I received some interesting comments about my blog about cover songs. I discovered that I'm not the only person on the face of the earth who enjoys them. I decided to list my current favorites. I did, however, surprise myself at the sheer volume of cover songs on my 1GB IPOD shuffle. My list only scratches the service and almost all of them are pretty obsure. Read on if you dare.
My Favorite Cover Songs On My IPOD. Original Artist in parenthesis.
1.Here Comes The Sun (Beatles) by Mayfair Laundry
2. Livin’ Thing (ELO) by PFR
3. On the Way Home (Buffalo Springfield) by Poco
4. God Only Knows (Beach Boys) by Phil Keaggy
5. Needles & Pins (Searchers) by The Raspberries
6. Different Drum (Linda Ronstadt) by Susanna Hoffs & Matthew Sweet
7. Love Is the Answer (England Dan & John Ford Coley) by Cindy Morgan
8. Valeri (Monkees) by The Rubinoos
9. In My Life (Beatles) by Phil Keaggy with Randy Stonehill
10.Time After Time (Cyndi Lauper) by Nicole Nordeman
11. Someday We’ll Know (New Radicals) by Jon Foreman & Mandy Moore
12. I Won’t Back Down (Tom Petty) by Mercy Me
13. When You Walk in The Room (Jackie DeShannon) by Paul Carrack
14. Don’t Dream It’s Over (Crowded House) By Sixpence None the Richer
15. You Are Everything (Stylistics) by Timothy B. Schmit
16. I’ll Be Around (Spinners) by Tammy Trent
17. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) (Proclaimers) Steven Curtis Chapman
18. No Matter What (Badfinger) by The Knack
19. I Go To Pieces (Peter&Gordon) by Del Shannon & Tom Petty
20. We Can Work It Out (Beatles) by Prelude
21. Bless The Broken Road (Rascal Flatts) by Selah
22. I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever (Delirious) by Sonicflood/Lisa Kimmey
23. Can We Still Be Friends? (Todd Rundgren) By Mandy Moore
24. I Woke Up in Love This Morning (Partridge Family) by Doug Powell
25. Lonely Too Long (Rascals) by Richie Furay
And in the “don’t laugh I really like these” category:
So Sad About Us (The Who) by Shaun Cassidy & Utopia
Hello Goodbye (Beatles) by Jump 5
Do You Believe In Magic? (Lovin' Spoonful) Ally & AJ
Uncovered Trivia
#5 The Searchers had the hit version but the actual original artist was Jackie DeShannon
#7 England Dan & John Ford Coley had the hit version by the original artist was Utopia
#19 Del Shannon wrote the song 25 years before he covered with Tom Petty shortly before his death. This was also covered by Tom Petty & Stevie Nicks in the '80s.
#21 Several artists recorded this before the hit version by Rascal Flatts. The original artist was Melodie Crittendon who also sings on the Selah cover version.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Saturday Morning Cartoons
I purchased a 2 DVD box set from Warner Home Video entitled, “Saturday Morning Cartoons, The 1960’s”. It contains 33 cartoons from the 1960’s. Famous titles like The Flintstones, Yogi Bear and the Jetsons are included but it is also full of lesser known characters.
The majority of these animated treasures are the work of Hanna-Barbera productions. They were innovators in the very limited animation style that made cartoons affordable for weekly productions. What their creations lacked in movement they more than made up for with imagination.
What’s more entertaining that an ant with superhuman strength or I guess it would be super ant strength. Atom Ant was that ant. What could be funnier that a spy spoof starring a squirrel wearing a mask and a trench coach. Secret Squirrel filled the bill with his faithful sidekick Morocco Mole. Frankenstein Jr. was a crime fighting robot. Frankie Jr. not only wore a superhero costume, he also wore a mask. I guess the 8 foot robot wanted to keep his real identity concealed so he could go about town unnoticed. Ricochet rabbit was the western sheriff. Peter Potamus was the globe trotting hippopotamus explorer who traveled in a hot air balloon with his best friend So-So the monkey. The Impossibles were a Rock trio but also superheroes in their free time. That sounds pretty impossible. Although, I have heard that Springsteen can leap tall buildings in a single bound. I think that is an urban myth.
I am actually too young to remember watching most of these shows on Saturday mornings. I watched most of these show in their syndicated incarnations, after school on local LA TV stations in the early 1970‘s. Before the days of Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Kids WB, Fox Kids and Disney Afternoon, cartoons on TV were regulated to after school reruns on local stations and the Saturday morning show on network TV. Local Stations would have a host who would appear between the cartoons telling kids to drink their milk and look both ways before crossing the street. I would get confused and look both ways before drinking my milk. I did have my favorite hosts. Hobo Kelly had these magic glasses that she wore and pretended that she could see the kids watching. That would creep me out. Sheriff John would read the names of kids on their Birthdays. One year my Mom sent in my name for a Birthday announcement. For years I thought that meant I had a police record!
The nostalgic trip down memory lane was fun but I have to admit that these cartoons do not hold up well. A lot of them have aired in recent years on Boomerang but it’s been many years since I viewed most of these. The cartoons that my kids watched growing up, especially the ones from Steven Spielberg, Warner Brothers and Disney will have more longevity. They were created for adults to enjoy as well as kids. Atom Ant and Frankenstein Jr. and the rest were great for it’s time but that time is over. It was fun turning the clock back for a weekend. I think I’ll go have some milk and cookies and crank up Quick Draw McGraw.
The majority of these animated treasures are the work of Hanna-Barbera productions. They were innovators in the very limited animation style that made cartoons affordable for weekly productions. What their creations lacked in movement they more than made up for with imagination.
What’s more entertaining that an ant with superhuman strength or I guess it would be super ant strength. Atom Ant was that ant. What could be funnier that a spy spoof starring a squirrel wearing a mask and a trench coach. Secret Squirrel filled the bill with his faithful sidekick Morocco Mole. Frankenstein Jr. was a crime fighting robot. Frankie Jr. not only wore a superhero costume, he also wore a mask. I guess the 8 foot robot wanted to keep his real identity concealed so he could go about town unnoticed. Ricochet rabbit was the western sheriff. Peter Potamus was the globe trotting hippopotamus explorer who traveled in a hot air balloon with his best friend So-So the monkey. The Impossibles were a Rock trio but also superheroes in their free time. That sounds pretty impossible. Although, I have heard that Springsteen can leap tall buildings in a single bound. I think that is an urban myth.
I am actually too young to remember watching most of these shows on Saturday mornings. I watched most of these show in their syndicated incarnations, after school on local LA TV stations in the early 1970‘s. Before the days of Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Kids WB, Fox Kids and Disney Afternoon, cartoons on TV were regulated to after school reruns on local stations and the Saturday morning show on network TV. Local Stations would have a host who would appear between the cartoons telling kids to drink their milk and look both ways before crossing the street. I would get confused and look both ways before drinking my milk. I did have my favorite hosts. Hobo Kelly had these magic glasses that she wore and pretended that she could see the kids watching. That would creep me out. Sheriff John would read the names of kids on their Birthdays. One year my Mom sent in my name for a Birthday announcement. For years I thought that meant I had a police record!
The nostalgic trip down memory lane was fun but I have to admit that these cartoons do not hold up well. A lot of them have aired in recent years on Boomerang but it’s been many years since I viewed most of these. The cartoons that my kids watched growing up, especially the ones from Steven Spielberg, Warner Brothers and Disney will have more longevity. They were created for adults to enjoy as well as kids. Atom Ant and Frankenstein Jr. and the rest were great for it’s time but that time is over. It was fun turning the clock back for a weekend. I think I’ll go have some milk and cookies and crank up Quick Draw McGraw.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
The Edited Version of My Latest Blog
Since Thursday I had been working on a blog that would contain my thoughts on the reaction to Michael Jackson’s death. As I was finishing it I decided that my rants about the insensitivity of the media’s coverage seemed superfluous and a little too late. I believe that the end is all that I need to post. So my extensive blog boils down to:
Despite our grand plans for the future, we are not promised tomorrow. We need to live each day to it’s fullest and hold our loved ones close. We need to make sure our houses are in order practically and spiritually.
A little bit more that 140 characters but not much.
Despite our grand plans for the future, we are not promised tomorrow. We need to live each day to it’s fullest and hold our loved ones close. We need to make sure our houses are in order practically and spiritually.
A little bit more that 140 characters but not much.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Jeff's Jots on Disneyland
- I find it interesting that people wave to strangers riding the different modes of transportation at Disneyland but would never dream of it anyplace else.
- Wouldn’t the world be a better place if people wore the silly hats that they wear at Disneyland out in public? With their names engraved on the back, of course. It would be great if friends and family got to pick which hat suited a person best. I’m sure I would be required to wear a Dopey or Goofy hat.
- The return of Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln is coming soon. It makes me wonder where exactly Mr. Lincoln has been during his 3 year hiatus. I can just picture him kicking back in the den of some Disney employee. Nothing livens up a party more than an audioanimatronic dead President. The Gettysburg Address is a great icebreaker.
- If Mickey Mouse is in Toon Town all day long, how can he also be in the parades and roaming the park at the same time.
- Tomorrowland is so yesterday.
- Why does food seem to taste better when it is in the shape of a mouse head. Especially the white fudge covered pretzels.
- Food eaten at Disneyland has no calories. Or is that an Urban Myth?
- On a hot summer day nothing tastes better than a $3 bottle of purified tap water.
- In our age of such sophisticated technology why do Fireworks still continue to amaze?
- What makes images projected on a mist of water so interesting?
- It's amazing to me that people can feel comfortable leaving their stroller parked and not worrying about it's safety.
- I’m waiting for Disneyland to discover how to charge extra for air inside the park.
- In Disneyland it really is A Small World After All. Until the clock strikes 12.
- Life is the ultimate theme park. A lot of time spent waiting for those special moments that make it all worthwhile.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Love Covers A Multitude Of Sins
I like cover versions of songs. A lot of the artists that I like have recorded cover versions of songs that I enjoy. Great artist, great song, seems to make sense to me. So Mercy Me performing Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” or Adie Camp’s take on the Byrd’s “Turn, Turn, Turn” find a place on my IPOD.
For some reason the contents of my IPOD shuffle has become the source of much humor and ridicule from various family members. It seems that the high percentage of cover versions of hits by other artists seems to trouble and cause concern to my wife and brother in particular.
The main purpose of my IPOD is to provide a custom listening experience for me while I take my daily lunch time walk. It does not include what are necessarily my favorite songs, but what I have found to be perfect traveling tunes.
My mistake however was connecting the IPOD to the stereo in the car while driving with my wife. “That’s on there?”, “You like that song?” or “Who’s singing that?“ followed every song. When Prelude’s cover of “We Can Work It Out” and “And Your Bird Can Sing” by Susanna Hoffs & Matthew Sweet played, I know I tumbled a notch off my husband pedestal. “Here Comes the Sun” by Mayfair Laundry was immediately followed by her next question, “Exactly how many versions of Beatles songs do you have on there by THE BEATLES?!”. I sheepishly admitted that there were none.
My brother doesn’t care if I have any Beatles songs at all. He was always ambivalent about the Fab Four. His concern seems to be that I have cover versions of classic songs and not the originals. “Why do you want to hear some obscure artist covering a hit instead of the original?” is what he keeps inquiring before he begins his mocking of Amy Grant’s cover of “The Things We Do For Love” or Nicole Nordeman’s cover of “Time After Time”.
Cover versions have a long history in popular music. In decades past the composers and arrangers were almost as famous as the artists. Before the 50’s it was rare for an artist to compose his own material. “Hound Dog” and “Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis were covers as was “Twist & Shout” and “Roll Over Beethoven” by the Beatles.
After a lot of careful consideration, I have decided to stand my ground. I refuse to succumb to IPOD peer pressure. I have to be who I am and let my music be what it is. I have to be true to the music that was made for my ears. If I give in to the taunts and derision of music elitists, music freedoms will be set back decades. I demand my right to covers!
For some reason the contents of my IPOD shuffle has become the source of much humor and ridicule from various family members. It seems that the high percentage of cover versions of hits by other artists seems to trouble and cause concern to my wife and brother in particular.
The main purpose of my IPOD is to provide a custom listening experience for me while I take my daily lunch time walk. It does not include what are necessarily my favorite songs, but what I have found to be perfect traveling tunes.
My mistake however was connecting the IPOD to the stereo in the car while driving with my wife. “That’s on there?”, “You like that song?” or “Who’s singing that?“ followed every song. When Prelude’s cover of “We Can Work It Out” and “And Your Bird Can Sing” by Susanna Hoffs & Matthew Sweet played, I know I tumbled a notch off my husband pedestal. “Here Comes the Sun” by Mayfair Laundry was immediately followed by her next question, “Exactly how many versions of Beatles songs do you have on there by THE BEATLES?!”. I sheepishly admitted that there were none.
My brother doesn’t care if I have any Beatles songs at all. He was always ambivalent about the Fab Four. His concern seems to be that I have cover versions of classic songs and not the originals. “Why do you want to hear some obscure artist covering a hit instead of the original?” is what he keeps inquiring before he begins his mocking of Amy Grant’s cover of “The Things We Do For Love” or Nicole Nordeman’s cover of “Time After Time”.
Cover versions have a long history in popular music. In decades past the composers and arrangers were almost as famous as the artists. Before the 50’s it was rare for an artist to compose his own material. “Hound Dog” and “Blue Suede Shoes” by Elvis were covers as was “Twist & Shout” and “Roll Over Beethoven” by the Beatles.
After a lot of careful consideration, I have decided to stand my ground. I refuse to succumb to IPOD peer pressure. I have to be who I am and let my music be what it is. I have to be true to the music that was made for my ears. If I give in to the taunts and derision of music elitists, music freedoms will be set back decades. I demand my right to covers!
Monday, June 8, 2009
A Few Words On Words
What an amazing gift it is to be able to communicate with one another.
Few things in this world have the power of words.
Few things are abused more than words.
Words can be beautiful, inspiring, encouraging and even life changing.
They also can be ugly, hurtful and destructive.
I’ve been thinking about how words affect me. Sure, I want to have my ego massaged with kind complimentary words. I desire to hear the sweet word of appreciation and let it fill my soul. One of the most satisfying feelings that has ever encompassed me is hearing the voice of one of my children say my name (Dad or when they were younger Daddy) and make a request that only their father can deliver. Nothing soothes my soul more than hearing my wife lovingly purr my first and middle name like only she can. To be frank, no one else really purrs my name or calls me by my first and middle name, but that’s not the point. Actually, I kind of like hearing my name spoken aloud period.
What I don’t like is the havoc negative words play on my psyche. Certain words hit my ears and my body seems to react on it’s own. It depends on the context and on the person delivering the words but they are just words and they attack me on many levels. Even foolish words delivered from an ill-informed mouth can transform my stomach into an acid making machine.
What I do like is words that make me laugh. It’s funny how they same words that can make me crazy can make me laugh. Some words that should make me crazy make me laugh. Then again some words that make me laugh should make me crazy. One of my all time favorite conversation with a former co-worker ended with her saying, “Get away from me you weirdo!” I laughed so hard. In my wife’s review of my first blog, she said, “Oh yeah I read it. I thought it was going to be more entertaining”. I loved that!
Words in the 21st century are different. An ever increasing amount of our contemporary communication comes in brief text and twitter size snippets. Sometimes 140 characters is more than enough but the real meanings behind those words are often lost. Subtle nuisances of the spoken word is often lost in the online social network world we live. Sarcasm and irony are often misunderstood for insult, meanness and rudeness. It’s hard to bite your tongue when the send button is only a mouse click away.
Words are what Jesus used to change the world. Words were Shakespeare’s tool. They were also the weapons of villains of history.
Words are really all we have to rely what we feel, what’s on our minds and what’s in our hearts. I am going to attempt to choose my words more carefully(except on my blog) and carefully choose how words affect me.
I’ll let you know how that goes.
Few things in this world have the power of words.
Few things are abused more than words.
Words can be beautiful, inspiring, encouraging and even life changing.
They also can be ugly, hurtful and destructive.
I’ve been thinking about how words affect me. Sure, I want to have my ego massaged with kind complimentary words. I desire to hear the sweet word of appreciation and let it fill my soul. One of the most satisfying feelings that has ever encompassed me is hearing the voice of one of my children say my name (Dad or when they were younger Daddy) and make a request that only their father can deliver. Nothing soothes my soul more than hearing my wife lovingly purr my first and middle name like only she can. To be frank, no one else really purrs my name or calls me by my first and middle name, but that’s not the point. Actually, I kind of like hearing my name spoken aloud period.
What I don’t like is the havoc negative words play on my psyche. Certain words hit my ears and my body seems to react on it’s own. It depends on the context and on the person delivering the words but they are just words and they attack me on many levels. Even foolish words delivered from an ill-informed mouth can transform my stomach into an acid making machine.
What I do like is words that make me laugh. It’s funny how they same words that can make me crazy can make me laugh. Some words that should make me crazy make me laugh. Then again some words that make me laugh should make me crazy. One of my all time favorite conversation with a former co-worker ended with her saying, “Get away from me you weirdo!” I laughed so hard. In my wife’s review of my first blog, she said, “Oh yeah I read it. I thought it was going to be more entertaining”. I loved that!
Words in the 21st century are different. An ever increasing amount of our contemporary communication comes in brief text and twitter size snippets. Sometimes 140 characters is more than enough but the real meanings behind those words are often lost. Subtle nuisances of the spoken word is often lost in the online social network world we live. Sarcasm and irony are often misunderstood for insult, meanness and rudeness. It’s hard to bite your tongue when the send button is only a mouse click away.
Words are what Jesus used to change the world. Words were Shakespeare’s tool. They were also the weapons of villains of history.
Words are really all we have to rely what we feel, what’s on our minds and what’s in our hearts. I am going to attempt to choose my words more carefully(except on my blog) and carefully choose how words affect me.
I’ll let you know how that goes.
Friday, June 5, 2009
The "Craft" of Watching Films
My son and I have just completed the third year of studying various aspects of film for his Home School elective. We used 3 outstanding college text books, “The Art of Watching Films”, The 5 C’s in Cinematography” and “How to Read a Film” as our curriculum. We also used “Reel Spirituality” and “Thorough a Screen Darkly” as supplemental resources.
Each Monday for the last three years, we utilized Netflix’s vast library and covered a wide gamut of movies. We watched some of the classics like “Citizen Kane”, westerns like “Stagecoach” and foreign films such as “The Bicycle Thief “. Science Fiction was represented by “2001: A Space Odyssey” and “Star Trek: The Motion Picture”. We viewed musicals, action films, film noir, comedy, drama, fantasy and films that defy description like “Head” starring the Monkees.
It has been a joy watching these great and not so great cinematic offerings with him. It has changed the way I view films. I became even more cognizant of the power of film to elicit laughter, generate tears, inspire, discourage, anger and promote conversation.
One’s experience with film is personal but the medium is built on exhibition in a communal setting. We had a chance to attend a screening of “Citizen Kane” with a theater audience after viewing it at home on DVD. Sharing that film with a crowd of strangers was so enlightening . I enjoyed getting to see the reactions of others. My son disagreed.
We had great conversations on what a person requires from a film. Can one really enjoy a bad film? We debated the merits of certain low budget films that had a great messages but were lacking in technical and artistic areas.
My favorite film nights were when my son made the selection and I knew nothing about the film except the title and maybe the stars. I was surprised by what a difference it was watching a film with no expectations and no preconceived notions. Typically people select movies based on an element that they know about the film. Watching those films blindly was a blast.
In addition to his studies in the textbook my son was required to compose a detailed review for each film, based on specific areas that we were studying. I gained new insight about my son by understanding how he viewed these films. He has grown into quite a writer. He is more than almost eloquent.
I’ve come to the conclusion that the medium of film has both improved and declined as an art form. Rarely does film come close to reaching it’s full potential. When that does happen the results can be amazing.
Each Monday for the last three years, we utilized Netflix’s vast library and covered a wide gamut of movies. We watched some of the classics like “Citizen Kane”, westerns like “Stagecoach” and foreign films such as “The Bicycle Thief “. Science Fiction was represented by “2001: A Space Odyssey” and “Star Trek: The Motion Picture”. We viewed musicals, action films, film noir, comedy, drama, fantasy and films that defy description like “Head” starring the Monkees.
It has been a joy watching these great and not so great cinematic offerings with him. It has changed the way I view films. I became even more cognizant of the power of film to elicit laughter, generate tears, inspire, discourage, anger and promote conversation.
One’s experience with film is personal but the medium is built on exhibition in a communal setting. We had a chance to attend a screening of “Citizen Kane” with a theater audience after viewing it at home on DVD. Sharing that film with a crowd of strangers was so enlightening . I enjoyed getting to see the reactions of others. My son disagreed.
We had great conversations on what a person requires from a film. Can one really enjoy a bad film? We debated the merits of certain low budget films that had a great messages but were lacking in technical and artistic areas.
My favorite film nights were when my son made the selection and I knew nothing about the film except the title and maybe the stars. I was surprised by what a difference it was watching a film with no expectations and no preconceived notions. Typically people select movies based on an element that they know about the film. Watching those films blindly was a blast.
In addition to his studies in the textbook my son was required to compose a detailed review for each film, based on specific areas that we were studying. I gained new insight about my son by understanding how he viewed these films. He has grown into quite a writer. He is more than almost eloquent.
I’ve come to the conclusion that the medium of film has both improved and declined as an art form. Rarely does film come close to reaching it’s full potential. When that does happen the results can be amazing.
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