Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas Special (2020)
Starring Mariah Carey, Billy Eichner, Tiffany Haddish, Jennifer Hudson, Ariana Grande, and Misty Copeland
Directed by Roman Coppola and Hamish Hamilton
The RyMickey Rating: B-
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Sunday, December 25, 2022
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
What I'm Listening To - "Fuse" by Keith Urban/"Tornado" by Little Big Town
I don't post much about music and that will certainly be a trend that continues, however, with this blog being the "entertainment diary" that it is, I wanted to post about a concert I attended this past Saturday.
While I wouldn't consider myself a huge fan of country music, I've grown to enjoy some artists over the past five or six years and it's become a genre that won't cause me to cringe when I hear it come on the radio. Still, when it comes to country music, I really only listen consistently to three or four artists and when I heard that two of them were coming on a "double bill" to the Susquehana Bank Center in Camden, New Jersey, I jumped at the chance to see them for what I considered a bargain price.
So, my brother and I ventured into the lovely city of Camden to check out Keith Urban's Light the Fuse tour with opening act Little Big Town. Having already seen Little Big Town twice, I was much looking forward to hearing their harmonies blend together beautifully again, but, considering they were Urban's warm-up band, I was expecting maybe a half dozen songs from them. Much to my surprise and delight, we were treated to a dozen numbers -- many from their year-old album Tornado. Considering this was the first time I was seeing them in a stadium setting (let alone an outdoor stadium setting), I was a little wary about how they'd sound. [And when the first opening act Dustin Lynch performed, I couldn't understand a word he was saying...which is why since I don't have anything nice to say about him, I'll just pretend like his gig didn't really exist.] My worries were unfounded, however, as they proved to me (once again) why if I were pressed to name my favorite current band, Little Big Town would take the crown. To me, they're a modern day Fleetwood Mac, which is further exemplified by the fact that at every one of their shows they perform a kick-ass cover of that band's "The Chain." They managed to successfully make their more upbeat songs take on a more pulsing sound filling the arena, while at the same time making their slower numbers feel incredibly intimate. Despite the fact that they've seemingly grown exponentially over the past year in popularity thanks to their biggest hit yet "Pontoon" (which also happens to be one of my least favorite singles of theirs to date), I'm somewhat selfishly hoping that their concerts still remain rather cheaply priced so I can continue supporting them in the future.
Little Big Town would've been worth the price of admission alone for me, but the addition of Keith Urban was just icing on the cake. Current American Idol judge Urban always seems like a genuinely nice guy and that persona certainly was present on the stage. Backed by five gigantic vertical screens (seen above when Urban does a "duet" with the members of Little Big Town), Urban's set had an energy that never died down when he was on the main stage. However, when the country star hiked out to the back of the stadium to play three of his biggest hits in front of the crowd on the grass lawn, the buzz in the seated section died down considerably. Perhaps it was just my lack of any view and while I can certainly appreciate the journey out to give the "cheaper seats" a close-up view, it did bring the set down a tiny bit from my seats.
That aside, Urban puts on a great show interacting a little bit with the audience and performing a nice mix of songs from his previous albums and his new album Fuse released just this past Tuesday. Urban is well known for his guitar-playing prowess and that was on display in full force here. Complete with a camera mounted on his guitar's neck to give the audience a fantastic view of his technique, Urban and his band really rocked out for a little over two hours straight. I will say that while I'm a big fan of Urban's softer side, when he played something like his "You'll Think of Me," the intimacy of the album version was missing. I'm not quite sure you could ever feel the quietness and calmness a song like that requires in a large stadium venue (although Little Big Town succeeded in that department), but Urban was a bit more winning during his upbeat songs.
Undoubtedly, I'd go see both Little Big Town and Keith Urban again should they tour together or individually in the future. A solid show absolutely worth the price of admission.
Keith Urban Set List
While I wouldn't consider myself a huge fan of country music, I've grown to enjoy some artists over the past five or six years and it's become a genre that won't cause me to cringe when I hear it come on the radio. Still, when it comes to country music, I really only listen consistently to three or four artists and when I heard that two of them were coming on a "double bill" to the Susquehana Bank Center in Camden, New Jersey, I jumped at the chance to see them for what I considered a bargain price.
So, my brother and I ventured into the lovely city of Camden to check out Keith Urban's Light the Fuse tour with opening act Little Big Town. Having already seen Little Big Town twice, I was much looking forward to hearing their harmonies blend together beautifully again, but, considering they were Urban's warm-up band, I was expecting maybe a half dozen songs from them. Much to my surprise and delight, we were treated to a dozen numbers -- many from their year-old album Tornado. Considering this was the first time I was seeing them in a stadium setting (let alone an outdoor stadium setting), I was a little wary about how they'd sound. [And when the first opening act Dustin Lynch performed, I couldn't understand a word he was saying...which is why since I don't have anything nice to say about him, I'll just pretend like his gig didn't really exist.] My worries were unfounded, however, as they proved to me (once again) why if I were pressed to name my favorite current band, Little Big Town would take the crown. To me, they're a modern day Fleetwood Mac, which is further exemplified by the fact that at every one of their shows they perform a kick-ass cover of that band's "The Chain." They managed to successfully make their more upbeat songs take on a more pulsing sound filling the arena, while at the same time making their slower numbers feel incredibly intimate. Despite the fact that they've seemingly grown exponentially over the past year in popularity thanks to their biggest hit yet "Pontoon" (which also happens to be one of my least favorite singles of theirs to date), I'm somewhat selfishly hoping that their concerts still remain rather cheaply priced so I can continue supporting them in the future.
Little Big Town would've been worth the price of admission alone for me, but the addition of Keith Urban was just icing on the cake. Current American Idol judge Urban always seems like a genuinely nice guy and that persona certainly was present on the stage. Backed by five gigantic vertical screens (seen above when Urban does a "duet" with the members of Little Big Town), Urban's set had an energy that never died down when he was on the main stage. However, when the country star hiked out to the back of the stadium to play three of his biggest hits in front of the crowd on the grass lawn, the buzz in the seated section died down considerably. Perhaps it was just my lack of any view and while I can certainly appreciate the journey out to give the "cheaper seats" a close-up view, it did bring the set down a tiny bit from my seats.
That aside, Urban puts on a great show interacting a little bit with the audience and performing a nice mix of songs from his previous albums and his new album Fuse released just this past Tuesday. Urban is well known for his guitar-playing prowess and that was on display in full force here. Complete with a camera mounted on his guitar's neck to give the audience a fantastic view of his technique, Urban and his band really rocked out for a little over two hours straight. I will say that while I'm a big fan of Urban's softer side, when he played something like his "You'll Think of Me," the intimacy of the album version was missing. I'm not quite sure you could ever feel the quietness and calmness a song like that requires in a large stadium venue (although Little Big Town succeeded in that department), but Urban was a bit more winning during his upbeat songs.
Undoubtedly, I'd go see both Little Big Town and Keith Urban again should they tour together or individually in the future. A solid show absolutely worth the price of admission.
Keith Urban Set List
- Instrumental
- Long Hot Summer
- Sweet Thing
- Cop Car
- I Told You So
- Stupid Boy
- Even the Stars Fall 4 You
- You Gonna Fly (duet with Little Big Town)
- Without You
- Good Thing
- Kiss a Girl
- (Lawn) Won't Get Fooled Again (The Who cover)
- (Lawn) Days Go By
- (Lawn) Rumor Has It (Adele cover snippet, sung by band member Jerry Flowers)
- (Lawn) Once in a Lifetime
- (Lawn) Born to Run (Bruce Springsteen snippet)
- (Lawn/Main Stage) Better Life
- Boys 'Round Here (Blake Shelton cover)
- Some Nights (fun. cover, snippet sung by band member Danny Rader)
- You'll Think of Me
- Little Bit of Everything
- Who Wouldn't Want to Be Me
- Somebody Like You
- (Encore) But for the Grace of God
- (Encore) Keep on Lovin' You (REO Speedwagon cover)
- (Encore) Tonight I Wanna Cry
- (Encore) Locked Out of Heaven (Bruno Mars cover snippet, sung by band member Brian Nutter)
- (Encore) You Look Good in My Shirt
Little Big Town Set List
- Little White Church
- On Fire Tonight
- Bring It on Home
- Pavement Ends
- Sober
- Front Porch Thing
- Your Side of the Bed
- The Chain (Fleetwood Mac cover)
- Can't Go Back
- Tornado
- Pontoon
- Boondocks
Monday, May 18, 2009
What I'm Listening To - "Fine Line" by Little Big Town
A country Fleetwood Mac is the best way to describe the two guy-two girl quartet of Little Big Town. Definitely country, they also certainly have roots in 70s rock, as evidenced by their concert that I just returned from, where they covered the aforementioned Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain" and The Eagles' "Heartache Tonight."
What I love about the group is the great harmonies. Sure, it's easy to sound good on a cd, but I was very impressed with the group's live vocals this evening, particularly at the end of the touching "Lost," where all four of them put down their microphones and sang a cappella without any amplification whatsoever. While the crowd at the venue was incredibly subdued (singer Karen Fairchild criticized the seemingly elderly crowd by telling them they weren't in a Baptist church so feel free to stand up -- seriously, my brother and I were definitely on the low end age-wise), the group still put on a great show, singing nearly non-stop for an hour and forty-five minutes. Admittedly, I felt a little bad for the group as the lower section (we were in the balcony) seemed filled with grandmas and grandpas and they wouldn't even clap for these guys. About halfway through, the crowd finally started to liven up a little, but they didn't go crazy until their last (and most well-known) song "Boondocks."
Oh, well. I'd definitely go see this quartet again. Not that I go to a lot of shows, but I was entertained for 100 minutes and that's all I can really ask for.
Their single "Fine Line" from their latest album is below. Followed by their most well-known song, "Boondocks." (I realize no one that reads this blog likes country music, so no hurt feelings when you don't listen to them...)
Little Big Town More CMT Music More CMT Music Videos
Little Big Town More CMT Music More CMT Music Videos
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
What I'm Listening To -- "The Show" by Lenka
I guess this we're going into pop this week -- not pop in that Britney Spears-sense, mind you. Australian singer Lenka released her self-titled first album in September 2008 and the video below is for her first single, "The Show." Personally, I think the video is just as good as the song...there's no denying the sweet, sugary pop component that's present in them both.
The Show - Lenka
The way she says "can't" has me swooning over her for some reason.
The video for her second single -- the somewhat creepy "Trouble is a Friend" -- is below. Another neat video that does an incredible job of mirroring the tune and lyrics of the song.
Come on...with puppet birds and puppet vegetables in the first video and shadow puppets in the second, what's not to love about Lenka?
The Show - Lenka
The way she says "can't" has me swooning over her for some reason.
The video for her second single -- the somewhat creepy "Trouble is a Friend" -- is below. Another neat video that does an incredible job of mirroring the tune and lyrics of the song.
Come on...with puppet birds and puppet vegetables in the first video and shadow puppets in the second, what's not to love about Lenka?
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
What I'm Listening To - "Abracadabra" by Robin McKelle
Delving into jazz this week...I don't even know how I came across Robin McKelle, but I think it was via iTunes. Her name was under a "People Who Listen to xxx Also Bought This" column.
Robin McKelle is new to the scene (and let's be honest, I'm sure jazz singers aren't a hot commodity in the music video world), so not much is available online showcasing her talent. The above is a cover of the Steve Miller Band's "Abracadabra" from her 2008 album Modern Antique. It's definitely a good sample of her voice and the reworking of the song is better than the original, I think.
Unfortunately, that's all I could find (admittedly, there's another music video, but it's kinda odd, so no link is going up here), but you can discover it on youtube if you so desire. It's unfortunate because my two favorite songs of hers -- "Comes Love" (a catchy Latin-tinged number) and "Remember" (a self-penned ballad) -- are unavailable in even live performances online.
Both Modern Antique and her debut album Introducing Robin McKelle are available to listen to and purchase on iTunes.
Robin McKelle is new to the scene (and let's be honest, I'm sure jazz singers aren't a hot commodity in the music video world), so not much is available online showcasing her talent. The above is a cover of the Steve Miller Band's "Abracadabra" from her 2008 album Modern Antique. It's definitely a good sample of her voice and the reworking of the song is better than the original, I think.
Unfortunately, that's all I could find (admittedly, there's another music video, but it's kinda odd, so no link is going up here), but you can discover it on youtube if you so desire. It's unfortunate because my two favorite songs of hers -- "Comes Love" (a catchy Latin-tinged number) and "Remember" (a self-penned ballad) -- are unavailable in even live performances online.
Both Modern Antique and her debut album Introducing Robin McKelle are available to listen to and purchase on iTunes.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
What I'm Listening To - "Home" by Marc Broussard
A meld of rock, country, pop, soul, and blues, New Orleans native Marc Broussard is a new favorite of mine. Full disclosure -- I discovered him while flicking through the channels and stopping on Country Music Television. But don't let that fool you. If he is country (which isn't how I would classify him at all), he's definitely different than any country I've ever listened to (of course, the only embeddable video of his first single I could find was from Country Music Television's website).
"Home" is from his 2004 album Carencro, and it's definitely Broussard at his best.
The pulsing drumbeat leads to one of my favorite bridges in music which starts at 2:20 in the video above ("Hot damn" as Marc himself says).
Trying to provide you with another song by Marc proved difficult. He's only made three music videos and the other two were for songs that were just okay. There's a ton of live stuff on youtube, but the quality isn't the greatest.
But, below is another favorite of mine and the sound quality is actually not bad. Here he is performing a cover of Marvin Gaye's "If I Could Build My Whole World Around You" off of his soul covers album S.O.S. Save Our Soul.
I've never heard of this Toby Lightman who he sings with here, but a quick iTunes search brought up the song "NASCAR Love (Let's Go Racing)" and I realized that I never want to hear from her again, regardless of whether she's any good or not.
"Home" is from his 2004 album Carencro, and it's definitely Broussard at his best.
The pulsing drumbeat leads to one of my favorite bridges in music which starts at 2:20 in the video above ("Hot damn" as Marc himself says).
Trying to provide you with another song by Marc proved difficult. He's only made three music videos and the other two were for songs that were just okay. There's a ton of live stuff on youtube, but the quality isn't the greatest.
But, below is another favorite of mine and the sound quality is actually not bad. Here he is performing a cover of Marvin Gaye's "If I Could Build My Whole World Around You" off of his soul covers album S.O.S. Save Our Soul.
I've never heard of this Toby Lightman who he sings with here, but a quick iTunes search brought up the song "NASCAR Love (Let's Go Racing)" and I realized that I never want to hear from her again, regardless of whether she's any good or not.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
What I'm Listening To - "Spiralling" - Keane
Possibly a weekly thing, I figured why not post some of what I'm listening to on my iPod...not that these songs will necessarily be current...they'll simply be my favorite song "of the moment." Music's much more subjective to me than visual media (I don't know why I feel that way, but I do), so no reviews here...
Keane's previous albums (what am I supposed to call them now? Albums still sounds right...) have been low key affairs with the piano as the focal instrument (their use of guitars is minimal -- it's pretty much just a piano, drums, and vocals). With "Spiralling" off of their newest cd, Perfect Symmetry, Keane definitely is moving in a different direction adding a definite 80s British pop sound to their repertoire.
Old style Keane is below -- "Somewhere Only We Know" -- just as good, but definitely different...
Keane's previous albums (what am I supposed to call them now? Albums still sounds right...) have been low key affairs with the piano as the focal instrument (their use of guitars is minimal -- it's pretty much just a piano, drums, and vocals). With "Spiralling" off of their newest cd, Perfect Symmetry, Keane definitely is moving in a different direction adding a definite 80s British pop sound to their repertoire.
Old style Keane is below -- "Somewhere Only We Know" -- just as good, but definitely different...
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