Giant - Lay It On The Line

This is the second Giant song to appear in the month of this blog's existence. Interesting but does it mean anything? I had a long talk with my friend Jeff yesterday. I mentioned the blog and he had (as always) some challenging questions. He asked, "How does the song affect your day?" For example, does a heavy metal song mean I'm angry or a mellow song mean I'm feeling serene. It's a good question but I don't really have an answer...yet. It's something I'll have to think about over the coming weeks. My theory is that sometimes it may be a result of how I was feeling the day before but I also believe that some of the songs are just random. I really think my brain is a jukebox set on shuffle and what comes up is by chance. Does anyone out there have any insight into this? I'd love to hear from you.

Neil Diamond - Song Sung Blue

Buck Owens and Ringo Starr - Act Naturally

Anyone who knows me is familiar with the fact that I'm not fond of country music. I have softened a bit in my old age but, for the most part, most country music leaves me cold. That doesn't mean that I'm not familiar with the genre. I grew up listening to a ton of it. My parents had albums by the likes of Loretta Lynn, Merle Haggard, Charlie Pride, Conway Twitty, Johnny Cash, Lynn Anderson, and Marty Robbins. As a youngster, my curiosity for music overwhelmed me and I listened to most of these, trying to glean something good out of it. When I was a kid, I accompanied my parents to Tammy Wynette and Jerry Reed concerts at the fair. (I enjoyed Jerry) My grandparents also had albums by Jimmy Dean, Tennessee Ernie Ford and Roger Miller. They also watched Hee-Haw. Since I stayed with them a lot, I also watched Hee-Haw. I'm sure I saw Buck Owens sing "Act Naturally" on the show.
Fast forward to years later when I had discovered the Beatles. Their version of this song is the one I hear in my head. So, when perusing YouTube for a version of the song to post, I was leaning towards the Beatles' version. Instead, I discovered this video and it seemed fitting to post it in honor of Buck, who wrote and originally performed the song, and Ringo, the voice I most predominantly hear singing the song.
Yee-haw!

Deep Purple Stormbringer

I never got into Deep Purple when I was a kid. Sure, I'd heard "Smoke on the Water" (the first song every budding guitar player learns) and "Hush" but I'd never gotten deep into the Deep. Lately I've been pulling up their stuff on Spotify and giving it a listen. Some of it's just meh for me but some of it's great like "Stormbringer." It's just a straight ahead, in your face rock song...the kind that makes you want to drive fast and bang your head.
I usually have more than one song bouncing around in my head in the morning and today was no exception. Also up there was "Train Kept a Rollin'" or "Honey Hush." They have similar (identical?) riffs so who knows which it was. Probably doesn't matter much. I won't post a video for that one. Do a search and you can watch any number of versions of either song.

Fantasy - Earth, Wind & Fire + Boogie Nights - Heatwave

I guess my brain was dancing this morning because both of these songs were moving around up there this morning. Earth, Wind and Fire has long been a favorite band of mine. Incredible musicians! When I started to look for the video for "Boogie Nights", I was looking for Kool and the Gang. I truly thought they did that song. I was wrong. It was Heatwave. Check out their groovy outfits. The 70's were amazing!

Whenever I Call You Friend - Kenny Loggins and Stevie Nicks

We're back in Seattle. It was so great to sleep in our own bed last night. This morning we slept in. After finally dragging our tired carcasses out of bed, we set about unpacking, doing laundry and just generally getting our lives back on track. This song came to me in a dream. In it, I'm in a big room...like a study hall...with a bunch of old friends. We start singing the song but someone comes over and tells us to stop. I'm not sure why because we were killing it! Dreams are weird.

The Rest of Iowa

Thursday morning: A solid rocker! Not sure where this came from other than from my love of rock!



Friday morning: Another rocker! I am a huge fan of Rage Against the Machine but I always wanted to hear what they would sound like if they ditched the rap and got a good singer. Well, my wish was granted when Chris Cornell from Soundgarden joined them to form Audioslave. They only lasted 3 albums but they threw down some solid, rockin' tunes.



Saturday morning: Love this song. Always have, always will. I'm a rocker but I also love classic R&B. Great stuff!



Sunday morning: The week in Iowa finally starts to seep into my brain. 3 nights during the week we played games with Sarah's parents. During the games, they would put on music which consisted of 4 CDs being played over and over again. We listened to Johnny Mathis, Tom Jones, some Latino-tinged light jazz and Barry Manilow. I pretended to protest but, truth was, I didn't mind. I grew up listening to Barry. I had a friend who played the piano and he had a Barry Manilow songbook so we used to perform those songs quite a bit. Barry puts on a good show and some of his songs are standards nowadays. I also like Tom Jones and, to a point, Johnny Mathis...but Barry won the day! It truly is a miracle! See you back in Seattle.

Iowa So Far...

So, we're in Iowa visiting Sarah's parents and internet connectivity is pretty much zip in their small town. I am at the Barnes and Noble in Iowa City and it is so good to be online. I guess I'm addicted to the internet. I can live with that. Here's the songs that invaded my waking brain so far this week.

Monday morning: You probably have the same question I do...where did this come from? I have no idea. Elton John's "Blue Eyes" also popped in for a visit. Ugh.

Tuesday morning: Love this song! Robin Trower is a monster guitarist. "Bridge of Sighs" is thrown in as a bonus...mainly because I couldn't find another version of "Day of the Eagle" that I could embed.

This morning it was this song and a snippet of "Come Monday" by Jimmy Buffet. As I hate Jimmy Buffet...I'll go with Carl Carlton. I'll post more when I get a chance. I might have to catch up when I get home but I'm writing them all down in a journal so...don't dismay. See you in Seattle!

Bee Gees - Nights On Broadway

Looks like I posted this song too soon. I couldn't get it out of my head this morning. Here's a different version so as not to bore you to death.
Got up at 5am to depart for Iowa. The shuttle will be here in a bit to take us to the airport. Unsure about wi-fi availability on the trip so you may not hear from me for a few days. Take comfort in the fact that I'll jump right back to it when I return. Also, feel free to share your "song-in-my-head" in the comments. It'd be fun to hear from you.
Catch you on the flip-flop.

A Whiter Shade Of Pale - Procol Harum

Well, this one was directly influenced by a television show. Sarah and I started watching "Boardwalk Empire" last night. The song is used in a funeral scene, although it's not the band's version but played on a church organ. I thought it was a strange choice since most of the music is from the setting of the 20's.
I'm hoping that the songs-from-the-day-before pattern will subside soon. I much prefer the mornings where I can't quite puzzle out where that particular song might have come from. I'll be on vacation starting tomorrow and I might not have access to wi-fi so I might not be able to post. I will, however, keep up with the songs and perhaps post them when I get back. Stay tuned.

Love You Inside Out - Bee Gees

This is day 4 of songs directly influenced by hearing them the day before. Sarah had her "Bee Gees Greatest Hits" CD in as we made our trip to West Seattle last night. I think this song stuck with me because I was making fun of the very Chinese sounding keyboard/vocal part that leads into the verse. I must admit that the Bee Gees have been on my brain a lot lately, what with Robin Gibb's death and me being asked to be part of a Travolta tribute art show in July. (Summer Lovin' @ Twilight Artist Collective...be there!) I've even gone back and listened to some of their late 60's music (which is very different from the disco stuff). Do yourself a favor and listen to "Every Christian Lion Hearted Man Will Show You." Very cool track.
As for me, my favorite Bee Gees song is "Nights on Broadway." It has a bit of a dark side to it.

Andy Timmons - Turn Away

Giant - Get Used To It

I heard this song yesterday so it's no surprise that it popped into my head this morning. I had my "Guitar Rock" playlist on Spotify set on shuffle so I was hearing all kinds of rockin' goodness.
Giant is a band that's not that well known by the masses. I knew about them because of my church background. Back in the dark ages, when it was evil to listen to secular rock and roll, this little Baptist boy was struggling to find something he could listen to. Gospel quartets and Sandi Patty were okay for the fogeys but not for this boy raised on 70's rock. One day I discovered a band called Whiteheart. I recognized immediately a band filled with guys who knew how to play, especially Dann Huff, the guitarist and sometimes vocalist. He left the band after 2 albums but later emerged in the band Giant with his brother David on drums. Giant was just a good, solid stadium rock band bolstered by the monstrous talents of Dann.
I wonder what Dann Huff is doing these days? I think he returned to doing session work (which is where he started). Wherever he is, Dann easily sits in my list of best rock guitarists and vocalists.
No matter what type of music you like, enjoy some today. I can't imagine life without it.

Survivor - Eye of the Tiger

The reason this song springs to mind is because it was featured in an episode of Eureka that we were watching last night. I had a feeling it would pop up this morning. You can't help but feel pumped up and motivated to get the job done when you hear this song.

Billy Joel - Scenes From An Italian Restaurant

Great song! That is all.

Astrud Gilberto - The Telephone Song

I know exactly why this little earworm is imbedded in my subconscious. I listen to a podcast called "Sound Opinions" and they use this little ditty to introduce the call-in portion of the show. I've never actually heard the whole song until this morning. It's fun.

Addendum:  As I was searching for "The Telephone Song" I came across "Call Me" as well. As I listened I felt like that might have been in my head this morning as well. Perhaps the two were mixed together. It's my brain...anything can happen. So enjoy a bonus tune.

The Guess Who - Share The Land

Foghat - Fool For The City

How appropriate. Foghat on Friday with "Fool for the City." Alliteration is always good. Well, after a couple of days of lame songs, here's a good, old rock and roller for ya. Foghat is one of my fave groups from the 70's.
As an added bonus, the second song that popped into my head this morning was Alice Cooper's "It's Hot Tonight." Another great rocker! Enjoy.

Sugar Ray - Fly

I was tempted to lie this morning.
After "Creature Comforts" yesterday, I wanted today's song to be incredible. It's not. Sorry, Sugar Ray fans but I don't like this song. Never have. I am perplexed as to why it was on my brain this morning.
So, ashamed of my brain's jukebox choice, I was going to lie and present another song. I was going to use "I Want To Tell You" by the Beatles because that's what my brain tried to shift to when I was attempting to get the Sugar Ray song out of my head. I finally realized that I had to be truthful.
A quick aside about Sugar Ray and his ilk. I was a youth minister back in '97 when this song came out so I heard it a lot. Most of the kids in my youth group liked music that I didn't care for. I had my fill of Smash Mouth, Blues Traveler, Sugar Ray, and (the worst of all) the Dave Matthews Band. I have been chastised for not liking DM. Oh, yes...I have suffered. And before you get all high and mighty on me (I'm talking to you, DM fans) I am willing to admit that his band is amazing and they have produced at least one or two songs I can listen to. ("Too Much") But, as a whole, there's only so much acoustic-driven, poorly sung Dave music that I can stand. Okay, I got that off my chest. I feel better.
Let's hope Friday brings us a better music choice.

Creature Comforts America Theme Song

Sorry, folks. My brain decided to sleep in today. I thought I'd be bringing you another interesting selection from the wide world of popular music.but instead we get a TV show theme song. To be fair, I was watching this show yesterday during my workout so I heard the theme a few times because I watched multiple episodes. As themes go, it's pretty dull. It was composed by Steve Earle who does nothing for me.
To save this post from being completely boring, let me talk about "Creature Comforts" for a minute. The show was created by Aardman (who also does Wallace & Gromit) for British television but before that it was a short film by Nick Park. The British show is stinkin' hilarious and the Christmas special is just fantastic! The American version is not as successful. (it only lasted 7 episodes on CBS) For me, the reason is clear. Where the Brits come off as eccentric and funny, the Americans just come off as stupid and shallow.
BTW, the theme starts around the 0:49 mark in the video. Let's hope my brain comes up with something a bit more interesting for tomorrow.

The Monkees - Pleasant Valley Sunday or Karla DeVito - We Are Not Alone

A conundrum this morning. Which song was on my brain first? I don't know. They were both in there, jumbled together like a mashup...if that's possible with these two songs. I must confess that I don't care for "We Are Not Alone" as a song. It works in the movie but I wouldn't choose to listen to it. Not sure why it surfaced in my brain on this particular morning. I must also confess that I didn't know it was by Karla DeVito whose work I enjoy on Meatloaf's Bat Out of Hell album. Strangely enough, DeVito is married to Robby Benson who, I learned via Wikipedia, co-wrote this song.
The Monkees...well...they require no explanation. Please enjoy this lip-syncing, crappy-fake-playing-of-the-instruments explosion of unadulterated fun. I'll bet the song gets stuck in your head and you might wake up with it in your brain tomorrow.

Level 42 - Love Games

I had a weird morning. I woke up multiple times w/ multiple songs in my head. Mostly stuff from the 80's like Nik Kershaw's "Cloak and Dagger" and "Love is Like a Rock" by Donnie Iris. But, I had to go with the first one that popped into my head and that was "Love Games." It started with the very distinct keyboard riff and then headed straight for the bass part. It's funny. I rarely hear lyrics in my head. Most of the time it's the various instrumental parts. I was told once by a musician friend that I could have been a composer. I can't disagree with that. I can't memorize lyrics to save my life but I can remember almost everything the instruments are doing. I just hear it in my head.
One more thing before I go. I just want to say that I am a huge fan of Level 42. I started listening to them in the 80's when they had the hit "Something About You." I grabbed up everything I could get my hands on. I love their jazz-infused pop sound and Mark King is a killer vocalist and bass player. I think this is the first song on AM/PM that reflects me being a big fan of a particular group. The other songs so far have been pretty random.
Until tomorrow...

Bon Jovi - You Give Love A Bad Name

Four Tops - Reach Out (I'll Be There) (1967) HD

The Police - Wrapped Around Your Finger

I'm not sure why Sting flew into my head this morning. I haven't listened to the Police in a while and this song isn't a particular favorite. I guess it just got wrapped around my brain.