Once again a new song on KUPL's overnights has caught my attention. The cool thing about this song is, until the artist started his country career, I'd never heard of him. Now, I can hear a song and at least have a guess as to who it is. I'm talking about Stain'd lead singer, Aaron Lewis.
Lewis' first single, "Country Boy", was one of the most country sounding songs I'd heard in awhile. His second, "Endless Summer", had me stumped as to who was singing, it sounded so different from Lewis' first hit. Unfortunately, "Endless Summer" never made it outside the overnight shift on radio.
Now, Lewis has a third single on country radio, "Forever". As I said, I'd heard it the first time on KUPL's overnights, and kind of thought I knew who sang it. Lewis really has a versatile voice, and "Forever" combines the rough sound of "Country Boy" and the smooth flowing feel of "Endless Summer" beautifully.
I'm really hoping that "Forever" takes off for Aaron Lewis, like his first single; his voice and music are definitely worthy of being played on country airwaves.
In July I had two posts listing my top ten current songs I'd been hearing on the radio. At the time I wrote about my hopes and predictions of how each song would fare against other tunes being played.
Now that summer's over, it's time to revisit the music and see how each artist did in the heat of the moment. As with the other posts, I'll list each performer alphabetically.
For those wanting to hear these songs, here's the links to the two previous posts:
Aaron Lewis debuted "Endless Summer" just before the season got into full swing. This is a great song, and I thought for sure it would be one of this year's summer anthems. Unfortunately, Lewis never made it past the overnight rotation.
At the time I wrote the previous post I said that there was no doubt Carrie Underwood's "Blown Away" would be a hit; I was right. What I wondered about more was whether or not this song would stay one of my favorites; or be played so much I'd be sick of it.
The song has been in heavy rotation all summer; I'm happy to say though, I've yet to tire of hearing it.
Chris Young had been on a hot streak of four #1 singles when "Neon" was released. It's such a cool tune, I thought for sure Chris would be scoring his fifth #1. Sadly, this song never made it very far out of the overnight rotation. Once in a while it could be heard at other times of the day, but rarely.
Craig Morgan's "Corn Star" was probably the shortest lived single of the summer. The song was a quirky, tongue in cheek tune filled with puns. I liked the song, though I wondered if it would wear thin with time. I never really got the chance to find out. The song was rarely played; and almost as soon as it hit the airwaves, it was pulled, and Craig's current single "More Trucks Than Cars" was released to radio.
Of my top ten summer songs, David Nail's "The Sound of a Million Dreams" tied with another tune as my very favorite.
I'm not really a fan of David Nail, however this song had me from the first time I heard it. I was just sure this would be his biggest hit yet; I was wrong. Sadly, this tune was yet another that didn't make it too far from overnight plays. Sometimes I wonder how such great music can fail so much at radio.
Due West had a couple of songs on the radio with their old record label. Since then, the band has changed labels and released a new single to radio, "Things You Can't Do In A Car".
Though this song is still only being played during the wee hours of the morning, it's at least still getting airplay. I'm still holding hope it will catch on and be played more in the coming days and weeks.
The Eli Young Band had just come off their #1 single, "Crazy Girl" when their current single, "Even If It Breaks Your Heart" was released. I predicted at the time that the band had another hit with this song; and I was actually right about this one. "Even If It Breaks Your Heart" is the Eli Young Band's second consecutive #1 song on the Billboard Country charts.
George Strait is known inside and outside of country music as "King George". Over the span of his career, Strait has had fifty-nine #1 songs. There's nothing he touches that doesn't turn to gold; except "Drinkin' Man".
This is one of my favorite George Strait songs of all time; yet somehow it never made if very far from overnight status. I honestly can't remember the last time George Strait didn't have a hit, until now. Another great song that never got the chance at seeing the light of day.
Gwen Sebastian is best known for her stint on "The Voice" as part of Team Blake. Since that time, Gwen has been on tour, and has also done back up for Blake during his tour.
Gwen's first radio single is, "Met Him In A Motel Room". The song is slightly complicated, and really needs to be listened to for the full impact. So far this song hasn't made it past KUPL's overnights, though it is getting good rotation during that time.
The final song on my list is the one that's tied with David Nail's tune as one of my favorites; Phil Vassar's "Don't Miss Your Life".
I've always felt Phil Vassar is one of the most underrated, singer/songwriters in the business; "Don't Miss Your Life", is more proof of that. Arguably one of the best songs released to radio, Phil hasn't been getting the airplay he deserves; yet, the song hasn't faded away totally. Just about the time I think it's going to silently fade away, I'll hear it again on the overnight show. I'm still holding hope that if it hangs on a bit longer, it will catch on enough to make it into other radio time slots; it definitely deserves to be heard by more listeners.
And there you have it, a recap of what I've been hearing on the radio this past season. Now that fall is here, I'm wondering what new tunes are on the horizon. I guess time will tell.
I've come to the conclusion that I'm one of those music lovers who falls between the cracks. I like listening to the radio, so I'm not unaware of what current songs are hits. On the other hand, a lot of my favorite songs tend to be ones that haven't really made it on the charts yet, and sometimes never make it far.
When I really thought about it, my ten current favorite country songs fall into this same pattern. It has me interested to see how they're going to play out over the next few weeks and months. Rather than rank them from one to ten however, I've decided to list my current favorites in alphabetical order, starting with Aaron Lewis.
With his second single, "Endless Summer", Lewis seems to have this year's perfect summer anthem for listeners. So far though, I've really only heard the song in the wee hours of the morning. I'm hoping it takes off though, because it really is a cool song.
To be honest, I'm not always a fan of Carrie Underwood. It's not that I don't like her songs; I just get tired of the repetition of them on the radio. So far I've only heard Underwood's latest single, (the title track to her latest CD), "Blown Away", a couple times, again in the late night/early morning hours. So far it's a favorite with me; only time will tell if I grow tired of it or not.
Chris Young's current single, "Neon", has been getting more airplay than the previous two listings; however, it still hasn't been played so much that I'm tired of it yet. Not sure if Chris will score a #1 with the song though. Doesn't matter to me though, it's still one of my favorite new singles.
Continuing the list alphabetically, the next artist up is Craig Morgan. Morgan's follow up to "This Ole Boy", is the quirky "Corn Star". It's the type of song that catches one's attention, because of the tongue in cheek lyrics and play on words. "Corn Star" is the type of song that makes me smile, because I love puns and the like. However, as with Carrie Underwood's song, time will tell if I grow weary of this tune or not.
Rounding out the first five of my current favorite country songs is, "The Sound of a Million Dreams", by David Nail.
I'm not really a fan of Nail's; his songs are okay, I've just overheard them for the most part. "The Sound of a Million Dreams", strikes a chord with me though. As I wrote in an earlier post, though the song sounds nothing like Billy Joel's "Piano Man", that's the tune I think of when I hear this single. It's one I really hope to hear more of on the radio. It would be a shame for it to not be a hit, in my opinion.
I'll end this post for now, and write about my other five favorite songs in my post for Thursday.
One of my favorite things about KUPL's overnight show, (midnight to 5am, Monday through Friday), is hearing new music. Whether it's an established artist's latest single, or the first single from a brand new artist, it's always fun to hear something new.
Over the past few months there have been some songs that I've really liked. Some have gone on to do well, while others have, sadly, fallen short, not to be heard of again.
For example, Trace Adkins had the single, "Million Dollar View" out to radio. I heard it a few times on KUPL overnights; for some reason though the song just didn't take off.
For at least a couple months I've been hearing "Underdog" by the Lost Trailers. This song is finally getting some recognition outside overnights; however it's been slow going. I'm glad it's still around though.
One of the latest new tunes from an established artist is "Don't Miss Your Life", by Phil Vassar. This is probably my #1 favorite song on the radio right now. I'm really hoping it picks up momentum and goes beyond just being played overnights. Love this song!
Whenever I hear a new song on the radio, I try to guess who the artist is. Sometimes I already know, because I've heard about the song and/or artist somewhere before hearing it on the radio. Other times, the artist's voice is so distinctive, I recognize it immediately. That was the case with Alison Krauss' latest single, "My Love Follows You Wherever You Go".
Then there's Aaron Lewis from Stain'd and his latest single, "Endless Summer". I first heard Aaron's voice on "Country Boy", and thought how "country" he sounded; didn't know at the time that he was with Stain'd; just knew I liked the song.
Now KUPL is playing "Endless Summer" on overnights, and I had no idea who it was. Aaron sounded totally different than on "Country Boy"; still love this song just as much though.
There are other songs that have come and gone recently that I could list here, though this post would end up way too long; so I'll end this for now; and possibly add an update at a later time.
To be honest, before March of this year, I’d never heard of Aaron Lewis. When the concert was announced, I was iffy on whether I was going or not.
Then a friend started telling me who Aaron Lewis was. When she said he was the lead singer for Staind, I still didn’t know who he was, although I had heard of the band. At the time though, I still didn’t take much stock in really wanting to go to the concert. I guess in the back of my mind I had the “just another rocker coming over to country”, attitude going on.
Then, early one morning on my way to work, I heard this song; the voice was deep and gravelly, and the song was just packed full of imagery and emotion. It was one of those rare songs that I took an instant liking to. As I was listening, I heard the line, “a country boy is all I’ll ever be”. That’s when I realized I was hearing Aaron Lewis for the first time. My friend had told me his country single was called “Country Boy”; so I was pretty sure that was what I was hearing.
I got to work, checked KUPL’s playlist for the time I heard the song; sure enough, it was Aaron Lewis. That’s when my interest was really peaked…I decided I really needed to go to this concert.
Originally Aaron was to be at the Ponderosa Lounge on May 26th; due to the tornadoes in the Midwest though, Aaron was stuck back east and couldn’t get a flight to Portland. The show was rescheduled for May 31st, and Aaron was able to make it that day.
Before the show, I was lucky enough to be part of the meet and greet for Aaron Lewis. Since the friend who had told me about him was also at the show, I took her with me to the meet and greet. It was so much fun to watch her meet Aaron; he’s one of her favorite artists. And the picture that was taken of the two of them is just so cute! I’m hoping she doesn’t mind me sharing it here. (I’m pretty sure she won’t, since she has it as her profile pic on Facebook right now.)
When it was my turn to meet Aaron, I told him how I’d heard of Staind; though I admitted I didn’t know that much about the band. I also told him the first time I heard “Country Boy”, I thought to myself that he sounds more country than some of the country artists nowadays.
I also asked if he came from a musical family and he said yes; he first started playing and singing when he was about 5 years old, and had learned from watching his father.
What I really noticed about Aaron, with others, and with myself is, he took the time to genuinely connect with each person. He spoke with everyone, answered questions, joked around, and more. Aaron just seems to be a really warm, caring, friendly person. And for as shy as I can be, he was also really easy to talk with.
When it was time for the concert to start, local musician, Kurt Van Meter, came on stage first to do an acoustic set. Kurt seems to be one of those guys that can sing anything, and make it sound good. I thought he was a good lead in to Aaron Lewis.
When Aaron took the stage, he began his acoustic set with a Staind song. Throughout the evening, he played songs from his EP, “Town Line”, and also did some cover songs, one being “What Hurts The Most”, originally done by Rascal Flatts. He ended the show with his hit, “Country Boy”.
Other than what I had been told previously about Aaron Lewis, I chose NOT to listen to Staind, or dig into any more details about him before the concert. I wanted to go to the show, and just experience it for the first time; without the possibility of preconceived notions. I’m glad I did.
What I heard on that stage when Aaron performed was that same gravelly voice I’d heard on the radio. What I also heard, and saw, was a man with so much power and emotion in his voice and music, it just draws you in.
I’m really glad that I was able to go to this concert. I definitely walked away a new fan of Aaron Lewis.
The Doobie Brothers are one of the latest acts to jump into the country music pool. From some of the reactions I've heard, you'd think it was the end of the world. Really though, what's the big deal?
It's not like the Doobie Brothers are the first crossover from another genre into country music. Off the top of my head, I can think of several bands/artists who've come over to country, either permanently, or for a brief stay. Conway Twitty; Marty Robbins; Kenny Rogers; Vince Gill, (with Pure Prairie League); Jimmy Buffett; Van Zant; Olivia Newton-John; John Denver; Charlie Daniels, (his first commercial hit was "Uneasy Rider" in the late 70's); the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band; and probably the band closest to being like the Doobie Brothers, the Eagles; to name a few.
In 2011 alone we've seen Darius Rucker; Uncle Kracker; Kid Rock; Sheryl Crow; and Aaron Lewis make strides up the country music charts. With the exception of Lewis, all these artists made the country charts before this year as well.
The pendulum can swing both ways. Carrie Underwood; Faith Hill; LeAnn Rimes; Taylor Swift; Shania Twain; and others who started their careers in country have, on occasion, made the climb up the adult contemporary, or other music charts.
On a slightly different track, I can think of at least two tribute CD's featuring country artists; "Come Together...America Salutes the Beatles", and "Common Thread: Songs of the Eagles". Neither the Beatles, or the Eagles are considered "country"; though the Eagles come close, I think.
Back to Shania...I know I'll tick a lot of people off with my opinion, though I'll state it here anyway. To me, Shania Twain is "created" country. What I mean by this is, before her success, Shania was married to Robert "Mutt" Lange, a huge name in the pop and rock worlds. A large part of Mutt Lange's success was getting artists noticed. For example, Adam Ant and Huey Lewis & the News both interacted with Lange early in their careers.
While there's no denying Shania has talent, I think Mutt knew she'd be just another voice up against Celine Dion and Barbara Streisand. Instead, he reinvented Shania, branding her as "new country", pushed her through the "back door" so to speak, and promoted the heck out of her. And it worked; who doesn't know the name Shania Twain? I honestly don't feel Shania would have been a superstar, had she not been promoted the way she was. A star, yes. A superstar, no.
Then there's Garth Brooks. While Garth is definitely more country than Shania, he did try his hand in the pop world as well; under his alter ego, "Chris Gaines". Garth also has never denied his admiration for the band Kiss. Why should he? Why should anyone have to pretend not to like something if it doesn't fit their image?
If you really think about it, it seems as though it's the media and fans who "pigeonhole" artists into certain categories. One example is a person I know who is a major Bon Jovi fan. Loves everything Jon does, except anything that even hints of country. I don't understand why this person, or anyone, feels that way.
Musicians are artists, they're creative by nature. Look at the influences of almost any musical artist in any genre; what you'll find is, most of them have a wide array of musical input they draw from. Just because an artist or band plays a certain type of music doesn't mean that's all there is to them. Everyone has different facets to them; nobody is one dimensional.
Not totally convinced? Consider this: Let's say no musician, (it could be anyone, musicians are the example I'm using), ever decided to look, or reach beyond what they'd learned naturally. All of them stayed content just playing the music they were raised on. Where would the world be musically in the 21st century? A good guess is we'd still be beating rocks with sticks, or whatever. There wouldn't be classical music, opera, jazz, big band, soul, r&b, country, rock, pop, techno, rap, hip hop, or any other genre of music; all because someone didn't branch out.
That's not to say that everyone has to like every genre of music; that's not possible. In fact, it's a pretty good bet that's why there *are* so many types of music; because someone wanted to play and/or sing something new and different. Or they didn't like what they heard and wanted something better. There are any number of theories I could list here; the point is, somewhere way back in history, someone *did* try to be different. Music has steadily evolved over the centuries from that point.
Another facet of all this is the Grand Ole Opry. It's no secret that in the past the opry has had some very ridged rules performers had to follow, or they wouldn't be allowed onto the opry stage. One rule was there were to be no drums or horn instruments allowed during the performances. Yet, artists such as Pee Wee King, and Bill Monroe bucked the system and did it anyway. Slowly, over time, the opry has made changes in it's rules, while still maintaining it's dignity and reverence.
As I stated earlier, this doesn't mean everything runs smoothly all the time; it doesn't. Again, not everyone will be happy about all situations every time. I think what people running the Grand Ole Opry have learned is, keep up with the changing times, without compromising themselves, or the opry's heritage.
There are so many facets and levels of this subject that can and should be explored. My thoughts, ideas and opinions have barely scratched the surface of this topic. With this blog getting on the long side though, let's get back to the subject of the Doobie Brothers going country.
I still don't understand what the big deal is about the Doobie Brothers doing a country song. In my opinion, any of their early hits could easily be considered a form of country music; just like the Eagles early songs.
To be honest, I really liked the raw, gritty sound the Doobies had before they were "Michael McDonaldized". Not that Michael McDonald isn't a good artist; he is. He's also done his fair share in the country music realm. I just think he took a really cool band with an edgy sound, and polished them way too much. I liked the Doobie Brothers much more when they weren't so polished.
It's that raw, gritty sound the Doobie Brothers have come back to with their latest single, "World Gone Crazy". The first time I heard the song, I knew immediately it was the Doobie Brothers. It was like that sound had never left; just took a break, and now it's back and ready to do business. If people would just give them a chance, I think they'd do country music proud. They already have a leg up on a lot of the newer country artists emerging lately.
Over all, in the long run, I think what's important, is that the history of country music, (or any genre for that matter), never be forgotten, or pushed aside; yet still be allowed to flourish and grow in different directions, rather than sit and stagnate.
Before the song "Country Boy" was released, I had no idea who Aaron Lewis was. Didn't know he'd been the lead singer of Staind, or anything else about him.
Hadn't heard "Country Boy" when KUPL announced that they'd be bringing him to the Ponderosa Lounge on May 26th.
Then, one early morning on my way to work, I heard this song sung by someone with a very deep, unique voice...Until I heard the words, "country boy", I didn't have a clue it was Aaron Lewis I was listening to. I was blown away! If I hadn't been told this guy was the lead singer of a rock band, I would NEVER have guessed it. This guy is more country than some of the country artists I've heard lately. "Country Boy" immediately became one of my favorite songs.
This morning, I made another discovery in regards to this song. Not only is there the version of "Country Boy" that KUPL plays, there's another version featuring George Jones, Charlie Daniels and Chris Young. Still love the version KUPL plays; though I have to admit, I also REALLY like the video with George Charlie and Chris.
Found the video on YouTube...See what you think of Aaron Lewis' "Country Boy", featuring his special guests.
