Showing posts with label John Mayer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Mayer. Show all posts

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Breaking Down the 100 Greatest Albums of the 00’s


Some say we will look back at the 00’s as the decade when the full length album died, and for the most part they will be right. Sure albums will never go away as long as there are people stupid enough to plop down ten dollars for an album with only a good song or two. But the album as an event has long passed. In this instant gratification day and age, we just want to get to the three minutes of musical joy instead of having to spend a whole album digesting an album. I cannot remember one album I sat around with a bunch of friends last decade dissecting it with friends like I did back in the ninties (granted this may be an age thing).

So my list of the 100 Greatest Albums of the 00’s is less about a cohesive album (which there were very few of in the 00’s) than just a collection of twelve good to great songs. I’m sure there can be griping of albums I left out, but when compiling a list of albums for consideration, I only included albums I actual spent money on (or had someone else buy for me, with the obvious exception of two albums on the list), and when it comes down to it, if I didn’t even bother to drop ten dollars (or even less at discount prices), it is not something worthy of my list anyway. Here is how my list broke down by the numbers.

Artists with Multiple Albums
Dave Matthews (Band) – 5
Jack Johnson – 4
John Mayer (Trio) – 4
Ryan Adams (and the Cardinals) - 4
Alicia Keys – 3
Coldplay – 3
Danger Mouse (Gnarls Barkley) – 3
Kanye West – 3
Michelle Branch (The Wreckers) – 3
The Roots – 3
U2 - 3

Albums by Year
2000 – 6
2001 – 12
2002 – 11
2003 – 8
2004 – 9
2005 – 12
2006 – 8
2007 – 10
2008 – 14
2009 – 10

Albums by Genre
Rock - 19
Rap - 15
Alternative – 14
Pop - 13
Adult Contemporary – 11
RnB - 9
Folk - 8
Country - 5
Blues - 3
Hard Rock - 3

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

The 100 Greatest Albums of the 00's


The College Dropout - Kanye West1. The College Dropout - Kanye West

2. A Rush of Blood to the Head - Coldplay

3. Continuum - John Mayer

4. The Rising - Bruce Springsteen

5. The Spirit Room - Michelle Branch

6. The Grey Album - Danger Mouse

7. The Lillywhite Sessions - Dave Matthews Band

8. Gold - Ryan Adams

9. Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King - Dave Matthews Band

A Rush of Blood to the Head - Coldplay10. Wreck of the Day - Anna Nalick

11. Final Straw - Snow Patrol

12. Only By the Night - Kings of Leon

13. Bible Belt - Diane Birch

14. American IV: Man Comes Around - Johnny Cash

15. I and Love and You - The Avett Brothers

16. Back to Black - Amy Winehouse

17. Heavier Things - John Mayer

18. White Ladder - David Gray

19. Hot Fuss - The Killers

Continuum - John Mayer20. Room for Squares - John Mayer

21. Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends - Coldplay

22. Plans - Death Cab for Cutie

23. Magic - Bruce Springsteen

24. All That You Can't Leave Behind - U2

25. Eye to the Telescope - KT Tunstall

26. On and On - Jack Johnson

27. Cardinology - Ryan Adams & The Cardinals

28. White Blood Cells - The White Stripes

29. Attack & Release - The Black Keys

The Rising - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band30. The Renaissance - Q-Tip

31. Parachutes - Coldplay

32. How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb - U2

33. Late Registration - Kanye West

34. Bleed American - Jimmy Eat World

35. Alright, Still - Lily Allen

36. Musicforthemorningafter - Pete Yorn

37. As I Am - Alicia Keys

38. Songs About Jane - Maroon 5

39. Hotel Paper - Michelle Branch

The Spirit Room - Michelle Branch40. Whoa, Nelly! - Nelly Furtado

41. Tell 'Em What Your Name Is! - Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears

42. Heartbreaker - Ryan Adams

43. Get Rich or Die Tryin' - 50 Cent

44. Stand Still, Look Pretty - The Wreckers

45. The Odd Couple - Gnarls Barkley

46. Narrow Stairs - Death Cab for Cutie

47. Extraordinary Machine - Fiona Apple

48. Get Lifted - John Legend

49. A New Day at Midnight - David Gray

Gold - Ryan Adams50. Brushfire Fairytales - Jack Johnson

51. The Diary of Alicia Keys - Alicia Keys

52. Audioslave - Audioslave

53. Graduation - Kanye West

54. In Between Dreams - Jack Johnson

55. Phrenology - The Roots

56. Fearless - Taylor Swift

57. O - Damien Rice

58. Love, Save the Empty - Erin McCarley

59. Stand Up - Dave Matthews Band

Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King - Dave Matthews Band60. Songs In A Minor - Alicia Keys

61. Easy Tiger - Ryan Adams

62. The Way I See It - Raphael Saadiq

63. Room Noises - Eisley

64. Twenty Three - Tristan Prettyman

65. Songs for Silverman - Ben Folds

66. Taking the Long Way - Dixie Chicks

67. Closer - Better Than Ezra

68. Busted Stuff - Dave Matthews Band

69. Eyes Open - Snow Patrol

Wreck of the Day - Anna Nalick70. Be Not Nobody - Vanessa Carlton

71. Hello - Tristan Prettyman

72. Emotionalism - The Avett Brothers

73. Some Devil - Dave Matthews

74. Riding With the King - B.B. King & Eric Clapton

75. Game Theory - The Roots

76. Kamaal the Abstract - Q-Tip

77. St. Elsewhere - Gnarls Barkley

78. Musicology - Prince

79. To the 5 Boroughs - Beastie Boys

Final Straw - Snow Patrol80. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga - Spoon

81. The Blueprint - Jay-Z

82. Afterglow - Sarah McLachlan

83. Stillmatic - Nas

84. Me and Mr. Johnson - Eric Clapton

85. Sleep Through the Static - Jack Johnson

86. Try! - Live In Concert - John Mayer Trio

87. Be - Common

88. This Is the Life - Amy Macdonald

89. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

Only by the Night - Kings of Leon90. Before the Robots - Better Than Ezra

91. No Line On the Horizon - U2

92. The Fall - Norah Jones

93. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not - Arctic Monkeys

94. Shaman - Santana

95. Rising Down - The Roots

96. Taylor Swift - Taylor Swift

97. Amanda Leigh - Mandy Moore

98. Troubadour - K'naan

99. Back to Then - Darius Rucker

100. Little Voice - Sara Bareilles

Thursday, June 03, 2010

I Want My Music Television vol. LXXXIII


There have been a couple of videos that have caught my eye lately so I thought I’d give them some love since the death of Musical Television left a void for a forum on the art form. If you are interested in buying the video through iTunes, click the title link (where available). If you are interested in buying the song, look for a link in the analysis.


The Ghost Inside – Broken Bells



The latest Broken Bells video just may be the greatest Outer Limits episode never to air and even stars Firefly vet Christina Hendricks who is no stranger to outerspace.


Half My Heart – John Mayer



I am really disappointed that with the absent of Taylor Swift we were deprived of some cheesetastic scenes that harken back to when Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks would share microphones during their duets. Instead we just get John Mayer sulking around as if he just got accused of being a racist.


Holiday – Vampire Weekend



Oh those wacky Ivy Leaguers of Vampire Weekend going all Victorian on us. Well done boys.


Rockstar 101 - Rihanna



If Rihanna is teaching Rock Star 101, who is the professor for 102, Pat Boone?

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

I Want My Music Television vol. LXXIX


There have been a couple of videos that have caught my eye lately so I thought I’d give them some love since the death of Musical Television left a void for a forum on the art form. If you are interested in buying the video through iTunes, click the title link (where available). If you are interested in buying the song, look for a link in the analysis.

Heartbreak Warfare – John Mayer



Wasn’t there a conceptual video for this song that dropped around the time the album was release that was erased from the internets shortly there afterward? Instead John Mayer gives us a straight forward performance version instead. Yawn. If you are going to do a performance based video, at least give us the live music to go along with it instead of the studio version.


Our Dreams – Method Man, Raekwon, and Ghostface Killah



Ah, yo, The Wu is back and will make you go Boom, Boom like you are Supercat.


Oh My – Gin Wigmore



A couple of songs from Gin Wigmore have found their way on to my iPod and she is in the musical spectrum somewhere in-between Duffy and Amy Winhouse. She may be better at the slower songs, but this one is decent enough.


Tiny Light – Grace Potter and the Nocturnal



Whenever I hear the name Grace Potter I always think of Mrs. Potter’s Lullaby (which is actually about Monica Potter of Parenthood). But anyways. But if I didn’t know better, watching the band in their video you almost expect to find out the they were actually a long lost group from the seventies that used to open up for Fleetwood Mac or The Eagles. And I mean that as a compliment.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Breaking Down the Best Songs of the Year


At the end of every year since 1996, I have gathered up my favorite songs from that year for a countdown of my favorite. I was interested in seeing who were the artist that appeared most on those list over the past decade and here are the top 25 (well since there was a tie there are actually 31). I counted any song of which they were listed as a featured artist, not just when they were the lead artist. Also keep in mind this list has nothing to do with my upcoming Greatest Songs of the 00’s which I promise to release before the next decade ends. I also included a list of the number 1’s of the past twelve years as well as Mr. Irrelevant (the song that was last that year).  For the full list for the past five years, click the Best Songs label at the bottom of the post.

1. Kanye West - 25

2. Alicia Keys – 15

John Mayer – 15 (Solo, 14 and John Mayer Trio, 1)

4. U2 - 14

5. Jay-Z - 13

6. Carrie Underwood – 11

Coldplay – 11

8. Nelly Furtado – 10

9. BeyoncĂ© – 9 (Solo, 6 and Destiny’s Child, 3)

Dave Matthews – 9 (solo, 1 and Dave Matthews Band, 8)

Eminem – 9

The Killers – 9

Michelle Branch – 9 (solo, 6 and The Wreckers, 3)

Nas – 9

Ryan Adams – 9

Snoop Dogg – 9

Snow Patrol – 9

3 Doors Down - 9

19. Christina Aguilera – 8

Jack Johnson – 8

Jack White - 8 (The Raconteurs, 2 and The White Stripes, 6)

Lily Allen – 8

Maroon 5 – 8

Santana - 8

25. Common – 7

Death Cab for Cutie – 7

Jimmy Eat World – 7

Rihanna – 7

The Roots – 7

Taylor Swift – 7

Weezer - 7


Most Top Ten Songs

7 - John Mayer

Kanye West

4 - Michelle Branch (solo, 2 and The Wreckers, 2)

Santana

3 - Coldplay

David Gray

Death Cab for Cutie

Jay-Z

The Killers

Ryan Adams

U2


Shortest Song: Fell in Love with a Girl – The White Stripes (1:50)

Longest Song: I Will Possess Your Heart – Death Cab for Cutie (8:36)

Longest Break Between Charting: 10 Years (Ben Harper, Steal My Kisses in 2000; Fly One Time in 2009)

Number One Songs by Year

2000: Maria, Maria – Santana featuring the Product G&B

2001: Everywhere – Michelle Branch

2002: Fell in Love with a Girl – The White Stripes

2003: The Seed (2.0) – The Roots featuring Cody ChestnuTT

2004: All Falls Down – Kanye West

2005: Landed – Ben Folds

2006: Crazy – Gnarls Barkley

2007: Drivin’ Me Wild – Common featuring Lily Allen

2008: I’m Yours – Jason Mraz

2009: Use Somebody – Kings of Leon


Mr. Irrelevant

2000: The Bad Touch – The Bloodhound Gang

2001: Standing Still – Jewel

2002: Friends and Family – Trik Turner

2003: Make Me a Song – Kiley Dean

2004: Some Girls – Rachel Stevens

2005: Give a Little Bit – Goo Goo Dolls

2006: Lithium – Evanescence

2007: This Ain’t a Scene, it’s an Arms Race – Fall Out Boy

2008: Stuck to You – Nikka Costa

2009: Let’s Take a Walk – Raphael Saadiq

Monday, January 25, 2010

Recasting We Are the World


When Michael Jackson passed away, like most people I went back and listened to the music of his on my iPod which included We Are the World. That got me to thinking it that there was still plenty of poverty in Africa and it may be time to remake the song for a newer generation (especially considering Do They Know it's Christmas? is already on it'd third version). While doing research, I realized the twenty-fifth anniversary was this year so I sat on the suggestions I made at the time so I could release it to coincide with the anniversary. Then new came out last week that the co-writers of the song Lionel Richie and Quincy Jones (along with Jackson) were planning on doing so after the Grammy’s next week to benefit Haitian relief (so I guess they will be renaming the group USA for Haiti). So here are my suggestions next to those that did the original part. And as a point of reference, here is the original song:




Lionel Richie – Ne-Yo

Stevie Wonder – Maxwell

Paul Simon – John Mayer

Kenny Rogers – Taylor Swift

James Ingram – John Legend

Tina Turner - Beyoncé

Billy Joel – Norah Jones

Michael Jackson – Michael Jackson

Diana Ross – Christina Aguilera

Dionne Warwick – Alicia Keys

Willie Nelson – Keith Urban

Al Jarreau – Justin Timberlake

Bruce Springsteen – dude from Green Day

Kenny Loggins – dude from Fall Out Boy

Steve Perry – dude from Maroon 5

Daryl Hall – Robin Thicke

Michael Jackson – Michael Jackson

Huey Lewis – dude from The Fray

Cyndi Lauper – Lady Gaga

Kim Carnes – Kelly Clarkson

Bob Dylan – Dave Matthews

Ray Charles – Jamie Foxx

Stevie Wonder – Stevie Wonder

Bruce Springsteen – Bruce Springsteen

Dan Akroyd – Adam Sandler

Jackson Family Chorus – Jonas Brothers and other Disney stars Chorus


Naturally the hardest singer to recast was Michael Jackson himself and came I up with three alternatives; Bono, who technically is not American; Prince, who was actually supposed to duet with Jackson in the original but didn’t show up the first time; or have a chorus do all his part. But maybe it would be best to just pipe in his original vocals. And even though I recast their earlier parts, I still have to bring back Bruce Springsteen and Stevie Wonder to recreate their duet which was the highlight the orginal. Not bringing them back would have been like not asking Bono to sing "Tonight thank God it's them instead of you" for the new Do They Know it's Christmas? versions.



Wednesday, December 09, 2009

Feed Your iPod the CD vol. II


Feed Your iPod was created to highlight songs that may not have been hits, or even released as singles, but deserve a much bigger audience. And now I have posted enough for a second CD. Of course Feed Your iPod is just a catchy title and any of these can be for any mp3 devise, just your computer and now you can make a CD out of them as the first set comes in at 78:57. You can even help create volume three by emailing me (or use the comment section) song suggestions and a short description on way everyone should have it on their iPod for me to post. Click the links below to be taken to iTunes or the Amazon MP3 widet at the bottom where you can sample the songs or use the label function to scroll through what I had to say about these songs when I originally posted about them and full song previews.

1. Slow Dancing in a Burning Room – John Mayer

2. Two Wrongs – Wyclef Jean featuring Claudette Ortiz

3. Breakdown – Handsome Boy Modeling School

4. Like a Feather – Nikka Costa

5. Fireflies – Rhett Miller Featuring Rachael Yamagata

6. I Got Mine – The Black Keys

7. Bold as Love – Jimi Hendrix Experience

8. ‘Til I Get Over You – Michelle Branch

9. If God Would Send His Angels – U2

10. Hitchhiker Joe – Rugburns

11. Summertime – D.J. Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince

12. On the Radio – Regina Spektor

13. Summer in the City – The Lovin’ Spoonful

14. Broken Hearted – Eric Clapton

15. Mass Appeal – Gang Starr

16. We’re Going to Be Friends – The White Stripes

17. Follow the Leader – Eric B. and Rakim

18. Regulate – Warren G featuring Nate Dogg

19. Spin the Bottle – The Juliana Hatfield 3



Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Breaking Down the Hottest Hot Chicks of the 00's


Before you read this by the number account of the list, be sure to check out The 100 Hottest Hot Chicks of the 00’s first.

Olivia Munn is hotIt is safe to say I spent more time doing research for this list than I have, or will have, for any of my Greatest of the 00’s list (check the categories link for previous ones). In fact I may have spent more time on this than the others combined and even toyed around with the idea of doing a top 250. But this was also the trickiest of all lists because unlike something like the best song, this is a list where the subject is ever changing which is why I had to set the rules that the chicks would only be judged at the height of their hotness even if they have let themselves go (which I like to call the Lindsay Lohan tenet) otherwise it is just a list of the hottest chicks of 2009. Now it is time to look deeper inside the list like Hot Chicks by birth place (apparently The Beach Boys were right) and which dude surprisingly hooked up with more of the top 100 than anyone else (hint: not John Mayer).


Hot Chick by Profession
Movie Actress– 40
Television Actress - 30
Singer - 11
Athlete – 8
Model – 4
Television Host - 3
Reality Star – 2
Royalty – 1
Video Vixen – 1


Hot Chick by Home Country or State
California – 17
Texas - 9
Canada – 8
New York - 8
England – 6
Florida – 5
Ohio - 4
Keira Khightley is hotAustralia – 3
Massachusetts – 3
New Jersey - 3
Brazil – 2
Maine – 2
North Carolina – 2
Oklahoma - 1
Soviet Union - 2
Spain – 2
Arizona - 1
Argentina – 1
Columbia – 1
Connecticut - 1
Julianne Hough is hotGermany – 1
Georgia – 1
India – 1
Iowa - 1
Israel – 1
Italy – 1
Louisiana – 1
Maryland – 1
Michigan – 1
Mississippi – 1
New Hampshire – 1
Pennsylvania – 1
Natalie Coughlin is hotSouth Dakota - 1
Sweden – 1
Tennessee – 1
Utah – 1
Virginia - 1
Yugoslavia – 1


Hottest Ensembles
Mean Girls: 4
Smallville: 3
Gossip Girl: 2
Friday Night Lights: 2
Reese Witherspoon is hotJohn Tucker Must Die: 2
Lost: 2
The O.C.: 2
The Phantom of the Opera: 2
Sin City: 2
Veronica Mars: 2
Wrong Turn: 2


Sophia Bush kissing Brittany Snow is hotHottest Network
NBC - 14
FOX - 10
ABC – 9
The CW – 6
The WB - 6
ABC Family – 3
CBS – 2
UPN - 2
MTV - 1
AMC – 1
ESPN – 1
G4 – 1
HBO – 1
Sci-Fi Channel – 1
Showtime – 1


Rachel McAdams is hotHottest Names: An(n)a, Jennifer, Rachel (4)
Hot Chicks with Three Names: 4

Hot Chicks John Mayer (Allegedly) Hooked Up With: 4
Hot Chicks Jude Law (Allegedly) Hooked Up With: 4
Hot Chicks Orlando Bloom (Allegedly) Hooked Up With: 4
Hot Chicks Hayden Christiansen (Allegedly) Hooked Up With: 4
Hot Chicks Topher Grace (Allegedly) Hooked Up With: 5

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

It’s Been a Long Time Since Twenty-Two


Battle Studies by John Mayer on iTunes

Remember the Funny or Die video John Mayer did about a year ago (featuring celebrity music tester Kristen Bell) that took a day in the life of Mayer as he tries to write a song (if not click here to view it, or not if you want to avoid hearing Mayer and/or Bell curse like sailors at each other). The video got a “funny” because, despite his tabloid fodder for celebrity bed hopping, attempts at standup comedy, and incisive twittering, the music stands up with his three successive albums getting better than the one before.

But I bring up Mayer’s contribution to Funny or Die because it is hard not to think of the skit when listening to his latest album, Battle Studies. With lines like “I don’t remember you look any better but then again I don’t remember you” (Who Says) just sounds like something else that someone who would ask his writing partners to come up with a song about sleeping with a supermodel to make another supermodel jealous would say. And with all the song out relationship, it is hard not to wonder which songs are about Jennifer, Jessica, Minka, Jennifer #2, or any of the other random hot chicks Mayer has been linked to.

Your mind drifts to pondering which starlet is linked to which song because of how mediocre they are. Where Room for Squares was one of the greatest pop albums of the decade, Heavier Things was his blues album, and Continuum was his foray into blues, Battle Studies just sound what you think a clichĂ©d John Mayer album would sound like. Heartbreak Warfare sounds like Mayer just thought of the title sounded cool and forced to write a song about it if it turned out to be good or not. Things just don’t fare much better with titles like All We Ever Do Is Say Goodbye, Perfectly Lonely, War of My Life, and Do You Know Me are depressingly sad as their title suggests.

The few times Mayer tries to break out of the mold of the album, he just falls flat. Who Says just sounds like a retreat of Stop This Train, but with a clumsily pot metaphor. Half of My Heart, featuring Taylor Swift, is his attempt at an eighties style duet, but it comes close to parody and barely constitutes a duet as Swift is just resigned to backing vocals to the point you wonder why even bother. Then Friends, Lovers or Nothing just sounds like an extension of In Repair.

His Robert Johnson cover of Crossroads is the lone non-relationship to the point it just sticks out like a sore thumb. And top of it, it just isn’t a very good version with it heavy organ thump and it would have been a better choice to have included his take on Bruce Springsteen’s I’m on Fire (which is an iTunes bonus track with Battle Studies) which is the better cover and would have fit in better with the album thematically.

Thanks not to say all of Battle Studies is a disappointment. Assassin sounds different than anything else on the album and is the one love is war metaphor that works on the album with a not so shocking lyrically twist at the end. And even though Edge of Love starts out slow, it kicks into gear when Mayer lets loose on his guitar. But the two songs just can’t keep Battle Studies from being the weakest of Mayer’s career. So John, the next time Kristen Bell tells you that your song sucks, please take her advice and go back to the drawing board and avoid songs about making supermodels jealous.

Song to Download – Assassin

Battle Studies gets a Terror Alert Level: Elevated [YELLOW] on my Terror Alert Scale.



Monday, October 19, 2009

I Want My Music Television vol. LXVI


There have been a couple of videos that have caught my eye lately so I thought I’d give them some love since the death of Musical Television left a void for a forum on the art form. If you are interested in buying the video through iTunes, click the title link (where available). If you are interested in buying the song, look for a link in the analysis.


Who Says – John Mayer



I wasn’t too fond when I first heard the new John Mayer song. It just sounded like a mash up of Stop This Train and In Your Atmosphere. And I still pretty much still feel that way but then I discovered the lyric “It’s been a long time since twenty-two” which has hit a little close to home lately. And if I do my math correctly, twenty-two is around the time he sang about wanting to ruin through the halls of his high school.


Fifteen – Taylor Swift



Speaking of songs that take you back to a certain age, so does the new Taylor Swift. But for me it isn’t back to time the title refers to but back to eighteen when I was a senior trying to pick up those freshmen girls. Fun times.


Meet Me on the Equinox – Death Cab for Cutie



I am thinking it may not be a coincidence that this is one of the worst songs Death Cab for Cutie considering what it was written for.


How bout Dat – Method Man and Redman



With songs like this it makes you wish Method Man and Redman would hook up more than once a decade for a joint album.