Sorry, I don't have a bass fav yet, but I'll keep looking. I'll keep you posted.

Over the years I have found a lot of great bands as opening acts. System of a Down being one of them. No one else I was with liked them, but I went right out and got their first CD, way before they blew up.

In more recent years, I discovered one of my favorite bands, People in Planes (left) opening for Toadies, who I love love love!

Then I saw Aranda (left) open for People in Planes. I definitely liked some of their songs when I saw them but they have grown on me even more since.









Same goes with Man Man (below). I saw them with Gogol Bordello (right)who I originally saw open for Cake along with Tegan & Sara. What these bands have to do with one another, I have no idea.



Anyway, Man Man is fun, like Gogol; not as good, but still high energy. The two bands together made since to me.


The point being it can benefit you to show up on time and pay attention to the opening act sometimes. Personally, I like to find out who's opening and do research first. I just think it makes the show alot better when you can recognize songs.

I know when I went to one of the 5 Gogol shows I've been too, I got there and was surprised to see Skindred opening for them. I don't think they were the original band that was supposed to be there but man, I love that band. They were awesome live. I was one of the few who knew who they were and I loved that. Once a band gets too big, it takes a way from it a little bit for me. But hey, maybe that's just me.

Feel free to share some of your fav opening acts.

Queen. Like the Beatles, Queen had an amazing run. Their songs are amazing and are still loved by everyone today just as much as when they first came out.

They're just one of those bands whose music brings people together. Whether it's in the stands at a game or in your car like on Wayne's World, you gotta love Queen.

Robert Pattinson, Twilight's Mr. Edward Cullen himself. You would think being a now famous actor with ridiculously good looks would be enough for one person, but no, he can sing too. While he's said singing would be his back-up career, I'm thinking he should switch the two. I'm actually blown away by his voice, but hey, judge for yourself.

He starts singing the first song 1 minute in if you want to skip the intro. It's worth it, I promise.

You will have to pause my playlist at the bottom of the page first though.

I have been a fan of Guy Pearce since The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. There's something about a man who can dress like a woman and still come off as super sexy.

I was so glad to see him come to the states with L.A. Confidential, one of my favorite films, (soon to be On My Lists).

Over the years, I have fallen in love with his movie choices. Ravenous, Memento, The Count of Monte Cristo, aka cannibalism, revenge, and betrayal, all topics I love. I even loved The Time Machine and I don't typically go for sci-fi.

All of that said, I want to touch on one of his other talents, singing. For those of you who saw Guy Pearce in A Slipping-Down Life, I'm sure you'll agree that he has a very decent singing voice. I actually bought the soundtrack immediately after seeing the movie and went crazy for it. In fact, I was just listening to it, which made me think to share the knowledge.

Now, I can't mention actors who can sing without mentioning Robert Downey Jr. again. I know I said it before, but I love his voice. I have his CD, The Futurist as well as all of the Ally McBeal CD's where he was featured. He's awesome!



Ewan showed his singing abilities in Moulin Rouge. I also have this soundtrack and listen to it often. Somehow he makes this story about a pimp and a ho very romantic.









Can Johnny Depp do anything wrong? He can act, he can sing, he can win over men and women alike. Seriously though, he has a whole David Bowie thing that I dig. I didn't always get David Bowie but he has grown on me and just in time apparently. Otherwise I may not have loved Johnny Depp's voice as much as I did. Who am I kidding, I would have.

Now, I'm not mentioning singers who act, like Bowie. That's completely different. I will say that I don't love that crossover as much. Especially lately, it seems like everyone thinks they can act and it makes for a lot of bad movies. Justin Timberlake, you're funny, and the SNL things are great but stay out of movies. Isn't your life busy enough? Next thing I know you're going to have a clothing line. You probably already do. I just don't care to know.

I actually don't like a lot of country music, especially newer country. Though I don't like country music, I can respect that it is it's own style. So I kind of have this theory that country music should sound like country music and all of these cross-over people like Shania Twain and Faith Hill need to choose. Either you're country or pop, not both. These are mys favorite country artists:

Patsy Cline. I used to listen to Patsy Cline every day when I was in high school. I thought I sounded just like her until I recorded myself and realized, not only do I not sound like her, but I probably shouldn't sing anymore period.

My dad was at her last show before she died and she walked right by him. Hearing that story always made me long for the days where stars weren't afraid of their fans and they would actually intermingle with them.

She was an amazing artist and is high above most female artists for me. My top 5 Patsy Cline songs are:

Leavin' On Your Mind
Crazy, of course
Walkin' After Midnight
Why Can't He Be You
She's Got You

Dolly Parton. Dolly comes to mind because she was just on American Idol and I thought, she's got to go On My Lists for sure. Dolly Parton is very country and proud of it and I love her for it. She just is who she is, and that's a great singer/song writer. I have much respect for her.





The Mavericks. I don't know how I discovered The Mavericks only that I'm glad I did. I've loved them for about 11 years now I guess. No, this isn't my typical type of band, but I really do just adore the lead singer, Raul Malo's voice. I think he could sing any type of music and I'd love it. He does have some solo albums as well but this is for top country band.

I know the bass player, Robert Reynolds, was married to Trisha Yearwood before she married Garth Brooks. Other than that, I don't know much about them. Incidentally, you will not be seeing Garth Brooks On My Lists because I can't stand the man. That's all there is to it in case you were wondering.

I can't pick top 5 for them because I love them all, but here are some of my favs:

What a Crying Shame
There Goes My Heart
I Should Have Been True
Dance The Night Away
Dream River

Who's your favorite?