From the same people who brought us the amazing “if you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe” video is this marvelous bit of music video:
It looks like they’re making this a regular thing. Needless to say (but I’ll say it anyway), my inner science groupie? Is squeeing with glee.
BTW, this goes out to Janiece, who is in NerdLove with Neil deGrasse Tyson. Then again, who isn’t?
…you must first invent the universe.
I am completely and totally in love with this.
The science groupie in me is squeeing all over the damned place.
H/T to Bad Astronomy and Thordr commenting on Stonekettle Station.
This morning I was looking for the lyrics to a lovely song by Nanci Griffith and I realized that I hadn’t listened to it in quite a long time. It was as lovely as I remember it, so I’m going to post it for y’all today. Enjoy!
Here’s the thing: I am a sappy, sappy woman. A sappy woman with high musical standards, mind you, but when I hear a song that pierces my heart, it’s all I can do to keep from tearing up. Even then, I’m not entirely successful (such as now – while at work).
So when this song was first sent to me via a now-defunct “Song of the Day” listserv which I used to belong to, I turned into a weeping pile of goo. It was through the listserv that I “discovered” Jason Robert Brown, a Tony-award winning composer who is the only living composer that comes closest to Stephen Sondheim, in my estimation.
(The only other contemporary musical theater composer who came close was Jonathan Larson, who died far too young just as RENT was starting its first off-Broadway performances. I can only imagine what brilliance he would have had before him.)
As Sondheim is the closest thing to a musical god in my book, it’s not a title I give lightly. But I think it’s one that JRB can hold with no effort – he’s that good.
“Someone To Fall Back On” from Wearing Someone Else’s Clothes by Jason Robert Brown | Lyrics | Purchase
BTW, this goes out to my honey.
He’s dead! He can’t defend against…the RickRolling of Nirvana.
So very wrong…and yet so very right.
H/T to stee.
CuteFilmNerd and I spent the July 4th weekend away from the computer and earning a little extra money. Nothing exciting, but it did entail us not being within communication distance of each other, with our iPods keeping us sane and helping the time pass by.
I listened to a lot of Real Time with Bill Maher podcasts, but I also listened to a little music. And the music that really helped me out? Marian Call. A geek girl with a lovely voice, a wicked sense of wordplay and a typewriter as one of her musical instruments, her music makes me smile, laugh and cry, sometimes in rapid succession.
At the moment, the only album of hers that I have is Got to Fly, a tribute to geeks everywhere, though the songs are inspired by Firefly and Battlestar Galactica. You don’t have to be a fan of those shows to enjoy the songs, because they are immediately identifiable to anyone who has lived life.
The opening song is one that geeks the world over can relate to:
There are some lovely songs on the album, such as “Dark Dark Eyes” and “In the Black” (a fan video – approved by Marian Call – can be found here).
But the song that kills me every time – the one that I identify with the most – is “Good Old Girl”:
Wow.
If you’re a fan of gorgeous music that is simple yet complex, with a lovely voice and sense of whimsy, buy Marian Call’s music. You’ll be glad you did.
CuterFilmNerd and I also spent the evening of July 4th at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery and watched Jaws in the cold night air with fireworks going off in the background at another location (I don’t know where). It was weird and kinda creepy and fun and I’m happy we did it – I’d never been to any of the Cinespia screenings before, though I’d certainly heard about them.
In many ways CuteFilmNerd and I are very well suited for each other, which is why we’re together and why, when a certain song popped up on my iTunes today, I felt moved to email it to him:
I think we need a little cheering up around this place. Who better than the inimitable Madeline Kahn and Grover?
*************************
I am very much looking forward to it. Yea!
I’ve written before about my love for Sligo Rags, but in listening to my iTunes, “Ordinary Man” popped up, which is my favorite Sligo Rags song ever – and one that is especially timely in today’s economic and job environment. Breaks my heart every damned time I listen to it.
Unfortunately, I can’t embed it or blip it, because they are (understandably) very proprietary over their music, but I can point you to a place you can listen to it online. Do so. Buy or download the album from whence it came (The Night Before the Morning After…). You won’t regret it.
(Another favorite: “Black is the Color” – freaking gorgeous.)
Wow. What a voice.
In addition (aside from the fact that this is a stunning rendition of one of my top two favorite songs from Les Miserables) the expression on Simon Cowell’s face at 4:02 is priceless.
What an adorable and wonderfully talented woman.
This may be a few years old, and already widely distributed (and popular), but any time’s a good time for a little Walken:
I’m listening to a compilation CD by redwhite+bluezz, a jazz club in Pasadena that I’ve not yet been to, but would love to visit, especially since the rather talented brother of a co-worker is an artist in residence.
The one thing that leapt out at me? James Tormé sounds so much like his father, Mel Tormé, aka The Velvet Fog, it makes me wonder if vocal reincarnation is possible.
Mind you, James has definitely got his own voice. More on the tenor side, not quite as full sounding, with a definite contemporary edge, but man, oh man, I hear his father’s influence all over his voice, and not just because both have an affinity for scat singing.
(BTW, if you’ve never heard of Mel Tormé, or you know him only from his guest appearances on Night Court in the 80s or as the co-writer of The Christmas Song, familiarize yourself with his other music tout de suite, especially if you like jazz.)
Most excellent.
Last night CuteFilmNerd and I went to see these guys…
…and it was great.
I’ve been a fan of Sligo Rags since I reviewed their second CD (The Night Before the Morning After) when I worked for the Irish newspaper back in 2006. Later that year they played a fundraiser for Marcy Winograd, the Congressional candidate I worked for a few months later, which was the first time I’d ever seen them live. They were just as fantastic as their CD, as was the case about a year later when I saw them perform at the John Anson Ford Ampetheater.
It was a most enjoyable evening. They even sang my favorite song from The Night Before the Morning After – “An Ordinary Man” – at my request. Though they were able to fill the ampetheater with their sound back in 2007, initmate settings are what they do best.
Good music, good drinks, good company. What could be a better evening?
