He Is We "My Forever" Album Review

He Is We. Catchy band name, isn't it? Well their music is even catchier. I've been listening to this CD for a week and the songs are so catchy! Even my pre-teen likes the music as she has now snagged my CD and has it in her player. The story of He Is We began in the summer of 2008 when Rachel Taylor and Trevor Kelly worked at Tel Brown Music in Tacoma, Washington. The two became fast friends and the transition from music store co-workers to band mates happened naturally. Their quirky songwriting began to get attention when they posted "Pardon Me" online. At first the track got five or six plays a day but then thousands. 

My Forever is one of this music duo's latest albums. It features 11 tracks including an acoustic version of "And Run." (See below) Here's a sampling of lines from this song: 

Hard to admit it but now I'm thinking freely. 

I'm going to open my mind to all these newfound exciting possibilities. 

I'm making all my own plans. 

Throwing all my old ones away. 

Gotta grow up be someone. 

Draw a map, find a path, take a breath and run." 

Aren't those lyrics unique, empowering....FANTASTIC? The best part about their music is that all the songs are written by Rachel and Trevor. ALL! You are listening to Rachel’s words and Trevor’s music.  I am so very impressed. These two artists have some definite natural talent.

One more preview of what you'll hear when you purchase the album. This was my favorite song and it's even more enjoyable when you see the humorous music video. 

BUY: My Forever is available on Amazon and iTunes as well as other music outlets online and off.

I was not compensated for this post but I did receive a product sample to facilitate this review.  Any and all opinions here are mine.

Review: Neptune's Ocean from BABY EINSTEIN

Since lovely Baby #5 came along, I begin to wonder if I pay ENOUGH attention to her...like I did with the others. I'm sure I do, since she is always attached to my hip...but I don't do the word flashcards, read her HER books & point to the pictures & all that goes with an almost 1 year old, like I used to.  I have enjoyed Baby Einstein in the past with Baby #1, but after a few moves my collection got lost. SO I WAS SUPER excited to see that they have Discovery Kits, new DVDs and more. 

*About The Baby Einstein Company

The Baby Einstein Company, LLC, is the award-winning creator of the infant media category.  The company is known for its best-selling Baby Einstein brand of DVDs, books, music CDs and toys specifically designed for babies and toddlers. Baby Einstein products bring the arts and humanities to parents and babies through real-world images, music re-orchestrated for little ears and delightful puppet shows.  Headquartered in Burbank, CA, The Baby Einstein Company is a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company.   For more information about the company and its products, visit the Baby Einstein website.

We were very Lucky to receive "Neptune's Ocean," which is perfect since we live close to the ocean.

*(NEW) Neptune’s Oceans (releasing February 22, 2011) - Dive in with your little explorer for a voyage of undersea discovery! Journey across Neptune’s Oceans to encounter amazing marine life in their natural habitats. Penguins, whales, dolphins, sea lions and crabs come to life in engaging musical portraits. Together, you and your baby will ride a tide of fun as you explore this wondrous new world!

As we put her movie on, ALL the kids came running to see what Little Miss #5's DVD was all about. They stuck around for the full DVD & said all the words that came on & talked about what they saw. Even Munchkin #4 (2 1/2 yrs. old) would YELL out all the fish & sea life he knew words for. A great learning & entertaining tool for all MY kids ages.

She couldn't keep her eyes off of the cool things she saw!

Since I homeschool my older 3, we enjoyed their discovery Kits during school time. Each kit comes with a DVD, a music CD & picture cards or a book.  I was anticipating the music CD for quiet reading time & also using the picture cards to help my baby's vocabulary grow. So she could have her own special LEARNING time. What a great tool!

So Little Miss #5 enjoyed the cards. She would point & try to repeat the words of the pictures as we said them. 

OVERALL Thoughts: Me & my clan of 5 kids give it 12 thumbs UP! 



TO PURCHASE: Visit AMAZON to get Neptune's Ocean & other great kits.


*Details we received from The Baby Einstein Company to give proper information for this review
**I was not compensated for this post although I did receive a product sample to facilitate my review.  Any and all opinions here are my own.

Review of . . . Featuring Norah Jones

After listening to Norah Jones's newest album, a collection of musical collaborations spanning her career titled  . . . Featuring, I can only think of one word to describe her voice and her talent: ethereal.  It is her voice and the arrangement of these songs that transforms the songs.   In particular, she takes what I call "Patsy Cline country" songs (like "Bullrider" and "Love Me") and inflects them with the same longing Cline did while at the same time steeping them in a contemporary blues-y sound.  Some of the songs are classics made new, some are original collaborations that span an incredible range.  

What artist has collaborated with Willie Nelson and Outkast?  “It's so exciting and flattering and fun when I get asked to sing with somebody that I admire,” says Jones. “It takes you a little bit out of your comfort zone when you're doing something with another artist. You don't know what to expect—it's kind of like being a little kid and having a playdate.”  Several of the songs have appeared on Grammy-winning albums.  This collection is an analog of Jones's own albums spanning her career.  You can see her range and reach as a musician as you listen to this CD. Jones points out that “even though the musicians are so varied, the vibe of the songs makes sense when we put them all together.” 

My favorite songs on the album where the ones with hip-hop artists like "Life Is Better" with Q-Tip and "Soon The New Day" with Talib Kweli but this has more to do with the kind of music I like than with Jones's work.  The reworking of "Blue Bayou" (with M. Ward) and "More Than This" (with Charlie Hunter) feature gorgeously lush vocals.  The range of this collection is broad with the unifying factor being Jones and it all works.  I'm going to enjoy playing this CD while prepping for the upcoming holiday season.  Its kind of like Norah Jones's present to us all this year.

For the latest news, tour dates and more, check out Norah's website, Facebook and YouTube Channel.

The tracks on . . . Featuring are listed below.  You can buy your favorites from the album or the entire collection here.

...Featuring Track Listing:

1. Love Me – The Little Willies
2. Virginia Moon – The Foo Fighters featuring Norah Jones
3. Turn Them – Sean Bones featuring Norah Jones
4. Baby It's Cold Outside – Willie Nelson featuring Norah Jones
5. Bull Rider – Norah Jones and Sasha Dobson
6. Ruler Of My Heart – Dirty Dozen Brass Band featuring Norah Jones
7. The Best Part – El Madmo  
8. Take Off Your Cool – OutKast featuring Norah Jones
9. Life Is Better – Q-Tip featuring Norah Jones
10. Soon The New Day – Talib Kweli featuring Norah Jones
11. Little Lou, Prophet Jack, Ugly John – Belle & Sebastian featuring Norah Jones
12. Here We Go Again – Ray Charles featuring Norah Jones
13. Loretta – Norah Jones featuring Gillian Welch and David Rawlings
14. Dear John – Ryan Adams featuring Norah Jones
15. Creepin' In – Norah Jones featuring Dolly Parton
16. Court & Spark – Herbie Hancock featuring Norah Jones
17. More Than This – Charlie Hunter featuring Norah Jones
18. Blue Bayou – Norah Jones featuring M. Ward

 

I did not receive any compensation for my review of . . . Featuring Norah Jones although I was given the CD to facilitate this review and I am entered to win a gift card through One2One Network.  Any and all opinions here are my own.

I Love This Video!

Review of Tiger Suit by K.T. Tunstall

I was lucky enough to get a copy of KT Tunstall's latest CD, Tiger Suit (released Oct 6th) so I could review it on the blog.  I don't consider myself a die-hard Tunstall fan.  In fact, I've mostly heard her name bandied about (in conversations or articles about 'serious' and 'talented' artists) and I've heard "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" more times than I wanted to on American Idol.  So I bring a particular perspective to this review that may have limited representation: that of the newbie KT Tunstall fan. Yes, Tiger Suit has converted me--I realized this when I woke up yesterday humming "(Still a) Weirdo".  For me, Tunstall's songwriting is often eclectic and at times opaque in meaning.  The real strength in the songs on Tiger Suit is in her song arrangement and performance.  Some of the songs are pulsing with raw emotion ("Difficulty", "Push that Knot Away").  Others, like current release "Fade Like a Shadow", "Uummannaq Song" and "Glamour Puss" are optimistically cynical as they juxtapose brutally honest lyrics with playful musical arrangements. And they're so fun to sing along to!

My favorite songs in the collection are "Uummannaq Song" and "(Still a) Weirdo" (that's right--I'm feelin' the weirdo vibe--like you didn't know) for that Tunstall mix of light and dark.  I also enjoyed the rest of the CD with the only exception being "Madame Trudeaux" (KT, you need to explain that one to me).  This album has me seriously thinking about going back to her other CDs to see what gold is to be had there as well.

For more info about Tiger Suit, Tunstall or upcoming tour dates, go here.  Check out KT Tunstall's official Youtube channel here. And you can check out recent reviews of Tiger Suit and buy all or some of the tracks here.

I did not receive any compensation for my review of Tiger Suit although I was given the CD to facilitate this review and I am entered to win a gift card through One2One Network.  Any and all opinions here are my own. 

I Just Love This Guy!

I found a link to Keenan Cahill's funny videos on Youtube here.  Watched about a half dozen of them and I'm passing the smiles and giggles on to you now.  Enjoy!