By Jim Fusco:
ALBUM – SURFER GIRL
Hawaii – 7
Surfer Girl – 9
In My Room – 9
Catch A Wave – 8
Little Deuce Coupe – 8 (great blues song)
Surfer Moon – 8
Surfers Rule – 5
Our Car Club – 6 (I like it better on the Little Deuce Coupe album!)
Boogie Woodie – 3
Your Summer Dream – 7
The Rocking Surfer – 2
South Bay Surfer – 1 (ugh)
** Other than a little flakiness at the end of the album, this is a GREAT one- some classics on Side One and the songs I like, I like a LOT. **
By Chris Moore:
Hi all! Just had to write today because there’s some exciting new rock music out there on the web for all you Bob Dylan fans — and the best news is that it is FREE new music!
For those that don’t know, Columbia will be releasing the eighth volume in the Bootleg Series, titled Tell Tale Signs. This multi-disc collection will include previously unreleased tracks, alternate versions of previously released songs, and some great packaging options. For the complete low-down, check out Bob Dylan’s official website…
…where you can download a free mp3 of “Dreamin’ of You,” an outtake from the Time Out of Mind sessions!
What I find most interesting and entertaining about the song is that it has echoes of other songs from the album; a fan of Time Out of Mind will notice the lines from other tracks that are in “Dreamin’ of You” in various forms. It’s almost as if he scrapped this song and yet salvaged some key lines from the wreckage. But why wouldn’t the song have been included? From the moment the drums kick in, this is an amazing track and gives me high hopes for the Bootleg Series release on October 7 — if the other tracks are anywhere near this type of quality, then it will certainly be another amazing addition to the series. (It’s hard to believe it’s been almost two decades since the first Bootleg album was released!)
I really can see why the song wouldn’t have made it to the album; it has a different feel to it than much of the other material on his 1997 release. But it is a PRIME candidate for this collection of Dylan tracks — a must-listen, to be sure!
Thank you, Bob Dylan, and thank you, Columbia, for this advance release!
By Chris Moore:
Even with digital releases, there are album covers. This seems to be the final facet of the artistry of the album that will survive into the next generation of music consumers, especially considering just how much we like colorful displays on our technology. Still, there’s something so much more gorgeous about a CD booklet or, even better, a vinyl LP. The five selections below – with an honorable mention thrown in because I couldn’t ignore it – are examples of the artists who still give attention to the complete package of their albums. It was a tight contest between the top three, and these are all albums worth checking out the next time you’re in a store that offers records, even if you’re only going to take a glance.
1) Sky Full of Holes – Fountains of Wayne
2) The King of Limbs – Radiohead
3) Cloud Maintenance – Kevin Hearn
4) The Valley – Eisley
5) The Whole Love – Wilco
Honorable Mention:
Helplessness Blues – Fleet Foxes
By Chris Moore:
Well, tonight’s going to be a brief one, and I apologize. But I made up for it by calling in the big guns — aka one Jim Fusco for additional guitar stylings and harmony vocals — to make this video one my favorites that I’ve done. It’s certainly the best Christmas video that I’ve recorded. We had a lot of fun playing it, and I think that comes through on the recording.
I hope you enjoy it!
Oh, yeah, I should probably mention what song it is. This is “Green Christmas,” one of the holiday originals on the Barenaked Ladies’ Barenaked For the Holidays album. Second only to “Elf’s Lament” and maybe “Christmastime (Oh Yeah),” this is one of my favorite original tracks on the album. There’s just the right mix of humor and seriousness on this record, and I think this one leans more toward the serious side. I especially like the middle part — “Green, cause of everything I miss. All this missletoe, no kiss…”
Simply put, this was a lot of fun to record.
And it’s certainly not like we haven’t played it before. It’s been a while, but this song is officially part of our MoU Christmas Chord Book, Part II. That’s right, we needed multiple chord books to contain the number of songs we learned for our Christmas shows.
The reason this post is so brief is that I remembered and recorded my video much later than I would have liked, and then, Jim and I watched the SNL “Best of Christmas Past” DVD while wrapping our gifts for Christmas. It felt good to accomplish that while simultaneously watching some great skits — the Matt Foley “motivational speaker” Santa, Alec Baldwin’s “Shvety balls,” Eddie Murphy’s “Mr. Robinson’s neighborhood, and boy does the list go on… — and laughing (a lot!) together.
And, now, it will feel good to sleep…
See you next session!
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The Laptop Sessions music video blog is a great combination of acoustic cover songs and original music. This website features cover songs from many of rock music's greatest bands, including the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and Bob Dylan. The blog is updated every day with another acoustic cover video, how-to video, or article about music. We only play the best cover songs from the best rock bands of all time. Here at the Laptop Sessions, we don't just sit down and do a bunch of cover songs- we make them our own. Yes, each cover will sound like the original, but it will also have a new, fresh sound to it. One of our specialties is taking a song from say the eighties and stripping-away the production. Then, we're left with just the song- simple (and most times, much better). We then record an acoustic version of that song and put it on this music video blog for all music fans to watch. But, Laptop Sessions Music Blog is much more than just videos. There are informative blog posts, including the chords and lyrics to your favorite songs, recording tips, and much more. Plus, you can buy Jim Fusco's original songs right here on the music blog! Right from the start, the Laptop Sessions Acoustic Cover Songs & Music Video Blog set out to be different. We wanted to give the best music blog for the world to enjoy. We wanted to put an end to bad YouTube cover videos forever. We wanted to bring great rock music back to the forefront with our great cover songs and original music. And, we guarantee we'll keep it this way- free videos that are updated constantly for your musical enjoyment. If you're looking for the best cover songs, the most exciting new music, and the most informative music articles, look no further than right here: home of the world-famous Laptop Sessions. |