The set list for Brian Wilson’s 7/16/2008 “Greatest Hits” show at the Warner Theatre in downtown Torrington, CT. A review of this great show will follow, so check back here very soon!
1.) Do It Again
2.) Dance, Dance, Dance
3.) Catch a Wave
4.) Surfer Girl
5.) In My Room
6.) Hawaii
7.) Don’t Worry, Baby
8.) You’re So Good to Me
9.) Then I Kissed Her
10.) Drive-In
11.) All Summer Long
12.) When I Grow Up (To Be a Man)
13.) Add Some Music
14.) Do You Wanna Dance?
15.) That Lucky Old Sun track (“I’m goin’ home…”)
16.) California Girls
17.) Sloop John B
18.) Wouldn’t It Be Nice
19.) God Only Knows
20.) Marcella
21.) I Get Around
22.) Good Vibrations
ENCORE
23.) Johnny B Goode
24.) Help Me, Rhonda
25.) Barbara Ann (Brian on bass)
26.) Surfin’ USA (Brian on bass)
27.) Fun, Fun, Fun
ENCORE #2
28.) TLOS track (“Southern California…”)
The venue really was excellent, boasting great acoustics and atmosphere. More on that when I post my review, but this is what it looks like from the outside:
Welcome to September, a truly promising month for new music from the likes of Steven Page, Ben Folds, and Weezer!
Today, I’m taking a break from our regularly scheduled Original Wednesday program of previews from The 2010 Project to bring you a song I just wrote last week.
Specifically, a song I wrote on Monday of last week.
You may be wondering, why Monday? Well, August 23rd — aside from being my friend and sometimes-collaborator Alberto Distefano’s birthday — marked the fifth anniversary of my first date with my girlfriend Nicole. Because we broke up for three months in late 2008, we’ve decided to officially celebrate our anniversary on the day we got back together for the first time, January 2nd. (I’m personally a fan of this date for all its implications of the new year, fresh beginnings, resolutions to be made, and all the promise this invokes. And, although it’s only a week after Christmas, the original date was only a week before her birthday, so proximity to other occasions is not a factor.)
Thus, August 23rd has become the anniversary that we’ve promised to honor, but without monetary expense in the name of gifts.
We never said anything about not spending time to make something like, say, a song!
I spent the better part of my morning last Monday writing, playing, and perfecting “The One For Me.” It is one of the — if not the — best love songs I’ve written, in my opinion. And, for those that don’t know, my opinion is that my love songs are generally sub-par. The version which you will hear in the video below is the first full performance I committed to tape last week. I’ve been playing it numerous times each day since and it has progressed considerably from the form it is in on this session.
Why post an out-of-date version?
For one, I like the idea of showing off a fresh song, without having practiced it or worked on it. What is Original Wednesday, after all, if it is not a place to celebrate the writing process? In addition, I’m trying to imagine a spot for this song on The 2010 Project, so it may show up there. If it does, you will hopefully be able to tell how much it has progressed since this video. (And, it will have turned out that today is indeed another installment of the preview series.)
So, without further ado, I give you “The One For Me.” I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you’ll tune back in for more exciting new material here at the Laptop Sessions as we move into the fall season.
Welcome to my new series: “Jim Fusco’s Guitar Collection”! I was going to go with a more search-engine friendly name like “Singer-Songwriter-Musician Jim Fusco’s Acoustic and Electric Guitar Collection”, but figured I’d go for simplicity on this one. 🙂
The first entry in my guitar collection series is my acoustic guitar. That actually kind of sounds odd to me- my singular acoustic guitar. Yes, I also have an acoustic-electric guitar from Seagull, but the Martin MMV is my one and only true acoustic guitar. It doesn’t have any electronics in it, and that’s 100% fine by me. I actually didn’t want an acoustic guitar with electronics in it because I wanted an old-fashioned heirloom type instrument that I could play for the rest of my life and pass-down to my family for generations. I think I found the perfect guitar for that purpose!
The Martin MMV acoustic guitar was originally made in 2005, though I bought mine in 2009 (and it was made in 2008, I believe). The guitar features all-wood construction with a solid Sitka Spruce top, East Indian Rosewood back and sides (that smells wonderful, by the way), a mahogany neck, and an ebony fretboard. It has a mortise and tenon neck joint, which I know some people frown upon, but honestly, I think anyone would be hard-pressed to hear any differences between that and a set-in neck. Plus, I think this method actually makes the guitar stronger so it’ll last in its current condition that much longer.
The guitar features a light gloss finish. It has some very simple inlays around the sound hole and fake pearl inlays in the fretboard. The Martin logo at the top is a stick-on gold nameplate, as opposed to the inlayed “C. F. Martin” that’s featured on the much more expensive models.
The tone of this guitar is, in my opinion, truly amazing. It’s loud, punchy, and projects the bass very well. The sound is very “tight”, as well. I thought my Seagull acoustic electric sounded fantastic when I first got it. But then I played it next to my Martin and it was no contest. The Martin just sounds great from the start. It almost sounds like it’s already been recorded, if that makes any sense. The guitar’s sound is just perfectly in tune and sparkles, especially on a standard “D” chord where it’s mostly higher-pitch notes.
I truly believe the Martin MMV acoustic guitar to be the best overall value in higher-end acoustic guitars. It has the high-end sound without a high-end price. The only sacrifice is that it doesn’t look very flashy. But, I didn’t buy it to look great. I bought it to sound professional on all of my future recordings. I’d be happy to field any questions on the sound, the materials, or anything else regarding the Martin MMV acoustic guitar!
I didn’t originally plan to make a Christmas music-related list, as there isn’t really much of note this year. However, considering that I have twelve other categories, I figured: why not?
The only song that organically caught my interest this year is Coldplay’s “Christmas Lights.” Released as a single earlier this season, I decided to check it out, as Coldplay’s last album was actually quite good. A bit overrated, to be sure, but certainly one of the best of 2008. And while “Christmas Lights” may not be a contender for an all-time holiday classic, it is the best I’ve heard this year.
The other two that stood out to me are the original tracks from Wilson Phillips’ new Christmas CD. “Warm Lovin’ Christmastime” and “I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day” have the Beach Boys-esque harmonies you’d expect and manage to pull off that Christmas feel that is essential for a great yuletide track.
So, consider checking out these songs, though in this category I am a big fan of the rock classics — Elvis Presley, Phil Spector & friends, Chuck Berry, the Beach Boys, etc. — and new classics — Barenaked Ladies, Moody Blues, Relient K, Brian Wilson, etc.
Merry Christmas to you and yours, and hurry back tomorrow for one of the biggest lists of the year!
The BEST ORIGINAL CHRISTMAS SONGS of 2010
1) “Christmas Lights” – Coldplay
2) “Warm Lovin’ Christmastime” – Wilson Phillips
3) “I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day” – Wilson Phillips
Cover Songs & Original Music Videos By Laptop Sessions Songwriters
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.
