There Are Still New Acts Out There…But the Roots ALWAYS Rule!

In an age where most bands are beginning to whine way too much for my liking, I’ve turned to my old country roots and to the music my parents listened to as a kid–lots of standards and old movie songs.  My grandparents always had music playing on the television, whether it was the Grand Ol’ Opry or some religious music shows that aired prior.  Then there was always Hee Haw!  I also heard a lot of Frank Sinatra music, Dean Martin and a few others growing up.

Country, blues and jazz have a rich heritage in this country, but in the youth, they don’t have that same fire running through the veins that leads to what inspired some of the greats to write music as they did in years past.  Hard work and ingenuity are now replaced with the internet and mass production of music on such a scale that it seems to me that the market is becoming too saturated with these services to download a lot of music–and many under-deserving artists keep getting over exposure to the point that people cannot stand to listen to them any longer.  Want a good example of how this can happen?  I’ll give you one using a song released in the 1990’s.  Remember My Heart Will Go On from the Titanic soundtrack?  I do! Boy that song kicked ass, but it got waaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyy too much airplay and that’s what killed it.

I actually miss going to the market and buying the music I want to buy–actually putting my hands on the albums or the cd’s.  If you can remember all the posters of who you thought were great musicians on your walls, that you clipped from Tiger Beat or 16 magazine, then you know the type of feeling I am referring to.  Now in my pre-teens, I confess that I was into the teen idol stuff.  There wasn’t a single girl in my class who didn’t have a huge crush on one of the Osmond Brothers or David Cassidy.  I was the oddball that loved the Jackson 5 too.  You see, parents tended to buy our music and my dad would not let me get the Jackson 5 stuff until I made my own money.  However, he went into deeper shock when I bought George Harrison‘s “All Things Must Pass” album.

At 13 I began to crave real music.  I began writing real lyrics–and to me George Harrison, Paul McCartney and John Lennon were, in the words of young people today, “The shit!” I also love Stevie Wonder… Songs in the  Key of Life is one of the greatest albums of all time. I hated the world around me and wrote about that for the most part.  I have returned to music after almost 29 years. For a while I stopped because I listened to everyone tell my why I can’t do anything rather than the one voice inside of myself that tells me I can.

What I listen to inspires me, but I cannot sing the music that inspires me to write. I don’t know why.  I’ll listen for hours and never allow a single  note of it to escape my lips…Europe is a whole new world.  The music is different as well. People over there actually enjoy what I enjoy.  I want to share the things with you that made me realize that there is hope for the American music scene yet. One of them is this lady.  Her name is Lara Fabian:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Tg_PTY3nI8

Then there is this guy who seemed to pop out of a box from Bulgaria in 2009…It was still another year before I heard him sing, dammit!

http://www.youtube.com/user/ActorBenCross?blend=21&ob=5

I never knew Ben Cross could sing prior to that…Then again, I lived in a f***ing bunker of my own making.  Sometimes I still hide in it too.  In case you are wondering, he is probably best known over here for his work in Chariots of Fire and for playing Sarek in the last Star Trek film.

Now before you start, don’t start slamming older musicians.  The well ran pretty dry as of late and these musicians still have it going on, man…This guy has a resonating light about him and as long as he has that, I support him–PERIOD.  Some of you younger artists should take a few pointers from him because he has a better tone and range than a lot of us do.  IF you don’t believe me, listen to him.  As for me, I’m too much like Pink…I do what the hell I want and write what the hell I want.  When I need a wake up call, I go to the roots–the old music and Ben does it well.

The THIRD thing came from Lauren Cross.  It was a link to THIS station:

http://www.kcrw.com/music/eclectic24

You can also listen to this  KCRW    These stations have a little more to offer than my usual, eardrum bursting fare!  When riding with me, I tend to listen to what your mother warned you about!  If you dare to let me drive and I’ve got Enter Sandman by Metallica playing, be ready to get stopped because I get tickets every damned time!   The same holds true for when I am playing I Want it All by Queen.

Now I do like hearing the old “Nirvana” music and some Goo Goo Dolls.  John Rzeznik knows how to put a lyric together that messes with my head every time and I like that in a songwriter…It just seems to me that the old fire died out when the 90’s went.  Once in a while, you get a band like Arcade Fire or something but they don’t hang around for too long. Sorry but it is true…Of all the Best New Artist winners at the Grammy Awards in the past 10 years, I see that there are 2-3 acts that got it that NOBODY in the mainstream seems to have heard of–Esperanza Spaulding being the latest…They gave it to Nora Jones too (who did NOT deserve it–sorry) when Averil Levigne should have gotten it.  If you look at the list of who has won, you will see that while they do sell records–the mainstream (working class American) listeners don’t care one iota for their music.  People need to realize that the academy votes on this.  I am glad and surprised that Maroon 5 won when they did.  They are GOOD!

I want to share two more songs with you that I love to listen to.  Here is the first one by Shinedown (Second Chance):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H25ORRgLxdA&feature=fvsr

And here is the 2nd one by Hinder (Lips of an Angel):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiSfTyrvJlg&ob=av2e

These two bands aren’t “special” or “great”…Their sound is honest, raw and pure and that is what I look for in any artist regardless of the genre.   That in mind, I want to mention a  new band from Cross Plains, Texas.  I got the pleasure of meeting them in Mingus, TX the other night.  The band is “Bars Lane”.   IF you are a manager, they need one.  Friend them on FB and get in touch with them, but I do believe they are going to make it.  When you hear this, you’ll know why I am mentioning them on this blog.  Their lyrics are honest and they have a lot more besides this one.  Their drummer wrote the song “Blessed” which I featured below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hLAMLQPDOE

If you guys like Cross Canadian Ragweed, you’ll love Bars Lane, too.  It’s that simple.

Here’s a pic and a link to their FB page too:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bars-Lane/129223883807762

They are also on reverbnation.com  as well.   Have a great week–especially all of you in Texas!  Let’s support these guys!

Anyone Up for a Little Bytch?

Yes…You read it correctly…I want to get my all female band going.  Here are my requirements…All members must be over 35, have been divorced at LEAST once and really don’t give a crap what other people think because they spent too much of their lives worrying over it.  They must also be comfortable with being called bytches because that will be part of our band name.  If members do have kids, the kids must think their moms are “cool” for this or they will be allowed to force said children  into servitude as our roadies–and believe me, my boys do not want to have to make a middle of the night M&M run to the store! Damned straight!

“Bytch Cassidy!”  Has a nice ring to it, I think…

Ground rules for the first album…Each song has to have the word “bitch” or a derivative of it somewhere.  The only exception will be our cover of “None of the Above” and possibly 1 more cover song.

WE must use the cartoon I drew years ago which depicted an interesting political climate in the 1970’s.  I drew it in 8th grade.  We draw straws for the art on the back cover.

General rules:  Don’t leave the toilet seat up.  Do pick up after yourself and don’t leave money on the bus! It can get ripped off!

Needed:  bass player, drummer, lead guitarist and a possible 2nd guitarist.  If you are good at reading/writing the music, that’s even better.

Management…What the hell?  Deal with that when we get to that point…

Aside from that there is a song right off the top of my head I refuse to do and that is “Fancy”.  I hate that song.  I see nothing so great about pimping out one’s own kid no matter how bad things get. Sorry.

Anyway, there is my take on it…All members must have  a good sense of humor and some dry wit working for them.   A little laughter goes a long way.   Now here’s a clip of that famous, kick ass song I’d love to cover:

None of the Above–Again…This is one of the best songs Duran Duran ever did…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BP4GQPbn4Aw

Now girls! Any takers?

 

 

 

 

HOW to get rid of the irate phone caller after your kid dials the wrong number! It worked for me…

Once in a while when my kids were younger, they would dial a wrong number and instead of apologizing to the person and such, they would hang up the phone.  This went on until each of my three boys were about 11 or so.  Well, one day, my boy Brian came in and said, “Mom, I’m calling Riley and going to Jennifer’s house!”  I said okay because I knew he finished his homework.  I didn’t hear anything because I was washing dishes in the kitchen with my back turned to the living room (where he was at).

About five minutes later, the phone rings and Brian had already left…I go to the phone.  The number was local and there was a name on it so I answered it.  This is how the rest of it went…

“How dare you call my husbands number you f***ing b***h~!? I could kick your ass!” etc…etc…etc…

I let her go on until she ran out of hot air…Here is how I answered her…

“Oh…I”m sorry ma’am…You have it all wrong.  You see, I saw you in Wal~Mart on aisle 7 the other night and I thought that you just had the cutest ass I ever saw–”

***CLICK*** went her phone and I NEVER heard from her again.

There is a moral to this story…There are times when a little wit goes a LONG way, but if you are a man and try to pull this, neither myself  nor anyone at wordpress.com will be responsible for any medical expenses you may incur because you have not figured out that what works for the women doesn’t always work for men–like Secret anti-perspirant…Know what I mean?

Now the song “Telephone Man” is playing in my head…Remember THAT one?

***DISCLAIMER:  Nobody at WordPress.com (admin or otherwise) has anything to do with this post! This is just me having a little fun using a bit of wit!***

Eric and the Chat room…

Some of you have heard me talk about this before but I think we all need a little laughter around here.

Once upon a time in the mid-1990’s, my son Eric was playing around on CompuServe and talking to some friends of his from school  in a chat room.  He was at his friend, David‘s house.

They told me when I came to pick him up, that while they were in said chatroom, a man came in there trying to pick up some of their female friends from school.

As they were describing the lures this pervert was using, I became a bit alarmed.  Eric. who was 14, then told me what HE did…

“Mom…I logged out, created a female name and went back  in.  My friends knew what I was up to because I PM’d them.  I went back in and the guy started talking to me.  I told him my dad lets me drive a Lamborghini, I have high cheekbones, tanned skin and my measurements are 36-24-34.  HE got all hot and bothered and began pumping me for  more info.  Eventually he said, “When can we meet? I am so dying to meet you, baby!”

” I made a date for him to meet me at the theater on Thursday night.  He was all excited, telling me all the things he could do for me. I let it go on for about 5 minutes and then I said, “Hey…I’ll see you then, okay?”  He said, “Okay baby! I can’t wait!”

Then I said, “Oh by the way…There’s just one thing.”

“What’s that?” he asked.

“I’ve got a dick!”  Eric told him

Needless to say that guy cleared out of that chat room quickly and never returned…Too bad Dateline didn’t get that session…

A Friend to the End…

This is a story that will make a dog lover cry.  Dogs have feelings and souls.  Often they are the most loyal of companions.  They love us even when we get cranky and often protect us as if they are themselves angelic.  I was deeply touched by the story I read on the link below and the photo of the dog, Hawkeye.  Hawkeye is a black labrador retriever who walked up to the casket of his owner, a fallen Navy Seal named Jon Tumilson of San Diego, CA.  He walked up the aisle to the casket and laid down after a heavy sigh as 1500 mourners watched.

There is no other bond like that of a dog and his or her master, and the mourners followed Hawkeye as he walked up the aisle to the casket.  While this dog will be cared for by a good friend, I want to take the time to remind people that many Native Americans refer to people as “dog people” for a reason.  They also call birds “bird people” at times, etc…  Nobody will ever convince me that these animals have no feelings, emotions or souls.  I was faced with a decision about my 13-year-old dog named Buddy earlier this year.   He had contracted heart worms.  He is better now.  They went ahead and gave him one more set of shots today and will do blood work in two weeks to make sure they are ALL gone.  They are HARD to get rid of.  People, take care of your pets–one mosquito bite is all it takes to make your dog very ill.

However when I say this dog is a family member, I mean it. I would sleep in my car before giving Buddy up and now my whole family is aware of this fact.  He is a very intelligent and well-behaved animal. I look into those eyes and see just how much trust and love he has for us in them and that is what matters the most.  I am sure that Hawkeye had that type of bond with his master too. I also watch Buddy around other people.  I know who to steer clear from as he has a keen sense of who is a decent person and who is not.

I also know that my bond with this dog is such that when he does pass over, I will not have another dog.  No other animal can replace this one in my life.   He loves taking walks with me and spending quality time with us all.   He even sits and watches TV with us and such.  What is funny is when he tries to carry a conversation.  I’ll tape that and put it on YouTube!   At the end of a day, he is always sleeping beside my bed, too.

http://www.wreg.com/news/kswb-dog-mourns-fallen-seal,0,7804662.story

I hope this story in the link touches your heart as it did mine.

All I Really Need is NOW…

I have my heroine standing atop a cliff, the salt air filling her senses as she stares up at the moon–downing a bottle of gin.  She cannot escape the damned voices she hears. No amount of alcohol will enable her to break free.  She has no choice but to come to the realization that her life really has a purpose–NOW.  Besides that the one she is sent to help isn’t going to let her get away with this pity party she is on for very long.

And NOW he has the arduous task of convincing her that the voices she is hearing in her head are real and that he is also. Only he has to be careful with when and how he reveals the latter.  She already fears so many things, he knows that she would not know how to handle hearing the voice of a dead being who has a physical body that she can see and touch when some of these others leave her sleepless at night.  At least NOW he can step in somewhat to silence them so she doesn’t become ill.  Her emotions are fragile and he is fully aware that he must be careful at this point.

Psychologists were a regular part of her childhood, given that he didn’t have a clue as to block her from seeing his memories then, she saw what he had done and drew pictures of it.  The psychologists all thought she was blaming her father for not being there for her and made him the villain–rather than her mother–and that is why she drew the violent pictures from the time she was five.  Now it was up to the person who was following her and watching over her to change her perceptions of what was and what now is.

Their relationship began long before she was sent to boarding school.  It began the day she was born.  She could see and hear him even though he could not leave his crypt. But he cared for her  in her dream realm–where sunlight didn’t hurt him.  He taught her about History, Greek Mythology, numbers and languages, but she liked watching the birds.  By the age of 10 she was called a prodigy and her musical skills developed immensely. He thought he had gone mad from being unable to feed–but no…He would find out twenty-three years later that not only was she real, but she thought she imagined him all those years also.  She never remembers a face–only his shoes and she keeps looking at shoes. Another thing that puzzles him is that the closer they become,  the less he is affected by his curse.  However, she seems to become more frail as time progresses and they both get sucked into another realm at various points in this story.

And that’s just for starters…

My life is definitely changing.  I know I’m headed in a new direction as I evolve over time–then again, it’s a constant process, right?  I’m glad that I don’t have to worry over what happened before or what will happen tomorrow.  Just as change enters into my life, so it enters into the lives of my characters.  To say that a person can totally disassociate from their characters doesn’t seem to ring true with me.  I put my sons in a few characters.  I’ll see where the ride takes me.  It is as I said in my title, all I need is NOW.  This moment is what defines my day–not yesterday and certainly not  tomorrow.

The person I once was is dead so I had to have a bit of a “memorial” for her.   I know now that I can survive anything–and have for the most part. It is for that reason, I do not look for my validation from others.   I find that when I am up on my mountain, taking in the air and looking for miles into the horizon to figure out where I should go next.  However, I don’t worry about it.  I know things will fall into place.  What I need comes to me.  Just like with people I know, what they need comes to them–and if I can help them along a bit–I do so gladly.  That is one part of me that never changes…I am always trying to be “there” for those that need me and I have come across many, many good people in the past two and a half years that I am truly grateful for.

However there is one thing that never changes about me.  I stay behind and follow tracks.  I never run ahead.  I just feel safer that way so it is all fine.  I think it is better to finish the course and feel comfortable than to make a race of it and wipe out. I take the time to see, smell, hear and touch…I also try new food once in a while now.

And when I stress, I meditate upon things and get centered.  If still uneasy, I change my latitude and it miraculously changes my attitude into one of total gratitude–especially when by a body of water or a river. I love the sound of water lapping on shore or the sounds of a river, spring or creek flowing!  I also love watching and listening to birds.  Combine that with a good breeze blowing through the trees and I’m in heaven.

Sometimes I play in the rain, too.  You can think I’m crazy if you like, but I will not let the kid in me die. I am of the  opinion that once a person lets the kid inside of himself/herself die, then there is absolutely no joy in life.  With no joy, there is no life and anyone who has a problem with someone who is enjoying their life and constantly tries to change that person has a mental problem.  That is my take on that matter. Anyway, if there is no thunder, that means there is no lightning.  I haven’t been stricken dead yet either so I guess I know what I am doing to some extent.

Nothing beats being outside-even in the rain.  Becoming one with that water and breathing that fresh, clean smell afterward is more invigorating than a lot of things to me.  The rainbows that sometimes show up are the icing on the cake.   I always have a dream about someone with a paint horse inside of a rainbow.  He keeps talking and motioning for me to come his way and then it is  almost as if I am running a race to get there. I get close but he moves just far enough back to keep me curious–and trying to catch up. I wrote about that on another part of the blog here…

Other than that, I’m getting ready to get other stuff.  I really feel that it’s time to put in a jewelry order and a mind is a horrible thing to make up!  Have a great weekend!