During the course of an average week, I listen to a huge amount of music. I have never personally tried to measure this in either time spent or the number of songs listened to, but my life revolves around music…………….from the moment I open my eyes to that final peaceful descent into sleep.
Last night, after work, I spent 2 hours listening to an Arabic singer/keyboard player perform at Cinnabar, a club adjacent to the Jazz Bar, where I am currently appearing with my group, Impact. I didn’t understand one word that was sung but was captivated by the beauty of his voice and his amazing keyboard skills. I was moved by this music that was so foreign to me. I have found the same with much music around the world. I enjoy listening to lots of music in foreign languages. The link that connects us all as humans is indeed the sound of music.
I had a particularly fun week with music last week, where I stumbled on a few gems that I would like to share with you. A simple click on the title will take you to the link to the songs listed.
I had heard of Rascal Flatts before, and somehow had a faint idea that they were a good band, but never really gave them a serious listen. One of their songs “What Hurts The Most”, turned up in a search and I clicked on it. It turned out to be an amazing song, which led me to check out more of their stuff. I landed on “Easy” and was knocked off my chair. Great song with a breathtaking key change in the middle of the second verse. Floored me.
This was sent to me a while back and stands out as a testament of the fact that there’s a lot of good music and very creative folks that are doing great stuff. It also made me very grateful for the internet, which is proving the be a very fertile ground for these brilliant minds. This piece needs very little description. A pop song performed entirely on the piano where even the percussion parts utilize the body of the instrument.
Eyal Amir has made me a fan with his keen inventiveness and bold and fearless style. The title speaks for itself. The arrangement is stellar and at times mind boggling.
The name of the musician in this clip is Erik Mongrain, and when I first heard it, I couldn’t stop listening to this piece of music. It’s so creative and beautiful. He massages gorgeous harmonics out of the guitar and manages to create a soundscape that’s quite magical.
Doug stands as a one man wrecking crew of funky and creative bass sounds. He has been doing this for decades and is an outstanding bass player that doesn’t know what the “box” is, so he surely is not aware that he’s on the outside. Enjoy!
I am always humbled at how much great music is being made. I feel very grateful to be able to do what I do in music and to have people genuinely appreciate what they hear and feel is always a blessing.
Namaste.
Greg Lassalle
