The Live Lounge All-Stars — a group of 25 performers — have come together to create a new version of the Foo Fighters’ “Times Like These.” The recording benefits the groups Children In Need and Comic Relief to help those harmed by the coronavirus pandemic.
The song, which is an appropriate choice for our current times, features artists such as Dua Lipa, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Elle Goulding, and Hailee Steinfeld. Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters, who reports the effort made him emotional, also makes an appearance.
It’s times like these you learn to live again; It’s times like these you give and give again; It’s times like these you learn to love again; It’s times like these time and time again.
The recording has already gone to number one on the U.K. singles chart. Check it out.
Singer-songwriter Matthew Ryan continues to create beautiful music for our troubled time. His latest contribution is a cover of “Heaven Is a Place on Earth.”
The song, written by Ellen Shipley and Rick Nowels, was a hit for Belinda Carlisle when it appeared on her 1987 album Heaven on Earth. Anyone who was around at that time will remember the repeated plays of the catchy song on the radio and MTV.
Ryan’s version of “Heaven Is a Place on Earth” is not a poppy upbeat song as it is in Carlisle’s version (although Carlisle herself recorded a rather upbeat acoustic version released in 2017 on Wider Shores). Ryan’s goal was not a pop song but a single release in “the hope of offering something beautiful during this hard and strange time.”
While it may seem odd to be releasing a love song about heaven on earth and the “miracle of living” while we are stuck in our homes in fear of the coronavirus pandemic. But Ryan reinterprets the song to give it meaning for our present moment.
The song in Ryan’s telling reminds us both what love can do (“When I feel alone I reach for you”) and that we can look forward to a different future. And maybe the key to remembering where we can go forward is found somewhere buried in memory and recalling the past.
On “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” Ryan is joined by Molly Thomas (backing vocal, timpani, violin, and cello) and Neilson Hubbard (piano). Check it out.
The video, directed by Tom Sierchio, features “found home video” footage. Sierchio’s inspiration was the beautiful film, Cinema Paradiso, which is Ryan’s favorite movie. The images from happier times add even more power to the message of hope that we need in these dark times.
Bruce Springsteen and his wife Patti Scialfa are among the latest of artists working to help us through the coronavirus pandemic while we stay in our homes. As part of the Jersey 4 Jersey telethon supporting the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund, the two sang “Land of Hope and Dreams” and Tom Waits’ “Jersey Girl.”
Their performance of “Land of Hope and Dreams” was understandably more subdued than the versions on 2001’s Live in New York City and 2012’s Wrecking Ball. As we previously discussed in our analysis, the song reflects a long history of American music and has special resonance for Springsteen and fans. One of the themes of the song is one of hope, something we all really need right now.
The tone of their performance, of course, is appropriate for the occasion as there is comfort in knowing other people connect to your suffering. But I cannot help just being more sad seeing Bruce and Patti looking forlorn singing a song that in the past has lifted my spirits. We need to believe Springsteen’s promise in the song, “Tomorrow there’ll be sunshine/ And all this darkness past.”
Regarding the other song in the video, Springsteen always gives a great performance of Waits’ “Jersey Girl.” And here, that song gains added meaning as Springsteen sings it to his own Jersey girl and to those experiencing pain and heartbreak in New Jersey.
Check out Springsteen and Scialfa performing “Land of Hope and Dreams” and “Jersey Girl” from their home.
The Guardian recently wrote about how during the current coronavirus pandemic period, people seem to be streaming music less than normal. There are a number of possible reasons. Maybe people are resorting to the comfort of music they own rather than finding new music. Or maybe people listen to music at work more than they do at home, where they are more likely to turn to television shows or movies. Whatever the reason, if people are listening to less music now it is troublesome because we all need more music right now.
Meanwhile, many artists have been finding creative ways to reach fans where everyone is staying home. One such artist is singer-songwriter Matthew Ryan, who has released a number of videos, often taking requests. Recently he performed “Trouble Doll” at home by request.
“Trouble Doll” originally appeared on Ryan’s 2003 album Regret Over the Wires. In the video below, Ryan introduces the song by telling how he wrote the song when some friends were coming to visit.
In “Trouble Doll,” the singer sings to a woman. It is unclear if they are lovers or former lovers, but the singer has great fondness for the woman (“Heartache sure owes you / All the happiness in this world”). Matthew Ryan‘s song features beautiful lyrics, including the section below about how the blues can save you.
Though angels pray for you, Only the blues can save you, If only for a second in the shimmering light; When the night’s collapsed but it don’t shatter or sting, It’s a porcelain song from a marionette In a dangerous sway as if under God’s own strings; Salvation watches over you, Redemption only borrows you A little at a time in this world.
In the video from his home, Ryan tells more a little more about the song and the making of it. In the notes with the video, he explains, “It’s a bit strange for me, I’m not an attention chaser, but giving these songs to you guys like this is giving me a sense of purpose. I as a music lover knows what a song can do. So I hope it brings something beautiful.” So, check out the beauty in this pandemic performance of “Trouble Doll.”
One of the many bad side-effects of the current pandemic is its impact on performing artists. As many artists have tried to adjust to the streaming music era by earning a living doing live shows, now the coronavirus has taken away their main way to reach fans. So, many artists, like Marty Brown, have turned to reaching their fans online.
Country music singer-songwriter Marty Brown is using the platform StageIt.com to give a show to his fans on Saturday, April 25, 2020 at 9 pm EST (8 pm CT; 6pm PDT). For much less than a regular concert ($5), you get direct access to a live show. The platform also allows fans to interact through real-time written comments.
Marty Brown has been writing great songs and making great music for decades. His live shows feature a range of music from a likable engaging performer. Hopefully, he’ll play “Whatever Makes You Smile,” one of his first releases after his successful run on the television show America’s Got Talent that began with an amazing audition singing Bob Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love.” And fans may get some great songs like “Mona Lisa Smiles” from his most recent outstanding album, American Highway (2019). Brown is also known for “I’m From the Country,” a song he wrote that was a hit for Tracy Byrd.
We hope he also will dig into his back catalog from the 1990s, which includes songs like “Every Now and Then,” “Wild Kentucky Skies” and “The Day the Bootlegger Died.”
Whatever he plays, it is bound to be a great show, taking advantage of technology to reach fans in these troubled times. So head over to StageIt for your Marty Brown tickets — and to check out and support other artists with online shows!
