The Changer and the Changed

I am genuinely perturbed at how fast July flew by. So much, in fact, I don't even want to talk about it.

I have a happier subject to dwell on anyway: my new favourite album.

The other night when I was meant to be sleeping, I found myself googling lesbian singer-songwriters, because that's where my interests lie these days.

And on some blessed compilation list on some blessed website, I ran across a recommendation for an album by Cris Williamson called The Changer and the Changed. Embedded was her song 'Waterfall'... and before the song had even finished, I knew I wanted this album. Less than 20 minutes later, I had ordered a copy. I didn't even listen to any other songs off it. I just somehow knew I would love it.

(I only doubted this when I received it and feared it was going to turn out to be a country album. But only the second track was country, to my relief.)

Cris Williamson, where have you been my whole life?

(photo credit)

I've yet to explore her other music (she's been recording since the 60s) and I look forward to doing so, but for now I just want to bask in the perfection that is The Changer and the Changed.

This album was released in 1975 without the help of any men. Seriously. It was released on the independent label Olivia Records (which was completely women-based) and in the liner notes it says, "This album was made with the help of these women" and proceeds to list a plethora of females. As a feminist, I think that's pretty awesome.
There is something timeless about The Changer and the Changed. Something indelibly golden. The ten songs that make up this album made a home within me the first time I heard them. I've had this album for only a month, but it has touched me so much already. I hope it continues to mean a lot to me over the years. (And reading what other people have to say about it, I suspect it will!)
I don't know how to classify this album. Just give it a try and if you like it--wonderful! Below I'm posting the song that started it all for me 'Waterfall':

Till Tomorrow

I scribbled part of this post on a piece of paper somewhere, but now I can't locate it. I wouldn't be too bothered about this except I think there was a poem written on the other side. I really need to get my act together.

I've really missed music blogging, so I'm hoping to get back in the habit. I've been wanting to actually write this post for ages, so I'm ignoring the fact I'm tired, overheated, and have a stomach ache. Don't you feel sorry for me now? Well it's okay. Because I'm here to talk about someone awesome: Don McLean.

I think everyone knows either 'American Pie' or 'Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)'.  I myself have known and loved the song 'American Pie' for years. I had no idea what a wonderful store of Don McLean music exists. Sadly besides 'Best Of" type albums and American Pie, buying his music is not as convenient or cheap as one would hope for in this day in age.

I should probably put some of his biographical information in here somewhere... but nah. I'm just going to jump right in with my personal nonentities. Several months ago I downloaded American Pie on a whim and let me just say that is possibly the best decision I've made in the past 6 months.

This album was released in 1971 and was his second album. I don't know what else to say about it, except there is not a track on it I don't love. The album is mainly composed of beautiful, melancholic folk songs, but there's humour ('Everybody Loves Me, Baby'), anti-war ('The Grave'), and a cover of the traditional 'Babylon'. Not to mention the title track and opener 'American Pie' which is still, in my estimation, 8 1/2 minutes of bliss.

So I've picked the second track 'Till Tomorrow' to post, because it was the first song I listened to after I downloaded the album. When it started playing, I knew I'd made a good choice.

(The song might take anywhere from 6 to 30 seconds to load. Heh. Heh. Good things come to those who wait, though!)

A Lullaby to Wander By

I've been absent. Not just here, but everywhere. In my mind,  even. I still feel absent. But this is a lazy afternoon, so I thought I'd write a blog post. I hope to be posting more in September.

My vinyl collection has a grand total of 5 records in it. The only one of these that could be considered rare is Through the Eyes of Terry Bêr, which is by... you guessed it! Terry Bêr.

This album was released in 1968, and it's actually not very hard to get a vinyl copy of it. It has not, however, been released on CD or in any other digital form, officially, which is a shame.

This album was nothing like I expected. I thought it would be more psychedelic folk, but nothing could be further from the fact. It's core genre is folk, but it has influence from Spain. Or perhaps Mexico. I would even say there is a Mariachi influence on a couple of the songs.  Though initially surprised, I've grown extremely fond of this album.

Of the 12 tracks, half of them were written by Terry. Notably, there are two Leonard Cohen covers and also a Donovan cover. The songs written by her are my favourites, though. (They are 'Wouldn't You Loved to Be Clothed Like a Tree'; 'A Lullaby to Wander By'; 'But If You're Lonely'; 'Come on Over to My House'; 'Streets of My Village'; and 'Gemini Gypsy'.) In  case you haven't guessed from the title, my favourite is 'A Lullaby to Wander By'. This peaceful song sounds like the atmoshpere the title conjures. That's all I have to say, really. :)

Have a listen:

Chocolate

Hullo! Though it's a new month, this is not an artist of the month post. If you read the little sidebar, you'll notice it's on hiatus. You'll also notice I've provided one of my SM:TV Live gifs for your viewing pleasure. I have no idea when I'll return to doing the artist of the month. I've bought a lot of new music lately, but I haven't listened to a lot of it. This is a very strange time in my life - you must excuse me. But I shall be posting!

And now, back to our regularly scheduled program...

It's no secret I'm a fan of 60s music, but my obsession doesn't end there. I just want to take the whole era and put it in my pocket. The good, the bad, and the smelly.

I watch a number of television shows from the 60s, and one of my favourites is The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.

Last month I read Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, which is a biography about the Smothers Brothers and their show (mentioned above). Their show aired from 1967 to 1969. It began as a typical comedic variety show, but it soon became too revolutionary for its own good. Tom and other writers on the show constantly fought the censors to say what they wanted to say (whether it be a slightly off-colour joke or social commentary). The war raged on until The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was cancelled after its third series, even though a fourth series was contracted.

Dick and Tom Smothers are (believe it or not) really brothers and their last name is truly Smothers. When I first started watching the show, I assumed it was all a gimmick. :P

I made the mistake of not finishing this post when I started writing it last month, so most of that nice biographical information I obtained about  Dick and Tom is gone. I do remember they started out as a folk trio in the early 60s (and yes there was a third man at the time), which eventually morphed into them doing folk/comedy as a duo, with Dick being the straight to Tom's funny man.


One of our favourite songs the Smothers Brothers do is a song called 'Chocolate' which opens with the line: "I fell in a vat of a chocolate..." Its punchline is hilarious as well. (You have to listen carefully, though, cause Tom says it very quickly.)

They perform it on the second season of their show, but sadly that clip is not on youtube. But luckily, it was also on their 1962 folk/comedy album The Two Sides of the Smothers Brothers, so you can listen to it, at least!





(Supplemental link: Watch them perform 'My Old Man' on the third season of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. I know it must be the third series since they have moustaches. :P)

No One Can Hear You Cry

I think I can just squeeze in another post before April ends! It's on my to-do list, so I better do it, right? I'm extremely strict about such things.... *snickers*

I've been really digging obscure 60s and 70s music again, so appropriately I'm posting a song from an old favourite: Susan Christie.

Susan Christie is yet another talented woman who is terribly obscure and hard to gather information on. I do know she was with a band called The Highlanders, but it was her solo recording of the novelty song 'I Love Onions' with which she gained some footing in the musical world.

She then made her first and only album: Paint a Lady. The album was released in 1970. Or it would have been, at least, had the record company not done what they did, which was limit the pressings of her album to a very small amount, because they had no faith in the commercial possibilities of her material. (I've heard there were only three vinyls made!)

I am amazed Paint a Lady ever got reissued. Amazed, but grateful, I must say. The album is brief, only eight tracks long. As far as I know, all the material is original except for her cover of 'Ghost Riders in the Sky'. Of course, this album does contain the nine minute 'Yesterday Where's My Mind?' An acid folk number that I must confess I've never made it all the way through. (It has a frightening intro!) Of course, I haven't tried to listen to it in years; I might be able to handle it better now. :P

Her songs are full of loneliness, which is quite apparent on my three favourites from the album: 'Rainy Day', 'Paint a Lady', and 'No One Can Hear You Cry'. Being a teenaged girl, perhaps that is why I love all three of these songs. I'm a sucker for a good song about, well, sad things.

The song 'Paint a Lady' is perhaps more indicative of what she is capable of, but I have a soft spot for the song 'No One Can Hear You Cry' so that is the one I'm posting. (But you'll notice I've included 'Paint a Lady' as a bonus on the playlist, if you want further listening!)

This post was actually surprisingly easy to write! I though it would take much longer. (Using the new Blogger was a pain, though.)

Marj Snyder

As the song goes, "April, come she will"... and before I'm quite ready for her. As usual, I deliberated over what artist to make artist of the month, before deciding the only artist I felt like raving over was Marj Snyder.

Marj Snyder... I confess, I don't know much about her. She was a little-known singer-songwriter who released several albums in the 70s. Though few knew of her, those who did were blessed by her music.

The bio for her at last.fm states simply: "Hippy lady from California who loves that God." Ha! It's hard to tell whether or not it was a fan who penned that gem; but yes, Marj was from California and she loved "that God". (Read: she was/is a Christian.)
I can't state positively how many records she released, but I know for sure of two: her 1971 album, A Time of Peace, and her 1972 album, My Lifetime Now. (I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure Marj was only 17 when A Time of Peace was released.)

I can't remember exactly how or when I came across the music of Marj Snyder. I think it was last summer, when I somehow stumbled across her song, 'God', which is from the album A Time of Peace. Her gentle style and beautiful, thoughtful lyrics grabbed my attention, and the more I listened to the song, the more I grew to appreciate it.
Sadly, except for the song 'God' and another song called 'I Am the Light', I've not heard any more from A Time of Peace. (Ah, the woes of loving obscure music!)

But semi-recently, I was able to find a download of her 1972 album, My Lifetime Now. While it does contain a regrettable foray into country music ('Knees Knocking') and Southern gospel ('For Those Tears I Died') and the inevitable 'Amazing Grace', My Lifetime Now is a fine album. (For the genre complaints, the songs themselves are alright, I'm just not a fan of those two genres.) My Lifetime Now is certainly a million steps above the cookie cutter "Christian music" of today.

I'm posting two songs today; the first is 'Chicago / Walk By My Window' from My Lifetime Now. (Which technically is two songs, but they segue into each other and they were put on the same track in the version I downloaded.) Unlike the rest of the album, they aren't religious. But they are pieces of her life wrapped in the packaging of lovely folk music, much like the second song, which is the aforementioned 'God' (a song of more religious nature, obviously - but definitely worth a listen, even if you're not interested in the spiritual side of life.)




(Supplemental links: Another favourite from My Lifetime Now is the song 'I'm Dying'. I love the pure anguish of this song, which you can listen to here, if you so desire.
Here is the blog I downloaded the song 'God' from and the blog I downloaded the album 'My Lifetime Now' from. Also, one of Marj Snyder's song is on the compilation Wayfaring Strangers: Ladies from the Canyon, which can be bought on amazon.)

Laura Nyro

For anyone who reads my other blog, the fact that I've picked Laura Nyro for artist of the month should come as no surprise.



As I stated in the post previously linked, her music has been the soundtrack to my November. (Of course, I started loving her music too late in the month to make her the artist for November.) I've been fangirl gushing about her for weeks now, so I'm not even sure what to say or where to start now...

A few weeks ago, I checked out Michele Kort's biography of Laura from the library: Soul Picnic: The Music and Passion of Laura Nyro. It was excellent and I would certainly recommend it to any Laura fans, or even people who like to read well-written biographies. (I know they exist! I'm one of them! :P) I thought I'd include my goodreads "review" of it since it's not really a review and I've been in such a blue funk for the past three weeks that writing this post has been unnecessarily hard.

My review[of sorts]:

Although Laura Nyro has been on my radar for over two years, I only recently downloaded one of her albums.
That album was New York Tendaberry and, let's put it this way: if I had it on vinyl, it would never leave my turntable

My [now] 13 year old brother who hangs around me a lot, detests her; he identifies her as "the woman who wails." And, while it's a bit of an exaggeration, he's right - she's a wailer! But that's what I love about her: how she sings her heart out. I have a great admiration for singers who convey a lot of power and emotion in their singing. As someone who expresses herself through the medium of singing/songwriting, I would love and strive to have that sort of emotional strength in my voice, and even lyrics. I don't, though. Or at least, I feel like I don't. Sure, nice adjectives have been used to describe my voice, but something in me wants to have a rough, emotive voice like, say, Janis Joplin. So I'm going to take up drugs and alcohol and see where that gets me.

Anyway, I tell my entirely too-judgmental brother that Laura is an acquired taste, and I suppose she is. For a while, even I was ambivalent about whether I liked her or not. But I kept an open mind and now I'm basically in love with her. So there you go!

All this to say, this biography was mahvelous; an excellent look on Laura's life and her groundbreaking musical influences. This book has further fueled my passion for all things Laura Nyro; I am resisting the urge to go out and buy her entire discography.


My favourite photograph in the book of the lovely Laura:




[Caption: Nyro taking a dance break during New York Tendaberry recording sessions, 1969. (Photo by Stephen Paley, courtesy of Michael Ochs Archives)]


Since writing that review, I have downloaded her 1968 album, Eli and the Thirteenth Confession, and while it's fast becoming a favourite, I don't love it as wholly as New York Tendaberry.
It really is a shame that, while other artists had hits singing Laura's songs, she never had one singing one of her songs. To me, covers of her songs are unnecessary. No one sings her music the way she does; each song seems to come straight from her soul. Anyway, I shall wrap this up by saying that Laura Nyro is amazing. I've not had an emotional reaction to music like the one I've had to hers in a long time. Many don't like her because of her voice or the "unevenness" of her songs, but that's alright. I love her. The end.


Listen to 'Sweet Lovin' Baby', my favourite song from New York Tendaberry:


{Supplemental link: Watch Laura singing my favourite song off of Eli and the Thirteenth Confession ('Poverty Train') live at the Monterey Pop Festival here.}

Ooh, look at that! This is my 100th post! Hmmm... I'm thinking about doing something a little different for my next post. So, be on the look out for that...

Janis Ian

Well, I'm right on time for the artist of the month post! I seem to consistently do them about a week into the month now. :P Honestly, I'd like to change that. But I when you don't pick an artist til 6 days in, that creates a problem...


And, since you can [presumably] read, you've probably figured out that this month's artist is Janis Ian!

(This is Janis in 2008, I believe. When choosing an artist that's been active so long, it's hard to decide what decade to choose their photograph from. :P)

I cannot say enough what an extremely talented musician Janis Ian is. I've loved her for a couple years now (I posted another song of hers a while ago) but my Janis Ian listening experience was basically scattered songs here and there. Lately, however, I've been enjoying her album Between the Lines which was released in 1975 and became very popular, further kindling her re-emerged musical career which had started in the 60's and quieted somewhat since then.


No one's music pulls at my emotions like Janis Ian's does. Especially on this album. Her melodies, oh! Simply gorgeous, and almost always accompanied by beautiful string arrangements. And her voice! There are times it captures loneliness so well, not to mention her lyrics.
Best of all, she sings in a good key for me. (Always a huge bonus!)

Hands down, my all time favourite Janis Ian song is 'In the Winter.' It has been on my itunes' "Top 25 Most Played" for a looong time. It's also holds a pretty high status on my "Songs to Sing While Cleaning" list!
I'm not even going to try to describe why I love this song, just give it a listen.



And for your extended listening pleasure, if you so desire, I've included the song 'Jesse' which was not on Between the Lines but it's another Janis Ian original that just makes my heart weep. (Trivia: this song was also recorded by artists such as Joan Baez and Roberta Flack! Janis does it best, though.)

Did You Give the World Some Love Today, Baby?

As I mentioned on my last post, I've been on a bit of a 60's kick. Most of my favourite albums from the 60's/early 70's are the obscure ones. So, today I am posting about the album Did You Give The World Some Love Today Baby by Doris because you can't have a list of largely unknown albums without it!


This is undeniably one of the oddest albums in my collection. It was initially released in Sweden in 1970 by Swedish singer Doris {Svensson}, but did not get much attention until its re-issue in the 90's. This album is a diverse collection of covers and also songs that I think may have been written for her by a songwriting team of Francis Cowan and Berndt Egerbladh.
Wikipedia lists its genres as "pop, soul, funk, and psychedelia". That basically sums it up except I would add "jazz" to the list. The album does indeed have an interesting paraphernalia of songs, from the strange siren-wails and psychedelia of 'You Never Come Closer', to soft ballads such as 'Grey Rain of Sweden, to the almost western fiddles of 'Waiting at the Station', to the big band arrangements of half the songs... it epitomizes eclectic. Even Doris's voice is uncommon. At times she sounds like a child but her voice has a rougher side that banishes any such thoughts. And to top it all off, the cover is one of the most befuddling I've ever seen.




Like I said, it's an odd album. Still, it is strangely addicting and is both an amusing and gratifying listen. My favourite song is definitely the title track, 'Did You Give the World Some Love Today, Baby'. There is nothing terribly strange about this song, it's one of the more conventional ones on the album.
On itunes this song is included on a "Go Green" compilation which is interesting since it's not about "loving the earth" bu rather about loving the people of the world. It was recorded in 1970 after all. Those compilators must have not listened to the lyrics. :P

Listen:

Wendy & Bonnie

It's always nice to be driven by inspiration but let's face it, inspiration isn't always around when we need it. That's when the desperation kicks in.

In other words, I've been trying to write my artist of the month post for days. Since I don't have a new artist to wax eloquent about at the moment, I decided to pick an old favourite. Well, the artist I picked {who will remain anonymous :P} just wasn't doing anything for me, though I love them. Then yesterday, out of the blue, I started writing a post about the album Genesis by Wendy & Bonnie. For some reason that is what my muse wanted me to write about. So, thanks to my perverse muse, I bring you June's artist of the month: Wendy & Bonnie!

This is an old favourite, like from when I first started listening to obscure music. It's one of those delicious albums that was "lost" soon after its release but later resurfaced and, thanks to the internet and a re-issue, has gained more popularity. Wendy and Bonnie Flower, two sisters from California, recorded this album in 1969 when Wendy was 17 and Bonnie was 13. But fate was seemingly against these two as their label went bankrupt shortly after the release of Genesis and the man who wanted to see them about further recording was murdered {!?!}. They never recorded together again but pursued separate careers in music.
Incredibly, Wendy and Bonnie composed all the songs on Genesis themselves. They might have played an instrument or two as well, but mainly they were backed by an awesome group of musicians.

Their album represents the best of the 60's, the innocent desire for personal and universal love, unclouded by drugs. But their songs still have a pleasing sense of light psychedelia and are brimming with the sister's harmonies. The first half of the album {sans any bonus tracks} is the best, both lyrically and in musical composition, but begins to falter a bit after that. Overall, though, it's a darn fine album and a merit to the creative era it came from.

It's so hard to pick a favourite off this album; I've been vacillating for a while now. I think I'm going to go with the lovely and sad 'By the Sea' but 'I Realized You' and 'You Keep Hanging Up On My Mind' are two other absolute favourites.

Listen:


{My divshare players have been acting up. If you press play you can hear the music but can't see the time nor pause it. Sorry about that. If this persists I may have to find another file host.}



This post has opened a floodgate I've been obsessively listening to lesser-known 60's music since yesterday evening. *happy sigh* I've missed it so.

Riu Chiu

In case you haven't noticed, I don't listen to much Christmas music. Not voluntarily, at least. Between the girl's ensemble I sing in, the radios that play in stores and my piano playing of various carols {and Charlie Brown Christmas songs!}, I don't feel much need to listen to Christmas music on my own time. One of the few exceptions is 'Riu Chiu' by The Monkees.

Surely The Monkees need no introduction. Or perhaps they do since I seem to be living in the wrong generation. Just look them up or ask your parents if you don't know who they are... OR if you're one of those people who think they were just Beatle rip-offs who couldn't even sing.

'Riu Chiu' is an old Spanish carol that dates from around the 16th century or earlier. {A translation for the lyrics can be found here.} The Monkees performed this song at the end of Episode 15 in Season 2, "The Christmas Show". They sing it a capella and in harmony with Micky taking most of the solos.
I heard a different version of this song in a friend's car the other day. It was by one of those artists-of-whom-we-do-not-speak and its overproduced sound made me long for this beautiful, and entirely too short version. Definitely one of my absolute favourite Christmas songs.

Listen:



Well, this is my last song for my week of posting {week = 7 days, not Friday to Friday}. This will probably be my last post for December, too. So, Merry Christmas everyone!!

{P.S. - It snowed. No Library for me. :(
But don't worry, I'll get over it. ;)}

A Hard Day's Night

I remember a weekend afternoon about 3 years ago, my father bringing home a movie he had randomly bought at Barnes & Noble. The movie was A Hard Day's Night. He had seen it before but the rest of us had never heard of it. We all sat down to watch it.
Our lives were never the same again.

A Hard Day's Night, made in 1964, was the first film to star The Beatles. The plot is basically "a day in the life of The Beatles". Following their madcap lives: running from fans, performing on telivision programmes, doing interviews, From the first scene I was hooked. Their cheeky, hilarious and almost random dialogue was right up my alley. I loved their Liverpudlian accents and just plain adorableness. After we watched the film, Beatlemania hit our household 40 years late.

Of course, I had known who The Beatles were. I had even listened to them. We had a tape of their love songs and my mom and I would listen to it. Until we lost the tape, that is. And of course, my father was a fan of theirs. Still, my siblings and I had not been fully converted.
But after A Hard Day's Night, I became like a sponge whose main purpose in life was to soak up as much information about The Beatles as she could. And I did. I still retain most of that knowledge though I am not as obsessive as I once was. I still think they are the greatest band ever.

I love the early Beatles with their clean-cut image....

and I love the later Beatles who were bickering more often than not.


Give me the name of one of their songs and I can sing it for you, tell you which Beatle sang it and spout trivia about the story behind the song or interesting recording details. {Just think, the first time I watched the movie I couldn't even tell them apart!}

And of course, the inevitable question, do I have a favourite Beatle?
Why, yes, I admit, I do have a favourite. Though I love them all, I have a thing for Paul McCartney!


{You cannot deny the cuteness!}

Anyhow, I polled my siblings, asking them what song in A Hard Day's Night was their favourite. 2 out of 3 voted for the song 'I'm Happy Just to Dance With You'. {The third couldn't make up his mind. *makes a disapproving face*}

So, here's the video clip from the movie where they sing it. {The actual song starts about 35 seconds in.}




{As usual, watch it here if the chopped off side gets on your nerves.}


Since, 'I'm Happy Just Do Dance With You' is not very long, I figured I'd post another song. Which is a bit problematic since I love all the songs in A Hard Day's Night. I finally decided, when in doubt, post the title track! ;)
So, here it is, the song 'A Hard Day's Night'! {The video is the opening credits and most of the first scene, so you can watch some of it if you so desire.}

{Youtube Link}

Society's Child

I remember the first time I heard the song 'Society's Child' by Janis Ian. It was about a year ago; I had been looking for new music to listen to and, for some reason, that day I was not having much luck. I was beginning to despair of ever hearing anything good again (ha!) when I went into itunes (this was before I switched to the superior emusic) and clicked on one of their "Itunes Essential" playlists. I believe it was their essential "Folk-Rock" playlist.
'Society's Child' was on the list and I started listening to it. The thirty-second preview was all I needed to fall in love with this haunting song.


Janis Ian is an incredibly talented singer-songwriter. She is also known for writing songs about taboo subjects. This song had a very controversial subject matter when it was written around 1965. {Janis Ian wrote it when she was about 13 or 14!}
The lyrics tell the sad, but not uncommon, story of a girl with an African American boyfriend. He is shunned by her mother and they are mocked by their classmates and teachers. In the end, she decides to end the relationship, pressured by everyone who says they can't be together. Janis Ian said: "You know, I don't think I made a conscious decision to have the girl cop out in the end, it just seemed like that would be the logical thing at my age, because how can you buck school and society and your parents? You'd make yourself an outcast forever." {Found here.}

To be sure, this song is not as socially relevant or as taboo as it was in the 60's, but, in my opinion, that does not diminish the anguishing beauty of it.

Listen:

The Roar of Love

Here's an album I can't believe I almost forgot: The Roar of Love by 2nd Chapter of Acts!

The Roar of Love is a 1980 concept album by 2nd Chapter of Acts that was inspired by C. S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. {One of my favourite books from one of my favourite series!} The story of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is told through the lyrics. Though, if you are not familiar with the story, you will be confused as not all the key details are included.

I remember hearing the record of The Roar of Love when I was young but I didn't really get into it. Then, a few years later, we started listening to the CD in the car and I was hooked. That started my "2nd Chapter of Acts phase". It was very exciting because, at that point, I had very few Christian artists I enjoyed. 2nd Chapter of Acts {which is siblings, Annie Herring, Nelly Greisen, and Matthew Ward} have been such an encouragement to me through the years. You can just hear their love for Jesus shining through everything they did!
I also love reading about the band and how they formed. {Read the short version here or the long version here.}


I am posting two songs from The Roar of Love: 'Turkish Delight' and 'Aslan is Killed'.
'Turkish Delight' was my favourite song when I used to hear the record as a child. It is sung from the viewpoint of Edmund and is about how captivated he is by the White Witch.
'Aslan is Killed' is about, well, the title is pretty self-explanatory. This song, with its synths and layered vocals, is very cool sounding. {The lyrics are kind of hard to understand, but they can be read here.}

Listen to 'Turkish Delight':


Listen to 'Aslan is Killed':

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And I almost forgot, but Clara gave me an award! *beams*

Thanks again, dear! :)

OH, and one more thing:

Tomorrow, armed with my pile of books, I am leaving for vacation! I'll be gone about a week. So, goodbye until then.

Okay, I'm all done now, I promise.

....I lied.

Now, I'm done. :P

A Song for You

I thought I'd do a few more of my favourite albums since I got kind of distracted the last time I did it, hehe.
Alright, this album, released in 1972, is by one of my all-time favourite artists whom I'm sure you all have heard of: the Carpenters.


Though the album A Song for You contains many of their hits {'Top of the World', 'Goodbye to Love', 'I Won't Last a Day Without You', 'Hurting Each Other' etc.} my favourite song off this album is the title track, 'A Song for You', which was originally a song by Leon Russel.

A Song for You was intended to be a concept album, of sorts. It opens with the song 'A Song For You' and then closes with a reprise of it. There is also a short song in the middle called, 'Intermission'.
The rather humorous lyrics to 'Intermission', which were written by Richard Carpenter, are as follows:
"...We'll be right back / After we go to the bathroom".
In the liner notes Richard says:
"John Bettis wrote the great lyrics to 'Top of the World', 'Goodbye to Love' and many more of my melodies. I wrote the lyrics to 'Intermission' (Music inspired by the Crucifixus of Antonio Lotti [...]) This explains why John Bettis was chosen to write the great lyrics to 'Top of the World', 'Goodbye to Love', et al."
Haha. :)
Speaking of which, 'Goodbye to Love', another of my favourites, is said to be possibly the first love ballad to feature a fuzz guitar solo. The Carpenters got hate mail from some of their fans because of that solo! XD

Listen to 'A Song for You':

Listen to 'Intermission':



Karen Carpenter is one of my favourite female vocalists. It makes me sad to think of her untimely end at the young age of 32. And all because she though she was too fat. *sigh*

I've Been Lost

I'm not exactly sure what the "Soft Sounds for Gentle People" compilations are or where they came from but I stumbled across them one day on a blog. I don't know what I was originally looking for but I decided to download the whole collection because, well, as far as I can hear, these are fairly-recently made compilations of various, little-known, sunshine pop bands from the 60's and... obscure 60's music is something that is very near and dear to my heart. :)
There are 5 Volumes of the"Soft Sounds for Gentle People" albums and then also three other albums called "He and She", "Mystic Males", and "Sounds of She".
Though I've had them for a while, I haven't gotten around to listening to all of them. So far, my favourite has been the "He and She" album. When I first listened to it though, all the songs started running together in my mind and they all sounded like they were sung by The Mamas and The Papas...
My ears were beginning to feel a bit bored when I heard the song 'I've Been Lost' by Sunny & Phyllis {Practically all the artists on the "He and She" album are "boy's name here & girl's name here"}. My ears instantly perked up and it was an instant favourite!
Though now, I have found many more songs to enjoy on the "He and She" album, my favourite discovery is still "I've Been Lost". It has good vocals, a pretty, plaintive melody and a catchy chorus! And also, it is in a fantastic key for my voice! {It all boils down to that, doesn't it?}

Listen:



I hope everyone is having a great week! Ta-ta for now! :)

Colour Green

I have my computer back! And of course, all my music files!!!
So, I thought my next several posts would follow a theme. That theme being, "{Some of} My Favourite Albums".
Basically I'll just be posting about some of my absolute favourite albums along with a song or two from them. These aren't going to necessarily be my "most favourite albums ever" because I've already posted about quite a few of those.
First up, Colour Green by Sibylle Baier.

This album has a very interesting story behind it. At a certain point in her life, Sibylle Baier was very depressed. Her friend took her on a road trip and upon her return, Sibylle felt "her spirits renewed" and she wrote her first song, 'Remember the Day'.
From 1970-73 she secretly recorded these songs that she wrote and they became the album Colour Green. No one really heard her music except for her family and friends.
30 years later, her son Robbie (pictured left with Sibylle) made a CD of Colour Green and gave it to family and friends. A copy somehow got passed along to the Orange Twin label who then released it in 2006.

I admit it. I didn't like this album at first listen. I listened to the first two songs and I just wasn't sure....... Thankfully, I kept listening. Something about the third track made me keep listening. It began to grow on me. But, before I could form a further opinion, I ran out of free listens on last.fm. -_-
A few months later, I decided to just go ahead and buy it. But I wasn't sure yet if I honestly liked it or I just liked it because I thought I should.
Well, after buying it and listening to it more I decided I didn't like it.
I loved it.
It has such simple beauty. The whole album, except for some violin on the last track, is just Sibylle's fragile voice accompanied by her gentle guitar. Her melodies stay with you like old friends and the lyrics are like "looking at sepia snapshots of her everyday life". {I'm not sure if I thought that up or read it somewhere. So, I'm putting it in quotes to be on the safe side. ;)}
This is my album for when I'm sad. This is my album for when I'm happy. This is my album for every darn thing I do! I just love it!
Alright, I'll stop waxing eloquent now and post two tracks from Colour Green.

Listen to 'Tonight':


Listen to 'Remember the Day':




{Oh, and I'm making Sibylle Baier the artist of the month. :)}

Easter Song

I love Easter! As a child it was one of my favourite days. I always could smell and feel something so beautiful in the air that only came on Easter. I don't think it was the chocolate or the egg hunt that filled me with such joy. But rather the hope and joy because Jesus has risen again!

'Easter Song' by 2nd Chapter of Acts sums up my feelings pretty well! My favourite version of the song is the version they did on their live album with Phil Keaggy, How the West Was One.
I am posting this song as a video because it was the only way I had to combine Annie Herring's intro for the song with the song itself {because they're different tracks on the CD}.
The video only has one picture the whole time, sorry. I decided to do this last minute. :)
{EDIT: The video is not loading for me at the moment. I am terribly sorry if it does not load for you either. *sigh*}




Hear the bells ringing
They're singing that you can be born again
Hear the bells ringing
They're singing
Christ is risen from the dead

The angel up on the tombstone
Said He has risen, just as He said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

Joy to the world,
He is risen, hallelujah!
He's risen, hallelujah!
He's risen, hallelujah!
---------------------------

Happy Easter everyone! I hope it is filled with joy. :)

Gonna Buy Me a Dog

Since April 1 is not a day of very serious nature, I thought I would post an equally lighthearted song: 'Gonna Buy Me a Dog' by The Monkees.



My whole family loves this song! In fact, we listened to it so much that we grew sick of it. But thankfully, that has worn off and we can enjoy it again. :)
Basically, this song is just Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones goofing off in the studio. I hope it makes you smile - it always makes me!

Listen:



I hope everyone has a great day and does not get tricked too much! {Says the extremely gullible girl...}

Message personnel

I'm excited -- I've been finding lots of great new music!! But alas, posting about it all must wait.
Til then, I'll post an "old" favourite of mine: 'Message personnel' by Françoise Hardy.



Around this time last year, I started listening to Françoise Hardy and other such artists. It's very strange to think that last year I had not heard about most of the artists I have posted about on this blog... This has certainly been a year of "musical enlightenment". ;)

Anyhow, 'Message personnel' is my favourite Françoise Hardy song! The interesting thing about it is that the first minute and a half is a monologue that leads up to the song. I really love the lyrics! {If you wish to know the basic concept of what she's saying there is a version of her singing it in English here. It's not the same thing as an exact translation, but almost!}

Listen:


{Be forewarned, the sound starts out really quiet and then gets louder as the song progresses.}