India & Pakistan in the West

The music of India and Pakistan have had a profound influence on western music since the Beatles travelled to Rishikesh, India in 1968 to study transcendental meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. This event spawned a wave of Indian influence on artists like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, John Mclaughlin and more recently Pearl Jam and Jeff Buckley. Names like Ravi Shankar and Zakir Hussein have become familiar to us because of their numerous collaborations with western artists. The Indian practice of playing a melody over a single "drone" or stagnant note can be found in songs like Jimi's "Third Stone from the Sun", even Creed's "Higher". Unfortunately, this concludes my knowledge of Indian music so I'll let these videos demonstrate my point.

Note: In my minimal research for this post I came across this site, it has some of the best pictures of the Beatles that I've ever seen. http://www.thebeatlesinindia.com

Video the first: Jeff Buckley emulating Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, considered one of the greatest Pakistani singers of all time. A truly prolific figure.



Video the second: Pearl Jam singing an original song, "Long Road" with Nusrat's nephew Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. Hearing someone who has been trained in the art of Qawalli might help you understand why religion plays such a dominant role in those parts of the world.

UK Neo-Soul?

There's been an unavoidable wave of soul music coming out of the UK these past few years and I can't conceive of any other label for it than 'neo-soul'. Obviously not the neo-soul one might equate with D'angelo or Erykah Badu but it's new, it's soul and most surprisingly, it's coming from across the pond. Historically, the Brits have had a habit of taking conventionally Black, American music, tweeking it and then sending it back our way. It happened in the 60's when they took Rock n' Roll and Blues and created bands like Zeppelin, The Yardbirds, The Rolling Stones and oh I dunno...the Beatles. It seems like the Union Jack has done it again, white folk singing black folk music...and once again...they're killing it.

Exhibit A: Jamie Lidell



Exhibit B: Duffy




Exhibit C: Amy Whinehouse

Bessie Smith

Allow me now to share with you the motivation behind my love affair with Norah Jones. It wasn't until hearing her play one of my favourite Band songs, "Bessie Smith" that I decided it was time for me and Norah to become more...intimate. After that I dug a little deeper and began to understand what all the hype was about. Is there anything more attractive than a girl who sings, plays keys and covers The Band??? If you're not already a fan, hopefully hearing this will have the same effect on you as it did on me.
I also decided to throw in Ray Lamontagne's cover of 'Bessie Smith' for your listening pleasure. Any Ray fans? That unmistakable voice is a mandatory addition to LoveofMuzik. As a friend of mine put it earlier today, "it's like he's whispering REALLY loudly".

Note: If you're a Norah Jones fan or simply enjoy listening to good music, check out her side project "The Little Willies"...a little southern hospitality for ya.

Ray

It would be a sin for me to talk about music for the soul without recognizing one the patriarchs of soul and R&B, Ray Charles. Ray's music can't be characterized as anything but heartfelt, emotional, and doggone soulful. He'll find your soft spot, wherever it might be hiding and tug at it till you can't help but succumb to the notes he plays and the tune he sings.
I've decided the best way to portray Ray's profound influence is to hit you with some great tributes, unarguably reminiscent of Ray's ability to turn you to butter.
The first is Charlie Wood's rendition of "Come Back Baby". I was turned on to Charlie by my friend Mike Butlin, the well-hidden source of most good music I listen to.
Secondly is Norah Jones singing "Drown in my own tears". A song that's often replicated but never duplicated. Norah's touch never, and I mean never does any harm.

John Mayer & The Guitar Solo

Say what you will about John Mayer, the man can play the guitar. The purpose of this post isn't to argue John Mayer's integrity as a musician nor his ability to write a song. The point I wish to make is that John Mayer has done more for the guitar than the majority of people give him credit for. Allow me now to support my conclusion with irrefutable premises, the likes of which will give the John Mayer haters a new perspective, the agnostics a push in the right direction and the lovers even more respect. My objective is to make those skeptics see the light.
Upon first hearing "Your Body is a Wonderland" I thought to myself, "He's like a boy band condensed into one single entity". So I chose to pass on the craze and stick to what I knew best, the blues. It wasn't until the John Mayer Trio album "Try" came out that I thought to myself..."!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!". Here's where the part about him doing more for the guitar than he's given credit for comes into play.
John Mayer undeniably holds one of the most powerful positions of any current artist. He's managed to generate such a large fan base that no matter what he does, the crowd will love him for it. This makes the fact that he plays the guitar phenomenally well a significant part of his influence. He can hold his own with the most celebrated blues artists still alive i.e. B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Eric Clapton etc...and because of this, he's drawn the attention of the masses back to the good stuff. The stuff that tears ur heart out of your chest, the stuff that motivates you to play, listen and appreciate musicality and passion. The stuff worth investing in.
My point is this, not since Van Halen has a single artist with as big and broad a following made the guitar such an important focus of his music. What a rare occurrence it is to witness an entire stadium full of people explode over a guitar solo. Or an artist as main stream as John Mayer choose to "jam out" a song with his band of veteran musicians.
As a musician myself all I can say is this, thank you good sir for bringing the guitar back to the people, and reminding them of some of the most influential artists, writers and players of all time.

Now enjoy these videos of John having a good ol' time with blues legend Buddy Guy. Videos that exemplify my point famously.

A Change is Gonna Come

This is my last post of the night. I'm just getting used to sharing music with the world and evidently need to pace myself a little bit better. So here's a night cap. Three equally moving renditions of Sam Cooke's classic "A Change is Gonna Come".

Warning: Each video is highly conducive to chills, goosebumps, and feelings of euphoria.

Goodnight.

Isn't She Lovely

A duo guitar rendition of Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely" played by French guitarists Bireli Lagrene and Sylvain Luc. From a musician's perspective, this is some knock you on your ass s#%t. I mean really...these guys don't f%$k around...I'll just let the video do the talking.

Throwback of the Day

This track did a number on me when I first heard it in my friend Jessy's car late one night after a jam. Up until that point I'd been falsely labeling myself an MJ fan on the basis of knowing songs like "The Girl is Mine" and "Remember the Time". But no one could have prepared me for what Mike was doing from '78-'82. Most notably "Off the Wall" and "Thriller", both co-produced by Quincy Jones. Long story short, this song served as the catalyst for my current, unyielding MJ phase. It's been playing every morning for the past two weeks. A fact which has generated some curious looks of intrigue while waiting for the bus.
Humour me and see if you can listen to this song with the volume maxed out and NOT move any part of your body. You can't do it can you.

Note: Stop whatever you are doing and immediately purchase both "Off The Wall" (1979) and "Thriller"(1982). Mike was a game changer in the truest sense of the word. You'd be hard pressed to find music that stretches over the world like his does.

Zeppelin Covers

In my opinion, there are only two Zeppelin covers out there worth listening to. Any others are a waste of time. Any Zep fan knows that trying to cover a Zeppelin song is considered heresy, so the task these artists have undertaken is an ambitious one. However, and this is not up for debate, they both pull it off magnificently.

The first cover is Jeff Buckley's rendition of Night Flight, a bold choice. Night Flight isn't one of Zeppelin's better known songs. Nevertheless I've heard a few trustworthy Zep scholars label it as a standout on Physical Graffiti. I'm personally not a big fan of the Zeppelin version but Buckley does a commendable job of making it his own (as he has a way of doing).
If for no other reason, this song is worth listening to solely for the note Buckley hits at 5:00. Don't listen too loud if you don't want to be picking up broken glass.



The second cover worth mentioning is Dream Theater's Zeppelin medley, a concept so overwhelming you have no choice but to turn immediately to the most severe skepticism upon first hearing about it. Surprisingly though, all 7:25 seconds of this masterpiece displays nothing but dedication and commitment to a band that shaped all music thereafter. The songs covered are The Rover->Achilles Last Stand->The Song Remains The Same. Ignore the fact that the video is taken from Guitar Hero.

Note: All music posted on this blog MUST be listened to either with headphones or a good sound system in order to attain the full effect.

High Hopes

Based on the assumption that you are capable of feeling emotion, this video will put a smile on your face. As far as white, male singers go, Paulo Nutini is certainly hovering around the top of the ladder for me. Up there with him would be Robert Plant, Freddy Mercury, Jeff Buckley and Joe Cocker...but that's just like...one guy's opinion maannn.

Take it all in...

00Soul

This one goes back a ways. The first time I saw this video it wasn't the fact that Ray Charles was playing keys that impressed me, nor was it the high-lighter coloured suit Preston was wearing. There's one thing that stands out above all else in this video and that is undeniably the dance break at 0:35. Let's take a moment to break down this spectacle.

He starts off with a combination of raising the roof and flicking water off his hands.

This is followed by a hypnotic, elastic-like, epileptic episode.

Finally, he so gracefully concludes by virtually floating to the microphone stand on one foot.

Preston you selfish son of a bitch. Didn't yo momma ever tell you to share??? How bout spreading some of the talent around.

Me Sooo Hooooaanny

A friend of mine posted this video on my facebook wall yesterday. So far I've watched it 2,374 times and it hasn't gotten old. This is better than any yellow fever threesome you'll find on Porn Hub. Full credit for this post goes out to Mr. Micah Dubinsky, a true appreciator of the inexplicable effects of music.

Two things to check out:

1. The unbelievable musical climax at 5:12 that transitions from the double-time swing to a gritty half-time shuffle a la "Pretty" Purdie.

2. The drum solo

Note: If you're going to watch this video...wear a condom.

And So it Begins...

Let me preface by saying I expect few people to ever gain awareness of this blog's existence. That being said, I am evidently taking the self-serving plunge into blogdom in an effort to provide some form of refreshing escape into the realm of everything music. I'll post anything I think is worth sharing with the world including videos, news and general thoughts concerning anything music related, and you can do the same by commenting, posting videos/links of you own.