40 Watt Gigolo

from the single This Is America (2018)

If somebody held a gun to my head and asked me to name the most important song of the past fifty years, I would say The Message by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five.

The reason is that the song not only depicted the state of things-as-they-are, it also provoked a meaningful conversation.  I believe that so much of my resistance to future hip-hop and rap songs is that they largely fail to provoke the conversation quite the same way.

This is America is the most consequential conversation starter that I can think of since The Message, particularly in the context of its music video.

Click Here to watch the music video to This Is America.  It will prepare you for the discussion that is surely to come.

from the album Tell Me How You Really Feel (2018)

I have been spending a lot of time listening to 70s and 80s rock bands with female singers.  Bands like The Pretenders, Blondie, and The Patti Smith Group.  It is amazing how much great material they put out, record after record.  Amazing.

When I look at current female artists, the one who continually impresses me is Courtney Barnett.  The hits just keep coming...

City Looks Pretty is the lead single on forthcoming album.  It rocks, it has her trademark vocals, and also closes with a cool downtempo breakdown.

For many artists, this would represent a high-water mark.  But for Courtney Barnett, it s just another day at the office.

She deserves to be in the same conversation as Chrissie, Deborah, and Patti.

Click Here to watch the official video for City Looks Pretty by Courtney Barnett.


Click Here to read my December 2013 blog post on History Erasure by Courtney Barnett.

Click Here to read my March 2015 blog post on Depreston by Courtney Bar…

from the EP Apart (2018)

I dig it when movie stars sing with rock bands.  Bridget Bardot, Catherine Denueve, even Gwyneth Paltrow.

On Bad Dreams, Pete Yorn sings with Scarlett Johansson.  This is not the actress' first foray into song.  In 2012, she sang a duet on the the delightful cover Bonnie & Clyde with Lulu Gainsbourg.

Bad Dreams is a cool tune with a 90's indie-alternative vibe.  I really like the way the vocals fit together.  Good stuff.

Click Here to watch the music video for Bad Dreams by Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson.

Click Here to read my November 2012 blog post on Bonnie & Clyde by Lulu Gainsbourg, featuring Scarlett Johansson.

from the album Heaven and Earth (2018)

My friend Brett is an accomplished DJ on a streaming music station.  The other night, we were riding Uber to a Brian Jonestown Massacre show in East Atlanta, talking about playlists.  I asked him how he managed to produce three-hour show after three-hour show.  My mixes sometimes take months to produce.

He said that his secret is not thinking about it.  His method involves picking a song, listening to it, and then picking a song that sounds real good following it.  He always plays one of the first two - or three - to come to mind; that way it feels more real.

Ultimately, Brett is dismissing structure.  His eyes are wide open. He scoffs at predisposition.  He simply kicks back, listens to his jam, and asks "What sounds good next?"  Then he plays it.  And it works every time.

Can you apply that same approach to a song's structure?  Lay down a groove and a vibe, noodle it out a little bit, then switch to whatever new groove and vibe yo…

from the album Balfron Promise (2018)

The iPhone has rendered a lot of things obsolete.  One of those things is the anthropologist.

With our massive digital footprints, future generations will know all about us by simply exploring our record.  Every element off our lives is being captured.  Nobody will need to guess.

Funny thing is that we are the first generation to be recorded this way.  From the perspective of a curious person - say four hundred years from now - we are as far back as you can go, digitally.

Think of the power we have.  And responsibility.  We get to frame how future people view earlier civilization and culture,  They will know our tendencies and sounds in a way that we cannot "know" previous cultures and people.

So, our digital legacy truly matters.  What will it be?

Nature and art form a good foundation.  Music and dance makes it even better.

Let's shine.

Click Here to listen to Mo Light by 47Soul.

from the single Get To Know (2018)

So much of what is interesting in music relates to the intersections of diverse genres and subgenres.  This is where new possibilities are born.

The greatest catalyst for this today is electronic music.  It seems as though every type of music becomes more interesting when it is combined with electronica.  Dance, jazz, hip-hop, alternative, and even classical.  You name it.

Get To Know by Cosmo's Midnight sits at the intersection of electronica and R&B.   I dig the song's tempo, which is slower than the song sounds.  This gives the two musical styles a real chance to meld.  You feel it in the buoyancy of the beat.  Doesn't it sound round?

I also dig how the R&B vibe of the breakdowns set the stage for the beat's return.  This is such a simple and binary song, that works because of how good the two parts sound together.  This is also due, in no small part, to the guest vocals of Winston Surfshirt.

Take a close listen to this song…

from the album Vol. 1 '14-'18 (2018)

I am most attracted to talented people with strong work ethics.  They grind it out, day after day, believing in both themselves and a brighter tomorrow.

My friend Gerry lives in NYC.  At 50, he decided to enroll in law school, full-time.  This week, he is taking his final exams ahead of graduation.  Go, Gerry.  You took a giant chance, gave it your all, and are watching it pay off.  Woo-hoo.

Other friends are still navigating obstacles, bearing burdens, and sometimes struggling to stay true to themselves.  Still, they never quit.

I am inspired by each of them.

Click Here to listen to Max Lush Carlos by Godriguez

from the album In A Poem Unlimited (2018)

I was recently approached by a tribute band asking if I would be interested in playing bass.  Although tribute bands are not my thing, this group consists of some funky friends and they are playing tunes by The Pretenders.  I dig that.

So, this weekend I spent some time learning the bass part for My City Is Gone.  It reminded me of the power of groove and tone.

Groove is a mighty force.  It creates a foundation for a song.  Other instruments play off the groove.  The groove is also unforgiving.  There are two objectives of playing the bass: establishing the groove and maintaining the groove.  Maintaining a groove is a challenge.  It requires chops and stamina.  It the groove falls apart - even for a single note - the entire song falls apart.

Tone also matters, particularly when playing a popular song.  Everyone familiar with the bass line to My City Is Gone not only knows every note, but how that note is supposed to sound.  Getting it perfect …

from the album Mr. Jukebox (2018)

At some level, every artist is playing a character.  I mean, Johnny Cash never "shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die," did he?

But at some other level, every song must have some kind of autobiographical tie.  Every good song, at least?

Weird Thought Thinker is a not just a bit autobiographical, it is a self-portrait.  This is Joshua Hedley singing into the mirror.  I really like where he takes this song, but what I really dig is that he is playing a western waltz.  Of all the genres and subgenres of music, he chose a western waltz.  What does this say about the person at his core?

Is he a man out of time?  Is he a cornball romantic?  Or is he a dusty troubadour, rambling about, singing his tune?

What style of music would you chose for your self-portrait?   New Wave?  Folk?  Rap?  It is interesting to think about.  Hmmm.

Click Here to watch Joshua Hedley perform Weird Thought Thinker.