CONTEMPORARY MUSIC WE LIKE

In an effort to bring a little musical sophistication to the page, I present for your listening enjoyment, several songs which have meant a great deal to me over the years. These are not Pagan songs per se, this is music which a lot of us grew up with. Deep Purple, Fleetwood Mac, Aerosmith, Alanna Myles, Chris DeBurgh, ZZ Top and even more contemporary: Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Stephen Tyler, Carrie Underwood, My Darkest Days, Pitbull, and the Dance Kizomba. This is a representation of the Music which several generations have danced to, made love to, and sang to. Enjoy!! Rhuddlwm Gawr

1950s

The first real rock and roll band I ever heard in person was when I was visiting my Dad in Spokane Washington, and he got me tickets to watch Bill Haley and the Comets sing "Rock Around The Clock". I was 16 when I heard it and I learned how to Bop the same night (don't ask me!):

"Rock Around the Clock" is a 12-bar-blues-based song written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers (the latter under the pseudonym "Jimmy De Knight") in 1952. The best-known and most successful rendition was recorded by Bill Haley and His Comets in 1954. It was a No1 single in both the US and UK charts and also re-entered the UK Charts in the 1960's and 1970's.

It was not the first rock and roll record, nor was it the first successful record of the genre (Bill Haley had American chart success with "Crazy Man, Crazy" in 1953, and in 1954, "Shake, Rattle and Roll" reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B chart). Haley's recording nevertheless became an anthem for rebellious Fifties youth and is widely considered to be the song that, more than any other, brought rock and roll into mainstream culture around the world. The song is ranked No. 158 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Although first recorded by Italian-American band Sonny Dae and His Knights on March 20, 1954, the more famous version by Bill Haley & His Comets is not, strictly speaking, a cover version. Myers claimed the song had been written specifically for Haley but, for various reasons, Haley was unable to record it himself until April 12, 1954.

1960s

Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones and Honky Tonk Woman. I was in Washington DC working as a Systems Engineer for a NASA Contractor and heard this one one the radio. I've been a Mick Jagger fan ever since.

Some say the 60s were owned by The Beatles. I disagree. If you want to really capture the flavor of the 60s, listen to Honky Tonk Woman by Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones. I'll let Keith Richards tell us about it: "Honky Tonk Women" started in Brazil. Mick and I, Marianne Faithfull and Anita Pallenberg who was pregnant with my son at the time. ... didn't stop us going off to the Mato Grasso and living on this ranch. It's all cowboys. It's all horses and spurs. And Mick and I were sitting on the porch of this ranch house and I started to play, basically fooling around with an old Hank Williams idea. 'Cause we really thought we were like real cowboys. Honky tonk women. And we were sitting in the middle of nowhere with all these horses, in a place where if you flush the john all these black frogs would fly out. It was great. The chicks loved it. Anyway, it started out a real country honk put on, a hokey thing. And then couple of months later we were writing songs and recording. And somehow by some metamorphosis it suddenly went into this little swampy, black thing, a Blues thing. Really, I can't give you a credible reason of how it turned around from that to that. Except there's not really a lot of difference between white Country music and black Country music. It's just a matter of nuance and style. I think it has to do with the fact that we were playing a lot around with open tunings at the time. So we were trying songs out just to see if they could be played in open tuning. And that one just sunk in." (thanks, Bertrand - Paris, France)

1970s

Next we have Deep Purple with Smoke On The Water - This was the first song where I learned to play the guitar. I was at the University of Georgia and although I had heard the song earlier that year (1973) it just stuck with me.

Deep Purple - Made In Japan - Smoke On The Water Live (BEST VERSION)

We Next visit 1976 with Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Nicks the Welsh Witch and "Rhiannon". I was working for a Planning Dept of regional government in South Georgia and heard this on the radio. Since Rhiannon was one of my totem Goddesses, the song stuck with me until I actually met Stevie years later.

"Once in a million years a lady like her rises"

1980s

From 1983 and for you Rock and Roll enthusiasts we have Rick K and the Allnighters with a ZZ Tops original - "Sharp Dressed Man" Watch the Drummer! I was working for several computer companies during the 80s and having a great time. ZZ Top was one of my favorite bands. But Rick K and the Allnighters capture the essence.

This next song takes me back to a night in 1987 as I danced with Lady Cerridwen. I met Lady Cerridwen in 1976 and we were married a year later. This is one of my all time favorite slow dance numbers. Brings back good memories.

Lady In Red by Chris DeBurgh

Next from 1988 we have a Great Blues Artist, Alanna Myles singing "Black Velvet". I used to LOVE to dance to this song!

CLICK HERE -OR -

1990s

Kenny Wayne Shepherd - "Déjà Voodoo" Live '96

From 1996 we present our favorite guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd (one of the most fantastic Blues - Rock Guitarist around) and his band with the song "Déjà Voodoo" from the album, Ledbetter Heights. I have the album and play this song and several others all the time. Click on the Photo.

2010

What can I say, this Canadian band is an excellent representative of 2010

Porn Star Dancing by My Darkest Days

from Charlie Zwick on Vimeo.

2011

April 2011 - The Country Music Awards - here is a duet by Carrie Underwood and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. I watched the Awards while reading a book, but when they came on, I was blown away. If you like Rock, they Rock It out!!! Amazing!!

2012

January 1, 2012 - Now we have "I Know You Want Me" by Pitbull. The first time I heard this was during the New Years Eve Show on CNN I think. This song just stuck with me.

I was surfing the net yesterday and came on this video. This is Angola/Brazilian Dance Music. Watch Sara's Butt. It will motivate you. The Dance technique is Kizomba.

What I want to know is how is she doing this in 3 inch heels!!! The song is "Não Me Toca" by "Anselmo Ralph". Find the music here:
maiskizomba.com/musicas/7-nao-me-toca-anselmo-ralph
FROM WIKIPEDIA

Kizomba was developed in Angola late 1989 to early 1990s. It is a fusion of Semba (the predecessor of samba) with the Zouk music styles from the French Caribbean Islands. It is also performed in other lusophone African countries and in Europe. It is known for having a slow, insistent, somewhat harsh, yet sensuous rhythm; the result of electronic percussion. It is ideally danced accompanied by a partner, very smoothly and slowly, though not too tightly. A rather large degree of flexibility in the knees is required, owing to the frequent requirement that dancers bob up and down.

The style of Kizomba emphasizes a very smooth way of dancing with influences of Tango steps, but one of the main differences is that the lower body, the hip, does forward/backwards and circle movements. People dance on the tempo, as well as playing on the off beat and only sometimes using syncopation steps. In the modern Semba dance, it is easy to observe how so many of the steps have been influenced by Cuban dance and perhaps vice versa, as you can find high similarities in both genres.

We hope you enjoyed our Music Interlude (and Dance Seminar LOL). Blessed be!

Have a Great Day!!!

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