By Jim Fusco:
Hello again, everyone! Back with another announcement.
For all my Laptop Sessions viewers, I present an extra-special treat this year for the holidays. It’s Jim Fusco’s 14 Days of Rock’n’Roll Christmas!
Starting on Sunday, December 7th, I’ll post a new recording every day for 14 days. I’ve recorded all of my favorite Christmas songs and I’d love if everyone would download them. And, they’ll all be FREE!
All 14 free downloads are in the archive — enjoy!
By Jim Fusco:
Hello Laptop Sessions fans and happy holidays.
I’m performing LIVE on Saturday, December 5th at 4:00pm at Christmas In the Village, a yearly festival in South Meriden, CT that’s totally FREE! That means free parking, free food, and free entertainment! It’s a great day for the whole family.
I’ll be performing all of my favorite rock’n’roll Christmas songs starting at 4:00pm.
For more details, please visit Christmas in the Village’s Facebook page by clicking here!
By Jim Fusco:
THE BEACH BOYS TODAY!
Dance, Dance, Dance – 8
Kiss Me, Baby – 9.5
Please Let Me Wonder – 9 (I actually like the arrangement on the “Live at the Roxy” CD better- which really doesn’t fit with my stance on live versions…)
She Knows Me Too Well – 8 (What an ending! Probably one of the best endings ever)
When I Grow Up – 7 (This song is great, don’t get me wrong, but when I first learned it, I always found it to be a bit boring. But, the subject matter is amazing.)
Help Me, Ronda – 6 (I love this song, but sadly, not this version.)
Do You Wanna Dance? – 7 (Great Denny vocal here and I consider this the “standard” version of the song)
Good to My Baby – 7.5 (I love the style of this song, the great guitar riff, and the a capella vocals in the beginning)
*Dance, Dance, Dance (alternate) – 6 (Why do the unreleased alternate takes always sound so tinny?)
Don’t Hurt My Little Sister – 5 (Funny story about this song- my friends and I talk in the tune of this song! I know it sounds weird, and that’s because it is. We’ll say any line with seven syllables to the tune of this song, for instance, “Did you go buy the hot dogs?” Sing it- it fits!)
I’m So Young – 6 (This has some interesting sounds to it. Even though I like Dennis’ part at the end, it’s a bit out of his range)
*Graduation Day – 5 (Great harmonies, just not exactly “engaging”)
In the Back of My Mind – 6.5 (This is a great song with a personal message from Brian Wilson shroud in the vocals of Dennis Wilson. He really nails this and the tune is so unique that I have to give it a good rating)
*I’m So Young (alternate) – 5
Bull Session with the “Big Daddy” – 1
** This is clearly one of the Boys’ best albums of all-time. The production quality, although mixed in mono (which I’m not a fan of, growing up in the surround-sound age), is great. I do miss the Boys playing their own instruments, as they did on the Christmas album’s first side, but the song quality is so good here, that I can look far past it.
I think, without using composite song scores, but ranking albums as “albums”, that this would probably end up in the Top 5 for me. With it would be “Holland”, “Sunflower”, “Pet Sounds”, and the fifth spot is up for grabs. Of course, everyone knows by now my affinity for the ’85 album, but I do value my life, here! 🙂
As a bit of genealogy to my Beach Boys past, we actually started with Pet Sounds (after the Greatest Hits, of course), which we got in 1992. I was 8. Talk about starting with some heavy stuff! But, we hear it over and over and over and over again. My father couldn’t get enough. We listened to “God Only Knows” about three times a day for a year- I’m not exaggerating. It was like Brian Wilson listening to “Be My Baby”. We then moved on (because many of the Beach Boys albums weren’t so easy to find) to the Box Set that just came out in 1992. Now, you have an 8 year old kid listening to Smile!! But, I do think that listening to, and really getting into, such deep and complex music at the age of 8 helped me to grow into a musician and songwriter at an early age. And, thus, is the reason why Brian Wilson will always be my musical idol.
Well, enough about me- this album’s great, and it’s only gonna get better for me, as I’m such a fan of the other band members’ compositions that I can’t wait for the “Sunflower” days! **
Happy 2015, everyone! For my first post of the year, I’m proud to bring you the full video from my concert celebrating the release of my 2014 album, “The Easy Ways”! In this concert, I play the album in its entirety. I made a special mix of the album without the lead vocals and lead guitar. So, I was able to play alongside that backing track to give the audience a real preview of what the album sounded like!
We had a great turnout and performance went off without a hitch. If you weren’t able to make it, it’s a great opportunity to watch and listen to the whole album! And, if you went, I’m sure you’ll want to relive the concert again and again. 🙂
The concert, like the album, is split into two sections. So, make sure to watch both videos. I’d love to hear any comments about the album and hope everyone enjoys.