The Beatles- The White Album

I'll start off by saying this is the best Beatles album hands down. If your tired of hearing the #1 hits like Yellow Submarine and Love Me Do then get this one. It was The Beatles 9th album and was originally released as a double-LP simply called "The Beatles" but because of the plain white album artwork it became better known as "The White Album". Although cool album artwork is always great, I think The Beatles really made a statement by making this album plainly white. Fans had been expecting this album to have artwork to rival "Sgt. Pepper" and "Magical Mystery Tour" but they just stuck with something simple, and I love it. It opens with Back in the USSR which is a classic, one of my favorite Beatles songs. It also had the great song by Lennon and McCartney Cry Baby Cry. If you like The Beatles you will be blown away by this album. Get it. NOW.

P.S.  COMMENT!
P.P.S. I'll be away all next week so don't look for post then! Sorry everyone!

CBC Radio 2

To start I would like to apologize for the absence in posts lately. I have been quite busy with the family this holiday season. This season can be stressful, so during all the wrapping and writing of Christmas cards I always want to listen to great music. As I assume you all know music makes everything easier; cleaning your room, doing work, doing laundry etcetera... therefore a good radio station sans commercial is ideal, especially when I don't have the time to make a killer mix. CBC Radio 2 (94.1) is completely commercial free and always has great music on, except the majority of the weekend where they are always playing opera. I am surprised by the music every time I tune in. It's always something different, and I discover half my favorite music by listening to this station. They focus on Canadian indie artists a lot which is pretty coo, for example they just put on some of the Canadian native Joel Plaskett's music on, which is always great. Tune in to this station on those lazy weekdays, it will help :)
P.S. Do all you guys have problems with commenting? It would seriously make my day if you put up your input!

Elvis Costello

It's getting near Christmas and I don't have a ton of time to blog, but in the car today I was listening to old Elvis Costello CDs and I had to blog about them. So here are my top Elvis Costello hits:
1. I Can't Stand Up for Falling Down (originally by Sam & Dave, one of Elvis's first big influences)
2. Radio, Radio
3. Shipbuilding (first Costello song I ever heard)
4. Pump it Up (such a great beat)
5. Alison (classic)
6. High Fidelity (love the chorus)
7. Indoor Fireworks (I can listen to this song over and over again and never get tired of it)
8. (The Angles Want to Wear My) Red Shoes
9. Brilliant Mistake
10. (What's so Funny About) Peace, Love, and Understanding

You gotta love Costello.

Arcade Fire- The Suburbs

The first thing you must know about Arcade Fire is that they get better every album they put out. I love everything about this album, from the opening track ("The Suburbs") to the album artwork and sleeve. I love how they are Canadian, how they release every album on vinyl, how two of the band members fell in love and got married, and especially how the each track on their album flows into the next. The band almost broke up a couple times in 2002 and 2003, but these hiccups only made the band better. The addition of Will Butler, Win Butler's brother, only helped the band and lead to their record deal with Merge Records near the end of 2003. It is so difficult to choose a favorite song on this album, they are all so amazing. Every time I listen "The Suburbs" comes on first and I think that this has got to be my favorite track hands down. But then theres that smooth transition into "Ready to Start" and my opinions change. Then "Modern Man" comes on and I give up on choosing a favorite track. The album was released with six different album covers and I have now made it my mission to get every single one. This quirky indie rock band is really out-there, but they somehow make it work. I don't know how but they have got to be one of my favorite bands at the moment. Go out and grab this record. It's worth it.

The Vince Guaraldi Trio- A Charlie Brown Christmas

To start off, I really do hate Christmas music, but I love this album. Personally I think that says a whole lot about the album. I love how The Vince Guaraldi Trio makes these songs sound "Christmasy" but also have a jazz touch to them that makes us music-loving-Grinches swoon. The first song, "Oh Tannenbaum" starts with a quiet peaceful, but still jazzy, rendition of "Oh Christmas Tree", then the soft drums come in, along with my favourite part, the walking base. The trills and jazz off-beats of Guaraldi's playing is incredible and makes you want to get up and dance. The upright base solo in this piece is absolutely indescribable, knowing a bit of base myself, I am completely awestruck on how this man does it. Another great track which I have loved since I was very small is "Linus and Lucy". Now if "Oh Tannenbaum" made you want to dance, it will be impossible not to get up during this one. I loved it so much that when I was 13, I taught myself how to play the chorus. It's a great jazz song, one of my all-time favorites. It features that amazing walking base I was talking about earlier, and incredible piano skills. You have to listen to that one. Even if you don't celebrate Christmas this album is worth it, just for the incredible jazz. Trust me on this one.

Madeleine Peyroux- Half the Perfect World

Half the Perfect World by Madeleine Peyroux is amazing. Her soft sweet voice catches you the first time you hear her. He music just makes you happy, it's soft trumpet solos and almost jazzy style is unique. She understands how to convey a message while delivering an amazing performance. "I'm All Right", "Once In A While", and "Smile" are probably my favorties. The lyrics are amazing, and the way she sings it makes you almost want to cry or laugh or even dance. Check her out.

The Shins- Oh, Inverted World

This album is unexpectedly good. I recently found the out about the Shins and I can't get enough of them. Oh, Inverted World was released in 2001. The album starts with "Caring is Creepy", a great song that features the band's unique songwriting. This was the band's first album after they changed their name from Flake Music. As Flake Music they released a few unpopular EPs. In the song "The Past and the Pending" the delicate and tasteful trumpet is wonderful. I definitely love bands that can pull that kind of stuff off. "New Slang" has got to be my favorite song right now. It has a good pop beat while keeping an indie-rock sound. It's the kind of song I can hear in an independent movie, during an happy scene. Everything about this album is great, you all should buy it.

The Vinyl Princess

Hey all you readers, who probably don't exist yet... but I'm working on you!
Alright there is this book called "The Vinyl Princess" by Yvonne Printz. This is the book that got me hooked on vinyl, there is something about the way this author writes that just makes you want to listen. The book is about a girl named Allie, working at a record store over the summer. She creates a blog about her crazy big vinyl collection, and soon finds that this is her calling. The writer of this book has a real blog called The Vinyl Princess, she hasn't updated it for a while, so join me and post comments to get her going again! Here's the link: http://www.thevinylprincess.com/my-blog If you like Nick Hornby books you will definitely enjoy this one.

Grade: B+