Tiny Desk Concert: Rodrigo y Gabriela

Nothing will wake you up in the morning better than some dueling acoustic guitars. And what better way to bring that to you than through NPR's amazing series "Tiny Desk Concert", today I'm posting the one with Rodrigo y Gabriela. This mexican duo now living in Dublin comes into the offices and shows off their unique style of playing for an eager crowd. Sit back and enjoy what is just great guitar playing... These two are talented.

Beautiful Cover

One of my favorites of all time is slowly taking her time making a reemergence. The tortured soul singer known as Fiona Apple is a force to be reckoned with. Her voice is just so damn perfect its almost too good. Here she is taking her turn at a cover of the ledgendary jazz and Broadway composer Cy Colemans "Why Try to Change Me Now" for his upcoming tribute cd.

Her version of it is stellar. I will be patiently waiting for the day you come back and hit us with a new album. Trust me the world is ready for more of you Fiona.

Bravo.

The Man Who Can't Be Moved

I love this song. Something about this guys voice, and the message just is so moving. The video plays just like the story of the song. Its a story about a man who "can't move on because hes still in love with you". He sits around on the corner of the street that they met, not moving until her hopeful return. Its about a lost love. That one that got away, the one that you desperately hope returns.....

yet in the end its a lot like life. It doesn't work out the way we always want...

ITS HERE!!!

New Music Video from Lady Gaga has dropped!!! Check out the latest for her soon to be smash of the summer - Alejandro. So excited, posted before watching...

oh my goodness...its fierce!!!

Ain't No Reason

"you can spend your whole life working for something

just to have it taken away

people walk around pushing back their desks

wearing pay checks like necklaces and bracelets

talking 'bout nothing, not thinking about their

every little heart beat, every little breath

there ain't no reason things are this way

its how they've always been and they intend to stay

i can't explain why we live this way;

but we do it everyday"

watch this video. listen to the lyrics.

know that love will set you free.

The Only Exception....

Last night while cleaning my house I left my tv on the music video station and this video came on and I am here to admit that it really touched me. At first I didn't realize who the video was from, its this band Paramore. I had heard a few of their songs on the radio before, but none of them sounded like this. This one was a gem. As I sat there and watched the video the song became very clear to me. Its easily a simple song about having a tough past, not being able to trust people for whatever reason knowing that love is always so hard, but making that exception because sometimes its really worth it.

Again, I really really like this song.

Ozzy Osbourne is Crazy!

How is this dude still kicking, on a recent interview with tvguide.com the infamous Ozzy Osbourne talked about some of the things that even surprises him. Including "the fact that I'm still alive".

Check out the list of things Osbourne says he has survived:
1. Knocking back four bottles of cognac a day
2. Swallowing 42 types of prescription drugs during filming The Osbournes
3. Overdoses
4. Being hit by a plane (which crashed into his tour bus while he was sleeping)
5. A rare genetic condition causing a Parkinsonian-like tremor
6. Seizures
7. Rabies treatment after eating a bat
8. Cataracts
9. Smoking cigars like cigarettes
10. A stay at a mental asylum
11. A broken neck from a quad accident
12. Always getting stoned

Wedding Music

This past weekend I went to a fantastic wedding and found out that the dance floor is quite the dangerous place to be. Thinking about that, has had my brain in music mode for the last 48 hours. What is the best music to play at a wedding? What are those classic songs that you need to play to make the dance floor "pop". So here is my list (in no order) of my favorite music to get down to at weddings:

(This is also if there is a DJ and not a live band, live band is a completely different ballgame)

-Sweet Caroline, Brown Eyed Girl, Livin' on a Prayer

-Don't Stop Believing, Please Don't Stop the Music, Dancing Queen

-Staying Alive, Any Michael Jackson, My Girl

- Hey Ya! , Sweet Home Alabama, Brick House

-Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Sexy Back

-What a Wonderful World, Come on Eileen

Finally these are songs you should never, ever, under any circumstances play at your wedding.

They will fail.

-Chicken Dance, Macarena, Conga, YMCA, Hokey Pokey and the Locomotion

Happy Monday!!!

Happy Monday everyone!

I am super busy at work this morning so no post until later on today, but here is something my step-dad sent me this morning that had me crying at work. I think you'll enjoy it as well....

Up To The Moutain

All this talk about acoustic music. This song takes the cake. This artist takes the cake. Just sit back, watch and listen Patty Griffin just tear up the stage at a MLK tribute. The way she sings these words are just lovely. She is the greatest.

And what a song by the way, can I just say that...what a fantastically written song!

I went up to the mountain. Because you asked me to

Up over the clouds, To where the sky was blue

I could see all around me. Everywhere

I could see all around me. Everywhere

Sometimes I feel like, I've never been nothing but tired

And I'll be walking. Till the day I expire

Sometimes I lay down . No more can I do

But then I go on again. Because you ask me to

Some days I look down. Afraid I will fall

And though the sun shines. I see nothing at all

Then I hear your sweet voice, oh

Oh, come and then go, come and then go

Telling me softly. You love me so

The peaceful valley. Just over the mountain

The peaceful valley. Few come to know

I may never get there. Ever in this lifetime

But sooner or later. It's there I will go

Sooner or later. It's there I will go

Something Always Brings Me Back To You....

The song "Gravity" by Sara Bareilles I believe is a completely underrated song for so many reasons. This song off her debut album was hands down my favorite and I carry it with me when I'm just having one of those moments. There are many things I like about it, but the thing I love the most is the way that this song could be interpreted. It can be interpreted in so many different ways and possibilities it can make your head spin.

To many its a song about love, about not letting go, about no matter what that person does you come back to them every single time. There is no escape in this song. Its about control. Yet last year I was watching a dance program that used this song to depict something very different and all of a sudden the song changed. It was about something completely different, and it made total sense. You see this tug of war game that she sings about in her song could absolutely be related to drug addiction. Think about the opening lyrics "something always brings me back to you, it never takes too long" or "You loved me 'cause I'm fragile, when I thought that I was strong. But you touch me for a little while and all my fragile strength is gone."

Its a battle this song, its a struggle to keep yourself while something else is controlling you. The song lyrics are powerful. They have so much meaning behind them. And that last note, those last few breaths. This song is alive. This is the way music ballads are supposed to be sung. With passion, almost rushed to get out. This is music. This song is close to perfect.

The Blower's Daughter

Its impossible to have an "acoustic day" without including this next song. Mr. Damien Rice is a genius, his voice floats across melodies unlike anyone. Well scratch that, hes very much like Leonard Cohen that breathy voice, and the way you can just feel his emotion in every word.

This song called "The Blower's Daughter" was used for the movie Closer and it depicts a tragically beautiful love story. This man just can't let go of his love. I see it as him watching her through other relationships, the ups and downs, it tears him apart. He just can't let go. Until like he says "he finds someone new".

one of my favorites

(also if your looking for another great Damien Rice soon check out 9 crimes)

What Happened?

Meet Matt Nathanson, you may have heard his name for some of his song have hit the radio pretty big. But like most artists, its his underground work, the stuff made years and years ago that really is his best. Like this song "Bulletproof Weeks".

Many interpret this is a song about the end of a long relationship when he misses those carefree happy days, about looking back. I see it a little different.

I see it about looking back but not at a relationship but at a world. At NYC in general (so many nyc references). I think its about the world before 9/11. About a simpler time, a time when you could hear the trains outside your window, where lovers are playing in the streets without a care or a worry. Its a time that most of us would like to go back to, and its not wrong to sometimes sit back and ask, what happened to that?

To each its own.

10,000 Stones

Whats so great about having a blog about something that you love?

It forces you to get out there and re-discover things about that thing you love that make you fall deeper and deeper into its spell. This is why I love this blog so much. Everyday I force myself to get out and hear new music. To expand my horizons. To dream bigger. And everyday, I get filled up with great music, great lyrics, and it makes my soul full. Its songs like this one below, a new one. One that a. I have no idea who this lady is b. I have never heard it before in my life. c. it made me stop in my tracks and just listen.

Thats the power of music. Thats why I write this blog (that nobody ever reads) because it forces me to continue the passion that keeps me so happy.

3 A.M.

I just found this version of Matchbox 20's 3 A.M. and well while I am not a fan of the band, you can not be a fan of this version of the song. Recorded by the lead singer Rob Thomas by himself on the piano, he lets loose. He lets the piano take over some of the talking and you really hear the emotion of the song overflow. Its definitely worth the listen today.

Simple Dude Writes Excellent Song

This song has been my favorite for what seems like almost my entire life. I have always been a Red Hot Chili Peppers Fan, especially their early stuff. Well maybe only their early stuff. But its fantastic!! Their song Under the Bridge I really do believe is one of the best. Its a simple song, with such great lyrics matched with Anthony's voice. Its perfect.

I have found a new website with all acoustic music/covers/classics so today I will be happily posting acoustic versions and covers of my favorite songs!

Here is my first one. Look how young they are!!

Jazzy Kind of Morning

Today is going to be a good day. Why? Because I'm starting out with some Jazz. Yes the smoothest of the smooth jazz. I'm talking about the king, Mr. Miles Davis.

This is literally the song that came across my itunes/alarm clock this morning. And while it should have sent me spiraling down back into rem sleep. Instead it woke me up, invigorated me and made me realize that I only have one more day of work until my three day weekend!

So listen to this, relax, its summertime and well the living is easy.

If We Ever Meet Again...

This song is a diversion from the music I usually post. Thats right its torn right off of the top 40 and has been playing on my radio over and over again for weeks. Yet unlike most songs like this that usually make my skin crawl this song, keeps growing on me and growing on me and last night. ~Gasp~ I downloaded it. I'm sorry I had to have it to play at all times. Play loudly. Dance. I don't know why, but I just love it.

Again. Non-Judgmental Blog. Thats how I roll.

Gimundo

I know I have said this before but if you do not follow this link to Gimundo.com I'm going to be disappointed. This website is just wonderful. Its good news....served daily. How could you not like that? There are great stories, cool videos just things that make you feel good. I agree with all of this.

Even the simplest of things like this:

1 shoe + 4 sharpies + 995 pictures = from Alyssa Wells on Vimeo.

Back to Music

So I realized yesterday I became a little off topic. For you see this space is a space for me to share the wonderful music that makes me happy. Like this little video. This video is from an Irish singer named Fionn Regan called "Be Good or Be Gone" and its filmed live in a variety of different locations. Its just neat and cute, and well the little things that keep me happy.

True Story

This is not a joke.

This past weekend at least 115 people were killed when tropical storm Agatha hit Honduras, El Salvador and hit by far the hardest, Guatemala. It caused massive mudslides and extreme devastation to all three countries.

In the northern part of Guatemala City, the extreme rain created a giant sinkhole that swallowed up a three story building and a house, which you can see above.

How tragic! My condolences to all involved....

This Is How You Do It!

Marriage proposals. Always a weird conversation, depending on who you ask. There are some epic great ones, and there are some not so great ones (anything involving a stadium full of people). Now, I know that many girls say that they really don't care how their finance proposed to them, its just the thought that counts. Yet you know that this girl is bragging about her guy to everyone she knows! Everyone!

This one is a classic, and great background music Clinton Curtis! Just a beautiful setting... Well done.

Just A Little Hint...

This is a post for my friends and family who wish to make me happy. Please visit this site HERE. And either for my birthday this year or for christmas please get me one of these two posters. They are a must. Yes, a must. I just want one. Not too much to ask. Pleeease :)

Trivial Pursuit

Chris Haney (left), a co-creator for the popular board game, Trivial Pursuit, died Monday at the age of 59 after a long illness.

Scott Abbott, who created the famous game with Haney said of his friend "He was one of the most knowledgeable, widely read people I've ever encountered. You could always discuss the affairs of the day".

Abbott also told msnbc.com that he and Haney always had a "blind faith" that the game would be successful if it got to market, yet they had no idea the massive goldmine they had on their hands. Released in 1982, it took off and the duo sold the rights to the game to the toy giant Hansbro in 2008 for roughly $80 million dollars.

Not bad.

If You Can Make It There....

So if you are a fan of American Idol you would surely love this story of the chance to become a real Subway Idol. NYC is filled with people going to auditions every single day, who ever thought that you had to audition to become a subway performer? Well think again, once a year you must audition to play in the "New York City Subway System".

The auditions are open for everyone, there are absolutely no restrictions on what you do and the main prize is the chance to play to one of the most critical audiences ever assembled...the New York subway rider.

The contest starts in January when musicians can start sending in resumes and sample recordings. This year 68 were chosen to come and audition for the judges. (The judges are 20 men and women made up of professionals of the music industry, fellow musicians and MTA workers.) Each act gets about five minutes to do their thing then about 20 new acts are chosen to play selected stations with about 25 other seasoned acts.

There are no paychecks for those street performers, but the chance of discovery is very very high. Over 5 million commuters ride the trains each week, and all it takes is one person to hear a talent and launch a career. Those are not bad odds.

I think this is a great system for the MTA that decided to do something about all the musicians who were cluttering up the subways in the early 1980s. This gives them a fair shot to make it, it doesn't just kick them out, it appreciates them gives them permits and places to play.

Check it out:

I Dislike Clocks

Just found out the hard way that my 7:30 meeting is PM not AM. It is going to be a long day. I foresee myself looking something like this around 4pm.

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope that everyone is outside today enjoying the day but most of all giving thanks to the men and women who put their lives on the line every single day to protect our basic freedoms. Today stands for a day of remembrance and thanks. Remember those who gave their life for our great country and thank those who still continue to do so.

So today I give you a list of celebrities which you may or may not have known, have served in some sort of armed services during their lifetime.

- Elvis Presley (above)

- Ice T, Army Ranger

- Drew Carey, USMC

- James Earl Jones , Army Ranger

- Bill Cosby, US Navy

- George Carlin, USAF

- Hunter S. Thompson, USAF

- Jimmy Hendrix, USAF

- Pat Tillman, USMC

- Ed McMahon, USMC

- Gene Hackman , USMC

- Paul Ruebens aka Pee Wee, USMC

- Clint Eastwood, US Army

- Chuck Norris (of course), USAF

Not by far all of them, just felt their need to be recognized. And thank you to everyone I know and don't know who puts their life on the line every day so that I can live the free life that I've come to enjoy...

Dear Family That Comes With My Pictures

If you don't already read McSweeney's I HIGHLY suggest you add it to your list IMMEDIATELY. Their internet site is full of short stories. Mostly hilarious, highly intellectual and just amazing. I think that I've read some of my favorite stories from this site, easy. Proof was today. I'm here at work, bored out of my gorge. No volunteers, not much to do. Leaving in one hour. So I decided to do some reading...well I found a gem! It may be long, but its too hilarious not to share so enjoy.

This is a piece called "We are the family in the photo that came with your new picture frame" by Colin Nissan. (Again I was laughing out loud during this entire story!)

"Before you remove us from this frame and replace us with a picture of yourselves, I want you to take a nice, long look at us. We're gorgeous. What are the chances that your family is as happy and aesthetically pleasing as us? I'd have to say four percent, tops.

Do you like our sweaters? They're shearling. That means they're made from lambs. Specifically, lambs from the lamb farm we own. The same one where every summer we invite underprivileged kids to feel temporarily privileged. Does your family own a lamb farm and invite underprivileged kids there?

How rude of me, we haven't even introduced ourselves. We're the Andersons. I'm Evan, the lovely size-zero lass in the floppy sun hat is my wife Amy, and these are our best friends/children, Evan and Amy Jr. As you can see, we're very fit and active. You know what our family's average percentage of body fat is? Three. Yes, really. We got it tested last year when we all became organ donors.

You may have noticed that I'm carrying Amy on my back. We do that a lot. At least once a day, and not just when we're in fields like this; we do it on beaches and in urban environments as well. That's what happens when your love is deep and playful like ours. You should also know that we also dab frosting on each other's noses every single time we eat cupcakes, which is both mischievous and very us. Do you guys even eat cupcakes?

Amy and I continue to reach new heights of sexual satisfaction fifteen years into our marriage. While you guys are sitting around in your sweatsuits fighting over who forgot to pay the gas bill, we're smiling exactly like this through hours of mind-boggling tantric intercourse.

You're probably wondering about the vintage jeep and hot air balloon in the background of our picture. That's our jeep. I restored it myself. You'd think I'd be tired of working with my hands after fixing brains as neurosurgeon all day, but I'm not. We're about to enjoy a beautiful scenic float over the countryside—a little something we do every Saturday. Why? Because we crave adventure and have zero fear of heights, that's why. What's your idea of adventure? Let me guess, a frantic trip to Bed Bath & Beyond a half-hour before closing?

Does your family sing barbershop? Ours does. A baritone, a soprano, and our two little Mensa tenors. We even have a name for ourselves, "The Andertones." I'm looking forward to busting out one of our signature medleys on the ride of home from ballooning.

You may have noticed that Evan Jr. is the only one of us who's Asian. That's because we adopted him from China—not because we have reproductive issues of any kind, in fact Amy's doctor referred to my sperm as "Troops" and her eggs as "Normandy," so our genitals are working very, very well. We simply felt that adopting was the right thing to do because we have a lot of love to give, probably two to three times more than you do.

There's Nippers, our purebred lab, running around in the distance. I love that old gal, had her since I was a little boy. I know that may sound like a physical impossibility but it isn't. Not in this family.

What's your picture of, by the way? I'm dying to know what you're so anxious to replace us with, and please don't tell me it's a shot of you guys bowling. You know the last time Amy and the kids and I bowled? Never. Because it's pathetic and dull and not representative of the enviable lifestyle we've chosen for ourselves.

Let's get real here. It's time to place your picture next to ours and ask yourself an important question. Who's better? Then put your little bowling picture back in the drawer and let the Andersons turn this house into a home."

I promise you will not look at picture frames the same ever again without thinking of the Andersons.

My Way

I don't know if I have admitted this before but I'm kind of obsessed with Frank Sinatra. I don't know if I even need to even explain why. I just find him absolutely facinating. Maybe its the old school Italian from NY in me but there is something about his story. His songs. His swagger. His crew. The way that he did things that nobody will ever repeat.

And then I think to his song "My Way". And all I can think about, is imagine if this was your life. Imagine getting up on a stage and singing these lyrics (below). You gotta be happy with yourself. This song is about living, not apologizing, not regretting but being proud of yourself. Knowing your journey. Appreciating those that are along with it. And know that you did it your own way. How beautiful.

I really don't know but something touches me with this song. His version. His boisterous voice, getting louder and louder, with more and more passion. Its simple. Its complete. He did it HIS WAY.

"And now the end is near, and so I face the final curtain

My friend I'll say it clear, I'll state my case of which I'm certain

I've lived a life that's full, I traveled each and every highway

And more, much more than this, I did it my way

Regrets, I've had a few but then again, too few to mention

I did what I had to do, and saw it without exemption

I planned each charted course, each careful step along the byway

And more, much more than this. I did it my way

Yes there were times I'm sure you knew,

When I bit off more than I could chew

But through it all when there was doubt

I ate it up and spit it out, I faced it all.

And stood tall and did it my way

I've loved, I've laughed and cried. I've had my fill, my share of losing

And now as tears subside, I find it all so amusing

To think I did all that, And may I say not in a shy way

Oh no, oh no, not me. I did it my way.

For what is a man what has he got, if not him self then he has not

To say the things, he truly feels, and not the words of one who kneels

The record shows I took the blows

And did it my way.

Yes, it was my way.

RIP Dennis Hopper

RIP Dennis Hopper

It feels as if time passes the more and more we are going to lose some of the greatest entertainers of our generations. Last week after a long battle with cancer, Hopper passed at the age of 74. He will always be remembered in my mind as a great movie maverick, a terrific character actor but mostly just a terrific character of life.

Hollywood is known for having its fair share of "rebels" but Hopper was in a league of his own, he was the real deal. The actor and avid filmmaker never failed to defy all types of authority and the expectations of how he should be.

That and his unshakable commitment to his work was how he single handedly changed the movie business. With the box office hit Easy Rider he directed and co-wrote this counter-culture sensation. It opened the doors for a generation of long haired film brats who would absolutely revolutionize cinema for years to come. The whole tagline for the film seemed to sum up the times (post-summer of love) "A man went looking for America. And couldn't find it anywhere".

Some of his other great work was done in films such as: Rebel without a Cause, The Last Movie, Apocalypse Now, Out of the Blue, Hoosiers, Blue Velvet, True Romance. There are so many almost too many to count. Go check out his IMDB page. Its amazing. He is easily considered one of the best of his generation. Its fitting that his last public appearance was a few months back when he accepted his star on the hollywood walk of fame. I just ask what took them so long?

To me and my generation its safe to say that his most famous work goes down as the villain in the original Speed movie. Yes Speed. His hauntingly disturbing character of an ex bomb squad officer turned psycho gave me goosebumps. He was so intense, so believable. Watching it you felt his character leap through the screen.

Here is one of my favorite clips from the movie: "Pop Quiz hot shot!"