Music at the condo

Last night Darren was lamenting Henry's lack of interest in music. This morning, whilst showing his pops a new iPad game I purchased, the kid starts singing, "Come from the land of the ice and snow." For the uninitiated, that's Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song. We're taking this as a parenting win.

Purim Spiel

The Purim Spiel the fifth graders put on today was amazing. Those kids, and their teachers, worked so hard to put on a fun and engaging performance for the whole school. It included fantastically clever songs, a well executed theme, and FORTNITE DANCES! Woot! I was in the second to last row from the front so I didn't get any good performance shots but there were a couple of pictures snapped before the show as the students arrived (provided below). Hen was on tech crew and put together (with help) an awesome slideshow and got to handle the lights. He later remarked that he didn't have to do much to "do the lights" for the show. Flick 'em on at the beginning and turn them off at the end. He's much more of a behind-the-scenes kid so his performance happy mama is working hard to understand his desire to not be in front of the audience.

Henry (tech crew), Sunny (Mordechai), Sabrina (Vashti's peeps), Amelia (Vashti's peeps), Lulu (Royal Subject), Lily (Narrator)

Gabe (electric guitar) and Jake (drums) & Noam (pointing in background)

Noah (keyboard), Jonathan (bass), Aaron (guitar), Rand, and Jana

Slideshow (created by Henry, Talia, Eitan, and Daniel)

Hen's in the white shirt on the left!

Jeff Goldblum

Not to be punny but I am so jazzed about this album. I love Jeff Goldblum. 

Damn, that girl can sing

Buckets of tears, people.

Concert: Citizen Cope

Awesome concert.

Just Breathe

How did I miss this Pearl Jam song?

Alanis's new album, finally!

I love her. I love that she was in the movie Dogma and played God. I love her music. I love that one of my favorite first memories of D and I as a couple was when we headed out on the road and were listening to her first album in the middle of the night. And I'm not talking about that one angry song, although how great is that song?

Music Tuesday

Last week, Whitesnake's Here I Go Again was stuck in my head. I can't even begin to predict what'll be playing next week.

Inception

Wow. Just wow. I love this movie. Absolutely love it. I caught it this afternoon with a friend and immediately came home and downloaded the Hans Zimmer piece, Time, because it is absolutely gorgeous (I'll probably end up purchasing the whole album but for now I'm more than satisfied just listening to to this piece incessantly). With rock and electronic motifs artfully blended into an orchestral back drop, it is hauntingly beautiful and emotionally provocative. It is powerful and bracingly loud, and amps up the suspense in every scene. Wow. Just wow.

"My goal for the score was to create a complete sonic world to immerse the audience - big waves of sound that connect the different layers of dreaming but really focus on a simple emotional thread." -- Hans Zimmer

If U Seek Amy

It took me a bit to figure this one out. My brain is fried. 

Introduction to Carl Orff

Classical boogie from Christie Glynn on Vimeo.

Too much good stuff for your ears

We only get basic cable so it's been years since I've paid to see a bona fide music video. Thank Zeus for YouTube, eh? Here's what I'm currently listening to:

Vanessa Mae has got to be the sexiest violin player alive.

Hauntingly beautiful. The first time I heard this it was playing in a trailer for Ken Burns' The War.




Skip to 3:21 to hear the most ass-kicking drum solo that has ever been played by humankind.


Damn, these drummers can bleeping play! Skip to 1:01 to hear Bonham's solo.


Mad World by Gary Jules


Jagged Little Pill came out shortly after Darr and I started dating. We once drove over to Montana for the weekend and listened to her cd for much of the drive. When Head Over Feet came on, I remember thinking, Oh my God, I really like him. (Stroll down memory lane brought to you by All the Cheese You Need.) Her new album is just as good as the rest. Well, at least those she came out with since leaving downtown Canada.

Cool feature I just noticed on iTunes

You can now buy an album for less the cost of any individual songs you may have purchased from that album. For example, I've already purchased two songs from John Mayer's Continuum. If I wanted to buy the rest of the album, I could do so for around $7. Sweet.

I'm just going to admit it

I like the new Britney Spears song Womanizer.

And good lord, have you caught the video? Egads!

You know, that kid

Darr: What's his name is going to be listening to Nellie the Elephant when he walks to school.

I'd like to point out that "what's his name" is Henry. Jeez.

Not to be confused with that other Newton

Conversation held whilst listening to our recently updated music delivery system.

Darr: Yeah, there is a lot of Juice Newton.
Me: Who?
Darr: Juice Newton.
Me: Who's that?
Darr: You know,
Darr singing: "Let's get physical..."
Darr: Wait, that's Olivia Newton.
Me: Yeah, not the same.

Both women, both singers, very different music. As far as I know there is no Juice Newton in our music library.

I'm calling shenanigans

Listen to this for a sec...


Now, this...


Oddly similar, eh? I did not know rappers listened to Michael McDonald.

Rock-a-Bye Baby

I found the greatest thing ever for parents who sing songs to their kid like moi:

"Lullaby and good night,
la la LA la, la LA la
hmm hmm hmmmmm hm, hmm hmm hmmmmm,
I do not know the words to this song.
But you must be tired, lil' Henry,
please go right to sleep,
la la LA, la la la, la la LA la la la."

Humpty Who? has over 80 classic songs, poems, lullabies, and riddles. And it comes with a cd of 35 of those songs set to music you just might be able to listen to for longer than three seconds without puking. This means it is semi-tolerable, which is saying a lot considering the music for kids that is currently out on the market. Debbie's got a gazillion copies at Spoiled Rotten if you'd like your own to boogie to. Happy listening.

Stack-O-Lee

It might be time to change the music I listen to whilst motoring in Sophie with the kid. While the rousing rendition of "Alice Mae" Samuel L. Jackson sings in Black Snake Moan is most excellent to groove to and served as a calming song for Henry when we were on our way back from my doctor's appointment, his equally awesome version of "Stack-O-Lee" is probably not considered appropriate for kids. There are several words in it that we'd rather not be part of Henry's vocab, at least not when he's first learning the language. Consider the reaction of the daycare provider if he starts belting out this tune at the age of two.

This here a song from back in the day
Nineteen hundred and sixty two
My woman left my black ass out in the cold
I said "baby why you leavin?" she said "our love done gone cold."
Well I waded thru water, and I waded thru mud
'Till I came to this place they called the bucket of blood

You know that bartender gave me a dirty look and a dirty glass
I said "Hey, mother fucker, do you know who I am?"
He said "hell no nigga, I don't give a goddamn"

I reached down in my pocket, and pulled out my shiny .44
Shot that motherfucker twice, he hit the goddamn floor

'bout that time you could've heard the drop of a pin
that's when that bad motherfucker billy lyons walked in

'bout that time a pimp eased up and turned out the lights
that's when I had billy lyons dead in my sights
when the lights come back on, ol' billy's gone to rest
I put nine of my bullets in his mother fucking chest.

I loves me some Internets

11:39pm - Watch trailer for a new movie coming out called Dedication
11:40pm - Realize I am bobbing my head to the trailer music
11:42pm - Begin Google search using "It may be the best thing," a refrain from the song
11:43pm - Open iTunes and search for the band Fischerspooner
11:44pm - Locate and purchase song