2012 started out as a pretty pitiful year musically. The first half of the year did not offer a lot to a guy like me who is trying to make a top 5 list. In fact when you see my top five, four of them came out in September or later. The last third of the year offered some amazing music though, so let's dive into the top 5.
5.) Phillip Phillips-- The World From The Side Of The Moon. This debut album from 2012 American Idol winner is pretty amazing. The best Idol Winner debut since Carrie Underwood's Some Hearts. Phillip's voice is quirky, and not always perfect, but his style is great and his melodies infectious. He wrote or co-wrote over half the songs; and this collection really reflects an artist on the rise. (This December release bumped Taylor Swift off y top 5).
4.) Chelsea Moon-- Hymns Project, Vol. 2. Imagine getting a call from your metal-head brother-in-law telling you to go listen to this artist who is so great. Then imagine hearing the folk/bluegrass infused hymn arrangements of this CD. Couldn't believe the cool styles of this young woman's second collection of hymns. Even more surprising that my brother-in-law loved it, Not sure how early in the year this came out, but it is the only pre-September release on the countdown.
Now we come to the top three. These have been floating around as the top three for a couple months, trying to be put in order, but it really depends on my mood. All three are from veteran Christian artist that have not released a full studio album of original vocal work in over 10 years, and all are amazing comebacks. This is there order in my mind today, but lets just call them the top 3.
3.) Bryan Duncan-- Conversations. This project came about because of a group of fans (myself included) who pledged money through kickstarter to put this CD out. I am sure none of the backers are disappointed. Bryan's vocals are as smooth as they were back in the Sweet Comfort Band days, and his lyrics are more heartfelt and personal than ever. I could play this CD over and over for hours.
2.) Sixpence None The Richer-- Lost in Translation. When Sixpence broke up over a decade ago I was sad. They had always brought the alternative Christian music scene an aura of intelligence and beauty in their music that really couldn't be matched. When they got back together for a Christmas album a few years ago I was hoping a new project would follow I was not disappointed. These are some of the catchiest tunes the band has delivered, without losing any of the intelligence of their message,
1.) Charlie Peacock-- No Man's Land. After spending the last decade concentrating on producing other artists, and releasing a pair of jazz CDs, Christian music's thinker, Charlie Peacock, returns with an amazing collection of tunes infused with cajun and blue grass influences. So glad he is back. You must buy this album and play it often.
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
2012 Year in Review Part 1-- Runners up, also rans, and not even close
Wow, here we are in 2013, and none of my "year end blogs" have posted. Time is tight and I have had a lot on my mind, but I promise by the end of January to do all my 2012 in review posts. Today I will look at CDs and Movies that didn't make my top 5 lists (those will be here soon I promise).
Starting with the music, I begin with three CDs by favorite artists; these are all pretty good discs, but fail to make the cut due to the fact that nothing about them seems special, new or exciting. These three discs are Blown Away by Carrie Underwood, Miracle by Third Day, and RED by Taylor Swift. Again, these are all pretty good records, but just fail to blow my socks off, and just don't cut the mustard to make the top five,
Next on my list are a couple of really good EPs, Freaks by The Hawk in Paris and A Very Merry Perri Christmas by Christina Perri. Both of these EPs just sound amazing; Freaks is a three song follow up to 2011's His+Hers but at 3 songs it is just too short of a pleasure cruise to make my top 5 list. Christina Perri's Christmas CD is perhaps the best Christmas CD I have heard in years, but due to its seasonality, I couldn't put it on my top 5 of the year.
Lastly for music I present my #6 CD. It is the independent, Kickstarter-funded EP by Michelle Lynn Thompson-- Words That Fell. Thompson is half of the Indie Christian group The Wayside, and on this solo project she shows an amazing vocal talent, and some really inspiring, thoughtful lyrics. A late in the year release (as are most of the top 5) this is an indie project worth hunting for.
Now on to movies: It was an interesting year in film, with several surprises (and I'm sure my top 5 will also surprise you). Some films that probably belong in my top five, but are missing simply because I have not seen them (Lincoln comes to mind) and I am sorry for missing these. Let me start with the super hero movies, none of which made my final top 5. I will not comment on them more, but the big three fall in this order for me bottom to top: 3. Dark Knight Rises 2, The Amazing Spiderman 1. The Avengers. I will admit Avengers almost made the top 5.
Now for a few films that did not make the list, but I found surprisingly better than expected. Katy Perry- Part of Me, Pitch Perfect and Step Up Revolution. I had gone into these movies hoping to be mildly entertained for a couple hours, and ended up really enjoying them.
Finally three films that totally let me down. I went in with moderate to high hopes, and just left disappointed. These disappointments were Dark Shadows, Rock of Ages and The Apparition (okay I knew this horror flick starring Twilight's Ashley Greene would be bad, but didn't realize how much a movie could suck).
Top fives in movies and music, along with a special top five of the most attractive new females on TV will be coming soon. Stay here for the fun.
Starting with the music, I begin with three CDs by favorite artists; these are all pretty good discs, but fail to make the cut due to the fact that nothing about them seems special, new or exciting. These three discs are Blown Away by Carrie Underwood, Miracle by Third Day, and RED by Taylor Swift. Again, these are all pretty good records, but just fail to blow my socks off, and just don't cut the mustard to make the top five,
Next on my list are a couple of really good EPs, Freaks by The Hawk in Paris and A Very Merry Perri Christmas by Christina Perri. Both of these EPs just sound amazing; Freaks is a three song follow up to 2011's His+Hers but at 3 songs it is just too short of a pleasure cruise to make my top 5 list. Christina Perri's Christmas CD is perhaps the best Christmas CD I have heard in years, but due to its seasonality, I couldn't put it on my top 5 of the year.
Lastly for music I present my #6 CD. It is the independent, Kickstarter-funded EP by Michelle Lynn Thompson-- Words That Fell. Thompson is half of the Indie Christian group The Wayside, and on this solo project she shows an amazing vocal talent, and some really inspiring, thoughtful lyrics. A late in the year release (as are most of the top 5) this is an indie project worth hunting for.
Now on to movies: It was an interesting year in film, with several surprises (and I'm sure my top 5 will also surprise you). Some films that probably belong in my top five, but are missing simply because I have not seen them (Lincoln comes to mind) and I am sorry for missing these. Let me start with the super hero movies, none of which made my final top 5. I will not comment on them more, but the big three fall in this order for me bottom to top: 3. Dark Knight Rises 2, The Amazing Spiderman 1. The Avengers. I will admit Avengers almost made the top 5.
Now for a few films that did not make the list, but I found surprisingly better than expected. Katy Perry- Part of Me, Pitch Perfect and Step Up Revolution. I had gone into these movies hoping to be mildly entertained for a couple hours, and ended up really enjoying them.
Finally three films that totally let me down. I went in with moderate to high hopes, and just left disappointed. These disappointments were Dark Shadows, Rock of Ages and The Apparition (okay I knew this horror flick starring Twilight's Ashley Greene would be bad, but didn't realize how much a movie could suck).
Top fives in movies and music, along with a special top five of the most attractive new females on TV will be coming soon. Stay here for the fun.
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Here comes the End of The Year
Well, it was a really rough year for me, sorry haven't blog in awhile. My mother-in-law and my dad both passed away this year, and so I have been slowly losing my mind while not blogging. But I want to assure I will be back for the year end wrap up. I will wrap up my bucket list (if we survive past the Mayan calendar disaster). I will have my iPod top 25 for 2012, and I will have my Top 5 CD's and Top 5 movies and a new Top 5...Top 5 most interesting New women on TV. So hey, if you'd like a mention in one of my year end blogs, comment on your favorites in any of my top categories.
Friday, November 9, 2012
Eulogy
Adrian DeVries was born in 1928, the third of six children. He grew up in Munster, Indiana. After High School he joined the Army and served in Korea between World War II and the Korean War.
After returning from the service he met Jeanne Bell; he proposed to her on April Fool’s day, and in September of 1949 he married her, on his birthday (a smart way to always remember your anniversary).
A year later they welcomed their son John into the world. At this point dad stopped smoking, a decision he never regretted. Two years later Gloria joined the family, followed by David three years later, and Sharon two years after that. And after eight years I came along. With a large family dad had to work quite hard to provide for his family. He was always a prudent man with his finances, and he always took care of his family.
As I was growing up, he had two jobs, and I remember him coming home from the gas company, and having to eat dinner quickly with the family before heading off for the evening to work at Sears. But there was always time with dinner for reading from the daily devotional. He would come home from work after my bed time, but he would always stop in my room to say goodnight. Despite long hours at work, dad always seemed to have time for the family. And on Sundays he and mom would always pile us into the car and take us to Church. Dad always instilled in us the importance of Church and a love of God.
When I think of Dad I think of a Godly man, and a man who fiercely loved his family. In 1973 mom fell and broke her hip, this lead to series of long hospital stays, and other broken bones. During this time we kids didn’t see as much of dad, because when he wasn’t at work, he was at mom’s side. Yet through this time dad always made sure we would get to church.
I’m not sure if my sisters or brothers experienced this, but there was a brief time when dad didn’t seem to know much, this was when I was in Junior High and high school. He just could never know or understand as much as I knew. When I went to college, it was amazing how much smarter dad got. And throughout my life since college my dad was always one of the wisest men I knew.
After retiring to California, Dad began to volunteer in the mail room for Mission Aviation Fellowship. This time of service for the Lord was one of his most cherished times of his life. Dad was a man who tried hard to let his life be an example of Godly living. And this is something that was seen by others. I want to share just a few of the comments I have received on facebook since dad’s passing:
“I know your dad was an admirable and beloved man who will be greatly missed”
“I always remember him as a kind gentle man”
“Your dad was always smiling anytime we visited...”
“Uncle Ade is at rest and in his place among the saints in heaven”
“We can rejoice in The Lord that he is up in heaven singing his heart out.”
It is hard to say goodbye. I will miss my dad. I will miss him calling me on a Sunday afternoon to let me know the Bears were winning. I will miss his strong hugs. I will miss his sharing what he has been learning in his Bible study group. I will miss his love.
But he is in a better place. And we can rejoice that we will see him again when our time here is through. This faith in the kingdom of God that is to come, this is dad’s greatest gift to his children, this is his legacy.
After returning from the service he met Jeanne Bell; he proposed to her on April Fool’s day, and in September of 1949 he married her, on his birthday (a smart way to always remember your anniversary).
A year later they welcomed their son John into the world. At this point dad stopped smoking, a decision he never regretted. Two years later Gloria joined the family, followed by David three years later, and Sharon two years after that. And after eight years I came along. With a large family dad had to work quite hard to provide for his family. He was always a prudent man with his finances, and he always took care of his family.
As I was growing up, he had two jobs, and I remember him coming home from the gas company, and having to eat dinner quickly with the family before heading off for the evening to work at Sears. But there was always time with dinner for reading from the daily devotional. He would come home from work after my bed time, but he would always stop in my room to say goodnight. Despite long hours at work, dad always seemed to have time for the family. And on Sundays he and mom would always pile us into the car and take us to Church. Dad always instilled in us the importance of Church and a love of God.
When I think of Dad I think of a Godly man, and a man who fiercely loved his family. In 1973 mom fell and broke her hip, this lead to series of long hospital stays, and other broken bones. During this time we kids didn’t see as much of dad, because when he wasn’t at work, he was at mom’s side. Yet through this time dad always made sure we would get to church.
I’m not sure if my sisters or brothers experienced this, but there was a brief time when dad didn’t seem to know much, this was when I was in Junior High and high school. He just could never know or understand as much as I knew. When I went to college, it was amazing how much smarter dad got. And throughout my life since college my dad was always one of the wisest men I knew.
After retiring to California, Dad began to volunteer in the mail room for Mission Aviation Fellowship. This time of service for the Lord was one of his most cherished times of his life. Dad was a man who tried hard to let his life be an example of Godly living. And this is something that was seen by others. I want to share just a few of the comments I have received on facebook since dad’s passing:
“I know your dad was an admirable and beloved man who will be greatly missed”
“I always remember him as a kind gentle man”
“Your dad was always smiling anytime we visited...”
“Uncle Ade is at rest and in his place among the saints in heaven”
“We can rejoice in The Lord that he is up in heaven singing his heart out.”
It is hard to say goodbye. I will miss my dad. I will miss him calling me on a Sunday afternoon to let me know the Bears were winning. I will miss his strong hugs. I will miss his sharing what he has been learning in his Bible study group. I will miss his love.
But he is in a better place. And we can rejoice that we will see him again when our time here is through. This faith in the kingdom of God that is to come, this is dad’s greatest gift to his children, this is his legacy.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Desert Island Music Challenge...Day 30
Well, here I am on the last day of my 30 day Desert Island Music Challenge. I made my list, and for the last 30 days I have only listened to the music of 10 CD's I chose (see earlier posts). I will admit, over the last few days there are a few songs, and albums I have started to tire of. Ironically, the ones that are wearing on my most are the two rock icons, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of The Moon, and the Who's Quadrophenia. Don't get me wrong, I am still huge fans of these albums, but Pink Floyd especially, and the Who also are very hard to listen to on shuffle (which is how I usually do my music) since a lot of the songs on these 2 albums flow into each other...makes for a choppy shuffle.
Also as we go into day 30, I look at my 25 Most Played playlist (which iTunes automatically formulates based on what songs play) 21 of the songs on this year's list are now from my desert island list. What is interesting is that only 9 of the 10 albums show up in the top 25, which is strange because I thought the shuffle was giving everything fair play. But somehow Simon & Garfunkel is missing from top 25...So when I leave for work in a few minutes, I will make sure they get some play.
Talk to you soon with what I listen to tomorrow when I'm "off the island".
Also as we go into day 30, I look at my 25 Most Played playlist (which iTunes automatically formulates based on what songs play) 21 of the songs on this year's list are now from my desert island list. What is interesting is that only 9 of the 10 albums show up in the top 25, which is strange because I thought the shuffle was giving everything fair play. But somehow Simon & Garfunkel is missing from top 25...So when I leave for work in a few minutes, I will make sure they get some play.
Talk to you soon with what I listen to tomorrow when I'm "off the island".
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
I DO want to play this one: Desert Island Challenge Continued
Wow, that is a long title. Anyway we are at July 4th. On June 16th I started my Desert Island Playlist challenge. I challenged several of my Facebook friends to make a list of the 10 CDs they would take with them on a desert island, and then I challenged them to make a playlist of these albums for their iPod and listen to just those ten albums for one month.
Well here I am at the end of day 19...way further than I thought I'd survive. But I guess I did a good job picking my top ten. Sometimes I put the playlist on song shuffle, but mostly I have been playing the whole albums through These are great albums One thing that has surprised me is how slowly these songs have been cracking my ipod's 25 Most Played list. This shows me that maybe I concentrate on certain songs a lot of the time, but now slowly the desert Island list is cracking that top 25. We'll see how the next 11 days go.
And if you want to play along, any time is fine to start. Come join me on the desert island.
Well here I am at the end of day 19...way further than I thought I'd survive. But I guess I did a good job picking my top ten. Sometimes I put the playlist on song shuffle, but mostly I have been playing the whole albums through These are great albums One thing that has surprised me is how slowly these songs have been cracking my ipod's 25 Most Played list. This shows me that maybe I concentrate on certain songs a lot of the time, but now slowly the desert Island list is cracking that top 25. We'll see how the next 11 days go.
And if you want to play along, any time is fine to start. Come join me on the desert island.
Monday, July 2, 2012
I don't want to play anymore
As we are now a full six months into the year, I look at my New Year's Resolutions, and the chart I have tried so vigorously to keep up with despite the obstacles. And I say "I don't want to play anymore" I have been steadily spiraling away from my goals and points on the chart, and I realize that I have missed a week all together somehow. It was very fun at first, but has become very discouraging.
I am going to try to get focused on writing again, hopefully before my brief vacation in two weeks. Also going to try to get back to reading...but I am putting the chart away, as it has become discouraging, and I am deciding that what I need to do, I need to do for ME, not some chart. Thank you all for your encouragement and support, I'll still be here for you, just maybe ot quite so often.
I am going to try to get focused on writing again, hopefully before my brief vacation in two weeks. Also going to try to get back to reading...but I am putting the chart away, as it has become discouraging, and I am deciding that what I need to do, I need to do for ME, not some chart. Thank you all for your encouragement and support, I'll still be here for you, just maybe ot quite so often.
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