Music, New to Me

I like all kinds of music, and love the second-hand iPod

I bought from my daughter when she upgraded herself to an iPod Touch. 

For most of the year, I have a blend of music I like,

consisting of 80s pop/rock, country, oldies, indies

and just whatever I stumble across that I find I enjoy.

Also have quite a few TV show themes

and a load of Halloween/horror tunes, too!

At Christmastime, however, I switch over to holiday music.

Between CDs I have bought or traded for (thanks, Swap-A-CD!)

and free and legal music online (thanks, generous musicians!),

I have a Christmastime music folder that has 1,628 holiday songs - and growing!

Yes, you read that right.

What can I say? I like Christmas music!

This Christmas, in addition to the new music I have found online

from artists who post free tunes hoping to gain more fans,

my lovely wife gifted me with some holiday CDs:

James Taylor

at Christmas

From 2006, this is a reissue of his limited edition

Hallmark CD from a couple years earlier.

He has a great voice and the arrangements are definitely James Taylor-esque,

so I like it. His duet with Natalie Cole on Baby, It's Cold Outside is great.

Wonderful CD, as expected. Mellow and relaxing.

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elf 

Music from the Major Motion Picture

This is the 2003 soundtrack for the Will Ferrell film of the same name.

The CD is pretty much a traditional Christmas album, with a few surprises.

The Zooey Deschanel/Leon Redbone version of Baby, It's Cold Outside is fun.

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New this year is A Very She & Him Christmas,

featuring the always fun Zooey Deschanel and her musical partner M. Ward.

Fun, a definite indie-sounding album, and Zooey has a fun, easy voice to listen to.

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Also new this year is Christmas, by Michael Buble.

This one hit the top of the charts, not surprisingly.

His voice is always great and from the liner notes,

he says he modeled this CD after the classics he listened to growing up,

like Bing Crosby's Christmas album.

I love it, his voice is great as always and the fresh sounding

yet respectful to their origins.

Awesome CD for Christmas music lovers!

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As for non-Christmas music, I was also gifted with Dolly Parton's latest CD, Better Day.

Was concerned this was going to be an "off" album, but I was worried for nothing.

Dolly is spot-on her game here, as usual.

Songs are great and her voice is beautiful, as always.

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Finally, my brother and his wife gave me Cyndi Lauper's At Last, from 2003.

I have had this on my Amazon with list since 2004,

it was the oldest item on the list and now I finally have it!

It is a collection of Lauper's covers of jazz standards.

She has such a great voice and it is interesting to hear her take on these songs.

Going to need a few listens to truly appreciate this one.

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So, that's what's new for me, music-wise.

I could try to cover all the new music from the online musicians,

but I really didn't keep track.

Maybe this Christmastime I will post the new music as I come across it,

so anyone who wants it can get it as well.

Give the musicians some more notice, as well,

which is always a good thing for those trying to get noticed.

Thanks for the gifts & Happy 2012!

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Day Six: Favorite Song

Day Six: Favorite Song

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Like food yesterday, there are so many choices for a favorite song. Let's see...

Dolly Parton has written and performed many I like, Coat of Many Colors one of them.



I love the message that the song imparts, in such a beautiful and simple way.

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John Mellencamp also has his fair share of great music, Cherry Bomb being my favorite of his:



Just a great song, an ode to simpler times, I suppose.

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Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time is classic, and brings me back to the 80s every time I hear it.



Great song sung by an awesome talent.

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Don't You (Forget About Me) is, to me, the quintessential 80s song.



It might have a lot to do with be so closely associated with The Breakfast Club, but with or without the film, it is an 80s classic that never gets old.

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But I will have to go with Unforgettable, the version made into a duet by Nat King Cole and his daughter Natalie.



A beautiful song, without doubt. Two amazing voices spanning time to meld just perfectly on a classic.

My wife and I also chose this song to be "Our Song", and we couldn't have picked a better one. That's why Unforgettable is my Favorite Song.

Theme Thursday - Suitcase

This week at Theme Thursday: Suitcase!

After the theme of "vacation" last week, I was a bit 'at sea' as to where to go with a theme of "suitcase" so quickly.

Here is what I came up with:

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First, I thought of the thing that always pops into my head when I hear "suitcase" (and I am not kidding).

This video:



Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time", my favorite song from this great artist. I loved this video when it was released, waaaay back when I was 13. The song is so good, such a well written, emotional masterpiece. A classic now.

And the video was great, as well. Her character was so interesting to me, hopeful and sad at the same time. And by the end, all alone.

I always think of this in regards to suitcases, because of the odd assortment Cyndi had; a huge (for her size) duffel bag, a round hat box thing, and a metal lunch box. Definitely unique.

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Next, I thought of George Bailey from "It's a Wonderful Life". George has such big dreams of leaving Bedford Falls and traveling the world. But life keeps getting in his way.

Here he is demonstrating how big of a suitcase he wants for all his travels:



George wanted it to have room for lots of stickers, from around the world. Something like this:



We know that by the end of the movie, George has learned that it doesn't matter where you go or what possessions you have. All that is important is who you love and are loved by. That is what makes a "wonderful life".

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Then, I thought of this scene, from "Evita" with Madonna.



I think Madonna was pretty damn good in this film. Her acting has always been less then stellar, but here, with the acting and singing working together, I think she did her best film work.

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Oddly, I remembered this scene, from the pilot episode of "Mork & Mindy":



Mindy had still be skeptical of Mork's claim that he is an alien. Until a knock at the door finds a floating egg in the hallway, there to deliver Mork's lost luggage. She is a little more willing to believe his strange claims after this!

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Lastly, I recalled the classic episode of "I Love Lucy" called "The Passports", which originally aired way back in 1955.

In this episode, Lucy is unable to locate her birth certificate, which she needs for a passport for their European trip. She gets one of her bright ideas, thinking she can hide in Fred and Ethel's old steamer trunk. Of course, she gets locked inside.

Here is a replica of the trunk used in the show:



Strangely, this is a light-activated cookie jar. Not sure how that bit of merchandising came to be, but it is kind of cool, nonetheless.

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I hope you enjoyed this little trip down memory lane.

And hey, no suitcases were lost on this journey!