Celine Dion Taking Chances After Las Vegas
Ah, yes, Celine Dion, the Sultaness of Smooth, the Vixen of Las Vegas, the Canadian Princess who used to rule the pop charts is now at it once again with her latest album called
Taking Chances. Now that Celine Dion's tenure in Las Vegas is winding down, the diva from the Great White North will go on a one-year world tour encompassing five continents and over 100 performances.
Her
Taking Chances album will be released in a few days, making this her 35th in total and 13th in English. Tickets for Celine Dion's world tour, which starts in February 2008 are also going on sale in a few days as well. Early reports say that Celine Dion and Hannah Montana are neck in neck as far as the speed of selling out from online sales. Apparently, in this case, what happens in Vegas doesn't stay in Vegas since Celine Dion has decided to bust loose once again and bust her career wide open over many different locations.
Garth Brooks Dethrones King
Yes, Garth Brooks has dethroned the King, and we're not talking Larry King here. Rather we are talking Elvis Presley. Yes, Garth Brooks has dethroned Elvis as the all-time solo record seller with over 123 million units passing hands.
Elvis could only come up with a paltry 118.5 million units, though the legend is still selling plenty of music from the grave. Garth Brooks seems to have it all including a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a marriage to fellow singer Trisha Yearwood and now becoming the best selling solo artist of all time.
He's even done what many ordinary people only wish they could do and step away from his job for an undermined length of time to spend quality and quantity time with his family. Even though he doesn't have his own Graceland and the name Garth sounds nowhere near as cool as Elvis, the country singer has made his mark like no other.
Even though he sings some sad country songs, the world according to Garth keeping getting better and better.
MTV Lyrics
MTV Networks has decided to jump on the lyrics bandwagon and start offering their viewers song lyrics online, on their TV programming and in mobile offerings. The
MTV networks include MTV, CMT and VH1, online and on-air.
On-air, MTV will integrate lyrics into their shows through interviews and other means. Online, song lyrics will be offered when people search for music on their websites. On mobile handsets, people will be able to send text queries and receive a link to a webpage with the lyrics sought.
It's high time that MTV realized that they are not only in the music business but also in the lyrics business. Music and lyrics go together like cake and icing. By offering one or the other, you don't get the full experience.
And Muse Dog does like the full experience, oh yeah. Now, scratch my belly.
Herbie Hancock Has New Respect for Lyrics
In a recent
interview, renowned jazz musician Herbie Hancock has admitted that he has a new respect for lyrics that he didn't have when he was younger. As a young jazz musician, it was all about melody, harmony and improvisation for the rising musical star.
Hancock's new respect for lyrics comes with the recording of his new album "River: The Joni Letters" that pays homage to his long time friend Joni Mitchell. Hancock has stated that since Joni Mitchell's songs start with the lyrics and develop from there, he thought it wise to dig deep into the meaning of the words if he was to do her justice on his release.
After a stellar music career spanning 5 decades, it's good to know this 67-year-old dog, Hancock, has learned a few new tricks. If you're going to do Joni's songs, you’ve got to eat, sleep and breathe the lyrics. And, that's a good note to end on.
Bill O'Reilly Spoof of Springsteen Magic Lyrics
You gotta love it when someone spoofs conservative talk show host Bill O'Reilly. The
News Groper takes a satirical and sarcastic looks of what Bill O'Reilly may have said when offering Bruce Springsteen a slot on his show to talk about his latest subversive lyrics.
Since this is the day after Bosses Day, it is only appropriate to talk about the Boss's new album "Magic" where Springsteen takes on the Big Boss, George W. Bush and the Iraq War that he created. In Bruce's "Magic" social and political commentary abound and will make the skin crawl of any conservative pundit.
Springsteen may have been born to run, but he wasn't born to hide as the Boss takes on Bush in a way the begs one for the claymation video to appear soon on Youtube.
Two drums up for my buddy Bruce in taking on the Man, which he does oh so well and gives him hell so there's never any need for
more cowbell.
15th Birthday for Kansas City Songwriters Circle
This is a shout out and a way to go for the Kansas City Songwriters Circle who are celebrating their 15th birthday this Sunday. The celebration is actually in Independence, MO at the Main Street Coffeehouse (on you guessed it, Main Street) starting at 2 pm.
It's open to the public, so if you’re in the area, why not stop on by? The Songwriters Circle started as a way to get competitive songwriters to see the value of cooperation in advancing their own songwriting careers.
Once songwriters learned there was value in listening to the new music others were performing, 15 years and 250 songwriters later the group is still going strong. And, that can't be wrong as some say in their song. So, happy 15th and a big so long! Right now, Muse Dog is going to lay down and lick his (well, you're welcome to fill in the blank here).
The Singing Bee or Don't Forget the Lyrics?
Now, I've had a chance to watch
The Singing Bee and
Don't Forget the Lyrics TV shows and compare the two heads up. On both shows, contestants are required to remember the lyrics to popular songs.
The structure of
Don't Forget the Lyrics is similar to some other game shows in that contestants can pick their choice of songs and there are various helps including filling in missing words, multiple choice of lyrics and assistance from a family member.
The Singing Bee, on the other hand, is combination spelling bee and karaoke. I just saw Suzie this week win $50,000 on that show so that was pretty cool.
But, the decision of which show to watch is a real toss up. On the one hand,
Don't Forget the Lyrics is on Fox and Muse Dog likes chasing foxes. On the other hand,
The Singing Bee is on the Peacock network, and I like chasing bees and peacocks as well.
Since Muse Dog is generally more loyal to the first thing he sees, I'd have to go with
Don't Forget the Lyrics since I saw this program first. But, remember with either of these shows, memory is key, and please remember the next time you see me to give my belly a little scratching, he he.
Rappers Rapping with Capitol Hill
You can't stop hip-hop is the message being spoken by rappers on Capitol Hill. In a House Committee hearing reminiscent of the days of Elvis Presley and the Beatles, rapper David Banner is defiant about cleaning up the lyrics in rap music.
Apparently, Banner thinks the
government should clean up the neighborhoods where drugs and prostitution is rampant rather than cleaning up the language putting a light on those neighborhoods. Whether or not the crude language is spoken or written, the problems in the hood will still exist.
The committee meeting is about censorship versus free expression of ideas. Some are calling it an "Imus and Andy" reaction while to others this is simply a business and marketing issue. What is clear though is that since the social problem is too big to tackle by the government, they are trying to tackle the language problem instead.
Wrapping up rap lyrics in bubblegum wrap is no solution. though. Hip-hop must not be stopped, crude or not, that's all we got, to tell the truth, however loose about the bad and the good in the hood. Understood?
Misheard Lyrics for the Lyrically Challenged
Well, you know by now that Musedog just can get enough of the misheard lyrics schtick. I've barked about it many times before and even have a webpage on the main site devoted to
misheard music lyrics.
But, while cruising the news about lyrics today, I came up an
article on MSNBC by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper that caught my attention. Gael takes a look at funny misheard lyrics from "rockin' the cat box" to "Olive, the other reindeer" to "In a glob of Velveeta, honey".
Musedog wonders if you can guess the real lyrics for these lines? Or at least get 2 out of 3? For the lyrically challenged this is a good read and comes highly recommended.
Beatles Still More Popular Than Jesus
John Lennon made a strong statement in March of 1966 that the Beatles were "more popular than Jesus". Lennon and the Beatles took a lot of heat for this comment, as Christians started coming out from all regions, protesting the Beatles by burning their albums, posters and other mementos.
But, now that its over 40 years later, I thought I would do an online investigation to see how many people were searching for the Beatles and Jesus in cyberspace. According to Wordtracker keyword service that tracks the words that people are searching for on the major search engines, 29,000 searches per day are for the Beatles.
Also, according to Wordtracker, Jesus pulls in about 7,500 searches per day. God comes in at about 3,000 searches on a daily basis.
What does this prove? Nothing in the larger scheme of things. This only goes to show that online, people are really into their music and the Beatles, who took a lot of heat back then, are still hot now at least in the world of the Internet.
Luciano Pavarotti Mourned Around the World
Well, I usually try to keep this blog focused on lyrics, but every once in a while, some big news event happens that I need to call extra attention towards. Speaking of big, one of the world's most beloved opera singers, Luciano Pavarotti, has passed away at 71-years-old and people are mourning his death in Italy and around the globe.
Pavarotti had the pipes and the charm to cross all musical boundaries, plus he even appeared in movies and on television. For his life's work, I give this tenor a ten and two drums up. Pavarotti you will be missed.
Luciano Pavarotti died of pancreatic cancer in his home at Modena, Italy on September 6, 2007.
Fat Lady Sings For Don't Forget the Lyrics
The fat lady sings for
Don't Forget the Lyrics TV show last night as the summer finale brought the show to a close for a while. I guess I should say, "The fat man sings" since it was a rather hefty dude who almost had a heart attack on stage after winning $50,000.
With help from his uncle with the words to Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line," the contestant stooped over, short of breath, either farting or having an infarction. The rotund dude recovered, but had to bow out for missing one lousy word on the Garth Brooks song "Friends in Low Places".
Don't forget to watch
Don't Forget the Lyrics when Fox re-ups this TV show next season.
Songwriter Searches Going Strong
It's always good to see the songwriting community going strong. What is especially encouraging is how many people are searching for songwriters for various reasons. So, to help get the word out, I thought I would speak of a few upcoming venues for songwriters.
If you happen to be on the East coast and up the Vermont way, then why not stop into Burlington at 7 pm tonight on Church Street for the Starbucks Music Makers Competition. If you happen to be on the West coast up NoCal way, then you may wish to stop in San Jose this Sunday for the 4th Annual Songwriters Festival at the Montalvo Arts Center's Garden Theatre as the event is happening all day.
And, if you’re an old rocker who isn't yet confined to a rocker and would like to send your songs off to the Aging Well Rocks! Song Competition in Evanston, Illinois then follow the
link on this post to do just that.
Misheard Lyrics I Like Better Than Originals
Misheard lyrics are nothing new. Since song began, people have been singing the wrong words to the music. Usually, when I find out the real lyrics, this is a corrective experience for me and it opens up a light into the artist's true meaning of the song.
There are a few instances, however, when I find out the real lyrics to a song and I prefer my own since the real lyrics tend to muddy the waters in regard to the meaning of the song rather than clearing things up.
So, here’s my top 3 set of music lyrics where I actually prefer my own words to the original:
1. In Queen's
Bohemian Rhapsody, "Gotta Moosh, Gotta Moosh, will you do the Fandango" instead of "Scaramouche, Scaramouche."
2. In Led Zeppelin's
Stairway to Heaven, "It's just a sprinkling for the May Queen" instead of "spring clean," not that it makes a big difference.
3. In the Police song,
King of Pain, "There's a black cat caught in a high tree top" instead of "black hat".
Then again, maybe Muse Dog has a bias when it comes to cats in songs.
I Wanna Be Like Osama Lyrics Featured in Jihad the Musical
Okay, Jihad the Musical is sure to stir up some discussion as this clearly mocking parody will nonetheless hit a little too close to home for some to handle. Be that as it may, the fact that Jihad the Musical mocks the world's most wanted man in blatant fashion also will give others a good laugh similar to that which can be found in the play, The Producers, which mocks Adolf Hitler.
One of the main songs from Jihad the Musical is "I Wanna Be Like Osama" and you can watch the
video and judge for yourself. For educational and entertainment purposes, I'm also including the I Wanna Be Like Osama lyrics on this page.
I Wanna Be Like Osama Lyrics
I wanna be like Osama
I wanna bomb a path to fame across the earth
I know people may abhor me, but by God they won’t ignore me
When the CIA determines what I’m worth.
I will delegate the killing to the malleable and willing
But be sure to have top billing when the news gets around,
Please make me like Osama B.
I’ll be Islamically renowned
I wanna be like Osama
I want aplomb, allure and flair that can convince
If I hadn’t been so rowdy, they’d have let me stay in Saudi,
But I couldn’t play the big leagues as a prince.
So I film eloquent reminders that the Yanks have yet to find us,
Though we’re happy to attack them on home ground!
Please make me like Osama B.
I’ll be Islamically renowned!
And they will speak of me throughout history,
Oh, what bliss to be al Mansour
I’ll enact my plan, be the bogeyman
With a brand new holy war
I wanna be like Osama
I wanna wear designer clothes beneath a robe
While my lackeys loom like vultures, I’ll declare a clash of cultures,
Kill civilians by the millions round the globe
Grow a beard down to my navel, conquer YouTube, get on cable,
And be wealthier than any man I know
Please make me like Osama B.
With an Al Jazeera Show!
Who could ask for more, to be six-foot-four,
Oh, the name Mansour will be known
And I won’t be missed on the wanted list,
With a jihad of my own! Yes a jihad of my own
I wanna be like Osama
I want celebrity and riches that astound
Please make me like Osama B.
I’ll be Islamically renowned! I’ll be Islamically renowned
