Sunscreen

Quite honestly my blog would be incomplete without this track. You can't call it a song since it was originally believed to be a commencement speech given to the graduating class of 1999. That was a hoax and in fact it was a column that was in the Chicago tribune although it SHOULD have been a commencement speech because it makes damn good sense. The article in the Tribune found it's way onto the internet and that would have been the end of it except that email made it's way to someone and he was truly touched by it.

Award winning movie director Baz Luhrmann eventually bought the rights to the words and then turned put the words to the music "Everybody's Free (To Feel Good)" that was used in his Romeo and Juliet remake starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. It was then released by Capitol Records.

If you've never heard of this song or heard it and forgot it then allow me to introduce or reintroduce it to you. It may be just what you need to hear today, you really never know but do yourself a favor and take heed to the words. Enjoy.

Maybe She'll Dream Of Me

Ever since I was introduced to this group by my friend Art I have been a huge fan. Their sound is very easy on the ears and their songs while not always musically catchy are always lyrically enticing. Usually though the music and the lyrics are perfectly matched like they are on this tune "Maybe She'll Dream Of Me" to the point where as a fan you begin to wonder why The Foreign Exchange isn't far more popular than they are. If you aren't a fan or if you don't know someone who isn't a fan already or a fan of the now defunct rap group Little Brother then the Exchange will continue to sadly fly under your radar.

The group is made up of singer/rapper Phonte Coleman and Dutch music producer Nicolay who was a huge fan of Little Brother himself back in the day. They released their first collection of songs on their 2004 release Connected and they have always and consistently have gotten better both musically and of course lyrically. This track off of their 2010 release Authenticity showcases that perfectly. Phonte's crooning is splayed easily over the relaxed groove and his rap keeps the song from getting boring. It's witty wordplay about a guy hoping a girl he feels is out of his league will give him the chance to show her what real love is all about.

It's starts off easy and smooth and stays that way throughout much like this duo has been since first getting together. When you listen to them hopefully you'll react like I did when I was first introduced to them ("Where the fuck was I and how come I've never heard of them until NOW?"). This is the remedy to that, an introduction from me to you since you don't know Art lol. Enjoy!

Running Up That HIll

First and foremost let me say that I love this song, always have and always will. It's amazingly poignant and moving both melodically and lyrically which is what any real singer songwriter aims for and in "Running Up That Hill" Kate Bush hit the mark squarely and firmly on the head. I became a Kate Bush fan when I "discovered" her on "Don't Give Up" a duet with Peter Gabriel and I was taken by her voice. The next Kate Bush song I heard was this one and I was hooked.

"Running" has been redone by so many artists thanks to the melody and the lyrics and the latest remake has been done by the group Placebo who do a slight disservice to the original by subtly changing some of the lyrics, lyrics that really didn't need any changing in my opinion. First off there aren't that many lyrics to change in the first place and secondly why would you want to change them? "If I only could/Make a deal with God/And I'd get him to swap our places/Be runnin' up that hill/Be runnin up that road/Be runnin up that building" is lyrical perfection.

Placebo's remake is a nice song, slow and methodical, menacing in it's own way but good. It's just not as good as the original in my opinion but in this world what is ever as good as the original? Enjoy.

Don't Explain

If you love Nina Simone like I love Nina Simone then maybe you've heard this song, Nina's rendition of the Billie Holiday classic "Don't Explain". Now I have a serious love for Billie but Nina's version of this song is virtually heartbreaking. I wouldn't say Billie's version is lighthearted and upbeat but Nina takes this song to another level. If you haven't heard Nina's version of this song then allow me to introduce it to you.

Nina's "Don't Explain" is slowed down and jazzed up and you can hear the pain in her voice as she coos this song of unconditional love. It's a song about a woman who accepts her man and his cheating ways. She's just happy he's home and doesn't want him to explain where he's been or what he's done and she even ignores the lipstick on him. With lines like "Don't wanna hear folks chatter/Cause I know you cheat/Right and wrong don't matter/When you're with me my sweet" and "Hush now don't explain/Don't you know you're my joy and you're my pain/My life is yours love/Don't explain" along with Nina's piano playing makes this song achingly beautiful.

Nina makes this song as much hers as possible and I think she did a great job. It's hard as hell for anyone to remake a Holliday song and not stand in her shadow but Nina stepped out of that shadow with her version. Enjoy!

You're All I Need

If you don't know anything about Slow Runner or their music then allow me to introduce to you the musical stylings of Michael Flynn, Josh Kaler, Danny Cassady, and Dave Middleton. There is one word that always comes to mind when I hear their music and it's "provocative". Reason being their sound can change dramatically from one song to another from one album to another that it shows just how talented this group truly is. And "You're All I Need" is the best song to make the introduction stick because it's really hard to forget.

Musically it's just so smooth and relaxing and it starts off so nicely with the shaker, keys, and addictive percussion. Then Michael Flynn's vocals come in and add some serious depth to the song with lyrics like "You're all I need/You're on my mind when my airplane's fading into trees and the shadows". It's not your typical love song and it's not epic, it's just tasty. The lone violin that comes in towards the end of the song just adds to the beauty of the song. It's not overly arranged and there's no real bassline to speak of which makes this song....provocative.

"You're All I Need" comes off of their three song 2010 EP release "Ghost Rendition". I also highly recommend their song "Rainyface" also off that EP. This a very talented band with a very bright future and I'm happy to be along for the ride.

Enjoy (and you're welcome for the introduction).

Theme to Harry's Game

When I talk about beautiful music I always have this particular piece of music in the back of my mind. I first heard it in the movie "Patriot Games" with Harrison Ford and fell in love with it. The group is Clannad and the song is called "Theme to Harry's Game". The lyrics are in Irish and if you don't speak the tongue you will not know what is being sung but I have said many times on my blog, that doesn't take away from the beauty of the song. In fact it adds to it.

It's a haunting song that was written for a fictional Yorkshire television show entitled "Harry's Game" which depicted the troubles of northern Ireland. It was the song though that far outlived the show and introduced the relatively unknown group Clannad to the world. Enya was originally part of the group and broke off to embark on a multi-platinum solo career of her own and Clannad went on to sell millions themselves as well as record a song for the movie "Last of the Mohicans".

"Harry's Game" is ethereal and virtually breathless. There is no percussion to speak of, no sharp edges anywhere to be found. It's as smooth as glass and addictively melodious. It's also heartbreaking when you realize this song was born from the violence that gripped northern Ireland. Moya Brennan from the group though explained that the song basically says that through war and violence no one will win, how all will lose in the end. We the listener win though, enjoy!