Winner!! "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)"- Talking Heads - Best New Wave Song

The poll has closed, and the winner is "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)" by the Talking Heads. Because the video for this song came from the epic film Stop Making Sense I figured I would honor the victor by posting a series of clips from this amazing concert movie. The first is a not-to-be missed video of David Byrne interviewing himself about the making of the film. It is a showcase of the intriguingly awkward, strange, brilliant character behind the Talking Heads success.



Stop Making Sense (1984) was directed by renowned film-maker Jonathan Demme, and was recorded during three nights of shows in 1983 at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. The film was the first ever to be made using only digital audio techniques, and features the now iconic "big suit" and weird dance moves that helped reveal Byrne as a mad-genius of music. Byrne and Demme's expectations for the filming of the shows had dramatic impacts on the resulting product. Because Byrne wanted no color lights to be used to illuminate the performers, the lighting techniques for the movie are unusual. Rarely showing the audience, and keeping crowd noise at a minimum, was intended to allow the viewer to form their own opinion of the performances. Also, the film uses long camera shots instead of the quick-cut techniques, allowing viewers to see the full performance and stage interactions rather than zooming in on individual soloists/performers. Check out the four clips from the film below for yourself. Im particularly fond of minute 4:00 in both "This Must Be the Place" and "Once in a Lifetime"...



When I was about 13 my sister took me to see David Byrne live in Washington, D.C. It was 1994. I didn't know what I was getting into. I remember the psychadelic colors filtered through oils projected overhead, the off-putting voice, and quirky dance moves, the bleary red-eyed college students, unnaturally happy, swaying this way and that. I had no idea what was going on around me. I just knew it was something new, and I loved it. This music is timeless.

Byrne is still making great music. I recently got Everything That Happens Will Happen Today (2008) and really enjoy the two tracks Everything That Happens and Life is Long


Everything That Happens


Life is Long

Mayer Hawthorne-"Your Easy Lovin Aint' Pleasin' Nothin", "When I Said Goodbye"

When my friend Emily suggested I check out a young, White, Soul singer, from Ann Arbor, Michigan, with no vocal training, you could say I had my doubts. It took about 10 seconds of listening to Mayer Hawthorne to throw all my preconceived notions out the window and just appreciate fantastic skill. Here is evidence that soul has no color, and great music can come from unexpected people or places.

Mayer Hawthorne (Andrew Mayer Cohen) did not intend to become a singer. He has worked in music for most of his life, but mostly as an arranger, engineer, musician, and producer. His emergence as a front man came only after the head of Stones Throw Records, Peanut Butter Wolf, heard a few songs that Hawthorne just considered a fun side project. After hearing just two tracks, Wolf signed the artist to the label. Hawthorne has since produced two albums rich in retro-Motown style jams fused with hints of hip-hop. The musical arrangements, high falsetto, and horn flourishes of this music conjures up images of Curtis Mayfield, Isaac Hayes, or Smokey Robinson, but the break-beat production and lyrics signal a modern progression from old-school Soul. Beyond the quality of the music, its pretty amazing that for most of these songs Hawthorne played the role of lead vocalist, producer, engineer, arranger, and played most of the instruments. The artist may be unexpected, but the music is undeniable. These songs are sure to take you out of the gloomiest funk and have you snapping your fingers and tapping your feet in no time. Take a listen.

P.S. Check out the Mayer Hawthorn track "Just Aint Gonna Work Out" on the earlier post User Recommended Playlist. Also, click the hyperlinks below to download the track for your collection.


Your Easy Lovin Aint Pleasin Nothin




When I Said Goodbye

John Lennon:: "All You Need Is Love", "Imagine" :: Birthday Tribute

“There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love. When we are afraid, we pull back from life. When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance. We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections. If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create. Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.”
― John Lennon




“When I was 5 years old, my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy’. They told me I didn’t understand the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.”
― John Lennon

Ski Beatz - "Winners Parade", "Cream of the Planet", "Luchini"

Just a quick bit of awesome music to brighten your Wednesday. Ski Beatz (AKA David Willis, DJ Ski) is an American Producer who has been quietly influential in Hip-Hop since the mid 90's. Ski produced most of Camp Lo's classic debut album Uptown Saturday Night including one of my all time favorite jams, "Luchini" (below), and helped create J-Z's Reasonable Doubt including tracks "Dead Presidents". More recently his work has included collaborations with Tabi Bonney (Above), Mos Def (below), Jay Electronica, and Curren$y. Each of these tracks are guaranteed to mellow you on your way through the rest of the week.







Luchini (This is It)- Camp Lo


Tabi Bonney-Winners Parade

New Wave Rock :: Vote on your favorite (to the right)!!

A few months back a friend of mine sent me a link to an amazing live clip of The Talking Heads playing "This Must be the Place (Naive Melody)". I have probably watched the video 100 times since, due to my love of the song, the vibe, and the incredible style on display. It got me thinking about some of my earliest pop-music experiences of the 80's, when my sister would fill the house with New Wave hits by the Eurythmics, Men at Work, and The Talking Heads, among others. Steeped in Mod culture, synthesized sound, disco influences, glitter, copious amounts of eye-liner and a healthy dose of androgyny, New Wave was a drug-addled futuristic glimpse into experimental music. The cultural impact of this sub-genre is even more noticeable nowadays, as modern indie-pop acts increasingly revisit New Wave styles.

I have compiled a handful of New Wave favorites below. Take a few minutes to revisit the era, and vote on your favorite song to the right. Id love to hear your thoughts, or recommendations for other killer songs.