This song enttled Frozen Lake by one of my favorite jazz artists, Bob James and classical pianists, Kieko Matsui is undeniably beautiful. Upon first hearing it I thought these two talented people were playing their own individual pianos which would be amazing in its own right. The embedded video makes this song even more amazing when you see that they are playing the same piano.
Frozen Lake is off their joint 2011 release Altair & Vega, an album named after the two brightest stars in our galaxy which is most fitting. It is an album strictly for the piano lover, there is no other instrumentation on the album. Where you think that may get boring after awhile, there are only seven tracks on the album to keep that from happening. In my opinion Frozen Lake is the stand out.
I hope you enjoy this wonderful piece of music as much as I do by these two amazing musicians. And even if it's not your cup of tea, at least marvel at the fact that it's all played on the same piano by two of the brightest stars in our musical galaxy. Enjoy!
Back in 2007, this was my JAM! I couldn't get enough of this song and no matter where I was when I heard it, if I had access to the volume it was increased as much as those in the vicinity could stand. The song is Used To Be My Girl by the amazingly talented Brian McKnight and one of the reasons I loved this song I think, has a lot to do with Brian normally singing about how much he loves someone or how someone broke his heart. This song is a complete departure from that.
This song is all about an ex having a brief encounter with the new guy, simply warning him how while she may make you think you're the man, she's still mine. The chorus says it best when Brian sings She's still thinking about me / and I'll tell you why / She couldn't even hold her head up / when ya'll walked by / Don't go hatin' on me / It's just the game / You want her, you got her, take it you got her / To me it's all the same. This song stands out from almost every other B. McKnight song just by that chorus alone. Can I be honest with you and say I was shocked when I heard it? I was, seriously...jaw on the floor and all that.
Used To Be My Girl is off of his 2006 album Ten, this song was the first single released. In 2007, it was everywhere and while it only reached as high as 25 on the Billboard Hot R&B and Hip Hop chart, it was played in every club, radio station, house party, and ipod (well, the last one applied to me but I doubt I was the only person jamming to this song in their headphones). Take a listen, if you've never heard this song, you may end up jamming to it in your headphones too. Enjoy!
When I first heard this song, I saw it as the perfect music to a movie trailer. It has that cinematic feel to it. It's one part creepy, one part amazing. The song is entitled High For This by The Weekend and the sound/mood/tempo of this song is what all of the music offered up by The Weekend sounds like. It's ethereal and atmospheric, bordering on electronic. That doesn't mean it's not good stuff, that's just to say that if you like this song, you'll love his other stuff. If not, then don't even bother.
The Weekend aka Abel Tesfaye hails from Ontario and he's released a series of mixtapes before being signed to a major label a few months ago. The buzz generated around those mixtapes and the push from rapper Drake, who has worked on several projects with The Weekend has helped his release, Trilogy debut at number four on the Billboard top 200.
Trilogy is a remastered compilation of the three mixtapes The Weekend has put out spanning 2011 to 2012. The lyrics are pretty much all the same throughout but High For This is by far my favorite of the 30+ songs Trilogy has to offer. Enjoy!
This is undoubtedly one of the greatest songs ever written and ever recorded. It is by far one of the most recognizable songs and it's also one of my favorites. It's One Love by Bob Marley. Now I could have chosen any song from his massive collection of hits but it's One Love that touches me deeper than the rest. It's off of his iconic 1977 LP Exodus and no matter how many times I hear this song, I can't help but smile.
It's not even three minutes long but it's so profound. Bob is asking is there a place for sinners, those that have hurt mankind while trying to save his own beliefs. This song has been heard all around the world and has been used by the Jamaican Tourist Board in commercials to convince people to come to Jamaica for vacation.
Bob opens up his heart and offers up thanks and praise to the lord in this song. I will always love this song and will always be grateful to Bob for sharing it with me and the world. Enjoy!
I am just stating this clearly and upfront, this is a big boy speaker song. Dominos by The Big Pink simply rocks. The beat is ferocious, yeah I said it...ferocious. Don't believe me? Break out your big boys, sit back, and let this run you over. Now with that being said, it's also the playa anthem. When you get up after being run over by this track the first time, hit replay and listen to the lyrics.
The chorus should tell you all you need to know about the song. That's not usually how it goes, the first few lyrics hardly ever tell the whole story. They do here. When lead singer Robbie Furze sings These girls fall like dominos...dominos you should know what's coming. The first few lines of the song just brings it home when he sings As soon as I love her it's been too long / Talks of future with you caves me in / Swallow my sugar kiss and eat it alone / Hearts collide and smash any dreams of love. Like I said, Playa Anthem.
I heard this track in a car commercial and fell in love with the beat. From there I dug until I found the song and was not disappointed when I did. Dominos is off The Big Pinks 2009 release A Brief History of Love. To me they sound like a more melodic Depeche Mode with some Massive Attack sprinkled in for good measure but hey, you decide. Enjoy.
I recently became a fan of this man and his music back in 2010. I have been mining his songs ever since but I somehow missed this one. I was introduced to this song over the past weekend and it blew me away. The song is Let It Be Me by the very talented Ray LaMontagne. It's off his 2008 release entitled Gossip In The Grain. It's a really touching song about loyalty, unconditional friendship, and support.
This is the second time Ray has graced my blog and I am really not someone to repeat artists here. That being said, this song is just as good as the first song of his I blogged about, Jolene. When Ray sings the chorus That's when you need someone / Someone that you can call / When all your faith is gone / Feels like you can't go on...let it be me / If it's a friend you need / Let it be me...it feels like he knows about all the crap you're currently going through or dealt with. I know there have been times in my life when I would have fallen apart had it not been for some very close and dear friends so this song speaks directly to my heart in a profound way.
This song is for those that have no one and needs that friend they can lean on and rely on. It's a voice in the dark telling you to take my hand, that while they may not know the way out, at least you're not alone. For this song, I thank you Ray and to the one that introduced me to it, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Enjoy!
THIS is a big boy speaker song, just warning you up front. It's also one of my favorite songs by garbage entitled #1 Crush from the 1996 Romeo + Juliet soundtrack. The lyrics are every stalking victims worst nightmare as well as every celebrities. It's the ultimate song of devotion and while that sounds good, listen to the lyrics of this song, your opinion may change.
The song starts off with a moan of pleasure, enticing. Then the beat kicks in along with that dark bassline that rumbles along beside you. Then Shirley Manson starts to sing words like I will pray for you / I will pray for you / I will sell my soul for something pure and true / For someone like you / See your face every place that walk in / Here you voice every time that I'm talking / You would believe in me / And I will never be ignored and that's the light stuff. The lyrics go on to get much darker and twisted.
This song grooves hard and it's deserving of a spot on my blog, even if it did scare the shit out of me the first time I really heard it. I'm not going to lie, it still gives me goosebumps but a good song is supposed to do that, make you feel it. I feel this song and maybe you will too. Enjoy!
