Hello all, remember me? It has been close to two weeks since I last wrote a blog, which has been pretty unusual for me. But doing performance reviews each and every week for American Idol will keep a blogger hopping. I remember last year after the top three, I completely flamed out and never did write a review of the top two performances. I am proud of myself for finishing right to the end in this season and it proved to be an incredible journey from 12 to the final two. Now with American Idol out of the way, I can begin to focus on some of my more personal topics regarding current topics in the news, things going on in and around me and various miscellaneous subjects that come up at random times. I am about to launch a new specific-topic blog here at Luke's Ponderings - actually something quite similar to the "Songs I Dig" blog I do from time to time. Only this time, I will be featuring artists and their songs that once proved to be mega-hits but who have now since dropped off the radar screen. It more or less helps to recognize their work from the past three, four, or up to ten years and will help to shed some light on what they are doing nowadays, even if it seems they have disappeared from the music industry. I guess the motivation for this type of blog came from looking at a bunch of songs I downloaded back in 2002-2003 and remembering how great those songs were, despite the fact that I hadn't heard them in some five years. Those songs hold great memories for me and a lot of times I can recall certain moments as I listen to these songs. Hopefully as I bring up these songs, you'll remember them to and they will also help to bring back particular memories (hopefully good ones). So let's begin the very first blog as titled, "Remember These Songs?" - Part 1.
Vitamin C - Graduation (Friends Forever): Oh my gosh - this is such a great song and it brings back some honestly good memories from around the time I graduated. Yes, not all of my high school memories were bad, even though most of them I'd rather forget. How appropriate that this song was released the same year I graduated from high school (2000)! I tell you what, whether you are a lover or a hater of this song, you've got to admit that it at least makes you think. I remember when focusing on the lyrics around the time it was released, it really got me thinking of how things will be when I turn 25. Earlier this year I listened to this song again for the first time in over a year and that particular lyric really stood out, "And so we talked all night about the rest of our lives ... Where we're gonna be when we turn 25 ... " And then I realized - I am actually 25!! And then I felt really old. LOL But all kidding aside, it's an amazing graduation-theme song and it's no surprise that even some graduating classes are still deciding to use it as their song. It really stands the test of time, even though it's only eight years old. I think even ten and 20 years down the road, it will still be very much part of graduations across the world.
So what has Vitamin C (aka Colleen Fitzpatrick) been up to recently? Well she is still heavily involved in the music industry. After taking some time off, she is reported to be back in the studio recording a couple of different albums. One of the albums will be a children's-oriented album with the purpose of focusing on diversity through Indian-styled songs. The other album will be a non-children's album, much like her recordings from the past. Although those albums were rumored to be released at the end of 2007 - they will more likely come out sometime this year. In addition to music, Vitamin C is also one of three panelists on the Lifetime reality series "Your Mama Don't Dance."
Fastball - The Way: I am often puzzled to this day why this band basically dropped off the face of the Earth after their breakout album "All The Pain Money Can Buy" produced a few memorable songs. I can't understand how they were unable to capitalize on the success of this album and crank out more radio-friendly tunes. I mean, they seemed very capable with "The Way" and "Out of My Head." I don't know if it was bad luck or bad press from the recording company they were signed with - but someone really dropped the ball on this group. I think they could've been a much bigger success than they really were. In fact, it's probably safe to say that at this point, they are a one-hit wonder (even though "Out of My Head" was mildly-popular). "The Way" was a song that was so striking just because of the way it sounded. It was so unique and fun that it really got people up and started grooving to it. It wasn't a particularly lengthy song, in fact, it only includes two verses while the rest is chorus. But still, this song will be remembered for some time to come as one of the best in the later 1990's.
What has Fastball been up to recently? Well, not really a whole lot. They may not have lived up to their success of the late '90's, but they are rumored to be working on a fifth studio album to be released in 2008. This follows an album released in 2004 with little fanfare. Some of the rumored tracks on this album include "She's Got the Rain," "All I was Looking For Was You," and "Little White Lies." The band was also seeking input from fans on their myspace page for titles for the new album. So we'll just have to wait and see if 2008 is the year that Fastball makes it's return to the music charts.
Better than Ezra - A Lifetime: So it hasn't been a long time since songs from Better than Ezra graced the radio waves where I live, but it already seems like it's been years. "A Lifetime" was a song made popular in 2005 and it still remains as one of my favorites. It is a particularly well written song and the lyrics really make you think. I think this song really addresses the "live in the moment" theme. It talks of "And three and a half minutes" as if only being a small miniscule portion of time but then "felt like a lifetime" as if all of the events that happened within that three in a half minutes are ever-changing moments that will stay with a person until the end of time. This is definitely a song I wasn't afraid of being a fan of and it's one that you can't help but sing along to. Ack! It also acknowledges graduation in the lyrics, only that the person within the lyrics itself ends up dying in a car crash. The friends of this person (we never really know whether the individual was a male of female - probably female, though) take the ashes of their deceased friend (obviously because they knew him/her better than the family ever did) and brought this person to the beach because "I knew you'd want it that way." Powerful stuff or what? I'm not going to go bit by bit with the lyrics of the song because I could go on forever. But do yourself a favor and really pay attention to the lyrics in this song because they are really something else.
So how about Better than Ezra - what exactly has this group been doing recently? Actually they seem to be pretty similar to Fastball in that respect, because it hasn't been much. Their last studio album was "Before the Robots" which was released in 2005 (which included "A Lifetime" and their other popular song from the album "Juicy" - often featured on Applebee's commercials for a time). There is no official word on when a new album will be released and they very well could be taking some well deserved time off. However, they are still doing a few shows including ones in Gulfport, MS and Lake Charles, LA in August. So they are definitely still out there - just not as much in the spotlight as they were in 2005.
That will wrap it up for this edition of "Remember These Songs?" Hopefully you enjoyed these selections regarding the very best of the blasts from the past. Be sure to check more of these selections again sometime very soon. Thanks for reading!
Happy Birthday, sis.
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