Song to Love: 99 Problems - Hugo

I originally heard this song late one night on 101.9 RXP, the best radio station in the New York area, and it resonated with me instantly. I got out my phone, went to their website and immediately found out the artist so I could download it when I got home. It was the kind of moment when you know you're finding something completely different that you can't survive another minute without. Yes, that's dramatic but I know any music lover understands that second where you know you've struck gold. A lot of songs are just "okay" and that gets you by but it's such a great feeling to find one that is fantastic.

Although I don't know much about Hugo as a band, I know they have a couple albums out and their big break seemingly came when this song was featured on the soundtrack to the Natalie Portman/Ashton Kutcher film "No Strings Attached". I only found this out while searching Youtube. I thought I was going to find some acoustic version of a single guy playing this at a cafe with a straw hat on and found that Hugo has their own Vevo channel already and this video has half a million views. And I thought I was finding something obscure. Ha! In any event, the video is pretty crazy and the production value is great. It's a short song and another that just leaves you wanting more.

It's a fun, quirky cover with a country twang and an urban vibe. I hope Jay-Z likes it.

Song to Love: The Forms Feat. Matt Berninger - Fire to the Ground

This is my current favorite song. I've listened to it probably 30 times in the past two weeks.

The Forms (whose style Wikipedia considers "math rock"), are a Brooklyn band that formed in the early 2000's and have since released two albums with a third on the way.

The song features The National's Matt Berninger and the combination could not be better.

At just under three minutes, the song goes on for just the right amount of time to leave you wanting more.

Song to Love: John Mayer - Edge of Desire

I feel like I've been all John Mayer-ed out for years now but there's something about his songs that always makes me come back. I'll be thinking situations out in my head and randomly think of his lyrics without meaning to - a classic sign of a great songwriter. It's not necessarily that the words are so brilliant, it's rather the very raw, natural emotions in his simple lyrics that make them so relatable. Some of these lines are just phrases someone might say within a normal conversation. He nails the feeling because he doesn't mask it in metaphors, it's all out in the open.

This song particularly is one of my favorites from Battle Studies. It might sound a little silly but the power it has live is pretty amazing.

(Studio)


Edge of Desire lyrics by John Mayer

Young and full of running
Tell me where has that taken me?
Just a great figure eight or a tiny infinity?

Love is really nothing
But a dream that keeps waking me,
For all of my trying
We still end up dying, how can it be?

Don't say a word just come over and lie here with me,
'Cause I'm just about to set fire to everything I see,
I want you so bad, I'll go back on the things I believed,
There I just said it, I'm scared you'll forget about me.

So young and full of running, all the way to the edge of desire
Steady my breathing, silently screaming,
"I have to have you now"
Wired and I'm tired
Think I'll sleep in my clothes on the floor
Maybe this mattress will spin on its axis and find me on yours

Don't say a word just come over and lie here with me
'Cause I'm just about to set fire to everything I see
I want you so bad I'll go back on the things I believe
There I just said it, I'm scared you'll forget about me

Don't say a word just come over and lie here with me
'Cause I'm just about to set fire to everything I see
I want you so bad I'll go back on the things I believe
There I just said it, I'm scared you'll forget about me

(Live)

Evolution of a Song: Lindsey Buckingham - Trouble

I love Lindsey Buckingham. Not only is Fleetwood Mac one of the greatest bands to see live - and they continue to get better - but the first concert I ever worked in my life was for one of Mr. Buckingham's solo tours and it will forever stick with me. I remember seeing him before soundcheck walking around the entire perimeter of the venue making sure the sound was right from every angle. As I walked past him, we made eye contact for a second and I wanted to say something but his glare was so intense that it scared me off. I heard rumblings about him being really mean and slightly offended that his tour wasn't going as well as he expected but seeing him in that moment alone made me feel like I understood him a little bit. He's a perfectionist and wants his craft to be taken seriously and get the acclaim it deserves. I'm not sure why to this day people don't mention his name when discussing the greatest guitarists of all time. He is a visionary.

There's really a lot about Lindsey Buckingham to love but specifically it's been his solo song "Trouble" off the 1981 album Law and Order that has caught my attention in the past two days. I was in a coffee shop yesterday feeling kind of down when this song came on and at first I couldn't even recall who the artist was. It took me at least a couple minutes to recognize the voice as the entire song is sung in a high falsetto style that doesn't sound anything like his Fleetwood Mac days. I don't know if the song made me feel better or worse but I can't get it out of my head.

After doing some research, I found that this is the only song on the entire Law and Order album in which Lindsey doesn't play bass or drums - only guitar and vocals. Mick Fleetwood was asked to do drums and when things soured in the studio, a continuous loop of a four second drum track was used instead. I would never have known. In a way, I do find this song to have an interesting sexual quality to it but it's also really eerie and sad. I've heard several people say that perhaps Lindsey Buckingham is a little over the top both in concert and vocally (maybe even lyrically) but what's a musician without a little bravado? Interestingly, I found several clips online of this song that show how very different sides of a song can come out depending on the presentation of it. I think it takes a great piece of music to work in two completely different ways.

Check it out for yourself.

Most recent live, acoustic version. I think this is Buckingham's best vocals of the song (and okay, I've also always had a bit of a crush on him in this older man state he's in now, it just works.)

A live 1992 performance where not only does he look completely different but he's just so much cheesier and the song sounds completely different.

The official recording (I loathe the beginning, it is corn central).

Song to Love: Give a Little More - Maroon 5

It's no secret that I love sexy songs. I don't know if you could categorize that as a musical genre but it's certainly my favorite musical grouping. I like to feel something when I'm listening to music and a strong sensual message is a great example of a simple sound transferring into an actual emotion. Of course the usual mix of sad sack songs and love songs can sometimes incite an emotion but it's just not as fun. For me personally it's a weird bag of random songs that captures that particular sensual essence for me. It's not really the standard Barry White songs (as seen in my eclectic prior posts on seduction songs not too long ago), it's much more the setting of any given song.

Take for example Maroon 5's new single "Give a Little More". I don't really find lead vocalist Adam Levine's voice to be enticing but if I were creating an image in my head of this song, it would be a bearded guy (of course) crawling on top of some well dressed girl on a leather couch - he doesn't want to give in but he does sort of thing. It's the feeling inside a song that I enjoy wrapping myself around, whether that song happens to be a poppy fluff piece or something with a little more substance.

When I came across the new music video for this Maroon 5 song, I was slightly disappointed - happy they didn't go the overt Christina Aguilera/Bionic way - but disappointed nonetheless. They could've roughed things up a little. This video proves Mr. Levine can give a knowing glance and the girls are definitely attractive but what happened to all his "This Love" sexual appetite? That music video was so over the top, VH1 had to censor some of the images and Youtube asks you to prove you're 18 before viewing. I miss that. Maroon 5 has always been rather open with their musical agenda and I commend them. In concert, Levine is not above gyrating against his guitar or bringing girls on stage to sing to. He'll tell you upfront that he wants to "dig" his fingertips into you and everything else. Based on prior knowledge, I expected more but the song is still excellent and better than anything else I've heard on the radio in the past few months.

 The mostly family friendly "Give a Little More"...


and the sophisticatedly risque "This Love".

Apple, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie - You Were Young and So Was I

Music is such a strange animal. Although I was born in the mid/late '80's, I feel like I grew up with my mother and aunt's music more than my own. While it is true that I was obsessed with Paula Abdul and had a Michael Jackson button on my winter coat, it was the music playing on CBS FM 101.1, the "oldies" station, that I recall as the music of my childhood. I've probably said it before but it was Bobby Darin, The Spinners, and Bobby Vinton that I thought of as musical geniuses when I was younger. I remember getting so excited when "Beyond the Sea" would come on the radio. That song along with "Heat Wave", "I'll Be Around", any Chicago song, and another silly favorite "Apple, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie" were the songs that would get me going. Between the ages of 3 and 11, I'm not sure that I knew any other music exisited. It wasn't until TLC and who knows what else that my friends in elementary school made me realize that it wasn't "cool" to like oldies.

Although I wanted to fit in, it took me years to finally appreciate new music as it came out. Maybe by eighth or ninth grade I got the hang of it (and I'm not too embarrassed to admit that I did like *NSYNC - I thought their vocal harmonies were excellent and I still do).

For a long time after discovering Pete Yorn, basically the artist who got me into the style of music I still most enjoy today, I let go of some beloved oldies tunes. I got so absorbed in new singer/songwriter music during my teen years that it wasn't of interest to me to listen to the same old songs I had been hearing since my youth.

Since high school that has dramatically changed. MOST of what I listen to today has harkened back to that time in my childhood when the only thing I wanted to hear was classic R&B. It's not the easiest thing to explain because my favorite musicians still are John Mayer and The National, but as a whole classic soul/R&B is my favorite genre to hear. While I can point to certain musicians like Sam Cooke, The Temptations, The Spinners, and Mary Wells specifically, it's really the songs like Jay & the Techniques "Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie" that bring me back to that certain time in my own history that was the sweetest. It was a much simpler time for sure but also might have been the best time of my life musically.

I just downloaded that Jay & the Techniques song onto my iPod for the first time today and I've been listening to it nonstop. It is such a classic and gives me this wave of nostalgia that I quite enjoy.

Also, I should give credit where it's due: this post sort of came to me after reading about Phil Collins' new album full of motown covers, trying to give homage to the music of HIS youth that he claims to love most of all. I adore Phil Collins and although I was hoping, like many others, to hear some new material, I'm super excited for this new album.

So give this song a listen - and don't forget to check out more classic R&B on Amazon, iTunes, or wherever you get music.

Something to Talk About

I know I talk about John Mayer too much but this is my blog so who cares?

I've been an extreme John Mayer fan for almost a decade now and although I've gone through my fits of loving "Neon", "I Don't Trust Myself (With Loving You)", and "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room", I truly believe "Assassin" off his latest album Battle Studies is the absolute best of his career. For my ears it is one of the best songs I have ever heard. I am a huge lover of all kinds of music but this song has something so indescribably special about it. It is a sweeping, dramatic, dark, rock song with some of Mayer's best vocals and phenomenal guitar solos.

My absolute favorite part is when it breaks down in the middle with the bridge:






Suddenly I'm in over my head and I can hardly breathe
Suddenly I'm floating over her bed and I feel everything
Suddenly I know exactly what I did, but I can not move a thing
And suddenly I know exactly what I've done
And what it's gonna mean to me, mean to me
I'm gone

It is emotionally overwhelming. It's a perfect example of a song that goes outside the regular limits of a piece of music. It is not a song that stays within the confines of your headphones, it gets into your head and evokes a new feeling that sticks with you. A lot of John Mayer's songs do this for me but "Assassin" particularly has an inescapable net that gets me every time. There are so many different components all rolled into a nearly six minute song. It's an episode of a television show or a mini-movie.

There are a lot of biases that come with John Mayer's music for some reason and I'm aware of this. I know he's a love/hate celebrity and his voice is in that Conor Oberst/Bob Dylan category of such distinction that you either want to hear it all the time or think it's as bad as nails on a chalkboard but his musicianship cannot be denied. Even the biggest John Mayer haters recognize he is a brilliant guitarist first and foremost and his songcrafting skills are superb.

Forget "Say" or "Daughters" or any other schmaltz he has out on the radio, the real meat of any John Mayer album is in the deep cuts, the tracks you'll never hear on the radio (his best single, "Clarity", was rarely played after its release). Listen to a song like the bluesy "Come Back to Bed" off Heavier Things or my personal favorite "Covered in Rain" off Any Given Thursday and you'll hear the superior musicianship of a man far beyond his peers in terms of style, technique and ability. It's astonishing. This is a guy who has the nerve to cover "Bold as Love" and "Crossroads", two of the best-loved guitar tracks ever on his major label releases and actually pulls it off! (I don't completely understand his cover of "Crossroads" - chopping it up and making it jazzy but he makes it his own).

He is one of the only people I would EVER spend $100.00 a ticket on, let alone five times a year on some occasions. I may be a young female like the majority of his fans but you don't see a dude thirty times in a few years because he looks good - it is because he is a tremendous musician with the power and talent to put together some of the best concerts I have ever seen. His music is haunting, sophisticated, and sensual in a way that is usually reserved only for jazz. He is an absolute musical force. I don't care how dopey he is in his personal life.

There is a moment near the beginning of the new Tina Fey/Steve Carrell film "Date Night" where Tina's character is getting ready for a night on the town - "Heartbreak Warfare" begins playing and there is no dialogue during that time. When it came on, I immediately wanted to write a blog post about it: I completely fell in love with John Mayer's voice all over again. Embarrassingly I saw this movie alone (maybe because no one wants to be seen with a John Mayer freak?) and when the song came on, I felt like I was with an old friend. I probably would've felt this way about The National too but no other artist. Music is a faithful companion.

Embarrassingly once again, I can actually think of several times off the top of my head when John Mayer played at just the right time (during the written portion of my driving test, in the movie 'Serendipity', when I was sad in a supermarket..etc.). John Mayer and The National are probably better friends to me than most of my real life friends and definitely better than most of my distant family. And I believe if you all think hard enough about it you'll realize that your favorite musicians are the same way. Music is an all-encompassing, passionate art form that when used properly can take over every inch of your mind and body.

I'm in love.


(fan-made video that is really exceptional for John Mayer's "Assassin")

Song to Love: Gimme Sympathy - Metric

Although they've been around for over a decade, Metric is a new discovery to me and a pleasant one to say the least. Let me give you some background: My cousin's friend - a very generous one - gave me an old television a couple weeks ago that happens to be 52 inches wide. While the picture isn't anything in these modern days of HD, the sound system is wild. The speakers are just as big as the screen and the best thing to do is blast music when no one's home and dance around cleaning the room. On one particular night I happened to be watching Carson (of course) when Metric came on and I was overtaken with the beauty of the lead singer, Emily Haines. She was wearing a sparkly minidress with a pair of shoes I was immediately jealous of.

Since I knew nothing of the band, I wasn't prepared to get so into them after just a couple songs they played within the 29 minute show. The repeating choruses and the just-poppy-enough beats really made me happy. It's actually been weeks since I saw the performance but I still haven't gotten it out of my head which led me to finding out more information about them today. The song I particularly liked is called "Gimme Sympathy" which has some cutesy references to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones which normally might be a little irritating for some reason but they really pull it off. The band overall seems really likable and I appreciate the mixture of light/dark lyrics and melodies. I'm just a beginner when it come to Metric knowledge but from what Wikipedia tells me, they're a Canadian indie rock band, four albums deep into a career that has already seen them win numerous awards in Canada and tour the world.

"Gimme Sympathy" is track six off their newest album Fantasies, released last year and written by Haines and lead guitarist Jimmy Shaw.

Below is the music video and the acoustic version given to fans who pre-ordered the new album. Enjoy!

Song to Love: Meiple - Robin Thicke featuring Jay-Z

The second one in the same day! "Meiple" is one of those songs that is definitely love or hate but from the first listen I absolutely loved it. It sounds like NOTHING else. Robin Thicke has created a song that is so infinitely different from everything else out there and that is really impressive in a time when almost everything sounds alike. And just think: this is a mainstream song! I don't know, I'm really happy about this. Thicke's entire new album "Sex Therapy" that was released on December 15th is so sensual and unique. He doesn't rely on the usual techniques of R&B or pop, he's almost his own genre. Even more exceptional, he seems truly involved in every aspect of his own music taking on production, singing, and writing credits for this, his fourth studio album.

Take a listen to "Meiple" below along with a three minute video of his session time with Jay-Z. For such a short glimpse, it's actually really insightful. And as a quick glance back, I've included the video for "When I Get You Alone", an awesome song he did back in the days of his long hair and one title moniker ("Thicke"). The music in his soul just comes leaping out in this one. It's worth a few minutes of your time, I assure you. Even if you detest the strangeness of Mr. Thicke, he is really interesting and I swear, these songs are going to get stuck in your head all day (the way he says "babe" at the end of every line in this song is SO weird I just love it).

Song to Love: The Christmas Song - Brian McKnight

I have never been a fan of Christmas songs and actually I've never really been a fan of Christmas in general. No matter how much I plan on having a festive 12 days, it always turns into mayhem. It's almost a cruel joke that the days become shorter right before the supposed "most wonderful time of the year", a trick that only helps to breed depression in most circumstances. Christmas songs in particular bother me most of all - with their obnoxious jingles and silly rhymes. It seems like there are 1,000 versions of the same song everywhere I go (and that probably isn't even much of an exaggeration).

Thankfully, Mr. Brian McKnight has stopped the madness and brought to light (on a very dreary night) a beautiful rendition of the holiday classic "The Christmas Song". I don't know if it hit me at just the right time or it really is one of the best Christmas songs I've ever heard but it stuck with me over the past week and got me out of bed to record it at 1am on VH1 Soul the other night so it must have some magic. It is simply beautiful.

Please enjoy.

SONG I LOVE!

Oh my God. This song is so good. Maybe I'm crazy but I love this so so much.

Monsters of Folk - "Whole Lotta Losin'"

Song to Love: Empire State of Mind

I don't like to "editorialize" these songs to loves... well it's more like I don't like the word "editorialize" - I love doing it though. And watch me go:

I LOVE this song. There is something about this song that catches my attention like no other. There is a power to it. It's like Jay-Z's urban take on Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York" and he even mentions Sinatra in it. I'm realizing more and more that one of my favorite music genres is Rap and although that might sound surprising based on my other favorite musicians, songs, etc. I have good reason.

I can't think of much mainstream, top 100 Billboard music that has more soul and feeling than some of these hit rap songs of the past five years. Artists like Kanye West, Jay-Z, Common, Kid Cudi, T.I. and David Banner have so much heart in their music it's ridiculous. Maybe it's covered with a smattering of pomp and some form of shock and awe but underneath there's a world where feelings are the most important thing and magic comes in the form of addicting beats and desperately delicious rhymes.

This song by Jay-Z off his new album, The Blueprint 3, is one I first heard on the disastrous VMA's earlier this month and while I enjoyed it then, it wasn't until I downloaded it last week that it grabbed me. There are such interesting elements working together on this track - Alicia Keys with a hook that's beautiful and haunting (I have never heard her sound better - she has a bridge that's utterly breathtaking), Jay-Z with verses that explain the topic (Manhattan) in a fresh, new way, and music that sounds exactly like the words do, if you know what I'm saying. The song sounds like New York. It's like music onomatopoeia, and that's really rare. Grizzly Bear's "Two Weeks" also has this sound. (side note: Jay-Z was recently seen attending a Grizzly Bear show in New York so it all comes full circle)

So far this song has reached #1 on the iTunes charts and #5 on the official Billboards list, also managing to chart in the UK, Ireland, Canada, and Switzerland. It doesn't officially get released to radio until October 19th.

You MUST check this song out. Whether you like rap or not, this is a special case. I would listen to this every hour if I could.



Empire State of Mind
Yeah,
Yeah, Imma up at Brooklyn,
now Im down in Tribeca,
right next to DeNiro,
But i’ll be hood forever,
I’m the new Sinatra,
and since i made it here,
i can make it anywhere,
yeah they love me everywhere,
i used to cop in Harlem,
all of my dominicanos
right there up on broadway,
brought me back to that McDonalds,
took it to my stash spot,
Five Sixty Stage street,
catch me in the kitchen like a simmons whipping pastry,
cruising down 8th street,
off white lexus,
driving so slow but BK is from Texas,
me I’m up at Bedsty,
home of that boy Biggie,
now i live on billboard,
and i brought my boys with me,
say wat up to Ty Ty, still sipping Malta
sitting courtside Knicks and Nets give me high fives,
N-gga i be spiked out, i can trip a referee,
tell by my attitude that I most definitely from…

[Alicia Keys]
In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can’t do,
Now you’re in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
big lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York

[Jay-Z]
I made you hot n-gga,
Catch me at the X with OG at a Yankee game,
sh-t i made the yankee hat more famous than a yankee can,
you should know I bleed Blue, but I aint a crip tho,
but i got a gang of n-ggas walking with my click though,
welcome to the melting pot,
corners where we selling rocks,
afrika bambaataa sh-t,
home of the hip hop,
yellow cap, gypsy cap, dollar cab, holla back,
for foreigners it aint fitted they forgot how to act,
8 million stories out there and their naked,
cities is a pity half of y’all won’t make it,
me i gotta plug Special Ed "i got it made,"
If Jesus payin LeBron, I’m paying Dwayne Wade,
3 dice cee-lo
3 card marley,
labor day parade, rest in peace Bob Marley,
Statue of Liberty, long live the World trade,
long live the king yo,
I’m from the empire state thats…

In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can’t do,
Now you’re in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
big lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York
Welcome to the bright light..

[Jay-Z]
Lights is blinding,
girls need blinders
so they can step out of bounds quick,
the side lines is blind with casualties,
who sipping life casually, then gradually become worse,
don’t bite the apple Eve,
caught up in the in crowd,
now your in-style,
and in the winter gets cold en vogue with your skin out,
the city of sin is a pity on a whim,
good girls gone bad, the cities filled with them,
Mommy took a bus trip and now she got her bust out,
everybody ride her, just like a bus route,
Hail Mary to the city your a Virgin,
and Jesus can’t save you life starts when the church ends,
came here for school, graduated to the high life,
ball players, rap stars, addicted to the limelight,
MDMA got you feeling like a champion,
the city never sleeps better slip you a Ambien

In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can’t do,
Now you’re in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
big lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York


[Alicia Keys]
One hand in the air for the big city,
Street lights, big dreams all looking pretty,
no place in the World that can compare,
Put your lighters in the air, everybody say yeaaahh
come on, come,
yeah,

In New York,
Concrete jungle where dreams are made of,
Theres nothing you can’t do,
Now you’re in New York,
these streets will make you feel brand new,
big lights will inspire you,
lets here it for New York, New York, New York

Song to Love: Two Weeks

It seems like more and more I'm finding myself in love/hate relationships with bands that either I used to hate and now love or used to love and now hate. Luckily for Grizzly Bear, I now love them (like they really care). But it did take a lot to get me to this point.

I had seen Grizzly Bear open for the one and only THE NATIONAL at Hammerstein Ballroom way back in the year 2008 and not only disliked their set, wished they never existed as humans and wanted to kill myself with their microphone stand. I hated them in a way I have hated few bands before. It made my toes curl - in a bad way - to see them getting so much critical praise in reputable press like New York Magazine (the ones hosting the show) and The New York Times which ranked their album, Yellow House, as one of the best of 2006. I thought the lead singer looked like a demented version of Humphrey Bogart and totally dismissed all of their songs as sounding the same and blending into one another without notice.

Now, I'm not taking all of those comments back just yet because I like one song. I still never gave that particular album a full run through so it really could be as awful as I imagine and perhaps the band has just now started making better music.

This song, "Two Weeks" off their new album, Veckatimest, is excellent from start to finish. I am obsessed, in love, and can't get enough. It sounds like autumn in New York and love and candy and concerts. It sounds like going to see a concert in the fall in Manhattan while sucking on a sweet lollipop. Haha - I don't know.

The sound is so fresh and original that I will fully give it my seal of approval. This is one of those songs I think they made especially for my ears. While the lyrics are surprisingly powerful and even slightly sensual, it's the actual MUSIC of the song that is so above par. I am extremely impressed, more than I have been in a long time by a single song. Even the artwork on the album cover is decent so I could actually buy this freaking thing. I really might! And this is a band I don't even like.

That is the power of music.

Enjoy the music video. It's really weird.




Song originally found on 101.9 RXP: the greatest station in the world. Go to their website.

Two Weeks

Save up all the days
A routine malaise
Just like yesterday
I told you I would stay

Would you always
Maybe sometimes
Make it easy
Take your time

Think of all the ways
Momentary phase
Just like yesterday
I told you I would stay

Every time you try
Quarter half the mile
Just like yesterday
I told you I would stay

Would you always
Maybe sometimes
Make it easy
Take your time

Song to Love: Divine

It has nearly 2 million views on Youtube, it is a worldwide, underground phenomenon and I cannot get enough of it. "Divine" by French singer Sebastien Tellier is a crazy cavalcade of lunacy. The song, off Tellier's 2008 album Sexuality, was the French entry for the renowned Eurovision Song Contest where it was harshly criticized for being primarily in English to the point of getting the French Parliament involved, partially helping it to place a low 18th out of 25th within the contest.

Despite the controversy, the song peaked high on Belgian, Swedish, Danish, and UK Singles charts throughout 2008 and the video has become an even greater success with the help of comical montages featuring the singer in strange situations amongst people of various backgrounds.

I promise this is the funniest music video you will ever see.



No no no no no no no
I’m looking for a band today
I see the Chivers anyway
Through my eyes

Oh oh oh
I… I’m alone in life to say
I love the Chivers anyway
‘Cause Chivers look divine
Look away
They try to find the Milky Way
They love to drink it every day

No no no no no no no
You… you and I, it’s like you said
I’m not a Chivers anyway
You look fine

Oh oh oh
I… I’m alone in life to say
I love the Chivers anyway
‘Cause Chivers look divine
Look away
They try to find the Milky Way

I… toi et moi, c’est comme tu sais
Comment mon cœur a succombé
She looks fine

Oh oh oh
I’m looking for a band today
I see the Chivers anyway
I’ll be a Chivers guy some day
In my mind

Dudu dududu dududu…
Dudu dududu dududu…
Du… dudu…

(In case you were wondering, "Chivers" is apparently a fictitious high school band in the movie "Steak" that Tellier was in and composed for.)

Song to Love: Covered in Rain

Appropriately, it is a rainy Saturday afternoon, I'm at work alone in a little box and was just asked by a customer if the building is haunted. I need my favorite song more than ever right now.

And this is it.

I don't know if I've mentioned it before - and it takes a lot for me to say this with complete assurance - but my favorite song is "Covered in Rain" by John Mayer. I guess if I was forced to give the full picture, this would be in a tight race with Chicago's "Beginnings" but that song doesn't do what this one does. "Covered in Rain" is literally everything a song should be - while breaking every rule I have when listening to songs.

Let me explain: When I turn on my iPod, I'm generally looking for a 2 to 3 minute song - upbeat, quick, catchy chorus, nothing too serious. With "Covered in Rain" there's a five minute guitar solo (depending on the version you're listening to, it has never been officially recorded for release), it's a ten minute song total, and it is slower than many of Mayer's other songs. It's not for the musical faint of heart. It is a commitment which might be why it leaves such an impression. I shouldn't even be discussing it for fear that it will make me sound like a larger geek than I already am but seeing Mayer play this live is like pure musical heaven. It transports the audience to a different level - the guitar solo is incendiary. It is a masterpiece. Before I understood anything about musicianship, I knew this was unlike any other basic singer/songwriter shtick. The song tells a story of a failing relationship on the most human level possible, reminiscing about the simple things that are always the hardest to forget.

And the lyrics:

In these days with the world gettin colder
She spends more time sleeping over
Than I’d planned
Tonight we're gonna order in
Drinkin' wine and watchin' CNN
It’s dark, I know
But then again, it's the brightest thing I've got

When I'm covered in rain, rain
When I'm covered in rain, rain, rain, rain

From fireworks to fireplaces
Summer stole what fall replaces
And now we're people watching
All the people, people watching us right back
Standing by the missing signs
At the CVS, by the checkout line
She puts her quiet hands in mine,
Cause she's the brightest thing I've got

When I’m covered in rain, rain
When I’m covered in rain, rain, rain, rain
Oh, I’m covered in rain
Oh, I’m covered in rain
Oh, I’m covered in rain

And come December, Lydia left.
She mentioned something ‘bout it being for the best,
And I can't say I disagree, and its killing me.
And now I’m standing facing west
Tracing my fingers round a silhouette
I haven’t gotten used to yet,
But it’s the brightest thing I’ve got

When I’m covered in rain

This is just one of those songs that can't be discussed in greater length - it must be heard. My favorite version can be found on the live dvd/cd Any Given Thursday but another great rendition is on As/Is available on iTunes and in some stores.

Enjoy.



And some extra credit: "Hummingbird" - my second favorite Mayer song with the same eerie, bittersweet feeling that makes "Covered in Rain" so phenomenal. The John Mayer in this video is a completely different one than you're used to these days. It's nice to remember.

Song to Love: It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City

I was listening to the greatest radio station in New Jersey, 101.9 RXP, the other day when this song came on that for some crazy reason I had never heard before. It was obviously Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band but it had this really strong Tom Petty flavor that I fell in love with instantly. I still don't have the internet at my new apartment yet which means I haven't been able to download this song so far but I am already obsessed with it. I immediately wrote down the name of it on an old receipt that day (a practice I love) and have listened to it on the work computer almost everyday I've been here since then.

This song, off Springsteen's debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., was the first to impress the guy, Mike Appel, that was to become his manager even though he wasn't yet with a label. From my reliable source (Wikipedia, naturally), it was also the first song Springsteen performed at his audition for CBS Records who eventually ended up signing him. The original demo of this song can be found on Tracks, a four disc box set released in 1998.


While I've always appreciated Springsteen's music and even had minor love affairs with some of his others songs, none have stuck in my head like this one. It is one of 'those' songs for me. The second I get around to downloading it, it's going to be on nonstop replay I'm sure.

...and I don't know if it's just me but Bruce Springsteen doesn't get enough credit for being rather attractive, right? He's my type at least.

Song to Love: You Rock My World

"You Rock My World" was a single off Michael Jackson's 2001 album "Invincible", reaching #10 on the Billboard charts and becoming Jackson's last single to reach the top 10 list in the US. The debut of this single fell on the anniversary of his first solo single, "Got to Be There", marking 30 years in the entertainment industry as a solo artist. The album itself, on Jackson's long time label Epic, became his last studio record ever and has sold 8 to 10 million copies worldwide to date. While most of the critical reviews were generally favorable, many said the album didn't live up to Jackson's previous work and continuously referred back to his eccentric image, even going so far as to call him a "freak" and "scary" within the reviews. Now, this album is regarded as a success with most supporters standing behind the fact that reviews were unnecessarily turning people off with the details of scandals and personal information mixed into the musical critiques.


The music video, with guest spots from Chris Tucker and Marlon Brando, depicts a Michael Jackson we've seen before with the slanted hat, white socks, and black blazer. He is slick - chasing after a contemporary version of the girl in all his videos yet the hat is maybe too slanted as if he doesn't want anyone to see his face. As always, despite controversy, he manages to give off a sexy, cool vibe. This was the last music video he appeared in and the second to last he ever made.

Rock My World - Michael Jackson
My life will never be the same
‘Cause girl, you came and changed
The way I walk
The way I talk

I cannot explain the things I feel for you
But girl, you know it’s true
Stay with me, fulfill my dreams
And I’ll be all you’ll need

Oh, oh, oh, oh, ooh, it feels so right (Girl)
I’ve searched for the perfect love all my life (All my
life)
Oh, oh, oh, oh, ooh, it feels like I (Like I)
Have finally found her perfect love is mine (See, I
finally found, come on, girl)

You rocked my world, you know you did
And everything I own I give (You rocked my world)
The rarest love who’d think I’d find
Someone like you to call mine (You rocked my world)

You rocked my world, you know you did (Girl)
And everything I own I give (I want you, girl)
The rarest love who’d think I’d find
Someone like you to call mine

In time I knew that love would bring
This happiness to me
I tried to keep my sanity
I waited patiently

Girl, you know it seems
My life is so complete
A love that’s true because of you
Keep doing what you do

Oh, oh, oh, oh, who’d think that I (Oh)
Have finally found the perfect love I searched for all
my life (Searched for all my life)
Oh, oh, oh, oh, who’d think I’d find
(Whoa…oh…oh…)
Such a perfect love that’s so right (Whoa, girl)

Song to Love: Oh, How to Do Now

Small miracles! In my review of The Shins concert this past Sunday, I mentioned that their best song was a cover they did during the encore. I didn't understand the words and couldn't recall the song but through the magic of the internet, I managed to find a video of the song called, "Oh, How to Do Now" by The Monks. I still can't find The Shins' version just yet but I won't give up hope. This is such a great song and I'm so glad, relieved, exhilarated that I found it!

Thank you, Setlist.fm.

Song to Love: You Beat Me to the Punch

Mary Wells is brilliant. There's so much to know about her but right now let's just focus on this incredible song where she sings the word "punch" as if it's the sexiest most intense word in the world. Released in 1962 by Motown Records and composed by the equally brilliant Smokey Robinson, this song reached number nine on the pop charts and became Wells' first number one single on the R&B charts.

Older, live version:


Original, recorded version: