Category Archives: Music

Music Makes Life Good!

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When I was young I had fantasies of being a rock star, but I was a failure in guitar lessons and couldn’t really hold a tune, so that didn’t really work out.  But I’ve stayed pretty obsessed with music.  I like to be surrounded by it, and in my mind my life is accompanied by a soundtrack.  Somehow music makes even the darkest situation bearable.

Yes, life is good when there is music around and life was great this weekend.  I spent Saturday and Sunday a the Life is Good Festival in Canton, MA and I heard some amazing artists.

The festival raises money for the Life is Good Foundation to help kids overcome life-threatening challenges such as violence, illness and extreme poverty.  Pretty much everything anyone did on the festival grounds those two days somehow contributed to the work of the foundation.  Even if you bought a beer and threw a dollar into the tip jar, the proceeds and the tip went to the Foundation.  An awful lot of the work that had to be done those days was done by volunteers.  Some of them were employees of Life is Good giving a little extra time, others, like me, did not and were just volunteering their time.

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Life is Good Festival, Day One

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Today was the first day of the the Life is Good Festival in the Blue Hills in Canton, MA.

The festival is a two-day celebration of music and optimism, featuring three stages of diverse live music, hands-on games, interactive arts activities and the “Good Kids” zone — home to the top acts in kids entertainment. The Life is Good Festival is a unique music event that every age group can enjoy.

100% of Life is Good’s profits from the Festival will go towards The Life is good Kids Foundation, helping kids overcome life-threatening challenges such as violence, illness and extreme poverty.

It was a great line up today. I really enjoyed Ozomatli, Mavis Staples and Ben Harper. I liked Dr. Dog, too. But I didn’t get to hear as much of it as I would have liked as I was working as a volunteer and had to get back to the Bocce station!

More check-ins at Prowse Farm

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Junky Star by Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses

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Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses

Anyone would forgive Ryan Bingham and the Dead Horses for a disappointing album at this point. Mescalito, their major label debut was exciting and intriguing, with its tales of wandering souls with guitars slung over their shoulder, truck-drivers and trains. Songs alternated between country flavored rock &roll and emotional folk ballads.

Then came Roadhouse Sun. This could well have been the dreaded “sophomore slump” album, but Bingham avoided that trap. While there as songs such as “Country Roads,” which are enjoyable enough, but somewhat cliche, there are also songs like “Dylan’s Hard Rain” and “Hey Hey Hurray” which are startlingly original with lyrics that are pointed social commentary.

So now comes Junky Star. It could have been a major disappointment and no one would have been surprised. But it’s not disappointing; It is unbridled brilliance. It’s the band’s best record to date!

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I’ll Never Understand Musical Genres

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Cory Branan

I thought maybe it was time to put together a new play list, so I went off searching for tracks on Rhapsody.  The genres of the songs that came up amused me.  I was surprised by the variety and by the nature of many of them.  Some were simple and frequently used, like Vocal Jazz, Folk, Pop…  Then there were other genres that I knew, but that it was hard to tell the difference between.  Like what is the difference between Americana, Folk Pop, Alt Country and plain old Folk?  And there were the bizarre ones that I had never heard of. What about Pop Punk, Post-modern Pop, Adult Alternative and Alt/Punk?  What are they and what is the difference between them? Anyway, here is the play list.  Enjoy!

Share 8-24

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“Depression” by Ryan Bingham

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The album, Junky Star, releases in three day on August 31st.  The first single, “Depression“, is available now.  I know this sounds like advertising, and it would be if I were getting paid.  I’m just excited!  I’ve heard most of the tracks on the record, and it’s going to meet expectation.  Here’s one.

Here’s a little clip in which Ryan talks about the disc.
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Faves: Sharon Jones, Avett Brothers, Swell Season, Tim Barry and Gaslight Anthem

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The Newport Folk Festival dates back to 1959, but has always adhered to a somewhat loose definition of “folk.” Among the people who played there in the early days of the festival and early in their careers were Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Johnny Cash and Howlin’ Wolf. More recently people as diverse as Jakob Dylan, The Decemberists, The Low Anthem, Jimmy Buffett, Nickel Creek, the Allman Brothers Band, Agenlique Kidjo, and Emmylou Harris have played the festival that now takes place annually at Fort Adams State Park.

This year’s festival was impressive, as usual. We got there just in time to see Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings. As usual they were brilliant. Sharon Jones interacts with her audience more than any other performer I have seen live, and if you get a chance to see her in a small club, do. She’ll bring folks on stage to sing to them, or even to have them sing and dance with her. She singles people in the audience out for recognition when they show affection, and she handles unruliness with particular dexterity. I wasn’t sure how that would play out in the noonday sun on the highly elevated stage in Fort Adams State Park.
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Random July Playlist and Summer Songs

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I am so reluctant to admit, but July is coming to a close. I am not a winter person, so I spend all summer in denial that it will ever end. Sadly, it is foolish to do so. Today is the last day of July and there is no use in denying it. So I am posting a July playlist to mark the passing of this wonderful summer month. Alas, we hardly knew ye!

As usual, this playlist is composed of songs that are in current rotation on my iPhone. They are what comes up when I play it on shuffle. That doesn’t mean they are new songs. Many are quite the opposite. The only exceptions to the rule are that I only included the first song that popped up by each artist, and it had to be something that is available on Rhapsody. Otherwise it couldn’t be in the playlist. Click on the button and you can listen to the whole thing.

? Share Random 7-31

Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood – Bettye LaVette From a new album, Interpretations: the British Rock Songbook, this is a version of this classic by one of the most uncompromising and important pioneers of Detroit Soul.

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Praise and Blame. Well, Pretty Much All Praise.

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The video below is a recording of “Did Trouble Me,” a Gospel song by Susan Werner, as sung by Tom Jones on his new album Praise and Blame. To most people Tom Jones is probably best know for songs like “What’s New Pussycat?,” “Green, Green Grass of Home,” “It’s Not Unusual,” and his cover of Prince’s “Kiss.” Praise and Blame is his second release on Lost Highway Records, better known for releasing music that might be labeled “Roots Music” or “Americana.” It turns out the fit between Jones and the label is not at all a forced one.

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Help Support the Life is Good Foundation

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I’m in the midst of fundraising for the Life is Good Kids Foundation. I must admit that my reasons for embarking on this venture were selfish. I’m going to the Life is Good Festival down the road a bit in Canton, and you get some special privileges if you raise a certain amounts. But having started on the project, I did some research into the foundation, and I’ve realized what a good cause it is. My enthusiasm is great, independent of the concert.

The Life is good Kids Foundation is an action-oriented nonprofit, committed to helping young children overcome life-threatening challenges such as extreme poverty, violence, illness and natural disasters. Our Playmakers Initiative provides training, resources and support to the adults dedicated to caring for these children so that all involved lead healthier, more joyful lives.

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Thematic playlist: Whiskey and Moonshine

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A while back, I got a lot of peoples help to create lists of train songs that I posted in this blog. That was a fun project, and I’ve been eager to start another. I subsequently indicated that my next list would be Protest Songs and Corporate Greed. It seemed relevant given the crisis in the Gulf of Mexico, the banking crisis, and so many other current issues. I haven’t gotten far on that, but am still working on it. It’s just that it’s such a heavy topic.

So I’m going to lighten it up a bit and start another project at the same time, this one on one one of my favorite things: Whiskey. Just to keep it interesting, lets not limit ourselves to whiskey, but also moonshine or, the name I like, “White Lightening.”
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