INXS – don’t change
From the album third album this Australian band released. “Shabooh Shabooh” (1982, Mercury).
So, this song is year older than I am. The single “Don’t Change” did not perform all that well when it was released (peaking at the 80th spot on the US charts), but it became a favourite of many people in later years.
Michael Hutchence, singer and songwriter of INXS, passed away in 1997. His talent is dearly missed.
What is you favourite INXS song?
Lamb – wise enough
From the album “5” (2011, Strata Music). Lamb are a duo from Manchester making mostly electronic music. “5” is the fifth studio album and was released after a five-year hiatus. This song touched me from the first time I heard it. Something about the way Lou Rhodes sings these meaningful lyrics.
Are we not wise enough to give all we are
Surely we’re bright enough to outshine the stars
But human kind gets so lost in finding its way
But we have a chance to make a difference til our dying day
Enjoy
xx
Cathy
Faith no More – epic
This song can be found on the album “The Real Thing” (1989, Slash/Reprise Records)
It was the first record Faith No More released featuring Mike Patton, who is, arguably, the best vocalist of his genre.
I woke up to this song, and I danced and sang along. “You want it all, but you can’t have it. It’s in your face, but you can’t grab it. (…)”
During the Song of the Day Challenge, I shared Easy from the album Angel Dust. Great song too. Brilliant album.
Have a great day.
xx
Mark Hole – dirty base
From the album “F-sharp” (2008, Tenwest)
Hm, what to say about Mark Hole. He is obviously terribly talented, but also a bit crazy eccentric. I have been following his Facebook account for a long while. It used to be silent, until this lockdown happened and he is very active now, posting something daily. 5 mins of Marky Madness (He is an artist! Remember that when you click the link 🙂 ) It’s funny though, entertaining. There is madness, and music, and also some more serious moments. Mark is a piece of art, an exceptional character; to be honest. And not always for the faint of heart.
I received the album “F-Sharp” from a friend who had seen Mark as a support act for Tori Amos (in 2008). She knew that I would probably like his music a lot. And I did.
I ordered more of Mark’s albums from him directly. And I received a lot more than just two CDs. I received a T-Shirt that smelled amazing, an autograph, a long handwritten letter, and a wooden chess piece. The chess piece was (according to the letter) the last he had left of an entire chess set that he had received from his ex-girlfriend who inspired songs like Torture Garden.
An exceptional artist and musician, I want to share so many more songs, but if you like these three songs, you will probably go to youtube and find more songs.
I recommend:
Dirty’s what I like I am sharing a link to a live performance because the original video is a bit disturbing – it shows the eccentricity of Mark Hole quite well, though.
People Change Another live performance because it shows off his vocal skills
I hope I made you discover something new. Even if these songs are older, I think that we will hear more from this free-spirited London-based musician. Or at least, I hope so.
xx
Cathy
the National – I need my girl
From the album “Trouble Will Find Me” (2013, 4AD)
It must be Matt Berninger’s voice that touches me so much in this song, or his lyrics? I also like Tom Smith’s voice a lot. (from the British band Editors). I guess it is the baritone. I find it soothing. Like a caress or a veil that hides me from the world for a short moment.
Editors – sugar
From the album “The Weight of Your Love” (2013, PIAS Records)
It breaks my heart to love you
Editors
Have a nice Tuesday.
I didn’t sleep at night. (well, only for about two hours.) Too much reality, not enough fantasy… I did not share a song yesterday, apart from the one in the post I shared. I did not write any poetry yesterday either. Though, my favourite sentence I wrote yesterday was: hunting ghosts and chasing phantom pains. It would be a good title for my next poetry collection. Although I am not planning or working on a new release right now. But, the quality of my writing these last days is better than it has been in a while. Is it vain to praise oneself? Maybe it is, but writing and my ability to use words (in writing, not in talking) is something that makes me proud of myself. It is my special talent. 🙂 My horoscope said to find something that makes me proud today and allow these feelings. It’s quite hard for me to find something positive about myself. I am used to being a carer and a giver. A childhood-trauma is not being good enough, not being worthy of love and affection unless I forget my own needs and cater to others’. In my head, I am only loveable if I give parts of myself away, whether it does myself some good or not. It is probably a reason why I chose my job. And it shows in my everyday life. I bring my husband coffee to his desk every morning. I ask if he needs anything when I get up from the couch while watching TV, I offer drinks or food at different times of the day… It is my way of showing that I care. I also touch a lot, I caress when I walk by and things like that. It is rarely reciprocated and even less often offered coming from him without asking bluntly. I miss being cared for. I miss being loved and feeling like a million bucks. Twenty years is a long long time. Phew… this turned into something else,
sorry
My heart is racing, but not in a good way. It’s the closest thing to anxiety. Tears are welling up in my eyes, and my throat is constricted. I breathe in, heavily, but there is not enough air to soothe my burning lungs, nor to slow my beating heart. Your lust pulls me apart at my seams, I will never be who I was. A violent surge of need shakes my core. If only you were real, if only you were not the fantasy of a poet’s mind. If only my written words could be a reality. If only…
But now, I am sitting here, imagining how it would be to be in love. To be loved in return. To be wanted and needed, and respected. And the pain, it grows in me. Every day, I get up and do what I have to do. Routines I don’t like anymore, with people who I once loved. If you were there, to care and understand, it would be easier, but you only exist in the pages of my journal. My mind runs many miles every day, to escape my self, my reality. Do I have a cold heart? Am I freezing? Can I even feel what I am longing to feel? Hunting ghosts and chasing phantom pains.
Heart still racing (or again?), I am thinking of you – my fantasy man. Your breath against my skin. Your lust filling my senses. I am brainwashed into loving you – loving someone who does not exist. Brainwashed into following your orders – orders I want to hear from my lover. But it feels so good, and I can’t resist these forbidden fantasies. Every release starts and ends with you on my mind – being almost perfect in fulfilling each other’s desires. I need someone who takes care of me and who loves me. Someone who understands me. Someone who cherishes me. But do I have it in me to accept such devotion? The intensity of one soul seeping into mine? I have never known and never experienced anything like this and it scares me. I am vulnerable and fragile. Not because my heart was broken too many times, but because I broke it myself too many times. Want, need, greed, expectations… it breaks the heart too. Or maybe, I left too many pieces of my heart in the hands of people who didn’t want it?
The anxiety comes and goes in waves today. It is as if someone is thinking of me and my heart races towards them, and when their thought is forgotten, my heartbeat slows. Is there such a connection of souls? I believe there is.
I am full of overwhelming need today, and there is no one who can begin to catch my falling mind. And I can’t outrun myself. Every touch is too much and not enough. Not enough.
*****
Pink Floyd – sorrow
This song appeared on the album “A Momentary Lapse of Reason” (1987, EMI)
Genesis – in too deep
From the album “The Invisible Touch” (1986, virgin records).
Cathy’s Top 3 Genesis songs:
In too deep (invisible touch)
Mama (Genesis, 1983)
No son of mine (we can’t dance, 1991)
Kate Bush – the man with the child in his eyes
This song was on Kate’s debut album “The kick inside” (1978, EMI). It was produced by Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour.
I have been listening to Kate Bush for most of the day, getting deeper into her back catalog. There are a couple songs that touched me right in the middle of my feelings.
xx
A song that describes you
Well, this is a tough one. I mean, I know so many songs, but there is not one I could use to describe myself. I asked on the blog and on Twitter, and because my reach is rather limited, I had one answer. Jeff suggested a song from k.d. Lang. I thought I didn’t know it, but when I heard it, I did. It’s a beautiful song. Also, if you aren’t already, please follow Jeff’s blog. He writes about music and reviews albums, he writes a weekly top 30 and puts lots of work and passion into his posts.
A song that describes me this week:
Art of Dying (with Adam Gontier) – (inside it’s) raining
I’m scared to look down
Never been so high
And I can’t look up with a closing mind
I’m scared to be touched
I don’t like the feel
It’s way too close
Way too realInside it’s raining
It never lets up
I know I’m crazy
Crazy enough to know that I’ll find a way to make this all go awayI’m scared to be me
Because I look like you
I don’t want to be somebody I never knew
I’m scared to go out
I’m so far in
I hear it’s nice
But I’ve never beenInside it’s raining
It never lets up
I know I’m crazy
Crazy enough to know that I’ll find a way to make this all go awayI found my only out, so just forget about talking me down
I’ll put this fire out and stop this burningInside it’s raining
It never lets up
I know I’m crazy
Crazy enough to know that I’ll find a way to make this all go awayInside it’s raining
It never lets up
I know I’m crazy
Crazy enough to know that I’ll find a way to make this all go awayInside it’s raining, make this all go away
Inside it’s raining, make this all go away
Inside it’s raining, make this all go away
Inside it’s raining, make this all go awayHoward Benson/Johnny Hetherington
This song can be found on the album “Vices and Virtues” that this Canadian band released in 2011 (on Reprise Records).
And just now, after having written and edited this post, I thought of a song that describes me well after all.
Depeche Mode – somebody
This song was on the album “Some great reward” (1984, Mute)
I want somebody to share, share the rest of my life
Share my innermost thoughts, know my intimate details
Someone who’ll stand by my side and give me support
And in return, she’ll get my support
She will listen to me when I want to speak
About the world we live in and life in general
Though my views may be wrong, they may even be perverted
She’ll hear me out and won’t easily be converted
To my way of thinking, in fact, she’ll often disagree
But at the end of it all, she will understand meI want somebody who cares for me passionately
With every thought and with every breath
Someone who’ll help me see things in a different light
All the things I detest I will almost like
I don’t want to be tied to anyone’s strings
I’m carefully trying to steer clear of those things
But when I’m asleep I want somebody
Who will put their arms around me and kiss me tenderly
Though things like this make me sick
In a case like this, I’ll get away with itMartin L. Gore
Day 12: a song from your childhood.
I grew up in a house of adults—grand-parents, two uncles, one aunt, my mom, my sister, and me. For me, they were all old, of course, but they were all really rather young. My first memories go back to 1987. I was four years old. My uncles were 25 and 22 years old. (My mom was 27). They listened to a lot of music. Pink Floyd, Queen, Dire Straits, Blondie, those are only a few artists I remember from my childhood. A song that stood out was this one:
Dire Straits – Brothers in Arms
From the album with the same name “Brothers in Arms” (1985, Air Records), I remember the blue album sleeve with the steel guitar and how it stood next to the television. I remember my uncles and my mom sitting in the living room, smoking cigarettes, drinking beer, and listening to their records. I can’t say with certainty that the image of them sitting, smoking, and drinking is the same as the memory of the album cover next to the television, though.
Years later, vinyl was replaced by CDs, and one of my uncles had moved out. The older one liked drinking a lot. And when he did, he became reminiscent of the old times. He held discourses about how old music was the only real music. He would drunkenly mumble lyrics and move his hands in a particular manner. He wasn’t dancing, just his hands were. I don’t know what happened and why he took up drinking. I am not in touch with him even though we lived together until I moved out in 2004. It is what it is.
I don’t have many good memories of my childhood. I don’t feel a connection with my family, but it has to be said; every member of my family liked music in a way. And that is something that shaped me from an early age on. As a kid, I was not aware that other children didn’t listen to music; as a teenager, I couldn’t relate to girls shopping for clothes instead of music. And still today, I soak up insignificant information about musicians and music that is really rather useless. And yet, it means something to me. And if given the opportunity, I will ramble on and on about it.
Both of my self-imposed challenges will end soon— four more post in the A to Z writing challenge, and only two more songs in this Song of the Day challenge. Tomorrow’s song will be the hardest to pick. I have been thinking about it for a while, and I can’t come up with a song that describes me. Do you have any suggestions? Which song would you choose to describe me?
Have a great weekend.
xx
I heard this song just now and was “ge-flashed”. I liked Keane a lot back in the day and kind of forgot about them.
Keane – somewhere only we know
Enjoy it.
A song that has been stuck in your head
Now that is an easy one. I had the same song stuck in my head (on and off) for a long while now. Once in a while, it is replaced by something else, but it always comes back. Always.
Here is the song that is stuck in my head:
Olly Murs – dear Darlin’
From the album “Right Place Right Time” (2012, epic records)
****
I feel quiet today. I am not feeling well, mostly due to the insecurity that we are experiencing. We are all more or less in the same boat, my situation is not worse or harder than any one else’s. But I am kept me awake at night and overthinking during the day… The insecurity gets to me…
Day 9 of the Rockhal challenge – A song that makes you dance. Well, this is a weird one for me because every song of every genre makes me move, depending on my mood. Right now, a song that is on the radio a lot and that makes me dance is Blinding Lights by The Weeknd. Another song that keeps me dancing that is lesser known is “First Dance” by Crimer. It is a song from the movie “The Awakening of Motti Wolkenbruch” (2018). I liked that movie quite a bit, but what stuck with me most is this song. I have it in my daily playlist and whenever this song comes on, I sing along and dance. So, please enjoy:
Crimer – first dance
Also, yesterday, I wrote a little something for a prompt. Have a look:
https://micqu.wordpress.com/2020/04/21/a-little-respect/
Have a great day,
enjoy the weather and the music,
lots of love,
Cathy
A song that is your guilty pleasure
I don’t have any guilty pleasures in music. I stand behind my choices. That said, I also have those moments when I chose music that doesn’t reflect the image I want you to have of me. And I will share a song like that with you today.
John Barrowman – I made it through the rain
From his album “Music Music Music” (2008, Epic Records). This song is a cover of a Barry Manilow song. I am not sure how I discovered John Barrowman’s music, but it was in 2012 or 2013. I remember it so well, because my youngest daughter was not in school yet and I was still a stay-at-home mom. When we made lunch for her siblings, we turned the music up and sang into spoons or spatulas, we danced and used bottles as microphones when setting the table. Fun and bonding moments. Even today, she reacts to two songs we listened to constantly during that time (and she remembers parts of the choreography we had for this song.) One song was “I made it through the rain”, the other was “Rococo” by Arcade Fire.
I wonder if this has to do with her loving to play music, singing, and dancing. I think it does. 🙂
Apparently, John Barrowman is a talented actor too. I couldn’t tell, I only saw him in Desperate Housewives years ago. Anyway…
It’s not really a guilty pleasure, it was just a phase where I liked to listen to a different genre of music. Back then, I also listened to lots of Boyzone and Ronan Keating.
I was very different back then. We all were…
A song that’s covered by another artist
Seems I am moving too fast, yesterday’s song was a cover too.
First the original, then the cover:
Nina Simone – be my husband
Jeff Buckley’s version:
I first heard Nina Simone when I was in highschool (Lycée, we called it). My best friend listened to her a lot and I appreciated some songs too. Years later, we lost sight of each other, I was listening to an Etta James playlist on YouTube and Nina came on. I was delighted and transported back into a time when I was fifteen.
Jeff Buckley caught my attention after the songwriter of Our Ceasing Voice (an Austrian post-rock band) shared a playlist of songs that inspired him. There were a couple of new artists for me, Her Name is Calla and Jeff Buckley are those that stayed with me after all these years. (This must have been around 2013). For a while, Jeff Buckley’s music played when I wrote my stories and novels. For some scenes, this soundtrack set a sensual backdrop and they were easily written that way.
And because I like you and think you deserve something brilliant on this Monday, I will add another cover. I am sure you know the original of this song:
Manic Street Preachers – Umbrella
I like this version a lot. I am not a huge Rihanna fan, her voice is not my cup of tea and the genre of music receives less attention from me anyway. I am trying to stay openminded though (and I like to believe that I am.)
Have a great week.
xx
reflections of an unquiet mind 