What I'm listening to Wednesday

I posted a more serious blog earlier tonight, and now I'm going to post something just for fun and enjoyment. One idea I've had for my blog is to put together a regular posting regarding music that I'm listening to and would recommend to others. Most of my friends know me as the guy to approach when they want to know who sings a certain song or when they're looking for something new or interesting to listen to. Music has been such an important passion to me for as long as I can remember, and I feel good when I've introduced someone to something I enjoy.

Before I get to my suggestions for this week, a few ground rules. First and foremost, I realize that everyone is entitled to their opinion. There may be a song I enjoy that you think is utter and complete crap. I might think the same thing about a song that you like. The great thing is that this response is completely and totally ok. Another rule, for myself more than anyone, is that I don't pretend to be a music snob or pretentious about what I like. If it's a song sitting at the #1 spot on the top 40 charts, I'm not going to shun it for being too commercial. If the latest song by a "darling" of the popular critics sounds like nails on a chalk board to me, I'm not going to jump on the bandwagon just to seem cool. And a third rule, while I find most all types of music fascinating in one way or another, I'm going to limit my list to five choices a week.  This way I have to stay focused, and you and I can both keep our I-tunes budgets in check.

So let's get to the list for this week. Here are the top five songs that I am listening to on a regular basis at the moment and would suggest you check out as well.

1. Houdini- Foster the People.   Foster the People are getting a lot of attention right now for their song Pumped Up Kicks. That's a great song by them and I play that often too, but the song that I've been listening to the most from their album "Torches" is Houdini. It's got several great little hooky elements throughout it, with electronic bleeps, a killer horn section, and a very hummable falsetto element that digs into my brain and has me humming. Plus, the lyric "You gotta focus on your ability, then they can't get what they want to steal" is a pretty cool message.

2. Every Little Step- Bobby Brown. This is, for me, and old school jam from my yester-years, but still sounds just as catchy today as it did then. Contestant Marcus Canty sang this tonight on X-Factor, and as soon as he started singing " I can't sleep at night, I toss and turn, listening for the telephone," I was singing and dancing right along with him. This song makes me happy, and that's reason enough to give it another listen. It brings you back to that time when Bobby Brown was known for his music ability and not for a newspaper headline. Ah, youth.  :)

3. State of Mind-Clint Black.  Craig and I went to Nashville on our honeymoon, and ever since I've been re-discovering country music. I go through phases where I'm really able to connect with country music, and I'm certainly in that mind set these days. We've been visiting the library to borrow CD's to reconnect and discover new music. One of the discs I recently picked up was the ultimate hits of Clint Black. As I was listening to that on the way home from work today, I heard "State of Mind." I used to have this cassette back in the day, and hearing him sing the chorus "Ain't it funny how a melody, can bring back a memory" totally did that for me. I love that message and it's why I love music. And I'm glad that Clint has reminded me of that and taken me to another state of mind.

4. Up in Flames-Coldplay.  Coldplay's new album Mylo Xyloto is great, and I don't care whether you like Coldplay or not. That's my opinion and I'm sticking with it. I love the message of "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall," but the song that I've been playing most often from the new album is "Up in Flames." It's a classic Coldplay ballad with minimal flourishes. It's essentially Chris Martin, a piano, and a drum, until the guitars kick in during the last minute of the song. It's a sad song about a relationship going" up in flames," but it's beautiful to listen to anyway. This song sort of embodies the message of Every Teardrop is a waterfall, in that even though something may be sad it can also be beautiful.

5. Finally Falling-Mayer Hawthorne. If you're not listening to Mayer Hawthorne I may have to stop talking to you until you change that behavior. This man is brilliant! My friend Krista introduced me to him and honestly should be sending her daily thank you notes for the introduction. Mayer Hawthorne is one funky white guy if I say so myself. He's making great retro-throwback soul music that sounds current at the same time. His song "Finally Falling" is off his latest album "How Do You Do" and it's a catchy, up-beat song about falling in love. And as I'm still definitely on that cloud, I play this one on repeat. You should do the same.

So there are my five picks for the week. Take a listen to them if you'd like. I'll have five more for you next week for the next installment of "What I'm Listening to Wednesday."

Oh, and in case you were wondering ,today I'm thankful for incorrect weather forecasts! I believe that snow is best when it falls on December 23rd, and melts on the 26th or 27th. Otherwise I could do without it. So as the predicted snow didn't fall in Des Moines today, I'll be thankful for that. :)