Writing a sentence is hard work. 
One with a clean line and a nice shape. 

Good luck with that.

So too is writing a melody that’s musical and appears original.
Combining both into a song involves talent. Real talent.

Like jumping from the foul line to dunk a basketball or playing The Goldberg Variations from memory.

It’s not a parlor trick. 

Harry Reasoner once interviewed Paul McCartney on 60 Minutes at one point asking,
“You’ve written so many great songs, how do you do it?”
“It’s really very simple, you take a pencil and paper and a guitar and you go into a room. Half an hour later you come out with a song.”

It’s not that Maurice Tani is Paul McCartney or that he can play the Goldberg Variations from memory but he is closer to dunking a basketball from the foul line than most of us. 

And that’s not a parlor trick.

07 Falling

Blue! by Big Bang 빅뱅!! KPOP!! I'm singing in korean! Amazing!!! :) 

Kid is playing: everything. fretless bass, ﻿drums, rhodes, organ, guitar, clavinet



Blue

"RESONATE" -James Lee Murray

Tack Listing

1. Resonate
2. Can't Sleep
3. Jellyfish Kite
4. Dew Point
5. Drowning In A Sea Of Love (Joe Simon cover)
6. I'm Home
7. Neutrinos
8. Time Is A Thief
9. What Would I Do (Ray Charles cover)
10. Aya


~The Music Of James Lee Murray~

by Christopher “Preacher Boy” Watkins 

When was the last time you found yourself speaking of Boz Scaggs, Michael McDonald, and Michael Franks, all in the same breath? For me, it was this morning, as I listened to the new album from James Lee Murray.

Mr. Murray seems to have sprung fully formed from the soulful side of the 70s tracks with a made-for-vinyl sound heard all-too-rarely across today’s thinned out airwaves, and his blue-eyed blues are a welcome injection to an otherwise barren soul landscape.

For listeners of a certain age, the laid-back roads Murray traverses might conjure James Taylor at his bluesiest, Bobby Caldwell at his smoothest, or even Stevie Winwood circa 1977. But don’t be fooled by the chill exterior. There is dirt and depth here, and in between those slinky Rhodes-powered grooves lurks a potent bluesman with a sly flair for both salvation and seduction.

As to the procession of names already populating this review, it’s true that James Lee Murray is one of those artists whose record collection you can’t help but envy—listening to him makes you appreciate whoever it was that raised him.

To experience Murray’s new release is to take a journey down seductive byways, and much of the trip’s laid-back charm emerges from its smallest moments—the slightly irregular creak and break of Murray’s effortlessly fading falsetto, the funky 16th note percolation of an octave baseline under a passing chord, the skip and pop of a side-stick breakdown, a lyric that stays with you just a little longer than you expected:

free as a jellyfish kite out of body, out of water. the gulls tried to give her advice, told her the sky wasn’t made to hold her she said, i don’t need your advice, i’d rather do it wrong then admit that you’re right

This is soul-blues poetry at both its finest and its strangest, and in this way, he’s as much the child of Bill Withers and Curtis Mayfield as he is a mendicant at the altar of Sam Cooke. And by the way, when Murray hits the word “born” mid-song, expect to get those Sam Cooke chills just like I did.

Returning to the theme of little moments mattering for a moment, there is a moment in the solo piano tour de force that is “I’m Home” where the rolling gospel chords beneath Murray’s supple hands break clean for a moment, and a lone hand clap fills the space with its solitary pop. It is a moment so genuine, so soulful, so alive, that the air around the song is literally charged with its energy.

Those gospel chords are felt throughout the album, underpinning the Marvin Gaye-like elegance of “Neutrinos” with a touch of Al Green, or threading a trace of The Staple Singers into the sonic quilt of “Resonate.” But it’s on “I’m Home” that Murray takes you all the way to church.

If it’s not already clear, there is a great deal to love about this music, these songs, and this album. But above all else, it is Murray’s voice that matters most. I am so grateful to discover a singer who never resorts to histrionics to tell his story; instead, it’s his patience and restraint that draw us in into the intimacy of his reflections.

Murray wears both his heart—and his influences—on his sleeve, and because of this, comparisons to contemporary artists such as Leon Bridges are probably inevitable, but unlike Bridges, whose perfectionist retro derivations border on brazen theft, Murray is his own man. A man out of time, perhaps, but—to borrow and bend a line from one of his many poetic lyrics—we can see his soul in his eyes.

I may have called his music blue-eyed blues before, but I’ll call it soul-eyed blues forever more.

Resonate Master

All My Dues Are Paid

Idle Hands

One Thing Every Day

He Stopped Loving Her Today

Perfect Day

One of These Days

Calling All Fools

All songs by Chris Cain, Chris Cain Music admin. by Eyeball Music, BMI   

Produced, Recorded, Mixed and Mastered by Kid Andersen at Greaseland Studios, San Jose, CA  
Cover Photo by Tina Abbaszadeh  
Additional Photos by Marilyn Stringer  
Management and Booking: Suzy Tyler, suzytyler22@gmail.com

Among the greatest compliments a musician can receive is praise from his fellow artists. With more than three decades of touring and fourteen previous albums, master blues guitarist and vocalist Chris Cain has earned his reputation as a musician's musician. Since his first release in 1987, Cain has created his very own blues sound inspired by his heroes--B.B. King, Albert King, Ray Charles, Albert Collins, Grant Green and Wes Montgomery. His jazz-informed blues guitar playing is fiery, emotional and always unpredictable. His vocals--gruff, lived-in and powerful--add fuel to the fire. His indelible original songs keep one foot in the blues tradition and both eyes on the future. The pure joy Cain brings to his playing and singing is palpable, and draws fans even closer in.

Upon first discovering Cain in 1987, Guitar Player raved, "Cain is an impressive, top-notch guitarist. His full-bodied tone and surprisingly big voice packed a punch that had me reeling." The Washington Post declared, "Chris Cain is a hot-shot guitarist and a singer with the maturity of old blues masters like Bobby Bland and B.B. King." Guitar icon Robben Ford said, "Chris Cain is for real. He's a great blues player with an intensity that keeps you on the edge of your seat, wondering what he's going to do next. Plus he knows how to write a song you haven't heard before, full of humor and insight. If you like the blues you'll like Chris Cain. I am a stone fan."

With his Alligator Records debut album, Raisin' Cain, Chris Cain says he is at a new point in his career. "I'm playing and writing better than ever before. I can say more with less," he says, referring to his dynamic guitar playing and superb songwriting. "My songs are funky and danceable and my writing is now less personal diary than in the past. I want my songs to tell universal stories." Recorded in San Jose at producer and multi-instrumentalist Kid Andersen's Greaseland Studio, Raisin' Cain features twelve original Cain compositions. From the deeply autobiographical Born To Play to the humorous and rocking Hush Money to the late-night jazzy blues of I Don't Know Exactly What's Wrong With My Baby, Cain's songs deliver uncommon, surprising hooks and riffs coming in rapid-fire succession. On four songs, Cain shows off his stellar keyboard skills, and on the far-out instrumental Space Force, he proves himself a funky and jazzy ARP Soloist player. Along with Cain is his road-tested band, bassist Steve Evans and keyboardist/organist Greg Rahn, with Chris' touring drummer Sky Garcia and veteran D'mar Martin (Little Richard, Rick Estrin & The Nightcats) sharing the skins.

Joining Alligator Records is a dream come true for Cain, who grew up idolizing label giants like Hound Dog Taylor and Son Seals. "Alligator cares so much about the music and the artists," Cain says. "I'm really excited to be a part of it. And I've got the best pack of tunes I've ever written."

Blue

Lisa Leuschner Andersen

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