It is the last Friday of the month and even the last day of the month. There are over 20 albums on the list today including from some old times like Neil Diamond and Bob Dylan up to newcomers like La’Porsha Renae and Jackie Evancho (ok, she isn’t that new, but she is young). There are also quite a couple 90’s artists back such as Jamiroquai and Ice T’s Body Count. Only a few I am really interested in hearing right away and they are highlighted in Blue. I hope there is something on this list that will brighten your day. Friday new releases are just a great way to end a busy week.
Brother Firetribe – Sunbound – (Spinefarm): Yes, I know this album came out last week, but I had excluded it from the list for some strange reason. I wanted to highlight the release so I added it to this week’s new releases…Brother Firetribe comes to us from the great country of Finland. They are a hard rock and AOR band and is a 5 piece band. ‘Sunbound’ is their fourth release and after three previously stellar releases, I am looking forward to more magic from this band.
Mastodon – Emperor of Sand – (Reprise Records): Mastodon is heavy metal band from Atlanta, Georgia where I lived for 45 years prior to moving to Charlotte. These guys are heavy metal and deliver the heavy to the extremes. They are unlike most bands I listen to and it is nice to change it up a little. I have followed their career for awhile and can’t wait to give a listen.
I have actually had several people suggest this next song for My Sunday Song. In that case, My Sunday Song #32 is “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)” by Hillsong United. The song was released in 2013 and was the second single from their album ‘Zion’. The song went to #1 and won a Dove award for Song of the Year. At almost 9 minutes, the album version of the song is epic in length. The radio version is a normal length at around 4 minutes.
The song is about Faith and how sometimes you have to take that leap of faith and trust that God will have your back and watch over you. At least that is how I interpret the song.
The song is a worship song and is based off scripture. I found an article by Nate Irvine at Metro Youth Network that goes into the scripture if you are interested. You click on the link and explore that aspect of the song. Here is the scripture.
…the basis for the song is Peter being called out on the water by Jesus in Matthew 14
It is a beautiful song and I am glad people recommended it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have in writing about it for this post. Have a great Sunday and a great week.
Are you ready for Friday New Releases? There are an absolute abundance of records today. So many to choose from and where the heck do you begin. I have more I want to hear than I have any week this year. It is going to be busy non-stop music week. I hope there is something for you. The ones I want are in Blue and I can’t wait to get started!!!!
Colton Dixon – Identity – (Sparrow): Colton Dixon has finally returned with a new album. Colton is a Christian artist and he is a former American Idol Alum, but don’t let any of that scare you away. He is an amazing talent. This album is broken up into three parts about the spiritual journey of your Body, Mind & Spirit and should be very interesting.
James Blunt – The Afterlove – (Atlantic Records UK): The fifth studio album from James Blunt drops today. I have followed him since the beginning even after hearing “You’re Beautiful” way too many times. He always delivers stellar songs and he has a unique voice that I enjoy over and over.
Happy Friday. What are you in the mood to hear today? You have a lot of variety and can listen to blues, rock, christian worship, classical pop, pop, alternative, metal and movie scores. There are even a couple of 80’s bands back (Depeche Mode and Greg Kihn). Whatever you like, let me know what floats your boat. Mine are highlighted in Blue.
Gary Clark Jr. – Live North America 2016 – (Warner Bros. Records): This is probably the best one on the list. Gary Clark Jr. live doesn’t get much better. If you haven’t heard him before, you are missing out. He is a helluva a guitar player. He is blues, rock, soul, r&b and blends it all nicely together. Listen to the video below and you will be like..DAMN!!! This man is awesome!!.
Elevation Worship – There is a Cloud – (Elevation Church): This church is just down the road from us and they do a great live show every year at the Spectrum Center that always sells out. We have seen them several times at church (when we go) and they are amazing. If you like Worship music, this is one of the better, more talented groups out there.
For My Sunday Song #27, my wife has chosen “Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me)” by Casting Crowns. Now over to my wife and let her explain why she chose this song.
“Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me)” is a song performed and composed by the Christian band Casting Crowns from their 2009 album Until the Whole World Hears. While the band composed the music, the lyrics come from the hymn “One Day”, written in 190 by John Wilbur Chapman, and Michael Bleecker at The village Church in Flower Mound, Texas, set the song’s verse melody.
It was a beautiful day and I had just left the mall and was headed home to meet my girls at the bus stop. I can vividly remember the skies being so blue that day. There wasn’t a cloud to be found and what should have been a somewhat chilly day turned out to be a gorgeous warm one. I recall thinking, “I sure wish everyday could be as nice as this one” and then realized I had better get my thinking back on the road because I was completely zoning out on the beautiful day! Not a good thing when you are behind the wheel.
When you are driving along and it is gorgeous out, what do you need to go with that? Music, right! Loud music! I turned on my radio and then hit the button in my car called “Jukebox” which allows me to store songs there that I like. The song “Glorious Day” came on and at first it was just a song but by the time it got to the second chorus, I was nearly in tears and could literally feel Jesus’ presence in my car. I was rocking out to “Glorious Day” with Jesus! How awesome!!! I don’t know what happened that day but it is a day I will never forget as I drove down Abbotts Bridge Road in Alpharetta, Georgia.
Do you have a song that just gets you like this every time you hear it? I have a few other songs that are not Christian based songs that do this. I’ll leave you with a quote from Jimi Hendrix, “Music is a safe kind of high.”
“Glorious Day (Living He Loved Me)”
One day when Heaven was filled with His praises
One day when sin was as black as could be
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin
Dwelt among men, my example is He
Word became flesh and the light shined among us
His glory revealed
[Chorus:]
Living, He loved me
Dying, He saved me
Buried, He carried my sins far away
Rising, He justified freely forever
One day He’s coming
Oh glorious day, oh glorious day
One day they led Him up Calvary’s mountain
One day they nailed Him to die on a tree
Suffering anguish, despised and rejected
Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is He
Hands that healed nations, stretched out on a tree
And took the nails for me
[Chorus]
One day the grave could conceal Him no longer
One day the stone rolled away from the door
Then He arose, over death He had conquered
Now He’s ascended, my Lord evermore
Death could not hold Him, the grave could not keep Him
From rising again
[Chorus]
One day the trumpet will sound for His coming
One day the skies with His glories will shine
Wonderful day, my Beloved One, bringing
My Savior, Jesus, is mine
[Chorus]
Glorious day, Oh, Glorious day
Written by John Wilbur Chapman, Mark Hall & Michael Bleecker
We interrupt our normally scheduled My Sunday Song for a Special Edition celebrating the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl. The My Sunday Song regular post will return next week with the next edition in the series with my lovely wife picking the songs.
The Falcons use the slogan #RiseUp to rally their fans and there is a great rock song with that same name. “Rise Up” by the band Disciple is such a great motivating, heavy and loud song that really pumps you up.
So enjoy the song and enjoy the Super Bowl. Win or Lose, I am glad the Falcons finally made it back. I do hope they somehow pull a giant victory and stop the Patriots, but I will admit I will be disappointed if they lose. GO FALCONS!!
You probably know Danny Gokey from his time on American Idol. He place third on Season 8 behind the winner, Kris Allen, and the runner-up, Adam Lambert. To me Adam should have won, but that is the topic for another discussion. I am going to talk about Danny Gokey and his new album, ‘Rise’.
Danny is on his 5th album (if you count the Christmas album and his Spanish version of his 2nd album). He has seem to have found his niche in the Christian Pop genre and is getting better with each release. You can see the maturity and the improvement in the songs on this release. Ever since he started adding to the songwriting on his second album, the releases have been getting better and better.
He has definitely gained more confidence and ease with his singing as his voice hasn’t sounded better. The smooth, soulful vocals along with the Pop vibe makes for an exceptional album that could easily be on the mainstream Pop radios.
For this release, he has taken songs with a positive, Christian message and turned them into sleek, danceable pop songs that at the same time have deep meaning and heart. The first single, “Rise”, is a dance, pop song, but is absolutely beautiful and is such an uplifting song and instantly became a favorite of mine. The video even shines a light on domestic violence and an organization that will help women going through such a tragic event.
OMG!! It is Friday the 13th!! And living up to it’s unlucky reputation, there is nothing really great coming out that I am super excited about except for Danny Gokey & Gotthard (highlighted in Blue). Since I am only interested in the, I will post a few videos for some of the others so you can get a taste of what is to come.
Danny Gokey – Rise – (BMG): Christian artist Danny Gokey is releasing his latest album today and it shows how much better he is growing as an artist. He started out on American Idol and has seem to found his place in music. His popularity in the Christian genre continues to grow and this album should help that grow even more.
Gotthard – Silver – (G. Records): Gotthard has been a favorite of mine for quite some time. I am looking forward to hearing this and have enjoyed the first single, “Stay With Me”.
My Sunday Song – Special Christmas Edition. Merry Christmas to all and I thought I would give you one of my favorite songs that is the true meaning of Christmas. The song was written in 1991 and it has been covered by a ton of artists. It was tough to choose one and I went with the Pentatonix version. It is a beautiful version of a beautiful song.
Yes, Christmas is about giving and receiving gifts, but Jesus is the real reason so don’t forget that. I hope you have a blessed and wonderful day.
The year is almost over so it is time to look back at what was awesome in music during the year. I have already looked back at the Top Rock Albums of 2016 (click to read). This list will cover all other genres that I listened to over the year including Pop, R&B, Christian and whatever other genre you want classify these albums. Rock is my favorite genre that is why it gets it’s own list, but that doesn’t take away from any of these choices as I think they are great on their own.
Note: These albums were my favorites and not necessarily the most played on the radio (which I hate the radio) or even the biggest sellers. These are just what I came across during the year and connected with me in some way. So, we might as well get started…
The #1 Album of 2016
Lady Gaga – Joanne (Interscope Records): This was an easy pick for me. The album was such a pleasant surprise and a departure from her last album. It had a little bit of everything from Pop to Country to Rock to Folk. It was such a great mixture of songs that gave us one cohesive album. The title track, “John Wayne”, “A Million Reasons” and “Perfect Illusion” were all great songs. Even the Deluxe Edition was great with “Grigio Girls”. All around classic album for Lady Gaga. Check out my review here.
Brother Firetribe – Sunbound – (Spinefarm): Yes, I know this album came out last week, but I had excluded it from the list for some strange reason. I wanted to highlight the release so I added it to this week’s new releases…Brother Firetribe comes to us from the great country of Finland. They are a hard rock and AOR band and is a 5 piece band. ‘Sunbound’ is their fourth release and after three previously stellar releases, I am looking forward to more magic from this band.
Mastodon – Emperor of Sand – (Reprise Records): Mastodon is heavy metal band from Atlanta, Georgia where I lived for 45 years prior to moving to Charlotte. These guys are heavy metal and deliver the heavy to the extremes. They are unlike most bands I listen to and it is nice to change it up a little. I have followed their career for awhile and can’t wait to give a listen.
2 Loud 2 Old Music 