When I hear music I think "What would the songwriter think about this song being played here?" Today, while sitting in a Starbucks in Baylor's immense parking garage (The Garage Mahal) I heard Bob Marley's "Buffalo Soldier". And you gotta wonder... how would Bob feel about his mildly militant anthem being piped over rich kids loaded down with iPods, fuzzy boots and workout shorts at an institution that is 123% white and populated by more than a few members of the Southern Baptist Convention (which was formed largely because the other Baptists weren't crazy about slavery, and the SBC was). It makes me chuckle in that postmodern way of noting the world's penchant for painful irony, and then going back to my Venti peppermint mocha and blogging some more. By my own math, I have no right to love Bob Marley, and yet I do.
I've discovered a number of great artists and thought I'd share them with you. Check them out if you get the chance. (Oh by the way, any students - or faculty with an "edu" email address should check out RUCKUS.com. It's a little website that lets you download almost any music FREE. You can't burn CDS and have to pay an extra fee to get the mp3s to play anywhere but in the RUCKUS player. But I just use the RUCKUS player to find music I like.
Jon McLaughlin - I know I mentioned him before, but his music holds up to long-term enjoyment. I keep changing my mind about his greatest strength. It's his piano-playing, no it's his voice, no it's his dreamy good looks, no it's his lyrics. Ultimately, I have to confess this guy has the whole package. You have probably heard "Beautiful Disaster", and may have seen him as the crooner in the penultimate scene in Enchanted. But you should check out the songs "Industry" and "Indiana".
Missy Higgins - She fits well into the genre of my own devising "Smart Pop". You may have heard "Steer" but you should check out "Wrong Girl" and "North". (Go to her website to hear all her music.)If you liked those, check out...
(click on CD covers to visit the artists' websites)
2 comments:
The Drummer is a Bob Marley loving non-Baptist, Dan, but in the interest of accuracy I must point out that Baylor does NOT have close ties the Southern Baptist Convention. Baylor is very much a Texas Baptist institution and that, as fellow drummer Robby Frost would say, has made all the difference.
noted. and corrected.
Post a Comment