And I also want to say a Huge Thank You for all of the wonderful comments on my last post. Since I wrote it, I have spent my mornings (which turns out to be my most productive writing time) on my novel. I am actually moving forward again, which feels great. Susan commented yesterday and said something about facing a similar decision. We must decide if we are bloggers who write or writers who blog. I didn't use the quotation marks because I am not sure I got it precisely right. But that is/was my dilemma in a nutshell. My blog was taking priority over my writing and I was a blogger who writes (sometimes, when I can fit it in). Now I am writing daily and I read blogs when I can fit it in. So far, it is working fairly well. I FEEL much better. Going back to the wind sock analogy... I feel free and am riding the wind. It is good.
Let's move on to Battle of The Bands.
My mom and I have been singing karaoke on Friday nights for a while now. Not every Friday night. But most. A couple of weeks ago, a guy sung this song. I knew the song, but I also knew he was singing a different arrangement of the song. So, I asked him who sang it. He told me Looking Glass. Looking Glass? Never heard of 'em. But, I knew right then and there that the version I knew was a COVER. ha! Funny the places you get inspiration for these battles.
Turns out Looking Glass wrote and sang the song back in the 70s. I could tell that from the music. You know how some songs just sound 70s? Well, this was one of them. After some digging around I found out that two covers of this song exist. They are both quite different from the Looking Glass original. I toyed with the idea of pitting two of them (Looking Glass vs Cover) against one another in this battle and then bringing back the victor on the 15th and pitting that version against the other cover. Why? Because I think all three versions are good, but I don't like pitting three songs against one another. What do you think of that idea (for future battles) when there are more than two good versions? (Let me know in the comments because I really am interested in your thoughts on this.)
The song is Brandy (You're A Fine Girl) and Looking Glass recorded it in 1972.
Let's first listen to the original by Looking Glass:
*Notice that whoever posted this video spelled Brandy with an "i" so it is Brandi. That is NOT correct. I really wish people would check spelling and grammar before they post anything anywhere.
The second version is by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. It is from their Live in Hyde Park album recorded in 2004.
Here is the Red Hot Chili Peppers:
*Notice no spelling or grammatical errors on this one.
And that brings us to the version that I knew. In 2006 Kenny Chesney released the CD The Radio and The Road. That is back when I still bought CDs (thank you LC for pointing out that even I have quit doing this!) and listened to them all the way through. Usually my favorite songs never made it to the radio, so it was a treat. This record has 4 Bonus Tracks including... Brandy (You're A Fine Girl). I have very much enjoyed listening to Chesney's progression as an artist. This was his 11th album and he has become freer with each one to be himself. He really likes beach/island music (not your typical country fare) and every album includes more of it. One day he might jump off the country charts altogether and live in the islands like Jimmy Buffett.
Here is Kenny Chesney:
*Notice whoever posted this video spelled Brandy correctly, but then they ruined it by spelling You Are as Your. ::shakes head sorrowfully::
Tomorrow the rest of the crew will be posting their battles for this feature. Make sure you stop by and vote at the following locations:
Now, is the time to vote. There are three versions. Please tell me which one you liked best and why. Yes, this is the time for that extensive comment you have always wanted to write. I'm listening...
