Amazing Grace: Chris Tomlin

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-4NFvI5U9w

My Commentary: Yesterday, I went to Mt. Vernon and listened to a man play this song on a wooden flute to honor the slaves of General Washington who were buried on the grounds. He then told us the story of how this song was written. The original author was a slave trader on a slave ship. He had a realization of some sort that the actions he was partaking in were wrong, and if I remember correct, he freed all of the slaves on his boat. "Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see." In this version, Chris Tomlin sings a line that goes, "My chains are gone, I've been set free. My God my Savior has ransomed me." I do not know whether or not the original author included this in his work, but if he did, this line adds a lot of depth to his already powerful words.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Russian Sailor's Dance: Reinhold Gliere

Image
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJgZ-GiPlvM My Commentary: I believe this is the first instrumental to be featured as the Song of the Day, and what a song it is. Full of tension and power, it is everything a Russian sailor's dance should be. It does have its' softer moments however. It is a fine blend between tension and beauty. I really like the low strings and their role in the entire song, they add a lot of weight to the composition and really drive this song. 
Read more

Valerie: Mark Ronson (Ft. Amy Winehouse)

Image
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pAz9UpnRKw My Commentary: Fun fact, this song is not actually by Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse, it is actually by a band called the Zutons-take a minute to listen to that version if you have time, it is really good. But this is Amy's song. Mark Ronson is incredibly accomplished, so that is just a testament to Amy's abilities. Amy Winehouse was a maestro and this song only backs it up. She is so talented. Her raspy voice fits a jazz club perfectly. The up tempo nature of Valerie only backs up Amy's claim as being one of the best female vocalists of our generation. It is a shame she passed away so soon. Thankfully she left behind some of the greatest works of the 2000s.
Read more

The Weight: The Band

Image
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFqb1I-hiHE My Commentary: In my opinion, The Bad is arguably one of the greatest band names of all time. Their music backs up that opinion. They're really good. The first time I heard this song, it was actually covered by Drew Holcomb so I didn't actually know who performed it, but when I heard listened to the original, I immediately fell in love. It is such a simplistic song, which makes sense for a band which played behind Bob Dylan. The simplicity really adds to the weight of the song, no pun intended. Anyways, this song is timeless and is worthy of the of the status of classic. 
Read more