Does iTunes need an MLS?

If you sort my iTunes library by genre, these are some of the songs classified in the "World" music category:

"In Da Club" by 50 Cent
" Chaiyya Chaiyya" from the Bombay Dreams cast recording
"Keep Me In Your Heart" by Warren Zevon
"Seann Triubhais Uilleachain" from The Legacy of the Scottish Fiddler
"Cry Me a River" by Justin Timberlake

Yeah, okay. I guess they were all produced on this world, but otherwise...


In other news, I downloaded the first volume of the Glee soundtrack. It belongs in the "Awesome" music category.

The Book of Love

One of the other blogs I read regularly posted this clip from the finale of the show Scrubs. I DARE you to watch it without tearing up. If you can, you're made of stronger stuff than I am, my friend.



Listen carefully to the song that plays during this segment--it's absolutely lovely, It's called "The Book of Love" and Peter Gabriel sings this version. If you're interested in tracking it down, I found it on the soundtrack CD for the movie Shall We Dance?

iQuest

Earlier this week, I was on a quest, searching iTunes for a song that I had heard snatches of on the radio. I found it, and it is currently my favorite song. In fact, I'm going to declare it my Official Anthem of Summer 2009:



Just makes me wanna dance.

I will admit that I also searched for and bought a couple of Michael Jackson songs. Even though I was never a HUGE fan, I do have one LP (remember those?) of his: Off the Wall. That was the one he released before Thriller. I was in college when Thriller came out, and MTV was such a big deal at that time; it was all anybody could talk about. "Have you seen Thriller yet?" Everybody, whether they were Jackson fans or not, thought the video was incredible. MTV would even announce when they would be broadcasting the video, so you could make sure to see it. Even after all these years, it still looks astounding.

So for the last couple of weeks, with all of the sad news, I've had an almost non-stop loop of Jacksons music playing in my head. But this is some pretty great music to have as an earworm. And in the end, this is how I would like to remember Michael Jackson: a talented performer who gave us some really good songs. Boogie down!

Spring fever

It's been a quiet week here in Lake Back-of-the-Woods. I'm so hungry for spring that I can hardly stand it. The snow has almost melted away, but underneath, the lawn just looks brown and messy. We've had a few days of warmth and sunshine, but it's so hard when it chills back down again. One of the local weathermen said today, "Once people get a taste of those warm days, they want them to stay." So true.

Two things I discovered this week that have made me happy. I'm sure people much cooler and hipper than I am have heard about these long ago, but what can I say?

Anyway, the first thing is a music group called Bitter:Sweet. Itunes classifies them as "electronic", but I don't think that's quite accurate. They're kind of jazzy, trippy electronic.

My other discovery is a TV show called Flight of the Conchords. It's about a pair of clueless New Zealanders who live in New York, trying to make their band a success. It's very silly and full of goofy songs sung with complete sincerity. I'm also enjoying the New Zealand humor ("New Zealand...don't expect too much...you'll like it") and accents ("He may be dead." "He maybe did what?"). Here's a sample of their music; don't expect too much and you'll like it!

You too?

Hello, boys. I've missed you.

Well, I'm still on my first listening of the new album, so I'm not prepared to give my opinion yet. It always takes me a few listens to sink in to the music. Whatever you say about U2 (and I could say so much), they really force you to pay attention to their songs.

It occurs to me that I've really spanned the ages with this band. I was 17 years old when I saw my first U2 video (It was "Two Hearts Beat As One" from the War album), and I was hooked. I started out buying 45s and vinyl LPs, moved to cassette tapes, CDs, and now digital downloads. And it's all been outstanding.

The Cute One

Just watched Paul McCartney perform "I Saw her Standing There" on the Grammys. You know, he is still so much fun to watch. And how cool was it that Dave Grohl played drums? Rock on!

An evening out

This year, for my mother's birthday. my sister and I bought tickets for a k d lang concert. We went to the concert this week, and it was absolutely incredible. k d lang has the most beautiful voice, so full of power and beauty, and to see her perform live was wonderful. As a fan, I left the concert liking her and her music even more.

My mother asked me what my most favorite concert ever was. I told her, quite honestly, that I could never single out just one. I don't go to many concerts, but the ones I do go to are pretty darn fantastic. I've seen huge rock concerts in arenas with thousands of people, and smaller, theater-based shows that let you get up close to the performer. What they've all had in common for me, and why I enjoy them so much, is the sheer pleasure of the music. To watch professional musicians perform, and perform beautifully, is a pure delight for me.

In her concert set list, k d lang included her cover of Neil Young's "Helpless"; it's one of my favorites: