“Q” Bombs, June 24, 2012

Posted on July 7, 2012 by PhilMaq

A “Q” Bomb, like an “H” bomb, will be my term for a music video that I consider to be subpar in music, video, or both. This will be a recurring weekly list that will focus on the worst videos that are currently on TV. I don’t, as a rule, go searching for old music videos, so that’s why it will focus on solely on current or recent videos.
I hate to be so negative about music, but when an artist takes a “bad” song and then brings more attention to it by creating a “bad” video to support it, it will appear on this list. I honestly hope, and it could happen, that this list will be less than 10 items, but I have serious doubts that that possibility will happen. We are, after all, talking about an industry that uses art for huge profits. The companies can’t help themselves.
However, at this point, I will not do a 10 worst music list. I see absolutely no reason to waste time reemphasizing bad music. Once is enough.

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“Drive By” sets the new record of 10 weeks on the “Q” Bombs list making it the worst video ever since I started doing this list. Thanks for sticking around..I think……..
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Worst Videos for the week of June 24, 2012

1. Drive By—Train
2. Why Ya Wanna—Jana Kramer (From CMT “Listen Up”)
3. Payphone—Maroon 5 with Wiz Khalifa
4. Springsteen—Eric Church
5. Drunk on You—Luke Bryan
6. The Fighter—Gym Class Heroes and Ryan Tedder
7. 5-1-5-0—Dierks Bentley
8. Wanted—Hunter Hayes
9. Burn It Down—Linkin Park
10. Titanium—David Guetta and Sia

1) “Drive By”—Well, Train hung around long enough to break the lousy record and I have to respect them for that. Prepare for the big drop off, though……………..
2) “Why Ya Wanna”—I can’t believe that another video would arrive that could be so inept as to challenge “Drive By,” “Payphone,” and “Springsteen,” but this one-dimensional borefest has the necessary ingredients………….
3) “Payphone”—OK. I’ll say something nice about this one this week. The woman in the video resembles Jan Smithers from “W.K.R.P. in Cincinnati.” I always liked her over Loni Anderson!
4) “Springsteen”—Ho, hum…………………
5) “Drunk on You”—Luke, Luke. I would much rather write good stuff about you. Give me something to work with, dude……………………
6) “The Fighter”—The workouts must be working for Gym Classs Heroes because “The Fighter” is getting better stamina…………….
7) “5-1-5-0”—I like Dierks Bentley, but come on. 5-1-5-0/Someone call the po-po. Dierks. What happened to ya, buddy?
8) “Wanted”—Hunter Hayes is now in the Top Ten on CMT. Why this one and not “Storm Warning?”
9) “Burn It Down”—Linkin Park’s new video appears to be pretty non-interesting………
10) “Titanium”—A precious metal but a not so precious video……………….
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Phil’s Faves: Songs, June 17, 2012

Posted on July 7, 2012 by PhilMaq

This will be a personal weekly Top Ten list of what I consider to be the best songs that I listened to the previous week. Most songs will be current, but there are no boundaries. I’ve already stated on this web site that I am obsessed with music. I am constantly hunting it down whether it’s online, on CD, from my personal collection, from a library (Yes, I think the library is a great source of music–especially for music that you aren’t sure about.), TV, or radio. Since most of these sources mostly emphasize new music, the odds are pretty good that most of the songs on this list will be new. But in my search, I don’t use any boundaries for the other sources. I am just looking for good music that I haven’t heard, or happened to forget about. Everyone, including myself, has forgotten way more great music than they can ever remember-even if they are also music fanatics.
Also, there will be no rules concerning songs on this list. A song can show up or drop off a number of times. This will be the most volatile of my lists. It all depends on how much music I am exposed to during the week and what I find interesting. On really obscure stuff, I will try to include the source, if I know it.

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“Banjo” has returned triumphantly one more time like Napoleon from Elba. That one lasted a hundred days. Rascal Flatts’ run will be a lot shorter………………………
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Top Ten Songs for the Week of June 17, 2012

1. Banjo—Rascal Flatts
2. Turn Your Head—Savage Grace
3. Wild Weekend—Tinsley Ellis & The Heartfixers
4. Pontoon—Little Big Town
5. Call Me Maybe—Carly Rae Jepsen
6. Ridin’ With the King—John Hiatt
7. Let the Rest of the World Go By—Jimmy Wakely
8. My Wife Thinks You’re Dead—Junior Brown
9. Never Go Back—Grace Potter & the Nocturnals
10. The Garden Song—Pete Seeger

1) “Banjo”—Well, whadayaknow? “Banjo” still had enough fight left to take the top spot one more time!
2) “Turn Your Head”—I’m so sad to see this one start to drop, but since part of the requirements of this list is that I have to have heard it during the week covered, and since I’m the only one playing this song, I knew going into this that it couldn’t have a long run. But “Turn Your Head” is still as GREAT as the day it was recorded!
3) “Wild Weekend”—I thought this one might have gone higher this week, but maybe my interest has peaked………………….
4) “Pontoon”—Little Big Town’s “Pontoon” seems to be taking its time getting in to the dock. I am perplexed.………………
5) “Call Me Maybe”—I don’t know. Carly Rae seems to be so cute, I almost hate having this song disappear. But cuteness can’t keep this one afloat. It may leave abruptly….
6) “Ridin’ With the King”—Yes! I didn’t know we’d be going for aride with John Hiatt and the king. This is a pleasant surprise!
7) “Let the Rest of the World Go By”—I am unfamiliar with Jimmy Wakely. The only thing I know about him is that he was a singing cowboy. But “Let the Rest of the World Go By” is one of the best songs ever written. (My dad said it was his favorite song, so I may be biased on this one. I don’t think I am.) The song is delivered in a very laid back waltz tempo and references going out west looking for a piece of land known only to God where you can start your family with the woman you love. For my dad, west happened to be Detroit, Michigan from Pennsylvania, but I think we all have a little bit of cowboy or cowgirl in us—especially if you’ve ever been on the prairies or mountains of the majestic west. This song can make me tear up for a lot of reasons. It sounds sentimental to begin with. But I also know it had the same effect on another guy in the same room when I was listening to it. So, the song is GOOD!
8) “My Wife Thinks You’re Dead”—Junior Brown has a deadpan singing delivery that fits this song perfectly! It’s about a happily married guy whose crazy ex-girlfriend shows up and he has to tell her to leave him alone because, among other things, he’s already told his wife she’s dead! The video for this song mimics a Harold Lloyd short and is just great!
9) “Never Go Back”—The first single from Grace Potter’s new album is very catchy. It reminds me of The Motels’ “Suddenly Last Summer,” but this one’s a jillion times better!
10) “The Garden Song”—This Pete Seeger song may be my favorite by him. I know. Out of so many choices, this is the one I would pick? Well, maybe it’s my favorite at the moment. The song is so peaceful and heartwarming even with Pete picking and strumming his banjo. (Hey! There it is again!) All I know is that when I listen to this song, I am transported to this garden where it is lovingly planted inch by inch. Many other artists have covered this song, especially for children. This one is the best of all of them!
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Phil’s Faves: Videos, June 17, 2012

Posted on July 6, 2012 by PhilMaq

This will be a personal weekly Top Ten list of what I consider to be the best videos currently available on TV. I don’t, as a rule, go searching for old music videos, so that’s why it will focus mostly on current or recent videos. For this category, I am also going to include any live performances on talk or variety shows that I see during the week.

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“Banjo” returns to the top one more time for what may be its final swansong! Let’s enjoy it while it’s in its full beauty!
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Top 10 Videos and Performances for the week of June 17, 2012

1. Banjo—Rascal Flatts
2. Pontoon—Little Big Town
3. VH1 Storytellers—Grace Potter & The Nocturnals
4. Angel Eyes—Love and Theft
5. Call Me Maybe—Carly Rae Jepsen
6. Lights—Ellie Goulding
7. Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck—Kip Moore
8. Good Girl—Carrie Underwood
9. Give Your Heart a Break—Demi Lovato
10. Back in Time—Pitbull

1) “Banjo”—That CMT Awards performance gave me new respect for the video! Probably the last hurrah for the banjo—at least the video….
2) “Pontoon”—Little Big Town is movin’ up fast and breathing down the neck of the banjo. Get it. Banjo….neck… The banjo has a neck… Never mind.
3) “VH1 Storytellers with Grace Potter & The Nocturnals”—As much as I like this concept of the artist explaining the inspiration or events that lead to some of their own classic songs, very rarely do you learn anything that’s truly special from an artist. This hour long performance is the exception. Wearing a white suit, ala John Lennon, Grace Potter and the band go way beyond any perceived expectations. She wears her heart on her sleeve as she details old relationships that were turned into songs, spiritual studio experiences, and incredible background stories for the new album. I’ve already watched this show several times, and I will continue to watch it every time it’s on. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a show where the artist just exposes herself or himself to such raw emotion. My favorite song is the title track to the new CD, “The Lion, The Beast, The Beat,” but there are plenty more to choose from.
4) “Angel Eyes”—Maybe it’s just me, but I just can’t figure this video out…yet I still like it! Does the preacher have two daughters—one wild, one tame? Is it the same daughter being two different people?
5) “Call Me Maybe”—Less and less people may be calling you now Carly, but I would!
6) “Lights”—The lights are still glowing strong on this Ellie Goulding vid!
7) “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck”—Yeah, this one is just a feel good summertime song!
8) “Good Girl”—Carrie is still going strong on CMT, but she’s coming to the end here……
9) “Give Your Heart a Break”—In this upside down and backwards kind of year, I can now admit that there is a Demi Lovato video and song that I like! Man, I hope I wake up soon where things are normal again………..
10)“Back in Time”—It’s so good to hear the opening guitar line from Ian & Sylvia’s “Love Is Strange” that mixing it with Pitbull and movie footage from MIB 3 seems like the right thing to do!
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“Q” Bombs: June 17, 2012

Posted on June 24, 2012 by PhilMaq

A “Q” Bomb, like an “H” bomb, will be my term for a music video that I consider to be subpar in music, video, or both. This will be a recurring weekly list that will focus on the worst videos that are currently on TV. I don’t, as a rule, go searching for old music videos, so that’s why it will focus on solely on current or recent videos.
I hate to be so negative about music, but when an artist takes a “bad” song and then brings more attention to it by creating a “bad” video to support it, it will appear on this list. I honestly hope, and it could happen, that this list will be less than 10 items, but I have serious doubts that that possibility will happen. We are, after all, talking about an industry that uses art for huge profits. The companies can’t help themselves.
However, at this point, I will not do a 10 worst music list. I see absolutely no reason to waste time reemphasizing bad music. Once is enough.

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Nine weeks at the top for “Drive By” ties it with Gavin DeGraw for ineptness. Will it set a new record next week?
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Worst Videos for the week of June 17, 2012

1. Drive By—Train
2. Payphone—Maroon 5 with Wiz Khalifa
3. Springsteen—Eric Church
4. Why Ya Wanna—Jana Kramer (From CMT “Listen Up”)
5. Drunk on You—Luke Bryan
6. The Fighter—Gym Class Heroes and Ryan Tedder
7. Wanted—Hunter Hayes
8. Safe and Sound—Taylor Swift and The Civil Wars
9. Titanium—David Guetta and Sia
10. Burn It Down—Linkin Park

1) “Drive By”—There is big movement downward for Train and that means there’s hope this video and song will disappear. I wonder if it will happen before they break a record………
2) “Payphone”—Alright. I keep coming back to the part of the video where he has his stolen race car in the desert and he can’t outrace a group of police cars!(?) Really? Where did you learn how to storyboard videos from? The guys who did the plots for Elvis Presley’s race car movies? I take that back. I actually liked “Viva Las Vegas” and “Spinout!” and Maroon 5’s video can’t stand up to either of those. And those were made in the payphone era. I’m sorry. I’m just rambling now…………………….
3) “Springsteen”—Well, a bad video droped off so Eric Church moves back up……….
4) “Why Ya Wanna”—If they had done this video with cardboard cutouts, it probably would have been more interesting…and allegorical……………..
5) “Drunk on You”—OK. I made the mistake of trying to reassess this Luke Bryan video again. Maybe I was being too harsh on it. Then I heard the line about “you make my speakers go boom boom” and I started to think I’ve been too easy on it! So, here we go again…………….
6) “The Fighter”—Gaining in popularity, but Gym Class Heroes have done way better stuff……….
7) “Wanted”—Hunter Hayes continues to move up and I’m happy for him. I just don’t like this video…………………..
8) “Safe and Sound”—The Civil Wars and Taylor Swift are fading now. Woo-hoo!!!
9) “Titanium”—David Guetta and Sia team up for an overblown video……..
10) “Burn It Down”—I haven’t seen this one enough, but my initial reaction is negative……..
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Phil’s Faves: Songs, June 10, 2012

Posted on June 24, 2012 by PhilMaq

This will be a personal weekly Top Ten list of what I consider to be the best songs that I listened to the previous week. Most songs will be current, but there are no boundaries. I’ve already stated on this web site that I am obsessed with music. I am constantly hunting it down whether it’s online, on CD, from my personal collection, from a library (Yes, I think the library is a great source of music–especially for music that you aren’t sure about.), TV, or radio. Since most of these sources mostly emphasize new music, the odds are pretty good that most of the songs on this list will be new. But in my search, I don’t use any boundaries for the other sources. I am just looking for good music that I haven’t heard, or happened to forget about. Everyone, including myself, has forgotten way more great music than they can ever remember-even if they are also music fanatics.
Also, there will be no rules concerning songs on this list. A song can show up or drop off a number of times. This will be the most volatile of my lists. It all depends on how much music I am exposed to during the week and what I find interesting. On really obscure stuff, I will try to include the source, if I know it.

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Turn the clock back. Savage Grace rules my faves list this week and it has an incredible group of songs to surround it!
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Top Ten Songs for the Week of June 10, 2012

1. Turn Your Head—Savage Grace
2. Banjo—Rascal Flatts
3. Wild Weekend—Tinsley Ellis & The Heartfixers
4. Call Me Maybe—Carly Rae Jepsen
5. Pontoon—Little Big Town
6. I Know You By Heart—Eva Cassidy
7. Ridin’ With the King—John Hiatt
8. Ships in the Night (Live)—Be Bop Deluxe
9. Linda Paloma—Jackson Browne
10. Over You—Miranda Lambert

1) “Turn Your Head”—I have been hooked on this classic since I heard it again! Of course, an incredible live performance by the current version of the band at The Magic Bag in Ferndale didn’t hurt it! The band did an amazing ensemble performance! If Savage Grace (Detroit Band featuring Al Jacquez) ever shows up at your town, run to see them!
2) “Banjo”—I thought that maybe the banjo might regain the top spot one more time, but I think that competition is going to start forcing this one down…………
3) “Wild Weekend”—I did not expect to have this song on the list for more than a week, but just like last year’s “Nut Rocker” by George Bedard, this Tinsley Ellis remake is hitting a nerve with me!
4) “Call Me Maybe”—I think this song stayed around longer than it probably should have just because Carly Rae Jepsen seems to have a universal appeal that cuts across demographics.
5) “Pontoon”—Ah, this Little Big Town sleeper will probably end up being my favorite song for the summer!
6) “I Know You By Heart”—This is the penultimate Eva Cassidy song, and it can make me cry every time I hear it. The vocal has so much emotion as it ebbs and flows between almost whispers to full throated sustains! The arrangement is perfect with muted background gospel humming, acoustic guitar, and a string arrangement that reminds me of “Long, Long, Time” by Linda Ronstadt. Her voice flits about like a butterfly in a meadow that goes to each flowered note sipping nectar. Sometimes she stays on this flower a little longer than you’d expect and just grazes the next one. It’s only the wind of the melody that pushes her along. I cry because Eva’s voice is so beautiful and it’s so unfortunate that she died so young from an untimely illness. (You can look it up if you want to. I only want to write about her music.) I don’t know that she would have been hugely successful, but I think she would have had a long career. I can only dream about the duets that never happened or the songs she didn’t sing. I hope to see her some day, if that is possible. Until then, we’re left with her beautiful songs that she made and released before they were even finished—but I know her by heart, and this one’s the best!
7) “Ridin’ With the King”—Nick Lowe’s thick fat funky bass line that anchors this song and pushes the boundary of acceptable recording limits like The Beatles and Paul McCartney did with “Paperback Writer” is only part of the greatness of this John Hiatt tribute about Elvis Presley! The first several times I heard it, I thought he was black—so obviously, great vocals! The song is punctuated by great full organ work! You can tell it was pretty much an open jam. Eric Clapton and B.B. King covered it years later and changed some of the words, thereby altering its effect. The original raw version is where it’s at! Proceed brothers!
8) “Ships in the Night (Live)”—Taken from Be Bop Deluxe’s “Live in the Air Age” album, this version updates an earlier forced sounding studio track. This one moves much faster and has a slight ska feel to it. Not only does it feature Bill Nelson’s swirling guitar riffs but there is room at the end for a very nice keyboard solo. This is probably my favorite live track by the band and it makes me wish I had seen them in person!
9) “Linda Paloma”—Buried amidst some great songs on the Jackson Browne’s classic “The Pretender” album you’ll find a very mariachi-flavored song about someone named Linda Paloma. The narration takes it time pulling the listener in. You know you’re lost in the song if when he gets to the part where he describes the wind, you can feel the desert breeze as the fiddles simulate it. The song is constantly punctuated by some great harp work—the classical kind. The song builds as Linda Paloma (the Mexican dove), prepares to fly away. Jackson tries to reach up to keep her as the notes keep going higher. Beautiful!
10) “Over You”—Wow! This song should feel honored for being considered in this group.
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Phil’s Faves: Videos, June 10, 2012

Posted on June 23, 2012 by PhilMaq

This will be a personal weekly Top Ten list of what I consider to be the best videos currently available on TV. I don’t, as a rule, go searching for old music videos, so that’s why it will focus mostly on current or recent videos. For this category, I am also going to include any live performances on talk or variety shows that I see during the week.

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It’s the battle of the century: Banjos vs. Pontoons. Well, not exactly. But two versions of each video show up on this week’s list knocking poor Carly Rae Jepsen from the top spot. But I’m sure she’s getting a lot of phone calls now……………………
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Top 10 Videos and Performances for the week of June 10, 2012

1. Pontoon—Little Big Town on CMT Awards Show
2. Banjo—Rascal Flatts on CMT Awards Show
3. Banjo—Rascal Flatts
4. Pontoon—Little Big Town
5. Call Me Maybe—Carly Rae Jepsen
6. Lights—Ellie Goulding
7. Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck—Kip Moore
8. Angel Eyes—Love and Theft
9. Good Girl—Carrie Underwood
10. The Goat Rodeo Sessions Live on PBS

1) “Pontoon”—Wow! This was a difficult decision to make. I thought both performances by Little Big Town and Rascal Flatts at the CMT Awards Show were exceptional, but I chose “Pontoon” because of the impressive stage setting creating a vibe where you actually felt like you were on a pontoon with the band!
2) “Banjo”—Ashley Campbell, Glen Campbell’s daughter, traded her lacy white dress in for a hot red one and proved to everybody that doubted her banjo ability that she actually could play. This call was so close but I downgraded the performance because Rascal Flatts dumped Ashley in mid-song and finished the show doing “Don’t Stop Believin’” with Journey and its mini Steven Perry clone. Bad choice….
3) “Banjo”—I have even more renewed apreciation for the banjo after the CMT Awards show!
4) “Pontoon”—I didn’t think that Little Big Town could come out with a video that could make me forget “Little White Church” so fast. Happily, I was wrong!
5) “Call Me Maybe”—As I predicted, I think this video is going to fall pretty fast when the novelty wears off. But for now Carly Rae is in pretty good shape.
6) “Lights”—It falls a little more this week, but I still like watching it!
7) “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck”—Now that Easton Corbin’s video has disappared, Kip Moore’s song gets to corner the market on videos where a silly but beautiful woman dances around while the country singer does his song.
8) “Angel Eyes”—Just hooked into this one. It’s definitely a good song and the video seems…interesting!
9) “Good Girl”—Eventually, even a good Carrie Underwood video will have to fall off the list……….
10)“The Goat Rodeos Sessions Live on PBS”—I accidentally stumbled upon this show on Sunday afternoon. This basically was a live performance of one of the best “classical” albums from last year. The band consists of Stuart Duncan, Chris Thile (The Punch Brothers), Edgar Meyer, and Yo-Yo Ma. It’s an interesting mixture of classical and bluegrass as well as structured versus improvised song interpretation. Yo-Yo Ma, for example has to have his material written out and does not “jam.” The performance was filmed before a very enthusiastic crowd who “got it.” One of my favorites, “Here and Heaven,” features Aoife O’Donovan on vocals performing a haunting Appalachian song that The Civil Wars could learn from on how to do them right.
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“Q” Bombs: June 10, 2012

Posted on June 16, 2012 by PhilMaq

A “Q” Bomb, like an “H” bomb, will be my term for a music video that I consider to be subpar in music, video, or both. This will be a recurring weekly list that will focus on the worst videos that are currently on TV. I don’t, as a rule, go searching for old music videos, so that’s why it will focus on solely on current or recent videos.
I hate to be so negative about music, but when an artist takes a “bad” song and then brings more attention to it by creating a “bad” video to support it, it will appear on this list. I honestly hope, and it could happen, that this list will be less than 10 items, but I have serious doubts that that possibility will happen. We are, after all, talking about an industry that uses art for huge profits. The companies can’t help themselves.
However, at this point, I will not do a 10 worst music list. I see absolutely no reason to waste time reemphasizing bad music. Once is enough.

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“Drive By” stays on top for an eighth week. Two oldies but baddies drop off but two more take their place……………
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Worst Videos for the week of June 10, 2012

1. Drive By—Train
2. Payphone—Maroon 5 with Wiz Khalifa
3. I Won’t Give Up—Jason Mraz on VH1 Storytellers
4. Springsteen—Eric Church
5. Safe and Sound—Taylor Swift and The Civil Wars
6. Brokenhearted—Karmin
7. The Fighter—Gym Class Heroes and Ryan Tedder
8. Wanted—Hunter Hayes
9. Drunk on You—Luke Bryan
10. Why Ya Wanna—Jana Kramer (From CMT “Listen Up”)

1) “Drive By”—Train are stuck in a loop and continue to go around the block………
2) “Payphone”—What is Adam Levine’s next big song about? “Popcorn Popper?” “I have the oil and the popcorn/ Now where’s the popper?”
3) “I Won’t Give Up”—Please give up…………….just the video………..
4) “Springsteen”—So cruel to keep hanging around…………..
5) “Safe and Sound”—Hopefully, this graveyard lullabye will go to sleep..forever………
6) “Brokenhearted”—Wow. A big fall this week. Here’s hopin’………………..
7) “The Fighter”—Doesn’t do anything for me…………..
8] “Wanted”—Personally, I want this Hunter Hayes video to disappear………
9) “Drunk on You”—I’m way past tired of writing stuff for this one……….
10) “Why Ya Wanna”—The original video for this Jana Kramer song is cute and colorful. The pedestrian live performance is dull and boring……
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Savage Grace: “Turn Your Head”– One of the Best Songs Ever Recorded!

Posted on June 16, 2012 by PhilMaq

“Turn Your Head”—I will not be able to write enough about this song…but here goes nothin.’

Savage Grace was an incredibly gifted Detroit area band from the early 70’s. Their self-titled first album was an instant classic. It put together so many different styles of music—many of which hadn’t even been named yet.

Savage Grace

Rather than talk about all of the songs, I am going to focus on just this one, which is the song that ends the album. This prototypical progressive rock song has all of the elements of the album encapsulated into this one epic sojourn!

It starts with Beatlesque harmonies over acoustic guitar and piano. Lead vocalist Al Jacquez, a singer who can do amazing vocal acrobatics, (check out “All Along the Watchtower” also by Savage Grace for Al at his best), wisely reigns in his talent to work as a team.

The song continues to build as piano and bass become more prominent and then retards before it explodes into a loud heavy metal guitar section. In fact, the dynamics on this song, the way the music level bounces back and forth between quiet and loud, are some of the best ever recorded.

The song then goes from its metal section into an extended Bach-inspired classical piano solo by John Seanor! This is where it gets the prog rock label—the pseudo-classical piano section mixed with the loud guitars.

Before the acoustic melody returns, the rest of the instruments join in with the piano through a transitional section that includes some of the earliest synthesizer work on a rock album. It gives the music a symphonic texture, almost of muted French horns, as the song retards again to pick up the melody.

After this familiar section, the song explodes into loud guitar supplied by the incredibly gifted Ron Koss, and tribal drumming, skillfully bludgeoned by Larry Zack, a forerunner of Renaissance’s later release of “Rajah Khan!” Maybe “Turn Your Head” was an influence for them, although Savage Grace do it much better on there own song.

After a couple of minutes of extended soloing the song ends somewhat abruptly as the band allows the listener to go over a cliff—even though they took them off many other cliffs during the previous six minutes.

This is just a small piece of what I feel about this song. It is a true life changing experience if you just let it take you where it can go. I like to think that this is the music that Bach, Mozart, or Beethoven would have been making if they lived during this era and played in rock bands!

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Phil’s Faves: Songs, June 3, 2012

Posted on June 16, 2012 by PhilMaq

This will be a personal weekly Top Ten list of what I consider to be the best songs that I listened to the previous week. Most songs will be current, but there are no boundaries. I’ve already stated on this web site that I am obsessed with music. I am constantly hunting it down whether it’s online, on CD, from my personal collection, from a library (Yes, I think the library is a great source of music–especially for music that you aren’t sure about.), TV, or radio. Since most of these sources mostly emphasize new music, the odds are pretty good that most of the songs on this list will be new. But in my search, I don’t use any boundaries for the other sources. I am just looking for good music that I haven’t heard, or happened to forget about. Everyone, including myself, has forgotten way more great music than they can ever remember-even if they are also music fanatics.
Also, there will be no rules concerning songs on this list. A song can show up or drop off a number of times. This will be the most volatile of my lists. It all depends on how much music I am exposed to during the week and what I find interesting. On really obscure stuff, I will try to include the source, if I know it.

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Carly Rae Jepsen stays on top for another week, but beware of the Pontoon. I’m especially talking to you, banjo. Also, forget that pretend sixties stuff from Gavin DeGraw. The real thing by Savage Grace from back in the day makes an appearance!
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Top Ten Songs for the Week of June 3, 2012

1. Call Me Maybe—Carly Rae Jepsen
2. Banjo—Rascal Flatts
3. Turn Your Head—Savage Grace
4. Flash’s Theme—Queen
5. Wild Weekend—Tinsley Ellis & The Heartfixers
6. Sweeter—Gavin DeGraw
7. Over You—Miranda Lambert
8. Pontoon—Little Big Town
9. Shadow Days—John Mayer
10. Trafalgar—The Bee Gees

1) “Call Me Maybe”—Both the song and video for Carly Rae Jepsen is turning into a worldwide phenomenon!
2) “Banjo”—The banjo hangs tough for another week!
3) “Turn Your Head”—Savage Grace was an incredibly gifted Detroit area band from the early 70’s. Their self-titled first album was an instant classic. It put together so many different styles of music—many of which hadn’t even been named yet. This prototypical progressive rock song has all of the elements of the album encapsulated into one epic sojourn!
4) “Flash’s Theme”—This theme is one of my favorite Queen songs! Basically, since it was released on a soundtrack album, it was and still has been ignored by most music critics. Admittedly, the fact that the music doesn’t get to stand on its own but has to have soundtrack “chatter” as it appeared in the movie, doesn’t help. But this album was recorded when Queen was at its peak as a band. Brian May’s multi-layered guitars provide numerous sonic soundscapes for many of the songs. Another reason why this album may have been ignored was because of the campy movie it was created for. The movie, although it starred Max Von Sydow as Ming, and was very psychedellic colorful, bombed and the album pretty much disappeared, too. I really enjoyed when it was resurrected for a commercial a few years ago.
5) “Wild Weekend”—Tinsley Ellis is known more for his blues guitar work than covering other artists’ rock classics, but he does a great version of this Rockin’ Rebels nugget!
6) “Sweeter”—It’s getting close to the end of the run on this song………
7) “Over You”—I started hearing this one again and the melody and song are just so good and powerful!
8) “Pontoon”—I liked this song the first time I heard it and I’m guessing I’ll be hearing it all summer long! It’s a nice slow blues about “motor boating,” with the usual great Little Big Town harmonies!
9) “Shadow Days”—This low key John Mayer song is starting to grow on me……….
10) “Trafalgar”—I dug this Bee Gees classic out after hearing about the death of Robin Gibb. This very Beatlish sounding ballad, before they went disco, was always a favorite of mine.
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Phil’s Faves: Videos, June 3, 2012

Posted on June 4, 2012 by PhilMaq

This will be a personal weekly Top Ten list of what I consider to be the best videos currently available on TV. I don’t, as a rule, go searching for old music videos, so that’s why it will focus mostly on current or recent videos. For this category, I am also going to include any live performances on talk or variety shows that I see during the week.

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Carly Rae Jepsen holds the top spot for another week but I see a pontoon on the horizon that may eventually have an effect on her.
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Top 10 Videos and Performances for the week of June 3, 2012

1. Call Me Maybe—Carly Rae Jepsen
2. Banjo—Rascal Flatts
3. Lovin’ You Is Fun—Easton Corbin
4. Lights—Ellie Goulding
5. Sweeter—Gavin DeGraw
6. Good Girl—Carrie Underwood
7. Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck—Kip Moore
8. Pontoon—Little Big Town
9. Somebody That I Used to Know—Gotye with Kimbra
10. Starships—Nicki Minaj

1) “Call Me Maybe”—I get a kick out of Carly Rae’s supportive band mates encouraging her to go out and attract her neighbor by washing her car. She does a nice slapstick job!
2) “Banjo”—I think this is one of my favorite videos so far this year!
3) “Lovin’ You Is Fun”—And so is this video!
4) “Lights”—It’s still moving up on VH1, but it’s starting to move down for me…….
5) “Sweeter”—It’s getting a little overripe now……………
6) “Good Girl”— Even I can appreciate all of the outfit changes in the video!
7) “Somethin’ ‘Bout a Truck”—I think this one’s losing steam for me…………..
8) “Pontoon”—Little Big Town’s new song has a great summertime video to go with it! I think this one will be big!
9) “Somebody That I Used to Know”—Hey, it’s still hanging around and I still like it! Welcome back!
10) “Starships”—Nicky Minaj’s video is visually stunning, but the song is nothing to write home about……………
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