You’re A Firework

I can’t believe I’m going to post this video. But…but…it HAS TO BE DONE! There’s no way I can let such a perfect pairing of Music Monday and Independence Day slip by unnoticed.

To make up for the inanity of the song, why don’t we take a few minutes to reflect on what some of the Founding Fathers said about this awesome nation?

“The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever.”

-John Adams, in a letter to his wife Abigail

We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind of self-government; upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.

– Usually attributed to James Madison. Great quote though, no matter who said it.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

– Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence

Want to read some more cool quotes about America? There are some great ones here.

This Race Can Be Won

You know, I really love when God uses music to minister to us…especially when He uses special people to bring said music to you. For today’s Music Monday, we are going to jump back in time a few weeks, back to the days of stress, strife, and suffering. Those deep, dark, dreary days known as…Spring Semester.

I don’t remember too much about this last semester. All I remember is being exhausted, reading and writing lots of words, and basically mainlining caffeine in any form possible. I spent whole days and nights at the dining room table, articles spread from one edge  to the other, a few bottles of caffeine scattered in the midst of the papers, and me and my laptop valiantly plugging away.

In the midst of one such session, I received a message from a dear friend in the form of a YouTube video link. I almost ignored it – how important could it be? It could wait a few days. Then, I glanced at the time. It had been over six hours since I last took a break from this paper. It was time for a little brain vacation. So, I clicked the link.

Boy, was that the right choice. Such an amazingly encouraging song!!!! I could literally feel energy running back into my soul. The song was instantly downloaded from iTunes, and I used to to get through the next hours of crunch time.

My friend didn’t know what I was going through. He didn’t know how weary I was. But he sent the encouragement to me anyways, and that means the world. Thank God for friends (and songs!) like this to keep us focused and motivated on life’s journey!

Happy Monday! Stay strong.

Pay No Attention To The Band Behind The Curtain

So, heard this awesome song the other day. Well, I really only heard a fragment, and ran to Google the lyrics before I forgot them.

What I saw…well, it shocked me. Really, really shocked me. THEM? THEY did a song like THAT? I was gobsmacked.

Thinking that maybe I was overreacting, I wasn’t careful when I started sharing this song. I let people see who sang it before they heard it…and I almost lost people.

Because, you know…it’s by…Pearl Jam.

Bear with me? Give it a listen? I promise, it’s Pearl Jam like you’ve never heard them before.

And yes, that’s a good thing.

Yes I understand that every life must end, 
As we sit alone, I know someday we must go, 
I’m a lucky man to count on both hands 
The ones I love,.. 

Some folks just have one, 
Others they got none, 

Stay with me,.. 
Let’s just breathe. 

Practiced are my sins, 
Never gonna let me win, 
Under everything, just another human being, 
Yeh, I don’t wanna hurt, there’s so much in this world 
To make me bleed. 

Stay with me,.. 
You’re all I see. 

Did I say that I need you? 
Did I say that I want you? 
Oh, if I didn’t now I’m a fool you see,.. 
No one knows this more than me. 
As I come clean. 

I wonder everyday 
as I look upon your face, 
Everything you gave 
And nothing you would take, 
Nothing you would take,.. 
Everything you gave. 

Did I say that I need you? 
Oh, Did I say that I want you? 
Oh, if I didn’t now I’m a fool you see,.. 
No one know this more than me. 
As I come clean. 

Nothing you would take,.. 
everything you gave. 
Hold me till I die,.. 
Meet you on the other side.

It’s A Cry and It’s A Broken Hallelujah

One of my favourite songs, and my favourite cover of it to boot! Happy Music Monday.

Just The Way You Are

Time for Music Monday! This week I have something for ALL my readers…a song and a sign! I love this song by Bruno Mars, despite the little teeny-boppers at ColdStone rolling their eyes at me. The lyrics are sweet, the melody is interesting, and the singing is decent.

Add someone signing to it, and you have the perfect little video. Enjoy…and remember that you are perfect, just the way you are.

America

One of my dad’s favourite composers is Tim Janis. For you PBS buffs, you’ve probably seen his specials on TV; epic, sweeping music overlaying beautiful nature scenes of America. So, for today’s MusicMonday, I thought I’d share some of his music with you!

I Will Hold On Hope

So, I know that I said I’d be away for a bit. But I’ve been at homework for 17 hours straight now (including Blackboard wiping my test clean and a professor pulling reference information off the website). I’m a little…stressed. Just a bit. Yeah.

Since it’s Monday, I thought I’d share some of the music that is getting me through the week. Sarah first introduced me to Mumford and Sons a few weeks ago because of the song Sigh No More. Being the awesome English major that she is, she was quick to point out the major selling point: the words to the song were taken  from Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing.

Well, that right there is enough to win my heart!

Besides, look at that crazy arrangement of strings! Bass, cello, violin, viola, drums, guitar, banjo, etc…right there we are looking at something unique.

A week or two after this, one of my classmates chose their song The Cave as the topic for his paper. Sitting in a drab university room, the words really hit home with me…and I think with a lot of us sitting there overall. This one is a little rawer than Sigh No More, but excellent in its reality.

You can understand dependence when

you know the maker’s land.

So make your siren’s call

And sing all you want

I will not hear what you have to say

‘Cause I need freedom now

And I need to know how

To live my life as it’s meant to be

And I will hold on hope

And I won’t let you choke

On the noose around your neck

And I’ll find strength in pain

And I will change my ways

I’ll know my name as it’s called again.

It’s good stuff there…a little rough, but good. I like the fact that their lyrics can be honest, yet they still find a way to make them hopeful.

If you are looking for a slightly mellower sound from them, I have two more for you. The first one has a beautifully British title: Thistle & Weeds.

But plant your hope with good seeds

Don’t cover yourself with thistle and weeds

Rain down, rain down on me.

The other one I love is Awake My Soul. It’s laid back and lyrically poignant.

Awake my soul, awake my soul

For you were made to meet your maker

Caveat time: there is one song of theirs that made me unhappy with them. It’s called Little Lion Man, and despite all the awards it’s won, I don’t see any good excuse for the word they used throughout the chorus. So, I just want to make it clear that I am NOT endorsing that particular song. The others…well, they are just really, really good.

Oh, and you can now pick up the album Sigh No More at your local Starbucks! And, you can hear the songs there too! It’s a nice change from some of the weeping and wailing we’ve had in the stores recently.

There you have it. I hope you enjoy…and have a good week.

O’re The Ramparts We Watched…Or Something Like That

The National Anthem. It’s got a great story. Beautiful history. It’s the ultimate expression of the tenacity and bravery of Americans in the face of overwhelming odds. Even through the darkest night, with bullets and rockets everywhere, our flag still stands.

It deserves to be sung with passion, dignity, power, and emotion. It deserves to be sung like this:

It does NOT deserve the butchering that it got at the SuperBowl LXV last night. No song deserves this, let alone a National Anthem:

So, there you have it. I must go weep for America’s future now….

…Those Are Such Great Shoes…

I’m beginning to love Jack Johnson’s music. This is the song that got me hooked on him, so I wanted to share it with you all.

Please keep the heckling down to a minimum….

Hey Soul Sister!

I don’t know how it happened. I mean, I love the song “Hey Soul Sister”- like, realllllly love it. Then one day, I started humming it at work. Once my shift stopped groaning about my choice of music, she looked at me and said, “You know, that song is so you!”

Oh, really? Okay.

Honestly, I thought that it would all fizzle out- I still liked the song, but that was that. Except, that wasn’t that. People started texting me when they heard the song, or messaging me when it came on the radio. It was weird…nice, but weird. To this day, I don’t know what it is about the song that makes people say that it is “me”, but I’m not complaining. It’s a great song, and Train is a great group. Granted, it’s a little weird to get a text that simply says “Your lipstick stains”, but it’s really nice to know that people are thinking about you. Right?

Another random fact about me: I like the Glee covers of songs. Forget the show- the covers rock! I really can’t think of a Glee cover that wasn’t as good as, if not usually better, than the original. So, imagine my surprise and delight when last night I stumbled on the newest Glee cover for this week.

You guessed it! It’s “Hey Soul Sister”!

So, enjoy- I am!