Month: January 2018

The Top 10 Overused Song Titles

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I was going through my iTunes music library and damn there are a lot of repeat song titles.  Always looking for new post ideas, it hit me.  What are the most over used song titles?  Now I have a post idea and so I am going to bring you the Top 10 Overused Song Titles in music…or at least my musical library.

Now there were several that barely missed the cut.  They were the following titles: “Free”, “Forever”, “Without You”, each with 12 titles in my library.  And several with 11 songs including “Stand Up”, “Someday”, “Scream” and “Save Me”…a lot starting with “S” apparently.

10. “You”:  I have 12 different songs in my library with this title.  The artists are rather varied with The Afters, Black Stone Cherry, Bonnie Raitt, Buckcherry, Candlebox, Collective Soul, Elliott Yamin, Gotthard, Marvin Gaye, Richie Kotzen, Safetysuit and Keith Urban.

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Hired Gun – Documentary Review

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I have been wanting to see Hired Gun since it was announced as a documentary in the Summer of 2017.  Thanks to Netflix, I finally got that chance.  If you don’t know what it is, I will tell you.

‘Hired Gun’ is a documentary about those musicians singers and bands hire to be in the band whether to help make an album or to do a tour.  They are the “hired guns” and they aren’t actual members of the band.  For me, that sounded like a very interesting story to be told.  What do these musicians/artists go through to get the gig and to actually keep that gig.

The people they interview are incredible musicians.  You might not know them all by name, but you would probably recognize a lot their work.  They are as follows:

  • Liberty Devito (Billy Joel)
  • Jason Hook (Five Finger Death Punch)
  • Phil X (Bon Jovi)
  • Eric Singer (Kiss)
  • Ray Parker, Jr. (Ghostbusters)
  • Justin Derrico (P!nk)
  • Rudy Sarzo (Ozzy Osbourne)
  • Steve Lukather (Michael Jackson)
  • Kenny Arnoff (John Mellencamp)
  • Jason Newsted (Metallica)

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My Sunday Song – “I’m Not Alright” by Sanctus Real

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My Sunday Song #74 is “I’m Not Alright” by Sanctus Real.  This is the 2nd time Sanctus Real has made this list and it is another impactful song.  This song is off their 2006 release called ‘The Face of Love’.  It was a #1 song for them on the Christian charts and garnered them a Dove Award nomination for Rock/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year.  Sadly, they didn’t win.

The song spoke to me in the fact that we aren’t all alright.  We are all broken in mind and spirit.  We are sinners.  The song is his confession that he is broken and that only through God, he is healed and he feels safe.  I can so relate to this song.  I think we all feel broken sometimes.  I know for me when I feel this way, I find that Christian music and God help me get through it.  Sanctus Real delivers songs that are meaningful and relatable.  They are going through the same thing I am going through and it has helped me so many times.

In an interview with 1cubed.com, the band talked about the recording of the song and how the song was originally titled “I’ll Be Fine”.  They felt they were lying to themselves and being fake.  They felt the need to be honest with themselves and everyone that you won’t always be fine.  It turned into this wonderful confession.

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Friday New Releases – January 12th

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Happy New Year and welcome to the first Friday New Releases of 2018.  Why is this the first since it is the 2nd Friday of the new year?  Well, it is the first week with any new releases worth mentioning.  And there are a few worth mentioning…at least for me.  The ones I want are highlighted in Blue.

  • 511sBdx2nNL._AC_US218_  Joe Satriani – What Happens Next – (Sony Music):  The Satch man is back and I couldn’t be happier.  Well, I could if someone sent this to me in CD or vinyl form.  Since that won’t happen, I will stream it for now.  He is my favorite guitarists and I love how is able to make the guitar sing in each song.  He is amazing.  Looking forward to more great stuff especially since this album features Glenn Hughes on Bass and Chad Smith on Drums.  This should be awesome!!

  • 51tYnOokeJL._AC_US218_  Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – Wrong Creatures – (Abstract Dragon):  The American rock band out of San Francisco returns for the 8th studio album.  I love their retro, gritty, distorted guitars with a punk edge.  The song I have heard sounds like what I expect and I expect great things!

  • 51HdK4bnAQL._AC_US320_QL65_  Anderson East – Encore – (Elektra Records):  I heard the song “All On My Mind” that was written with Ed Sheeran and I liked what I heard.  Not real familiar with him, but if the album is anything like the song, sounds like it could be great.  Plus, the man is dating Miranda Lambert!!  Damn!!

  • 61wl74tSw7L._AC_US436_QL65_  Dr. Demento Covered in Punk – Various Artists – (Demented Punk):  Ok, I heard the Cramp’s song “Garbageman” performed by William Shatner and it is fucking awesome!!!  Excuse my language, but it is!!!

  • 51eq-HJ-G-L._AC_US436_QL65_  BØRNS – Blue Madonna – (Interscope Records):  I really enjoyed his last album for its uniqueness, his voice and the songs.  I am hoping for a step up with this release.  His music is labeled as many things including indie pop, psychedelic pop, synth pop, electronica pop and alt rock and it is every one of these labels.  Not my usual cup of tea, but I dig it!!

  • 81vupQOdcKL._SX522_  Camila Cabello – Camila – (Simco Ltd)

  • 61pq+-U8L6L._SS500  Bob Marley – Kingston Sessions: Vintage Years – (JA Records)

  • 61d--C0G8ML._AC_US436_QL65_  Tinsley Ellis – Winning Hand – (Alligator Records)

  • 51Y-lsZ6qhL._AC_US436_QL65_  Corrosion of Conformity – No Cross No Crown – (Nuclear Blast Entertainment)

  • 61kb1KK1gSL._AC_US436_QL65_  Leaves’ Eyes – Sign of the Dragonhead – (AFM Records)

  • 61XwZ9-Di1L._SS500  Black Veil Brides – Vale – (Republic Records)

Turntables & Vinyl #11 – The Holiday Treasure Trove

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Oh the Holidays!  The end of the year.  Christmas time.  The time John is not supposed to buy any albums since it is the holidays and it is my birthday time period so no record purchases as people need to have something to give me as a gift.  Well, that didn’t quite work this year.

I did set aside a list of albums people could buy for me for Christmas and/or my Birthday and I made sure that anything I picked up was not from that list.  December turned out to be a treasure trove of purchases, gifts and free stuff.  I definitely hit the jackpot with a crap load of albums to listen to and some day write about.

It all started mid-November when the Coke reward program was giving away $5 Amazon gift cards for every 10 bottle caps redeemed.  Well, I had been collecting them at work as I do drink one Coke product everyday and on really stressful, busy days, maybe two.  The $5 Amazon Gift cards were actually $10 because they allowed you to redeem it twice.  After setting up a several more accounts with different email addresses, I was able to redeem $40 worth of caps (I would have done more, but I ran out of caps).  What did I get with the $40 from Amazon?  Music of course.  I picked up the following:

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Apple Music vs Spotify

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Back a few months ago, I did a comparison of Apple Music vs. Amazon Music Unlimited.  Apple Music won that battle for as the better overall service.  Now it is time to test that service against Spotify.  Spotify is offering 3 months for only $0.99 which I figured for that price, it was worth a try. Now, it is time to see how Spotify compares to Apple Music.

Apple Music vs. Spotify

 There are definite differences between the two and one edges out the other, but will it change how I listen to music?  That is the question. First, lets talk about what each service offers and which is the better service for that item.

Music Selection

There are two features that I think are the most important. The first feature is music selection. What artists and songs does each service offer? Are they artist I like? Is the selection enough to satisfy me? Here is what I have found:

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My Sunday Song – “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince

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For My Sunday Song #73, I am going with “Let’s Go Crazy by Prince.  This is the first one of 2018, so let’s get a little crazy and start the year off with a legend. By the end of the year, I will be 50 so we need to go a little nuts this year in preparation for that milestone.  The song came out in 1984 and was off the album ‘Purple Rain’.  It was #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and might be his most recognizable song.  I think everyone knows this song and if you don’t, shame on you.

The song opens with Prince giving a eulogy accompanied by an organ and it definitely makes it feel like a funeral.  That doesn’t last long and the song kicks in and rocks out.  The outro of the song is Prince showing that he was no slouch on the electric guitar.  It was one of the best guitar solos you will hear in a song.  A freakin’ masterpiece.  It was this song that made everyone fall in love with Prince.  He crossed over genres and even metal heads thought the man was amazing and damn he could play.

When reading the lyrics, the song seems to be about the battle of good and evil.  The devil will try and take you down the elevator, but you need to fight and punch a “higher floor” (God maybe?).  It also seems to be about finding that meaning in life and strive for that.  It seems to have a lot of different meanings.  Now, I am not sure what the “purple banana” is, but sounds like something we should all look for though.  I found this article that spoke about the Purple Banana and it was an interesting take on the song.  Give it a click and check it out.  They basically ask the questions…

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Rick Springfield – “Little Demon” – Single Review

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Rick Springfield has a new album coming out on January 26th, 2018 called ‘The Snake King’.  If you are expecting a “Jessie’s Girl” pop album you will be sadly disappointed. Rick is exploring his rock side.  Even more, he is going back to his early influences and it is a more Blues-Rock oriented album.

The first single, “Little Demon”, is a wonderful example of that sound.  It is a hard, rocking song with some heavy blues influence.  Rick sounds great and he can still deliver the goods.  The highlight of the song is the music as you can see below, there are not a ton of lyrics.  The song is very guitar heavy and at over 5 minutes  is a really long song that we are not accustomed to from Rick.  He is definitely stretching himself artistically and if this is an example of what is to come on the album, we are in for a treat.

I am well aware that Rick can bring the rock as he did just that with his album Shock/Denial/Anger/Acceptance which is my favorite album of his.  I wasn’t sure he could pull of the blues as well, but I have to say I wasn’t disappointed.  His voice is gritty enough now to pull off the vocals and the team surrounding him has done a great job musically.  Is it the best blues song I have heard and the most authentic, no.  However, if you are a fan of Rick Springfield, it is a great rock song and you should be able to get on board with it.  I do like it better than anything on his last release so that is a good sign.

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Night Ranger – The Albums Ranked Worst to First

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I haven’t done one of these in awhile so I figured it was time to do another.  I have been listening to a lot of Night Ranger lately so why not do one on them.  Night Ranger have released 12 studio albums and numerous Live and Collection albums and they have been together off and on since 1979.  They have had quite a long career.

The have released three albums since 2011 and their latest release is why I have gone back and listened to everything as I hadn’t done that in a very long time.  In doing so, I remembered what albums I really loved, which ones were so-so and which ones I do not like.  I might as well tackle the daunting task of ranking the albums from Worst to First.  Without any further delay, lets get to it.

13 – “The Worst!!” – HOLE IN THE SUN (2007):

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What to Expect for New Music in 2018!

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2018 is upon us and always fun anticipating what new albums are and will come out in the year.  There are quite a few we already know about, but some haven’t been officially announced or even a date set yet.  From what I have gathered around the internet, here are the bands that should have new albums out in 2018, but no dates announced yet. The ones I want will be highlighted in Blue.

  • Godsmack
  • Exodus
  • Shinedown
  • Stone Temple Pilots (I know this is coming as they have said)
  • Jack White – Boarding the House Reach
  • Vance Joy
  • The 1975 – Music for Cars
  • Ace Frehley
  • Arctic Monkeys
  • Avatar
  • Avril Lavigne
  • Bastille
  • Borns
  • Bon Jovi
  • Bring Me the Horizon
  • Bullet for My Valentine
  • Celine Dion
  • Charli XCX
  • Cowboy Junkies
  • DevilDriver
  • Echosmith – Inside a Dream

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