This is just the beginning

A few months back I produced a list of what I felt were some great opening lyrics.

Well, after a weekend of blasting numerous genres every which way but loose, I have another list. 

This list is very non emo; the last list was full of it.  Look Here!

So here is list number two, a better looked over list and one that doesn’t include as many personal moments.  Yet still producing those, “What the fuck did they just say?” moments.

This is a list of 9, because the other is a list of 11. So now you can make a kickass 20 song Music Notes From The Past compilation CD or playlist or however you listen to music.

Also, I want to note right now, that talking doesn’t count. On a few of these, the first thing that you hear is some sort of talking intro.  I am only counting where I think the lyrics start.   Ok, so anyways.  Here goes.

There must be some kind of way outta here

Said the joker to the thief

There's too much confusion

I can't get no relief

Jimi Hendrix- All Along the Watchtower

First off, Yeah, I know it’s a Bob Dylan song.  But Bob Dylan’s version never went anywhere on the charts. And if you really want to know, I find the Bob Dylan version to be almost unlistenable.

It may be because I know the Hendrix version exists, but generally, I usually prefer Dylan to those covering him.

Dylan himself prefers the Hendrix version too, stating:

"It overwhelmed me, really. He had such talent; he could find things inside a song and vigorously develop them. He found things that other people wouldn't think of finding in there. He probably improved upon it by the spaces he was using. I took license with the song from his version, actually, and continue to do it to this day… I liked Jimi Hendrix's record of this and ever since he died I've been doing it that way... Strange how when I sing it, I always feel it's a tribute to him in some kind of way."

So lyrically, the song doesn’t really go anywhere. But at the same time it makes sense and invokes its own odd reaction.

There’s no damn chorus

And if you read the lyrics, it seems that the 3^rd verse should be the first, it uses the song’s title and introduces the joker and thief. (I think)

Well, have at her. And see what you think for yourself.

Here I stand head in hand

Turn my face to the wall

If she's gone I can't go on

Feeling two foot small

You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away – The Beatles

So we go from a Bob Dylan song, to a song John Lennon wrote during his “Dylan period.” 

And now you kind of get why Dylan won a fucking Nobel Prize; his way of writing inspired other people

The lyrics to the song have always been under scrutiny. 

Was it about Lennon being married, but that marriage being kept a secret from the fans?

Was it a reference to Brian Epstein’s homosexuality?

Was it about an affair, or some other secret love?

Some people even think it was a reflective piece about the image that he kept as the “cool” Beatle, even though he was just a very loving guy.

Personally, I always thought that it was just a break up song.   At least the first line sort of reflects that. 

The song is featured in the movie Help!  And somehow still looks cool and holds up 52 years later.

You've Got To Hide Your Love Away from chika etoda on Vimeo.

Miss Jones taught me English

But I think I just shot her son

Cause he owed me money

With a bullet in the chest you cannot run

Slow Motion – Third Eye Blind

I’ve spoken about this song before, so I will quickly rehash that. 

This was off their second studio album, however the album version did not feature the verses, and it was instrumental other than the choruses.

The song itself is a joke about Hollywood’s glorification of violence, and drugs and other such chaos.

Supposedly the lyrics were left off because it reminded people of the Columbine High School massacre, but the song was written years before that happened.

If you think about the joking content, it makes sense.  The label wouldn’t allow these lyrics on an album in 1999. But the same company released  Eyes Wide Shut, South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut, House on Haunted Hill , Any Given Sunday , True Crime, A perfect Murder, all in 1998 and 1999.  

So really the band had a point.

So here it is, in an entirely different fashion than I gave you last time.

You were workin' as a waitress in a cocktail bar

When I met you

I picked you out, I shook you up and turned you around

Turned you into someone new

Don’t You Want Me – The Human League

If you follow me regularly, you are probably aware that 80s synthpop, or synthpop at all isn’t something that I normally talk about.

Ironically it was this song that made me want to do another list of opening lyrics.

This is one of the top songs in British chart history, so it definitely is worth talking about.

The song is a back and forth sort of break up song.  In fact the second verse which is sung by the lady character revises the opening lyric to reach her point of view. which reads as :I was working as a waitress in a cocktail bar, That much is true, But even then I knew I'd find a much better place, Either with or without you

Some people also see this song as like a sexual/friendzoned angry male depiction of life, followed by the real story provided by the woman. 

But I’m not here today to talk current events of feminism. Maybe next time.

I don’t know why this song is so great. It just is.

Just check it out, reminisce, do whatever, just enjoy.

Fuck the police coming straight from the underground

A young nigga got it bad cause I'm brown

And not the other color so police think

They have the authority to kill a minority

Fuck Tha Police – N.W.A

Ok, so this is one of those moments where I don’t count the spoken intro.

This song is from 1988!

Not 2016!!   And, here I said I wasn’t going to talk about current events.

So, I mean, by reading the title, I don’t really have to tell you what the song is about. 

As you can imagine, there was a lot of outcry to this song from police and other government authorities.  The FBI even wrote a letter to the group’s label.

To me, this song and its lyrics were a crucial step in civil rights. Nowadays, people say anything about anyone.  But to have a song coming out against the police in 1988 was a big deal. It was an idea that was thought about, but never said commercially. 

Ok. Go

Please allow me to introduce myself

I'm a man of wealth and taste

I've been around for a long, long year

Stole many a man's soul and faith

Sympathy for the Devil – The Rolling Stones

What can I say about this that hasn’t already been said? 

This is one of my favorite Stones song, and contrary to the backlash that they got at the time, The Stones aren’t glorifying the Devil.

But can you blame the public, when their previous album was titled “Their Satanic Majesties Request”?

The rest of the lyrics tell the tales of history, from the view of the Devil.

The word Devil doesn’t appear in the lyrics though. And honestly had they not titled it as such, there’d probably still be people trying to translate the lyrics.

There are a number of videos featuring this song; here is the one I chose.

Down in Louisiana

Where the alligators grow so mean

Lived a girl that I swear to the world

Made the alligators look tame

Polk Salad Annie – Elvis Presley

So this was written and originally performed by Tony Joe White.

It’s about a poor family that seems to only eat Poke Salad or Polk Sallet.  

It’s actually a weed, that is poisonous, so that lets you know what kind of life you are living when a toxic weed is your supper.

Or dinner, whatever the fuck you call it.

So basically you are hearing about a weed that poor people eat after picking it from swamps and other areas where alligators lurk about.

So you get this opening line, after the spoken intro, where you hear about Annie, this chick who was poor and tougher than an alligator.

Well, Elvis just performs the shit out of it.  

Elvis could perform the shit out of anything he wanted to.  This was recorded before he really started to pack on the pounds, and he looks great.

Better than anyone else wearing a jumpsuit has ever looked.

Oddly, I want to try it, I mean, I get that it’s just greens, and I have had plenty of greens in my life.  I like the idea of playing Greens roulette with Polk Salad

Levon wears his war wound like a crown

He calls his child Jesus

'cause he likes the name

And he sends him to the finest school in town

Levon – Elton John

So the title was inspired by Levon Helm.

From The Band. Seriously?

Levon fucking Helm!

You know what, I don’t have time for this, look him up on your own time Mary!!

Now that that is out of the way.  So this song, like most others of Elton was written by himself and Bernie Taupin. 

It tells the story of a man named Levon, the son of Alvin Tostig.

Levon has a son named Jesus; I mean obviously you read the opening lyric.

Jesus wants nothing to do with his father’s balloon business. In fact, he wants to take a balloon to Venus while his father dies.

And you thought your family was messed up!

Alright, here it is.

Off comes the make up

Off comes the clown's disguise

The curtain's fallin'

The music softly dies.

The Curtain Falls – Bobby Darin

A fitting end for a post about music. 

It’s literally a song about show business, and giving the audience the highest regards.

And, God Bobby had a voice.

The song has a very good ending where you think you are about to hear a huge climax, but it ends after only 3 lines, with no conclusion.   And it works,

I can only imagine being at a show wanting more.  And Bobby didn’t do the shows where you stood there and nodded your head.  No, you sat down, you ate, you drank, and you experienced an event.

So as far as the song is concerned, I can tell you it was written by Sol Weinstein. There’s a story that it was written for Bob Hope.   I can’t verify that, but I also can’t find proof that it’s not true. 

I just like the song. Having been someone who has performed in many different ways, I feel like it’s a peeling back of stage persona, and just being out there to your audience.  After all, if not for them, there’d be no show.

Goodnight ladies and gentlemen and God love you, thank you.

Commercial free TV

So I did this a few years ago, but I always seem to come up with Ideas that could have worked on old posts.

So I am just going to round up a bunch of cool commercials that are cool due to their choice of music.

Samsung Galaxy – Where is my Mind.

Who doesn’t love a good Pixies song?  As Samsung continues to take over the mobile world, their products and commercials keep getting better.

This one is aimed at teens in a way that will make them say “you gotta get me this mom!”  The same way that I got hooked on new GI Joes.  (Do they even make commercials for toys anymore?)

If you don’t know the pixies, then get to know them. Please.

Volkswagen Golf – Da Da Da

This one is from 1997. Do you remember it?

It’s just a couple of guys driving around, apparently listening to some 1982 German synth pop.

The song is by a Ger man band named Trio, and it was their biggest hit. If I recall correctly it had a bit of a resurgence due to this commercial as well.

So check out the commercial then go buy the song on iTunes.  You can get it in English and German

Uncle Ben’s Rice – Show Me the Way

This one is short and sweet, and a great use of lyrics reflecting the meaning behind the commercial. 

It’s a cover of a Peter Frampton song. It sounds like a kid, but could be an adult. I tried to dig up info on it and got nowhere.

So here it is.

 Cadbury – In the Air Tonight

You may say this is cheating, but I disagree.

If you only get your viewing pleasure from TV in America, then you have not seen this.

That’s not me being snobby. This commercial never aired in America.

So Cadbury as a company makes more than just the eggs at Easter time.

But they’ve only started to bring their other products to mainstream US markets recently.  So back in 2007 they put out this commercial to try and regain popularity after a Salmonella scare.  Boy did it work, because you can buy this shit everywhere now.

Do I really need to tell you about the song?

WWE 2K17 – Downtown

So, I have been sucked back into the wrestling world by my kids, and I love it. Watching wrestling is fun, and if you don’t like it, well, then something might be wrong with you.

So, when you think of pro wrestling, you probably don’t immediately think of Petula Clark.

After this you will.  The WWE used this 53 year old song (yes the 60’s were that long ago) and made it work.  It provides a sweet soundtrack to something that can be very brutal.

You are basically taken through Suplex City. A very rough looking place.  The imagery and the music really do create such a great juxtaposition.

Crystal Pepsi – Right Now

So here is a double blast to the past

Remember Crystal Pepsi?

Remember the weird Van Halen video?

Crystal Pepsi was Pepsi, but it had no color, it was back this past summer, and honestly tasted better than I remembered it tasting.

The Van Halen original video won tons of awards, or maybe 3 or something.  I didn’t care for it, But I am a David Lee Roth Guy. (Hot for Teacher is one of the greatest songs ever!)

So check out this relic

Mitsubishi Eclipse – Days Go By

The commercial was alright

But this was better!

Gears of War – Mad World

So right off the bat, you have my favorite Video Game series,  Gears of War, and if you don’t know anything about the game, it’s a futuristic Alien fighting game with lots of twists and turns and great cut scenes.

Meanwhile, you have Gary Jules singing his cover of Tears for Fears 1982 song. The song was previously used in Donnie Darko. But for me, I think it is a great song for a video game.

Again, the juxtaposition is great.

Vonage – Woo Hoo

Remember Vonage? 

Remember this song?

Now that’s stuck in your head

And that is it for the list.

 Here is a longer version. Also, look at the band.  Is that what you pictured?

Ok, so those are all the commercials that I have for you today.

I hope you enjoy them, Now go shopping!!

I was not paid by any of these advertisers.

But if they want to pay me, I would oblige. 


Also Check out the original list of commercials here.

Let's get Under the Covers

They found me! Someone must’ve blown my cover…

So, we hear cover songs all the time, on the radio, the internet, or on some weird Jimmy Fallon TV special.

Depending on when you were born, or how much music you dig into, you may or may not know a cover when you hear one. 

Then again sometimes the covers are better than the original. Think Twist and Shout, or Nothing Compares 2 U, or The Soft Cell version of Tainted Love.  All great cover songs that blew the originals into obscurity.

Of course none of this is what I came to you for today.

No, today, I want to discuss cover songs, that we knew were cover songs, and they held their own and had their own recognition almost equal to the original. 

So, let’s do this.

Smooth Criminal – Alien Ant Farm

So the original video was one of the best parts of Moonwalker.  If you don’t know about Moonwalker, then….  

I don’t really know.

Seriously though, check it out.

So, with that in mind, I don’t need to tell you how big of a star Michael Jackson was.  And obviously his song about CPR classes was just as great as any of his other songs.

Now fast forward to 2001, a time when the diehards still loved Michael, but most of the world only cared about his bizarreness.

So Alien Ant Farm comes around and records their version of the song, and uses it as their major label debut single, and the world went nuts for it.  They made a video that encompassed many of Jackson’s videos into 1.

It’s probably the only AAF song that you know.  That’s ok. That’s the point really.  But they did have other songs and other cool videos.

But this is what they are most remembered for.

The Sound of Silence - Disturbed

So, Simon and Garfunkel did it first in 1964.  And it was huge for 4 years; it is in the National Recording Registry in the Library of Congress. 

Hell, 45 years later Simon and Garfunkel could still perform the heck out of it.

Then in late 2015, Disturbed released it and it slowly caught fire, becoming Disturbed’s highest charting Hot 100 song ever.  It was a worldwide hit and a platinum record. (Which are a bit harder to come by these days)

Paul Simon and David Draiman of Disturbed shared this exchange:

Simon sent lead vocalist David Draiman an email praising Disturbed's performance of the rendition on late-night talk show Conan. Simon wrote: “Really powerful performance on Conan the other day. First time I’d seen you do it live. Nice. Thanks.” Draiman responded, “Mr. Simon, I am honored beyond words. We only hoped to pay homage and honor to the brilliance of one of the greatest songwriters of all time. Your compliment means the world to me/ us and we are eternally grateful.”

So without further ado, here is that aforementioned Conan appearance.

Wild Thing – Sam Kinison

Ok, so I am bending the rules a bit on this one.

Many people have covered this; in fact, The Troggs version is not even the original one.

But it is the most famous version.  So it wins that round

Sam Kinison recorded the song in 1988 and made a video for it.  The video itself was an MTV hit.  That is why I am including it.

The video features Rodney Dangerfield and the writhing of Jessica Hahn, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Billy Idol, Tommy Lee, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi, Slash and several members of Ratt.

Also, he covered Elvis:

I Fought the Law – The Clash

Another story where the famous version by The Bobby Fuller Four was a cover of an earlier recorded version by Sonny Curtis.

The 1965 Bobby Fuller version is revered as one of the greatest songs of its era.

Six months later Bobby Fuller died. Some say suicide others say murder. Maybe that’s what happens when you fight the law.

Too Soon?

Thirteen years later (1978) The Clash put their own New Wave Punk spin on the song and had their own hit, and to my knowledge, that is the version most people know. However the song has been covered like a hundred more times.

Johnny Cash- Hurt

The original Nine Inch Nails song was nominated for a Grammy

But fuck that version

Johnny Cash’s version actually won a Grammy

What more do I need to say?

1989 – Ryan Adams

Ok, how do I pull this off?

Do you know how incredible this is?

Taylor Swift released her album 1989 in 2014, confusing, I know.

But then in late 2015 Ryan Adams released a full cover album of Taylor Swift’s 1989.

Further weirdness is that Ryan cites the Swift version as being his coping mechanism that got him through the end of his marriage with Mandy Moore. 

Wait, What?

Yes, it’s true.

Adams version debuted at number 7 while at the exact same time, Swift’s was at number 8 granted Swift’s was a year old but still…

So as much as I would love to give you the whole thing, there isn’t really time for that. The album is like an hour.

So here are 2 versions of Blank Space.

Live and Let Die – Guns N Roses

Originally the song was done by Paul McCartney’s group Wings.  It was the theme song for the James Bond film of the same name.

It was a worldwide success, I mean, there haven’t been too many Bond themes that weren’t hits

Plus this was only 3 years after The Beatles. So Macca was still fresh.

So in 1991 GNR decided to take a chance on the song and it did just as well, and some might say it is the more popular version, but those people also think The Stones were better than The Beatles, and those people are wrong. 

So that is where I will wrap it up. 

Did I miss anything? 

What are your favorites?

I’m so bad at goodbyes.

Seriously? You don't know...........

So,the other day I tried to introduce you to a few of the up and coming musicians that I feel you should know.

Today, I am going the opposite route,  I am digging deep into the vaults to highlight some musicians that I feel you might have missed, or, that don’t get enough attention. 

Maybe you know some of them, maybe you don’t , maybe your friends don’t and if your friends don’t … Nevermind, wrong song.

So here we go, get with the flow.

Joe Jackson

This is as good a place to start as any.  I think you’ve probably heard one or two of his songs.

At the very least you know this one:

But including this, he had a total of 6 songs on the US Hot 100 chart. And 11 in the UK.

So, by looking at the video of him, you can probably tell why he got swallowed up by the MTV scene, he was one of the mass casualties of video killing the radio star.  He’s not the best looking, but he is an incredible musician.

3 albums in the top 20 in the US with a total of 10 albums on the US album 100 charts, is hardly a shabby career.

Ok, so his best work was from 1979 to 1984, but he is still in my top 5 favorite artist lists. Yeah, I realize I was 2, but that’s none of your fucking business.

So Joe Jackson, went to the Royal Academy of Music  and then formed The Joe Jackson Band. 

So his early albums are new wave and British punk in the vein of Elvis Costello or The Police. His later work became more of a jazz fusion type of thing, and it’s all good. 

Some of his songs sound emo:

And some of his songs sound like this:

But his best charting song of all time sounds like this:

But my favorite Joe Jackson song sounds like this:

That’s it for Joe Jackson.

***So I just came to the realization that what I write may be of little importance, and giving you as many examples as I can is the only way to let you in on all this great stuff, so expect less writing and more music.***

The Oak Ridge Boys

Ok so they are actually really well known, but not by my generation or the one coming up after us. So they deserve some recognition.

And, yes, they are a country group, steeped in the tradition of barbershop quartets. They started out singing gospel and transformed into a great pop/ country group.  But does that mean you should just write them off?   Hell No, they have a lot to offer.

I’ve seen them in concert twice, and it’s a fucking riot.

Yeah I know that they sang at The RNC in 2012, but that was Romney’s year, and well, so what, people make mistakes. They love God and republicans, just like Tom Brady.

Ok, that was a bad example.

Hey check it, they were on The Dukes of Hazzard, does that make it better?

So here’s a direct lift from Wikipedia to explain the band members:  “The lineup which produced their most world-famous and most well-known country and crossover consists of Duane Allen (lead), Joe Bonsall (tenor), William Lee Golden (baritone), and Richard Sterban (bass). Aside from an eight-year gap (1987–95) when Golden left the group and was replaced, this lineup has been together since 1973 and continues to tour and record.”

So check this out, here they are singing one of their seventeen number 1 country songs.  Listen to Richard Sterban’s deep voice.  I don’t know what it’s like to get moist panties, but hearing Sterban hit those low notes is probably about as close as I can get.

Oh and the guy with the long hair and beard is William Golden, the guy on the far left is Joe Bonsall, and of course the other guy who starts the song is Duane Allen.

Here they are at the Grand Ole Opry, singing their highest charting song of all time. Not only was it number 1 on the country charts, it reached number 5 on the US singles chart. Richard Sterban’s hair got a bit longer but they can still sing,

Here’s my personal favorite song of theirs,  pay no attention to the video, even though it’s funny. I chose this video because it had the best sound quality and you can hear the pops and hisses which mean it was transferred from vinyl.  And that’s a raw sound that I love.

Here’s the last one for today, a bit more of a rocker.  Again Sterban’s voice, I need a cold shower,

Laid Back

This came as a recommendation from my cousin Brendan, and I have always taken some of my music cues from him.  Once on our way to a camping trip he questioned my knowledge of The Beatles White Album. (at the time I didn’t know anything about it.)

But anyways moving on.

Here’s the one song you might already know.

So, Laid Back is a couple of guys from Denmark, who just do it all together. They have this sort of synth-pop new wave sound, maybe that’s a good way to describe them. 

I have 2 other Laid Back songs on my hard drive.

Cocaine Cool:

Which by the way, this will wreak havoc on your neighborhood if you are blasting through subs.

And, Sunshine Reggae

That’s as much as I can introduce you to. Because frankly that’s as much as I know.  But that doesn’t mean you have to end the journey there, keep looking.

Steve Winwood

Just the other day I was putting a ton of Steve Winwood onto my phone. I thought to myself, Dear God, I’ve begun my transformation into an old man. 

So Steve Winwood has been in some great bands, The Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, and Blind Faith, with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker.

I don’t have time to introduce you to all those groups. So go back and check them out. Seriously, do it, or I will kill a lobster.

So Steve Winwood’s solo career had its highest moments from 1977 to 1987.

But Damn was it good.

It started with While You See a Chance

And then continued with  Valerie:

Then erupted with Higher Love

Then it started to wind down with Back in the High Life Again

Then it picked back up with The Finer Things

And then he got funky with Roll With It

And then  it started to dwindle, sure he had success with Don’t You Know what the Night Can Do and Holding On, but they didn’t have the staying power of the previous hits.

But like I said, these are just the hits, I’m putting your toe in the water, but it’s up to you to dive into the deep end.

Teddy Pendergrass

Teddy Pendergrass started out in Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes.  And, while I didn’t introduce you to Steve Winwood’s group work, Harold Melvin and the Blue notes are also often overlooked.

Soul, It’s deep fucking soul, (not literally, we’ll get to that later)

I Miss You

If You Don’t Me By Now  (which you should know by now)

And the original version of Don’t Leave Me This Way

Then Teddy split from the group and found solo success.

Close The Door  This is what made him a Sex God. Seriously, listen to the whole song, and you may be half clothed by the end.

And if that didn’t do it.. here’s the literal deep fucking soul I was talking about earlier

Turn Off The Lights

Still need more?   Here’s Love TKO

There’s a lot more worth listening to, but I want you to take the time and find them. 

Teddy’s career was taken from him too soon. He was in a car accident that left him paralyzed from the chest down.    Not to be insensitive  or crass, but how do you sing about sex when you can’t feel your tool?  So sadly he sort of fell into obscurity, but It’s almost Valentine’s day, and It’s Black History Month, never a more perfect time to get you some Teddy.

Roger Whitaker

If you are scratching your head, then  I’ve done my job.

Check out the crowd reaction as he sings his biggest hit. They’re clearly not having any fun

Seriously, that was his only charting song in the US  and those people look like they were forced to watch him. And they are afraid of the camera.

Ok, so yeah this is the old school hippie folk side of me coming out, but seriously, don’t just pass it over.

 Try This.  Durham Town

Ok so maybe this isn’t the best way to follow up Teddy Pendergrass, and maybe this is boring to you, but like I always say, get your own damn blog, this is mine.

Roger Whitaker was from Kenya and moved to the UK to get famous He was born in 1936 and from 1968 until now he has looked like he was 65.  So at least his age has caught up to him.

He was the first person to ever record Wind Beneath My Wings

Here’s my favorite Roger Whitaker song

Dirty Old Town

Ok, so he isn’t cool, but he has a great voice.  Give him that credit at least. 

If you have to get high to enjoy it, do that, just give him a chance. 

Violent Femmes

This may be all you know of the Violent Femmes

There’s so much more. 

Hell their debut album combined so many great hits.

Here’s my favorite Femmes song ,

So basically, the meat and potatoes of their career was from 1983 to 1991 and the really good stuff is all in the 80s. 

They’re a Wisconsin band so, I mean I assume they are bigger in Wisconsin. In fact we should change our State slogan to “Wisconsin: Cheese Curds, Old Fashioneds and the Femmes”

I love that there is so much great live footage of them.

They have so many great songs and you really need to just check it out, Hell Gnarls Barkley covered them

That’s it for now. 

 7 musicians that have since gone away that deserve a resurgence  pass it on to your friends, come on, make a mix cd of pirated songs.  I dare you. 

Cause seriously, that’s how you can move music. Pass it out to everyone like a cheap music whore.  (I think that was the working name of Napster)

Ok. Take it easy. 

8 Artists You Should Know

So. I want to keep this as un-hipster as possible. Really, it is the opposite, but someone telling you about obscure music has a hipster-esque feeling to it.

So yeah I reached out to my friends, and I had a few of my own.  I just figure music still can have that word of mouth feel to it. 

The days of trading mixtapes or reading about bands, or bands being at in store junkets is a bygone era.

Music is digital now, not only does everyone have a smartphone that can pull up videos of anything, anywhere; we’ve also got iPod or any other device.

Hell, you might even be reading this on a phone.

So anyways, it’s time to highlight some people you may not know about.

X Ambassadors

Saw these guys last year, and at the time, I had only heard their song Renegades. It was on a commercial for a Jeep Renegade.

Well needless to say they are an awesome band, and they put on a great show.  They have an energy that is all their own.  Is their sound original? Maybe not. But I can’t think of anything to compare it to. Maybe Lenny Kravitz, but a lot better, and not just a Hendrix ripoff.

So these dudes are from New York and have been together now for 8 years. They’ve released a few EPs, but didn’t release a full length album until June of 2015.  And quite frankly, it was worth the wait. 20 tracks of music. Full songs intertwined with well-placed interludes, it is definitely great.

The band is led by Sam Harris who is a multi-instrumental specialist. 

Rounding out the rest of the band is Casey Harris on keys, also the blind brother of Sam Harris, but god damn he gets down.  Noah Feldshuh plays lead guitar, and Adam Levin finalizes the group on drums. 

So they had a great 2015/2016 opening for Imagine Dragons, Weezer, and Panic! At the Disco.  But look for them to start headlining their own shows soon.

Here’s a look into their live experience:

Jungle

Renegades

Sturgill Simpson

If you tuned into Saturday Night Live this week, and found yourself saying, “who the fuck is Sturgill Simpson”  Don’t worry. I did too, and so many people have been asking that for a while.

In fact Simpson even sells a shirt reflecting that.

So after the SNL gig, I started looking into Simpson, who is now my latest musical obsession. 

Dude is awesome. 

Now I am not a huge fan of country music, but Simpson sort of blends some soul and rock into it.  His voice is versatile as is his repertoire of songs. 

His backing band members are no slouches either. And there are so many of them. His horn section swells to upwards of 6 members on certain songs.

And the guy on the keys.  Fucking righteous

So Sturgill Simpson, was in the navy, and then moved around a bit and started a bluegrass band in 2004. Then they broke up and he managed a railroad yard.

He went solo in 2013 and released  a few  albums, started appearing on tv.

In 2016 he released his third album “A Sailor’s Guide to the Earth” on Atlantic Records, and his success is starting to happen as the album is not only nominated for Best Country Album but also Album of the Year at the upcoming Grammys.

Ok, check it for yourself.

Call To Arms  This was the final number on SNL. If that doesn’t get you hooked, I don’t know.

You Can Have The Crown / Some Days  This is a smaller band live at some brewery

In Bloom   That’s right he covered Nirvana, and truthfully I like it. A lot.

The Bigger Empty

So it’s no secret that I love the Smoking Popes, well this takes their drummer and puts him center stage with a guitar and a mic.

How can I explain this to you.  It’s great shit.  Ok how about this, I am literally going to copy and paste the about section from their facebook page. Ok?   Well deal with it.

Punk rockers that got old and slowed down a little bit.

So yeah, that’s their about, hears their biography straight off their facebook page

The Bigger Empty is a rock band from Westmont,IL. Its members include: Mike Felumlee (drummer of The Smoking Popes and Alkaline Trio) on guitar/vocals, Amanda Sena on keys and vocals, and Jim Steinkraus, Reuben Baird, and Kevin Baschen from the Chicago band Sketch Middle. This group has been playing together for several years as Mike’s solo act. During rehearsals for their upcoming album, the guys discovered they were sounding more like a band than a solo project, and so The Bigger Empty was born.

With a shared passion for straightforward, hard hitting pop-rock, The Bigger Empty are diving into the recording of their debut full-length album. The album is currently being tracked at Reuben’s studio Chicago Sound Lab with Reuben manning the console. The guys are very excited to share their musical vision with the world. Rock music just as it should be: pure, simple, and catchy

So, yeah, it’s just poppy music, a touch of punk/indie But honestly they are worth your time.

Thread

Better than Drowning

The XX

Believe it or not, my almost 12 year old son is the one who made me take a second look at The XX

I saw them earlier on SNL and that’s where he found them. Somehow he took a liking to them. I’m still a little perplexed by the bands lineup/grouping.

They were once a 4 piece, but have narrowed it down to 3

So, they’ve got Oliver Sim on Bass and Vocals, Romy Madley Croft on guitar and vocals, and then they’ve got a guy making beats and mixing things up named Jamie Smith.

That’s it, and maybe my age is showing, but a band without a drummer confuses me.  But it clearly works. And the electronic aspect of it, means that the percussion can be produced in a way not possible with an actual drummer.

So like I said they were a 4 piece in 2006 but by the end of 2009 the band made the decision to axe the second guitarist.

So these cats are British and are  big over there

 Well, here, they were just on Jimmy Fallon

Lips

Islands

Vince Staples

So, my main man Tate Nuggs told me to check this dude out. I did, and I liked it.

I don’t give Hip Hop enough credit on this blog, I think I need to change that. 

So Vince Staples is from Long Beach, where lots of great music has come from.

He started out being featured on some OddFuture tracks.  Then he started putting out mixtapes of his own and was signed by Def Jam records.

He made his major label album debut in 2015 entitled Summertime ‘06  with 3 singles off it received many 4 and 5 star reviews and ranked in the top ten of the year by various websites and publications.

2016 brought us Prima Donna a 7 song EP that was again, critically on fire.

Blue Suede

Norf Norf

War Ready

All Them Witches

This is another band that came from a recommendation  and I am glad that I got it. I don’t know much about them, and was unable to find a whole lot out, but I like what I have heard. 

They are a rock band from Nashville, and they sound like they were plucked from a killer acid trip and just started rocking.

They’ve put out 5 albums, 3 studio and 2 live, and they are planning their next album for February of this year.

So, check em out and pay attention for their next album.

The Marriage of Coyote Woman

When God Comes Back LIVE

Under Pressure – Yes that Under Pressure.  It’s worth your time. I promise

Tori Kelly

So, here’s the thing, she is not necessarily overlooked, some of her videos have been viewed over 30 million times, but she came as a recommendation from my lady friend Denee. Truthfully though, I had never heard of her before.  

So if you haven’t heard of her, here you go.

So I like what I did stop to listen to.

So here’s a quick brief history.

She tried out for American Idol in 2010 but did not make their top 24.

She then started releasing her own music, self produced and self released.  That got her noticed and she signed to Capitol Records. 

In June of 2015 she put out her first full length album that went to number 2 on the album  charts she was nominated for various best new artist awards, and even won a few.

So that’s where we are today.

Nobody Love

Should’ve Been Us

Hollow

Desaparecidos

So, you might have heard the name Conor Oberst before.  Maybe you like his other band Bright Eyes.

Maybe you like the supergroup Monsters of Folk.

So Desaparecidos is new to me too. It was recommended to me by a friend of mine named Pete. I may have heard them when they released their first album in 2002. But as I recalled to Pete, there was a lot of Emo/Post-core music saturating life in the early 2000s. 

So anyways, What you’ve got is an awesome band who took a 13 year break between albums and picked up right where they left off.

Kind of.  I mean they got more educated, but realistically the politics were there, I mean they sort of fall into that whole DC scene, without being from DC

Ok, well, let’s have a listen, and this will be a bit different.

Read Music/ Speak Spanish -   Yep, the whole album from 2002

And then of course.

Payola  - Yep a whole playlist of their 2015 album.

So that’s it 8 artists that deserve your time. They are making names for themselves, you can like them before they are cool

But really, what do you think, did you know them, all of them? Any of them? Did I miss anyone?

I will do this again, and I am also going to do a deeper classic version of this later too.

     -peace