music – shā towers

God’s Love Made Visible

Sha Towers on December 6, 2012December 6, 2012

Jazz legend Dave Brubeck died yesterday, 5 December 2012, one day short of his 92nd birthday. A noted composer, pianist, and band leader, he is probably best remembered for his recording of the 1959 classic “Take Five” (composed by fellow band member and saxophonist Paul Desmond), the first jazz recording to sell over a million copies. Brubeck’s fascination with exploring non traditional time signatures (at least for jazz at the time), is seen in other works from the time as well, such as his “Blue Rondo à la Turk (in 9/8 time). In addition to his work in jazz, he also composed orchestral works, ballets, oratorios, and cantatas.

In the 1970s, he collaborated with his wife, Iola, on the cantata La Fiesta de la Posada, reflecting the Mexican Christmas tradition commemorating the journey of Mary and Joseph and their search for lodging in Bethlehem.

Brubeck says about the musical tradition that inspired Fiesta de la Posada: This music “reflects those qualities I most admire in people…dignity in moments of tragedy, infectious high spirits in moments of joy, and an unshakable religious faith made evident in a strong sense of one’s own worth and a deep respect for the shared values of one’s group — family, church, village. These qualities, I think, are universal to people with a strong communal sense — an increasingly rare attribute in urban culture. It is this sense of sharing in an event which I have tried to capture in the simple retelling of the Christmas story.”
(source)

I had the wonderful opportunity to experience this cantata performed by Dave Brubeck and his trio in San Antonio in 1984.

From this cantata comes one of my most favorite “christmas songs” — God’s Love Made Visible!. Dave Brubeck incorporate the same 5/4 time signature used in “Take Five”, but here blends it with a joyful Mexican musical style (complete with claves, maracas with interjections from a celebratory pair of trumpets). Iola’s text beautifully sums up the the most central theme of Christmas:

God’s love made visible! Incomprehensible!
Christ is invincible! His love shall reign!
From love so bountiful, blessings uncountable
make death surmountable! His love shall reign!
Joyfully pray for peace and good will!
All of our yearning he will fulfill.
Live in a loving way! Praise him for everyday!
Open your hearts and pray. His love shall reign!

God gave the Son to us to dwell as one of us –
a blessing unto us! His love shall reign!
To him all honor bring, heaven and earth will sing,
praising our Lord and King! His love shall reign!
Open all doors this day of his brith,
all of good will inherit the earth.
His star will always be guiding humanity
throughout eternity! His love shall reign!

morning commute shuffle and reflections 9/7/11

Sha Towers on September 7, 2011

“Aganju (Latin Project Remix Edit)”
Bebel Gilberto
Six Feet Under [soundtrack], vol. 2: Everything Ends

One of the best television series on record. Unfortunately this soundtrack doesn’t include any of composer Thomas Newman’s contributions to the show, who “won a 2002 Emmy Award for Outstanding Main Title Theme Music and two Grammy Awards in 2003 for Best Instrumental Composition and Best Instrumental Arrangement.” (wikipedia)

“Hard to Make a Stand”
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow

While this song came out in the mid 90s, I don’t think I’ve ever paid any attention to the lyrics before today (I know, that’s really sad and probably says something about me as a person), but there are a couple lines that caught my attention today and perhaps warrant further contemplation. The first is: “We got loud guitars and big suspicions, / Great big guns and small ambitions, / And we still argue over who is God. . .” There’s a lot here, perhaps something telling and condemning about national policy or maybe just about our individual approach to life. And then the sad, but seemingly eternal inability to recognize the creator in the world around us, in ourselves, and in our neighbors. When will we learn that God is much bigger than we can box up or regulate? A recurring theme in the song is first expressed this way:
“If I’m not here, then you’re not here”
And he says, “Call me Miscreation,
I’m a walking celebration.”

How often do we view others and ourselves as “miscreation” instead of “celebration.” What does the creator think/feel when we make that judgment? What does it mean for us to dismiss? What celebrations do we miss out on or worse, destroy in this way?

“Angeline”
James McMurtry
Too Long in the Wasteland

I love the haunting tune and vocals of this song and it’s been wafting through my mind all morning. This song reminds me of the fuzziness of life, the co-mingling of the bright and dark spots, and in many ways, their inseparability.

I remember the day I discovered McMurtry and this album (at Sound Warehouse in Waco, TX) in the late 1980s…yes, i’ve been in this town for that long!). Speaking of that, I noticed a line in the song “Angeline” that was fitting and made me smile: “…Outside of a small town where I didn’t mean to settle down…” While I never intended to settle down in this small town when I arrived twenty five years ago, more than half my life has now been spent here and I like it. Sure, it has it’s faults, but so do the bigger, more exciting, more this more that “towns.” I always joke that this town is, for me at least, like the line from the Eagles’ song “Hotel California”: “…you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.” But to let you in on a little secret, I really like it here.

“I’m So Lonesome”
Cowboy Junkies
The Trinity Sessions

Discovered this recording on CASSETTE! thanks to my good friend Dale Connally while traveling to (or from? can’t recall) an amazing experience where we spent a week backpacking through the Grand Canyon, more than twenty years ago.

commute shuffle 9/2/11

Sha Towers on September 6, 2011

New Favorite
Alison Krauss + Union Station
New Favorite

if i had to take the recordings of only one artist with me on a deserted island (that had electricty!) i think it might be Alison Krauss’s stuff.

Gloria
Jim Cullum
Deep River

Long Long Journey
Enya
Amarantine

i know, i know…

Garden of Delights
Lisa Loeb and Nine Stories
Tails

Goddess, I Know You
The Spin
The Goddess of Love

interesting story about the above band…i played in the baylor jazz ensemble with one of the band members (25 years ago….eeek!) and Ann dated another member of the band in high school and in college!

Fate Day By Day
mieka pauley
Elijah Drop Your Gun

not even sure how this got on my iPod!

morning commute tune shuffle

Sha Towers on September 1, 2011

This morning’s drive into work included the following tunes:

Bela Fleck and Edgar Meyer: “Canon” (from the album Music for Two

Innocence Mission: “Keeping Awake” (from the album Glow)

Thomas Newman: “Pelicans” (from the soundtrack album Finding Nemo)

Sterling Jubilee Singers: “Ever time I Try to Do My Best” (from the album Jesus Hits Like the Atom Bomb)

Johnny Cash bootlegs

Sha Towers on February 14, 2011

I didn’t write this, but was so intrigued by the back story that i wanted to share it. Thanks to my friend Jay for sending.

Johnny Cash

Today Johnny Cash’s stature as an icon of American music is commanding and significant. When it comes to singers of any genre country, Western or rockabilly; blues, folk or gospel few have achieved the height of The Man in Black. Despite his death in 2003, Cash continues to grow in influence,casting a shadow that reaches far beyond the country circle from whence he grew. To know the tree, one must begin at the root and take in all the branches; to fully grasp Cash’s old-growth legend, one must hear his earliest performances, as well as unreleased or under-promoted recordings that somehow remained out of earshot of an adoring (and still-expanding)public. Such is the mission of the Johnny Cash Bootlegs, a series of multiple-disc packages being released in 2011 and coming years, brimming with historical importance but also delivering thoroughly enjoyable listening experiences, each programmed to stand as a captivating doorway into Cash’s popular legacy as effectively as any greatest hits compilation.

Johnny Cash Bootleg, Vol. 1: Personal File (2 CD set)
Label: Sony Legacy 783015 Release Date: 2/22/2011UPC: 886978301529

Deep within the House of Cash, Johnny Cash’s recording studio, office suite, and museum in Hendersonville, Tennessee, behind the studio s control room, was a small vault-like space in which many of his most prized possessions were stored. A collection of rare firearms dating back to the 18th Century, some personal effects of Jimmie Rodgers, artwork and letters from fans all over the world and much more was carefully arranged and locked away for safekeeping. Then there were the tapes. Hundreds of them. Demos from songwriters, album masters, multi-tracks of the ABC television series, and some boxes marked simply “Personal File”. These are Johnny’s most intimate sessions, recorded mostly in 1973 and then subsequently at his leisure. Just a lone voice and an acoustic guitar, singing songs and telling stories about them. A concept that has since come to be thought of as revelatory but, as is evident in this stunning new set, is something Johnny Cash had been doing all along if only for his personal file. This 2-CD collection features 49 previously unreleased recordings.
Use this link for complete track listing: http://www.amazon.com/Bootleg-1-Personal-Johnny-Cash/dp/tracks/B004I1WIZM/ref=dp_tracks_all_2#disc_2

Bootleg, Vol. 2: From Memphis to Hollywood Johnny Cash (2 CD set)
Label: Sony Legacy 760051 Release Date: 2/22/2011 UPC: 886976005122

Featuring previously unreleased and incredibly hard-to-find singles, demos and other rarities recorded from 1955 through the late 60s, Bootleg, Volume 2: From Memphis To Hollywood chronicles his exciting rise from local sensation to an artist of national importance, his songs reaching millions through best-selling albums and hit movies. The 57-track collection is a boon for collectors with 16 never issued recordings, plus 11 singles and 11 outtakes released digitally for the first time in the U.S. But BOOTLEG II also resonates with mainstream appeal, telling a captivating story that captures pivotal moments in Cash s far-ranging career, while reflecting the trends and transitions of those years.
Use this link for complete track listing: http://www.amazon.com/Bootleg-Memphis-Hollywood-Johnny-Cash/dp/B004GHBQOM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1297704783&sr=1-1

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