Tag:

Music

If I ever need goosebumps…

by Klaus March 16, 2009

written by Klaus

Who would you guess my favorite artist in the world would be? Wrong!

The man whose music I enjoy the most is named Ivan Lins. He has been on top of my list for quite a while now even though there are many very strong contenders.

Ivan Lins said that he watched a lot of Disney as a child and that is still reflected in how playful his music is. He sings mostly in Portuguese which I don’t understand.

Some of my family members roll their eyes when they hear him singing things like “Na na na na…na na na na…na na na”. He just plays with his voice in a way that shows a ton of artistry.

March 16, 2009 0 comment

Long Standing Love Affairs

Developing an addiction

by Klaus March 15, 2009

written by Klaus

: Cover of Overtime

One night in 1981 I listened to a tune called “Is it you?” on a German radio station. I scribbled down the name of the artist. Soon after that I went into a record store and was lucky to find the album. Rit by Lee Ritenour was the first record I ever bought. Who else in the world can claim that? I’d really like to get to know that person ;-)

This was the beginning of an addiction and a long standing love affair.

My addiction with records soon turned into full storm. We had a store in my hometown that could have served as the inspiration to Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity. I became part of the scene and spent countless hour in the store. My allowance was twenty Deutschmarks and records sold for 19.99 – go figure. I ended up buying over 700 of them. My dad and I were often racing to get a new recording first. And then we ended up fighting over who actually owned the record.

March 15, 2009 0 comment

Long Standing Love Affairs

My favorite band

by Klaus March 14, 2009

written by Klaus

Our love affair has lasted since I began listening to music.
It has always been my favorite band and always will be. Nothing in life is for certain but I don’t see that ever changing.
They represent love, peace, hope and fun as opposed to aggression, violence and anger.
Their two main song writers have written many of the most memorable songs in the world.
They performed their last concert on a rooftop in London.
The band stopped performing when I was 4 years old.
They created a mania the world hadn’t seen before. Seeing videos of the crowds going wild still give me goosebumps.
The band represents an era I am fascinated with on many levels.
The band has never been involved in any nasty scandals. At least they were never made public.
The band lost its chance to ever reunite in 1980.
None of their members would be listed among the best musicians or singers of the world. Chemistry and the quality of their songs lead to their success.

These four boys will always stay in my heart. They have my world a better world. They provided me with happiness at times when I needed it. Their magic still works.

There is no need to even mention their name. You either know who they are or you don’t.

Thanks again for all the joy you brought into my life!

Note
I never really liked the Rolling Stones. To me they are the anti-christ of “my” band. I strongly dislike music promoting aggression such as punk, heavy metal or many flavors of rap. My favorite kinds of music are filled with joy and happiness. Fortunately there is plenty of that around.

March 14, 2009 0 comment

Long Standing Love Affairs

Django Reinhardt – my first love affair

by Klaus March 13, 2009

written by Klaus

I never met Django Reinhardt. Due to him dying before I was born our paths never crossed. But he was the first musician I was passionate about. It was way less than cool to listen to Jazz when everyone else was into Pink Floyd. I didn’t want my parents to know because my dad would have made such a big deal out of me liking the same music he enjoyed. It felt like having a crush on a girl and wanting to keep that secret.

He plaid the guitar very fast. The fast beats of Gypsy Jazz make me think of them as the punks and wild guys of the old days.

I have always preferred musicians that master their instruments over the vast majority of artists that get by in other ways.

Unfortunately most of Mr. Reinhardt’s recordings are very low sound quality and I don’t like listening to mumbled recordings.

Fortunately there are ways around it. Many players try to copy him – in most cases without much luck. But a few guys come to my rescue:

Martin Taylor has done some recordings with Stephane Grappelli where he copies Django Reinhardt’s original part almost one on one.

Bireli Lagrene is maybe considered the most valid successor of Django Reinhardt in the modern days. Many of his recordings are on my favorites playlist as well.

So there you have it: A Gypsy from Belgium that had a crippled hand due to a bad fire he got caught in was my first music love affair. He’s been in high standings ever since.

Note:

There are many other great Gypsy Jazz artists. I will write about some of them at a later time.

March 13, 2009 0 comment