“Feliz Navidad” (Jose Feliciano Cover)

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By Chris Moore:

And the award for most spirited contribution to a Laptop Session goes to…

Jim Fusco!

Yes, that’s right, for my FINAL video of 2008, I called in the big guns (plural) — not only Jim, but also Dana.  The video that resulted is a one take, gather ’round the ol’ laptop spontaneously kind of video.  At its core, this is what the Laptop Sessions are all about — recording a performance as if you were just sitting around the house with us.  Break out a guitar, tune it, and start strumming.  That’s what we do here.  And that’s what we’ll continue to do in 2009!

For tonight, I chose “Feliz Navidad” in honor of the quickly approaching new year.  Jose Feliciano recorded this song in 1970 and when it was released on CD in 2001 it quickly became one of the most played and recorded Christmas songs, according to ASCAP.  Now, it has been added to the massive “session-a-day” catalog at the Laptop Sessions music blog, soon to be 366 music videos strong from this year alone!

Tonight was a lot of fun.  Not only did I get to go to my English department Christmas party, but I also got there on time and without getting lost, thanks to the GPS that Jim and Mike got me for Christmas!  I’ve been saying for years that I don’t really need one, that it wouldn’t get used, and epecially with the iPhone, that a GPS seems unnecessary.  Well, not so.  This was extremely easy to use and it was more fun than it should have been to drive to Hamden and back.  Anyone who knows me will understand how great this is, as it combines my dorkiness with technology AND my dorkiness for loving to drive places!

Anyway, the party was extremely relaxing and fun (I am grateful for an amazing department of people to work with), and when I got home, I went out for some late night Burger King and Jim and I kicked back to watch some YouTube Videos.  First, he showed me the little kid screaming as he opened his Nintendo 64.  “NINTENDO SIXTY-FOOOOOUUUUUURRRRR!!.”  So funny.  (YouTube search: kid opening nintendo 64)

Then, I showed him a video I just came across today.  It’s Jeff Tweedy, front man for Wilco, playing an acoustic show and talking to the crowd in between songs.  About midway into the video, he explains “the game” to the crowd.  Essentially, the game is to name a band — Three Dog Night, for instance — and then to consider the bowel movement that might have inspired the band name.  There are so many good ones!  Just think — Green Day, the Rolling Stones, String Cheese Incident, etc…  The list goes on.  (YouTube search: Jeff Tweedy banter and the game)

When we were done and Dana had arrived, we were all fighting unconsciousness.  At least I was.  And I think Jim a bit too.  So, Jim suggested I record my video before we went our separate ways (tangent:  anyone remember that American Dad episode with screaming “Debbie and I went our separate WAAAYS!).  Even I didn’t need more than a quick glance at the chord sheet for this song before I joined them in the other room to record what is probably one of the most fun sessions I’ve done.  It won’t win any awards, but I hope you enjoy the energy and the simplicity of the message.

Truly, I wish you a happy new year and the best of happiness, health, and success in 2009.  Thank you for all your support, for watching our videos, and I hope you’ll continue to come back next year.  With any luck, our numbers will continue to grow!

2008 was a great year for music; there were lots of great albums.  There were also disappointments, but those were weighed out by the good songs and albums that were released.  Personally, it was a year of up and downs for me.  Musically, I found one of my new favorite bands, Wilco.  In other aspects, I’m certainly hopeful that 2009 will be a better year — that I will catch up with my grading and do well on my BEST portfolio, that I will record my album with Jim (hint, hint, nudge, nudge 🙂 ), and that I will deal with some personal issues that need to be dealt with, oh, I don’t know… months ago!

But for now, I will comfort myself with the knowledge that Jeff’s video will be here tomorrow — our VERY LAST SESSION OF 2008!!  Don’t miss it!

See you next year!!

“Out Of Our Heads” by Sheryl Crow – Chords, Tabs, and How to Play

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“Out Of Our Heads”
Sheryl Crow

(Capo 1)

Am                               F
If you feel you wanna fight me,
C                                             G
There’s a chain around your mind.
When something is holding you tightly,
What is real is so hard to find.

Losing babies to genocide,
Oh, where’s the meaning in that plight.
Can’t you see that we’ve really bought into
Every word they proclaimed and every lie, oh…

CHORUS 1:
Am              C           C              F            F              C
If we could only get out of our heads, out of our heads,
G
And into our hearts…
If we could only get out of our heads, out of our heads,
And into our hearts…

Someone’s feeding on your anger.
Someone’s been whispering in your ear.
You’ve seen his face before;
You’ve been played before.
These aren’t the words you need to hear.

Through the dawn of darkness blindly,
You have blood upon your hands.
All the world will treat you kindly,
But only the heart will understand, oh understand…

CHORUS 2:
If we could only get out of our heads, out of our heads,
And into our hearts….
Children of Abraham, lay down your fears, swallow your
tears, and look to your heart.

(repeat CHORUS 2)

Every man is his own prophet,
Oh, every prophet just a man.
I say, all the women stand up, say yes to themselves;
Teach your children best you can.

Let every man bow to the best in himself;
We’re not killing any more.
We’re the wisest ones, everybody listen,
‘Cause you can’t fight this feeling any more, oh, any more…

CHORUS 2 (repeat)

End on:

Am
Ohhhh….

** These chords and lyrics are interpretations and transcriptions, respectively, and are the sole property of the copyright holder(s). They are posted on this website free of charge for no profit for the purpose of study and commentary, as allowed for under the “fair use” provision of U.S. copyright law, and should only be used for such personal and/or academic work. **

“Evil Disappointment” (New Music – Indie Music)

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By Jeff Copperthite:

Welcome to an event so awesome, it can only come once a week – Original Wednesday! Today, I bring you the first Laptop Sessions edition that is covering something from a great album from FMP’s own Masters of the Universe. Their new album is called “Homestead’s Revenge”, available at MoU’s Website.

The song I have chosen to cover is “Evil Disappointment”, written by Mike Fusco. I got the chance to hear the song before the release of the album (well, only two days before), and I get to play drums when we play it live (or better yet, I “let” Jim play the bass!). This song has a great guitar progression, and the strumming style fits the songs’ lyrics and Mike’s writing style to the tee.

Just as Jim and Chris have reviewed my album “Greenlight”, I will be writing a review of this album as well in the near future.

Meanwhile, enjoy this addition to the growing Original Wednesday library here at FMP’s The Laptop Sessions! Stay tuned for another great song from Jim tomorrow, and come back Saturday for another video from America!

Editor’s Note: Unfortunately, Jeff’s acoustic cover song music videos are no longer on YouTube, but we decided to keep his cover song blog posts up.  We figured these music blog entries would be good for posterity’s sake and because Jeff always gave such insightful posts each Session.  We hope to see Jeff’s impressive catalog of acoustic rock songs here on the Laptop Sessions cover songs and original music blog again in the future.  But, for now, please make sure to check-out hundreds of other acoustic cover songs from all of your favorite bands here on the Laptop Sessions music blog!

“Bathtub Gin” (Phish cover) [Ep 8, Fall 2011]

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By Jeremy Hammond:

I recently had to take my acoustic/electric into the shop to get it looked at, since the “electric” half of it wasn’t working, and a Made in the U.S.A. Fender Strat was hanging on the wall.  I couldn’t resist.  I took it home (yes, I paid for it first).  It feels great and has great tone and sustain, even out of my tiny little amp. So here’s “Bathtub Gin” by Phish.  I laid down the rhythm and vocals first (single take), and then laid the solo over that track. This is a fun tune and I love the solo melody, particularly when played on my new ax.

[Editor’s Note: We’re happy to welcome Jeremy Hammond back for another featured performance on the Guest Sessions.  He’s another one we bend the rules for a bit — there’s a solo overdubbed — but this is hardly bending, since the main performance (electric and vocals) was recorded live, at the same time.  “Bathtub Gin” is a great song; lyrically, it sounds Dylan-esque, which is more than fine with us!  🙂  The guitar work is perfect, and the solo is spot-on.  So, go ahead and enjoy this cool cover song music video by Jeremy and hurry back next week for the season finale!]