My Sunday Song – “Cliffs of Dover” by Eric Johnson

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For My Sunday Song #124, the instrumental this week is none other than Eric Johnson’s “Cliffs of Dover”.  The song was released in 1990 and is off his album ‘Ah Via Musicom’.  The song garnered Eric a Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance in 1992 and it has been named #17 in the list of 100 Greatest Guitar Solos by Guitar World Magazine. That should tell you something about how great this song is.

The song starts off with one wicked guitar solo before kicking in to that familiar riff of the song.  What I really love about the song is the melody.  It is so infectious and gets stuck in your head.  When you hear the song, you immediately strap on your air guitar and strum along.  It is taking everything for me to not stop typing and do just that as I am listening to it.  Forget, I will be right back…(air guitar strumming)…(still going)….(almost done)…okay, I’m back.

Eric Johnson claims the song came to him quickly and he was done in about 5 minutes.  I guess he knew a good thing when he heard it.  If it was only that easy for every song.  Now, that creative output occurred back in 1982.  Eric being the perfectionist that he is spent a lot of time tweaking the song and trying to get it right.  He was going to included it on his 1986 debut, but it was nixed by the powers that be.  And some 8 years after he first created the song, it was finally released.  At least the idea was quick!

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The Top Songs of 2018

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It is time for the Top 20 Songs of 2018.  My previous post, if you missed it, was the Top 20 Rock Songs of 2018.  Go check it out by clicking on the link.  These 20 songs are all genres other than rock.  Some were popular and chart toppers and others were not.  They are my favorites, that touched me in some way so don’t expect any indie bands or anything trendy.  If you want that go to one of the cool sites out there, this ain’t it.

If you missed the Top Rock Albums of 2018 or the Top Albums of 2018 (that were not Rock), just click on the link and go check them out.

Let’s get started…

#20 – “Space Cowboy” – Kacey Musgrave off the album ‘Golden Hour’: I am not huge into today’s country music, but Kacey is different.  She is doing things her way, pushing boundaries and sounds.  I love her voice and her songs are always interesting and worth diving into lyrically.  This one is no different.  It is more pop than country, but still good.

#19 – “Say Hello” – Rhett Walker Band off the ‘Rhett Walker Band E.P.’:  Rhett’s a Christian rock band and this song comes off with the power of Church Revival and gets you up out of you chair, hands in the air and give it your all.  If you want to get moving, this will do it.

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The Top Rock Songs of 2018

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Welcome to the Top 20 Rock Songs of 2018.  These songs are my favorite songs of the year and were not necessarily played on the radio or even shot up the charts.  They just moved me in some way good or bad!

If you missed the Top Rock Albums of 2018 or the Top Albums of 2018 (that were not Rock), just click on the link and go check them out.

It is time to start the list so here we go…

#20 – “Loading Zones” –  Kurt Vile off the album ‘Bottle it In’:  Kurt’s can be about the mundane and anything that troubles him in life. This is about the horrors of trying to park in the city.  It has such a great little beat to it and some great guitar and such a simple subject that yet turns into something amazing.  The video is great as well.

#19 – “Roll Me Under” – Stone Temple Pilots off the album ‘Stone Temple Pilots (2018)’:  I know I did give the album the best review, but I liked this song.  It had the old STP sound, but it was also Jeff Gutt at his best on the album.  Such a heavy bass and guitar sound,  it was just great.

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The Top Albums of 2018

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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 2018 (click to read).   This list will cover all other genres that I listened to over the year including Pop, Country, Christian and whatever other genre you want classify these albums.  Rock is my favorite genre and 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.  There aren’t the trendy indie bands on everyone else’s top albums list.  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 2018

91OE1mUg7jL._SL1500_-2Matt Nathanson – Sings His Sad Heart:  Man, what can I say about this guy.  He is my favorite singer/songwriter out their right now and has been for sometime.  Within just a couple listens to this album I felt like I knew all the words and I was singing right along like I had grown up with these songs.  And how do you know an album is great, you keep singing it when you aren’t even listening to it.  Yes, I was and I am still singing.  The songs “Mine”, “Way Way Back”, “Used To Be” “Long Distant Runner” and “Best Drugs” are some of my favorites but there is not a bad song.  Perfect!!

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The Top Rock Albums of 2018

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2018 was another year with some great releases and way too many to get through them all so I am sure I missed a number of great albums and if you look around the web, there will be tons of Top Album lists you can get a pretty good idea of what you should check out in case you missed any of these.

This list will be my favorite “Rock” albums of the year.  All other types of music will be for a later post.  I am going to leave this one to my favorite genre.  It is a broad genre, but these are the albums that I consider to be ROCK!!

Also note, these are MY FAVORITES!!  These are not the most popular or trendy albums.  These are the albums that I connected with during the year and I kept coming back to again and again.  And without further adieu, here are the Top Rock Albums of 2018:

My #1 Album of the Year:

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Reach – The Great Divine: A modern, yet melodic rock album that just grabs hold and won’t let go from beginning to end.  A band I had never heard of prior to this album and I am now wondering where they have been my whole life.  Just a fantastic album with no songs to skip or delete.  Almost pure perfection.  The first album I bought that was new in 2018 and still listen to it today.  With songs like “The Great Divine”, “Nightmare” and “Into Tomorrow” you can see they have the goods.  The production value was great, the music, the vocals, it was all solid and my favorite album of the year!!  Give it a try (and check out my original review by clicking the album title).

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The Christmas Rant – LEAVE CHRISTMAS ALONE!!

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Tomorrow is Christmas!  It is a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus, celebrate our families and the ones we love.  It is a time to be joyful and full of yuletide cheer (whatever that is).  However, some people have tried to poo poo on the Holidays.  And I can’t take it anymore.  So, you are about to get something from I rarely ever do.  Voicing my opinion about some topics that have really pissed me off this year.  Sit back and settle in…if this offends you, too bad.

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First up…since it is a music site, I will start with the music controversy with the song “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”.  If you aren’t aware, a radio station or two has BANNED the Christmas song, “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” because they feel it is Rape Song!!.  A Rape Song!…really.  Yes, the lyrics when read without context of the singing or the time within which they were written do sound like a possible date rape scenario, I will give them that.

However, I think the #MeToo movement or whatever movement is going a little too far with this.  Seriously, do you have to take the joy out of Christmas???  You are missing something crucial about the song.  When the singers are singing this, it isn’t date rape, it is a playful flirtation between the two parties.  The song was written in the 1940’s.  Women couldn’t come right out and say they wanted to have sex with the guy, they had to come across as innocent and playfully suggest such things so she didn’t come across as a Whore.

So, please shut the fuck up and leave my Christmas music alone!!  You suck the life out of everything.  Hell, it must be hard being you!!

LEAVE CHRISTMAS ALONE!!

Oh, by the way, I saw this on Facebook and thought it was funny…Frosty the Snowman is naked and smoking in front of kids…you might want to Ban Frosty!!

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GENDER NEUTRAL SANTA

First you fuck with Baby, It’s Cold Outside and now you want to fuck with Santa!!  Am I hearing this correctly??  You want a gender neutral Santa Claus???  It this a joke???

Ok, I am ready to lose my shit!!  Santa Claus is a Male!!  He is married to Mrs. Claus.  He is a JOLLY OLD FAT MAN!!!  Leave Santa alone.  Now, before you go and say anything, I don’t care if Santa is White or Black or whatever color you want your Santa to be, but Santa is a MAN!!!  A very FAT MAN!!  And there is nothing wrong with being a Man.  Stop fucking with my Christmas Tradition!!  If you want your own Christmas icon that delivers presents or whatever and they are gender neutral, that is fine…BUT IT AIN’T SANTA CLAUS!!!  I am curious, when did being a male in this country become such a bad thing!!

LEAVE CHRISTMAS ALONE!!!

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MERRY CHRISTMAS

Now this controversy has been around awhile about not being able to say “Merry Christmas” to anyone.  I am going to say Merry Christmas!!  Why, because I can and have every right to do so!  If you are offended that is your own personal fucked up problem.  If you were to come up to me and say Happy Hanukah, I would in no way be offended.  I would be appreciative and I would say it back to you even though I am not Jewish.  Why?  Because I would be glad you greeted me with such kind words.  We aren’t trying to force Christ on you we are wishing you well.

Merry Christmas is more than just about Christ (although that is the big focus).  It is also about family and loving one another.  It is about celebrating everyone whether we are Christians or Jewish or Muslim or whatever you are.  We give gifts to those we love and consider friends.  it is supposed to be a time of joy.  If your sad, pathetic life is offended by the statement of Merry Christmas, that is on you.  Not Me!!  I mean no ill will when I say it and I can’t control how you take it, but I am pretty darn sure you will never stop me from saying it!!

LEAVE CHRISTMAS ALONE!!!

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And thanks for listening to me ramble even if I don’t make sense half the time.  I am a little tired of the political correctness gone way too far!!  The world has lost its sense of humor and people have lost the ability to be kind to one another.  It is a sad, sad world we live in now.

And one final thought…MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

My Sunday Song – “Christmas Eve / Sarajevo 12-24” by Trans-Siberian Orchestra

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For My Sunday Song #123, we are still tackling instrumentals and this one will celebrate Christmas.  The song is “Christmas Eve / Sarajevo 12-24” by the band Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO).  The song is off their debut 1996 album ‘Christmas Eve and Other Stories’.  The song was originally done by the metal band Savatage back in 1995 on their album ‘Dead Winter Dead’.

Okay, TSO is a side project of some of the Savatage band members and you might have seen them as they tour each year a very popular Christmas show that rocks out.  TSO tours two groups at one time and the show looks spectacular.  The song, you have heard it, there is no doubt.  It has become a Classic Christmas song in my book and one of my favorite Christmas songs.

I am going to cheat heavily on this edition of My Sunday Song.  I want to capture for you the great story behind the song and the composition itself as both stories are great and I don’t think I can write it any better.

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The story behind the song comes from an interview Paul O’Neil (founder of TSO) did with Christianitytoday.com  and it goes like this…

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Turntables & Vinyl #17 – The Thanksgiving Collection

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For Thanksgiving, we always travel to Atlanta to visit family and celebrate what we are ‘thankful’ for and just enjoy being around people we love.  And two things happened this year that involved vinyl.  The first was Black Friday Record Store Day and the second was that a family member brought up they have a collection of vinyl they have sitting around.  Anything that involves music or vinyl is a good time for me.

First off, let’s talk about the Black Friday Record Store Day.  Friday morning came and everyone was a little tired from eating too much the night before and it was a slow start to the day.  My sister and brother-in-law were kind enough to make us breakfast and I couldn’t refuse.  Now this started at about 8 or so in the morning.  The one record store that was fairly close to my sister (20-25 minute drive) was going to open at 10am so I felt I was still good on time.

Breakfast didn’t actually get ready until closer to 9am and now I was getting worried. I didn’t want to be rude and skip out on breakfast, so I decided that it was more important to sit with the family and enjoy what was a very yummy breakfast rather than get some exclusive limited edition vinyl’s that would bring me hours and hours of enjoyment.  And I was right.

My daughter and I eventually got on the road and made it to the record store, Sweet Melissa’s Records at about 9:50 which was 10 minutes prior to opening.  And there was no line!!!  That is right…NO LINE!!!  I was so excited.  We got a parking space right in front of the store and couldn’t be happier.  We get out of the car and there was a lady at the door coming out and we asked if they were open and she said Yes, come on in.  Then she added, we got bored and opened early!  Early????  Red Alert….Early?? Danger Will Robinson, Danger!!

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Stone Temple Pilots – Live 2018 – Album Review

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For Record Store Day on Black Friday of 2018, I was able to pick up the new Stone Temple Pilots Live album simply called Live 2018.  I have been a fan of STP for years and was happy to hear they were getting a new singer and were going to continue despite the death of former lead singer, the great Scott Weiland.  The new singer, Jeff Gutt seemed like a good choice and their new album earlier this year wasn’t bad…wasn’t great either, but wasn’t bad (see review here).

When I heard they were doing a Live album for Record Store Day, I was excited and it was one I wanted to get to see how Jeff does live..  The track listing was only 10 songs, but they are a great 11 songs with 2 from the new album and the rest being STP classics.  The album cover was cool as it was rendered in 3-D and the album came with 3-D glassed

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And the back cover of course was in 3-D as well which is why it is a little blurry.

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Chris Cornell – Chris Cornell Box Set – Album Review

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May 18th, 2017.  A sad day for music fans everywhere. Chris Cornell died and left this world, but lucky for us, he left a tremendous music legacy.  For the first time, a collection has been released that is a wonderful retrospective view of his entire career.

The 4CD set (64 Tracks) takes you on a remarkable journey through the life of Chris Cornell starting with his early days of Soundgarden from as early as 1987 through to his work with Audioslave and his solo output with one brand new track that had never previously been released.  There are also 10 unreleased live tracks with some outstanding performances from throughout his career.

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Disc One:

The first CD is basically a greatest hits collection of Soundgarden tracks with the exception of two songs from Temple of the Dog and one solo track  The collection spans the late 80’s and the 90’s.

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