Monday, August 29, 2016

Familial Brew with the Tedeschi Trucks Band








This Saturday, September 3rd, I'm going to see the Tedeschi Trucks Band as the band stops in at Copley Symphony Hall in San Diego on their current tour. On September 4th, they play in Avila Beach, so just letting all my family and friends on the central coast know about it. I can't wait to see Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks as the power couple who managed to bring their personal and musical lives even closer together after their marriage in 2001. With the birth of their two children, it seemed natural to merge their two separate bands in 2010 and create one of the best Blues band going today.

I can't explain it, but every time I watch video of this band and see the interaction between Susan and Derek, I get emotional. Many times they are not even looking at each other, but you feel their love together with their full-band sound of guitars, horns, organ, double drum kits and fantastic backup singers. It's a hybrid lineup of musicians brought together from years on the road and this group is simply, family.
I just ordered their new album, Let Me Get By and here it is on Amazon if you want to order it.

Here is my new YouTube Tedeschi Trucks Band Playlist. Enjoy!


Monday, August 22, 2016

This Must Be The Place

This past Saturday, I was part of a wonderful celebration at Alexandra and Jeremy Ouellette's wedding (‪#‎neverouelletteyougo‬) in Seattle. My family all came together for the event and I'm blessed for their love and the experience of being with Alexandra (my step-daughter) on this day. There is no better feeling in life than to be a couple in love and know you are with the one. There have been a million songs written about this feeling we call love and for me, The Talking Heads, This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) simply says it so well.

So, we are at the reception, no scratch that, I mean the party, specifically the dance party that followed the wedding ceremony and we are all dancing and drinking a bit too. Hey after all, the fun couple is getting married here at a whiskey distillery. Anyway, about half way through, the DJ plays, This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) and much to my delight, everyone is singing along and singing the entire song. Well, at that moment, I get the goose bumps moment when music and life are one, and I'm feeling, well love. 

Here are David Byrne's lyrics and then two versions of the song, the first is the original that is a must for any dance party.  The second, by Shawn Colvin is one of my favorite covers of all-time, and one that is kind of meant to listen to by yourself as it always brings a happy tear to my eye.

with love -

This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)

Home is where I want to be
Pick me up and turn me round
I feel numb - born with a weak heart
I guess I must be having fun
The less we say about it the better
Make it up as we go along
Feet on the ground
Head in the sky
It's ok I know nothing's wrong... nothing

Hi yo I got plenty of time
Hi yo you got light in your eyes
And you're standing here beside me
I love the passing of time
Never for money
Always for love
Cover up and say goodnight... say good night

Home - is where I want to be
But I guess I'm already there
I come home - she lifted up her wings
I guess that this must be the place
I can't tell one from another
Did I find you, or you find me?
There was a time
Before we were born
If someone asks, this where I'll be... where I'll be

Hi yo
We drift in and out
Hi yo
Sing into my mouth
Out of all those kinds of people
You got a face with a view
I'm just an animal looking for a home and,
Share the same space for a minute or two
And you love me till my heart stops
Love me till I'm dead
Eyes that light up, eyes look through you
Cover up the blank spots
Hit me on the head
Ah ooh



Monday, August 15, 2016

The difference of 10 years and heroes


I'm currently in downtown Seattle with my oldest and dear friend Bill DeVoe in his law office thinking of inspiration for a quick Monday Monday Music blog. I've got on my John Prine concert t-shirt from last October, so maybe that's my sign and should just go with it.

John Prine played in San Diego with his hero, Kris Kristofferson at the Civic Theater and it was great to see the two play together. Prine was so happy that his mentor and friend were together on the same stage as he shared his admiration towards Kristofferson and the influence he's had in his life.

I got to thinking of heroes and the difference of age between the hero and the one looking up to them. With Kristofferson (80) and Prine (69) it is just a bit more than 10 years. This got me thinking about all my musical heroes from the 1960's and 70's. Bill and I were born in 1955 at the tail end of the baby boom that started after World War II in 1945. It's amazing to see how many rock 'n' roll greats were born in the 1940's and became stars to us all born in the 1950's. If you look at this current picture of Prine and Kristofferson, and didn't know them, you would think that they were closer in age.  I think about being 15 and the long list of rock heroes that were in their early, mid and late twenties and the difference of age and stature was just so enormous at the time. I really don't have much of point here, other than the importance of having mentors and heroes with that 10+ year gap to look up to, learn from and dream of your possibilities for the future.
I'll leave you with this one from October, 31, 2015.





Monday, August 08, 2016

What is Vevo on YouTube?

Vevo  is a multinational video hosting service  founded as a joint venture between the world's two biggest music production companies, Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group. Its shareholders now consist of these two companies as well as Abu Dhabi Media and Google/Alphabet Inc. after it took a 7% share in 2013. Launched on December 8, 2009, Vevo hosts videos syndicated across the web, with Google and Vevo sharing the advertising and similar benefits. from Wikipedia

Most people like myself see the vevo logo (now with a small v) on a growing number of YouTube videos and think, cool a HD quality video. The key word here is ADVERTISING as the big music corporations are looking for corporate streams of revenue as most music is now streamed FREE to the masses. In doing a little research for this blog, I was amused by several youthful males bemoaning vevo as pure evil and warning people to stay away by not watching any vevo music videos. I guess coming from the generation that PAID for music records, then tapes, then CD's and now MP3 downloads and streaming music, this is not so much a big deal for me. 

Vevo is like network television in real time, it's funded through advertising. Nobody likes advertising getting in the way of their network TV shows, but you tolerate the advertising as you watch the Olympics on NBC this week for free (not counting your cable bill). Vevo also has those pesky ads, some you can skip and some you can't. Hey, I love skipping a 30 second ad just as much as anyone born in the 1990's. I even taught my 2 year old granddaughter to say, "go way" when watching children music videos together and an ad pops up. At four, she now knows to easily hit the Skip button.

For my Monday Monday Music blog, I love vevo as I get to present high quality video music to my faithful readers who enjoy my YouTube playlist from my weekly topic. I sometimes spend several hours finding YouTube videos to match the songs I need for a playlist. And, there is only so much poor concert YouTube videos one can stomach from uploaded mobile phone video cameras. For me, finding a quality YouTube video of a favorite song is a fun hunt to share through a playlist. So for this week, here is an eclectic vevo sampler of HD music videos that are typical of what you would see and hear in a Monday Monday Music blog. Enjoy!


Monday, August 01, 2016

Wedding Days

Evening on Puget Sound 
This month my step-daughter Vinny (Alexandra) is getting married to her fiance, Jeremy Ouellette. Mary Kit and I will be making the trip in a couple of weeks to Seattle and look forward to the wedding and festivities with family and friends. We both wish them happiness and peace as they share life's journey together. Also, our dear friends Paul and Jane Hobbs son, Duskin is getting married this month too and we would like to wish Duskin and Ally all our best.

The song, For My Wedding written by Larry John McNall and sung by Don Henley is a favorite wedding song of mine. I once read in a interview with Don Henley that this is one song that he wished he had written himself. So here is to all the wedding couples, may these words, help them on their way.

For my wedding, I will dress in black
And never again will I look back
Ah, my dark angels we must part
For I've made a sanctuary of my heart
To want what I have 
To take what I'm given with grace
For this I pray
On my wedding day
For my wedding, I don't want violins
Or sentimental songs about thick and thin
I want a moment of silence and a moment of prayer
For the love we'll need to make it in the world out there
To want what I have
To take what I'm given with grace
For this I pray
On my wedding day
On my wedding day
I dream, and my dreams are all glory and light
That's what I've wanted for my life
And if it hasn't always been that way
Well, I can dream and I can pray
On my wedding day
So what makes us any different from all the others
Who have tried and failed before us
Maybe nothing, maybe nothing at all
But I pray we're the lucky ones; I pray we never fall
To want what we have
To take what we're given with grace
For these things I pray
On my wedding day
On my wedding day