The Listening Project-Week 9

Well another week has passed by and I was able to get through a few more CDs in my listening project.  I worked from the office here in Texas on Friday and even though I brought my music with me I was only able to listen to 1 CD.  Part of the reason was the business of the day and part was that I did not have a proper headset and had to make due with only one ear (mono).  I am still behind my 20 per week schedule and actually lost ground this week.  You can reference this blog entry for details about this project.  Here are the CDs I knocked off of my list this week.

#	Artist	Album	Date	Again?
149	Christina Aguilera	Christina Aguilera	9/19/2011	Yes
150	Rush	Counterparts	9/19/2011	Yes
151	Coverdale - Page	Coverdale - Page	9/19/2011	Yes
152	Dave Matthews Band	Crash	9/19/2011	Yes
153	Falling Up	Crashings	9/19/2011	Yes
154	Various Artists	The Crow (Soundtrack)	9/20/2011	Yes
155	Jonezetta	Cruel To Be Young	9/20/2011	Yes
156	Bon Jovi	Crush	9/20/2011	Yes
157	Twila Paris	Cry For The Desert	9/20/2011	No
158	Curious Fools	Curious Fools	9/21/2011	Yes
159	Bryan Adams	Cuts Like A Knife	9/21/2011	Yes
160	Delirious?	Cutting Edge - Disc 1	9/21/2011	Yes
161	Delirious?	Cutting Edge - Disc 2	9/21/2011	Yes
162	Damn Yankees	Damn Yankees	9/21/2011	Yes
163	Falling Up	Dawn Escapes	9/22/2011	Yes
164	Enya	A Day Without Rain	9/22/2011	Yes
165	Mariah Carey	Daydream	9/22/2011	Yes
166	Oingo Boingo	Dead Man's Party	9/22/2011	Yes
167	Kerry Livgren	Decade - Disc 1	9/23/2011	Yes

Here are my thoughts on a few of these CDs that I have listened to over the past week…

• Christina Aguilera “Christina Aguilera”: I bought this one last weekend and so (if you look at where I left off last week) you will see that it is out of order.  I bought 10 or 11 CDs last Saturday at the local 1/2 priced bookstore (all for $1 each) but this was the only one that fell before my current place in my alphabetical march.
• Coverdale = Page “Coverdale – Page”: And the self titled CDs continue.  This was also bought last weekend.  I have a 4 CD box set of Led Zeppelin coming up soon that will all be in a row in my listening queue.
• Falling Up “Crashings”: I saw this band in concert in an all day festival that the youth group from my Kokomo church went to and allowed me to act as a chaperone.  They had one band member “playing” some sort of dual turn table DJ like thing.  I think they have dropped that “instrument” from their band but they still sound about the same.
• Jonezetta “Cruel To Be Young”: I really liked this band’s first CD (this is their 2nd).  I did not discover them until a year after this CD came out and I think they are broke up now.  Pity, I really liked them.  You can probably search YouTube for their one “hit” – Get Ready (Hot Machete).
• Twila Paris “Cry For The Desert”: Why do I have so many Twila Paris CDs?  Who knows?  I think I want to like her.  Her voice is so soft and sweet but a bit too sweet so it gets a NO.
• Curios Fools “Curious Fools”: These guys had potential I think.  Sort of U2-ish only with more screaming but I think their record label went under.
• Delirious? “Cutting Edge – Disc 1” and “Cutting Edge - Disc 2”:  This is a rerelease of the first 4 (live) EPs by this band.  Another U2-ish band but they have been around a while.  Great live band.
• Falling Up “Dawn Escapes”: So both Falling Up CDs that I own happen to fall in the list this week.  I paid full price for one of them (not this one I think) when I saw them at the festival I mentioned.
• Oingo Boing “Dead Man’s Party”: I had only heard of the band but not heard them when I bought this CD.  I figured with a strange name like this they had to be good or at least interesting.  This does contain their one big hit, Weird Science”.
• Kerry Livgren “Decade – Disc 1”: This 2 CD set gets broken up across 2 weeks I guess.  If you don’t know this name, you should.  He wrote “Carry On Wayward Son”, “Dust In The Wind”, etc.  This first disc contains his solo CD where he brought in various lead vocalists (like Santana”) to help him out.  Ronnie James Dio singing on “To Live For The King” and “Mask Of The Great Deceiver” is pretty awesome.

At this point in time I am 20% of the way through the and I still have the desire to continue.  I am not sure what to make of the fact that 20% of my CDs start with A, B or C (11.5% of the total letters).  I have bought one more CD this week off of eBay but a trip to the clearance rack at Mardel’s might be in today’s agenda.

Jon

The Listening Project-Week 8

Well another week has passed by and I was able to get through a few more CDs in my listening project.  Due to the big move to Texas, I was only able to get 5 CDs in and am now behind my 20 / week pace.  You can reference this blog entry for details about this project.  Here are the CDs I knocked off of my list this week.

#	Artist	Album	Date	Again?
144	The Benjamin Gate	Contact	9/12/2011	Yes
145	Various Artists	Coram Deo: In The Presence of God	9/12/2011	Yes
146	Stone Temple Pilots	Core	9/12/2011	Yes
147	John Elefante	Corridors	9/12/2011	Yes
148	Megadeth	Countdown to Extinction	9/13/2011	Yes

Here are my thoughts on a few of these CDs that I have listened to over the past week…

• Various Artists ”Coram Deo: In the Presence of God”: A lot of songs by (or written by) Charlie Peacock on this one.
• John Elefante “Corridors”: If you don’t recognize this artist then I am not surprised.  He was a former lead singer for Kansas and (along with his brother, Dino), produced a lot of albums (including many by Petra).  His voice is awesome.  He did compile 2 albums under the group name Mastedon (released on Pachyderm records [see a pattern here?]).  Anyway, I like almost anything he is involved with in any shape or form.
• Megadeth “Countdown to Extinction”: A very powerful album and the first one I ever heard by this group.  Many songs are political in nature and this album seems a little more commercialized than previous releases.  The lead singer’s voice takes a little getting used to though.

So now I am behind schedule again but I was able to get my computer desk set up here in our new home in Texas so I will be ready to go come Monday morning with my project.  I am about 18% of the way though my CD list.

Jon

The Listening Project–Week 7

Well another week has passed by and I was able to get through a few more CDs in my listening project.  Due to Monday being a holiday, I was not quite able to get 20 CDs in but I am still ahead of my 20 / week pace.  You can reference this blog entry for details about this project.  Here are the CDs I knocked off of my list this week.

#	Artist	Album	Date	Again?
126	Rebecca St. James	Christmas	9/5/2011	Yes
127	Steve Winwood	Chronicles	9/6/2011	Yes
128	Circle of Dust	Circle of Dust: Remixed	9/6/2011	Yes
129	Anberlin	Cities	9/6/2011	Yes
130	Various Artists	City on a Hill	9/6/2011	Yes
131	Sheryl Crow	C'mon, C'mon	9/7/2011	Yes
132	KJ-52	Collaborations (Advance)	9/7/2011	No
133	Norah Jones	Come Away With Me	9/7/2011	Yes
134	Brent Bourgeois	Come Join the Living World	9/7/2011	Yes
135	Shania Twain	Come On Over	9/8/2011	Yes
136	Third Day	Come Together	9/8/2011	Yes
137	MercyMe	Coming Up To Breath	9/8/2011	Yes
138	DeGarmo & Key	Commander Sozo & The Charge Of The Light Brigade	9/8/2011	Yes
139	Deep Forest	Comparsa	9/8/2011	Yes
140	Gin Blossoms	Congratulations I'm Sorry	9/9/2011	Yes
141	Steve Camp	Consider The Cost	9/9/2011	Yes
142	Considering Lily	Considering Lily	9/9/2011	Yes
143	Third Day	Conspiracy No. 5	9/9/2011	Yes

Here are my thoughts on a few of these CDs that I have listened to over the past week…

• Rebecca St. James “Christmas”: I logged into work for about an hour on Labor Day (it seems the rest of the world did not have this day off) and was able to listen to one CD.  Thankfully this is my last Christmas themed CD for a while (I think). For those of you who do not know this artist, David Archuleta covered one of her songs on season 7 of American Idol.  I seem to recall Simon actually had heard the song before (the other judges were confused as to why such an obscure song was chosen).  Anyway, I like her voice, but September is no time for Christmas music.
• Steve Winwood “Chronicles”: How is it that I do not own more by this artist (other than his stuff not appearing on the $1 racks)?  Great music.
• Circle of Dust “Circle of Dust: Remixed”: A genre of music that I really like is industrial.  There are a few Christian artists that put our music of this type and they tend to assist each other on all their CDs.  The result is that they sound very similar.  Still a good CD though if you like this style of music.
• Anberlin “Cities”: Love this group!  That is all I have to say about that.
• KJ-52 “Collaborations”: This almost does not count as a real CD in that each song starts with the artist speaking about the song and then there is only 2 minutes of the song.  This is a promo / advanced CD really and I almost omitted it.  It is the lone NO on this week’s list.
• Brent Bourgeois “Come Join the Living World”: I have been carefully watching eBay to find more of Brent’s early solo works and those of his band Bourgeois Tagg.  I love his soft voice and complex arrangements.  He does write songs for other artists that I have in my collection as well.
• DeGarmo & Key “Commander Sozo & The Charge Of The Light Brigade”: This CD caused me to resize column C on my spreadsheet due to the length of the title.  Other than messing up my spreadsheet, I like this band and this CD.  I have a few D&K albums on LP as well and have seen them in concert at least 2 times.  By the way, the KEY of DeGarmo & Key is a direct descendant (great-great-great-great-great-great grandson) of Francis Scott Key, the author of The Star-Spangled Banner.
• Deep Forest “Comparsa”: This CD is so out there (it sounds like nothing else that I own).  You should check this group out.  More world music than anything else but also with a dance beat.

I am only working a day and a half next week as we are packing up and moving to Texas in the middle of the week.  This should put me back behind schedule.  I did hold off on buying any more CDs this week (though I almost bought the soundtrack to Titanic for $0.50 on Thursday).  Those great bargain bins at the Half Price Book Store are awaiting me in McKinney, TX, though!

Jon

Not Leaving, Going

There is a rumor going around and I would like to set the record straight here and now.  We are not LEAVING Indiana but rather we are GOING (or COMING) to Texas.  It is only a slight difference but looked at through the correct lens, it can be a big difference.

When we talk to our friends and (especially) family here in Indiana they want to know when we are LEAVING Indiana or they talk about how much they will miss our family when we LEAVE.  They may choose to use this word innocently enough but perhaps somewhere, subconsciously maybe, they really mean to use it and its subtle negative connotation.  Contrast that with friends and family (I have a cousin in Texas) and their wanting to know when we are GOING to Texas and how much they are looking forward to our COMING there.  Another way this rears its head is saying we are moving FROM Indiana versus moving TO Texas.

I suppose that it could be that it is only I who feels that there is a difference between using either word.  Maybe my subconscious has not made peace with the move just yet.  I doubt this hypothesis as I am very excited (save for the 900+ mile trip while driving a moving van) but I suppose it is possible.  I do know that when I “correct” people from Indiana (by rewording the LEAVE/LEAVING to GO/GOING) they tend to get a bit defensive.  This could be due to the fact that people do not particularly care to have their English corrected but I think that is only partly it and in some way we are offending them and their choice to remain in this state.  In some way, by LEAVING their choice of state, we are making a not so subtle statement about how we feel about their choice to remain here.  It could also be (and this has to be the Texan in me) that they are secretly jealous and wish that they too could move away from here.

At any rate, I do not see it as leaving Indiana but rather going to Texas.  I use this same logic with the wife when going into the office for work.  To her, I am LEAVING her or the house but to me I am GOING to work.  We have had this (not really an) argument about 500 times I suppose.  Of course we using the opposite wording when I am done for the day and LEAVING work / GOING (or COMING) home.  All of a sudden though, the wife is on my side of the discussion and she is most definitely GOING to Texas (though, due to her dislike of Indiana winters, she opening admits that she is also LEAVING Indiana).  To all my Indiana friends out there, we are not leaving anything (especially you) and I know you wish us well (and I also know that some of you want to come with us {you know who you are]).  We will miss you all but will COME back to Indiana for visits.

Jon

The Listening Project–Week 6

Well another week has passed by and I was able to get through a few more CDs in my listening project.  I was able to listen to 5 CDs each day on average so I am finally ahead of my 20 per week schedule.  You can reference this blog entry for details about this project.  Here are the CDs I knocked off of my list this week.

#	Artist	Album	Date	Again?
101	Mariah Carey	Butterfly	8/29/2011	Yes
102	Kim Boyce	By Faith	8/29/2011	Yes
103	Disciple	by God	8/29/2011	No
104	Caedmon's Call	Caedmon's Call	8/29/2011	Yes
105	Candlebox	Candlebox	8/29/2011	Yes
106	Plumb	candycoatedwaterdrops	8/29/2011	Yes
107	Sarah Masen	Carry Us Through	8/30/2011	Yes
108	Casting Crowns	Casting Crowns	8/30/2011	Yes
109	Celine Dion	Celine Dion	8/30/2011	Yes
110	Chaqueño Palavecino	Chaco Escondido	8/30/2011	Yes
111	Chagall Guevara	Chagall Guevara	8/30/2011	Yes
112	Carman	The Champion	8/30/2011	Yes
113	Michael W. Smith	Change Your World	8/31/2011	Yes
114	The Alarm	Change	8/31/2011	Yes
115	Charlie Peacock	Charlie Peacock	8/31/2011	Yes
116	The Choir	Chase the Kangaroo	8/31/2011	Yes
117	Garth Brooks	The Chase	9/1/2011	Yes
118	Chosen Few	Chasing The Sun	9/1/2011	No
119	Cheri Keaggy	Child of the Father	9/1/2011	Yes
120	Michael Gleason	Children of Choices	9/1/2011	Yes
121	Erasure	Chorus	9/1/2011	Yes
122	Various Artists	A Christmas Collection (Disc 1)	9/1/2011	Yes
123	Various Artists	A Christmas Collection (Disc 2)	9/1/2011	Yes
124	U2	Boy (Remastered)	9/2/2011	Yes
125	U2	Boy (Remastered) Disc 2	9/2/2011	Yes

Here are my thoughts on a few of these CDs that I have listened to over the past week…

• Mariah Carey “Butterfly”: For some reason Windows Media Player does not sort correctly.  It places last week’s final CD (Butterfly Kisses) before this weeks first CD.  I listenend to LeAnn Rhimes’ “Blue” first before the other “Blue” albums when I noticed this but I was not paying attention when the Butterfly CDs came.  I also listened to “Change Your World” before “Change” this week.  I don’t care much for the songs on this album but I lover Mariah’s voice.
• Disciple “by God”: A rare NO goes out to this CD.  I just could not get into this group.  I was really ready for the whole thing to be done after a 4 minute sermon at the end of the CD (the last track).
• Caedmon's Call “Caedmon's Call”: And thus starts a plethora of self titled CDs for this week.
• Candlebox “Candlebox”: This is the only CD that I own by this group (their first).  I really like it but I wonder if I would be disappointed with the rest of their (less commercially successful) releases.
• Plumb “candycoatedwaterdrops”: What an awesome voice and sound for this “group”.  I think I have one more by them.
• Sarah Masen “Carry Us Through”:  I first heard this artist on a sampler for Charlie Peacock’s label.  A nice, quirky songwriting style.
• Chaqueño Palavecino “Chaco Escondido”: This was given to me by a coworker from Argentina.  It is in Spanish and is mostly Spanish guitar oriented music.  Very soothing, one day I will look up what the lyrics mean.
• Chagall Guevara “Chagall Guevara”: This “super” group only ever put out one CD (despite having a 2 CD deal with their label).  Steve Taylor (whom I am sure we will meet several times later on this project) is the singer and Dave Perkins (whom we will not meet) are the core of this group.  Very deep lyrics.
• Carman “The Champion”: This CD sounds hokey now but I remember seeing Carman in concert (he actually came to Kokomo) during the tour that supported this CD.  The 8 minute long title track played in concert is very emotional.
• The Alarm “Change”: I need more CDs by this band, seriously.
• Charlie Peacock “Charlie Peacock”: What could have been.  This is Charlie’s 2nd full length album and was released on Island records back around the time that U2’s “The Joshua Tree” came out.  Wanna guess how much money was left in Island’s budget for this CD after promoting U2?  This CD is the reissue that I bought off of Charlie himself over the internet so it has some additional tracks.  This is the 5th self titled CD of the week.
• The Choir “Chase the Kangaroo”: The Choir (and eventually just Choir) are a group that really could have gone places with some promotion.  As such they are what they are.  An awesome band that hardly anyone has heard of.  This CD contains the song “The Rifleman” which is the only tribute song to that old TV show that I know of.
• Michael Gleason “Children of Choices”: The only solo CD by this artist who was 1/2 of the lead singers for the Kerry Livgren (think Kansas) band AD.  I preferred Warren Ham’s voice while listening to AD but very much like this CD.
• Various Artists “A Christmas Collection”: It had to happen eventually I suppose, Christmas music.  This 2 CD collection of artists from the Sparrow record label is pretty good.  Highlights include the rock version of “Drummer Boy” by (the Rick Florian led) Whiteheart.  Still, it was hard to get into the “Let It Snow” mood when it was pushing 100° here this week.  The first CD for next week will also be a Christmas themed CD.
• Boy “Boy (Remastered): I bit the bullet and spent $15 on ebay (including shipping) on this 2 CD Deluxe Remastered release of U2’s first album.  It came in the mail this week so even though I am past the B’s in my alphabetical trek through my CDs it immediately went to the top of the list when I imported it into my library.  Hard to say just yet how much I will like CD 2 with the extras and previously unreleased stuff.  It did come just in time to avoid another Christmas CD.  I blogged about all the songs on this CD (and their 2nd CD) a while back if you are interested.

With the short work week next week and with a few days of vacation coming up the following week, I will soon fall behind my pace I am sure.

Jon