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by Neto
When Vodes posted his Desert Island list last week, Joey and I thought it was a good list and a great idea. Joey immediately commanded me to write up my own list for this week’s article and since I had begun thinking up my list immediately after reading Vodes’ post, I thought, “Woohoo easy article!”
Unfortunately, this article was not as easy as I thought it would be. It turns out deciding on only five songs that I will listen to for the rest of my life (as in as long as the supplies on the plane last cause I’m not much of a survivalist) was not that easy. My first list mostly represented music from the late 90’s and early 00’s but then I realized I would eventually get tired of all that angst. I needed to diversify my list and include some more toe-tapping numbers.
My new list is better. It includes music from more time periods. It includes some singable songs (for when I get tired of simply talking to my volleyball) and is more of a broad sampling of Rock and Roll. So here’s my list in no particular order and without any references to LOST.
Come On Lets Go – Ritchie Valens
Its singable, danceable, and gets bonus points for being sung by a Mexican.
Hey Jude – The Beatles
I have to include a Beatles tune though I know “Hey Jude” is kind of a cliched pick. But what can I say, I really like the “Na Na Na” part at the end. Its a good song to play if I want to bring my fellow castaways together.
Immigrant Song – Led Zeppelin
I won’t be able to survive a deserted island if I can’t get the Led out. It was between this and Black Dog. I find this song more fun.
Ingrata – Cafe Tacuba
Talk about your fun songs. I will waste days away trying to perfect the singing of this song. And then doing a full long performance of it will scare the smoke monster away.
The National Anthem – Radiohead
Finally, when I just want to be alone, this is the song that will be playing in my head. Played extremely loud, it’s oddly soothing.
A few years ago, there was a local radio station that had a nightly feature called ‘The Desert Island’. The idea behind this segment of the show was this: if you were trapped on a desert island and you could only bring five songs with you; what songs would you bring? I always enjoyed this segment of the show and listened to it often. I even sent in my five songs, but unfortunately, my entry was never chosen. But I enjoyed listening to it nonetheless. With this thought in mind, I have proposed the following five songs as my choices of music to be marooned with.
Life by the Drop by Stevie Ray Vaughan. This song is from the album entitled ‘The Sky is Crying’. It is the last track on the album. It’s a very simple song, seemingly sung from the heart. It is just Stevie Ray and a twelve string acoustic guitar. I have to guess that it’s a song that reflects his struggle with substance abuse and how he finally overcame all the addictions and realized what was really important in life. Put this song on, turn it up, close your eyes and lean back and enjoy. I get goose bumps every time I hear this song…no lie. (more…)
“Sing me a song, you’re a singer…”; the opening line from Black Sabbath’s song ‘Heaven and Hell’. I remember seeing Black Sabbath with Ronnie James Dio doing the vocal duties. He was impressive, but pretty far down on the list of what I would consider great singers. I’ve always thought that singing for a band is one of the most difficult jobs because unlike other instruments in the band, it doesn’t require physical dexterity to execute it well. It requires very strong vocal chords…just two little strands of muscle to either sound great or just be another average singer. So, who are the best singers in rock today? Read on and allow me to award medals to the best of the best!
Gold Medal: Geoff Tate. For those of you who may not recognize the name, Geoff Tate is the amazing voice, and backbone, of the group Queensryche. The first time I heard this guy sing, I was blown away. His range is absolutely astounding. And he sounds just as good in concert as he does on the recordings. I was lucky enough to catch Queensryche on the Operation Mindcrime tour. Are you freaking kidding me?!?! My jaw was on the floor the whole show. For some classic Geoff Tate high notes, check out the early stuff like ‘The Warning’ and ‘Rage for Order’. The newest release, entitled ‘American Soldier’, is very good stuff also (and will be a future album review). If you have ever wondered how high the male vocal range can get and still sound as powerful as ever; listen to some Queensryche! (more…)
Since 1981, Mötley Crüe has been cranking out hard rock and metal music to rabid fans around the world. Now, twenty-eight years later, the Crüe is still banging heads with the best of them. They released a new album and have put together a music festival, modestly named after themselves, with a lineup of some of today’s best and brightest rock musicians. I was lucky enough to catch Crüefest 2 last week and I was not disappointed. Let me take you on a tour of the White Trash Circus:
Crüefest 2 consisted of five bands on the main stage: Charm City Devils, Drowning Pool, Theory of a Deadman, Godsmack and, of course, Mötley Crüe headlining the event. There was also a second stage featuring some good, up-and-coming bands. I checked out a band called Schram, out of Detroit. These guys put on a good show. They had a ton of energy and seemed genuinely happy to get out on stage and play. I also caught a band called Silver Stone, out of Arkansas. They also put on a really good show. The singer was good and the guitar player shredded some pretty killer riffs. They also had a third band on the second stage, but I only caught a few of their tunes. Okay, okay, so I was waiting in the beer line and didn’t get over there in time. What? I was thirsty! Thankfully, the second stage was jamming while the main stage was setting up for the next band. I made my way back and forth from one stage to another all night long…with an occasional stop at the concessions. (more…)
If you like the sounds of Janet Jackson, Amerie, or Rihanna, than you’ll love the music of this up and coming artist, Miss Amani. She is a very energetic performer with a promising music career ahead of her. She is 21 years old, comes from Honolulu, Hawaii and has settled, for the time being, in Los Angeles, California. (more…)
It has been a big couple of weeks for leaks. Radiohead and Weezer both experienced song leaks last weeks with varied results. Radiohead’s song, “These Are My Twisted Words”, was a very good song reminiscent of Kid A, which is my favorite Radiohead album by far. Weezer’s leak a few weeks ago was less successful musically. “The Girl Got Hot” was just more run of the mill Weezer from the Green Album rather than brilliant Weezer from Pinkerton (will we ever see that Weezer again?).
More telling than the quality of the songs, though, was the reaction to the leaks or the almost non-reaction. Leaks have become almost commonplace these days. Its the price of doing business in these modern times. And both bands seem to have come to terms with that. (more…)
About a week ago, a legendary music figure passed away. I’m slightly embarrassed to admit this, but it was many years before I realized that Les Paul was a real person and not just a conceived name for a particular model of electric guitar. I remember the first time I laid eyes on a Gibson Les Paul guitar; it was the classic sunburst coloring with the inlaid mother-of-pearl on the frets. Oh yeah, and it was being shredded by none other than Jimmy Page. One of my favorite pictures of this Page-guitar tandem is when Page breaks out the violin bow and works his Les Paul sunburst like a mad scientist! I came to realize that Les Paul, the man, was also a heck of a musician and an even more impressive innovator of style, recording and instruments. Many people may never realize the impact this guy had on music and the force he was in influencing future guitar players.
Lester William Polsfuss was born in June of 1915. You may know him better as Les Paul. He apparently had an uneventful childhood in Wisconsin until around age 8. He then discovered music by way of the harmonica. He moved on to the banjo and eventually settled in to play the guitar. By the age of seventeen, Les Paul was a professional musician who had played guitar and harmonica on many recordings and radio shows under several different pseudonyms. As successful as he was, he was unsatisfied with the limited sounds that he could create on a ‘traditional’, acoustic hollow body guitar and set out to produce the first solid body, electric guitar. It was dubbed ‘The Log’ because that’s basically what it was; a regular old 4-by-4 piece of lumber with a bridge, neck and self-invented pickup attached. I don’t want to muddy the waters (no pun intended), but Leo Fender was working on a solid body guitar around the same time (so was a fellow named Adolph Rickenbacker). I mention this fact because the folks at Gibson were not interested in Les Paul’s ideas regarding solid body electric guitars until Fender put out an instrument that was well-received…Gibson didn’t want to take the chance. Eventually though, the Gibson folks relented and in the early fifties, Gibson and Les Paul struck a deal and designed the first Gibson Les Paul guitar. And the rest is history, as they say! (more…)
As an avid fan of videogames, I have a soft spot in my heart for video game music. I’m not talking about video game soundtracks, though. Those I will write about at some later date. I will also save covers of videogame tracks for a later date. Today, I am talking about artists who create original music inspired by, and sometimes using, classic videogames.
Anyone who was born after Pong (1972) probably grew up playing videogames. So their influence should be reflected in music, just like we see the influence of movies and books in music. Some bands reflect that influence into the themes of their music. Both Horse The Band and The Protomen liked the classic game Mega Man enough that they decided to write music about some of the characters. Horse The Band wrote a great hardcore song called Cutsman. As the name implies it tells the story of the Mega Man villain. (more…)
What image comes to mind when someone mentions Van Halen? Don’t be afraid; close your eyes and just let the thoughts and pictures flow freely. Is that a guitar you see? Is it the red and white striped one? Who is the singer? Is the bass guitar shaped like a Jack Daniels bottle? For me, Van Halen was one of those revolutionary bands that comes along every few years and raises the bar on rock music. The four original members, Eddie and Alex Van Halen, Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth combined to create a synergy that was unrivaled at the time and some would still argue, has not been equaled since. I like all the incarnations of Van Halen. I refuse to pick a favorite. There has been heated debate in recent years regarding which Van Halen was the best Van Halen. Let’s travel back in time to 1978 and have a little look-see; shall we?
Jimmy Carter jogging is sooo 1978.
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Van Halen, released 1978
In February of 1978, Van Halen took the country by storm with its self-titled, debut release: Van Halen. You have to remember that one. The cover featured a long-haired David Lee Roth, Alex and Eddie slightly blurred and Michael Anthony banging on the four-string. This album contained arguably one of the greatest, single guitar tracks of all time: Eruption. My God, man! Who is this guy? How did he play that? How many guitars are on that track? This instrumental, along with several other radio-friendly tracks like Jamie’s Cryin’ and Ain’t Talkin ‘bout Love, catapulted Van Halen into the national limelight. And the four original members would become rock icons before the decade was out. They went on to record five more albums; their last being 1984. I was lucky enough to see the original Van Halen in 1984 and I have to say, they kicked ass! The guitar solo, in and of itself, was worth the price of the ticket. David Lee Roth was a master showman and an unbelievable front man. They were so tight and well-rehearsed; I hated to see the show end. But, as we all know, egos got the best of the band and the original Van Halen was history…or so we thought. (more…)
Some bands stay with you through the years, others are just a passing trend.
In high school, I listened to Fuel and the Foo Fighters and Live and Counting Crows. In college, my freshman year, I would listen to A Perfect Circle and Tool. Later on, I would listen to The Shins and Elliott Smith.
I’ve listened to R.E.M. for many years, and their songs have stuck by me through good and bad times, thoughtful and emotional times. The first R.E.M. album I got was New Adventures in Hi-Fi. Because of my age, I was joining them late in the game. It has been a treasure trove of albums to discover. I admire how unique R.E.M.’s career has been and how they seem to continually challenge themselves to keep being creative. Of course, besides the music and instrumentation, I am a huge lyrics person. My ears always strain to make out the singer’s words when I’m listening to any music. Michael Stipe’s lyrics and delivery never fail to be poetic. One of my favorite songs is “Find the River,” the last song on Automatic for the People. In high school, my favorite R.E.M. song was “Strange Currencies.” (more…)
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About a week ago, a legendary music figure passed away. I’m slightly embarrassed to admit this, but it was many years before I realized that Les Paul was a real person and not just a conceived name for a particular model of electric guitar. I remember the first time I laid eyes on a Gibson Les Paul guitar; it was the classic sunburst coloring with the inlaid mother-of-pearl on the frets. Oh yeah, and it was being shredded by none other than Jimmy Page. One of my favorite pictures of this Page-guitar tandem is when Page breaks out the violin bow and works his Les Paul sunburst like a mad scientist! I came to realize that Les Paul, the man, was also a heck of a musician and an even more impressive innovator of style, recording and instruments. Many people may never realize the impact this guy had on music and the force he was in influencing future guitar players.
videogames. So their influence should be reflected in music, just like we see the influence of movies and books in music. Some bands reflect that influence into the themes of their music. Both Horse The Band and The Protomen liked the classic game 
through good and bad times, thoughtful and emotional times. The first R.E.M. album I got was New Adventures in Hi-Fi. Because of my age, I was joining them late in the game. It has been a treasure trove of albums to discover. I admire how unique R.E.M.’s career has been and how they seem to continually challenge themselves to keep being creative. Of course, besides the music and instrumentation, I am a huge lyrics person. My ears always strain to make out the singer’s words when I’m listening to any music. Michael Stipe’s lyrics and delivery never fail to be poetic. One of my favorite songs is “Find the River,” the last song on Automatic for the People. In high school, my favorite R.E.M. song was “Strange Currencies.” 
