Songs for a friend

Recently I was listening to the radio in the car and suddenly the song bellow started to play. I realised that the lyrics was even better than I used to think.

I remmembered the first time I heard it. It was back 2007, during the carnival's trip. I brought my guitar with me, which was passing from one hand to the other.

Then I saw that my guitar was with a newcomer called Mariana, my friend`s niece. She was kind of struggling to play the guitar but insisted to play the song bellow. If in the chords she was only having her first classes, as a singer she was much better than any of us could image - that`s why she became the singer of one of my songs.

 The song she was trying to play was this on, Teatro Mágico, Pratododia.

 

Upside Down, Back to front! Again...

Almost a decade ago (2004) I went for the first time to the  Anima Mundi festival, which presents animation short films. In that occasion, I had the opportunity to watch one of the best movies of my life,  Harvie Krumpet (see below). All that, just to say, that I learned the expression names this article in that movie.

That expression is only important because represents the changes that are going down in my life in the last 5 or 6 months... Work, personal life, family, friends, well, everything... it hasn't been easy, but it has been fantastic! Lots of thoughts, lots of learning...

Well, last Saturday I went to a Nightclub where I used to go and have lots of fun years ago. As usual, it was really great, and, to end up even better, I heard one new song, of a new band (new only for me), and that can (or cannot) represent the renovation in my musical life too! But, represents, at least, a new possibility...

A music to sing out loud, to feel in my ear, to feel in my throat and to feel deep into my cells. Strong bass, strong guitar chords, pumping blood through my veins... No bother with the lyrics, JUST CLOSE YOUR EYES AND FEEL THE MUSIC ON THE DANCE FLOOR!


Music: What you know
Album: Tourist History
Band: Two Door Cinema  Club
Realesed: 2010

At your best, at your worst...

Time for a reflexion: eyerphones on, and Sister Hazel playing...

Everybody takes bad and good decisions, minute after minute, including accepting and facing challanges that you may or may not overcome.

As a matter of fact musics can be meaninful at some stage of your life for any special reason, like presenting a perfect match between the lyrics and the precise moment you're living... but that's not the case, this music represents for me a moment complete disconnection between the actual life and those three minutes during the music on the radio.

The depth of the diving that I took brings with it lots of pressure , that even try to force me to think about a connection between life and lyrics.

But, life is to short to worry to much, and musicavlly pleasent moments are even shorter and must be enjoyed in the depth it deserves, that we deserve!

Glad to present: Sister Hazel, At your Worst

I won't give it up that easily...

Good old days... I like remembering, every single day, how expending the whole night long dancing was good. Fortunately, my "hang-out-friends" are living happy days in Ireland... I am kind of jealous I must say, but happy to the extreme, challenging myself in every step I take, learning and enjoying each second...Well, but apart from my nostalgy and "Saudade" (english speakers need to create a word for that), let's talk about music, that's why I'm here for!

Few days ago my brother gave me a lift to work (my car was fixing, fu**ing son of a b*tch that hit my rear), and we were listening to a radio program that only plays songs from the 70's, 80's and 90's, and between the songs, people call and talk about the that good old days and what they were doing by that time. Well, listening to all that, we heard this song "give it up", and just like a tsunami, thousands of thoughts and remembrances ran through my head... The three stupid friends jerking around with everyone, dancing and flerting with girls, making all kind of friends, and making the most of now, mainly after two a.m. when they apparentely poured a "magic pouder" in the air that boosted the sensations and the happiness on the floor!

Well.. miss you guys, miss that time, and now I can happily listen to this kind of song, and know that, I am happy now, nevertheless, I've always been!

KC and The sunshine band - Give it Up



Just to let yoy know, I'm 26, and the place where we used to go is called "Trash 80's", nice tribute, isn't it?

Face the newest with the spaceman!

Well, sometimes life seems to be tough and etc., but it is usually rewarding. My vacation this year was an example of that.

There are two music that were part of my rest this year, but one phrase was remarkable: "doesn't everybody deserve to have this good life?".

Ok, it could sound cliche, but once it's writen by Dave Matthews, we should think of it a little bit more. When I was arriving in one of the most spectacular places in the bolivian desert, I had my earphones on and this song was playing.

A moment of complete epiphany, inspiration and relaxation. Enjoy the scene an the music!

Bolivian desert/ Salar de Uyuni:

By the way, I wrote about all the feeling of travelling on E-Dublin.

Single or dating, things change, a lot!

Well, there are few things that you get of hearing but you insist in disbelieve, for example: things will change when you have someone, doesn't matter how hard you try....

This song is a symbol of that for me, not because of the lyrics, but because of the situation that it brings me up.

When my friend and partner (living in Ireland), Edu Giansante, had a classic rock band, my friends and I used to go to his concerts and dance like stupid, making some play on words and mimics over the real song. A bunch of friends, free of prejudice, having fun and laughing by no reason! That's my memory...

Nowadays, we're all dating, committed with our jobs and MBA, what happens to make these moments much less often than I wanted. Talking like that, it seems that it was years and years ago, but it hasn't have more than three years.

Important by itself...

Well, some songs are important because they simply are! Everythig I remember about this song is that it was ALWAYS number 2 or 3 of the daily top 10, just like that Green Day's song, do you remember?

They both are from the same period of my life (obviously, cause they are from 1997 and 1998), when I was just figuring out what music was in my poor life, 2 or 3 years before I start to play the guitar.

I also remember that they performed a concert in São Paulo many years later, I still liked the band, but it was really expensive and I wasn't excited and "rich" enough to pay for it...

This song reached the number 1 in the US (but not in Brazil as I told in the beginning =o)

Music: Never There

Album: Prolonging the Magic

Band: Cake

Realesed: 1998

São Paulo's City Centre - Rock Gallery

There's a place at Sampa's city centre that's called "Galeria do Rock" (Rock Gallery). It's a 5 floor building where a bunch of stores sell CDs, vinils, t-shirts. In the past it was all about rock, nowadays there stores which sell other kind of music and stuff.

When I was 14, I went to the Rock Gallery with my father and a very good friend of mine (Dezesseis' drummer). I had saved some money to buy everything I could, so did my friend.

My father was driving and he parked in a car park close to the Rock Gallery. Right in front of the car park there was a broken pipe, which was being used as a shower by a beggar. He was completelly naked, using a plastic cup get the wather from the gap of the sidewalk. It was a very warm day and I have never seen someone as happy as him when taking a shower!

After that, we went shopping and bought everythin we wanted. It's wasn't much, because we didn't have much money. My friend bought a CD by Sepultura, and he openned it when we were in the car... sadly, it was falsified.

One of my goods, the only one I can remember, was Insomniac by Green Day. This CD had been reaaally criticised by the audience, but for me, it's as good as the others (even Dookie).

Song number two, Stuck With Me, is my favorite, and we used to play it in Dezesseis. Some say, that it's name is wrong, and had been exchanged with a song called Do da da (From Stuck With Me Single), which says repeatedly "Stuck With Me" in the chorus. It's an unfortune that this song is not part of the main CD, because would definetely be one of the best songs of the album!

Band: Green Day

Song: Stuck With Me

Album: Insomniac

Release: 1995

Band: Green Day
Song: Do da da
Album: Stuck With Me (single)
Release: 1995

(Sorry about the video)

My First Band and My First Song Ever

Once upon a time, there were three youngster from the south of São Paulo. They were only friends until one day when things changed!

They were "having fun" in a "party" of a "friend" when they first suggested to start a band. Well, the guitar player wasn't good, the bass player (myself) neither, but the most important was that the drummer wasn't actually a drummer, he had never played a drum before that day. However, it was only a small detail: what's the problem about starting a band without a drumset? Easy, anyone can do it! To make things even better, my friends decided to name the band as Porca Loka (I have always hated that name, I was against it, from the beginning, I swear!)

Ok, we finally bought a drum and started playing (or pretending). I still have some tapes of or rehearsals, so disgraceful! Well, it wasn't good as music, but it was awesome as friendiship and good fun!

How can a band be a punk rock band if its first song is not from the Ramones? So, the first song that comes to my head when I remember things from that time is "I wanna be your boyfriend". How dare we play it so badly? Jesus...

The funniest thing is the sound of the drumplates, that were actually demonstration plates, what means, plates to be shown in the front of the store with the drums, but not to be sold with it! Holy shit, it had been better if we used pans, traffic signs or something else!

Very, very good times! I really miss it, thanks to my old Friends Dan and Surf (he loves his nickname =o).

Song: I wanna be your boyfriend

Band: Ramones

Album: Ramones

Release: 1976

Happy Days for a Waiter!

Well, well... this song reminds me two situations of happiness.

The first one happened in the end of November, actually on my 24th anniversary! I went to a Saw Doctors concert with my girlfriend, and this was one of the best moments in Ireland. I was so excited in the concert, coundn't stay quiet a second. This is one more remarkable moment for me, because i could feel and share this moment as part of a group... I felt I was part of something Irish... there was no more imigrants or foreigners in the theatre! All the irish were singing out loud! From my seat I could see a man in this fourty's who was singing as it was his first concert ever! Right in my front, there was a elder couple which was really charming! The old lady was dancing so beautifully that she seemed a little girl!

This was my fourth concert abroad and the third in journey to Ireland, and my first in the Irish island... Sister Hazel (EUA),  John Mayer's(UK) and Amy MacDonald's(UK).

This day itself would be enough for me to not ever forget this song. But, one month later I was in my company's party! Ok, it was a catering company, but it was a happy day, happy people and the beginning of the holidays, it was christmas party! =o)

I talked to the DJ and asked a Saw Doctor's song. Almost half an hour later he played, N17 was on again! 90% of the company was made of foreigners that didn't know that song, but, there 4 or 5 happy irish guys who sang this song with me, once more, unforgettable!

N17 is the road that connects Tuam (Saw Doctor's hometown) to Galway city.

Music: N17

Band: Saw Doctors

Album: If This Is Rock and Roll, I Want My Old Job Back

Release: 1989

Few scenes from the concert!



The video bellow shows some shots from the party! (Song: The Pogues - Fairy Tale of New York)


Festa de fim de ano da With Taste

If there´s No Substance, it goes to the bin!

Well, last week I told you the story of the first song I learned to play in the bass and this song reminds me another story... It didn't happen to me, but it bothered me a lot at that time. I was fourteen or fifteen...

When Bad Religion was the best and almost my only band to hear, one of my friends was listening to it and he finally bought CD.

Few days later, he came to me to say he threw the CD away. The reason: his mother read through the lyrics and found out what they were about. For those who are not informed or are too orthodox, the lyrics can be misunderstood as something anti-Christ.

I was shocked, I had that CD and I cound't imagine that someone could ever do that. Months later, my friend came to me once again and asked my CD for him to make a copy...

There's no specific song that reminds me this story, then, my favourite song in this CD will do!

Music: Shades of Truth

Band: Bad Religion

Album: No Substance

Release: 1998

First Song in the Bass

I think I'll write a series of posts based on my "firsts". I have already writen about the first music I liked in the Pop Blues style, the first I liked by Sister Hazel, and so on.

It´s a variation of the same subject, thats the first song I ever played in the bass. It happened in the year 2000 when my big friend Edu Giansante came back to our village. He brought his drums, guitar e and bass with him.

I was only a begginer with the guitar but I wanted to learn to play the bass. I showed him some songs I liked, and he learned by ear one by Bad Religion that started with the bass, and taught me!

Then, this song, far away from my favourites, but still a good song, draws a division line in my "musical life".

Music: Shades of Truth

Band: Bad Religion

Album: No Substance

Release: 1998

Lowering my Self Steem...

Well, nothing is perfect. It´s a brazilian saying that can be said and understood in any language! 

Once upon a time, there was a band, my band, called Dezesseis (Sixteen). Once upon the same time, there was going to be an event in my school... Well, it can be seen as an oppotunitty, can´t it? 

Well, we talked to the principal and she allowed us to play in the event, bad luck day, I have to say...

We rehersed some new songs, trying to get the most most popular but still in our style, Punk Rock / Hard Core. We played few songs, 4 or 5... One of ours, and the others were covers... I could remind any song we played, but for some reason, any reason, I remind Offspring - Sefl Steem. 

The sound equalization was awful. They plugged the microphones in speakers that were located metres away from the band, we could barely listen to it, and the audience could hear only it! That was a disaster in its perfection! One of my worst shows ever, possibly the worst!

Artist: Offspring
Music: Self Steem
Album: Smash
Released: 1994

And they will meet one daaaaay, far away

Some songs strike you when you least expect.

I have already talked about other Amy Mcdonald's song, but, this one, because of it's lyrics, is kind of more important than This is the Life.

I really believe that there's some sort of destiny and that some things will happen completely out of our control, what means that you must let life flow. This song talks a little bit about it, but it talks about the loves we have along the time. Some of them will last more, but some others will last even more in our minds, what is the most complicated.

This song came insistently to my mind when I had one of that conversations about relationship that nobody likes to have. It played over and over again.

Love this song.

Artist: Amy Macdonald
Music: Mr. Rock and Roll
Album: This is the Life
Released: 2007

Reggae in the Carnival

This time I'll talk about a band, not only a music. This band will always remind me the Carnival of 2007.

I love when people like the music I presented, and in that Carnival I turned O.A.R. on everybody liked. My best friends liked the music and O.A.R. was the main soundtrack of our carnival when in the house (rented for the carnival) or when driving.

There are few important songs from O.A.R., but it deserves its own post. Now, let´s enjoy one of their best songs, that, however, is not to do with any important moment of my life at the moment.

You can watch below a video showing scenes the carnival at Gonçalves - MG / Brazil, but youtube took off the sound, which was an O.A.R. song.

Band:O.A.R
Song: About an Hour Ago
Album: The Wanderer
Released: 1997

Carnival video

I´m not the only one...

It´s weird, but it´s people, it´s human being. People need to feel that are not alone, it´s good to be first one, however it's not always good to be only one who did it!

Ryan Newell has a really particular voice, so does John Popper (Blues Traveler). They have a really particular voice, however they have similar voices and somewhat similar band style.

That was enough for me to missmatch All For You with Blues Traveler. I heard All for you on the radio for the first time few months after a I heard Run Around. For me it was obvious that the song was from the same band.

I researched the song on Google, Yahoo, and many others: "Blues Traveler - All for you". At that time, these search engines weren´t as good as they are now, and I struggled and couldn´t find the lyrics or the mp3.

Few months later, I found out that All for you was a Sister Hazel´s song, and that´s when I started to like the band which became my favourite from that moment on.

Artist: Sister Hazel
Music: All for you
Album: Sister Hazel
Released: 1994

Here´s the unpplugged version.



Here´s someone who missmatched the song.

Ya gotta start somewhere...

Dave Matthews said, and he was right...

Turn it loud
Let it build
We got a long way to go
But you, ya gotta start somewhere
(Dave Matthews Band - I did it)

We really need to start somewhere, there´s no use in expecting to be the best in your first time, to be the best boyfriend in the first relationship, to be the boss in your first job... but there are few other stuff that you can start very well.

One of the most important things about the first one is that you´ll never forget it, you might forget your name, but you may not forget your "firsts".

That´s how it happened, the first song I ever liked in the style I usually call "pop blues" is Blues Traveler - Run Around. It is a remarkable start, because John Popper is probably the greatest harmonica player ever.

I assume that Blues Traveler is an adorable band, with lots amazing tunes, however it´s not one of my top 10 bands (nevertheless this song is possibly in my top 10 tunes). However it gave birth to another passion, that I´ll tell next post.

This song does not bring any specific memory to my mind, but it´s the first, and that´s enough, by the way... it´s powerfull enough to make a bad day turn into a good day!

Artist: Blues Traveler
Music: Run Around
Album: Four
Released: 1994

Tribute to our Grandma...

Why do the grandparents become the most important person / icon in a family? Well, it can be easily answered by: They are the most experienced people in the family... Ok, fair enough, this is a reasonable answer, but sometimes people don´t consider them the most important, or at least don´t treat them as they were.

Actually, their importance is unquestionable, once if they weren't there, nobody else would be there too. But when they are really the most important, they influence the life of everyone that has given birth out of their DNA. Some of them will be too young to realise the influence their grandparents or great-grandparents had over their lives.

9th March is my grandmother's anniversary and she asked us to make a big party, so we did. It was amazing, I never felt that way with my family before, was a great experience. All her children homenagiate her saying what they were feeling at that moment, no word has been written down beforehand.

The grandsons (including myself, the youngest of them), too many to speak one by one, made a tribute, singing one her favourite's song. More than 20 people singing... two guitars (out of tune) and one flute playing.

Well, not the best players, not the best guitar and flute, far from good singers... but, absolutely, the best feeling...

Singer: Luiz Gonzaga
Music: Asa Branca (White wing)
Album:
Released: 1947






This is not the translation. This is a version in english composed by an brasilian singer, Raul Seixas. The idea of the original lyrics has been preseverd.

White Wings

When i stare the ground of
My land
Burning loose as dancing flames
I asked man there upon
The heavens
If i deserve me this kind of pain
I asked the man there upon
The heavens
If i deserve me this kind of pain
Everywhere the ground is so dry
There's no trees, no green, just red
I lost my cattle, my apaloosa
For lack of water some took away
I lost my cattle, my apaloosa
For lack of water some took away
Even white winged birds flew away
Flew away from my land sight
It was when i said goodbye
Sweet rosie
Keep in to your heart, this heart
Of mine
It was when i said goodbye
Sweet rosie
Keep in to your heart, this heart
Of mine
Many thousands miles away, now
Feeling lonely, lost and blue
I keep on waiting rain falls again there
So i'll be back thou home again
I keep on waiting rain falls again there
So i'll be back thou home again
When the glow green of your eyes
Flows again all over land
I can asure you, so don't
You cry, no
'cause i'll be back, see
To you again!!
I can asure you, so don't
You cry, no
'cause i'll be back, see
To you again!!

Yves LaRock - Rise Up

Coming back to the eletronic music, maybe the dance music of nowadays.

The song was released in 2007 but it's remarkable in 2008 for me, that's because this song played a important role on farewell. I had two different parties with my friends, and this song makes me remind every second spent and not spent with them those days.

The first moment, a trip tenderly called "Spirit of Ibiuna" that happened in Piedade. A dozen of my friends went there with me and Edu to spend the weekend. The weather didn't help much, but the guys know how to bring happiness when it seems to be out of reach.

The second farewell party was in a night club, which we rented for us that night, that was another unforgetable moment, when I played my music, and the DJ played Yves LaRock - Rise Up.

That's the second song the reminds me the good things about my departure to Ireland (check the first one).

Another piece of me...

Every word you say, every move you make... oops, it sounds like a song, let´s try to make some other way.

Everything you do is a piece of you! Everything you create is a way to recreate you, inovate. That´s how I feel about my music! And sometimes it´s weird beacuse my songs are or will be part of my future instead of part of my past, as they should logically be.

This is a song I wrote years ago, and the first and main chords I created even longer ago. I had just the first peace, and the second one took a long while for me to come up with.

I wanted to record this song in the beginning of last year when I recorded "Adeus São Paulo", but couldn´t ´cause i didn´t have time... but I´ll record it, soon, you´ll see! =o)

Now, I can just record like this: me, my guitar and my disgraceful voice. Hope you enjoy it anyway! I translated the lyrics so that everyone can understand what I´m singing!

From everything I learnt and what I know today
They make part of me and of the image that some have about me
I know it´s hard but I will be happy one day

Chorus
A woman, maybe a saint, or a dream that you might have
It´s not enough, we all make mistakes, and the most important
Only for you

If there were only 1001 nights, or only 10 things I hate about you
That would be much easier to learn
And maybe one day, even survive
In this world where everything is about you
I don´t want some just to feel pity of me

It´s all about you
Just to feel pity of me

Chorus (twice)

Chorus