she & him

She & Him is a story of musical serendipity. The She & Him story begins when in 2006, renowned one man band M. Ward, recorded a duet with a girl named Zooey Deschanel. A delightful recording session, the experience lead to a dialogue between the two about collaborating further. This, in turn, led to Zooey admitting to secretly making dozens and dozens of home demos and hoarding them like acorns for the winter. Sick and tired of being stingy and secretive about music, Zooey realized that if songs were acorns then this was indeed her wintertime: she sent the recordings to Ward and these demos became the basis for their first record,entitled Volume One. Embracing the warm sound of classic analog recordings, Volume 1 is more than just a showcase for Zooey’s rich and alluring voice; it’s a distinctive and endlessly charming album. The songs themselves - 9 originals written by Zooey and 2 cover versions - give a respectful nod to the likes of Dusty Springfield, Patsy Cline and The Zombies while M’s production gives them just the right amount of golden era sheen. I highly recommend the entire album, you won't be disappointed. I find myself not being able to get enough of Zooey's enchanting voice.

ol' blue eyes

Next, is the classic sound that is Sinatra. Frank Sinatra was the first modern pop superstar. Following his idol Bing Crosby, who had pioneered the use of the microphone, Sinatra transformed popular singing by infusing lyrics with a personal, intimate point of view that conveyed a steady current of energy. Almost singlehandedly, he helped lead a revival of vocalized swing music that took American pop to a new level of musical sophistication. In the 1950's he recorded with Capitol Records which, for many, are his best and were also instrumental in establishing a canon of American pop song culture. After all, he conquered Hollywood, lit up Vegas and, on vinyl, delivered the finest cuts of his career.

passing fancies

This entry is a dedication to all those songs that swept the radio stations, MTV, and VH1. The songs that everyone knew each syllable and sang along with. The songs with artists that ended up on VH1's "Where are they now?" program. Of course, I'm talking about One Hit Wonders. Those great songs that came out of nowhere and seemed to disappear just as quickly, but when we hear them again we can still remember every single word. This is just a small collection of some of the best One Hit Wonders.

the king

It's all in the name. Someone often referred to as "The King of Rock 'n' Roll" or simply "The King" is certainly an artist worthy of making it onto my review. Of course, I'm talking about Elvis Presley. Elvis was an American singer, musician, and actor. He was a cultural icon. He had a sound and style that was unique and paved the way for musicians later to come. Elvis and I first started our relationship when I was very young. I grew up listening to his music, particularly his Aloha From Hawaii album which is still my favorite among the many great to choose from. Besides that album some of my other favorite songs include Fools Rush In, In The Ghetto, Kentucky Rain, Viva Las Vegas, Fever, and Are You Lonesome Tonight. Besides being a pop culture legend and a very talented musician, Elvis has accomplished a feat that no other person has done. He is the only person to ever successfully fake his own death. Congratulations Elvis.