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Pop Rock Nation

Tag: The Eagles

  • Let the holidays begin!

    Let the holidays begin!

    Thanksgiving is over! Let the holidays begin!

    Okay, I know… Thanksgiving is part of “the holidays”, but as I was stressing like a madwoman over Thanksgiving, I feel like I can relax a little now. I’m not one to get as wrapped up in Christmas music as some people do, but I will admit to having some favorite albums for this time of year. Last Christmas, I made a huge holiday music mix that had songs by everybody from Sting and James Taylor to Kathleen Battle and Eden’s Bridge. My mix has bluegrass, classical, rock, pop, soul, and everything in between. What can I say? I have very eclectic tastes.


    Bruce Springsteen’s “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” was recorded in 1975, but was pretty popular in the 80s…

    Having come of age in the 80s, a lot of my favorite music comes from that era. Christmas music is no exception. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band famously covered “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” in December 1975 and then released it as a B side to his 80s era hit, “My Hometown”. It’s now a holiday staple! But as much as I like The Boss, I find my tastes lean more toward the traditional. Must be a feature of getting old.

    In 1987, Sting made a haunting cover of “Gabriel’s Message” for the 1987 compilation, A Very Special Christmas.


    Love this contemplative Christmas song…

    Years later, Sting refurbished “Gabriel’s Message” for his 2010 album, If On A Winter’s Night.


    Updated with strings and horns, this version is also haunting in a different way.

    Last year, I discovered the wonderful holiday offering Joy- An Irish Christmas by Keith and Krystyn Getty. If you like a little Celtic flavor to your holiday music, I recommend it highly! There’s an exciting mix of exciting fast paced music countered by peaceful beautiful songs.


    “Jesus, Joy of the Highest Heaven” sung here by Krystyn Getty.


    A live version of their “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.

    And there are also a number of soulful classics available. “Do You Hear What I Hear” by Gladys Knight and the Pips immediately comes to mind… So does the Jackson 5’s Christmas album, which comes complete with Christmas greetings from the brothers. Given that they were Jehovah’s Witnesses at the time they made the album, that must have been an awkward recording session.


    “Give Love On Christmas Day” by the Jackson 5.

    Or there’s blue-eyed soul by Hall & Oates…


    I must admit, I like this song for the video…

    And “Please Come Home For Christmas” by The Eagles…


    Pat Benatar also does a fine version of this bluesy Christmas staple, but I am partial to Don Henley’s soulful vocals.

    Here’s Pat singing “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”.


    Talk about a classic. This was done in 1988, when I was still a lass.

    My all time favorite Christmas album, though, has to be James Taylor’s A Christmas Album, which he made in 2004 for Hallmark. The album was produced by Dave Grusin, who wrote all the wonderful arrangements of the music. James later re-released the album with two more songs. I didn’t buy the re-released version because I already had all the songs on it.


    “Go Tell It On The Mountain” is one of my favorite JT Christmas songs!

    I’m sure as the month wears on, there will be more posts about Christmas songs… but for now, I think we’ve gotten things off to a festive start! Hope your December has gotten off famously!

  • Silly love songs…

    “Some people want to fill the world with silly love songs… What’s wrong with that?”

    I had an interesting experience yesterday. I happened to run across a Facebook profile for a woman who is friends with a lot of my friends. She also happens to be married to a guy I used to have a big crush on. My crush went unrequited, of course. I looked at her pictures with her husband, a man who both charmed and tormented me when we were little kids and was immediately reminded of a silly love song by Garth Brooks. The song was “Unanswered Prayers”. I’d post it here, but apparently Garth Brooks is very protective of his copyrights and there aren’t any videos of him doing that song on YouTube. I suppose I could find a cover version, but instead I’ll just say the sentiment of that song fit the way I felt yesterday. I had a lot of crushes back in the day, but am actually kind of glad none of them panned out.

    As I gave my husband, Bill, a big kiss last night as a thank you for choosing me, another silly love song immediately popped into my head. That song was “The Last Worthless Evening” by Don Henley. I’d post that song here, but again, Don Henley is apparently protective of his copyright and I can’t find any suitable videos on YouTube. The point is, it’s a sweet song and sort of sums up how I feel about Bill. When I found Bill, I found a man who made the pain of all those unrequited crushes go away. I haven’t had a “worthless evening” since.

    This morning, as I sat in my office thinking about today’s post, I realized that both “Unanswered Prayers” and “The Last Worthless Evening” were recorded by guys with enormous egos. Shoot, Garth Brooks won’t even let you download his songs unless you visit Walmart’s official Web site. I guess he figures he gets more money if you buy them on CD, since you can’t just buy one song. It’s his right to do that, but I’m not enough of a fan to buy one of his CDs or download from Walmart’s site.

    I am a fan of Don Henley’s and actually own several of his studio albums and he does let you download from iTunes or Amazon, though he doesn’t want you using his music on YouTube. But I would buy a CD by Don Henley… or at least I would before he and the rest of the Eagles got into bed with Walmart. Garth Brooks also got into bed with Walmart back in 2005, when he signed a deal making Walmart the only place you can buy his music. Since I loathe Walmart, I refuse to buy anything there, so any artist who only sells music at Walmart will not have a place in my library.

    The Eagles have since made their 2007 album Long Road Out of Eden available elsewhere, but the damage is done. I found it very hypocritical that Don Henley was such an outspoken advocate for environmental causes and yet he got involved with a business that is responsible for so many trees losing their lives due to Walmart’s enormous stores. It’s not that I’m such a big environmentalist. I just don’t like hypocrisy and I don’t like not having a choice as to where I buy things.

    So then I started thinking about “Silly Love Songs”, a love song by Paul McCartney and Wings. And what do you know? I actually found a video for that song…

    And this song, while maybe as schmaltzy as “Unanswered Prayers” and “The Last Worthless Evening”, doesn’t take itself too seriously. God bless Paul McCartney for his lighthearted silly love songs. And thank God for “Unanswered Prayers” and “The Last Worthless Evening” because they make me appreciate “Silly Love Songs” all the more.

    Have a great weekend, y’all!

  • Chart Chat Recap Part 1: Who Has The Keys To The Top?

    Yes, folks, it’s that time of the year again. Billboard recently released its’ year-end charts, and some of the results will surprise you. Chris Brown ranks as the year’s top artist, thanks to three huge hit singles and a double-platinum album. He’s also (obviously) the top male artist on the year-end survey, while to no one’s surprise, his girlfriend Rihanna ranks as the top female artist. In their breakout year, The Jonas Brothers rank as the top band/duo/group.

    This week, we turn our attention to the year’s top albums. Now, when doing their year end survey, Billboard does not use hard sales figures, nor do they use the strict calendar year. Their year end charts are based on a calculation of chart positions from week-to-week, while the time period they tally is from the first week of December 2007 to the last week of November 2008. Which should explain why the biggest-selling album of 2008 isn’t actually the Number One album of 2008. Let’s move on to the chart, shall we? Oh, and as always, all chart positions are courtesy of the good folks at Billboard communications.

    1) “As I Am” Alicia Keys

    Keys snared the #1 spot by spending all 52 weeks of the chart year on the Top 200. During that period, “As I Am” has sold 3.7 million copies. It’s the first time Keys has had a #1 album of the year. And here’s a sign at how flat record sales have become: “As I Am” is the worst selling studio album of Keys’ career.

    2) “Noel” Josh Groban

    “Noel” was actually the biggest selling album of the time period captured in the year-end chart, but as it was a holiday release, it’s time on the chart was limited. By the way, in terms of actual album sales, “Noel” wound up being 2007’s #1 album.

    3) “Tha Carter III” Lil Wayne

    2008’s #1-selling album by a healthy margin, Weezy joins Alicia Keys as the only artists in the Top 5 Artists, Albums and Singles of 2008. It’s also (obviously) the highest-ranking hip-hop title on the year end chart and the only one in the Top 20. The rest of the top 5, in order, T.I. (#23 on the overall chart), Rick Ross (#50), Jay-Z (#57) and Young Jeezy (#62)

    4. “Long Road Out of Eden” The Eagles

    5. “Fearless” Taylor Swift

    Swift had two hit albums this year (“Fearless” ranks at #66), and is the highest-ranking country artist on the chart, assuming we’re not counting The Eagles as a country band. Take that, Joe Jonas!

    6. “Rock ‘n Roll Jesus” Kid Rock

    Kid’s album, which came out in October ’07, is the oldest album in the year-end Top Ten. His hit single “All Summer Long” was a hit on both pop and country radio and gave him one of the biggest songs of his career. Who’d have thought that the hick rapper with the midget sidekick would still be on top of the charts ten years later?

    7. “Viva La Vida or Death & All His Friends” Coldplay

    Coldplay’s album, conversely, is the newest album to appear in the year-end Top 10, as well as the highest ranking album by a U.K. artist. Leona Lewis is the only other Brit import in the Top 25. The rest of the Top 5 as far as Brits go: Led Zeppelin (#31), Robert Plant (with Alison Krauss, #39) and Amy Winehouse (#43).

    8. “Now That’s What I Call Music Vol. 26” Various Artists

    This series has proven to be quite durable over the years, proving that some Americans are just too damn lazy to make their own mix tapes. “Now 28” is #37 and “Now 27” is #41.

    9. “Carnival Ride” Carrie Underwood

    Carrie’s one of four “American Idol” alumni in the year-end Top 100. The others? Daughtry (#33), Jordin Sparks (#35) and Jennifer Hudson (#93)

    10. “The Ultimate Hits” Garth Brooks

    11. “Hannah Montana Soundtrack 3/Meet Miley Cyrus” Miley Cyrus

    12. “Growing Pains” Mary J. Blige

    13. “Exclusive” Chris Brown

    Chris and Rihanna handily beat out R&B/hip-hop’s other power couple. Jay-Z, as previously mentioned, landed at #37 for the year with “American Gangster” and Beyonce’s “B-Day” ended the year at #170. “I Am…Sasha Fierce” came out too late to qualify, but it should figure mightily on next year’s chart.

    14. “Sleep Through the Static” Jack Johnson

    15. “Black Ice” AC/DC

    16. “Death Magnetic” Metallica

    AC/DC, Metallica, The Eagles and Garth Brooks (who sneaks in by virtue of debuting in 1989) are the only artists on the year-end Top 25 whose careers predate 1990. Mariah Carey and Kid Rock narrowly missed, as both issued their freshman efforts in 1990. So, basically, if you want a long career? Record metal or country.

    17. “Jonas Brothers” Jonas Brothers

    The Jonases are the only artists with two albums in the Top 25. Touche, Taylor Swift.

    18. “Coco” Colbie Caillat

    19. “Spirit” Leona Lewis

    Leona’s the only artist in the Top 25 to debut in 2008, although Colbie Caillat narrowly tops her with the highest-ranking debut album on the chart. As far as debut albums go, those two are followed by Daughtry, Jordin Sparks and Amy Winehouse (“Back to Black” counts because it was her U.S. debut).

    20. “High School Musical 2 Soundtrack” Various Artists

    21. “Good Girl Gone Bad” Rihanna

    If “Rehab” ascends just a few more positions in the next couple weeks, Rihanna will follow Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson and Bruce Springsteen as the only artists to pull seven Top 20 songs from one album. Not too shabby.

    22. “E=MC2” Mariah Carey

    23. “Paper Trail” T.I.

    T.I  not only found himself beat by Lil Wayne on the charts this year, I’m pretty sure Weezy got arrested more times in the past year as well. However, T.I.’s the one looking at a stretch upstate, so he wins something after all.

    24. “Mamma Mia Soundtrack” Various Artists

    25. “A Little Bit Longer” Jonas Brothers

    I would love to make another Jonas/Taylor Swift joke here…but I can’t think of one. Shit.

    Next week…the year’s Top 25 singles.