Archive | July, 2009

New Format and an Offer

15 Jul

                 New

              Time constraints have caught up to me and this is the summer. I can only believe how things will be when I get back to school and have an internship and work and a schedule and no time at all. Of course I am talking about the amount of posts per day. I wish I could say that I had someone posting with me but, for daily updates, I am all alone. So, for now there will be an alternating daily post on top of links of the day. Yes, song of the day and lyric of the day will therefore be switching spots in the weekly carousel. It is unfortunate and I apologize but I just do not have the time and I am not the person to write a post with half the effort.

             What does this mean? Well, I am looking for some help. Two potential offers for any readers that happen to also be obsessed with music and alright writers. For job #1 I am looking for somebody to split the daily updates with me. This would involve doing a song of the day or lyric of the day daily. Said person can, of course, participate in other sections if they would like. Job #2 would involve tracking music news. I would love to start a new section of just straight music news. This person would post the music news of the day every day. I shall be therefore keeping both the links of the day, the 60’s band of the week, one post daily, and various other site posts and stuff. The jobs are unpaid and would basically be for enjoyment and maybe we can all together make the Music Court even bigger.

          If anyone is interested in any of the two and feels that they fill these qualities outlined above please e-mail me at musiccourt@gmail.com. In the e-mail include the job you want to do, one writing sample, and a short little passage of why you really want to write for the blog. I am looking forward to your responses.

60’s Band of the Week #6: Adam Faith

14 Jul

            Adam Faith

                We have traveled back in time and across the Atlantic. From San Francisco during the late 1960’s to the United Kingdom during the early 60’s. We also go from a rock and roll girl band to a teen idol that went by the name of Adam Faith. Teen Idol’s, like today’s Brittany Spears and I don’t know Hannah Montana, do not usually sing. They appear in movies and television shows and release several albums that are absolutely manufactured. Adam Faith did appear in movies but he actually had a voice and sang his songs. He did not write them but at least he sang them.

            While Faith went on to be a financial journalist and mogul we are going to focus on his 60’s music career because this is not a finance blog. If it was I would not be running it. We shall pick up Faith’s career history after he appeared on the show Drumbeat and became well known because of his acting.

 Band: Adam Faith

 Origin: London, England

 Genre: Pop/Rock

 Career: 1958-2003

Hit Parade

History: The beginning of Faith’s career was defined by failure. Failure of his first three albums, failure to reach the chart, complete failure in releasing an album at the right time (he actually released an album during a national printing strike oops!). Yet, because of his acting career he was invited to sing some songs on the British television show Drumbeat. Finally he succeeded at something and this got him a recording contract with Parlophone where he reached his first musical success.

            His 1959 record, “What Do You Want,” written by Les Vandyke became Adam Faith’s first number one hit.  Not only was it his first success but it also was Parlophone’s first number one hit. From then on out Adam Faith became a household name. Releases like “Poor Me” and “Someone Else’s Baby” that continued into the 1960’s made him even more popular and he began to rival such accomplished performers like Cliff Richard.

            As he gained more fame the hits just kept rolling and he released his debut album Adam on November 4th 1960 to good reviews when he was only 20 years old. After this he went on to make six further albums and thirty five singles with a total of twenty four chart entries.

 Adam Faith

Album: Check out Faith’s first release entitled Adam. There are many contemporary hits of the time and some enjoyable inventiveness.

 Fun Facts:

 Did You Know…

 1.)    With his first 7 hits getting into the top 5 of the contemporary top 40, Faith was the first UK artist to accomplish this incredible feat.

2.)    His backing band The Roulettes consisted of Russ Ballard and Bob Henrit who later in their career made an appearance in the band Argent.

Lyric of the Day #42: “Jackson Square,” Mason Jennings

14 Jul

            Mason Jennings

                I have a perfect lyric of the day for #42. As many know this is the answer to life the universe and everything according to “The Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy.” What if I was to tell you that the answer is in Jackson Square. Yes, Mason Jennings, the folk artist who I first saw opening for Guster at the Beacon Theatre in NYC experienced some wierd events at Jackson Square and put them in song and incredible lyric. Out of all lyrics the end of Jackson Square which outlines events while in Jackson Square maintains some of the best written lyrics ever and no I am not kidding. Just take a look for yourself.

“Life is something that you can’t control
When you try to hold onto it, it makes you let go
Things are not like they were before
I can hear her crying through the bathroom door

She says, she hears spirits all around the room
And they’re telling her things that make her feel scared
I have no idea what to do
Before we’re in over our heads in Jackson Square

I woke up with a weight on my chest
People were screaming on the street below
I reached for you, I was alone in the bed
Wind was blowing through an open window

Suddenly I was very old
In a little boat, absolutely nowhere
Staring at the side of the universe
And your tiny body down on Jackson Square

Now don’t tell me that there ain’t no end
There damn well is and it waits in the wings
I see you kneeling there at center stage
In your tiny cage made of angel wings

While I’m here every night
Loading my gun and trying not to go there
Anyone who says that life is clear
Has never seen a mirror or been to Jackson Square”

          – “Jackson Square,” by Mason Jennings off of Bone Clouds

So the ultimate answer is just like 42. Who knows? It is pretty confusing.

Lyric of the Day #41: “Centerfield,” by John Fogerty

13 Jul

         baseball

              Don’t you just love baseball? The crack of the bat, the smell of freshly cut grass, the ballpark dogs, the crowd, the players, the overall atmosphere. It is the best drug in the world and I cannot get enough of it no matter how much my Mets kill me inside. It is the all star week and I just got done watching the home-run derby. So, in honor of the Great American Pasttime here are some baseball lyrics from America’s Prodigal Son, John Fogerty

“Got a beat-up glove, a homemade bat, and brand-new pair of shoes;
You know I think it’s time to give this game a ride.
Just to hit the ball and touch ’em all – a moment in the sun;
(pop) it’s gone and you can tell that one goodbye!”

             – “Centerfield,” by John Fogerty released on his 1985 album Centerfield

Centerfield

Song of the Day #41: “The One I Love,” by Greg Laswell

13 Jul

                     Three Flights From Toledo

                  Greg Laswell is from Long Beach, California and has done a fantastic job in creating popular and amazing music while staying virtually unknown. How did I find out about him. His song “Comes and Goes in Waves,” appeared in a trailer for a new HBO movie. I thought it was great and then searched on google, “What is that song in the trailer of the HBO movie Taking Chance,” and of course received the results in 3 seconds. Oh the wonders of the internet. Greg Laswell has appeared in such television shows as True Blood, Dollhouse, and Grey’s Anatomy. For all you early viewers surprisingly not Scrubs…yet. In my opinion, in the last of thousands of bands that appear on television soundtracks, Laswell has the best music.

              “The One I Love,” is off of Laswell’s thirds studio album Three flights from Alto Nido released on 2008. The first thing I like about its song is its length. It is only 2:38. It gets out its message and melody and ends. It is like a short spurt of enjoyable music and there is not enough time to get the song possibly out of your head. After the song ends I guarentee you will be singing or humming the chorus’ hook. The harmonized melody between the piano chords and the short guitar riff. Laswell’s voice also echoes quite well throughout the entire song.

             Check it Out:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ren3_UEuJE

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