Tag Archives: solo

New Web Series: The Open Mic Sessions with Jim Fusco!

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By Jim Fusco:

Hello everyone- It’s been quite a while since I’ve gotten to sit down and record more Laptop  Sessions cover song music videos for you.  I have a bunch of great ideas saved-up, but my focus lately has been more on my original music.  I have a newfound passion for guitar tone, so I’ve learned to rewire my collection of electric guitars and put new pickups in almost all of them.  I want to get as many great sounds as possible for the recording of my next batch of songs.

I also realized that I have more than 250 videos on YouTube- mostly cover songs from bands like the Beach Boys, the Beatles, the Moody Blues, the Monkees, and many, many more.  Instead of increasing that number even more, I’ll be promoting all of my older videos to give them new life!

While I’m doing that, I’ll be driving around Connecticut playing at various Open Mic Nights.  I have my great Seagull acoustic-electric Entourage Rustic guitar, and I’ll even bring my electric guitars (and future small tube-amps) around with me.  My goal is to record videos of a different original song each time I go out.  I’ve already done a few.

Sure, the quality is so-so (iPhone video), the crowds are small and/or non-existent, and some of the videos are only part of the song (for instance, when my phone ran out of storage space on “Halfway There” a couple weeks ago).  But, I think these videos will be a valuable addition to the work I’ve done here for the Laptop Sessions music blog.  After all, we recorded all of these cover song videos in an attempt to make people curious about our original music, too.  So, now it’s finally time to implement phase two!

So, stay tuned in the coming weeks, as I’ll debut new videos as I record them.  I’ll put them on the music blog on Wednesdays, like our old “Original Wednesday” posts from back in the cover-song-heyday.  I hoe you enjoy the videos and will share them with your friends!

“Liverpool 8” (Ringo Starr Cover)

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By Chris Moore:

Here’s track one, and the title track, from Ringo’s latest album, “Liverpool 8.” Now, I realize that this is not the first “when I was a Beatle…” song that a reminiscent solo Beatle has put out, but I love it. It’s an interesting story, and it’s a great addition to such songs as George Harrison’s “When We Was Fab.”

There was actually a “Liverpool 8” video contest on the Ringo Starr YouTube page, but I messaged the channel and never received a reply…

See you next session!


“Wilted Rose” (Vanity Project Cover)

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For Vanity Project chords & lyrics, CLICK HERE!

By Chris Moore:

Hello and welcome to another week of rock’n’roll related intrigue at the Laptop Sessions acoustic cover song music video blog!  This is an exciting time for the blog, as we have consistently been pumping out more quality material for you than any time since the session-a-day project ended.  This week, for instance, you can look forward to your typical Monday and Tuesday excellence in cover song music video form, a final Jimi Hendrix-themed edition of “Yes, No, or Maybe So, Retro,” two more installments in the “Top Five Rock Artists of the Decade, 2000-2009” list, a Guest Session on Friday by an all-new contributor (bringing back an oft-covered band), AND it’ll all be tied up by a full length Weekend Review on Sunday.

Not bad for a free blog…

Tonight, I bring you “Wilted Rose,” a song from the Vanity Project’s 2005 self-titled debut release.  For those of you unfamiliar with the Vanity Project, this is the title of former Barenaked Ladies co-frontman Steven Page’s solo album.  Well, it’s not technically a solo album in the strictest sense of the term, but for all intents and purposes, The Vanity Project is a Page solo album populated mainly by collaborations with Stephen Duffy.  Page and Duffy have been swapping lines and tunes for years, and many of their co-written efforts have been recorded by the Barenaked Ladies.  Here, Page is able to record those songs that simply weren’t a clear fit for the Barenaked Ladies.

I couldn’t believe one of us hadn’t already recorded this song for the blog — after all, it was included in the official MoU chordbook, even though it was only a rare live track.  In addition, this is the right time to have Steven Page on the brain, as the first of two Page solo efforts is due in stores tomorrow.  Now, tomorrow’s release is the less-anticipated A Singer Must Die, a collection of ten cover songs performed with the Art of Time Ensemble.  Although I’m much more interested and excited for his first solo album proper, Page certainly picked out some interesting tunes to cover — the title track from Leonard Cohen and “For We Are the King of the Boudoir” by the Magnetic Fields to name a couple.  Some of his other choices boggle my mind — why re-record “Running Out of Ink” so soon, for example?  Or why attempt an Elvis Costello deep track like “I Want You” when Fiona Apple’s cover version is already the quintessential take on it?

Overall, I can’t imagine quite what this album will sound like, but I’m very excited to hear it.  There’s only one problem: even Newbury Comics didn’t include it on their “new releases” list.

You know your release is under the radar when not even Newbury Comics is aware of its existence.

I honestly would have pre-ordered it to get it complete with Page’s autograph, but I couldn’t see spending the full price of the CD plus a considerable fee for shipping and handling.  Thus, I’ll need to get creative and soon!

Until you get a chance to listen to (or even find)  A Singer Must Die, I hope you enjoy my music video of the night.

See you next session!

“Indecision” (Steven Page Cover)

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By Chris Moore:

As is our way around here at the Laptop Sessions, I’ve decided to celebrate the release of a new track with an acoustic cover song music video.

Big surprise given the title of our blog, eh?

Well, tonight I bring you my performance of Steven Page’s forthcoming single “Indecision” off his first solo album proper: Page One (pun intended, I’m sure!), due out September 28th.  He just announced the title and track listing yesterday, and I was able to find a live performance on YouTube that sounded like classic Steven Page.  It was somewhat difficult to hear the intricacies of the vocals and guitars over the drum sound — due to the quality of the recording — but I have a feeling that the actual studio recording is going to be great.

And I only have to wait a day to find out!

That’s right; I hurried to record this version of the song as a means of honoring and advertising the new release.  I’m hoping you’ll like my take on the song enough to click over to iTunes tomorrow and download this track.  I’ll be there.  Probably at midnight just in case it’s up immediately…

One of the main reasons I took the time today to figure out the chords and lyrics is that I can think of no better way, as a musician and singer/songwriter myself, of enjoying a great new song than learning the words and chords to be able to play along with it.

So, without further ado, I give you my take on this new Steven Page track.  I hope this is incentive enough for you to check out the real deal tomorrow, and the full album in a couple months…

See you next session!