When I was first losing weight and trying to get fit, there were two music videos that I found inspiring. This is the positive one:
Madonna was 40 years old when this was shot, and a new mom. Ok, I couldn’t afford personal trainers and dietitians, but I could watch what I ate and work out.
In Closing: scandal; what about S-Mart?; depressing graphic; some people need to grow up; this could be a problem; history we don’t talk about; and Nipplegate .
Hi there, dance music songwriters! Did you know that the saxophone can do more than honk like an injured Canadian goose?
First notable orchestral sax solo in the literature begins about 6 minutes in:
Ok, maybe that’s not your thing. How about this?
I think you get the idea. Don’t make me get Bill Clinton out here.
In closing: rejecting science; desperate times; the food pyramid made us fat; I’ve got no idea where JP found this; brilliant headline; um, Nevada has fixed the rich-district/poor-district problem and we still have struggling schools in poor neighborhoods; the problem isn’t only anti-vax nuts, but anti-vax nuts should have to sign a school document saying “I realize that I am putting my child and my community at risk, and furthermore I am an idiot”; inheritance.
Ok, here’s an explanation of that thing you just watched. It’s nice to see someone with a sense of humor about himself.
Ok, and here’s a Music Monday Bonus: 10 Songs that you’re more likely to have heard the cover than the original! Complete with videos.
In Closing: hiding in plain sight; seriously?; AOL paying shareholders $500,000,000 (didn’t know they still had that kind of money); pseudoscience; Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison defends the Republican stance on women without ever mentioning birth control or abortion (she does at least mention rape) (“People in red cars don’t necessarily drive fast. I used to own a red Ford Escort!”); and listen, if you are applying for a job with me, I don’t want to hear from your mommy. I hear from mom, and your resume goes straight in the NO pile.
And now for something completely different, a Baroque Concerto for Two Violins by the Red Monk, Antonio Vivaldi. My favorite is the second movement. Sorry about the static video.
In Closing: Clearly this was compiled before the weekend political talkies; Siberian Princess; some miscellaneous food items; as someone with experience, I don’t think much of their mapping algorithm; who could have known that making sure people can afford a mortgage could prevent default??; 5 reasons the Romney/Ryan plan is bad for America; rhetorical ammo; roads; the unemployment rate sucks; Arnold has ad-libs bigger than that car; why we need Social Security; and they should have made him check the damned thing.
As you’ve probably guessed, I like a lot of different kinds of music from Classical to Electronica. I even like certain country artists in moderation. It took 15 years, but my son found music I don’t like! The style is called Dubstep, and this artist is one of the masters thereof, Skrillex.
Oh, Skrillex, sweetie! I was rockin that hairstyle when you were rockin diapers.
Seriously though, I sat through a lot of modern music concerts in school. I went to master classes with John Cage and George Crumb and even Terry Riley. Once I got to hear Kronos Quartet rehearse.
It’s ok though. Deadmau5 got the last laugh on Skrillex.
If you don’t know of these talented and funny ladies, allow me to introduce you.
In Closing: Good enough for Israel but not good enough for you; How many times must I point out that the 9/11 terrorists were frequent fliers??; socialism; tell me something new; yeah; beware of a new scam; and government regulations put fishermen out of business!!! Oh wait, no, it turns out that government regulations made fishermen both safer and more profitable.
Admittedly, I liked seeking the “Vegas of 1964” shots. The race sequence is remarkable because I know those landmarks: they really did start downtown, head south to cross Hoover Dam, somehow or another end up north of town on Mt. Charleston, and then cruised back down Rancho back to downtown. By the way, you’ll notice I said downtown and not The Strip? Those are two different places.
In Closing: They recommend the status quo; crime fighting fail; only CNN thinks it means anything; compare and contrast; Oh really!; and the best way to have some Viva Las Vegas? Free.
I suspect that this item from Comic-Con is inspired by this little song:
In Closing: oh Tyler; how ethical failures happen; what?; and who would define “exotic“?
Today I’ve got a little “music theory” lesson for you. I’m going to explain that chord that’s driving you crazy. You know the one, the second one.
Most of the “happy sounding” songs you know are in what are called “Major keys.” That includes everything from Happy Birthday and Yellow Submarine to Pomp and Circumstance and the Star Spangled Banner. In fact, I can’t think of a single American “patriotic” song that is not in a Major key.
There’s another kind of key called a “Minor” key. You can express a lot of different emotions using it. Gloria Gaynor used it in “I Will Survive” to show determination and frustration. The Beatles used it in “Eleanor Rigby” where it echoed the loneliness and insignificance of the characters in the song. Anger, sadness, and a host of other things can be implied simply with a Minor key.
Chords can be Major or Minor too. Usually we capitalize Major chords. When a musician analyzes a piece of music, he or she will usually use Roman numerals. So if we build a chord on each step of a Major scale, we get this:
I ii iii IV V vi vii°
That last one is a third type of chord called “diminished.” Don’t worry about it right now, since it’s not important to this song. All of these chords are perfectly normal in a Major key, although there are some arcane rules about what order you can use them. An alarming number of songs use the chord progression I V vi IV.
On the other hand, if we build chords on a Minor scale, these are the chords you will most frequently see (this bit is slightly simplified from what you’d be taught in a music class):
i ii III iv V VI vii°
So back to our song. The first chord is a nice big Major chord, I. The next chord is built on the 4th note of the scale, so it should be IV. However, they’ve fooled us with a jarring minor chord, iv! What are you supposed to be feeling? Happiness of being loved? Or fear of being rejected?
This is called a “borrowed chord.” Even though most young composers discover the neat, unexpected sound before High School, the fancy term is usually not taught until well into a college music theory curriculum. Now you’ve got a fun trivia item.
In Closing: it was worth a try; Samurai; interesting thing about the workforce; another reason we don’t need police drones; these guys think the Affordable Care Act is here to stay; no kidding; Montanans elected this person; high speed rail (I would worry about how they hold up in an earthquake, but Japan has it); Casablanca at 70; wanna buy a couple skyscrapers, cheap?; and Happy Wedding Day to Barney Frank and James Ready.
I like that it’s fun, playful, and displays a level of knowledge you wouldn’t expect from a song whose lyrics include “pack your bags real good”.
It does strike me as a modern, urban version of Kokomo….
Unfortunately, the place described by the Beach Boys (and Kermit The Frog) doesn’t actually exist. Fans of the Beach Boys will be happy to know that a new album is under consideration.