"Oh lord, I'm so depressed. Help me somebody I need some rest." - Abner Jay
So I was in Montreal this past weekend for the jazz festival (which was awesome), and I happen to catch Basia twice. The whole experience was terrific and I'll write about it later, now I want to talk about her cover of "I'm so depressed" by Abner Jay.
The fact that Basia was playing the jazz fest at all was a bit strange, only because she doesn't really play jazz. Maybe that's why she chose to play a sort of jazz-blues. In any case it was delightful.
I have an Abner Jay album although admittedly I haven't listened to it much. The album I have, "One Man Band", includes "I'm so depressed" which has some interesting, clever, and amusing banter in the beginning about cigarette butts.
"You know they're going to stop making them king size cigarettes and start making them queen size ones because it's got a bigger butt."
"Do you know why elephants don't smoke? Because they can't get their butts in the ashtray!"
The song is Classic blues.
Link to download-
Basia really crushed this cover. She really worked her voice inflections into the song and made it all her own. Standing up there with a ukulele-like instrument she delivered trembling vocals ("I need somebody to hold my hand.") which at times erupted with powerful passion ("Will there be someone, someone to wipe. Dry the tears from my eyes?) It was really incredible.
I had never heard her do this cover before so I'm assuming it's pretty new. It once again showcased that heartbreaking side of her music that makes songs like "Before I Knew" and "In the Night" that much better.
"Oh lookin' back across my life, Oh lord I'm so depressed."
EDIT:
Check out these tube's for some ok recordings.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=satbvYy73QU <-BB Hillside festival
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0GKsiHF20o <-BB Montreal JazzFest (day 2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILPBxkiYyLA <-BB Montreal JazzFest (day 3)
Showing posts with label Basia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Basia. Show all posts
Monday, June 28, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Why we love Basia
This is an attempt to explain why we here at UVPig have a seemingly never ending love for Basia Bulat.
1.) The Introduction
Basia was introduced to me by my good friend Achsah Joseph. Actually, Achsah was certainly my best friend at the time of this wonderful introduction. She created a wonderful little mix-CD for my favorite made up holiday, Daffodil Day. The Pilgriming Vine was the second song on the CD (and the second song Basia played at her concert in Philly!) and will always be one of my favorites. Whenever I missed AQ during my senior year (she had gone off to college) I would play that song, with 134 plays it is by far the most played of any of my Basia collection. There's nothing like daffodils in the spring time.
2.) Canadian
When I was young my family would always take summer vacations to Canada. My father had some sort of fascination with avoiding people and warm temperatures at all costs. Every August for 7 or 8 years we would take off in the station wagon or the Jetta and spend a few weeks in Nova Scotia, Quebec, New Brunswick or some combination of those provinces. Because of these frequent trips I developed most of my cherished childhood memories in places such as Kouchibouguac and Kejimkujik national parks, St. Andrews in Nova Scotia, and the serene Milford House. How is this connected to Basia? I think the connection is subtle. No we didn't have strong connections to the music of the area beyond the Macmasters and A Taste of the Maritimes. I did develop a strong connection with the outdoors and the sea (not to mention the poutine), many of Basia's songs deal with nature and Canada's beautiful landscapes which I I myself fell in love with as a child.
3.) Oh, My Darling
"We swam in the river, and sang with the birds. Gave away our hearts before we knew what they were." - I Was a Daughter
I'm not going to pretend I know exactly what Basia means by this, but it sounds eerily familiar to my dreamy summer romance. In fact Oh, My Darling was more or less a soundtrack to what was undoubtedly my favorite summer in recent memory. The album is just filled with genuine heartbreaking love songs that I've always been able to connect to personally (especially once the summer ended and it was time to head west). Oh, My Darling is everything I could ever want to express about that period of my life.
4.) Basia
All of this is without mentioning Basia herself. She has deep hallowing vocals, plays instruments ranging from the ukulele to the autoharp, and connects to all the music she performs. When you listen to Basia you get the feeling that she is just singing her heart out every time. She tours all the time and rarely charges ticket prices over $10. Her band includes her brother, "Allison Wonderland", and "Holly Rancher" (who pens her own fantastic blog). They drive across continents in a van together and play in beautiful little venues (mostly churches). I had the pleasure of meeting Basia at in Philadelphia, she was very personable and accessible, it was a real pleasure. Just seeing Basia is enough to make you smile.
I hope this clears up the reason for Basiacentricity here on UVPig. Don't forget to buy Heart of My Own and see Basia play for free at Summerstage August 1st in Central Park NY!
1.) The Introduction
Basia was introduced to me by my good friend Achsah Joseph. Actually, Achsah was certainly my best friend at the time of this wonderful introduction. She created a wonderful little mix-CD for my favorite made up holiday, Daffodil Day. The Pilgriming Vine was the second song on the CD (and the second song Basia played at her concert in Philly!) and will always be one of my favorites. Whenever I missed AQ during my senior year (she had gone off to college) I would play that song, with 134 plays it is by far the most played of any of my Basia collection. There's nothing like daffodils in the spring time.
2.) Canadian
When I was young my family would always take summer vacations to Canada. My father had some sort of fascination with avoiding people and warm temperatures at all costs. Every August for 7 or 8 years we would take off in the station wagon or the Jetta and spend a few weeks in Nova Scotia, Quebec, New Brunswick or some combination of those provinces. Because of these frequent trips I developed most of my cherished childhood memories in places such as Kouchibouguac and Kejimkujik national parks, St. Andrews in Nova Scotia, and the serene Milford House. How is this connected to Basia? I think the connection is subtle. No we didn't have strong connections to the music of the area beyond the Macmasters and A Taste of the Maritimes. I did develop a strong connection with the outdoors and the sea (not to mention the poutine), many of Basia's songs deal with nature and Canada's beautiful landscapes which I I myself fell in love with as a child.
3.) Oh, My Darling
"We swam in the river, and sang with the birds. Gave away our hearts before we knew what they were." - I Was a Daughter
I'm not going to pretend I know exactly what Basia means by this, but it sounds eerily familiar to my dreamy summer romance. In fact Oh, My Darling was more or less a soundtrack to what was undoubtedly my favorite summer in recent memory. The album is just filled with genuine heartbreaking love songs that I've always been able to connect to personally (especially once the summer ended and it was time to head west). Oh, My Darling is everything I could ever want to express about that period of my life.
4.) Basia
All of this is without mentioning Basia herself. She has deep hallowing vocals, plays instruments ranging from the ukulele to the autoharp, and connects to all the music she performs. When you listen to Basia you get the feeling that she is just singing her heart out every time. She tours all the time and rarely charges ticket prices over $10. Her band includes her brother, "Allison Wonderland", and "Holly Rancher" (who pens her own fantastic blog). They drive across continents in a van together and play in beautiful little venues (mostly churches). I had the pleasure of meeting Basia at in Philadelphia, she was very personable and accessible, it was a real pleasure. Just seeing Basia is enough to make you smile.
I hope this clears up the reason for Basiacentricity here on UVPig. Don't forget to buy Heart of My Own and see Basia play for free at Summerstage August 1st in Central Park NY!
Friday, March 5, 2010
New things every day
If there is one thing I thought I knew, it was that I had all of Basia's work. Lo and behold, some fresh (ok so it may be 5 years old) however very unpublicized work from 2005. All I can figure from the website is that she played the venue with the Poche Orchestra. It sounds very raw, sort of an interesting recording. Live performances definitely have their pluses and minuses this one has a few bumps and skips throughout, new songs included on this recording are; Distance, I am a Pilgrim, Secret House, What a Difference a Day Makes, Will you Still Love Me Tomorrow?, Sun at my Back, and Who Loves the Sun?. Link to download.
Also, chirality is quite annoying.
What?!?!?
What?!?!?Saturday, January 23, 2010
Bulat's New CD
The fantastic Canadian singer Basia Bulat is debuting her sophomore record on Tuesday January 23rd! The title of the album is Heart of my Own named after the 5th track on the record (downloadable here). Most of this record was written or conceived while she was on the road which seems to add a certain longing to several of her songs (at least the ones I've heard so far). Basia records her music in studio live and off the floor as much as she can and records to tape whenever possible giving her music a sort of a rough sounding which juxtaposes well with her soft and deep voice. I personally have great expectations for this new CD simply because of how much I enjoyed the last one (I listened to it about 40 times, at least) but I am sure anything Basia puts out will be thoroughly enjoyable. So iTunes it, or go to a local music store and pick up Heart of my Own and if you don't already have it grab Oh My Darling, if only for the terrific album artwork!
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