All the glitz and glamour of the 2008 Grammy Awards is saturated with the passion for purple and black/white tux affairs. I can’t imagine how these fashion trends were started, but they are incredible. Take a peek at Rihanna’s arrival on the red carpet! Now that is hot! No wonder she has become this year’s “Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, Record of the Year, Song of the Year (Songwriters), Best Dance Recording, Best R&B Song (Songwriters), Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals” alog with rapper Jay-Z. You go girl! I love “Umbrella”! Everyone has their eye on her because of her outrageous sense of style and beauty wrapped into a tight little package.

Also, did you notice how fabulous Beyonce Knowles looked in her flashy silver costume? OMG! She is beautiful and most deserving of being nominated for “Record of the Year, Best Pop Collaboration”.

Congratulations to Kayne West on his winnings… he was long overdue! A much needed congrats to Alicia Keys, Vince Gill, and Carrie Underwood. You all deserve the best!

Now, lets talk about slighted fashion and disaster! Please tell me that “Winehouse” chic didn’t win??? OMG she is terrible. I was totally shocked that she won “Record of the Year, Best Pop Collaboration”. Please somebody! Lock her up and throw away the key!

If you want the total truth, my attention was stirred to the beautiful gowns and not so much the awards. Did you see Alicia Keys? She never ceases to amaze me with her high sense of fashion and sensibility. Green was her color on this particular night and OMG she pulled it off! Way to go on getting rid of that braided look!

Ric Ocaseks Quick Change World (1993) is some of his best music ever. That is a very meaningful statement, because Ric Ocasek has created a lot of music over his lifetime — the majority of it excellent. This CD is a perfect example of dedicated musical talent, defined by the apparent and actual Need of the artist to create, whether to popular acclaim or not. I have always been amazed at the quality of Rics solo work, and the relative lack of airplay it met. Much of the music by the band the Cars is still being played, and the fact that Ric Ocaseks solo work was given something of short shrift made me aware of many things, not least of which being this: radio leaves a lot to be desired, and always has. One more reason to love the internet.

So. As far as Mr. Ocasek is concerned, Music just Happens, and not only is this process ongoing, Rics music also grows, continually getting better and better and better. Unlike many older musicians attempting to make comebacks, it can be said without doubt that Ric Ocasek never left us, and for those lucky enough to be privy to this fact, I say run, don’t walk, and get Quick Change World as soon as possible. I would be surprised if you have not already.

It is excellent to be a fan of Ric Ocasek, because we are never disappointed.

A lot, if not all of the music by the group The Cars was actually Ric Ocaseks sound, therefore many new listeners to much of Rics solo work find the two indistinguishable, and they can of course be forgiven. Quick Change World sounds a lot like a new Cars album to those who are hearing it for the first time, and several people I have discussed the CD with have agreed, with the sole exception being that the compositions are even more developed than The Cars music, if such a thing is possible. Unlike certain stark departures that took place on CDs like Beatitude, and several other of his Solo works, QCW seems to be a refinement and development par excellence on the characteristic and signature music of this oh-so talented personage, Ric Ocasek.

From Riding Shotgun (My Favorite), with its ever distinctive vocals, and further developed musical sounds (The guitar work rips), to the impressive Hopped Up (car car car got a red red car…take it out on the streets, take it to the stars…I’m a real live wire), the CD Quick Change World is eminently listenable, and not to be missed.

1. “The Big Picture”
2. “Don’t Let Go”
3. “Hard Times”
4. “A Little Closer”
5. “Riding Shotgun”
6. “Feeling’s Got to Stay”
7. “She’s on”
8. “I Still Believe”
9. “Come Alive”
10. “Quick Change World”
11. “What’s on TV”
12. “Hopped Up”
13. “Help Me Find America”

Other Solo works by Ric Ocasek:

Beatitude
1982 -

This Side of Paradise
1986 -

Fireball Zone
1990 -

Getchertikitz
1996 -

The Next Right Moment
1997 -

Troublizing
1997 -

Nexterday
2005 -

——————–

Visit Ric Ocasek at his Myspace page:

http://www.myspace.com/ricocasek

Bill Gallagher, Hachita NM

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Music is an important part of Native American culture. Many researchers feel that Native American music is some of the most complex music ever performed, due to its tensing and releasing of the vocals and the varying drum beats.

Their traditional music is essentially religious and is their main means of communicating with supernatural powers. In general, it is passionate, and mostly vocal. This passion has greatly influenced modern folk music. Their music is entirely melodic with no harmony, and has unusual, irregular rhythms. The main instruments they use are drums and rattles, and flutes and whistles. Men and women typically sing separate songs and have their own dances to reflect the eternal balance and harmony.

The music of each of the hundreds of Native American tribes is distinct but their musical traditions do have some common elements. The tribal groups can be grouped into six zones (the Eastern Woodlands, South West, Great Basin, Plains, Northwest Coast, and Artic) based on their musical traditions.

The Eastern Woodlands region includes tribes such as the Creek, Cherokee, Choctaw, Iroquois, and Shawnee. Their music is antiphonal (answering responsively), and includes frequent metric changes, rhythmic complexities, a close relation with ritual dance, and the use of flutes, drums, rattles etc.

The Great Basin is a sparsely populated region that includes tribes such as the Shoshoni, Ute, Modoc, and Klamath. Their music is extremely simple, discrete, and ornate. It has short melodies with a less than an octave range, relaxed and open vocals, paired-phrase structure, and moderately blended monophony (has a single vocal part).

The Great Plains includes tribes such as the Blackfoot, Crow, Comanche, and Cheyenne. Their music has nasal tone, high pitches, and frequent falsettos. It uses instruments such as the bass drum and solo end blown flutes.

The South West region includes tribes such as the Pueblo (including Hopi, Zuni, Pueblo tribes among others) and Athabaskan (including the Navaho and Apache). Athabaskan music has swift, plain style nasal vocals and unblended monophony, and uses instruments like drums or rattles and the Apache fiddle. Pueblo music is quite complex, and includes slow tempo, a variety of forms, the use of several percussion instruments, and a low range and highly blended monophony.

The Northwest Coast includes tribes such as the Nootka, Tsimshian, and Salish. Their music is one of the most complex in North America. It has open vocals with monophony, complex and declamatory (dramatic or rhetorical) rhythms, and long melodies accompanied by chromatic intervals. It uses a wide variety of whistles, flutes, horns, and percussion instruments.

The Artic region includes the Inuit, who are known for their throat singing. Their music is simple and has narrow ranged melodies, declamatory effects, and the use of box drums.

Like other musical styles, Native American music is evolving. In addition to pan tribal (synergic adoption of music from foreign communities) styles of music such as powwows, and peyote songs, Native musicians have developed distinct rock, blues, hip- hop and reggae styles. Martha Redbone, the leading Native American Indian musician of this century, successfully combined traditional music with soul, funk, rock, and jazz.

Tribal music is very popular today, especially recordings of the haunting Native American flute. R. Carlos Nakai, who is the perhaps most prominent native flute player of our generation, in the early 1990’s, influenced countless people to start playing the flute. Native American drums are also popular instruments now, even among non-Native Americans.

Unfortunately, attempts to assimilate Native Americans into our culture started in the early 1900’s and forbid many cultural traditions, including music. It was only in the late 1940’s that assimilation rules began to disappear. It is lucky for us that Native American music resurfaced so that we can enjoy it today.

Tracy Crowe is interested both in music and in indigenous cultures, especially Native American. If you are interested in making Native American music, visit http://www.i-found-it-here.com for Native American flutes and drums. We also have a variety of other instruments, both indigenous and European.

To download music mp3 online is possible, but to orient in the overwhelming number of websites offering the service can be tough. If you have never downloaded mp3 music from the Internet, you need to educate yourself about the common options before you decide to join any site, especially a paid one.

Illegal Free Music Download Websites

You can download music mp3 online free of cost. But well, they are illegal! Apart from that, such sites are often poorly maintained and highly disorganized. They normally operate on peer-to-peer basis, with files being shared among users, therefore, there is no possibility to check and sort out all the illegal, corrupt, incorrect, and virus infected files. The software you need to download in order to use the site’s resources frequently plants various spyware and adware in your computer causing its malfunctioning.

Legal Free Music Download Websites

No fee for downloading songs. If the site is really legitimate and strictly observes all copyright laws, it may not have the kind of music you are looking for. For example, it will not have the latest hits as well as some all-time favorites. These sites are good only for less known and off-beat music often posted by the aspiring musicians and singers themselves.

Pay-Per-Download Websites

You can download music mp3 online legally, of high quality, and with full technical support in case any problem arises. The extensive music library includes all the latest hits, and the files are well-organized and easy to find. It is the most expensive music download source on the Internet, as the price is set per song or album and eventually runs up to the cost of an actual CD.

Monthly/Yearly Subscription Websites

Normally, such websites allow you to download music mp3 online without restricting the number of songs as long as your subscription is valid. Good quality and selection, high speeds, easy search, and professional customer support are also provided. 100% legal. DMR (Digital Rights Management), which restricts the ability of the user to transfer the downloaded files to portable players and other computers, as well as burn CDs. In other words, you pay to only listen to the music, and the moment your subscription is expired you lose all downloaded files.

Unlimited Music Download Websites with Lifetime Membership

The best alternative for users who want to download music mp3 online legally, but without spending much. Affordable one-time fee gives you an instant, never-expiring access to the vast music library with the possibility of unlimited downloads. All the downloaded music belongs to you and you are free to transfer it anywhere without the fear of losing it and facing any additional charges whatsoever. As in any successful niche, the scam risk is elevated. There are plenty of fraud websites copied from popular legitimate websites, which offer users to download music mp3 online, but in reality have little, if anything, for their customers.

Davion is a music addict and cannot do without them. Find out about hot and limited offers for unlimited music downloads. Also read his wildly popular article on how to download unlimited music.

Introduction:

Ask anyone who is into Ska music and most shall stare back blankly - it is a question regarding the America of the 1950s when American pop was the most influential entity on the bands worldwide. Thanks to the powerful, American radio stations without which the music wouldn’t have waded past the waves of the Caribbean.

The Ska Spawning:

So it is Jamaica that we shall now be concentrating upon. With the changing economy, the natives of Jamaica could no more be satisfied with the traditional Jamaican music; what they wanted at this point of time was what that blared out of the radios’ speakers. Call it adulteration or a corruption, but there’s no denying the fact that it laid the seeds for shaping the Ska that we hear today, but how many of us really know that where all these got started? To know that, we must dig up the annals of history to find out what was going on in the 1920’s and 30’s regarding the local Jamaican band scene.

Mento - The mentor of Ska

This rural music form dominated the compositions of the local bands during that era; from wedding ceremonies to concerts and house parties, Mento had been the omnipresent factor. But the ’30s heralded the decline of Mento that slowly transformed to Ska over a twenty-year timeline. So, by the late 1950’s, all that existed out of the authentic Mento were the token numbers, but nevertheless, the application of the Mento craft was something they couldn’t shun away completely. Instead, a balance was achieved and the Jamaican mobile Disco became the pivot of all the DJs who traveled all over the island of Jamaica. The sound was distinctly an American one, the perfect food for all the souls who were hungry for knowing things that were coming out of America. The chief influences were no doubt the then-contemporary bands - ranging from Fats Domino, Louie Jordan to even Ray Charles. Tom the Great Sebastian, V Rocket and Sir Coxsone’s Downbeat created the most dazzling examples in this regard.

From Rock to Riches

Things were not stagnant in America though; it was Rock-n-Roll that was outperforming the once Kings - R&B and Jazz. But Jamaicans could not identify themselves with Rock-n-Roll; neither could they dance to its steps. What proved worse was the scarcity of good, new R’nB and Jazz records in Jamaica as well as a diminishing number of quality Mento musicians. But Mento survived among a niche crowd, despite all the adversities.

The Metamorphosis

The other music form that co-existed was Calypso, a genre in which the entire world was interested. This was an opportunity a few of the record producers (the most notable being Ken Kouri, Stanley Motta, and Chin) grabbed; they gave the Mento musicians a chance. More and more LP records thus saw the daylights and today’s Jamaican music industry took birth, turning Mento into an international entity. It produced the conflict between big band jazz and Mento; between the upper and the lower class, musically. And just like too much of heat fuse disintegrable elements, Ska, a fusion style, was born.

SKAnning the form:

RnB melodies and a distinct, Jamaican Mento folk rhythm - this is what that defines the Ska as we know it today. Characterized by the influence of blues and swing jazz (the drums) in the second and fourth beats prove the American influence, followed by the guitar that carries the Mento sound. This lays the basic blueprint of Ska.

Ska and its influence

It goes without saying that Jamaicans latched on to Ska faster than a pregnant teen to her boyfriend. After all, it was Jamaica’s first indigenous and original sound, brought into shape by such talents like Rolond Alphonso (tenor sax), Rico Rodriguez (trombone), Lloyd Knibbs (drums), Jerry Haynes (guitar) and Dizzy Moore (trumpet), Lloyd Brevett (bass) and Aubrey Adams (keyboards). Singers like Laurel Aiken and Clancy Eccles also contributed generously to the genre.

The Aftermath

What we get to hear today is the Third Wave of Ska, incorporating equally the classic 1960’s sound along with Latin, Hard-Core, House, Rave, Funk and also, up to a certain extent alternative rock. And those who claim Ska dies during the 1980-s, would they be generous enough to SKAvenge its remains to prove the same?

Shilin Yin
Founder, Share user-uploaded original music and discover raw talents and Advertise freelance programmers, software developers, and babysitters.
Shilin Yin has an MBA in international business from California State University, Dominguez Hills, a Master of Music in piano pedagogy from Temple University in Philadelphia, and a Bachelor of Music in piano performance from Converse College in South Carolina.

Not sure what’s happening with me on this one, but it seems like the more I listen to it, the better Anytime gets. Anytime simply stated is one of Brian McKnight’s best CDs to date.

The CD launches with a great track, Anytime, that I suspect will be heard on radio stations everywhere, and deservedly so. It’s a really nice track.

One of the refreshingly nice things about this CD is the way all of the participating artists seem to be really enjoying themselves. Combine that with the overall presentation and you’ve got one of Brian McKnight’s most impressive releases ever.

I give Anytime my highest recommendation. It just plain belongs in any serious music collectors collection regardless of genre preference.

While the entire album is really very good the truly standout tracks are You Should Be Mine [track 3], Everytime We Say Goodbye [track 5], and I Belong To You [track 10].

My SmoothLee Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 1, Anytime. Great track!

Anytime Release Notes:

Brian McKnight originally released Anytime on Sep 23, 1997 on the Mercury label.

CD Track List Follows:

1. Anytime

2. Could

3. You Should Be Mine (Don’t Waste Your Time) - (featuring Mase)

4. Show Me The Way Back To Your Heart

5. Everytime We Say Goodbye

6. You Got The Bomb

7. Hold Me

8. The Only One For Me

9. Til I Get Over You

10. I Belong To You

11. Jam Knock

12. When The Chariot Comes

Personnel includes: Brian McKnight (vocals, various instruments); Mase (rap vocals); Anthony Nance, Peter Black (various instruments); Tom Hemby (classical guitar); Jerry McPherson, Dann Huff (guitar); Keith Thomas (piano, synthesizer, bass programming); Cory Rooney (keyboards); Mark Hammond, Rodney Jerkins, Poke & Tone, The Characters (drum programming); Kelly Price, Lisa Cochran, Kim Fleming, Willie Max, DJ Clue, Troy Taylor (background vocals). Producers include: Brian McKnight, Sean Combs, Keith Thomas, Peter Black, Stevie J. Engineers include: Chris Wood, Axel Niehaus, Joe Perrera. Pricipally recorded at Backroom Studios, Glendale, California; Capitol Studios, Hollywood, California; Bennett House, Franklin, Tennessee; The Hit Factory and Crave Studios, New York, New York.

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Chris Brown, very talented R and B artist has released his album titled Chris Brown and Wow! It’s good.

This CD will grab your attention right from the very first note with Run It! and won’t let go until the very last note of the very last song Thank you, which by the way is another great track.

Chris Brown is a pleasantly varied, mix of 15 tracks that are very well written songs by this clearly gifted artist. With many of the songs displaying a lot of the kind emotion that makes for a really great listen.

Listen to Chris Brown and I believe you’ll find there’s not much to dis-like about it. The songs are inspired, the production is simply outstanding, and Chris Brown’s vocal work is in top form. If you’re even mildly into R and B music you’ll enjoy this album.

While this entire album is really very good the truly standout tracks are Run It! [track 2], Young Love [track 4], and What’s My Name [track 9].

My SmoothLee Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 12, Just Fine. Great track!

Chris Brown Release Notes:

Chris Brown originally released Chris Brown on Nov 29, 2005 on the Jive Records label.

CD Track List Follows:

1. Intro (See The Light)

2. Run It! - (with Juelz Santana)

3. Yo (Excuse Me Miss)

4. Young Love

5. Gimme That

6. Ya Man Ain’t Me

7. Winner

8. Ain’t No Way (You Won’t Love Me)

9. What’s My Name - (with Noah)

10. Is This Love?

11. Poppin’

12. Just Fine

13. Say Goodbye

14. Run It! - (remix, with Bow Wow/Jermaine Dupri)

15. Thank You

Personnel: Chris Brown (vocals); Jermaine Dupri, Noah, Juelz Santana, Bow Wow (rap vocals). Recording information: The Hit Factory, Criteria, Miami, Florida.

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Reflections (A Retrospective) is the latest Soul CD realeased by the highly talented Mary J Blige who once again has delivered a brilliant collection of tracks. I’m confident Mary J Blige fans, and Soul fans alike will be pleased with this one.

Unfortunately, it’s not everyday that I get a CD from an artist that I can just pop in and comfortably listen to from beginning to end. There is usually a song or two that I just can’t force myself to get through. Not at all the case with Reflections (A Retrospective). Every track is enjoyable and was pretty easy for me to listen to from start to finish.

Soul music fans will recognize some of the well known contributors on the project including Jimmy Jam and Babyface plus a few other notables as well.

Reflections (A Retrospective) is a first rate CD, delivering a little something for everyone. I give it two thumbs up. It’s quite simply great listening. A must buy for the Soul fan.

While this entire CD is really very good some of my favorites are track 2, We Ride, track 4, King & Queen, and track 14, Be Happy.

My SmoothLee Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 6, Family Affair. Good stuff!

Reflections (A Retrospective) Release Notes:

Mary J Blige originally released Reflections (A Retrospective) on Dec 12, 2006 on the Geffen Records label.

CD Track List Follows:

1. Reflections (I Remember)

2. We Ride (I See The Future)

3. You Know

4. King & Queen - (with John Legend)

5. No More Drama

6. Family Affair

7. Real Love

8. No One Will Do

9. Be Without You

10. I’m Going Down

11. 911

12. Not Gon’ Cry

13. My Life ‘06

14. Be Happy

15. I’ll Be There For You/You’re All I Need To Get By - (Razor Sharp Mix, with Method Man)

Personnel: Mary J. Blige (background vocals); Chucky Thompson, E. Hudson, Jimmy Jam, Babyface, Terry Lewis, Bryan-Michael Cox (various instruments); Raymond Hinton, Paul Pescoe, Mike Scott, Ron Fair, Sharief Hobley (guitar); Gloria Agostini (harp); Regina Carter, Diane Monroe, Lesa Terry (violin); Eileen Fiolsom (cello); ‘Prince’ Charles Alexander (flute); Vincent Henry (alto saxophone); Mark ‘Led’ Ledford, Bruce Purse (trumpet); Daniel Hall, Keyon Harold, Adam Burton, Jarell Banks, Eric Hall (horns); Lenny Underwood (piano); Jim Wright (organ); Young Smoke, Fred McFarlane, Loren Dawson, Mark C. Rooney, Camara Kambon (keyboards); Eric Hudson, Robert ‘JJ’ Smith, Mike Elizondo, B. Cox, Victor Bailey (bass guitar); Kevin ‘K-Dog’ Johnson, Rexell Hardy (drums); Mark Morales (drum machine); Frank Colon (percussion); Alex Richburg, Avenue (Rhino) (drum programming); Tabitha Brace, Jessyca Wilson, LaTonia Hughes, Jewelynn Green, La Tonya J. Blige, David Hughes , David Hurst, Terri Robinson, Big Jim Wright (background vocals). Additional personnel: Wyclef Jean (vocals); Method Man (rap vocals); John Legend (background vocals).

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One word describes the CD Breakthrough from Mary J Blige… AWESOME!

It’s a rare day indeed that I get a CD from an artist that I can truthfully say does not have a bad track in the bunch. I’m more than happy to announce that’s exactly what I must say about this one. There simply is NOT a bad one in the bunch. No fillers here at all.

One of the refreshingly nice things about this CD is the way all of the participating artists seem to be really enjoying themselves. Combine that with the overall presentation and you’ve got one of Mary J Blige’s most impressive releases ever.

If you’re a Mary J Blige fan this is a CD your collection flat cannot be without. In fact, this is one of those CDs that you don’t even have to be a fan of Blige, or even Soul to know is good. It’s just good music. Period.

While this entire CD is really very good the truly standout tunes are About You [track 3], Gonna Breakthrough [track 5], and Good Woman Down [track 6].

My SmoothLee Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 16, One Mary J. Blige. Great track!

Breakthrough Release Notes:

Mary J Blige originally released Breakthrough on Dec 20, 2005 on the Geffen Records label.

CD Track List Follows:

1. No One Will Do

2. Enough Cryin - (with Brook)

3. About You - (with Will.i.am)

4. Be Without You

5. Gonna Breakthrough - (with Brook)

6. Good Woman Down

7. Take Me As I Am

8. Baggage

9. Can’t Hide From Luv - (with Jay-Z)

10. MJB Da MVP

11. Can’t Get Enough

12. Ain’t Really Love

13. I Found My Everything - (with Raphael Saadiq)

14. Father In You

15. Alone - (with Dave Young)

16. One Mary J. Blige - (with U2)

Personnel include: Mary J. Blige (vocals); Dave Young, Will.i.am, Brook (vocals); Jay-Z (rap vocals); Bryan-Michael Cox (various instruments); Raphael Saadiq (guitar, bass guitar); Craig Brockman (keyboards); U2. Recording information: Conway Studios, Los Angeles, California.

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Is it possible to learn to sound “modern” on the piano even if you’re a beginner? The answer is absolutely yes, but you must be willing to learn a little differently. You must learn about a method called the open position chord approach.

Most students who learn the chord based approach start out learning triads and play them with the left hand in one octave. The right hand plays the melody. There’s nothing wrong with this approach. However, the music can sound a little dull, flat and “non-modern.”

The open position approach was first introduced by Alan Swain, the author of “Four-Way Keyboard System.” The open position chord approach allows the student to go beyond the chord based approach by adding the 7th to the basic triad and rearranging the notes so that it covers more than one octave with both hands. The end result is a fuller, modern sounding music than the chord based approach.

For example, if you’re playing the C major triad. With the chord based approach you play C E G with the left hand one octave below middle C. Your right hand would be playing the melody line. Now with the open position chord method we add the 7th to the triad, which is B, making it Cmaj7. If we play C G and B (root and 5th and 7th) on the left hand and E B (3rd and 7th), an octave higher AND the melody note, we cover a much broader range and open up a fuller harmony. This is the essence of the open position approach.

So next time you sit down on the piano, instead of playing your triad with the left hand and melody on the right hand, try the open position chord method. You’ll experience a much different feel than before.

Alex Nguyen is the “Rapid Piano” expert who has been playing piano for over 20 years. Now he’s helping others learn to play piano rapidly and enjoy it from day one. To get your FREE mini report “The 7 Most Powerful Tips To Learning The Piano Rapidly,” and learn how you can get personal piano coaching from Alex for FREE for a limited time, visit http://www.RapidPiano.com