Just a quick note today. I picked up my girl from college this morning. She finished her sophomore year. Crazy! Where does the time go? I get to have her home for a few days before she takes off for an internship for the rest of the summer. They grow up and time gets so short and precious … I feel like I am holding on to every minute. Holding onto heaven while she is here.
I really like this song today by rising artist, Foxes. Foxes is the stage name of British singer-songwriter, Louisa Rose Allen from Southampton (now based in London). Foxes has been the featured artist on many albums with other artists, most notably “Clarity” by Zedd which won a 2014 Grammy Award for “Best Dance Recording” (also Rudimental and Fall Out Boy). She has since devoted her time to her solo career and songwriting, releasing her debut album, Glorious, earlier this month (not yet released in the US). She has an amazing voice and I find this song incredibly addictive. It will be interesting to see where she goes from here.
Today I am posting what my son and I have deemed our “theme song” for our trip to Arizona. We have spent nearly every minute of our time outside in the fabulous sunshine and blue skies. It just makes us feel happy and so does this song! We have been “clapping along” and have probably been spotted looking like many of the people shown in this fantastic music video. 🙂
We may slowly be killing the song as we have listened to it so much over the last few days, but what else would you do with a theme song? This is a great song by Pharrell Williams, who I think is just one of the coolest dudes in the music industry. He has also got to be on the busiest guys in the industry – producer, fashion designer, songwriter, drummer, performer … what doesn’t he do?
This has been an especially big year for Pharrell. He was nominated for 7 Grammy Awards, including one for this song; in addition, this song was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song (from the movie Despicable Me). He also played a key role in one of 2013’s biggest hits and Grammy award-winning song – “Get Lucky” by Daft Punk. He is an amazingly talented guy. Something else about him that I think is amazing … Pharrell is 40 years old, but have you seen him? He looks like he is 25!
Snowed in again today! Woke up to 8 new inches of snow and then it started to sleet which put a nice layer of ice on top of it all. My husband was meant to fly out to California this morning, but with the crazy weather warnings, he made a quick change of plans and flew out last night. Good thing he did as all flights were canceled this morning. I got a text at 4:28 am this morning letting me know that he had just arrived. That is the joy of flying across the country and 3 time zones! The crazy things we do!
I am posting a song today by The National. The band was formed in Cincinnati, Ohio back in 1999 and are now based in Brooklyn. Their 2013 album release, Trouble Will Find Me, was nominated for a Grammy this year for Best Alternative Album.
The band is made up of Matt Berninger (the baritone singer & lyrics writer) and two pairs of brothers: twins, Aaron and Bryce Dessner (guitarists), and Scott and Bryan Devendorf (bass and drums). Matt writes the lyrics to the songs, and the rest of the guys contribute to writing the music. It sounds like they make a very cooperative team in their creative process. I love the texture of their music and I think they would be incredible to see live.
I would definitely call their music moody and melancholy, and I can only take them in small doses (or when my mood is in the same place!), but I really love this song. Have you ever had anyone say to you, “I need my girl.” It is such an incredibly honest and vulnerable statement, and a powerful message on the receiving end. I totally think they caught the moment in this song.
I hope you enjoy the music today. Definitely different from yesterday’s rap … I like to keep it interesting. 🙂
Well, the GRAMMY awards are over and now back to recognizing ALL the good music that is out there. I find the awards interesting; there are so many artists that are incredible that never get any recognition. I would love to understand how the voters pick their nominees and how the voting process occurs. I find it funny that they honor lots of “old-timers” in current shows because they never actually won a GRAMMY back in the day when they should have been honored. Oh well, I guess it is just one method of honoring artists … the other is a celebration by us, as music lovers and fans, as we honor and enjoy the wide range of musical talents and genres. So, back to the music …
Today, I am sharing a song from one of my favorite bands (I know, I have a lot of favorites ;)!) The Script is an Irish band that I have been in love with for many years. I distinctly remember when I first discovered them. It was 2008 and we were living in London. I was on the high street getting my hair cut. The salon was pretty hip and they had a great radio station playing. Suddenly this song starts to play and I immediately love it! So, the whole time I am sitting there getting my hair finished, I am trying to remember all the words to the song because I had not been paying attention when they introduced it and said who it was or the name of the song.
I walked home and immediately told my kids: “I just heard the best song and I need to figure out who it is! The song was about a guy who is sitting on a corner and he has a sign …” My daughter rolled her eyes at me, sat down at the computer, and said, “I’m probably going to need more to go on than that.” But we begin googling new songs, new artists and some of the words I could remember and sure enough … we figured it out! It was “The Man Who Can’t Be Moved” by The Script. It was then, and still is, one of my favorite songs.
The Script is comprised of three Irish guys (a self proclaimed Celtic Trio) – Danny O’Donoghue, Mark Sheehan, and Glen Power – who are incredibly talented song-writers, musicians, and singers. They are great storytellers and write a lot about their life and love. Some of the topics they have covered are the death of parents (The End Where I Begin, If You Could See Me Now), and troubles that friends and family were having, particularly during the economic downturn in Ireland (For the First Time, If You Ever Come Back). They have released three albums: The Script (2008), Science & Faith (2010), and #3 (2012). Based on that history, I am hoping for a new album this year. All three albums are fantastic and very different from each other, but I tend to have a stronger connection to the first two albums even though I love several songs on #3. Check out all their music because I can’t even begin to list the songs I would recommend. Today’s song is from #3 and I love the word play that they use – “Six Degrees of Separation.”
I did not get to see The Script perform live while I was living in London, but I have seen them 3 times back here in the States! They are incredible live! They are funny, personable, down-to-earth, and sound even better live than recorded. They have opened for some incredibly big names, such as Paul McCartney and U2, both of whom personally sought them out because they were so impressed with their talent.
With that background, I have some exciting news! The Script is touring with OneRepublic this year … two of my all time favorite bands together! Does it get any better than that?!! I am thrilled and can’t wait for the concert. My entire family loves both bands so it will be a great family show. I have to say that The Script and OneRepublic are two of only a handful of bands that I wouldn’t have to beg my husband to attend with me. To top it off, American Authors will also be touring with them. 🙂
In keeping with the GRAMMY award nominee theme, I wanted to post a song by one of my all time favorite artists and nominee for Best New Artist. I absolutely adore Ed Sheeran! I posted a song by him on this site back in November where I talked a lot about him, so click on the link to get caught up. He has been a favorite since we lived in London in 2010 and we were so excited to see his career skyrocket.
Ed Sheeran is one of the coolest guys in the business. His live shows are remarkable and his ability to create music as a one man performer is astounding. I know that he is working on his next album and I would highly recommend keeping your eyes out for a live show … it would totally be worth your time, effort, and money to see him live; but, be warned, his tickets are incredibly difficult to come by these days.
I think it is somewhat strange that he is nominated for Best New Artist this year as his song “The A Team” earned him a a 55th GRAMMY nomination for Song Of The Year last year.Also in 2012, he won British Breakthrough Act and British Male Solo Artist at the 2012 Brit Awards. It seems that the GRAMMY voters are a little late to the party, but it certainly does not mean that he is not well deserving of the Best New Artist award … I just think he should have been nominated last year. There are a lot of great nominees in this category, but my vote goes to Ed.
I just could not pass up the opportunity to share another song by Ed Sheeran. I would love to recommend a song or two of his that I love, but honestly I love all of his music. This video just seemed like the perfect pick today as there has been a lot of hype across the web this week about him rescuing and adopting a cat; he even created a Twitter account for “Graham.” Seems to make this video even funnier after this news.
Good luck, Ed! I am rooting for you to win tomorrow night.
With the GRAMMY Awards just a couple of days away, I wanted to share another song that has been nominated for an award. The song I chose today is nominated for the Best Country Duo/Group Performance and it is packed with some power performers. Tim McGraw, Taylor Swift, and Keith Urban are all incredibly successful performers in their own right, but put them together and you have a major star-studded nomination.
Keith Urban’s guitar performance was amazing and the combo of Tim McGraw and Taylor Swift worked. It made me laugh that the two were doing a song together because Taylor recorded a song called “Tim McGraw” on her first album in 2006! Haha, things do come around, don’t they.
I really enjoyed listening to this song and then I watched the music video … wow, not what I was expecting. You have definitely got to watch it! Totally gives the words to the song a different meaning than my first take. I showed the video to my daughter and her first question was, “Why do you think they did that?” That is an interesting question. Is it to emphasize the dangers of phones and texting in cars or is it a more personal message to Tim McGraw’s own three teenage daughters? Would love to get your take on it.
Regardless, it is a great song and certainly deserving of the nomination in this category, although I have to admit that I don’t know much about country music. I’m not sure who will win this category, but I definitely think the song is a contender. If I was betting, my money would probably be on the Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton duet, “You Can’t Make Old Friends.” It is a very pretty song, but I think it will be the winner just simply because it is two sentimental favorites and the Grammy’s seem to have a history in rewarding those old favorites, particularly with a song as sentimental as Old Friends.
A melancholy song today. Christmas is just a few days away and the end of the year is approaching quickly. For some reason I feel a little melancholy myself today. I think it is just December. Maybe that is why this song kept coming to mind today.
Anyway, I really love this song and I think Sara Bareilles is amazing. She is one of my favorites. My daughter and I saw her live in concert in Dallas a few years ago and it was an incredible show. From the minute she sat down at the piano it was just enchanting. She began playing and then belted out those lyrics in that incredible voice and the entire crowd was drawn in to her magic.
In keeping with the theme from yesterday, I am posting another song that is a Grammy nominee for Best Music Video. This is a bit of an older song and probably most of you are already familiar with it (judging by the fact that the YouTube video and Spotify have close to 50 million hits), but I have three reasons for posting it today.
The first reason is the recent Grammy nomination and the fact that the video is incredibly original and just a great piece of art in and of itself. The song has been a viral sensation! Although their full album (In A Tidal Wave of Mystery) just came out in June 2013, this song was actually released independently in 2011 and garnered a huge following. I really like Capital Cities. They are very talented and stay true to the sound that inspires them; they are unique and interesting, and just plain fun to listen to.
The second reason is that I promised a friend that I would post more running/exercise music and I actually love to workout to this song. It has a great beat and, even more than that, it just keeps me interested and jiving along. I hope you can use this one, Ruthie. 🙂
The last reason is that my husband has been traveling like a mad man for work the last few months. We had him home for literally a day and a half before he flew out again this morning on a long haul international flight. He will be gone for a 7 day stint, leaving London, Singapore, Tokyo, and Vail, Colorado in his wake. (Haha…one of these things just doesn’t belong.) I just want him to travel safely and arrive in his destinations safe and sound. ❤
All of these reasons just made for the perfect fit for posting this song today. Enjoy your Sunday!
Last night we stayed up to watch the Grammy Nomination show. I always try to guess who I think is going to be nominated for certain categories and then I am always excited to explore some of the new music that I discover during the nominations.
I wanted to share one of the songs that has been nominated as best music video. Although I knew the song before, I had never watched the video and it is really cool. Also, it is a totally unique song which I just find sweet. Reminds me of a lot of different genres combined together and makes for some great dancing. A little soul, a little blues, a little rock, just a great combo.
If you are not familiar with Jack White as a solo artist, you may be familiar with the large number of groups in which he has been involved. He formed (along with his first wife) the group The White Stripes, then became a founding member of the rock group The Raconteurs, and then became a founding member of the group The Dead Weather. Along the way, he also collaborated with a host of other great musicians, produced some albums, and did a little acting. He is on Rolling Stone’s list of “100 Greatest Guitarists,” he sings, and he is a drummer. Needless to say, it would be hard to say that he is wasting time … or his talents.
Make sure to watch the video for this one – great dancing, a little Robert Palmer feel, and just plain cool (can’t even think of a better word). Would love to hear what you think about this one.
