Saturday, January 23, 2010

Can we...

have a get together between young people (late eighties/early nineties babies) who love them some oldies? Every time I go to a party I feel a lil unsatisfied 'cause I know I jam so much better to the older stuff. Well, and by "jam" I mean I feel and enjoy it more. Uncontrollable. That shoulder just start movin' on it's own... then it's all over. I know I'm not alone! Shoot! Speaking of jammin'...  Just look at all the sweat, head and body rockin!


And "Ow!" to the dancing musicians in the front.. hrrmmphf! Actually, the whole concert get's down!


We don't have to dress like them, but can we have fun like them?




That rainbow shadow-like thingie that follows them when they move is necessary, though.



And, I've just realized that's what I would want for my birthday. I'm not big on parties or planning anything but if I could have a party where we just played mad music from like the 60's to the nineties...YES! That would be the definition of JOY. Especially, if I had someone to slow dance with. Mmhm. We can dream.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Music Gives Me Hope

It'll be interesting to see what's the first song that comes to mind once i finish this. Up, i done thought of one already: "I Know It's You" by Donny Hathaway. Sigh with joy when I allow myself to really listen. Oh, and Amel Larrieux's "Make Me Whole." Dammit. I'll make a list. Warning, most obvious most true warning: this list will not be complete and cover the expanse of my heart.

1. "I Know It's You" -Donny Hathaway
2. "Make Me Whole"- Amel Larrieux
3. "For Once in My Life"-Stevie Wonder
4. "Sunshine of My Life"- Stevie Wonder
5. "Overjoyed"
6. "Do I Do"
7.  "All I Do"
8. "That Girl"
9. "I Was Made to Love Her"
10. "Knocks Me Off My Feet" (ugh! just gotta close your eyes and see that walk in the park!)
11. "As"
12. "You and I"
See a trend? I can't ever just listen to one Stevie Wonder song. It's one of those things i tell myself i'm gonna do just to allow me to go down that road. That's a list in itself and i'm sure many people have them.
13. Now for more Donny, "Love Love Love"
14. "A Song for You"
15. "Nothing Even Matters" (!) - Lauryn Hill & D'Angelo
16. funnily enough "I Used to Love Him" - Lauryn Hill & Mary J. Blige
17. "For Real" -Amel Larrieux
18. "Try Your Wings" -Amel Larrieux (it's a jazz standard but I heard her sing it first)
19.  Lauryn Hill singing "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You"
20. "Stellar" (!)- Incubus
21. "Dig"- Incubus
22. "Sun Comes Up" -John Legend
23. "Love is You" - Chrisette Michele
24. "I'd Do It All Again" - Corinne Bailey Rae (and when you know the history that goes with it and pay close attention to the video, it becomes even more amazing)
25. "Call Me When You Get This"- Corinne Bailey Rae
26. "Head Over Feet"- Alanis Morisette
27. "No One Else"- Amel Larrieux
28. "Heaven Must Be Likes This" -Ohio Players
29. "Always & Forever" - Heatwave
30.  "Iris" - Goo Goo Dolls
31. "Angel"- Groove Theory
32. "Didja Know" - Groove Theory
33. "For the Love of You"  (!)- The Isley Brothers
34. "Maybe Tomorrow"- The Jackson 5
35. "Not Like Crazy" - Jill Scott
36. "It's Love" - Jill Scott
37. "The Way" - Jill Scott
38. "Hello, It's Me." - The Isley Brothers, Amel Larrieux, John Legend (each of them have a version)
39. "Ordinary People" -John Legend
40. "P.D.A." - John Legend ;]
41. "Only Heart" - John Mayer
42. "Daughters" - John Mayer
43. "City Love" - John Mayer (!!!was a little obsessed before I left for college)
44. "Love Song for No One" - John Mayer
45. "Dulce Compania" - Julieta Venegas (if I'm translating it right with my knowledge of Spanish, haha.)
46. "Glow" - Kelis
47.  "I'm Into You," "Set You Free," "Inside" - Kem
48.  "I Belong to You" - Lenny Kravitz
49.  "Dreaming Wide Awake" - Lizz Wright
50.  "Sunshine" - Lupe Fiasco
51. "...And He Gets the Girl" - Lupe Fiasco
52. "Never Too Much" - Luther Vandross
53. "Eight Days A Week" - The Beatles
54. "I Want to Hold Your Hand" - The Beatles
55. "Get to Know Ya" -  Maxwell
56. "realove" - Musiq
57. "Romancipation" - Musiq
58. "Her" - Musiq
59. "Speechless" - Musiq
60. "Misty" - Nancy Wilson (heard her sing it first)
61. "Fly Me to the Moon" - Nancy Wilson (same)
62. "The Very Thought of You" - Nancy Wilson (same)
63.  "Pretty World" - Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66
64.  "You've Really Got A Hold On Me" - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles (i just imagine slow dancing to this in the living room)
65.  "Quiet Storm" - Smokey Robinson
66. "Send One You Love" - Stevie Wonder
67. "Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel" - Tavares
68. "Get Ready"- The Temptations (!!!)
69. "When Somebody Loves You Back"- (R.I.P.) Teddy Pendergrass
70. "My Girl" - The Temptations
71. "Anniversary" - Toni!Tony!Tone!"
72. "Somersault" - Zero 7
73. "Only Have Eyes for You" - The Flamingos
74."Til the End of Time" - The Flamingos
75. "Lovers Never Say Goodbye" - The Flamingos
76. "For Lovers Only" - Maxwell
77.  "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" - Aretha Franklin
78. "Daydreaming" - Aretha Franklin
79. "I'll Write A Song for You" - Earth, Wind & Fire


And anything else that lets me know I'm not the only one hungry. Actually that's this song, "The Blues Are Brewin" -Billie Holiday and when i heard her sing, "When the Lord up above you/sends someone to love you/the blues are something you lose." I stopped. (My) Deep dark secret belief being aired out all crazy. Alright, not too deep and dark and secret but yeah. And that's not to disregard the importance of self-love and knowing other things can making you happy and etc. Now, I know that line from the song maybe a complex and contested statement but shoot for that moment i said, Ah ha yes! I have reasons for each song above and I'm sure I'm missing some but I can only do so much at once.

And what made me think about this, these sites:  GivesMeHope and LoveGivesMeHope. Now, call it sappy if you want, but I melt (and by melt, i mean i get all warm inside and find a tear or two in the corner of my eyes) a little after reading a few of these in one sitting.

And until I get to know what I'm feeling about each time I hear these songs, Music Gives Me Hope.. for Love.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Just watch.


"Haiti" by Carvens Lissaint


One of my friends, amazing poet/performer/person and proud Haitian has a poem about the experience he had when he visited the country this past summer. This video is an advertisement for an event called Every Drop Counts that will be held in Chicago.

Check it out. You won't be disappointed. Extraordinary passion and heart he has.

Leah Smith


I don’t know her personally.  But, I have a friend who does. That friend introduced me to her album. I don’t know much but that she’s from Philly, is in her early twenties and has toured with Israel New Breed. What I do know, she has a beautiful voice and tremendous talent in singing and songwriting. Her album, Beautifully Made, sounds to me like an interesting Gospel/R&B hybrid. There are definitely songs that demonstrate a Christian influence and others (but, then arguably all) have more of a universal feel. There are useful lessons/important issues raised throughout. I don’t really like talking about music in this way. It means different things to different people and I even feel differently about the same music at different points in my life, as many people do. So, I’m gonna stop. Best I got, just listen.
“Beautifully Made”

“Shields and Swords”

 Music can be purchased here on iTunes or CdBaby or digistation

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Good. Good first day.

So, it feels like a "give you the blow by blow" type day. pause. (had to do it).

Got up at like 8am. Free breakfast in the lobby of my dorm. Holler. Woot woot. Came back and ate a banana. Work. Class. Dinner with friends. But in between the two classes, one thing that had me a little frenzied: books. Now, I don't play games when it comes to books and I usually find out a way not to buy them. Be it library, Borrow Direct,E-books, borrow... buying the book the last option unless I really feel I will be using it in the future. So, of course after my first class I go to the library to get the books... went to three different ones... One question: WHO THE HEEL (yes, heel) done got to the books before me? Oh no no no. And I was hot running back and forth. But it's gonna be alright. Haha.

Classes. Intro to Asian American Studies. Interested. Looking forward to learning. Had the professor before. Should be good. Music Hum. or should I say Masterpieces of Western Music? Why not? Columbia does. Or should I say class full of music by dead white men? Why not? my teacher did. And therein, she stole my heart away. Haha. I forced it. Well, she made me excited about her approach to the class. She's a musical theorist focusing on "pop" music AND she says she primarily looks at it from a feminist approach and acknowledged that there aren't many women or people of color represented in the class. I lit up. Teachers outside of Ethnic Studies that look critically (acknowledging its strengths and weaknesses) at Columbia's CORE curriculum win me over instantly. And we talked about music for a while: when and how we listen, to what etc. Okay, I didn't talk then. But, I listened and answered the little questions on my sheet: paragraph-like. Soaked it all in. Then we listened to 1. "Dies Irae" (a Medieval Chant, apparently no ones knows who wrote it) 2. a piece from Mozart's opera, The Marriage of Figaro (Sull'aria, i think) and 3. "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder. Needless to say my heart skipped a beat when I recognized the last one (took 2 or 3 seconds) and I looked around, not everyone was as excited- but, this is okay.

For the first time since I've been here, I feel excited about learning. It's a return to a younger me. I feel hella/so/mad/wild alive thinking about it now. I hope this continues. I trust it will. I don't know what's getting into me, but I like it. I thank the Lord above.

Monday, January 18, 2010

this is my jam! (or one of them... ;])


"And baby when the sun comes up
I’m gonna be holding you
It’s destiny that you’re next to me
I’m in love with you
Oh and baby when I wake up
I’m gonna be there with you
A new day rise
I wanna look in your eyes


when the sun comes up."



So. There is just something about this... I think about it sometimes. Not just the "love is here with a second chance" aspect, though that's a great part of it as well, but having somebody there when the sun comes up. And not just anybody, "destiny." Waking up with someone you're in love with. I guess I imagine it as more than just "waking up" for the day but for so many other things. Waking up to each other, to possibility, to dreams, and endurance, and lasting and waking up everywhere inside. Having someone to wake up to/wake up with, this simultaneous action in love. Heightened, rising with/to the sun. Some of The best mornings for me are when the sun is just hitting so many spots in my room, if not flooding it. (that reminds me of this chapter in The Scarlet Letter called a "Flood of Sunshine. i think i did a project on it. Mad symbolism but that's neither here nor there but yes) And so sometimes, i think I stare at sun rays, stare at what the sun is lighting up in my room and smile. Thank the window, and the shade for its modesty. "When the sun comes up, I'm gonna be holding you." You know, sun is good for you, with its Vitamin D and golden (aura) brown bestowing abilities. And, right now I don't know if I can fully wrap my mind around the idea of having this relationship set in motion of associating the sun and the one you love. I think we do it all the time, even if we've never had it/been in love. We associate "destiny" (read, "the one") with warmth, life, light/rescue from darkness, waking you up, vibrancy, something that will always be there etc etc more.Or maybe, that's just me. Except, I won't go blind staring at "destiny" but there's definitely another risk there. I shall not rant on. A lil John Legend can make my day! "Woooaah yeaeeah"