“Shoe Box” (Barenaked Ladies Cover)

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By Jim Fusco:

Tonight, another event in my ongoing tribute entitled, “Steven Page, we hardly knew ye.”  Steven Page leaving Barenaked Ladies has been traumatic for me, musically.  It’s like if John left the Beatles and the band went on without him.  They’d still be a great band with three songwriters, singers, and musicians, but you would always wonder if they’ll ever get back together, etc…

At first, I likened Steven Page leaving Barenaked Ladies after 20 years to Brian Wilson taking a self-inflicted leave from the Beach Boys starting in late 1967.  But, I then realized that Page leaving BNL is much worse in a way, but better in another.

You see, when Brian Wilson stopped making music with the Beach Boys on a regular basis (and being the producer), the other Boys (Carl, Dennis, Mike, Al, and Bruce) hadn’t really been accomplished songwriters yet.  I mean, it took them until 1968 to really put together an album and it definitely sounds like a first effort in many ways.  We were all just lucky to discover five brilliant songwriters behind Brian Wilson.  In many ways, for me, Brian recessing in the Beach Boys contributes to my love of the band because, well, they really became a band after that.  You had five songwriting members that played instruments and sang and went out and played concerts- that incarnation of the Beach Boys is almost unsurpassed, for me.

With Steven Page, he leaves the band with three accomplished songwriters (especially Ed Robertson, with a #1 single in “One Week” under his belt) and some fine singers, to boot.  So, BNL has a bit of a head-start.  In fact, there shouldn’t be too much of a hiccup, other than Page’s recent flurry of depressing songs and over-the-top oparetta vocals.

The thing that makes Page’s absence worse is that, at least for the forseeable future, it’s permanent.  With the Beach Boys, Brian was always still around in some form.  He always contributed at least one song to every album, even if they had to dig it up and force him to complete it.  Fans would always hope for the next Brian Wilson gem and it was comforting to know he was there, readying himself for a possible comeback that never really came.  Of course, I say this like I was there- I wasn’t even alive until after Brian’s amazingly talented brother Dennis died- I’m just speaking from what I’ve read in the past.

So, after that whole explanation, I’m really trying to say that I’m having a hard time getting over the restructuring of my second-all-time favorite band.  Tonight’s video is a little tribute to Steven Page.

“Shoe Box” (which I always thought was “Shoebox”) was a single and had its own EP (with includes a decent song in “Trust Me’) and served as a bridge between the style of the first three albums and the albums to follow (starting with “Stunt”).  The song was also on “Born On A Pirate Ship” in a much more subdued tone, much to that version’s detriment.  The rockin’ single version is my choice, and that’s what I did my video after.  How can you tell them apart?  Well, the album verison just starts off with the instruments and vocals at the same time.  The single goes through the chord progression before Steven Page starts in.

Listen to the words closely on this one- a very interesting message to it.  Also, you may have to look up the words, as it took Chris and I about five years to realize that he’s not saying, “And Rumplestiltskin side my shoe box!” and is in fact saying, “When talk turns to single malts and Stilton and my shoe box!”  Who would’ve thought?

Okay- a long post tonight to make up for last week.  Tomorrow night, I have a BIG announcement about my new album and that just means more work for me.  So, you’ll have to stay tuned until another all-new Original Wednesday comes your way!  Have a great night and I’ll catch you all tomorrow!

“Margaritaville” (Jimmy Buffett Cover)

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By Jim Fusco:

Welcome, Parrotheads, to the Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog!

Now, don’t get too excited. I, like most people, pretty much know just this Jimmy Buffett song and not much else.  But, I was at Mohegan Sun casino last week and walked by the new Margaritaville club and bar they have.  I, of course, thought of this song and decided it would be a nice fit for the Laptop Sessions!

But, for a three-chord song, this certainly took me a few tries to get it right.  I really do feel like I should be wasted away again in Margaritaville after that recording session…

What a life Jimmy Buffett must have.  He wrote a song about lounging around in the tropics while sulking over some unmentioned tragedy, and now he’s the king of a Margaritaville empire!  They have hats, t-shirts, a whole food and drink line, and now a line of bars.  His site is known as Margaritaville- it’s almost like the song comes first and the man comes second.  It’ll be an interesting surprise to see if any of the guys here on the music video blog do a different Jimmy Buffett song in the future…

Tonight, I feel a bit like sinking away, as I learned that my brand-new Mac Pro computer, which I haven’t even gotten to pay the bill for yet, is already obsolete.  A new version came out, just as I said it would, and is twice as fast, just as I said it would, for the same price…just as I said it would.  How depressing.  I mean, I still love my computer, but I got a bad enough deal on the thing as it was.  Now I feel like I could be getting things done even faster.  And the amount of time I spend down here working on side projects, I think that sounds good to me.  Well, here’s to waiting until the next version comes out and making a lot of money to buy one in the interim.

But here’s a slightly interesting fact about today- today is Square root day!  I’m sure you’re all excited.  It’s the day where the numbers of the month and the day are multiplied together, creating the number of the year.  So, today: 03 x 03 = 09!  It only happens like 7 times a century, and the next one isn’t until 4/4/16.  So, there’s another “milestone” we’ve all lived through…

Sorry I can’t write a bit more tonight- it’s been a tough and long week already…and it’s only Tuesday.  It’s not going to stop, either, and I already have important plans into next week.  It’s been a crazy time lately- I’m either working away endlessly, or I’m out having a great time, going to the casino, going on weekend trips, etc.  I guess I need some super-fun times to balance out my dull, 15 hour a day working times all week.  I’m already plotting a great weekend…

I’m taking Original Wednesday off this week and will attempt to come back with another next week.  I hope to find some time to finish up the album over the weekend so I can send it out once and for all.  You know I’ll keep you updated on my progress, and I hope you’ll also join me on my quest (in the very near future) of reaching a quarter-million views on YouTube!  Have a great night and see you all next week!

Steven Page leaves the Barenaked Ladies!

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By Chris Moore:

In a post Wednesday on the official Barenaked Ladies website (titled simply as “A Message from Barenaked Ladies”), it was announced that Steven Page has officially left the band after two decades of writing, recording, and performing together with his bandmates.  The first paragraph of the message is as follows:

“By mutual agreement, Steven Page will be parting company with the remaining members of Barenaked Ladies. Jim Creeggan, Kevin Hearn, Ed Robertson, and Tyler Stewart will continue recording and touring together as Barenaked Ladies. Steven Page will pursue solo projects including theatrical opportunities while the band enters the studio in April 2009, and hits the road in the fall.”

For a band that is world-renowned for their candor and lightheartedness, this is quite the sanitized message!  It feels very formal, politic, and purposeful — for instance, the remaining band members are arranged alphabetically.  It seems that the natural response has been to wonder how much of this departure was precipitated by Page’s arrest for drug-related charges in July.  According to the Toronto branch of the AP, Ed Robertson has admitted that it was a “huge event” in their lives, but that Page’s departure “isn’t about that.”

While it isn’t entirely clear what it is about, his split from the band comes at a sad time, just as they were about to go back into the studio to release their first album since BnL turned twenty.  Fortunately for Barenaked Ladies fans, the AP also reported that the remaining members of the band — Ed, Kevin, Jim, and Tyler — will indeed be back in the studio in April to work on a new record. As for Steven Page?  “Solo projects including theatrical opportunities.”

It stands to be noted that the Barenaked Ladies are one of — if not the most — universally loved band around here at the Laptop Sessions, as if this wasn’t already made obvious by the fact that Jim, Chris, Mike, Becky, and Cliff have all participated in BnL cover song music videos over the past couple years — more than any other covered artist! (This record may be tied with the Beach Boys, but I’ll have to check…)

I was struck this morning by just how many of my favorite bands have been split by solo projects recently.  All my favorite nineties bands, to be certain — Rob Thomas first went the way of the solo artist, promising that Matchbox Twenty had not officially broken up and will return to the studio (although Thomas worked in 2008 on his second solo album, there are rumors of a 2009 Matchbox Twenty release!).

Rivers Cuomo released his home recordings under his name, but has continued to write, record, and perform with Weezer.

One by one, personnel change after departure, Jakob Dylan (although there still is officially a Wallflowers band) struck out on his own last year with his debut album Seeing Things.  Apparently Rami Jaffee (the only other original original member aside from Dylan) has still interacted with the band, as evidenced by the recent Rusty Truck performance on Jimmy Kimmel’s show, which featured both Jaffee and longtime Wallflowers bassist Greg Richling.  Jimmy Kimmel mentioned that Dylan had appeared on the Rusty Truck studio recording.  So, they’re still playing together, just not in the Wallflowers…

Over the past few years, other bands have been interrupted by solo projects.  Those projects include this year’s Dan Auerbach album (he’s one half of the blues rock group the Black Keys), as well as last year’s second Raconteurs CD (staffed by, among others, Jack White of the White Stripes).  While these projects have not broken up their main bands, the formation of Jack’s Mannequin in 2004 by Andrew McMahon led to his other band (Something Corporate) to officially go “on hiatus.”

So, interstingly enough, at a time when many people are clinging to their current jobs during a time of economic distress, popular musicians continue to branch out and make music on their own, either separating permanently or temporarily from their bands to work independently.

As Ed Robertson stated in the official message on the BnL website, “It’s the start of a new chapter for all of us. Here’s to the future!”

“A Night Away” (Jim Fusco original song)

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Another Wednesday means another new original song acoustic music video here on the Laptop Sessions music video blog!  The site is more popular than ever and I’m very happy to have my new original music featured in front of so many eyes and ears.

In the midst of working an eight hour day and another almost full-time night job, I got a minute to record this video.  I’ve been working on my new album, “Halfway There” for almost two years now and it’s been a whole four years since my last effort. Well, we did have a band in the middle there, so that’s where all of my creativity went for a couple years.

This song actually branches off of that sentiment.  The band was a great idea in theory.  We were even great on stage.  But, when everyone in the band is close to each other friend-wise, then it makes it really difficult to mix work with it.  If I had met the other band members at a job somewhere, it probably would’ve worked out better.  Tonight’s original song is one that tells the story of the night that signaled the end of the band as we knew it.

I’m not angry.  I’m a bit more ashamed, as I say in the song.  I really wanted the band to work, but realized it wasn’t working and really couldn’t work with the personell we had.  I felt ashamed because I always finish what I start and never got that satisfaction with the band.  We even released an album that was credited to the band last year, but in actuality, it was a compilation of what each member was doing at the time.  When I think of what might have been…

On my new album, this song is probably the most rockin’ out of the 11 tracks.  It’s short, but there’s a pretty cool guitar solo in there that always makes people’s eyes light up whenever I play it for them.  I guess they never pegged me as the Guitar Hero type.  Well, it’s off to work for the rest of the night- I’ll be back for another Jim Fusco Tuesday cover song music video in a short six days.  I hope you enjoy tonight’s video and hopefully sometime in the next week I’ll be sending all of the files and music to the CD company for production.  I still want to remix and remaster four songs because I want this one to be as near-perfect as I can get it.  See you then!