Enter Sandman

When I logged into Twitter this afternoon, I saw that for some reason 'Enter Sandman' was trending. Not sure how this popped out of nowhere or why, but out of curiosity I decided to check the background of this song. 

It was actually the first song written for Metallica's 1991 Self-Titled Album, but it was one of the last to get lyrics. The original lyrics aren't even the ones that we hear today. James Hetfield felt that the title 'Enter Sandman' was too mainstream and so he wrote lyrics about a horrible family secret, alluding to crib death. I have heard others claim that it is about drug use/dependence as well. But then again it seems like the drug community always tries to come in and make a song be about drugs in some way. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds = LSD? Come on!

And just for fun, I'm going to throw in my favorite cover of this classic rock song. Richard Cheese! (note the girls are doing the melody from 'Mr. Sandman') This one is even better because it is set during an actual Metallica performance. 

Why do you think this song is trending?

Smoke and Mirrors

Today is Festival of Smoke and Mirrors Day. The term means that something is not as it appears to be. So I was thinking about how to form that into a blog post and I started doing some digging. I quickly found out that the new Lifehouse CD is called Smoke and Mirrors and actually has a track with the same title. I did a little bit of reading about the development of the CD and then set about to listen to the song. I got almost through the first verse when I stopped. I realized that I couldn't do a blog post on a Lifehouse song, because then I would have to listen to a Lifehouse song. 

I don't mean to sound bitchy or petty. I'm sure they are a great band a lot of people like them, hell - love them, they just aren't for me. You see I've got this quirk. If I don't like your voice, I can't listen. It's as simple as that. Even if it's a great band or a great song. If your voice sounds like nails on a chalkboard to me, I'm out. Sorry Jason Wade. You just sound like you are singing through a throat full of razors to me. Pained and strained man. So alas, as I meant to celebrate the Smoke and Mirrors festival, something else entirely different came up.

Who is the singer that you can't stand to listen to no matter how great the song? I can't say that Lifehouse is my number 1 as that spot has been taken for the last several years by Chad Kroeger from Nickelback. (This would normally be linked to a Nickelback song, but then I'd have to hit myself).  I physically want to beat up my radio when their songs come on, so it's not much competition for anyone else. What about you?

Hey Joe

Today, March 27th, is National Joe Day. This day gives you free license to have everyone call you Joe. Presumably it was founded by someone who didn't like their name. A small respite if you ask me, but I can't really judge seeings how I legally changed my own name. Did you know that anyone can change their name to anything they want? It just can't be anything profane or offensive and you have to fill out the paperwork and pay a small fee. That's it though, then you can really change it to whatever you want. I don't suggest that you go that far on National Joe Day. Why don't we just talk about a famous song with Joe in the title instead?

When I say the song title 'Hey Joe' what's your first thought? Jimi Hendrix right? Well, not so fast. Everyone thinks that this interesting tale of a man running away to Mexico after shooting his wife was a Jimi Hendrix song, but it is in fact a cover. A guy by the name of Billy Roberts filed the paperwork with the Library of Congress in 1962, and it wasn't recorded by Hendrix until 1966. In between it was recorded by 6 different bands! The most famous of which was The Byrds. A year after Hendrix it was also recorded by Cher on her humorously titled 'With Love, Cher' album. It has continued to be recorded again and again - with 12 different versions just since 2000! Everyone wants to get their hands on this song.

So my question is two-fold. One, what is it about the Jimi Hendrix version that makes it stand out above the others? Why is this song so popular in the first place?

Proposal Day

Did you know that today is 'Proposal Day'? I love our country for many reasons, but one of the best ones is that we just make up random holidays for all the days of the year so they don't feel inferior or jealous of the big ones like December 25th or July 4th. So, proposal day. For all of the gentleman who couldn't get their acts or perhaps even bank accounts together for Valentines Day. That's not lame at all fellas. March 20th is just as sexy as February 14th. Regardless, it is what it is. So I would like to take this splendid occasion to talk about proposal songs. There happen to be two songs on the Billboard Charts right now that have to do with this very subject.


First up is Colbie Caillat's I do. This song is currently at number 21 on the Adult Pop Songs Chart. She has a wonderful gift of making easy to listen to beach music. Her songs are thoughtful without taking themselves too seriously. There is just an ease about her. This song is very catchy and I think it is something that some woman can relate to, but maybe even more men. Although not a song that you would right away relate to a big masculine dude, the lyrics are pretty fitting if you think about it.


The second song is Train's Marry Me, which is at number 44 on the Hot 100 Chart. I both like and dislike this song. I think it is clever that he is singing it to a waitress at a cafe, but it also bugs me because they took a perfectly good wedding song and ruined it. You can't play this at your wedding because you have indeed met and are getting married, it isn't a fantasy anymore. Train has the ability to write a song that would make even the hardest of steel melt though. Even when they are talking nonsense. For example, what the hell are drops of Jupiter?


Official Music Videos


Colbie Caillat
Train




What is your favorite song about proposing or getting married?

St. Patrick's Day

I am going to stray a little from the Irish theme today, but it is okay because I'm focusing on a more specific song - 'St. Patrick's Day' by John Mayer. If you know me, you know that I am a huge John Mayer fan. Fan might not even be the best word for it. I literally remember exactly where I was and what I was doing when I heard my first John Mayer song, as cliche as that saying is. It was burned in my memory like a turning point for my own life path. Say what you will about him, his music, or his bedroom escapades - he is my rock in the popular music hurricane of crap that we are forced to wade through everyday. He writes about things that matter and can rip on a guitar unlike anything I've ever seen before. 


This song is off of his first Album - 'Room for Squares' which is a bit more quaint and charming than his recent works. It's not about the holiday itself, but rather the idea that when in a relationship you can rest assured that you will be safe from your partner dumping you until after St. Patrick's Day because of all the winter holidays. An odd concept for a song, but really kind of true when you think about it. No one wants to be the douche that dumps his girlfriend around Valentine's Day. Here are the full lyrics in case you can't decipher his live cotton-mouth singing. 


Melodically this song is complex, rich and beautiful. When I purchased the chord book for this album I was so excited to learn to play this song. I turned to the very last entry in the book and gasped. I'd been playing guitar for what seemed to be most of my life and I had never, ever seen a song with so many chords. In fact, this song has over 30 chords in it. Truly. In addition to an impossible number of chords to memorize, some of them aren't even physically possible for me to form. An interesting tid-bit about John Mayer is that he has really big hands and enormous thumbs. He can play a separate bass line on his guitar via his thumb, which is awesome to listen to but often impossible to duplicate. So, disappointingly,  I can't play this song, but at least I can write about it. 


Can you think of another song that I should have written about today? 

Singing Potatoes A.K.A. Irish Top 40 Music

I've often wondered what it would be like to live in Ireland. Not just because I'm part Irish or because all of the pictures look like a lush, emerald paradise. I have always wanted to visit Ireland for the accents. I could listen to an Irish accent all day long, or even better - all night long. 

When I got married we even went with an Irish theme. We had traditional Irish vows, a bell of truce, green colors and even green flowers! It seemed only fitting for a meshing of two Irish heritages. 

And if that wasn't proof enough of my odd fasination with the 'lucky' island, a few years ago I even bought a cubic inch of land on the beautiful southern coast in Waterford county for my husband's birthday. We received a picture of the groundskeeper pointing to the 'plot' and an invitation for tea on the grounds whenever we happen to be in the area. Someday...

Anyway, in the interest of Irish week on the blog I got to thinking about what it would be like to live in Ireland music-wise. What would the radio be like? What would music video TV be like? So I decided to investigate. This website is a list of Ireland's Top 20 as of last week. 

There were a few of the same songs as on our own Billboard list (about 6), but there were many more that I had never heard of. Some were really great and I can see them being hits here in the U.S. soon (particularly 'Price Tag' by Jessie J and B.o.B), a song about looking beyond the money into the parts of life that will truly make you happy. But then others are strictly going to be Irish hits. Take note of 'I Wanna Fight Your Father' by the Rubberbandits. This song is sung completely in Gaelic and features creepily masked Riverdance wannabes. Oh yeah, and it starts with a singing potato that is reminiscent of a Sesame Street skit. You can't make this stuff up. Did I mention the guy dancing in nothing but his underwear? Seriously - watch it. 

So here's the question. If you were living in Ireland what would be your favorite song on this list? 

Irish Drinking Songs

Today's post will be about Irish drinking songs, and thus will be a short post. Not because there aren't many traditional songs. Being of Irish descent, I can confirm that the Irish I knew did like to drink! It will be a short post because I screw the curve. I don't drink.


I'm not one of those moral non-drinkers who will look down their nose at you as you are enjoying an after work beer, or an unwinding glass of chardonay though. I don't care if you drink; I just don't want to do it. My reasons are many, and not really that important.


Anyway, given that I don't drink, I don't really know many drinking songs, or games for that matter, but that is another subject all together. So, in my quest for a complete 'Irish' themed week on the blog I knew that I had to do some digging into drinking songs. Rather than rewrite what some other blogger has already put so much work into - I'll link you here to a great blog post instead!


Top 10 Irish Drinking Songs for St. Patrick's Day on Rock N' Roll View


What's your favorite one?

Week of the Irish

St. Patrick's Day is this week, and I am from Irish decent (in case you couldn't tell from the last name), so I thought what better time to have an entire Irish themed week! Today we'll start with a mini history of Irish rock music. 

Rock music really emerged in Ireland in the 1960's with the interesting idea of 'Showbands'. These were groups of professional performers who played at halls and clubs around the country covering American and British hits. This is how Van Morrison got his start, as it was pretty much the only way to earn a living as a musician during that time. Thankfully, Morrison later went on to achieve international success with the group Them and then he went onto a solo career. 

In the 1970's the hard rock band 'Thin Lizzy' came out and was very successful. You might not know them by name, but you certainly have heard 'The Boys are Back in Town' on the radio at one point in your life. It was listed as one of the top 500 songs of all time in Rolling Stone Magazine after all. (Number 499, but still in the top 500)

The late 70's also brought along one of the biggest rock bands of all time - 'U2'. Although it wasn't until the 1980's that they really hit it big. Their 1987 album Joshua Tree (their 5th studio album) had several hits that are still just as great today as they were then.

* Where the Streets Have No Name

* I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For

* With or Without You

The 1980's also introduced Sinead O'Connor and her Pope picture ripping ways to the world. 

The 90's brought a pop rock group - 'The Cranberries' to our listening ears. I still remember listening to their song 'Zombie' as a kid. I swore up and down that they were actually saying 'Salami'. I still stand by that argument - really, listen to it. 

Today, there are 2 Irish bands on the top 40 charts - 'The Script' and 'Two Door Cinema Club'. The song 'Breakeven' is a lyrically beautiful, moving and powerful experience no matter how many times you hear it. "I just prayed to a God that I don't believe in."  - Wow.

So this a brief and not at all complete history of Irish rock music. So here's the question - Who is your favorite Irish band or what is your favorite Irish song? Who did I leave off my list that should have been there? 

The Prize

So I've been thinking hard about what the prize should be for my March song contest. I couldn't think of anything that would be just right. That was until today when I was cleaning up around my house. I was putting a book away and spotted an old favorite of mine - Songbook by Nick Hornby. 


Nick Hornby is one of my favorite authors of all time. His most famous book was 'High Fidelity' that was made into a movie starring the ever-cute John Cusack. One of the reasons that I love Nick Hornby's writing is because he embeds music into the very fiber of his stories. This helps me as a reader more closely relate to his stories and characters, and as a writer it inspires me to write in a different way.


Songbook is a collection of essays about Hornby's favorite songs of all time - 31 to be exact. My favorite musical author writing personal essays about his favorite songs - kind of an emotional experience if you want to know the truth. This book opened my eyes to some really great music that I hadn't heard of before too. It's the kind of book that I hope one day to write.


Anyway, that's the prize. My very own copy of Songbook shipped directly to you. All you have to do is compose a song about March that makes me hate it not so much and email it to me. Sounds like a deal to me! 


(Click here if you need a refresher on the rules)

Friday - 5pm

We are all familiar with the feeling. It's Friday, you just got out of work, maybe you have plans for the weekend, maybe you don't - it doesn't matter. All that matters is that you don't have to be back at that damn place until Monday morning. You finally get to be yourself for 2 entire days. You get to wear what you want, say what you want, get up when you want - it's the weekend!


So my question to you is both a simple and a personal one. What is the song that you listen to to celebrate, this the most glorious of moments in the week? I don't have a standby song right now. I have two albums that I tend to go to when I need to/want to pump it up. They are Alicia Keys 'As I Am' and Jason Mraz 'We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things'. Both are a few years old, but no matter how many times I listen, I can't imagine being sick of them. Alicia I use when I am a little ticked and need to vent some attitude. Mraz is more for when I'm feeling upbeat and hyper. Full disclosure, I skip past the opening instrumental track on 'As I Am' and go right to the empowering 'Go Ahead'. After listening to this one I find myself with head cocked ready to start a fight. Mraz on the other hand opens perfectly with 'Make it Mine', a song that is so upbeat and catchy that there is no way you could listen to it without feeling happy. In fact, I challenge you to try. I also challenge you to watch the video and not find Mraz charming. What a life.


If I asked this same question in a month it could be totally different, but it's doing it for me right now. What about you?

March Poem

I received my first entry into the March contest. It is in poem form, but I'm letting it slide because it was pretty convincing! 


Dear Kate,
Why do you hate me so
I should be your favorite you know

I have 31 days of pleasure
maybe not for a teacher of school
I am as rich as a leprechaun's treasure
I am not the month that make you a fool

I bring you the gift of spring
you can watch the best college basketball
so what if I don't have a song you can sing
I know I make you want to pound your head into the wall

I am the month where winter is almost over
that along should make you cheer
I am the reason there is a lucky clover
not to mention I give you green beer

I am sorry you have to work without a break
I know those are 20 very long days
But I bring you leaves, but not to rake
I might even throw you a snow delay

So Kate, now I will share my greatest power
You will no longer hate me so
I can make you set your clocks up an hour
I will be your favorite month you know

Mr. March


If you would like to enter the contest. Click here for the requirements or Click here to submit your entry!

March

Happy March everyone!


It is only 12 more days until Daylight Savings, and 19 more days until Spring!


This new month got me to thinking on my commute today about this, my most hated of months. Why do I hate March you may ask? There are so many great things about March. Think March Madness, St. Patrick's Day, the start of spring. I will admit that these things are pretty great, but my reasons are better. Let me just preface this by stating that I live in Maine so my opinion might vary drastically from someone living in SoCal, and if you are reading this - suck it!


March is the LONGEST month. I know there are other months that have 31 days, but March is the only month in the school calendar that is 31 days and doesn't have any federal holidays. Forcing teachers to work 4 full weeks in the middle of one of the coldest and most miserable months of the year should be outlawed. March also seems so long because we've already been suffering through winter for what seems like our entire lives, and then we realize that we still have another 4-6 weeks left. Thanks, March.


Further reason why March sucks is the fact that there really aren't any songs written about it. There are songs about every other month of the year, so why not March? Because no one wants to write about such a miserable month, that's why!


In fact, for all of my investigating, I could only find one song where 'March' was used in the title of the song as the month and not as the verb, or the type of music. (Did you realize before now that March is the only month that is also a verb?) I still hate it.


The song is by indie rock band, Carissa's Wierd (they spelt it wrong on purpose), and is called "(March 19th 1983) It Was Probably Green". 


This song proves even further how terrible March is, because it is one of the most depressing songs I've ever heard. Presumably it is about a small child who died too early (the date in the title), and so the people left mourning her decided that her favorite color probably would have been green, had she lived long enough to pick one herself. Seriously, that's what it is about. Take a listen! Not only do the lyrics make you want to curl into a ball and call for your mommy, but the music feels like you've been beaten down and that you have no right to be happy ever again. Ever.


That's what I could find. One beautiful, yet terribly depressing song about a girl who died in March. It's certainly no December 1963 by Frankie Vallie and the Four Seasons (which makes me not only wish that it was December all over again, but also that I had been alive in 1963).




My challenge to you is this - can you write a song about March that makes me not hate it so much?


Submissions need to be emailed to me by the end of the month for judging. Here's the criteria:


1. 'March' must be in the title and it can't be used as a verb or a type of song. It's got to be about the month.


2. The song must make me like the month, not make me loathe it even more.


3. It must be longer than 2 minutes.


4. It must be in MP3 format.


5. Any style of music is accepted


There will be a prize! (More details to come soon)


Please use the 'comments' section if you have any questions. Chances are, if you do - so does someone else!


Happy writing!