Newton Faulkner

My cousin Jeff Gardner showed me this group  a couple of weeks ago and I have since become a big fan.  Their lyrics are clever and their tunes are catchy.  It's one of the few albums I enjoy listening to start to finish.



Newton Faulkner - Gone in the Morning



Dream Catch Me

Here's a link to their website.

The Guess Who

I've decided I'm going to start featuring a few of of my favorite bands and artists young and old.

When I hear "The Guess Who" I am instantly in our family's yellow boat cruising through some beautiful canyon at Lake Powell.  Most of the folks of my generation will know the song "American Woman" through the cover version done by Lenny Kravitz.

Here are some songs that you can now confuse your friends with these songs by using the statement (that sounds more like a question) "Guess Who sings this."



The Guess Who - American Woman



These Eyes (I think Benton Paul should cover this one.  What do you guys think?)



She's Come Undone



The Guess Who - Laughing

Jose Felicaiano

I have a few more spiritual type things n my mind but for now we'll go back to remembering some great tunes.

Jose Feliciano is one of those artists that I've grown up with.  Honestly I didn't like his music much until my mission, when I was allowed to listen to his Christmas album.  Since then I have grown to seriously love his tunes.  He was born blind, but became one of the genius' of guitar.  He's famous for some of his classic covers.  I hope you enjoy!



California Dreaming



Flight of the Bumblebee



National Anthem



Light My Fire

JT's new album is out!!!

Hey this is just a quick note to let everyone out there know the new James Taylor album is out.  On occasion the iTunes new releases come out a couple hours early (for us in UT) I guess they're release on eastern time.  His new album is called "Covers"  and it entirely an album of cover tunes.  I'll post videos up here as they are available but for now just go to JT's website if you want to listen.  There are already a few classics on this album, my favorite for now is his cover of the great temptation song "It's Growing"  Seriously if you want to hear an album that is carefully crafted and entirely thought out.  Check it out!



James on his new album.

Some new tunes...finally

Hello everyone!  It's been a little while since I've posted any tunes on here.  I'm not really sure if anyone actually looks at this blog and likes any of the music I post so I guss that's part of it, but I've also been feeling a bit like I should write about some of the experiences Karie and I have had, the good and the bad.  So maybe someday I'll put some of those thoughts down, but for now I'll just put a few quick links up to some of my new favorites/discoveries in music.

 



Jenny and Tyler - American Dream

I just discovered this little duo, I don't know much about them just yet but they caught my ear, and I can tell that I'm going to like them. Here's a link to their website.





Rick Seibold - Mary

Yeah I know all these musicians that don't have music videos yet, but I really like this guys sound,  I think he has potential.  What do you think?



Eric Hutchenson - OK It's Alright With Me

Of this group, I think Eric hs the most potential.  I've enjoyed his whole CD and actually can't pick which track is the stand out track on the album,  There are two or three standout tracks that I llike.

 

Anyways,  I have quite a few more songs in the backlog that I'm anxiousl to post about.  But my last one is a shout out to my friend Mitch Hansen of the Mitch Hansen Band.  Mitch and I served together on a mission and became great friends,  I can't say I'm surpised He's turning into a great musician, and recording artist in his own right.   If you are a fan of the Twilight books like I know my wife and all her friends are check out, the mitch hansen band  

Matt Wertz

Been a while since I posted a song, so I'll just drop it here for you. This guy is named Matt Wertz, and he isn't mainstream just yet, but hopefully he's on his way. One of these days I'll take some time but for now I'll just drop you a link to a couple videos.

Matt Wertz - 5:19

5:19 (Acoustic Version)

Heeeeeere's Jamie Lidell

I know I've totally been a slacker in the blog department (which is why Karie will likely be starting a family update blog at some point) but, I decided I'd take a minute today and post a couple new songs. Just to get back in the habit of it.

Check out Jamie Lidell if you're looking to funkify your music collection. His music feels a bit like a throwback to me, a little funk, a little soul, and a little bit of that "I can't hold still while this song is on" type of music.


This was the first song that got me interested in Jamie about a year and a half ago when Karie and I went on our trip to California. Since then he's released some new tunes which are also a lot of fun.

The song that recently helped me rediscover his tunes is called, "Another Day." The video is a bit strange, but all in all is pretty fun.



I'll be curious to see if anyone can name the Michael Jackson music video which seems to have had at least some influence on this video...

Benton Paul

Once in a while you find some good tunes right in your own backyard. A little less than a year ago Karie and I were trying to figure out what to do one fine Friday evening, and happened to see that Utah's favorite idol at the time, Jon Peter Lewis, (that position has now been filled by David Archuleta.) We had stumbled on a Christmas song by JPL that was and still is probably our favorite non-traditional Christmas Song called It's Christmas. Anyway, we enjoyed JPL OK but we were much more impressed with one of the opening acts, Benton Paul.

Since then, we've kind of been keeping tabs on him and his career. We really like his old stuff (that is no longer available on iTunes) but were really excited when he came out with his new CD a few months ago called "Grey"



If you like John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Daughtry, or Gavin Degraw I think you'll like him. His album is available on iTunes, and unfortunately there aren't really very many good links on Youtube to his new stuff, but you can click on his album cover above to go to his website and take a listen.



A great....GREAT cover version of Coldplay's "Fix You"



A little snippet of a live performance of "Look For the Light"

Seriously folks this is a guy who will make it big someday, give his stuff a listen and you can be one of the one's who heard of him first. :)

Indie Music (Female Singers)

I'm certain that one of the counselors in our bishopric would immediately take away a man card from me for this next post. He gave me a hard time for liking American Idol, so I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be impressed with a post all about Acoustic/Indie-type female singers. We'll go for it anyways though. I'm not sure what it is but there's just something about music that is more about the lyrics and mood, than all the production and dance floor ready stuff. I've never been partial to (though part of me enjoys) the typical female pop star. It all sounds the same, they just plug in a new powerful voice and pretty face and there's your new pop star. These artists don't fall into that category for me. They all have unique and recognizable voices with character. They have the kind of voices that you hear for a couple of second and can say, "Oh (insert name here) sings this!" Let me know who your favorite is.

Katie Herzig

I only recently came across Katie Herzig, and she's grown on me fast. Her music feels like summer, and is bound to relax you.

Priscilla Ahn

I had a buddy introduce me to her, but that was over a year ago. She has a clear voice and her songs are smart. She's releasing an album her in the next month or two so look for her to become popular soon.

Tristan Prettyman

Karie and I saw her about two years ago when we went to see Ben Taylor in Park City. It doesn't translate on her albums but when we saw her live she sounded like Joni Mitchell was singing Jason Mraz type tunes. Her new Album comes out this week, and I think it will be her coming out party. She's great and is primed for pop success.

Feist

A bit different, but I love it. Her lyrics are creative and her sound is unique.

Debra Fotheringham

She's a local artist here in Utah, and we discovered her music when we went to see Benton Paul (Who also is amazing) at a house show in Provo. She's very skilled on the guitar, and again is awesome live. She has a song called "You Are Truth" that in my opinion would be a hit if Norah Jones had it on an album. Debra sings it well, the only reason I say that is Norah already has a following so people would pay more attention to it.

Missy Higgins

Watch out for Missy Higgins. Again it's only a matter of time before she pulls a Colbie Caillet and is all over the radio here.

Ingrid Michaelson

She's already made it, but you should check out some of her other tunes, because she's actually pretty good all around.

Regina Spektor

She's had a period of success already. She, like Feist is very unique, and her lyrics are amazing. She's extremely creative you won't be disappointed.

Nellie Mckay

She's another Norah Jones type singer. Only most of her tunes are very sarcastic and dark. You'd never know it unless you listen to the lyrics though. She has a couple good positive songs, but for the most part her songs are cynical.

lady danville

It's been a little while since I posted anything, it's been a busy week. If anyone is looking for some new chill music, check out lady danville



I stumbled on this group randomly a few months ago, and slowly got addicted to the six songs they have available on the Internet. They're kind of a folksy group, mostly acoustic, and some really interesting harmonies. My favorite song by far is Love to Love. It's another mind-sticker.

Everyone knows KT by now...

I know everyone knows KT Tunstall by now, but this is one of the live performances that hooked me on her music. This is her cover of the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" and I have to say it's awesome. She starts with a little percussion on her guitar and by the end it sounds like she's got a whole band behind her....but it's still just her. After she became popular she recorded an album from her living room called "KT Tunstall's Acoustic Extravaganza." She did this (as I understand it) to stay grounded and return to "REAL" music. The album was recorded in days and to me proves the musicianship of KT. This song is called "Throw Me A Rope" and is pretty good. It's more of a melancholy song that seems to be about someone coping after losing their love.



Tell me what you think.

Our Wedding Video

I've posted this on our Facebook account, and a couple other places but there is a story behind the song. The song in the background is a cover version of "Baby I Love Your Way" by Mig Ayesa. He actually collaborated with the original artist Peter Frampton on this version. Karie and I fell in love with this song one day while we were watching the summer reality show Rockstar:INXS Mig was a contestant and he sang this song for the show and we just loved it. It took a while for a real studio version of the song to come out but it was worth the wait. Our video was edited by Karie's brother Russ Lasson, and we have just loved it. Let us know what you think! This is Our Wedding Video. This is the Version from Rockstar:INXS

Sandi Thom

Almost two years ago I stumbled across a new artist who I've really liked. She's very popular in the UK, her name is Sandi Thom and in my opinion sounds like a cross between Kelly Clarkson and KT Tunstall. My favorite song of hers is called "I Wish I Was a {unk Rocker (With Flowers In My Hair)" It's a very upbeat song, and I promise you it will be stuck in your head for weeks! Feel free to leave comments and tell me what you think.

We'll give this a try...

Well, hello internet!  I am a first time blogger and to be quite honest, I'm a bit nervous about this whole thing.  There's something intimidating about putting your thoughts, and opinions out there for everyone to read. I'm not sure how to start or what to say, but this seems like a good way to brush up on my writing skills, which are a bit rusty.  I figure I ought to have a point to this and try to write about something I know about, but nothing wasn't an option. So I'll go with the next best thing and keep most of my comments geared towards music.

Any one who spends any amount of time with me knows I have an addiction to finding new music.  It started for me in high school, when I would stay up at night with a pen and paper in hand ready to write down any new artist, albums, or bands I liked from VH1's Insomniac music videos. Another favorite source for this was those infomercials usually hosted by Hermins Herbit, Debby Boone, or some other former star of 70's a high schooler like me would have never heard of. This was back in the days of napster, and burning CD's was a very novel idea. (I felt like an old person writing that)  Since then We've seen the invention of iTunes, iPods, Myspace, Youtube, and many other alernative ways of finding music, or discovering it for yourself.  This is perhaps my biggest hobby and if I could make a living out of it I would.  So from time to time when I find music I like or there's a certain song I like I'l write about it here, maybe post a link for you so you can tell me what you think about it.  We'll just have to see what this evolves to.