« June 2006 | Main | August 2006 »

July 20, 2006

There's Hallelujah All Over the Place

Yesterday the temperature dipped to the mid 70’s and I decided to walk home from work. As I crossed the street into the Public Gardens, I heard a familiar tune drifting across the lawns. I avoided the bridge, which is always crowded with tourists taking charming photos (the bridge really is very charming), and got a better look at the performer. By now I could hear perfectly well that this fellow was engaging in a public massacre of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” I should actually say Jeff Buckley’s version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” because he was really going for that. He had his guitar hooked up to a little amp, and this atrocity followed me all the way through the Gardens. To be honest, once the sound became indistinct and distorted by the water and the trees, it was quite nice. And I wondered if maybe I could pluck out the chords on my guitar at home.

This line of thought led me to consider the peculiar phenomenon of the song that has caused so many artists to attempt it. Cohen’s album “Various Positions” came out in 1984, and the the original is drastically different from most of the remakes. He growls out the lyrics suggestively and a choir kicks in to sing the hallelujahs. There’s no minimalist guitar or meandering piano. It actually seems like something Pink Floyd might have put out. John Cale did a cover for the tribute album “I’m Your Fan” in 1991 and his version was featured on Scrubs recently. I love it, personally. When Jeff Buckley goes for it in 1994 on “Grace,” he’s way more Cale than Cohen. Then we have the tragically inappropriately used Rufus Wainwright 2001 version in Shrek – one thing that particularly bugs me about his is that he says “do you” all enunciated instead of the casual “do ya.” K. D. Lang does it well on her 2004 album “Hymns of the 49th Parallel” by opening with a piano and gently incorporating strings. It’s very rich and lovely. Last on my list of notables (because there are so many remakes! Anthony Michael Hall redid this thing!), is Imogen Heap. When a main character died on the season finale of The O.C and this a capella version kicked in, I laughed my ass off. Even without accompaniment – maybe because of that – it smacked of excess, and it kind of made me not like Ms. Heap. For a more thorough list and to listen to the remakes, you should check out this blog. It’s pretty awesome.

This song is fantastic, but we have been utterly bombarded with it lately – take a look. There are artists all over the place writing beautiful and melancholy tunes. Surely the myriad peons involved in movie and television could find something else that would just as effectively accentuate a moment of fictitious sadness.

Nevertheless, I can pretty much guarantee I’ll learn how to play this song (with no public display intentions). There’s something very appealing about singing sad, pretty songs that I can’t resist. For example, I’ve started trying to replicate Anders Parker’s “You Keep Me Hanging On” even though it’s a duet and those harmonies are half of what create the wistfulness of the tune. But it doesn’t matter because how great is it to make your voice break just so when singing the line “You were always a heartbeat away”? It’s really great. Even the hair bands back in the day made their sappy, soaring power ballads that are the musical equivalent of raising your hands and face to the sky – the stormy sky - and dramatically crying out.

“Hallelujah” is a chain smoking alone with the lights off, drinking wine out of the bottle sad song. I wish I could create something that evokes so much emotional depth. Maybe so many artists try their hands at this song because they feel that way, too.

Posted by heidi at 12:11 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

July 17, 2006

an open letter to target

dearest target,

how do i love thee...let me count the ways. not only do you supply me with copious amounts of sundry items such as laundry detergents, body washes, and cleaning products galore but last night you gave me perhaps the greatest gift of my life. or at least a very early birthday gift.

for on this very night, july 16th 2006, i was roaming the aisles at target (i won't say which target to avoid any legal shenanigans) and decided to browse through the music section to see if there might not be any cd's i could not live without. there weren't. i was contemplating picking up john fogerty's greatest hits because it was only $9.99 but i opted not to. and then suddenly - out of the corner of my eye...i caught something so otherworldly it was almost unbeleivable. as i wandered past the g section (it's not a myth after all) i noticed a compact disc entitled golden smog: another fine day....and wait a minute. isn't this the album i've been waiting for? the album that is not supposed to hit store shelves until july 18th?

i distinctly remembered checking a very popular website that sells all sorts of media for this very album the previous saturday and it distinctly said (album not yet released) so how could this be? was providence truly shining down upon me? apparently it was. because it was the only copy to be found on the shelves at target and for $11.99 i could not resist so i snatched it up and made it my own. when i arrived back at the house today i checked i-tunes and the album is not even available for download yet....


so through some sort of scheduling s.n.a.f.u. in the g section (which - it's not a myth after all) i might be the first non-music journalist in amerika to own a copy of the golden smog's another fine day...so thank you target. thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Posted by young_christopher at 11:41 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack

July 15, 2006

o.k.

so recently a bit of controversy sprang up amongst a tightly knit circle of friends (read click) regarding the criteria for what it is that makes an album truly great. the debate was sparked by a certain magazine publication's insistence that radiohead's o.k. computer was the greatest album of the last twenty years. (it should be noted that you could actually find several sources that would second this opinion) however, i would heartily disagree but more on that later. i think the important thing to note here at the top is that it's nearly impossible to ever come to a definitive conclusion regarding the actual greatest album of the last 20 years or of any era for that matter. the reason being that music is such a deeply personal experience - if you criticize a person's favorite band you might as well be salaciously insulting a dear family member. and anyway, half a billion hootie fans can't be wrong. (except that they were.)

that's one of the reasons these lists are compiled in the first place - to spark debate causing angry letters to the editor to flood in and sell magazines. but i think it's important that these publications not be allowed to make sweeping statements like this without accountability. this is why i am generously offering my insights into why o.k. computer is not the greatest album of the last 20 years. it should be noted here that not only am i highly opinionated about all things music related i also happen to firmly believe that to date radiohead have not released a better album than the bends. i own o.k. computer and i enjoy it - it has some fantastic musical moments but it lacks the straightforward organic appeal that the bends embodies. but here is one point i'm willing to concede. o.k. computer is a very good album. in fact it would be in my top 15 albums of the last 20 years. but i can think of a few records that i have enjoyed quite a bit more.

but i think the real problem with these lists is that so many bands make it on the strength of one song. the most egregious offender being nirvana. i understand fully it is outright heresy to denounce nirvana because once upon a summer they released a single that changed the face of music forever...and then kurt cobain died on a cross and paid for all of our sins which was a pretty nice thing for him to do - but seriously how good of an album was nevermind? how many people still reach for that album when they are driving around town? is there anyone who can name 5 other songs off of that album without looking at the liner notes?

it might be fair to say that smells like teen spirit was one of the top 5 greatest songs of the last 20 years but nevermind did not have nearly the impact on the musical culture that pearl jam's ten did. just look at all the copy cats they spawned. so does that mean just because an album was wildly popular and spawned a billion sound alikes that it was better? maybe.

let's talk about u2 for a minute. a certain nameless friend contended that the joshua tree was the greatest album of the last 30 years. this is a man that loves u2 with his whole heart and has paid the full price of admission into the cult that believes that u2 are the world's greatest something or other. again i would concede that the joshua tree is a good album - it was certainly u2's crowning moment commercially. but it was bittersweet because for me that was the album that saw bono begin to believe his own hype and really begin to take himself very very seriously. which is fine by me but i am willing to fight anyone to the death who cannot agree that the unforgettable fire is far superior and is in fact the only great album u2 have ever made.

i'm thinking at some point i might sit down and compile a list of what i feel are the 20 best albums of the past 20 years - a daunting task to be sure because i've enjoyed the music of quite a few crappy bands over the years and enjoyed it alot. also such a list might be top heavy with albums that have come out in the last 5 years or so because those are the albums that i have lived with most recently. but still i'm willing to put my list up against your list any day of the week. and seriously, my list is totally going to be better than yours. oh and if anyone plans on putting coldplay on their list - please don't because they are musical terrorists and they want to ruin christmas.

Posted by young_christopher at 10:15 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack

beside the white chickens

so i guess i've not done this in a little while. to all you regular readers out there who hang upon my every word i apologize for my long absence. alot has been going on in the life of not so young christopher. first and foremost i bought this pretty amazing house in historic st. elmo - a sprawling victorian built just before the turn of the century. (that would be the 19th century for those scoring along at home) and it's kind of been a thrilling/overwhelming experience all at the same time. and the thing about buying a house is - there are alot of first time things that you get to experience for example: sleeping in the house for the very first time. which was very uncomfortable because i didn't have anything in the way of bedding and those hardwood floors throughout - while glorious to behold are not so comfortable to sleep on. there are also other first time things that have varying degrees of significance - first phone conversation - first song written - first kiss. the first kiss thing hasn't happened yet. probably won't until i get around to hanging a swing on the front porch. then it's game on. because seriously - i do some of my b.e.s.t work on the front porch. up to and including my patented move that is often referred to as the wraparound by the chosen few delighted enough to have experienced it.

well today i had the pleasure of going out to sears and buying my very first lawnmower. a fire engine red craftsman 6.0 horsepower briggs & stratton engine and oversided rear tires. but not self-propelled in any way. there are those out there who will tell you to let the machine do the work. i am not one of those people. anyway, it was pretty fantastic mowing a lawn again. as an apartment dweller for the last several years yardwork is not something that i have done very often. which is probably why i overdid a bit tody. because in addition to mowing i pruned the tree in the front yard and hacked down the brambly bush out near the sidewalk. now i'm all sunburned (and sobbing with my head on the floor) and just kind of exhausted after 5 consecutive hours in direct sunlite (indirect?) but the yard looks pretty fantastic and the chore chart is that much smaller and now i have plenty of time to get back to scraping paint off of the hardwood floors.

just a sidenote here - if any of you ever have occasion to own a home with hardwoord floors or beautifully crafted mouldings(crown or otherwise)/and or fireplaces - please. do not paint them. because the poor bastard who swoops into the house after you vacate will have to spend hours on his hands and knees scraping and scraping - even as he cuts off all contact with friends and family neglecting his work responsiblities and next thing you know - he's barely scraping by. also, i'm not exactly certain if this is a theologically sound statement to be making but if you choose to ignore my advice and paint those floors/mouldings/fireplaces anyway - i'm pretty sure that's the sort of thing that could cause a person to lose their salvation. which sounds about right to me.

anyway, i hope everyone has a rockin' weekend - as for me, i'm about to slip some manilow into the tape deck and sink down to the very bottom of the cast iron bathtub to enjoy a soothing bubble bath (i just got this great cabbage flavoured body scrub i'm dying to try) with a glass of red wine by my side and a copy of this month's entertainment weekly. cheers.

Posted by young_christopher at 7:00 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack