Zac Brown Band
Single Review: James Otto, “Groovy Little Summer Song”
There’s been many a discussion this past month about what makes an artist most effective: is it vocal nuance or personal connection? Is it songs with explicit absolute truth or implicit absolute emotion? They’re interesting topics to explore, but somewhere in between the analyses, we’ve lost sight of –and perhaps even appreciation of– the artists who have the potential to make our analyses futile. Because some artists actually have it all.
Let’s be real: “Groovy Little Summer Song” isn’t near James Otto’s most memorable, well-written material. It’s not as infectious as his mega-hit, “Just Got Started Lovin’ You,” nor as impassioned as the lesser-known “For You,” and his soulful phrasing seems to eat up some of the words. But “Groovy Little Summer Song” is an incredibly refreshing re-introduction to an artist who can deliver both rich, distinctive vocals and pure, raw sentiment. Otto may be simply asking a DJ to crank up a cool summer tune, but he still manages to color his performance with shades of believable soul, technical substance (the falsetto is a treat) and authentic summer bliss.
Grammy 2010 Staff Picks & Predictions
Even in Grammy’s darkest hours, CU brings its picking powers!
– Superhero television show about our blog from the 50’s.
Share your own picks and predictions in the comments, and be sure to check back for our live blog! The awards telecast starts at 8 pm Eastern, and I imagine there will be some red carpet action in the hour prior.
Picks
- Beyonce, “Halo” – Kevin
- Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
- Kings of Leon, “Use Somebody” – Tara
- Lady GaGa, “Poker Face” – Dan
- Taylor Swift, “You Belong with Me”
Predictions
- Beyonce, “Halo”
- Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
- Kings of Leon, “Use Somebody” – Kevin, Dan, Tara
- Lady GaGa, “Poker Face”
- Taylor Swift, “You Belong with Me”
Kevin: Am I wrong for preferring Eric Cartman’s rendition of “Poker Face” over the original? This is a pretty lightweight slate of contenders. I really like “Halo”, but I suspect Kings of Leon will win, simply because it’s the only rock song in a lineup of pop hits.
Dan: “Poker Face” just feels very representative of popular music in 2009. I wouldn’t whine if it got passed over so that “Bad Romance” could take this award next year, though.
Tara: I would’ve pulled for “Single Ladies” in a heartbeat had it been submitted, but “Use Somebody” is just as deserving of this award. It’s a fantastic song even outside the context of its moment in pop culture, and it’s the kind of larger-than-life song that the voters have picked to win in the past.
My Grammy Wish List: 2010 Edition
Since this was a solo blog, doing a Grammy Wish List has been an annual tradition. I’m not too excited about this year’s Grammys, to be honest. 2009 was a weak year in my opinion, and the shortened 11-month eligibility period didn’t help matters. But a tradition is a tradition, so here are my picks in the eleven categories that I care about this year:
* denotes my personal wish:
Record of the Year
- Beyoncé, “Halo” *
- The Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
- Kings of Leon, “Use Somebody”
- Lady Gaga, “Poker Face”
- Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”
It’s always nice to see a country radio hit in there, but I honestly can’t stand “You Belong With Me.” I dig the Kings of Leon song, but the record that I enjoy the most here is “Halo.” Some pundits have suggested that Beyoncé threw her chances at this trophy by submitting “Halo” instead of “Single Ladies”, but I like that song even less than “You Belong With Me.” Love “Halo”, though.
Song of the Year
- Lady Gaga & RedOne, “Poker Face”
- Hod David & Musze, “Pretty Wings”
- Thaddis Harrell, Beyoncé Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)”
- Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill & Nathan Followill, “Use Somebody” *
- Liz Rose & Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”
Great to see Liz Rose in there, too, but I still can’t stand the song. I think “Use Somebody” is a great composition that could easily be a hit in other formats if the right artist covered it. Are you listening, Sugarland?
Best Country Singles of 2009, Part 2: #20-#1
We proceed.
Taylor Swift, “You Belong with Me”
Teen-pop perfection, bursting with personality and unshakable hooks. – Dan Milliken
Keith Urban, “‘Til Summer Comes Around”
There’s nothing quite as lonely as a carnival that has shut down, except for being alone at a carnival, surrounded by everyone but the love who has left you behind. – Kevin Coyne
Lady Antebellum, “I Run to You”
Sheer passion and pulsing energy from start to finish. – Tara Seetharam
Best Country Singles of 2009, Part 1: #40-#21
Here’s hoping you haven’t gotten completely burned out on countdowns yet. 2009 was hardly a favorite musical year for many of us, but amid each year’s glut of throwaway items, there’s always a good’un or two (or forty). The following is the first installment of our Best Singles of 2009 list, which will conclude tomorrow morning. Best Albums will follow next week.
As with the Singles of the Decade feature, this countdown has been compiled through combination of four equally weighed Top 20 lists by Kevin, Leeann, Tara and myself. An inverted point system was applied to the individual rankings (#1 on a list meant 20 points, while #20 on the list meant 1 point). The songs were then ranked together by number of total points, greatest to least. The final result is another rather stylistically diverse set.
As always, we hope you enjoy the countdown, and welcome all the feedback you can muster. Happy New Year!
Lady Antebellum, “Need You Now”
The trio puts a country spin on an old school pop sound, but without forsaking raw emotion. The highlight of the song is Hillary Scott’s smoky performance, which draws out all the anguish and regret you’d expect from a desperate, 1 AM lover’s call. – Tara Seetharam
Top-Selling Country Albums of 2009
Here are the top selling country albums of the calendar year 2009. The number in parentheses is the album’s rank on the overall list encompassing all genres. The totals are rounded to the nearest thousand:
- Taylor Swift, Fearless (1) – 3,157,000
- Zac Brown Band, Foundation (15) – 1,243,000
- Carrie Underwood, Play On (19) – 1,150,000
- Rascal Flatts, Unstoppable (21) – 1,123,000
- Lady Antebellum, Lady Antebellum (24) – 948,000
- Jason Aldean, Wide Open (27) – 940,000
- Darius Rucker, Learn to Live (31) – 849,000
- Taylor Swift, Taylor Swift (36) – 766,000
- Keith Urban, Defying Gravity (38) – 715,000
- Sugarland, Love On the Inside (41) – 678,000
Review: Zac Brown Band, “Highway 20 Ride”
The Zac Brown Band is a welcome fresh addition to country music’s mainstream. While their sound surely cannot be classified as traditional in the true sense of the word, their music sounds authentic and different than what has currently overtaken country music. They’ve got a vibe like nothing else that we’re hearing on the radio, in large part, thanks to their front man, after whom the group is named and the sonically laid back production that accompanies some well crafted songs (“Chicken Fried” notwithstanding).
CMA Awards: Predictions and Personal Picks
The CMA Awards are upon us again, and I must say that this is the most underwhelming lineup I’ve ever seen, and I started watching the show back in 1991. We’ll be back to live blog the festivities on Wednesday night. In the meantime, enjoy our personal picks in each category, along with who we think will actually win.
Should Win:
- Kenny Chesney
- Brad Paisley – Leeann, Tara
- George Strait
- Taylor Swift – Kevin, Dan
- Keith Urban
- Kenny Chesney
- Brad Paisley – Kevin, Leeann, Tara
- George Strait
- Taylor Swift – Dan
- Keith Urban
Leeann: I won’t be shocked (or really even disappointed) if Taylor Swift picks it up, but I really feel it’s finally Brad’s year.
Dan: Swift is the face of the genre right now, and she’s putting out better-written material than many of the veterans in this category. It looks like a race between her and Paisley, and I think she may actually get it.
Tara: It wouldn’t be inappropriate for Swift to take this award, and I would much (understatement) prefer her to win this over the vocalist award. But to me, Paisley is the all-around entertainer, and I think it’s his year to be recognized.