Hiatus !

hey ! am back again ! I almost forgot I had this space on the web !
me been upto some music soul-searching ... so obviously I have to put this as my first post afte such a long time.... I begin my session after the hiatus with a list of songs that have caught my fancy the past few days. Here we go

1. Phil Collins - Something Happened on the way to Heaven
I have heard Phil Collins before but never did this song register in my head as much as it did that once when it was played on the FM. Lovely percussion on this song. The arrangement and the vocals of the legendary Phil Collins make it a peppy and energetic listen. Live performance is when the musicians in his band come out and prove their mettle. Come back home and watch its video each night before going to bed. :-) Yaaaa, Yaaaa, Rihanna and her umbrella has taken a back seat for a baldie and some fifty something, bearded men ! What an irony !!

2. Brad Paisley & Alison Krause - Whiskey Lullaby
Easily get slotted in my all time favourites. Had heard some Brad Paisley before and liked his vocal strength. But Alison Krause in this song was a revelation! My God, she sang well ! When I saw her standing there with both hands folded placed nervously in front of her, I was a bit sceptical as to whether she's been ever on stage or not? But when she started singing, I could feel the song,feel each note, each variation. The best thing about this song is the clarity of each syllable. Of course the song would not be here, without the melody. As Hugh Grant says in the movie Music & Lyrics melody/music is more important than the lyrics :-) But this song is a classic where both music and the lyrics are top class. This is songwriting at its best.

3. The Script - The Man Who Cant be Moved
Wonderful ! The Script comes to my notice with this track. Must admit had not heard their tracks earlier but this song made me stand up and take notice. Love the flow of the song. :-)

4. Pussy Cat Dolls - I Hate this Part
The other day I was speaking to my sister over phone and mid-way through, I started humming this tune. She waited, she waited and she waited...for me to stop.. but in vain ! Then I told her that this is a song that is just not leaving my lips and I have to sing it to get over it. Anytime of the day, it will just pop into your head and then there is no way to go.. Its like this irreprisble feeling that you cannot breathe without humming it. I invariably end up shaking my body to this song - be it the sombre settings of the office, the bike or bang in the middle of a play ... can you imagine, I ended up humming this song while watching a play , to the chagrin of the rest of the audience. My sister expressed her surprise like this " WHAT !!! Puuuuuussy Cat Dollsssss ???????? I can't believe this !! How is it that you are listening to such bands? I thought you hated the Britneys, the Christina augileras, the skimpy bunch? (A wicked laugh ). True ! I hate listening to that bunch or those whose contribution to a song is nothing but sing it in the confines of the studio and lip sync on stage.... I hate musicians who do not either compose or write or arrange the song. But anyways Pussy Cat Dolls' this track truly has caught my fancy against all odds. All the booty shaking aside, I love the way Nicole sings it and the melody in this song. Worth letting go my lofty ideal and stupid ego to enjoy some good music.

5. Nirvana - Come As You Are
Need I say anthing about this legendary piece? Well, its been long time since I had a Kurt Cobain track on my "Most played list". Keep humming this impromptu !

6. Nickelback - Gotta Be Somebody
After Spiderman's OST 'Hero', I had forgotten about Chad Kroeger. But a few weeks back I heard some giggly teen request for this song on the FM station and I was expecting some teen punk song... but the song started with a nice thrust and picked up a good melody as it went forward and culminated in a wonderfully pleasing rhythm. And I was like,.."Ummmm, I have heard that voice before !!" Yes, it was Chad Kroeger. His gruffy, hoarse voice, strangely seems so soothing to my ears. No wonder, now Nickelback's all tracks are often played in my household.

7. INXS - Afterglow
Wonderful song ! Cant comment much about the quality of the music or the lyrics, 'coz am still trying to figure it out. But makes it to the list due to the wondeful arrangement in the song. Well sung too and brings back INXS to my ears after the equally soothing 'Beautiful Girl' by the same INXS.


Well, there you go... these are favourites at the moment. Of course Coldplay, doesnt feature on this list because they do not qualify as this is a list of songs/bands that are not my favourites but are currently my favourite 'listens'. There will come a time shortly when some other songs will catch my fancy and then I will put them up here. :-)

There it is... Damn !! now i am again humming "I hate this part right here " This song is hell bent upon ruining my reputation !!! Lewis Hamilton, keep your cat out of my face man !!!

Does it help if you are like a boy in most of the times of your life but become a man, when it matters the most.... at times when you have to take a decison.

or

Does it help if you are like a man most of the times in your life, but act like a boy when it comes to the most important moments of your life... times when you have had to make decisions.

Out of the Title Race... For sure !!

I am depressed yaar !!! The moment Lucas and Mascherano stepped on to the pitch, I was livid. I know because I banged my hand against the wall and it has been hurting ever since. How can two holding midfielders be able to creat something in the absence of Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso ? For God's sake Rafa... this is Anfield. Have we not drawn enough matches here to learn from them? Champions do not fear losing !!!

As I witnessed the match progress, I could not help but wonder that Liverpool FC is short of quality players. It is a realization that had dawned upon us fans a couple of months ago when we were still winning games. Somewhere it was always lurking... the fear that we would soon run of steam and then these lack of quality bench strength would hurt us. And now today as I saw a struggling midfield, I felt sorry for Torres, Carragher, Stevie G, Alonso, Kyut... the only quality players in the side who give it their 100% to win....not just draw.

Come on who are we fooling here... we are only half of what a Manchester United team is.... Winners !!! Full credit to Sir Alex Fergusen and dis-credit to Rafael Benitez. Rafa has done so much of chopping and changing.... he has never given security to his players...not allowing the players to settle into a role.... Only Carragher and Pepe Reina have started each and every game of the season for the club. Rafa has let Robbie Keane go... I have no idea why... He said that Robbie was hard working player and he was trying very hard to play well... then why show him the door after spending $20 million on him. Can a quality player like him not be expected to hit form sooner than later...??? Ok you let a multi-million player go, but then whom have you brought into the side? Nobody. Nobody to replace Robbie.

Rafa, are you even serious about winning the Premier League? I doubt. You are afraid ! You are scared !!

And now Rafa you can kiss goodbye to your Champions League dreams as well. Our midfield cannot even close down the opposition and keep the ball. More worringly, there is no creativity and inventiveness in our side. Against a quality team we rely heavily on Gerrard and Torres to win or bail us out. This is not done. Simply not done !! The fraility against set-pieces is more than obvious.

I am sad at this turn of events... but I now am sure that we are out of the title race. All we can hope for is to keep a clean record at home...and just watch and applaud Man U show the footballing world, how it is done. I accept the fact that Liverpool have lost it. Its a sad day for us !!

Broken Strings

And I thought I was over this 'pop' thing. Every time I think that I have seen it all and am over my early love of POP songs, there comes in a song that just makes me question my 'likes' again.

I have been out of listening to the soft pop for quite some time. By this I mean that the modern artists have not appealed to me much with their compositions. Hence I have stuck on to ColdPlay, U2,Pink Floyd etc. But then I was taken aback by the charm of the latest single from James Morrisson called "Broken Strings". Nelly Furtado also lends her lovely voice to this duet and the moment I heard it a month or so back, I was swept off my feet.

Something so nice about this song... the way it builds up to a crescendo with thier voices interlacing to weave a smooth pattern. What a voice this fellow has !! No wonder his resemblance to Chris Martin ( Coldplay ) makes him even more fascinating to me.

Songwriting has still survived I guess. I will re-produce the lyrics here.... they will not do justice to the flow of the song when read. Just hear it out once... am sure you will not hate it. Not the best song of all times, but definitely a lovely song to restore my faith in POP music.

The parting gift !!!

I sometimes wonder what would I leave behind for my children, my beloved, my parents. What gift shall I give them, that would be precious enough?
If I were a painter, I would paint for them. If I were a musician, I would write a piece of music for them. If I were a poet, I would write poems for them. If I were a sculptor, I would give them an exquisite statue. If I were an engineer, I would build for them. If I were a doctor, I would make a panacea for them.....etc...etc...etc...

But I am a sales-man. Shall I sell myself for them?

Sometimes I do what I want to do. But most of the times I do what I have to do.

In the end, there is nowhere to go but where we come from !!!