I went to see a solo musician by the name of Jay Bowcott, a Calgarian who relocated to Medicine Hat about ten years ago with his family. The show was at Mikey’s Juke Joint here in the Beltline in Calgary. Mikey’s is a small place that is modeled after a 1930s era barrelhouse complete with rough wood floors, distressed copper tabletops and a matching copper bar. The concert wasn’t officially titled “Constant Rain” even though it was part of a small tour to promote Jay’s recently released album. The show was scheduled to begin at 9:00 pm on November 22nd, at 8:30 there was a brief sound check. At 8:55 the first five chords of Tom Petty’s unmistakable hit Free Fallin’ rang out, only this version had a folk feel.
Jay was to open with a set of his renditions of some major hits from the past fifty years, which had me thinking it was going to be a long night. I am very seldom a fan of covers, let alone covers of originals I have listened to hundreds of times. I began frantically searching for my server because I intended to make a preemptive strike on the pain I was about to endure.
“You...
Despite Keith Urban dropping out of school to pursue his dreams of playing the guitar on giant stages across the US, making millions of dollars, earning almost every country music award in the books, and marrying another celebrity superstar, many believe that this country music legend is still an Aussie bushman at heart. It could very well be the case that, beneath all the glitz and glamour of being a country music star, Keith Urban has the qualities and values that make up a typical Australian. However, there are also a number of instances where Urban has challenged the notion of being a true Australian. In the end, it is clear that Urban really is an Australian bloke who has been dropped into an unfamiliar setting. This setting is now the American country music scene. But his character is one that is uniquely Australian overall.
Although Rudy Baylor, in The Rainmaker, is a new and unaccustomed lawyer, he certainly has his strengths and weaknesses, and with taking a case for the first time, his complexion as well as his professionalism is shown.
On Monday March 25, some members of the baseball team, my girlfriend, and I traveled to Murray State University to watch a concert performed by Nelly and the St. Lunatics. It was a terrible night to go anywhere because it was raining and storming the whole way, but there was nothing that was going to stop us from going to the concert. We where all so hyped up about it and couldn’t wait to head out. My brother, who attends Murray State, had gotten us excellent seats about seventy-five feet away from the stage.
So we figured everything out and and figured that Alex Kramper, Tori Main, Trevor Waller, Kristen Kesler, and me were going to the concert, the next day we met at Alex’s house to all ride in the concert together in Trevor’s truck, it was a planned booze cruise through St.Louis. So I woke up early in the morning for the Saturday concert and did my chores early in the morning so I wouldn’t have to do them the next day all hungover. I finally finish all my chores and then take a shower and head out to Alex’s house dressed in rock concert material, with a Captain Morgan handle and a case of Stag.
The “Seattle sound”, a phrase coined for music created by Alternative-style rock bands based in Seattle, is said to contain three (3) basic elements: it is loud, it is honest, and it is borne of musicians that have experienced a degree of difficulty in achieving recognition. The “Seattle sound”, often times referred to as “grunge”, is notorious for being performed at exceedingly high volume. It has been defined as honest music because it is performed in a raw and unrefined manner, without the aid of electronic polishing. Additionally, a common thread of grunge bands is said to be that they suffer from an uncommonly low rate of recognition
Shank, Barry. “”That Wild Mercury Sound:” Bob Dylan and the Illusion of American Culture.” Boundary 2 29.1 (2002): 97-123.
Connie’s choice of music, rock music, adamantly exemplifies the misconception of the minority which is then taken advantage of due to the lack of maturity and experience in the American culture. When Connie returned back home after a feud with her mother, she turns on the radio and listen to a record of Bobby King where she calmly relaxes and bathes in the music. Joyce Carol Oates writes, “She sat on the edge of her bed, barefoot, and listened for an hour and a half to a program called XYZ Sunday Jamboree, record after record of hard, fast, shrieking songs, she sang along with, interspersed by exclamations from “Bobby King”….And Connie paid close attention herself, bathed in a glow of slow-pulsed joy that seemed to rise mysteriously out of the music itself and lay languidly about the airless little room, breathed in and breathed out with each gentle rise and fall out of her chest” (p.2-para.5). Thi...
“With pop culture apparently suffering from a retro epidemic lately, today’s 60th anniversary of Singin’ in the Rain provides a chance to look back at a film that was ahead of its time in the way that it, too, looked back” (Bahr). Even though it wasn’t all too successful in the awards department, Singin’ in the Rain stuck with audiences because it was so far ahead of its time. It took advantage of all the latest technology while still keeping its “classic movie” feel. In addition, the film implemented both original and well-known songs into the story. This makes the film feel familiar but fresh and new to its audiences. “…Singin’ in the Rain’s jokes and light parodies of actors and Hollywood are still surprisingly insightful and effective” (Bahr). Having been the most researched musical in all of film’s history, it was probably the most correct parody of Hollywood that the industry has ever seen
Love has the power to do anything. Love can heal and love can hurt. Love is something that is indescribable and difficult to understand. Love is a feeling that cannot be accurately expressed by a word. In the poem “The Rain” by Robert Creeley, the experience of love is painted and explored through a metaphor. The speaker in the poem compares love to rain and he explains how he wants love to be like rain. Love is a beautiful concept and through the abstract comparison to rain a person is assisted in developing a concrete understanding of what love is. True beauty is illuminated by true love and vice versa. In other words, the beauty of love and all that it entails is something true.
Jerry Garcia’s life was filled with wonderful things, many of which he never expected in the first place. After an almost fatal heroin overdose in 1986, “ Garcia philosophically stated, ‘ I’m 45 years old, I’m ready for anything, I didn’t even plan on living this long so all this shit is just add-on stuff.’ ” (“Garcia”) This attitude shows why Garcia did all of the things he did and even how some of them came about. Garcia, who “functioned as the preeminent pied piper of the rock era,” led a life of great artistic ability which he used in many ways(“Grateful Dead_ Rockhall”).
When James Taylor’s album, Sweet Baby James, was introduced in February of 1970, the country was still in a daze from the Vietnam War, the Kennedy and King assassinations, and the Manson murders. The country needed a something thoughtful and serene to make it through the foreign and domestic chaos; James Taylor’s album was just that. The lyrics in Sweet Baby James and specifically “Fire and Rain” turned out to be some of the most relatable lyrics of the time period. People could listen to a song and automatically hear their own situations in it. Not surprisingly, Sweet Baby James and “Fire and Rain” ended up being Top Five hits by the end of 1970 (Browne). Knowing background information is pertinent in fueling the meaning of the song. When analyzing James Taylor’s song “Fire and Rain,” one can see that it contains superb examples of allusion, juxtaposition, and symbolism that are prevalent in poetry. The poetic devises used in this song amplify the song’s overall theme of grief.
Gifts of Rain Seamus Heaney's poem Gifts of Rain is divided into 4 sections. These 4 sections could symbolise the stages of life which consists of birth. childhood, adulthood and death. It could also symbolise the stages of the river in which it suggests the development of the river from its. source to where it gets strong.
Singin’ in the Rain adheres to these conventions, chronicling Don Lockwood’s transition into a new age of film. The threat of a prematurely ended career truly challenges Lockwood, while Lina Lamont acts as corporealization of this antagonistic force. The resolution sees the acquisition of Lockwood’s goals: The Singing Cavalier proves successful, and he goes on to star in a film with Kathy, a true romantic interest. Lockwood’s drastic transition from an imaginary high-pro...
Without warning, the lights went dark. This was the moment I had been waiting for. My adrenaline went through the roof. The time had finally come that I would get to see and hear my first live concert.
After the show had ended, I felt slightly empty. I had waited years and months for that night, and it was over in the blink of an eye. Although I was sad that the show was over, I felt completely content. Now, when I hear their songs, I get to remember what it felt like to hear the band perform them live. I can watch the videos and try to wrap my mind around how it was real. Going to my first concert was an unparalleled experience that I will always cherish. The ambiance, the band’s performance and the unity the audience