This looks to be a crazy week for us. I probably won’t be posting as regularly as usual. Here is what is up in my world.
–Wednesday morning Cassie finally has her appointment with the Pediatric Rheumatologists in Dallas. Hopefully we will know something then.
–We fly out to the great state of California on Thursday. I hate to fly. I mean I really hate to fly. If God had intended us to soar through the air he would have given us wings not a big metal tube.
–We are hopeful that soon we will begin to know more about our future. It is stressful not knowing where you will be in the near future but to know that you won’t be where you are.
–Of the new pilots for the fall season that I have seen “Pushing Daisies” and “Chuck” both look to be promising.
–I have so much on my shelf to read but I’m committed to finishing my C.S. Lewis project. I’m already thinking of the author I want to tackle next.
–It is long past time to update my links. I’m thinking if you haven’t posted in the past 2 months then you will be moved exclusively to my Google Reader. Anybody want to be added? And can anybody explain why they still use Bloglines over Google?
–Looking for a good movie to rent?This is definitely worth checking out.
–Harlan Coben is hands down the best suspense writer out there today.
–And in case you didn’t know Josh Ritter and Rilo Kiley both release albums tomorrow. The Rilo Kiley album is streaming on myspace here. That is greatness.
Since I get 90 downloads a month on eMusic I don’t buy a whole lot of music on iTunes. But when I heard this incredible debut album by former Tonic front-man Emerson Hart I had to have it.
The album is called “Cigarettes and Gasoline.” The title song deals with his father’s still unsolved murder when Emerson was a boy. The entire album is full of heart-felt emotional lyrics and some stellar arrangements.
Here is the debut single from the album “If You’re Gonna Leave.” Not the best sound quality but you can get the idea:
Here is the promotional video for the album where he talks about the tunes and you can get a better idea of the quality of the songs:
If you aren’t watching these videos you are missing out. For those who weren’t weaned on classic 80s videos consider this a crash course. For those of us who were, relive the good ole days.
This is Tony Carey with his lone hit, A Fine, Fine Day. Classic.
For this entry, we go back 20 years to a song by guitar legend, Gary Moore. This song was released on his 1987 solo outing, Wild Frontier.
The song is about a man who is wrongfully accused of armed robbery. He knows that unless he provides an alibi that he is looking at 10 years in prison. However, he refuses to say where he was that night. The song tells you where he was. Give it a listen.
Thanks to the advent of YouTube I am able to mine their archives for a treasure trove of songs I grew up with. I was not tuned in when the Buggles killed the Radio Star but I was tuning into MTV regularly withing a couple of months of that. I watched that station for the next few years more than anything else and I have a ton of songs from those days that I loved.
Because you are so special I’m going to share them with you
First up, Vandenberg’s “Burning Heart.” You know Adrian Vandenberg’s later work as the guitarist for Whitesnake. But this was his solo band’s one hit in 1983.
Here they are 21 years later with an update of the song. It still sounds great:
Anybody remember these guys? Any suggestions for great but forgotten songs?
Since we have passed the midway mark of this year I thought it an apropos time to look back at the best the music world has had to offer through June.
Understand that this list is not static and is likely to change considerably as the year progresses. At this point last year, The Dixie Chicks held my spot for best album. By the end of the year they had fallen to number 9.
Because I’m a YouTube junkie, I’ll give you pertinent videos as well.
10. The Twilight Sad–Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters: These Scottish rockers create an aural masterpiece that harkens back to the Wall of Sound era. These songs are in no way upbeat but they possess a beauty that is able to contain but somber and melancholy lyrics alongside a near symphonic sound. The Scottish brogue may be off-putting for some but, to me, it stands up well as a bridge between the downcast and the upbeat.
Here is a link to an MP3 of the opening track Cold Days From The Birdhouse.
9. Storyhill–Storyhill: This singer-songwriter duo from Montana are all about majestic harmonies and simple tunes. They have the bearing, lyricism and soaring melodies that hints of a modern day Simon and Garfunkel. This is a song they wrote for one of their weddings. It’s called “Highlight” and is my favorite cut on the album:
8. Susan Werner–The Gospel Truth: Werner calls this an “agnostic gospel” album. But what you will find is an album of great faith. This is one of a small influx of more progressive Christian recordings a la Derek Webb that is slowly coming into its own. From the hilarious “Our Father” to the foot-stomping inclusion anthem that is “I Will Have My Portion” Werner continues to demonstrate that she is a tremendous lyricist and a voice that needs to be heard. Here is “I Will Have My Portion”
7. Sinead O’Connor–Theology: If you had told me that I would ever include an O’Connor album in my “best of” anything, I would have laughed at you. But this two-disc set is a revelation and further evidence of the gathering storm of an alternative to CCM. Broken into two different sessions, The Dublin recordings are stark and introspective. The London recordings are largely the same tunes with a full band backing. The difference is between prayer and celebration. Meditation and praise. And her voice beautifully centers the entire project. Here is Something Beautiful:
6. Bright Eyes–Cassadega: Yeah, Conor Oberst is cocky and smug. But he makes a great album. It opts for more cryptic and less heavy-handed political ruminations than some of their previous outings. And that makes for a more enjoyable, diverse collection of tunes. Here is the great “Four Winds”
5. Patty Griffin–Children Running Through: If you have never heard Patty Griffin then you are missing out on one of the great unsung voices in music today. She is an accomplished lyricist, tremendous guitarist. And that voice! Oh, that voice. She can shift from one musical genre to another without breaking a sweat. And this may be her best album yet. Interesting tidbit: when Kelly Clarkson performed on the Idol Gives Back show she chose the Martin Luther King tribute “Up The Mountain” from this album. Here is “No Bad News”
4. Brandi Carlile–The Story: The problem here is how to adequately describe the power and dramatic flair that comes through in Carlile’s vocal. It would be a grave disservice to merely dismiss her as another angst-y female vocalist. She has a range that can transform a song from a maudlin ballad to a roots rocker in one beat. You may remember this song if you watch Grey’s Anatomy. “The Story”
3. Mavis Staples–We’ll Never Turn Back: I’ve had a difficult time not listening to this disc over the last two weeks. Take the greatest songs from the Civil Rights Era, sung by one of the greatest living voices of the Blues and update it for a contemporary audience with the guitar licks of a living legend and you get this collection. Check out this scorching version of “99 & 1/2.” “My God is a freedom God”
2. The Avett Brothers–Emotionalism: If the Beatles did bluegrass it might sound like this. Any other year and this would be my #1 album. Stellar harmonies, clever lyrics, multiple styles converging to produce a pop confection are reasons enough to put this at the top of any list. Here is my favorite track, “Shame”
1. Michael McDermott–Noise From Words: At this point I don’t know what more I can say. It’s not hyperbole to say that this is greatest songwriter of my generation. And this is his best outing since his 1996 self-titled album. It is a crime of the highest order that he is not a house hold name. No song-writer has ever touched me lyrically like Michael has. If you buy any album this year, get this one. Here is the debut video, “Mess of Things”
Honorable Mentions
Todd Snider–Peace, Love and Anarchy
Mary Chapin Carpenter–The Calling
Bon Jovi–Lost Highway
Kelly Clarkson–My December (Note: I love Kelly Clarkson and I really want to love this album. So far, I just can’t.)
Maria McKee–Late December
Lucy Kaplansky–Over The Hills
Of Montreal–Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
Son Volt–The Search?
On Tuesday I will unveil my top 10 albums of 2007 (so far). On that list will be what is probably the most transcendent album of the year: Mavis Staples’ “We’ll Never Turn Back.”
It is a rocking, rollicking and yet heartfelt compendium of some of the most enduring songs to emerge from the Civil Rights Movement. With Ry Cooder’s guitar licks and production it brings the heart and emotion of those songs into the present age.
Watch this video of Mavis pounding out the classic song “Eyes On The Prize”
Here she is performing the same song on Leno where you can see Cooder performing along with her:
