The Time We Share Hank Wedel midtempo, friendly song, male tenor It's great to see you, we thought you were dead, hook: It's all about the time we share, reconnecting, friends reunion. http://hankwedel.bandcamp.com
Alone Too Long JohnHall midtempo rock with moody electric guitar, Ed
Sheeran-like, “Don't stay alone too long. you might start to like it,” mentions
NETFLIX, It's about coming out of isolation. friends reuniting,
Stronger Than I Know Teresa James Demi
Lovato Sia Bonnie Tyler pop/country-Americana, sticking to it through hard time
and mentally abusive situations. Stronger than I know, stand up and fight. Make
these wrongs right http://soundcloud.com/karen-besbeck/stronger-than-i-know
One Man’s Meat Gary Lucas & David Johansen uptempo fierce & frenetic rock David Johansen vocals Gary Lucas guitar, wild horns. Hamlet, the Garden of Eden, Neighborhood bully. "fish meat"
Cognitive Dissonance Joe Deninzon, Randy McStine & Stratospheerius male tenor vocals hard rock electric-violin & guitars People
believing lies religion politics fear friendships being lost due to religious
differences, hatred is taught.
I Know You’re Real Gunhill RoadVersion
1:spoken word voice like Alex Trebeck,Walt Whitman-esque lyrics: beams of light, be
kind, respects animals without mentioning the word "animals."treasure. “thou shalt not kill”
Meth and the Single Girl/Angry LadyBronx Buffalo hip-hop,
methamphetamine, meth, angry lady, drunken sailor sea shanty melody,
traditional. antidrug, selfcare, friends, dumb, Nicki Minaj-esque, JustSayNo,
darkside mindful “gimme a kiss, mwah” http://soundcloud.com/leightonmedia/meth-the-single-girl
My Name Is Africa
Roeshdien Jaz rapper with piano and soulful female singer in
background, haunted by the treatment of white society to the native blacks of
South Africa.
I'm plugging "I Know You're Real" by chamber pop/classic rock/Mount Vernon band, Gunhill Road. The song respects animals. There are two versions of the song: spoken word and sung.
"Reclaiming
My Time” is John Hall’s sixth solo record, in addition to the 18
albums he recorded with his band Orleans. The title is a phrase used in
Congress (where Hall spent 4 years) after being interrupted. It’s also an
allusion to the music he might have written and played during ten years in
elective office.
Supporting
musicians include John Cowan(New Grass Revival, The Doobie Brothers), Andrea
Zonn (James Taylor, Vince Gill), Sean Paddock (Kenny Chesney), Steve Wariner,
Jay Collins (Dukes of September, Allmans), songwriting partner John Paul Daniel
and steel guitar legend Dan Dugmore. Dar Williams and Wariner sing duets with
John, the latter on a song they wrote together, “Another Sunset.”
The album’s
opening track, “I Think of You,” was written with Songwriters' Hall of Fame
member Sharon Vaughn. “Now More Than Ever” reunites for the first time in
twenty-five years the songwriting team of John and Johanna Hall, who penned the
Orleans hits “Still The One” and “Dance With Me.” Recorded in New York’s Hudson
Valley and Nashville, TN, Reclaiming My Time spans Hall’s
usual range of love songs, blues, topical tunes and rockin’ good time music.
Hall’s trademark acoustic and electric guitar playing--that graced records by
Jackson Browne, Little Feat and Bonnie Raitt--ties it all together.
The first
single and video, “Alone Too Long” was written for a friend who lost his wife and was wondering when it was
okay to start dating again. As the pandemic year ground on, it became a
commentary on isolation and loneliness.
The whole
project was started well before any lockdown, but then relied on home
recording and remote mixing and mastering. Now we are all reclaiming the
time and lives that were shut down for over a year. “Reclaiming My Time”
celebrates that.
John Hall has
written songs for Janis Joplin, Bonnie Raitt, Ricky Skaggs, Steve Wariner, and
James Taylor. He’s played guitar on tours and records for Little Feat, Taj
Mahal, Jackson Browne, and Seals and Crofts. His music and environmental
activism led him to 10 years in elective office, and co-founding MUSE
(Musicians United for Safe Energy). Now, back to music full time, he writes
songs and performs solo and with Orleans, the group he co-founded in the 1970s.
Their biggest hits “Still the One” and "Dance With Me" continue
to garner hundereds of thousands of streams per week, and to appear in mass
media from commercials to movies and even political campaigns. The former is
also in the title of John’s memoir, “Still The One: A Rock’n’Roll Journey To
Congress and Back.”
Songs of The Environment, Leadership, the Pandemic
Wake Up Orleans Adult Album Alternative, trumpet, group harmony, wake up, people, “wake up!” environment, pollution, “stop throwing plastic in the sea/can’t you let the fishies be!” ecology, snow, lightning, birds in flight, seasons, signs of life, “the day’s gonna come” air pollution, water pollution, #MusiciansUnitedForSafeEnergy,
This Darkness Rachael Sage female singer with CSNY protest guitar sound, environment, the song is about the Dakota Pipeline, keywords: see myself, grieve myself, somebody's fool, hate, “I don’t know why you’re full of hate.”
Beez (I Know Where The Beez
Have Gone Slambovian Circus of DreamsRock,
slow tempo, environment, Americana, vocals like Tom Petty, “Stopped controlling
the world,” lyrics offer ideas on how to increase the bees to visit plantlife. “the
bees are in my yard, I know where the Beez Have Gone,” “Reteaching me the facts
of life” “creatures great and small”
Freedom Hymn CC Clevenger patriotic southern rock starting with a drum
roll & Charlie Daniels/ Molly Hatchet style guitars & voice, respect
for our military, hook is "thank you Air Force & Marines, Coast Guard, Army and Navy to the men and women." recites Pledge of Allegiance.
Backbone Emily Hurd country, female lead vocals, like Alison Krauss, rising above obstacles, against the people that got in the way of her success or love, it breaks her heart but you played your part building my backbone.
One Good Man Cornelius Eady male vocals percussion, John Henry's hammer, one good man shook people up against the odds, mock the devil straight to his face, Resist
Divided We Fall Bill Leverty hard rock/classic rock, male vocals, bass,
lead guitar, dangerous song, standing up to a troublemaker who can anything
than anyone else. "You're a
natural--natural disaster."
A VoidAndrew Alling acoustic/singer-songwriter
Neil Young style with guitar and harmonica male vocalsA Void in relationships, why are we against
the world? DirtyWords, time to heal, rock & ground shaking poetics.
Music can be the best inoculation against the penetration of extremist ideas into the center of society and thus an important protective mechanism for democracy and our community of solidarity.
And Mandoki Soulmates' "Music is the Great Unifier" concert is online on @YouTube.
We now have the opportunity to make a constructive update to our socio-political model so that people are the focus again, mindfulness defeats indifference, and humanity reigns over greed.
Who, if not we musicians with our direct line to the audience, should re-ignite the light at the end of this pandemic tunnel and rebuild society?
Music is the greatest unifier! Bridging the gap around the world!
Soulmates and their location in our online concert
Anne Leighton: Holiday Songs for 2021: PIRATE XMAS Slambovian Circus of Dreams male vocalist, pirate march, Christmas song magic comparisons feels like a song Mr. Hook would s...
PIRATE XMAS Slambovian Circus of Dreams male vocalist, pirate march, Christmas song
magic comparisons feels like a song Mr. Hook would sing! "childhood dreams
at the realm" "Ring the Bells and Break the Spells that traps us in
reality"
IF I WAS A DREIDEL by Dean Friedman singalong with lyrics: “If I was a Dreidel, gee, how I would spin…… I might be made of plastic, or wood or clay or tin…… And you could pick my letters, Nun, Gimmel, Hay or Shin…… And if your letter landed, the Chanukah Gelt you’d win, Oh….” https://soundcloud.com/deanfriedman/if-i-was-a-dreidel
CHILDREN BELIEVE Emily Hurdfemale vocals, jazzy-pop, keyboards,
“children believe” is the hook.the
singer finds the comparison between children and grownups that connect w/ them.
"we need the magic too"
CHRISTMAS TIME Jon MullaneUpbeat! Baritone version of Adam Levine, song in the same tempo as USA for Africa’s “Do They Know it’s Christmastime” About the joys of Christmas, and getting ready for it.
CHRISTMAS LULLABY Leo Schaff Haunted or gothic or mystical song. No two
snowflakes are the same. Mystical melody. Orchestrated For covers only Christmas traditions, gentle
magic. Pagan stylings. Fill our hearts,
fill our dreams, fill us with love and peace.”
CHRISTMAS IS COMING Leo Schaff Beach Boys meets Shins. Male vocals. His true love ran around the world, and said she’d make it home for the holidays. A year has gone by, and he’s singing, “Christmas is coming, New Years is coming,” sand “Will you make it home for the holidays?” https://soundcloud.com/leightonmedia/christmas-is-coming-by-leo-schaff
Joe Deninzon & Stratospheerius are releasing “Cognitive
Dissonance,” their first song of the year, on January 30th, 2021, with a video
to follow in late February. The video is a clay-mation collaboration with
Patrick Carmichael, who has subbed on drums for the band through the
years.
“Cognitive Dissonance”’s first verse deals with the confusion we
go through, when elders and leaders influence us to change our minds with their
negative feelings on those we care about. “We are all born innocent, free of
prejudice and hatred, but our elders make us carry a heavy burden, which can last
our whole lives. Hatred is taught, we are not born with it,” explains Joe. “We
all see children that are terrified by friends that are their same ages,
because their parents have taught them negative things about other religions,
ethnicities, genders, skin colors, political ideologies….” He says prejudicial
teachings “can create “cognitive dissonance” in anyone’s mind when they’re told
their friends are ‘evil’ because they have different roots.”
The second verse deals with political and ideological intolerance.
“There’s rising extremism, and it’s been this way for decades. People are
prisoners of fake news, social media echo chamber bubbles, and politicians who
reinforce conspiracy theories and retweet them to their followers. The line ‘No
one can touch us now’ refers to people hiding behind their screens, spewing the
deep-rooted hatred without fear of physical retaliation. Even though I wrote
the song a year ago, I think it eerily speaks to recent events.”
“It’s easy to write about our high ideals and our wishes for world
peace, but when you have a gun pointed to your head or your business is burning
down, it’s a rude awakening about how nasty the world really is. The big
collective guitar/electric violin solo at the end represents two sides screaming
at each other, full of hatred, fading out screaming, never reaching an
understanding or resolving anything.”
Multi-instrumentalist Randy McStine, who has subbed in
Stratospheerius on guitar, bass, and drums, has played on a few of the band’s
songs: “Soul Food” and “Impostor.” His voice blends with Joe’s, that “we
thought it’d be cool to have him sing lead on the second version of ‘Cognitive
Dissonance.’”
The group’s influences include Yes, Spock’s Beard, Muse, Frank
Zappa, Mahavishnu Orchestra, and King Crimson. Stratospheerius was a winner of
the John Lennon International Songwriting Competition the Musicians Atlas
Independent Music Awards. They have been featured in Progression, Relix,
Downbeat, and Jazziz, among other publications. Their last album on Melodic
Revolution Records, “Guilty of Innocence,” has been widely acclaimed by
critics and fans. Joe has played violin in orchestras for Bruce
Springsteen, the Who, Sheryl Crow, 50 Cent, and Renaissance, for whom he’s
their concert master.
COGNITIVE DISSONANCE lyrics
I had a childhood friend
Sworn together til the end
Playing tag and wrestling
Talking about the birds and bees
He asks if I believe in God
And then I tell him what’s my story
He says I’m gonna burn in hell
Because that’s what his parents told him
Hatred is taught
truth just can’t be bought
All of our lives
We think that we’re so wise
But It cuts you down size
When it’s staring in your eyes
We’re born with open hearts
And a blank slate on our souls
Old grudges we are forced to bear
poison the water
& put-up the walls
Safely behind our screens
Spewing trolling scapegoating
No one can touch us now
Lets start a fire and burn this whole place to the
ground
House Concert Innovator Fran Snyder a phenomenal interviewer and listener. Great energy between him & Orleans' John Hall as they talk about Joni Mitchell, the Affordable Career Act, and making music. (Yes, John's working on both a new solo album and the band's upcoming album.)
MaskPhoebe Legere Rock and roll, female vocals, going out with
parents, and wearing a mask. “I love my mask, I love my mom, I love my dad.”
Everybody’s Single Ezra Donermale vocals, countrypolitan--everybody's
single tonight a flirtatious song about a guy going to a bar
after his “sweet darlin’ wife got tired of married life.” He went to the bar
“to do some drinkin’”...and some flirtin'! Ezra’s songs are on SoundCloud under pseudonym Oliver
Duplass.
Only One Joe Matera Male Tenor, rock & electric guitar like Nils
Lofgren, The Heartbreakers “No one sees your struggle and how careful you are
when you ultimately make it.” Multi-faceted songwriter/guitarist Mr. Matera
is playing with pop and rock legends for future releases, hosting music
segments on Australian radio, and writing for Guitar World and Goldmine
magazines.
Storm Surge Joe Deninzon & Stratospheeriushard rock/orchestral
prog-power ballad with bold baritone/tenor and strings, flute, rock guitar. Storm
Surge is about anxiety, a storm that’s raging inside of us. Queensryche-ish. Special guest leadsinger is Michael Sadler
from Saga (Canadian content).
There She Is Firefall male tenor vocal, hooky jingle-like, horns, guitars, classicrock, yacht rock, 1970s sounding, Inspired, his little angel lifting him up, good fortune, cloud 9, looking so pretty, head over heels.
Santiago Sharon Katz female vocal in English & Spanish,
"land meets the water" it is about Santiago, Cuba. Spanish guitar,
horns, traditional festival music. Sharon is working with border children
and migrant workers in Tijuana and San Diego.
Home Orleans
Packing the childhood up and setting out. male singer, a gentle version
of the prodigal son, childhood, grownup, becoming a child. "when I need
someone to talk to" Orleans’ upcoming EP, of new music in 2021, will
include Home.
Orleans offers a preview of their new song, “Home,” on their
YouTube channel. The song, (written by founder/lead guitarist/singer John
Hall, Johanna Hall, and Don Schlitz) will be on the group’s forthcoming EP to
be released spring 2021. “Home,” which is about family-- childhood,
adolescence, marriage, parenthood, and childhood again--originally appeared on
John’s 1997 solo CD "Love Doesn't Ask."
John & Johanna have written dozens of songs together, most
notably Orleans’ “Still the One,” “Dance With Me,” and Janis Joplin’s
"Half Moon.” Co-writer Don Schlitz is a member of the Country Music Hall
of Fame and former Nashville Songwriters Association and ASCAP “Songwriter of
the Year." He has written 21 number one hits including Kenny Rogers
"The Gambler."
Audio and video recordings were produced in isolation, except a
group video of John, Lance Hoppen, and Brady Spencer who gathered safely in
Nashville. Still photos were taken years or decades before the pandemic. The
video was edited and directed by Rob Arthur (Today Show, CBS This Morning,
Rolling Stone, Veranda Magazine, Peter Frampton, the Doobie Brothers).
Multiple Grammy winner Cindy Cashdollar plays lap steel on the
song and is featured in the video; she’s also the Americana Music Association
“Instrumentalist of the Year” (2016) and a member of the Austin TX Music Hall
of Fame. Cindy grew up in Woodstock NY, where Orleans was based in the early
years.
Orleans is John Hall, co-founder Lance Hoppen (bass, and vocals),
Fly Amero (guitar, vocals), Lane Hoppen (piano), Brady Spencer (drums). This is
the latest of many incarnations in its near 50-year history.
The band went from club and college shows in the Northeast to
worldwide acclaim with their top ten singles "Still the One," Dance
With Me," and "Love Takes Time.” Now entering its 28th year of
live performances, Orleans has produced a body of work spanning 16 albums and
several DVDs. The band’s music is still being heard on national TV; recently
John and Johanna’s “Still The One” was on Applebees’ commercials and Netflix’s
"Love, Wedding, Marriage."
