Musical Chairs

First, I apologize for being gone so long, I've been sick with a cough and a general lassitude. I think I'm back now.

I discovered this cool little playlist.com widget on the left at Tiffany's blog. You can listen to some of my favorite music as you read along. You can even open another tab and keep listening while you surf different websites.

This gives me the opportunity to explain my musical taste. While the majority of the music we listen to and go see live is definitely in the blues category, none of my favorite songs are strictly blues. For me, the blues is general overall feel good music, but no particular song has personal meaning for me. Isn't that funny?

Instead I've noticed a certain leaning toward male, solo, singer-songwriters with quirky tendencies. They have to have an intelligence to their lyrics or I lose interest quickly.

These are artists that have mostly been overlooked by mainstream music, in spite of their immense talents. They are not country, although you can pick up a kind of twang sometimes. They are lumped together in the oddball category called Americana Roots. More and more, I find myself searching the hot bluegrass scene for new music.

Most of these artists I have discovered through the best radio station in the world--KPIG in Santa Cruz--a constant flow of innovative, inspiring, fun music.

I guess what I really want to say to you is this: step outside your musical box for awhile and give a listen to something different. There is a whole world of incredibly good soul-filling music out there that doesn't get enough attention.