They said it wouldn’t happen. There’s no way the album would ever be released. It was even written about in the newspapers. But, these words of discouragement are what seem to drive Masters of the Universe.
Fast-forward two years to the day since MoU’s first (self-titled) album release.
“Homestead’s Revenge” combines the songwriting skills of all five members along with expert harmonies and instrumentation. The album is nothing less than a polished work of art.
The album is available in two forms: Digital download and physical CD, both for only $9.99!
We know you’ll enjoy the album and guarantee it’s the best you’ll hear in 2008! We’d love to hear all comments and if you have any questions, we’ll be happy to answer.
“Homestead’s Revenge”, the new album from Masters of the Universe, is coming out tomorrow.
April Fools?
We hope not, but I for one won’t believe it until I see it.
Needless to say, I’ll be downstairs mastering songs for a LONG time tonight, then working on covers, back covers, inside spreads, mp3 files, and websites. Ugh. But, this album’s worth it- you’re going to LOVE it!
Welcome to your Friday edition of The Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog! After two strong Sessions from Chris and Jeff, I’m glad I can follow up with a song that I’ve been playing for a long time now, Barenaked Ladies’ “Brian Wilson”.
This song is very important to me, as it was the song that initially got me into BNL because a friend played it for me thinking I would like the Brian Wilson references. Of course, I did. But, I loved the song, too.
I now own all of BNL’s albums, have met them and got them to sign their latest (and greatest) album, and they are now my second favorite band of all time behind the Beach Boys at a permanent #1 spot.
I love the way Masters of the Universe did this song- I had the privilege of singing lead on their version. We did five part harmonies on the chorus. There’s a live version of it here on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0rBfLk70vU
So, you have a song by my second favorite band ABOUT my favorite ever songwriter! Doesn’t get much better than that.
So, here’s my solo acoustic version- I could play this one with my eyes closed, so the performance is very smooth and comfortable, if I do say so myself! 😉
Let me tell you why I love Barenaked Ladies (the band, of course), the Beach Boys, the Moody Blues, the Byrds, and bands like that so much more than I like the Wallflowers, Ben Folds, and Dylan. I love all of their music, but I gravitate towards the first set of bands. You see, I love bands where every band member gets a chance to contribute. Many bands only have one front man and the rest are just background guys. Take “Matchbox Twenty” for example. Rob Thomas is the lead. Now, someone name another band member. That’s right- Thomas IS the band! Sure, there are other guys that play his music, but he’s the guy who writes the songs and sings them, too. If you take a band like the Beach Boys, you might think the same thing: “Oh yeah, it’s just Brian Wilson and a bunch of other guys.” Sure, that was kind of true before 1967. But after that, Brian faded into the background and the other band members (his brothers, his cousin, and a friend) had to take over. They all began writing songs. The best example was the album “Sunflower”. Every member had a hand in writing and singing on that album- it’s one of my favorites as a result. That way, you get such a great variety.
Enjoy “Brian Wilson” by Barenaked Ladies. It’s such a great song. And even though I couldn’t get the Jim Creegan bass solo in there, I still think this live acoustic version does the song justice. Stay tuned for more great acoustic cover songs from the Laptop Sessions music blog!
Back again for another edition of the Laptop Sessions, this time a first: with a band! Here with me are Chris Moore, Mike Fusco, and Cliff Huizenga- all members of the band Masters of the Universe (or MoU, as we call it). You can check out all of our original music on our website at http://jimfusco.com/albums.html! There, you’ll find everything we’ve ever recorded. And, it’s all free to listen to online before you buy. I can personally guarantee that the original songs you hear on MoU’s website are top-notch. There’s just something magical that happens when five creative people get together and make music. It’s like when the Traveling Wilburys were formed. They just all wanted to make music together and had a good time doing it.
Speaking of “good times”, you can clearly tell we’re having a ball singing “The Man With All The Toys”, originally played by the Beach Boys. MoU did a great live version in concert last year, so we wanted to reprise that with this live acoustic version in my basement studio. Cliff normally plays bass, but decided to provide only vocals for these sessions. But, you’ll hear his great bass playing abilities (plus Mike’s full drum set and guitar work) on MoU’s normal studio and live efforts. One interesting thing is that the live version MoU did of “The Man with All the Toys” for our Christmas album was actually in the wrong key! I didn’t realize it at the time, but we were actually singing the song a half-step higher than the Beach Boys did in 1964. We rectified that problem for this music video.
I’ve said it a million times before, but the Beach Boys Christmas Album is one of my favorite albums (Christmas or otherwise) of all time. It’s got such a great style and charm to it. The members of the Beach Boys sound so young and happy- it’s just a great album if you want to put a smile on your face. And, for the first side of the album, the Beach Boys themselves play all the instruments. So, you get a really special sound. The original songs, with the likes of “The Little Saint Nick” and “Santa’s Beard” have become hits, and “The Man With All The Toys” is no exception. It’s such a short song- it wasn’t until about 40 years later when Brian Wilson re-recorded this song (I guess a self-cover song of sorts) for his solo Christmas album, “What I Really Want for Christmas”, that he extended the tune by adding a rocking instrumental break. But, I’m happy with the sub-two minute original version, as well. It’s a little slice of musical heaven. Their voices were perfect on the vocal breaks and it’s really just a great holiday song.
I hope you enjoy tonight’s Beach Boys cover song and over the years, we’ll be bringing you many more Christmas songs here on the Laptop Sessions acoustic cover songs music video blog!
