By Jim Fusco:
Hello all! Well, I mentioned earlier about the new site we’re planning to unveil soon. I wanted to post my original Photoshop mockup of the design so everyone can compare it to the real version that Cliff will make so much better. Let’s just say I’m giving him “creative control”…
Here’s the design- hope you all like it!
By Jim Fusco:
Welcome to Original Wednesday! How exciting for me, because it only comes once every three weeks.I can’t wait until my new music officially comes out so I can do Sessions of those songs, but for now, I’ll settle for my last album, “What About Today?”
This song is called “Don’t Be That Way” and it kicks off the album. There’s some references to my past songs in here, so if you know any of my older music, you’ll get the “inside lines”. This song goes along those lines of someone taking and not reciprocating as much as I’d like them to. Must be a pretty strong topic with me! 🙂
Well, I recorded this just last night, so you see I’m back to health again. I actually recorded 8 total songs last night! Hey, if you’re on a roll, don’t stop it.
If you really like this song, and I think you will, you can download the original version on iTunes! That’s right- just search my name, the name of the album (What About Today?), or the name of the song and you can get it for only 99 cents!
You can also buy the physical CD on Amazon.com, CDBaby, or at my own website by clicking here!
MoU even did a version of this song on their first album. Same thing- you can order it on iTunes, CDBaby, or on our own site by clicking here!
I hope you enjoy and stay tuned for an amazing Thursday pick from our own Chris Moore!
Welcome to your Super Bowl Sunday edition of The Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog! As a quick note on the Super Bowl, I’m a Jets “fan”, so even though this concerns two northeast teams, I really don’t care who wins. On top of that, I’m a baseball fan, so hearing that the Mets signed Johan Santana, it already feels like a win.
On to today’s acoustic cover song:
I’ve said it before, but Gene Clark is in the running for best songwriter of all time. Those know know Gene’s music share my admiration of it, and even though finding someone who’s even HEARD of him is few and far between, I know this acoustic cover version of “Dark of My Moon” will make a lot of fans very happy.
“Dark of My Moon” and is an “unreleased” song that was formally released only as an acoustic demo a few years ago (long after Gene passed away). This has been a favorite of everyone in my family since we first heard it and I’m proud to bring it to the Laptop Sessions music blog.
This literally took me 30 takes to do. This is a very powerful song and I needed to do it right. I found that the more I played it, the harder it became to sing. But, after plenty of loud obscenities, I finally got the perfect take, which I present to you today.
Listen to the words of this song and listen to how the music rises and falls with the emotions. Not all of Gene Clark’s songs were this slow and sad-sounding, but most of them had this hint of melancholy to them. Even in a fast-paced song like “Feel A Whole Lot Better”, Gene would put this sad tinge on the lyrics. But, what’s interesting about “Feel A Whole Lot Better” is how he says, “I’ll probably feel a whole lot better when you’re gone.” He doesn’t even know for sure! I think that extra dimension to Gene Clark’s lyrics is what made him so great. He had a way with words and you could tell he looked up to guys like Bob Dylan. For “Dark of My Moon”, you can tell it’s a very personal song. Lines like, “That’s the tenth time that you went and then came back,” make the listener realize that he’s talking about something (and someone) very specific. On songs like that, I usually choose not to do a cover version. But, “Dark of My Moon” is such a great song, I just couldn’t help it. The way Gene Clark sings in the rough demo version is just perfectly suited to the content of the song. This is only the first of many solo Gene Clark cover songs to come here on the video blog (not to mention those he did with the Byrds), so I hope everyone enjoys it!
Stay tuned as the Laptop Session a day in 2008 “keeps burnin'”! (to quote another great Gene Clark song)
By Jim Fusco:
Hello everyone and welcome to your Thursday fix of the Laptop Sessions music blog!
I’ve been sick with a cold these past couple of days- good thing I had a couple of cover song videos in reserve! I should be back to my healthy self again over the weekend, and I have a list of literally 40 different songs to record cover song music videos for the Sessions…hopefully not all in one day…
This tune is a great one from Paul McCartney’s late 90’s album, “Flaming Pie”. That album stands as one of my all-time favorites because it came out right when I was really getting into music seriously. My family listened to it constantly. I plan on doing most of the songs off this album eventually because of it. “Flaming Pie”, for me, will always be the “vacation” album. I remember the summer that this album came out. My family went on vacation- a road trip to one of the New England states. We listened to this album constantly while on the trip. It was so exciting to go into a music store and see this album being promoted. I remember listening to the album on headphones in one of these stores (remember those kiosks?). But the weird thing was- we were listening to it in the car! I guess I was just excited to see an album I liked getting some popularity for once.
Paul McCartney’s songs, dare I say, are much better when he’s in a bad mood. Unfortunately, his wife was suffering from cancer at the time he wrote and recorded “Flaming Pie”. The emotions Paul put into this album range from sweet (“Little Willow”) to edgy (“Really Love You”). I think “Flaming Pie” features some of the best songs he’s ever written. “Heaven On A Sunday” is one of my absolute favorites- it’s just got that perfect peaceful sound. And “The World Tonight” is just a great rock’n’roll song- the perfect single. Paul even makes mention of his old friend John Lennon. You remember John’s story of how the Beatles got their name, right? “A man on a flaming pie came down and told me to spell “Beetles” with an “a”.” Yeah, right. Anyway, it made for a great song (and album) many, many years later.
This tune is a great one on acoustic guitar and was one of the first songs I leaned to play on guitar. It’s fun to sing and has a great melody, but most of all, I love the message in the song. “He’s gotta do it for himself.” How many times have I tried to steer someone in the “right” direction, only to learn that the person needed to learn on his own. I love when people learn from others’ mistakes, but I also accept the fact that it doesn’t happen that often.
I hope you enjoy tonight’s Paul McCartney cover song. “Young Boy” is a great one for you to learn, too. Just start with C – Am – Em – F – G. There- you’ve got the verse and you’ve mastered five different chords! Stay tuned for many more Paul McCartney songs here on the Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog!