It’s true, folks- after a false start a few months ago, Jim Fusco’s Laptop Sessions acoustic cover song music videos will be broadcast in full HD (high definition) on YouTube!
We here at the best music video blog ever created want to keep up with the times an create new, nicer-looking videos that you’ll love to watch.
With Jim’s new higher speed Internet, professional stereo microphone, and HD video capability, you’ll feel like you’re in the room with Jim while he’s recording your favorite songs acoustically!
The best part about contributing to this blog is that, every so often, all the pieces fall together at just the right time. For example, I still have the remnants of a cough that just doesn’t seem to want to leave me entirely, yet I really wanted to record a new video for tonight. Meanwhile, over the weekend, I was listening to Jack Johnson on shuffle when this song — “Broken” from his Sing-a-Longs and Lullabies from Curious George soundtrack CD — and immediately felt the urge to learn and record it.
Fortunately, the register is fairly low and the chords are very simple, so this was a joy to lay down as a session.
Of course, every cover song music video is not without its challenges when it involves me…
The only difficult aspect of this song is that, although I’ve heard it dozens of times and could sing along to the chorus in my sleep, I really don’t know the verse. Thus, I put “Broken” on repeat in my car on the way home. After listening to it seven or eight times straight, I didn’t seem to be much closer to nailing the lyrics. Still, I soldiered on — I typed up the lyrics from the booklet and practiced a few times to the music. Finally, I practiced a few times on my own before I hit the “record” button.
And, a few takes later, you have a session to watch!
The reason I was listening to Jack Johnson in the first place was that Mike showed Jim and I his copy of En Concert, the new live CD/DVD, this past Thursday at wrestling. Based on my disappointment at his last record, I hadn’t purchased the CD myself, but Mike had nothing but great things to say about it, so it’s only a matter of time before I find my way back to the “J” section of my local Newbury Comics store…
Speaking of new music, I am wildly curious about tomorrow’s new Weezer release. The title alone has caused some controversy. Based on a recommendation from The Office actor Rainn Wilson (who plays Dwight Schrute), Rivers Cuomo and company titled their latest studio album Raditude. I’ve heard the first track, “(If You’re Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To” and it may be cheesy, but it sounds great and it’s fun to listen to. That being said, the other titles on the album alone are enough to make one question what Raditude will be like — tracks like “I’m Your Daddy” and “Girl Got Hot.”
All I will say for now is that TheRed Album seemed very weird at first, and it quickly grew on me. I was just listening to it this weekend, in fact, and realizing that it is truly one of my favorite Weezer releases. I can’t imagine that this new album will be up to that level, but I have promised myself that I will reserve judgment until after I’ve heard it a few times. Based on their incredible catalog alone, Weezer really does deserve the benefit of the doubt.
More on that next time…
And that about does it for me, at least for now. This week is crazy for me, as my grades are due this Friday. In addition, I have meetings today and now Thursday, a full day of professional development (i.e. no time to grade) tomorrow, and I’m monitoring the selling of tickets at the drama production on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Add in some wrestling on Thursday night and a whole lot a gradin’ goin’ on, and I’ve got one busy week! I am looking forward to the weekend, as I’ll be completing a swap with my former student Geoff — some Ben Folds for some Tom Waits. It’s bound to give me some more interesting listening and perhaps some more interesting Laptop Sessions songs…
Welcome to another week of the Laptop Sessions with me, Jim Fusco! Tonight, I bring you the week’s first video in the Beach Boys’ classic song, “The Trader”.
First, let me say that tonight’s video is potentially the last that I’ll record here in the condo. You’ll notice that this is the first video I’ve done since the studio was painted back to white- it’s sad, but I hope to rebuild bigger and better (and smarter) someday!
Onto tonight’s video: Carl Wilson wrote, in my opinion, one of the greatest songs of all time in “The Trader” for the Beach Boys’ 1973 album, Holland. I love the album, too- they were just so cool in 1973. Dennis’ contributions to the album were great and Mike Love gave his best song of all time in “Big Sur”.
But, Carl really stole the show with “The Trader”, a two-part masterpiece about an explorer finding a new land and claiming it for “velvet robes” (royalty). In the process, he kicks-out the natives from the land and builds shops, roads, etc. through their beautiful countryside. So many times things like this have happened through history, just because (as the song says) someone comes in, sees someone else already there, and is threatened because they say, “They’re not like me.”
The second part of the song, in my opinion, is supposed to be from the point of view of the natives. How they see the world is so much different from the imperialistic visions of the “Trader” and, honestly, I always lose myself in the second part of this song. The imagery that Carl and co-writer Jack Rieley put into their lyrics make me feel so bad for these people that were driven out of their homes and native land. It’s such an odd idea that the evening breeze, the merging streams, etc. can all be valid “reasons to live” as we all (myself included) rely on such materialistic things.
Obviously, Carl lends an amazing vocal to this track, as he pretty much always did with his songs and others. I tried to replicate it best I could here and believe I got the vocals down pretty good! The second part of the song is sung much softer than I had anticipated, but I decided to keep it because it allowed me to sing a bit “sweeter” without having to project my voice. Believe it or not, after just two false-starts, I was able to record this take. I guess it helps when you’ve heard a song about 200 times over a span of fifteen years.
I’m currently racking my brain for some ideas on how to increase traffic to the site. Our numbers are still up over last year’s numbers, but I fear for next year’s numbers. It’s going to be tough to get back up there again without my ability to bug the other guys to step-it-up (which, in turn, makes me step-it-up). So much has changed since I started this blog. It’s hard to believe what’s gone on in the past two years. Looking through our Original Wednesday posts, it was so interesting to get a once-a-week view of the three of our lives. One minute, you’re best friends with someone, the next you barely know them. And one week someone is missing someone, and a few weeks later, they’re not anymore. So, if you’ve been visiting the Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog recently, maybe you should take a look back through the archives and see where we were all at during the past couple of years. You’ll learn a lot about us and learn how much things can change in such a short period of time.
It is my pleasure to welcome you once again to a brand-new week of all-new acoustic cover song music videos here at the Laptop Sessions. Following up my version of “Just Breathe” from Pearl Jam’s new 2009 album, I’m happy to present to you a new band to the blog and a new 2009 single.
If you’ve visited our site before, then you know that “New Music” is my niche here at the blog. I get a great deal of direction in terms of what to learn, record, or write about from the new music that I’m listening to, week by week. Up until last week, it had been a while since I delved into the new release racks for a session, so I’m attempting to make up for that tonight and later this week.
My video tonight is the mid-album cut “Cornerstone” from the Arctic Monkeys’ 2009 release Humbug. Previous to hearing this record, I didn’t know all that much about the Monkeys, and frankly, there wasn’t much that I found appealing. Since their rise to fame via the Internet in 2006, their work has been praised by some — Rolling Stone, for one — as outstanding, and it has also been disparaged as overrated. In addition, they received a backlash of criticism upon releasing their Who the Fuck are Arctic Monkeys EP merely three months after their debut album. Some called it a greedy move, while the band maintained that they wanted to release new material that they would be adding to their live shows. Now, I’ve certainly never been one to defend EP’s (Ben Folds and the Supersunnyspeedgraphic nonsense, anyone?), and I don’t plan to start here. Still, one should keep in mind that an album is typically recorded a significant time before its actual release — in this case, the EP was released seven months after the band finished recording their debut album.
Anyway, this album was recommended to me by a former student and friend who has tuned me in to some great material from Beck, Cold War Kids, and Harvey Danger — in other words, bands that I wouldn’t have listened to on my own. He described it as being more “slow and contemplative instead of just in your face punk music” which, for anyone who knows me, immediately got my attention!
While I rated this album as a “Maybe So,” it really is one of my favorites this year. It’s the type of album you can listen to again and again without it getting old. I love their style here: the songs are unique, and yet reminiscent of some of the greatest rock of the sixties, and their lyrics really make the music stand out to me.
Which brings me to “Cornerstone.”
I will never forget driving to school, listening to this song for the first time. I had been enjoying the album, but this song really made me stop and take notice. There is this devious tone in Alex Turner’s voice as he sings the story of a man searching for a girl who has left him. Did she break up with him? Has she died? Regardless, he is prowling the dirtiest-sounding dives, flirting and engaging with women of whom he soon makes an odd request.
He asks if it would be acceptable for him to refer to them by the name of his ex-lover.
No big deal. It doesn’t hurt to ask, right? Well, that’s not the case for most of the song. But you’ll have to listen until the end to find out how he fares.
In other new music news, I’m excited about picking up Bob Dylan’s first ever Christmas album, Christmas in the Heart. Of course, this is a mixed bag. After all, contrary to the fact that several holiday albums are coming out tomorrow, I think that it’s far too soon to start listening to Christmas music. I’ll probably end up listening to it once before I tuck it away for the day after Thanksgiving… The other question in my mind is whether or not the deluxe edition is worth the extra money. From what I can tell from the limited descriptions I’ve been able to find online, there are some greeting cards attached in the special edition. Well, how many? Do you save them or do you send them? How many people would truly appreciate a Bob Dylan Christmas card? Is his face on the cards? Could be scary to small children or residents of small New Jersey towns…
Well, that’s enough for tonight. I hope you enjoy my video. If you like it, you should mark your calendars for October 15th when the official music video for “Cornerstone” is set to be released. It has also been scheduled to be released as the second single from Humbug about a month after that.
