We just run through our lives

If I have a guilty pleasure (who? me?), it's definitely Savage Garden. Actually, it's not a guilty pleasure, because I'm not ashamed of it at all. I think that Darren Hayes is a great pop lyricist (one need look no further than some of his post-Savage Garden solo work) and my God, does that man know how to write a good hook. Everybody thinks they can write a pop song, because it's so easy, right? Wrong. That's why there are so many bad ones. But Darren Hayes KNOWS how to write a good one.

Admittedly, I was not a huge Savage Garden fan when they were together, but when I started listening to Darren Hayes' solo work, I found myself listening to more and more Savage Garden. I was not a huge fan of "I Want You" (which was overplayed where I worked at the time) but I do have a big old soft(ie) spot for "I Knew I Loved You".

But my most favorite of all Savage Garden songs is, without a doubt, "Hold Me". It was one of the first songs I submitted to the CD thing that I do with Matt and Bess, mostly because I think it is such an amazing pop song. And Darren Hayes does falsetto so well...well, don't take my word for it.



This is does not appear to be live to me (although the video says it is), but so much the better because I love the album version. There was a great live clip of this song from one of Darren's solo shows (A Big Night In), but I can't find it on YouTube anymore. What I loved about it was how exuberant he was and how much that exuberance slipped into me while I was watching it.

A lot of people give me grief for my decidedly "non-guy" taste in music. To hell with them. I'd rather be happy listening to this than unhappy trying to listen to stuff I hate. Because this kind of stuff really does make me happy.

Best of 2008: Songs of the year

A lot of year end song lists are starting to trickle in across the blogosphere, and here is mine. My tradition has been (for the last couple of years anyway) to do 80 minutes of the best music of the year. This year, I am not able to do that. So you'll have to settle for 16 songs, 66 minutes. The thing about this list that is the most interesting to me is that it is 50% male artists/50% female artists. That is NOT something I would have expected. As usual, in no particular order.

Dan's Favorite Songs of 2008

1) Dolly Parton / Backwoods Barbie
A solid country song that is, oddly enough, also a Broadway show tune from 9 to 5: The Musical. Written about Doralee, it could just as easily be about Dolly herself. This is the first song of hers in a while that is worthy company to classics like "Coat of Many Colors" and "Jolene." She hit this one out of the park.

2) Goldfrapp / A&E
I am not really into The Seventh Tree and Goldfrapp I can really take of leave (I know. Blasphemy.) But for some reason this song became part of the soundtrack of the year, even though I didn't really realize that it was doing so. I have really nothing more to say about this song than what has already been said much better in other places.

3) Janet Jackson / Rock With U
"Rock With U" sounds like classic Janet - as if it were a refugee from Rhythm Nation or even Janet. She swipes the title from one of her brother's hits and it becomes my favorite Janet Jackson song since "All For You."

4) Shelby Lynne / Just A Little Lovin'
From Shelby Lynne's album of Dusty Springfield covers, it is perhaps the most soft-spoken song on this list. For me, the definitive version of this song is not Dusty Springfield's, but rather Streisand's from the Stoney End album (which I have discussed ad nauseum on this blog) but Shelby Lynne's version is more than capable. The entire album really is top notch - a good winter album, if you know what I mean.

5) Peter Bradley Adams / The Longer I Run
One half of eastmountainsouth, Peter Bradley Adams is very much like a male Alison Krauss to me - some great songs are in there, but a little bit goes a long way. This song is one of the best. Another great autumnal song that I played the hell out of as the year drew to a close.

6) Madonna / Devil Wouldn't Recognize You
Easily the best song on Hard Candy, it was the good stuff that floated to the top of the album almost instantly for me. Just look at how effortless the juxtaposition of Madonna and Justin Timberlake is in this song, especially compared to how he was shoehorned into "4 Minutes" (or was it Madonna that was seemed forced into that song?) Many called it Hard Candy's "Cry Me A River" - but certainly there are worse things. It was also a highlight of the Sticky & Sweet Tour. I can't wait for the DVD so that we can see that as it was meant to be seen once again - the YouTube videos don't do it justice.

7) Coldplay / Viva La Vida
I resisted Coldplay, but I was won over by "Viva La Vida." Even Heidi was! And neither of us ever even saw the Apple commercial in which it was featured. I never thought Coldplay would be in the best-of list of any year, but I guess this just goes to show that there is no telling what will happen.

8) Casey Stratton / Congratulations
Casey released no fewer than six collections of songs this year (two full length albums, two collections of B-sides, a collection of songs from his podcast and an EP) and on them, there were many good songs released. I also felt like there was a lot of filler. However, of the songs that stood out this year, "Congratulations" narrowly beat "You Wanted Out" for a place on this list. The song perfectly encapsulates the direction I so desperately want Casey to go with his music - emotionally open and vulnerable lyrics disguised with a pop sensibility that belies the serious nature of the lyrics.

9) Will Young / Let It Go
With "Let It Go," Will Young recorded the perfect sensitive guy song. It is neither creepy nor maudlin, but rather it is real and reflects a lot of things that many men think but either don't admit or don't allow themselves to feel. Probably my favorite song by a male artist all year.

10) Madonna / Miles Away
The second of two Madonna songs on this list - it is the most classic Madonna sounding song on Hard Candy. It also gave us the year's best remix (A Crowd Electric's version) which was unceremoniously yanked due to Warner having a hissy fit over it's release (even though they released the damn a cappella - what did they expect?) Bittersweet arpeggios and an earworm of a chorus - it would have been a number one hit in 1991.

11) Sam Sparro / Black & Gold
What I love about the Sam Sparro record is that it's a the kind of record that Prince used to make before he became insufferable. I think he will probably be a bit of a one-hit wonder, but it's a pretty good song to have as your only hit.

12) Donna Summer / Stamp Your Feet
This was almost the song of the summer, that's how much I liked it. What I loved most about this song is that it was recorded at all. It would have been so easy for the 60-year-old Summer to comeback as a female Rod Stewart and start doing songs from The Great American Songbook. Instead, it was a solid dance album and this song was probably the best one on there. I just wish the video were even half as good as the song! (I could have done a better job and they spent the entire budget of the video on the camera lens to make Donna Summer look 35.)

13) The Killers / Joy Ride
Another group that I have been resisting, I have really ended up liking Day & Age quite a bit (I was moved to buy it when it was $3.99 on Amazon MP3 a while back.) I'm sure the presence of Stuart Price as a producer had absolutely nothing to do with it. I wasn't a big fan of "Human" but "Joy Ride" is a standout track for me. The intro reminds me of Konk's "Love Attack" from the Bright Lights, Big City soundtrack. I am still not super moved to seek out other Killers material, but this one will do nicely.

14) Darren Hayes / Dress You Up
I swear that Darren Hayes did this in his sleep, but the result was fantastic! A cover of the 80s Madonna classic which was available on Darren's myspace for a limited time, it is both an homage to the original and also injects a bit of Hayes' own sensibilities. What I love most about it is that it incorporates most of the ad libs from The Virgin Tour performance of the song. My favorite cover of the year.

15) Scott Simons / Start of Something
This was my favorite song of the fall. It was in such heavy rotation. It appealed to my own tendency toward introspection and was also catchy as all get out. He has a bit of a Michael W. Smith vibe to him that could potentially become grating, but overall, I think he is an exciting new voice. His cover of "Umbrella" was also something that I discovered this year, but not released this year and was, therefore, not eligible for this list. But you should check out both of these.

16) Ladyhawke / My Delirium
If you take the best parts of Stevie Nicks and Pat Benatar and throw in a dash of Deborah Harry, I think you might have something that approximates Ladyhawke. We have not seen the likes of someone like her in a damn long time. One of the last songs on this list to be discovered, it was a pleasant way to round out the year.

Grips so tight it shatters

I haven't really been bowled over by any new music for quite a while. Not sure what that's all about, although I have been a bit off my game for a week or so now. But then a new Will Young song landed in my inbox last night. And it is fantastic. It is in the running for XO's song of the year. Paul has a lot to say about it, as well as a lot about Will Young in general. It is assured a spot on my 80 minutes year-end list.

Every now and again, a song falls into your life at just the right time speaking to just the right circumstance, and "Let It Go", like Darren Hayes' "Hero", is one of those songs. One of the things I struggle with most is, well, letting things go. I can intellectually rationalize to myself that there is nothing I can do about this, that or the other thing and that I need to just release it. So I do. And then I run over and pick it back up again and hold tighter than I previously did. At least that has been my history.

So for a lot of reasons, I'm incredibly cognizant of patterns like that right now. Today at work, when the day seemed to overtake me and I was trying to save the world, I went to the library and sat with my iPod for 15 minutes at lunch and listened to this song over and over again. Suddenly, it was as if I were a teenager again rewinding the tape to hear the same part of the song ad infinitum. The sentiment was just right there.

Let it go, let it go, 'cause it's out of my control...
Grips so tight it shatters, only thing that matters...
Heaven knows just what I'm stressing for
Let it go, let it go.

Easy to say, quite another to do. I'm fond of saying that if a pop song doesn't know how you feel, there's really no point to it. And even though, yes, those are cliched lyrics, well it certainly doesn't make them any less true. Although his use of the word "stressing" bothers me a bit, but only because it reminds me of a college friend who used that word obsessively when describing his exam preparation.

The best music takes you back and moves you forward. "Let It Go" accomplishes all this in a mere 3:40.

It's gonna take a time machine to get it right

And if that's the case, then it's fortunate that Darren Hayes' The Time Machine Tour showed up today! I was too cheap to purchase the ultra mega deluxe edition (although I would have liked to have bought that one), but I think the bare bones will suffice just fine.

The only complaint that I have about it is that it is kind of dark, in the sense that the lighting is not very bright. However, I read in a recent interview with Darren that he did that intentionally. Apparently, when filming tours, shows need to be "overlit" to provide for appropriate light for filming. He really didn't want to do that and spoil the show for those that we in attendance at the show they filmed, so we're left with a concert DVD that seems almost underlit in many spots. Oh well, it hardly matters. At least it looks like a live show, in comparison to the DVD of the Confessions Tour which decidedly does not. (But I try not to bitch too much because at least we got a DVD of it!)

In the meantime, XO did a brilliant interview with Darren on his blog the other day and it is required reading if for no other reason than to see how important it is to have well written questions when interviewing someone.

And here's a couple of YouTube clips, not of the tour since I really couldn't find any good ones (although you can find them on Darren's web site)

"On The Verge of Something Wonderful"


One of my favorite of Darren's songs, even though it is kind of lightweight "Crush (1980 Me)"


How I wish I could have gotten to the one of the Borders stores appearances when he was in the US last year. Oh well, twas not to be.

My next 10 songs

A couple days ago, this post arrived in my inbox via Matt, who had also forwarded it to Bess. I read it with great interest as lists of songs always pique my interest. Because I am me, I started wondering what my next 10 songs would be. So, I emailed both Matt and Bess and suggested we do this on our blogs. Today I put the iPod on shuffle (all 5600+ songs) and here's what came up, plus or minus a few that I didn't really have all that much to say about. It's quite a motley mix of stuff, but the common thread through all of these is me. Naturally. Because it's all about me. ;)

Planets of the Universe / Stevie Nicks
What a latter-day Stevie classic this is, although it has taken 30 years to get it recorded (the original demo is called "No Light.") Her voice is great and it is lyrically one of the stronger songs from across her career, certainly of the 2000s. "You will never rule again the way you ruled me!" she screams at the scorned lover. High drama worthy of a fellow enneagram 4.

Rocket 2 U / The Jets
I haven't heard this song in ages and exactly how it ended up on my iPod I'm not sure. It's a song from that summer of '88 that had so many good songs. Can't say that this is one of the best of those songs, but it's still fun. And any song that can actually reference "All My Children" can't be all bad.

Feel For You / Bananarama
Bananarama was always much more a singles act to me, but this song from their 2005 Drama album is but one great pop song from a whole album's worth. The only problem with Drama was that it was released on the same day as Confessions on a Dance Floor (overseas anyway) so it was ignored by many in favor of the latter.

Deeper & Deeper (Live from The Girlie Show Tour) / Madonna
I think the version I have on my iPod is actually from one of the London shows. Part of the big disco set which starts with Madonna's first entrance on a disco ball (13 years before she came out of one on the Confessions Tour) and weaves its way through "Express Yourself", "Deeper & Deeper", "Why's It So Hard" and ends with "In This Life." The whole arc is really genius because it demonstrates how the advent of AIDS changed the culture. Anyway, I love this live version of "Deeper & Deeper" even though she tries to sing the breakdown part from David's Klub Mix and it just sounds like she's mooing!

Witches (Live from Uncommon Ground) / Casey Stratton
"Witches" is one of my favorite Casey Stratton songs and this was from his perfect set at Uncommon Ground that I saw in October of 2006. I am so glad that I bought the CD of the show that night because once Casey got it home and set to remaster it for release on the digital store, he realized that there was entirely too much feedback, so it never got released! The bonus part of this live version is you get to hear Casey talking about how the Chicago expressway can fuck you over and how his hair was kind of Oompa Loompa-ish that night!

Step Into The Light (Tony Moran Full Mix) / Darren Hayes
I'm not even sure how I came across this Darren Hayes mix, but it's not bad. I still prefer the original to this club ready remix (a bit too thumpa-thumpa-thumpa for even my tastes,) but it still gets the job done.

If I Could Turn Back Time / Cher
It's Cher at the height of my favorite Cher phase. There's something about the faux metal, leather mama Cher that just cracks me up! I seriously prefer this phase of Cher's career to the dance diva "Believe" phase, if you can believe that. The other thing I love about this song is that my daughter loves it. She was 3 and a half,we were in the car and this song came on. To my shock and utter delight, she started singing it. It was another "stop the paternity test!" moment, folks.

Kill You / Eminem
A little bit of Eminem goes a long way with me, and I am really not cool with the homophobic vibe that he gives off in general, not to mention the misogyny. But I kind of like him in spite of myself. If you can look past the potty mouth, he has really written some very lyrically clever songs. This is one of them. Of course, I always kind of like the f-bomb in songs, so this one is right up my alley.

Frozen (Live - Drowned World Tour) / Madonna
Two Madonna songs in the next 10 tunes did not surprise me. What did surprise me was that they were both live songs. Taken from the Drowned World Tour in 2001, this was the first live Madonna show I saw. I knew virtually nothing about the tour prior to going because of a self-imposed media blackout on all tour details. There were only two songs that I really wanted to hear -- "Frozen" and "Secret." Fortunately, I got my wish on both! This is still my favorite live performance of "Frozen," kicking off the Geisha Girl section of the tour and providing the HUGE tease of the opening notes of "Open Your Heart" at the end. Check out the video from the tour here. It was massive live.

Departure Bay / Diana Krall
And for the final track, things slow down a bit. I have always had a soft spot in my heart for Diana Krall (even though one blogger I know thinks she is kind of a bitch, which may or may not be true.) Anyway, this is from The Girl In The Other Room which was kind of a (pardon the pun) departure for her. It was still jazz influenced, but it was not jazz standards like she had been performing. Instead, she wrote some of her own music, covered Joni Mitchell, Elvis Costello and Tom Waits. It's is probably my favorite album of hers still, even though her jazz standards are good as well.

Matt's 10 songs are here, and here are Bess's songs. If you want to try this, feel free. The more the merrier.

UPDATE: We're linked from the original blog that did this. We're famous!!

Time Machine Tour

Since Darren Hayes did not bring his tour to the U.S. (and really, who can blame him?), I was pleased to see that there was going to be a DVD release of it. But I was prepared for it to be a region 2 release, which would mean ordering it from Amazon.uk and paying the currently hideous exchange rate.

Imagine my surprise to find out that it is actually getting a U.S. release! YAY! So instead of spending 40 dollars on the DVD, I'll only spend 20. Or, apparently less than that if you pre-order from Amazon! Which I just did.

This show looks amazing, probably along the lines of something that you'd expect from Madonna or Cher. I am eagerly awaiting it.

Ladies and gentlemen, listen up please

So the other day, I had a rather unpleasant encounter with someone. I will not go into either excruciating or even general details as I might normally because it deals with work. There are many things that end up on this blog. Specifics about my work is not and never will be one of them. Oddly enough, I feel more comfortable exposing myself and my own insecurities to the faceless internet than I do talking about my job. This is probably smart as having a job is good and not having one does not keep food on the table for very long.

Anyway, I was saying. I had an unpleasant encounter with someone. It pushed me way way WAY outside my comfort zone as I usually just like to avoid the conflict and hope it goes away. I prefer to refer to this as choosing my battles although many others recognize it for what I know it to be in my heart of hearts. I was getting angry with this person because they could not see the reason that was so obvious to me as well as my complete inability to change anything about the situation. I recognized that they were unhappy and in hindsight I probably should have vocalized this to them but I was so interested in getting them the hell out of my face that I forgot. By the end of the interaction, I was seething. I made an off-hand comment to one of my co-workers that I "didn't tell them what I was really thinking." Her reply to that?

"You never do."

Now that seems overly simplistic but it's true. There is so much stuff that I just suck up and hope just goes away that it's a wonder that I haven't exploded from it yet. But as a scientist I should know that it is never wise to forget the First Law of Thermodynamics: Energy can neither be created nor destroyed; it can only change form. And all that negative energy just takes up residence in my stomach or my brain or wherever and does nothing but damage and take years off my life. Or worse yet, it comes out of my body directed at people who don't deserve to bear the brunt of that negative energy.

But my co-worker was right, well, for the most part anyway. This is not really a shock to me for I know that I am a good Gemini. While there are (at least) two sides to everyone, I am exceptional at the duality. Light and dark, yin and yang, Jekyll & Hyde, Gollum & Smeagol, Superman & Clark Kent. That last one seems especially appropriate lately. There are days that I feel like a super hero, trying to save the day all the time for no other reason than it's the role into which I naturally fit, even though there are times that it bugs the shit out of me. And all this time, there is a secret identity, the one that has tired of doing the saving and just wishes everyone would hurry up and save themselves. That part of me needs just as much care and tending as does the super hero part of me.

Well, let me tell you, being the hero is draining. It is annoying as fuck and while I am good at it, I am going to go on record as saying that it makes me very weary. I think it is why so frequently I am exhausted at the end of the day. It's not the good kind of exhaustion--the type that you get from doing a really good job at something or accomplishing something spectacular. It is the kind of exhaustion that comes from having to push through everything and completely deny yourself all the creature comforts that, by rights, you should allow yourself. And then, at the end of the day, instead of taking care of yourself, you work to distract yourself with this or that or the other thing. And all that's left are the scraps you left after having spent the whole day feeling like an Ood. (watch out, that link has spoilers for an upcoming Doctor Who ep if you're watching on Sci-Fi.)

The funny thing is that while a lot of this came to a head the other day in reaction to the encounter I had, it's been going on in the back of my brain for quite some time. So much so that a couple weeks ago when I was listening to my iPod one day walking to who knows where, Darren Hayes' song "Hero" came on. I am fond of saying that if a pop song doesn't know how you're feeling, there's really no point to the song. But this one? Well, it is pretty much spot on. In the lyrics, he says pretty much exactly what I sometimes want to say, only it's set to a cool pop beat and, surprise surprise, it's in a minor key.

I was trying to hide my opposing sides
Trying to reconcile my Jekyll and Hyde.
Ladies and gentlemen, listen up please
I don't wanna be your hero
(No, I am not open
Parts of me are broken)
Do yourself a favor, save yourself
Don't pick me, find someone else.
(Why'd you want to bother
Find yourself another.)

Good God, talk about words I wish I had written. Or words I could have written.

I think ultimately, as so many things in my life are, it's all about balance. But balance is tricky and not always the easiest thing in the world to come by.

Who knows what the point of this post was, probably just another patented Dan thinking out loud post. But when these kinds of posts stop, you'll know that I have been replaced by a pod person.

Watch this fan made video to "Hero" below. I love this song. It is quite possibly in my top 3 favorite Darren Hayes songs.

No need to run and hide

I've been listening to a couple songs today that really struck me. They both address pretty much the same thing, but are quite dissimilar otherwise. The first is Black's "Wonderful Life" which played over the end scene of an episode of Queer As Folk (the one in which Brian has broken his collarbone on the Liberty Ride and insists on finishing.) I had the song on the QAF Season 4 soundtrack but it never really resonated with me until just recently. Most of my pop blogger friends probably know it well since it's an oldie, but honestly, I had never heard it before!



What I love about this song is it celebrates the beauty of standing on your own. However, it also recognizes that while, as Madonna says "I can make it alone" it is sometimes preferable not to.

Look at me standing, here on my own again.
Up straight in the sunshine.
No need to run and hide
It's a wonderful, wonderful life.

Brooding and, oddly enough, in a minor key, if you listen to it enough, you actually start to believe him. Ace of Base covered this song on their Da Capo album, but it is too bouncy and cheery. Not enough brood for this Angel, I guess!

The other song, as I said addresses much the same points. It is Savage Garden's "Affirmation." This has always been one of my favorite Savage Garden album tracks. I swear, the more I listen to Darren Hayes, the more I like their non singles. (Yes, I know it was a single in Europe. Spare me.) Because, let's face it, they were definitely a singles band.

Anyway, Darren lists off all these things that he "believes" in the song. And I daresay that I pretty much agree with him on nearly every single point. Yes, it could be argued that the sentiments are annoying, hackneyed cliches. True, to a point. But it is wrapped in such a great pop sheen that I am powerless to resist it. Especially the chorus.

I believe in Karma what you give is what you get returned
I believe you can't appreciate real love until you've been burned
I believe the grass is no more greener on the other side
I believe you don't know what you've got until you say goodbye

I especially love it when the chorus is sung for the last time and Darren slips into his falsetto on the "grass is no more greener on the other side" line. Grammatically offensive, yes, but fantastic.

I am fond of letting the music I'm listening to set my mood and sometimes vice versa. And these songs, while simple pop songs really do appeal to my quiet introspection. Who would have thought?

Driving in your car

Happened across this tonight while looking to see if Darren Hayes has announced his US dates. It's the brand-spanking new video for "Casey." I could sing the praises of this video, but I'll let it speak for itself.



I just love it when artists make videos in the classic sense. It seems to happen so infrequently these days!

So close yet so far

According to Darren Hayes' MySpace blog, he's going to be doing a handful of U.S. dates in March. What I would give to be able to go to one of those concerts! It's funny, I was never wildly crazy about Savage Garden. I mean, their stuff was pleasant enough and certainly appealed to my pop ear. But I never really liked "Truly Madly Deeply" mostly because I heard it a million and one times on the PA at work when I worked at Drug Town in Iowa City, but songs like "I Knew I Loved You" and "I Want You" are still endearing today despite similar levels of overplay.

Anyway, I have been quite fond of Darren's solo work, especially his last album This Delicate Thing We've Made which is probably tied with Mary Chapin Carpenter's The Calling for the best album of 2007 (according to me which is all that matters here.) I admire him for taking chances and doing music the way he wants to do it, rather than the way a record executive thinks it should be done. In so doing, he has made some memorable music and a near perfect double album, which is no small accomplishment. Sure there are a few songs that don't appeal to me, but how can you dislike an album with a song that manages to work laws of physics into the lyrics? ("If I have understood correctly/velocity equals the distance traveled divided by time.")

So one of the cities that is likely to be announced on this mini-tour of the States is Chicago, which is a drive from Ames, but doable. The thing that makes it not doable is my severe lack of funds for this kind of thing. It costs money to drive to Chicago and I'm sure the tickets won't be free. Plus I am not likely to be able to get the time off of work to do such a thing. I am fond of saying that if I lived in Chicago, I would surely be broke because I would constantly be going to live shows. The biggest reason I am not constantly going to live shows now is because, well, how many of the artists that I really like and want to see are likely to come to Iowa? We get our share of country artists at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines and at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, but the artists I like are either too big to need to play the Midwest or are not big enough to guarantee good sales in a rural area like Iowa. So I'm equally screwed from both sides.

Still, it would be fun to see Darren Hayes. But not likely to happen.