Musical Musings

Since music is such a big part of my life, I think it's only fitting to dedicate a page to my thoughts on music.

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Blue Velvet

Wednesday, July 21,2010

To the people who know me best, it isn't a secret that my taste in music is quite diverse and I prefer the crackle of vinyl to the crisp sound of a perfectly constructed digital audio file.  It was a mystery to me, until quite recently, how I came to love Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Elvis and others like them. I've now discovered that my father's mother played an important role in shaping my tastes.

If I had to chose any one woman in my life to aspire to be like, it would be my grandmother - not that my own mother isn't spectacular.  My view of Grama may not be the same as everyone else's, but to me she was a strong, nurturing, classy and graceful lady with the ability to put you in your place in the most polite of ways.  By her standards I'm sure I was as wild as the barefoot-natives discovered by the earliest settlers in the new world. In fact she told me once that I was as classy as a drunken sailor on leave, but I know she loved me anyway.

There is one song that makes me think of her.  I have come to learn that it is a song she loved, even though I have no real recollection of her listening to it.  That song is called Blue Velvet and it was sung by Bobby Vinton in 1963 (though originally preformed by Tony Bennett in 1951).  When I hear this song I can almost see her singing it and dancing around the living room in her willowy way.

If you think you've never heard of Bobby Vinton let me illustrate just how important he was.  He was the Justin Timberlake - so to speak- of his era.  In fact, he had more Billboard #1 hits between 1962 and 1972 than even Elvis and Ol' Blue Eyes, Billboard Magazine named him "the all-time most successful love singer of the 'Rock-Era'".

And if you think you never heard his music, you're dead wrong unless you missed Akon's hit of recent year Mr.Lonely. Vinton penned Mr.Lonely during his service as a chaplan's assistant in the U.S. Army in the 1950s. It was a number one hit on Epic Records.

It is because of my grandmother, I think, that I have an appreciation for music that comes from a time where musical talent was still greatly appreciated.  Music from a time where lip-sinking wasn't done and there were no computer programs to hide an artist's crap voice.  I am grateful to her for teaching me to marvel in the beauty of the melodies no longer created and the perfection of vocal harmonies that have now faded long into the past.

If I had to make a playlist for my Grama, these are the songs I would choose:
1. Blue Velvet - Bobby Vinton
2. Fools Rush In - Elvis Presley
3. Unchained Melody - The Righteous Brothers
4. All I Have To Do Is Dream - The Everly Brothers
5. I've Got You Under My Skin - Frank Sinatra

Those are my top five guesses at songs she'd like.

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The Importance of Music To The Soul

Tuesday May 25, 2010

It’s incredible to me how music is such a big part of my life. It can pick me up when I’m low and take me down when I’m up. There is always a perfect song for any moment and a song for most of my memories. It’s amazing to me how, sometimes, a song will come along and it’s as though it was written for me. Music has always been an outlet for me to express the things that I don’t feel comfortable talking about.  Music helps me deal. It helps me shake it off and get on with life. It helps me process love, loss, sorrow and joy.

Because I love music so much, I’m going to attempt to make a few sample playlists. Hopefully there will be a few songs you’ve never heard of on one of these lists.

Songs that move me:
1. Love You ‘til The End – The Pogues
2. Angels on the Moon – Thriving Ivory
3. Butterfly Kisses – Bob Carlisle
4. Believe in me – The Ocean Buried
5. Have A Little Faith in Me – Van Morrison
6. We Are Broken – Paramore
7. What a Wonderful World – Louis Armstrong
8. Don’t Cry Daddy – Elvis Presley
9. No Woman No Cry - Bob Marley
0. Famous Last Words – My Chemical Romance

Songs that make me feel scrappy (part of a phase I went through in my late teens):
1. Children of The Revolution – T-Rex
2. Guns of Brixton – The Clash
3. Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya – Dropkick Murphys
4. Barracuda – Heart
5. Man or Mouse - Millencolin
6. Thank You For the Venom - My Chemical Romance
7. My Pet Monster - Holly Springs Disaster
8. Lucifer's Rocking Chair - Cancer Bats
9. Tub Thumpin' - Chumba Womba
10. Drain The Blood - The Distillers

Songs to party by (responsibly. Most of these are good for sing-alongs):
1. Nantucket Girls Song – The Tossers
2. Kiss Me I’m S*^! Faced – Dropkick Murphys
3. Fire Water Burn – The Bloodhound Gang
4. Irish Drinking Song – Buck-O-Nine
5. Pink Lincoln – The Matadors
6. If You’re Gonna B@^*h I’m Gonna Drink – The Matadors
7. Blue Suede Shoes – Carl Perkins
8. Who Got The Hooch - Sublime
9. That's Not My Name - Tings Tings
10. Diamonds and Guns - Transplants

Songs to get me through the week:
1. I don’t like Mondays – The Boomtown Rats
2. Trinco Dog – Bedouin Soundclash
3. Higher Ground – Bedouin Soundclash
4. Free – Gavin Degraw
5. Deliver Me – Sarah Brightman
6. Into Action - Tim Armstrong
7. 21 Guns - Green Day
8. We've All Got To Be Going Somewhere - Jay Malinowski
9. Start Now - Rancid
10. Under Pressure - David Bowie & Queen

Guilty Pleasures:
1. Hold me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me – Mel Carter
2. Chantilly Lace – The Big Bopper
3. Bird Dog – The Everly Brothers
4. Faithfully – Journey
5. Fools Rush In – Elvis Presley
6. If I had A Million Dollars - BareNakedLadies
7. All I Have To Do Is Dream - The Everly Brothers
8. Bad Things - Jace Everett
9. G.I. Blues - Elvis Presley
10. Truck Got Stuck - Corb Lund Band