Category: Pop Music

My Sunday Song – “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus

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Here we are…already half way through the next series of My Sunday Song with my wife picking the songs and telling here story behind each one.  I have enjoyed it and hope you have as well.  For song #25, she has chosen “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus.  And here she is telling it in her own words…

“The Climb” was written by Jessi Alexander and Jon Mabe about their personal struggles in the music industry. Before reaching Cyrus, the song had been rejected by several country artists. It was eventually picked up by the director of “Hannah Montana: The Movie” and he gave it to Cyrus to perform. The song was released on February 6, 2009. Now, if you don’t have children between the ages of 8 – 14 or you hate the thought of reading about a song that in any way relates to Hannah Montana, please, I encourage you to read on.

If you recall from one of my first posts, I said if I found a song I liked that I would listen to it over and over again? Well, this one is probably at the top of the charts! From the moment I first heard the song I knew I loved it and could completely 100 percent relate to the lyrics. Everything about “The Climb” seemed to apply to everything I had ever tried to do in my life whereby I really wanted to get out there and succeed, do my best and make it to the top. But then once I did all that, meaning I met my goals, succeeded as I set out to do – something was still missing. It took me a very long time to realize that it was all about the climb, all about the process, the hard work, the challenges that kept me motivated in life. It was never about sitting atop the mountain as I originally anticipated.

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Friday New Releases – January 27th

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I hope everyone has a wonderful Friday and a fantastic weekend.  I should be sitting on a tropical beach in Jamaica about now soaking up the sun and the alcohol with my lovely bride of 15 years.  We are two weeks past our anniversary, but we finally got away just the two of us.

The bad news is I am missing so many great releases this weekend, but I don’t really care.  I will listen when I get back.  One release that is actually quite fitting is the Train release.  That is “our band” as I have mentioned many times on this blog.  That will the one I definitely check out this week.  I have highlighted in Blue all the ones I am interested in and will find some time to give a listen.

  • 170x170bb-14  Train – A Girl, A Bottle, A Boat – (Sunken Forest/Columbia):  So happy for another Train album.  I have heard a couple songs so far and they have been okay.  They seem to be rehashing the same formula with every album and song now and loosing some of the magic (reminds of what Bon Jovi is going through).  I am hoping the rest of the album is better otherwise, they might loose their place as my wife and I’s favorite band.

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Danny Gokey – ‘Rise’ – Album Review

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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.

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My Sunday Song – “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction

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My Sunday Song #24 is “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction.  Since this is now my wife’s series, I will let her explain why she chose this song…enjoy!

The man upstairs has had his hands in this My Sunday Song thing I’ve been asked to do! At the first of the year, my husband wanted at least 3 – 4 of my Sunday Song write ups all at once. Truth be told, I didn’t even have one at the time he asked. I’m thinking to myself, “Geez, glad I don’t work for this guy”! Anyway, I wrote up the approaching My Sunday Song and then provided him with a list of songs for the remaining 8 weeks…which brings me to week 4 and the My Sunday Song I had already selected weeks ago: “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction. You are likely wondering where I am going with all this blabber, so stay with me for a minute.

I had already decided I was going to write today but needed to run to a very popular and large beauty store. This store is AH-MAZING and has everything you can think of related to makeup and hair! I needed a couple of hair products and one makeup product. I like to browse around and I usually already know what I’m looking for because I’ve already done my research on Pinterest and looked to see what the best sellers are, etc. A sweet lady approached me to ask if I was finding everything okay and could she help me. I normally say “no thank you” and quickly walk away to another aisle hoping they won’t follow me and try to sell me something. But, this time I did need help. Actually, I need lots of help but that’s a story for another time. I let her know that I was looking for something to hide the puffiness under my eyes and something that would not settle into the lines that have so graciously developed in the aging process. Of course she had just the right productS! Yes, products, as in plural, multiple, more than one, even more than two! All I wanted was a simple concealer to cover up my under eye concerns.

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Friday New Releases – January 20th

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Things are starting to pick up in the music world.  Next, however, the full onslaught on new releases starts.  This week, there are a few good ones I am wanting to try (highlighted in blue).  I am not familiar with any of these bands, but what I have heard is intriguing and I think worth a listen.

  • 170x170bb-35  Aaron Keylock – Cut Against the Grain – (Mascot Label): First one on my list is Aaron Keylock.  He is a blues guitarists and I don’t think I mention this, but he is only 18.  This is his debut solo album and I think it is worth a listen.  As the new face of rock, I can’t wait to see what he brings to the table.

  • 170x170bb-36  Starset – Vessels – (New Razor & Tie Enterprises): Next up is Starset. They are an electronic rock/hard rock band.  The single “Monster” is really awesome so I figured they might be something great.  This is their 2nd album which mean I missed the first.  I will listen to this and if it is great,  go back and spin their first album.

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Train – Play That Song Tour Announced – Opening acts O.A.R. and Natasha Bedingfield

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Train announced their 2017 North American Tour called the Play That Song Tour.  The band O.A.R. and Natasha Bedingfield have been tapped as opening acts and it is going to be a great show.  For those that visit my blog regularly will know that Train holds a special place with our family and we have seen them numerous times and quite possibly one more time with this tour.

Train also released the lyric video for one of their new songs called “Drink Up”.  The song is from their new album ‘a girl, a bottle, a boat’ which comes out the same day as tickets go on sale.

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Everywhere – Fiction Act E.P. – Album Spotlight

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The lead singer of Everywhere reached out to me (and I am sure 100’s of other people as well so I know I am not special) to listen to their band’s new E.P., ‘Fiction Act’.  I get a lot of these requests and 9 times out of 10, I can’t stomach what I hear; however, this one was very different.  I actually enjoyed what I was hearing come from my car speakers.

When that happened, I had to find out who they were and what they were about.  First, I like to know where the band gets their name.  Per they bio on their website at everywheretheband.com:

The name of the band was inspired by the quote “Good girls go to heaven, bad girls go everywhere” by former Cosmopolitan editor Helen Gurley Brown.

This told me the band was looking for the bad girl and to get laid…what band isn’t.  I would be worried if they didn’t.  I don’t know if this is true, I am just guessing.  It also let me know they actually put a little thought into their name and it showed some intelligence.

press-pic-2

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My Sunday Song – “Because You Loved Me” by Celine Dion

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For My Sunday Song #23, my wife has chosen the Celine Dion song “Because You Loved Me”.  I will let her tell you why…enjoy:

This song was written by Diane Warren and produced by David Foster for the movie “Up Close & Personal” starring Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer. Michelle Pfeiffer’s character is thanking Robert Redford’s character for believing in her. Warren could not have picked a more soulful artist to sing this song. Dion has this way of taking you to another place when you are listening to her and it’s like there is no one else around.

I’m pretty sure we all have that certain someone who has supported us even when we didn’t even believe in ourselves, someone who really looked out for us despite our know it all attitude, someone who saw a side of us no one else ever saw and someone who was always there no matter what. For the first part of my life, that person was my dad and still is to a certain degree but for the past 16 years or so this person is definitely my husband. For those who say they have never had anyone like this, remember that God loves you. He does all these things…and more!

This song was on Dion’s “Falling Into You” album released in 1996. It won a Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.

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Friday New Releases – January 13th

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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.

  • 170x170bb-18  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.

  • 170x170bb-8  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”.

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1983 – The Greatest Year in Music?

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Last year, I explored the year 1987 as the greatest year in music.  It was a great year and had some huge top selling albums.  Now , I am going to argue for 1983 as the greatest year in music.  The greatest year in music is very subjective and each person will have a different year.  Probably your high school years and/or the year you really started digging music.  1983 was the year that I started becoming massively obsessed with music.

The year had some of the biggest selling albums and a ton of music that influenced me, but what makes the year even better were the debut albums that came out in 1983. Some of the biggest names in music.  Here are the albums and/or events that make 1983 the greatest year in music:

Michael Jackson:

michael_jackson_-_thrillerWe will start off with one of the biggest reasons 1983 might be the greatest year in music.  That reason is Michael Jackson.  His album, ‘Thriller’, actually came out on November 30, 1982.  However, the impact of that album was truly felt in 1983.  Believe it or not, ‘Thriller’, did not reach #1 until almost 3 months after its release.  On February, 26, 1983, ‘Thriller’ was the #1 album in the country.  It was the first of 37 weeks at #1.  The album is the top selling album of all time at over 65 million copies.  A number that is unheard of and might never be topped.

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