Beautiful

Okay let me just say that from the start this song isn't the most craftiest of songs. It's a decent song by a decent singer and that's as far as I'll go on this track by Noel Gourdin. Beautiful doesn't have any of those wow moments and the more you listen to it the more you can begin to pick out the weak spots. Now you're probably asking yourself "Well Mark why would you blog about a halfway decent song?" and if you aren't, why aren't you? I'll be more than happy to explain why this song makes the blog and it may be the first and last time I make this exception.

Don't get me wrong, Beautiful isn't crap. Off of Noel's latest release Fresh:The Definition , Beautiful has got a great beat, a sweet piano, and can't forget the strings that come in during the chorus along with the bass line. The musicianship and arrangement is tight, it's the lyrics that drag this song down BUT I love the message of this song and that's why it makes the playlist. I don't know who wrote the lyrics but lines like "so soft, so sweet, like a fresh strawberry/I want to bite you, squeeze you, your love is necessary" just makes me cringe. I love the sentiment though and that's what matters but other songs of this type, where men come around to finally realizing a woman deserves his respect and love have been done far better.

This is a good attempt by Noel Gourdin but I'm sure he can do better, at least I hope he can. Enjoy!

Black Republican

This is a first for my blog and for those that know me know why. When I was a wayward youth hip hop was the soundtrack to my life. I loved it because it spoke to me and it touched me deeply. Over the years though hip hop changed and it's changes slowly pushed me away from it's embrace. It got to the point where it actually disgusted me, not all of it but the majority of it. Every now and then though hip hop would surprise me, where it gave me chills with it's creativity and it would seduce me to listening again. This song is one of those songs that captured me right from the start. Not because of the title of the song or who preforms on the song, none of that mattered to me once I heard the backing music. I heard it and I was floored.

If you don't know about this song Black Republican by Nas featuring his one time nemesis Jay-Z then allow me to introduce it to you and tell you why I love it so much. I am a HUGE movie fan and my love for movies rivals my love for music. This song brings those two worlds together for me like nothing ever had before. The melody that's riding the beat is from The Godfather Part II by Nino Rota (which I include below) and I knew it the second I heard it. I can listen to this song over and over again and I completely tune out both Nas and Jay-Z (I wish I could find the instrumental of this track but that remains a dream). If you're wondering where this music is in Part II it's when Vito played by DeNiro kills Don Fanucci of the Hand.

Black Republican off of Nas' album Hip Hop Is Dead that dropped in Dec of 06 was produced by L.E.S. and Wyldfyer. This is one of those songs that makes me wish I was in the studio when it was being crafted. I think it's fucking amazing and definitely a tasty tune. Enjoy!

Everlong

Okay so I have this friend named David and David is a VERY big Foo Fighters fan and he brought them and their music to my attention. I gave them a solid listening to but nothing grabbed me hard enough to turn me into as big of a fan as David is (did I mention he is a really big fan?). The one song that did catch me though was this one entitled Everlong and it's really a beautiful song. I love the melody and the lyrics. It's a cool song when the Fighters rock it out with the crunching guitars and screaming vocals but to see the true beauty in this song the acoustic version should be heard.

Everlong was off the Foo Fighters second album The Color and the Shape which dropped in May of 97. The original version of Everlong is a hard charging rocker that comes in with the single guitar riff but not long after that the song explodes with guitars and drums and Grohl's vocals. My favorite lyric in the song is Breathe out so I can breathe you in/Hold you in. This song is definitely worthy of making the playlist.

I couldn't thank Dave enough for introducing me to Foo Fighters and this song. It's made me respect the band as artists and Grohl as more than just a drummer. It's also made me a fan, just not as big a fan as David is.

Adore

It's high time this classic be added to "the playlist" because it is most definitely deserving. It might actually be listed by me as one of my all time favorite songs. If I ever composed a list of my favorites this song would definitely be on it. It's playful, erotic, passionate, and funky. That's a deadly but addictive combination but I truly believe this song falls into that category. Maybe not deadly but without a doubt highly addictive. It's a standout song on a double record set full of amazing songs. The artist is Prince and the song is Adore.

What was supposed to originally be a three LP album called Crystal Ball was shaved down to two at the demands of Prince's then home Warner Bros. Records. WB didn't think a three LP album would sell basing that opinion on the lack of sales of Prince's previous release Parade, the soundtrack to his Under The Cherry Moon film. I think they underestimated their biggest artists of the day fan base. Crystal Ball would have flown off the shelves. Sign, released on March 31, 1987 was his best album in my opinion with songs like Sign Of the Times, Housequake, You Got The Look with his muse Sheena Easton, If I Was Your Girlfriend, I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, and the amazing The Cross. This album had something for everyone and just when you thought it couldn't get any better the last song was this song.

Adore starts off with a live audience applauding and the band coming in as tight as you would expect any band led by Prince to be. The music is whimsical and Prince begins to sing Until the end of time/I'll be there for you/You own my heart and mind/I truly adore you/If God one day struck me blind/Your beauty I'd still see/Love's too weak to define/ Just what you mean to me...you knew you were in for something special. When you listened to this album and this song you were listening to greatness because you knew no other artist could do anything like this. A unique album, a unique song by the most unique musical genius ever. Enjoy!

Prince- Adore MP3 Download

Keep On Moving

Now if you don't know this song then I will keep that look of shock that is on my face to a minimum (but really, how could you NOT know this song?). And if you DO know this song then you know just how great and moving it is. It may have been awhile since you've heard it and like most old music (old being mid to late 80's) it's usually forgotten about. When you hear it again though you wonder why the hell it's taken you so long to bless your ears. Soul II Soul's Keep On Moving is definitely a blast from the past and it's a great soundtrack when you take that trip down memory lane.

Off their US debut album Club Classics Vol. One that dropped in 89, Moving went all the way to number one on the soul and dance charts. Produced by Jazzie B with vocals by the talented Caron Wheeler this song was a thumper and pretty much irresistible when it came on. Wheeler left the group itching to capitalize on the success of the album. She embarked on a solo career and while she never attained the success she knew while part of the Soul II Soul/Funki Dred family she always has this song and what a song it is. The first thing that catches you is that beat then Caron mellifluous vocals, that thumping bass line, and the sweet piano all come in together and this song never looks back.

This is a song meant for the big boy speakers so download it if you don't already have it. Then take your laptop/computer or ipod and hook it up to your stereo and turn the volume up. Then try and remember where you were and/or what you were doing back in 1989 and enjoy!!!!