Liberty

It's been ages since I've done this, but I've fallen in love with a new band and I had to share!

Shane & Shane did a song called 'The One You Need' which is lovely and led me to look up their album on iTunes. I bought it and turns out that is not even the best song on the album. It's probably the best £7.99 I ever spent (and that includes the BB cream foundation I just bought)!

The whole album is fantastic and I totally recommend it, but the best song on the is 'Liberty'. You want to turn your bass up LOUD for this one. Honestly I could listen to it on repeat. Forever. Except that it's annoying my children. Husband loves it though, so...

Anyway, this is not as good a version as the album, but it's the best I could find on youtube. Now I just need convince the worship team that we need to start playing this a church...

The Muppets

We went to see 'A Monster in Paris' at the cinema (again) this morning - but they'd sold out!!

As we were there anyway we went to see the Muppet's Movie anyway. I wasn't looking forward to it (I recently had to sit through the Smurf's Movie and I wasn't sure my parenting endurance was capable of going through that again) but I was pleasantly surprised.

In fact, I loved it. It had a real Flight of the Conchords (one of my favourite shows) feel about it. Hardly surprising since it turns out Bret McKenzie wrote some of the music.

Anyway, here's one of my favourite songs from the movie, sung by Bret and Kermit.

Sunburn

Today's song is taken from Catatonia's 1998 album International Velvet which was on my CD player for weeks at a time as a teenager. It has some great songs, but my absolute favourite is Don't Need the Sunshine.

I was reminded of it this week as our weather turns colder, but my sunburn shines brightly on. It opens with the lyrics 'It's a most peculiar feeling, like sunburn in the evening...' which was so true this week. Outside, watering the garden in the shiveringly cold air, with my skin still radiating heat did feel very odd.

Catatonia, for those who don't remember them, are a welsh band, fronted by Cerys Matthews. They originally chose the name 'Sweet Catatonia' believing Catatonia to mean extreme pleasure and sleep, but upon discovering it was actually a psychiatric condition they dropped the 'Sweet' part.

The band were fairly successful until Matthews started suffering with anxiety attacks and nervous exhaustions, which resulted in tour dates being cancelled regularly and the deterioration of relationships within the band. It seems some people just are cut out for the pressures associated with fame, even if they do have the talent to get there. The band dissolved in 2001 and although Matthews continues a solo career, it's a quieter one than Catatonia enjoyed with less promotional activities.

Just a little Kiss

It's summer-y weather again and I couldn't resist bringing one of Will's favourite songs out this week. It's from the 'A Monster in Paris' Soundtrack and is sung by Vanessa Paradis.

We saw this movie at the cinema with the kids and loved it so much I've bought the DVD for Mamie's birthday (shhhh! it's a secret)!

Vanessa Paradis is a beautiful woman with a beautiful voice, and as if that wasn't enough to make you jealous she's been dating Johnny Depp for 14 years and has two children with him.

But enough about her, this is such a feel good song, which never fails to lift my spirits. Un P'tit Baiser - or Just a Little Kiss.

Coconut Woman

It's so sunny this morning!

It's getting me excited that summer is just around the corner. I know we're predicted frost soon, but in good faith I have been getting out some of my favourite summertime artists to listen to.

One of the best is Harry Belafonte. Nothing screams summer like one of his albums (except the Christmas ones -  although even they have a somewhat tropical feel....).

The first time I heard Harry Belafonte was in his song 'Jump In The Line' for the movie 'Beetlejuice' and it's still one of my favourite songs. Me and the kids dance around the kitchen to it A LOT. Apparently he is best known for the Banana Boat song though.

Although Harry was a brilliant singer, song writer and actor, perhaps one of the most significant parts of his career is that he has been a social activist fighting for civil rights and humanitarian causes since his rise to popularity in the 1950s. In fact, Belafonte was one of Martin Luther King Jrs friends and confidants - raising thousands of dollars in concerts to bail him and others out of prison on numerous occasions.

Despite being a massively interesting guy, politically and socially, he is also responsible for bringing Caribbean style music to US popularity.

This is one of our family favourites - The Coconut Women. It's a fun song, especially the tonuge in cheek parts about drinking rum making you 'dance like a gypsy'. My kids love it and we always end up dancing and giggling when we listen.

Hope you enjoy it in preparations for summer.

Sovereign

Earlier this week I bought Amber Brooks and David Vallier's Album 'Sovereign'. There are far too many amazing tracks on this album for me to share them all, but you should definitely buy it on itunes if you have a spare £7.99 knocking around. 

I've been a fan of David and Amber's since I attended the Worship and Warfare conference in South Carolina at their church in 2009. I bought Amber's album 'Still I rise' whilst I was there and three years on it is still on me and my husbands regular play lists. She writes in such a unique way and uses sounds that are so refreshing from the standard guitar band set up of most contemporary worship.  

David Vallier also has such a unique voice and sound, and together they have made a stunning album. Here is an acoustic version of the title track 'sovereign' which I have been listening to all week. 

Enjoy.

 

Girl On Fire

I recently went to see 'The Hunger Games' movie at the cinema and LOVED it. I'm told I didn't enjoy it as much as those who read the book first, but I don't care. I really enjoyed it.

Sadly this song, 'Girl On Fire' by Ella Mae Bowen didn't make it into the movie, but it is on the soundtrack. I'm a massive fan of Ella Mae Bowen, ever since her amazing cover of Bonnie Tyler's 'Holding out for a Hero'. It's such a beautiful haunting version of a classic song. So different from the original, it's innovative and stunning.

Enjoy.

April Shower

I haven't done this for aaaages.... but anyway, here is my song for the week.

Disney's April Shower - in honour of the fact that we had my sisters baby shower yesterday, and it's april, obviously.

Baby D is due on wednesday - So exciting!!

Aquarium

It's been snowing today which always reminds me of one of my favourite pieces of piano music. It's so magical and just perfect for a winters evening watching snowflakes fall.

It's called 'Aquarium' from Saint-Saens 'Carnival of the Animals' although you may feel you recognise it better as the music from the introduction of Disney's 'Beauty and the Beast'. Although Alan Menken's Prologue to beauty and the beast is very similar (and no doubt based upon this piece) they aren't actually the same (though it is also an exquisitely beautifully written piece).

Interestingly, Saint-Saens apparently felt the piece was 'too frivolous' and would not allow it to be performed in his lifetime, except for to a few close friends, as he was worried it may damage his reputation as a serious composer!

Fortunately for us, he did make provisions for it to be published after his death - otherwise we would never have heard it. It would have been a terrible waste as it is such a sublimely delicate and engaging piece of music.

My Deliverer

This is one of my favourite songs from a conference I went to in 2007. It's available on iTunes on the album 'Worship & Warfare III'

I don't know much about David Olinger, but I love this song. Here are some of my favourite lyrics:

I’m not so sure about this journey
It’s an awfully long way
I’ve got a cloud by day and a fire by night
But I still feel so afraid
I’m learning to believe in the promise of Your Word
And I’m walking out of Egypt
Into the freedom of the Lord

My deliver is the great I Am

Sinkin' Soon

Norah Jones has one of those voices I just never grow tired of. She's won 9 grammies and sold 37 million albums and you can hear why. She sites Bill Evans and Billie Holiday as two of her favorite artists and inspirations, which is probably why I like her so much, being a massive Billie Holiday fan myself.

Sinkin' soon is from her 2007 album 'Too late'. Apparently they couldn't get the song right whilst trying to record it so they went out for a few drinks, 'I guess we needed a little bit of that drunken sailor vibe' said Jones, 'because we came back and recorded this on the first take'.

Drunk or not, they produced a song with such a chilled out vibe that I can't resist listening to it whilst reading snuggled up in a warm blanket on a cold january evening. Enjoy.