Musical Monday: What I'm Diggin' On Right Now

The cars in our household are all still stick shift.  In fact, it's one of the reasons I haven't purchased a newer SUV yet...  We also don't use GPS and are perfectly capable of finding our way out of a traffic jam, etc. using a good old map and some common sense.  And I am currently sending my nephew notes in the mail every couple of days to remind him to get his school assignments done before we leave for Palm Springs so he can enjoy a real vacation.  This song says a lot of things that I can agree with.  I am especially drawn to the lines in the chorus:
Hey, whatever happened to waitin' your turn
Doing it all by hand,
'Cause when everything is handed to you
It's only worth as much as the time put in
It all just seemed so good the way we had it
Back before everything became automatic

Full lyrics to Miranda Lambert's "Automatic":

Quarter in a payphone
Drying laundry on the line
Watching Sun Tea in the window
Pocket watch tellin' time
Seems like only yesterday I'd get a blank cassette
Record the country countdown 'cause I couldn't buy it yet

If we drove all the way to Dallas just to buy an Easter dress
We’d take along a Rand McNally, stand in line to pay for gas
God knows that shifting gears ain’t what it used to be
I learned to drive that 55 just like a queen, three on a tree

Hey, whatever happened to waitin' your turn
Doing it all by hand,
'Cause when everything is handed to you
It's only worth as much as the time put in
It all just seemed so good the way we had it
Back before everything became automatic

If you had something to say
You'd write it on a piece of paper
Then you'd put a stamp on it
And they'd get it three days later
Boys would call the girls
And girls would turn them down
Staying married was the only way to work your problems out

Hey, whatever happened to waitin' your turn
Doing it all by hand,
'Cause when everything is handed to you
It's only worth as much as the time put in
It all just seemed so good the way we had it
Back before everything became automatic

Automatic

Let's pull the windows down
Windows with the cranks
Come on let's take a picture
The kind you gotta shake

Hey, whatever happened to waitin' your turn
Doing it all by hand,
'Cause when everything is handed to you
It's only worth as much as the time put in
It all just seemed so good the way we had it
Back before everything became, automatic

Give this one a listen and let me know what you think!

Musical Monday: Your Christmas Song

Ok, I kind of checked out there for a week or so... sorry about that.  I went down to Palm Springs for Thanksgiving and got a little caught up in the sun and relaxation.  To be fair, this was the really the first time since we bought the place a year ago that we actually spent the whole time playing and not working!  But enough of that...

I did finally respond to your comments on my last post- I have really begun to love the back and forth of the comment section, on everyone's blog it seems.  And I am now ready to jump back into the fray.

So, without further ado-
It's Musical Monday!!!  The feature that appears here with some regularity is back today!

Today's theme is Christmas songs.  Some are great.  Some are annoying.  But what I want to really get at today is that ONE Christmas song that really hits you.  The one that when you hear it, then it's really Christmas time.  So, today, I'm asking for your active participation.  Hit me up in the comments and tell me what your song is!!!

For me that song is Dan Fogelberg's 'Same Old Lang Syne'.  Until I hear it, I usually don't feel like the Christmas season has really arrived.  It always takes me by surprise when I hear it come on the radio and it always makes me stop and listen.  It has to be spontaneous and coming through the radio or it doesn't count for me.  As an example:  last year I was putting up sun filtering curtains in my Palm Springs condo and 'Same Old Lang Syne' came on and suddenly I wasn't in the desert trying to block out sun that comes blaring into the windows at 6:30am;  I was watching snow turn into rain.  Like most of my holiday memories, this song is so very bittersweet.  I just love it.  It encapsulates so many of my feelings about Christmas time.



So now you...  What's YOUR Christmas song?  Or if not Christmas, then what holiday music does something magical for you???

Musical Monday- Rion Paige

I used to be a die hard fan of those singing competition shows.  Then, somewhere along the way, I just kind of lost interest.  (I seem to have lost interest in much of TV these days.)  So these days I don't often know what's going on with those singing shows at all.

The other night I came upon a young girl singing on what turned out to be the X Factor that I just could not ignore.  She was mesmerizing and her Southern country style was just wonderfully comfortable to hear.  When I found out she was only 13 years old and has some challenging life issues, I was even more impressed. 

Take a listen and look at Rion Paige and let me know what you think!

Musical Monday: Lou Reed

First off, I must admit that I'm not all that familiar with Lou Reed.  So hearing that he had died yesterday and had been a beloved musician, I was curious as to what this was all about.

With a little poking around I realized right away that I did know his song: 'Walk On The Wild Side'. 

Then I had to admit to myself that I had mistakenly thought that song was one of those "one hit wonder" type deals.

Boy was I wrong.  Lou Reed was actually one of the two founding members of The Velvet Underground, a group that is said to be responsible for inspiring much of the alternative movement that included Seattle's own Nirvana.  So basically speaking without Lou Reed there might never have been room for one Kurt Cobain to find an audience.  And while I do readily admit that I don't have a lot of love lost for much of the early 90's alternative scene (out here it wasn't alternative at all- everyone was listening to it), I do have a very soft spot for Nirvana.  Besides being born and bred right here in the northwest rain forest, their stuff just touched me at a time when I was beginning to realize that I did indeed have my own thoughts and feelings.

So to Lou Reed I must say 'thank you' for the influence on future musicians and being an important part of this musical journey that so often surprises with its roots and branches that reach out to so many.
 

Musical Monday- OrigAudio Rock-It 3.0

My new favorite little musical gadget is a tiny thing called a Rock-It.  It is awesome!

I like to take music with me while I work and stuff and this thing is perfect for that.  You wouldn't believe the amount of sound you can get out of it by sticking it to a closet door or large open box.  It is just a really cool item that actually works as advertised.

I am super cheap, so I got mine from Bed Bath And Beyond for $9.99 on clearance.  If you look this item up you can find it in many places for under $20.

Check out this review from YouTube:


Have a great day and I hope your week is off to a rockin' start!

Musical Monday

Music speaks to my soul; always has.
From my overcooked by 3 and 1/2 weeks journey in the womb- always responding immediately to any upbeat tune that came through an old transistor radio to the experiences I've shared as a member of an 80 piece symphonic band, and every musical experience and genre in between, music has always been a part of who I am.  
I once met a doctor who deemed that music was just frivolous and unneeded.  I knew I would never trust him with anything regarding my health.  Although I was born with hearing issues that required surgical repair, I can certainly speak to the fact that the vibrations and patterns in music are life blood and I feel sorry for someone who doesn't get that life without music is certainly missing something.

With a love of music in mind, I am starting a new feature here on my blog.  I will be posting something musical on Mondays, as often as I can.  I am hoping to find lots of different musical aspects to touch upon.

For today, as an opening to my Musical Monday feature, I will leave you with a video for a song that I found while looking around for new stuff to add to my mp3 player that I use for my daily 'dance breaks'.  This song is an example of a typical easy going Zac Brown Band deal that speaks to where I am in life right now and it's got a great, fun beat.