This is a good one that reflects my laid-back personality and dream-driven pleasures.  I had fun keeping things simple in this song.  Originally just a light-hearted acoustic ballad, I recently added the doo-wop/a-cappella  element and it was a pleasant surprise.  But it never deviates from the good message on top of the witty subject matter--hardly hear songs written directly about football and tennis.

I wrote this one after suffering from World Cup hangover in 2010 after what started off to be a depressing year. It really came out of inspiration from staring at a football and feeling giddy about it. Ever since then, the song acts as a reminder of how much I love the summer sport season and how quickly it can turn around any gloomy period in my life and bring me back to my happy place.  Although not an Olympic or World Cup year, this year's Confederations Cup and Wimbledon was enough to stir up that good ol' feeling again and that is why this is my selection for July!

This is dedicated to all the dreamers.  Don't let anybody take your dreams away...or your "ice cream."

Like Ice Cream

Just a little teaser for the month of August, my favorite month. It's an unfinished piece, but one I've been eager to complete for years, but not in time for this month's post.  I might be sprinkling around other samples/demos of other songs. But the main post should be coming soon.

Unconditionally (Unfinished/Demo)

Thought I would upload an excerpt from "Pout" so you can fully appreciate the harmonizing efforts I had to make for it. You're hearing 5 separate vocal tracks, each a unique recording, just to achieve that sound. I felt like it went unnoticed in the final mix :p

Drive Me Wild ("Pout" A Capella)

This is my signature song simply because it's all about my name, or a mistake of my name.  I considered using this as my stage name, but Jonny Angel still has way more meaning to me in more ways that one.

This song is  based off of a real-life situation where I used a made up name for fun on one of those sign up sheets (waiting for a tennis court).  I mean, who hasn't used a fake name at least once in say, a Jamba Juice, just for the heck of it.   Unfortunately, the name caught on and I came to be known by that name and only by that name in that community.  So let the lyrics tell you the rest of the story.

You'll hear some strong musical influences here.  Obviously, the title is an allusion to Mr. A-Z himself, Jason Mraz, whose unique word-play unlocks the creative juices in me to jumble up my own set of rhymes.  And then there is the wicked key-tapper, Jamie Cullum, whose keen sense of wit and incredible talent for tickling the ivories inspires me to bring out my own wit in the arrangement.

Mr. Jay OweN

A tribute to an artist that has greatly influenced me.  I don't do many covers because I like to advocate originality. But when I feel like I can put my own spin on a song, I usually give it a shot.

Cover of "Just the Way You Are"
Billy Joel
The Stranger
1977

Just the Way You Are

Inspired by my laying underneath my ceiling fan and drifting away in thought, it is about escaping into a fantasy just as we did when we were children.

This was one of my first exercises in orchestral arrangements, which would help me later in songs like "The Ballad of La Roja".  It's a simple melody with a simple story, but powerful in capturing just how easy I can drift away from reality.

Another rarity, another cover; this time of a Madonna classic. A hopeless romantic, I am. With this song, I fantasize about a prom night with whomever my current crush is. This is one of the few ballads I've had a desire to perform live because I never fail to feel these lyrics. The best I can do for now is a studio recording over an impromptu piano arrangement.  And frankly, this is a cover of another cover, but the emotional stimulation when singing it was personally worth the lack of originality.

Cover of "Crazy for You"
Madonna
Vision Quest (Soundtrack)
1985

Crazy for You

So what happens after the Sunset Serenade?  The Starlight!  Enjoy this extended mix of what became one of my favorite projects.  This is an example of a tune conceived first as a sappy love song but evolved into this fun number. It's amazing what a little Latin percussion can do to shift the creative process (although no attempts at Spanish lyrics this time).  I'm very proud of the end result.

This song is about secret romances and rendezvous in the night.  I added in some personal statements and mantras as well, and then just kind of had fun at the end, hence it being an "extended" mix.  (The original cut was supposed to end at around 4' 30".)  I reached a milestone with this song, relying mostly on my upper registers and hitting a high Bb in forte (not in falsetto) several times in the song.  Generally, anything higher than a G makes me nervous. ;)

Update [2014-05-03]: Remixed and remastered