"He goes along just as a water lily
Gentle on the surface of his thoughts his body floats
Unweighed down by passion or intensity
Yet unaware of the depth upon which he coasts
And he finds a home in me
For what misfortune sows, he knows my touch will reap
And all my armor falling down, in a pile at my feet
And my winter giving way to warm, as I'm singing him to sleep" -from "Pale September" by Fionna Apple
Ah Fionna can always get me back in touch with my emotions. Her lyrics, melodies and voice just drip with feeling and whenever I need to feel around my emotional parts I'll put her music on, close my eyes and just let her show me how to feel again.
I've had several requests for a line that is more positive than previous posts. So, here you all go.
The line above speaks of the risks involved in giving yourself completely to another person. She first talks about falling for someone and how that can be very shaky ground for the other person involved. What I mean is that when a relationship develops to the point where one person has almost committed completely to the other, there is a period of fragility where, although the other person doesn't know it, any violation of trust can cause all that was built up to tumble like a stack of cards. But then she goes just a step further and talks about what happens if you can make it past that point. She beautifully flows into the chorus with tremendous harmony and you can just feel the release of the tension. There is a comfort and warmth that comes from trusting and loving another person, and especially in feeling that love fully returned.
I have several wishes for all people, and one of the main ones is for everyone to love completely and accept completely the love of another person.
I'm including a youtube video that isn't really a video at all, but a picture of Fionna with the music behind it. I normally hate these things, but this particular clip is from a live performance and she gives some background to the song. Thought that would be a nice comparison from my interpretation. Enjoy.
Peace within, peace without...J...
Friday, February 27, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Whats in a man....not much as it turns out
"A man needs somethin' he can hold on to
A nine pound hammer or a woman like you.
Either one of them...things will do" -from "Jolene" by Ray Lamontagne
Ray Lamontagne is one of the great songwriters of our time. He has a truly classic vocal style that always takes me back to a simpler time. My life is filled with technology and tends to run at such a fast pace, but something about the way this guy writes, plays and especially sings just makes everything slow down.
Anyway, to the line above. I think this pretty much sums up guys in general. Give us a tool or a woman and we're pretty content. Men are simple creatures. We need food, sex, and something to keep us busy (which could also be either of the two previous things). I love it when songwriters come up with unique ways to say ordinary things like this. I think its pretty clear that the way Ray describes a man's psyche is much more poetic than my depiction (food, sex and something to do). Both get the message across, but one does it with an air of dignity and romance, while the other just lays it out there.
As you listen to this song take note of some of the other things he says. If you can come up with another line you really enjoy leave it in a comment. Or again, if you have anything else you'd like me to discuss just let me know. You can either leave a comment here, or send me a message from the Contact page of my website www.johnmaxfieldmusic.com/Contact.
A nine pound hammer or a woman like you.
Either one of them...things will do" -from "Jolene" by Ray Lamontagne
Ray Lamontagne is one of the great songwriters of our time. He has a truly classic vocal style that always takes me back to a simpler time. My life is filled with technology and tends to run at such a fast pace, but something about the way this guy writes, plays and especially sings just makes everything slow down.
Anyway, to the line above. I think this pretty much sums up guys in general. Give us a tool or a woman and we're pretty content. Men are simple creatures. We need food, sex, and something to keep us busy (which could also be either of the two previous things). I love it when songwriters come up with unique ways to say ordinary things like this. I think its pretty clear that the way Ray describes a man's psyche is much more poetic than my depiction (food, sex and something to do). Both get the message across, but one does it with an air of dignity and romance, while the other just lays it out there.
As you listen to this song take note of some of the other things he says. If you can come up with another line you really enjoy leave it in a comment. Or again, if you have anything else you'd like me to discuss just let me know. You can either leave a comment here, or send me a message from the Contact page of my website www.johnmaxfieldmusic.com/Contact.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Hip-hop
Today I thought I'd get into another genre of influence for me. Hip-hop. I've listened to rap and hip-hop since the late 80's. My first rap album was one of the all-time classics...NWA's Straight Outta Compton. Man we loved that album. From there we moved on to Geto Boyz, DJ Quik, and Too Short. The hip-hop came in with...who else...De La Soul and Tribe Called Quest.
Anyway, a while ago a friend of mine told me about a new guy named Lupe Fiasco. He's a skater turned rapper and he writes primarily with a purpose. He can tell a story with the best of them, like in his song "The Cool" he lays out the story of a former drug dealer who was shot and killed and then wakes up in his casket and has to dig his way out. With lines like "...working like a...hmm....reverse archeologist, except his buried treasure was sunshine" he goes through the first person experience of this dead gangster. I thought this was an interesting idea for a song, and one that would be hard to pull off. If I tried to do something like that I'd get laughed off the stage.
My favorite song of his is called "American Terrorist". Its kind of a chonicle of the many terrorist activities that Americans are responsible for which most of us forget about. The way I see it, this song shouldn't be taken as a bash on America, but there are some dark spots in our history that shouldn't be forgotten. From the treatment of Native Americans, to slavery, to domestic terrorism. I think these things should be kept in mind when looking outside the country at the rest of the world. These represent valuable lessons in the treatment of other people and the understanding of other cultures. Have a listen and try and pick out all the things he's talking about in the song. There's a lot in there.
Dude, I saw this guy live at the Mile High Music Festival in Denver this past summer F-ing awesome. I highly recommend checking out his concert schedule and hitting that up if you get the opportunity.
Peace within, peace without...J...
Anyway, a while ago a friend of mine told me about a new guy named Lupe Fiasco. He's a skater turned rapper and he writes primarily with a purpose. He can tell a story with the best of them, like in his song "The Cool" he lays out the story of a former drug dealer who was shot and killed and then wakes up in his casket and has to dig his way out. With lines like "...working like a...hmm....reverse archeologist, except his buried treasure was sunshine" he goes through the first person experience of this dead gangster. I thought this was an interesting idea for a song, and one that would be hard to pull off. If I tried to do something like that I'd get laughed off the stage.
My favorite song of his is called "American Terrorist". Its kind of a chonicle of the many terrorist activities that Americans are responsible for which most of us forget about. The way I see it, this song shouldn't be taken as a bash on America, but there are some dark spots in our history that shouldn't be forgotten. From the treatment of Native Americans, to slavery, to domestic terrorism. I think these things should be kept in mind when looking outside the country at the rest of the world. These represent valuable lessons in the treatment of other people and the understanding of other cultures. Have a listen and try and pick out all the things he's talking about in the song. There's a lot in there.
 | Lupe Fiasco - American Terrorist |  |
 | ||
 | Found at bee mp3 search engine |  |
Dude, I saw this guy live at the Mile High Music Festival in Denver this past summer F-ing awesome. I highly recommend checking out his concert schedule and hitting that up if you get the opportunity.
Peace within, peace without...J...
Monday, February 16, 2009
A Reply
No lyrics for today. I started responding to a comment made by a friend of mine to the 1/23 post regarding Deathcab for Cutie, but realized I had more to say on the topic than a comment should contain. So, here is the comment, and my response below that.
Reader Comment (not sure if you'd want your names here James, doh, oh well, I guess its out there now):
If you enjoy Death Cab for Cutie, I'm curious what your thoughts are of The Postal Service? Do you lump them as the same or is there some distinction for you to highlight Death Cab and not mention the other.
Please elaborate!
Author (thats me) Response:
Haha, well, I know the motivation for James' comment, but the rest of the readers do not. James and I have had discussions about the distinctions between The Postal Service and Death Cab for Cutie and can't seem to come to a consensus. James likes both, perhaps equally, whereas I prefer Deathcab. For those who don't know, Deathcab and Postal Service share two band members, Ben Gibbard (the center motivator for this post) and Chris Walla. That similarity might be enough for some to equate the two bands, but I cannot explicitly agree with this. Yes, the vocals and much of the lyricism is similar between the two bands as both are guided by the talents of Gibbard, but the primary difference for me lies in the music itself. I think the fact that Gibbard sings in both the bands is the source of the "similarity" argument, but in my mind the music is entirely different. The Postal Service has a prevalent electronic influence stemming from the presence of band member Jimmy Tamborello. For me, electronic music just doesn't have the feel of....well...played music. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the music as an artform, but it really has to be exceptional for me to enjoy listening to it. In trying to come up with some examples of electronic music that I enjoy (other than hip-hop, as that is a genre in its own class that I'll leave for another post) I am having a difficult time. Hmm, there is a band that my friend Troy in Japan showed me some time ago called Quruli. These guys are not primarily an electronic band, but they do dabble in the realm, and I think what they do is a good example. Radiohead got into electronic music on their Kid-A album (and others) and I rather enjoyed their take on it. Take a look.
Oh, and of course Bjork. There are others, but they evade me at the moment. Even though I can appreciate and enjoy electronic music, I still prefer the more organic nature of played musical instruments. They breathe with the flow of the music and every note is different. With an instrument, the same note can have a completely different timbre the next time it is played depending on the way the note is struck or altered by vibrating, bending, muffling, or any other techniques. These little idiosyncrasies may not be something you notice out right, but I believe play a huge part in giving music that organic, home-made feel that I don't get with electronic music. Sure, it has a nice beat and you might be able to dance to it, but from my perspective, it can't touch the sound of a well played instrument.
Just my two cents. Oh, and here is an example of a well played instrument.
Reader Comment (not sure if you'd want your names here James, doh, oh well, I guess its out there now):
If you enjoy Death Cab for Cutie, I'm curious what your thoughts are of The Postal Service? Do you lump them as the same or is there some distinction for you to highlight Death Cab and not mention the other.
Please elaborate!
Author (thats me) Response:
Haha, well, I know the motivation for James' comment, but the rest of the readers do not. James and I have had discussions about the distinctions between The Postal Service and Death Cab for Cutie and can't seem to come to a consensus. James likes both, perhaps equally, whereas I prefer Deathcab. For those who don't know, Deathcab and Postal Service share two band members, Ben Gibbard (the center motivator for this post) and Chris Walla. That similarity might be enough for some to equate the two bands, but I cannot explicitly agree with this. Yes, the vocals and much of the lyricism is similar between the two bands as both are guided by the talents of Gibbard, but the primary difference for me lies in the music itself. I think the fact that Gibbard sings in both the bands is the source of the "similarity" argument, but in my mind the music is entirely different. The Postal Service has a prevalent electronic influence stemming from the presence of band member Jimmy Tamborello. For me, electronic music just doesn't have the feel of....well...played music. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the music as an artform, but it really has to be exceptional for me to enjoy listening to it. In trying to come up with some examples of electronic music that I enjoy (other than hip-hop, as that is a genre in its own class that I'll leave for another post) I am having a difficult time. Hmm, there is a band that my friend Troy in Japan showed me some time ago called Quruli. These guys are not primarily an electronic band, but they do dabble in the realm, and I think what they do is a good example. Radiohead got into electronic music on their Kid-A album (and others) and I rather enjoyed their take on it. Take a look.
Oh, and of course Bjork. There are others, but they evade me at the moment. Even though I can appreciate and enjoy electronic music, I still prefer the more organic nature of played musical instruments. They breathe with the flow of the music and every note is different. With an instrument, the same note can have a completely different timbre the next time it is played depending on the way the note is struck or altered by vibrating, bending, muffling, or any other techniques. These little idiosyncrasies may not be something you notice out right, but I believe play a huge part in giving music that organic, home-made feel that I don't get with electronic music. Sure, it has a nice beat and you might be able to dance to it, but from my perspective, it can't touch the sound of a well played instrument.
Just my two cents. Oh, and here is an example of a well played instrument.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
"I'm thinking we're in trouble 'cause unless I'm seeing double
We've been slowly taken over by clones
Did you ever stop and wonder if the world is going under for the
Sake of keeping up with the Joneses"...From "Clones" By Speechwriters, LLC
These guys are one of my all-time favorite bands. I have been waiting patiently for them to start producing music as a duo for some time now, and it finally looks like it might happen soon. They are a duo out of Cali (currently) and I can't wait to hear what these guys come out with next.
Anyway, on to the lyric at hand. Well, I live in Phoenix, and in this haven of capitalism and commercialism its hard not to notice just how corporate America has seeped into the minds and hearts of the young people around. This "street kid" look the mercantile industry has been pimping is just a little outrageous. These kids spend so much money and time to try and look like they just got out of bed and put on the clothes they found in the dumpster around the corner. Its funny, they try so hard to be different, but they all look the same to me.
Hey kids, your hair and clothes don't make you different, your actions do.
Peace within, peace without...J...
We've been slowly taken over by clones
Did you ever stop and wonder if the world is going under for the
Sake of keeping up with the Joneses"...From "Clones" By Speechwriters, LLC
| Speechwriters LLC - Clones | |
| | ||
| Found at bee mp3 search engine | |
These guys are one of my all-time favorite bands. I have been waiting patiently for them to start producing music as a duo for some time now, and it finally looks like it might happen soon. They are a duo out of Cali (currently) and I can't wait to hear what these guys come out with next.
Anyway, on to the lyric at hand. Well, I live in Phoenix, and in this haven of capitalism and commercialism its hard not to notice just how corporate America has seeped into the minds and hearts of the young people around. This "street kid" look the mercantile industry has been pimping is just a little outrageous. These kids spend so much money and time to try and look like they just got out of bed and put on the clothes they found in the dumpster around the corner. Its funny, they try so hard to be different, but they all look the same to me.
Hey kids, your hair and clothes don't make you different, your actions do.
Peace within, peace without...J...
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