Hellooo 2012! Helloooo new record! Helllooo COOTER! This is bound to be a very fun and fulfilling year. I am setting forth on a few journeys. The first journey is a personal one that took much December 2011 self-reflection. This year, I want to truly understand and speak my truth, see God in all of those I encounter, and spread love daily in both big and small ways.
In the last year, I have come to terms with my “Dharma” … my true purpose and reason for my skill set… I believe it is to spread joy in creative and playful ways. I am a lover— lover of life, a lover of people, a lover of the now moment, a lover of creative inspiration, a lover of discovery and a lover of connection with my fellow man. I believe that there is an exchange of love that happens between an artist and their audience. The artist gives of himself, his insights, his sense of humor, his well-honed craft, his energy lovingly and purely to his audience. His audience responds with applause, laughter, cheers and/or their energy and love back to him. It’s a beautiful exchange of love. I am so blessed to have this exchange and the audience to share my deepest being with. But with it comes a responsibility on my part. I must be truthful. I must reveal things about myself, in my music or as an actor, that can be scary. I must be real. I must be open. I must be present… and I must be my true self. You must see purely who I am. I am what I am. I am flawed and broken and a work in progress. I do not have white doves flying out of my ass. I am no better or worse than anyone else. I have a personal obligation to make this earth more joyful than I arrived here, and I intend to do that.
Essential Albums: Lying To The Moon - Matraca Berg
Quite possibly the greatest debut album to ever be released, Matraca Berg (best known for writing hits like “Strawberry Wine” and “You and Tequila”) possesses a beautiful alto voice that simply flows over the witty lyrics that she writes. For example, her up tempos like “The Things You Left Undone” and “I Must Have Been Crazy” incorporate eccentric performances over aggressive instrumentation and production reminiscent of the incredible Pam Tillis hit “Maybe It Was Memphis”which is always good thing. Although those are there it is not limited to that, it also includes beautiful ballads like “Alice in the Looking Glass” with its sweet, calm reflective story of a woman working in a hair parlor and “Calico Plains” a song of a sister who looked up to her sister so much that when her dreams got derailed she took them on as her own, it was the first of three songs inspired by her grandpa’s farm and is just as beautiful as its much lauded sisters.
More remarkable is a track entitled “You Are the Storm” that has her emotional vocals pour over a storm like production with beautiful, insightful lyrics of being unable to help the one you love because they are tormenting them self. With that said, the greatest track is the incomparable title track, later covered by Trisha Yearwood, with it’s sparse, airy instrumentation that allows her vocals to stand center stage on the gorgeous melancholy lyrics about being stood up and refusing to admit to not only herself but the moon by staying and waiting late into the night.
A statement of the greatness of this album is how many artist have in fact covered the tracks ranging from Trisha and Pam to the legendary Linda Ronstadt. As for those who will result to iTunes to purchase this wonderful CD will also find a track called “It’s Easy to Tell” that showcases Matraca’s stellar range on a track originally released as the first single to an unreleased album called Bittersweet Surrender.
Finally, like Kevin at Country Universe said with Lee Ann Womack’s There’s More Where That Came From this album is so great it’s flaws are almost impossible to find.
4.5/5
Essential Albums
I am adding a new feature that will update at least once a week about and album I deem essential that will include a rating out of five stars and a review (that will vary in length based on what I have to say). Included on this list will rang from Bluegrass to Rock and Mainstream to Indie artist such as Dierks Bentley and Fleetwood Mac and Shania Twain and Matraca Berg.
BC Jean singing “Narcissistic Boy” and oh my lordy is she awesome. She wrote “If I Were A Boy” (sung by Reba McEntire and Beyonce) and now just wow this is a song that deserves heavy rotation on radio! If you see this please re-blog to get the word out! Also, what do you think?
I’d sure hate to break down here, nothing up ahead or in the rear view mirror, out in the middle of nowhere knowing, I’m in trouble if these wheels stop rolling, God help me keep me moving some how don’t let me start wishing I was with her now, I made it this far without crying a single tear, I’d sure hate to break down here
Not sure if I’m feeling this one.. Its a decent lyric that in her typical desperate, pleading theme with her Cry album overproduction, and she is definitely going for the type of come back that Sara Evans did with “A Little Bit Stronger” which is good except Sara had the better song. Guess I’ll have to wait until tonight to see if she can persuade me further with her live performance because as of right now I would rate this a C+ which is the worse of the Shania, Sara, Faith comeback series (with Sara being the only truly impressive one).
Just wow, this is kind of brutally honest but so sweet sounding at the same time. Another example of how incredible Kacey Musgraves really is. I hope she releases an album soon she has more than enough great material to do it.
I would normally not post “worktapes” for the world to hear. But. This is a new song I wrote with Shane McAnally & Josh Osborne on our recent writing retreat. This was the 1st song of the retreat written out on 3,000 lonely, Texas, acres. It almost seemed to write itself. Anyway..this song makes me feel something every time I sing it. Can’t wait for the band version to be mixed. Hope you like the preview.
KM
“Out of these piano keys comes a sound, the sound of a million dreams” ~ David Nail
The Under Appreciated
You see I like Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, and Miranda Lambert quite a bit. I think that they are all talented and deserving of their success, but I can’t say they are the most deserving or my favorites by about two hundred and sixty three miles because who can honestly say that Taylor is half the writer Matraca Berg is, Carrie is half the artistic vocalists of the wonderful Lissie, or that Miranda is half the diverse but all around bad ass artistic force to be reckoned with that is Kacey Musgraves?
