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What happens when a mini-orchestra performs the Mad Men theme song, gently mashed up with Nat "King" Cole's classic "Nature Boy"? Awesome jazz fantasticness. Also be aware -- it's performed in a single take, with no cuts or overdubs. BEHOLD: Educati
Last Friday, Sony announced the end of the Walkman Era -- a period that lasted more than three decades, defining the personal music listening experience for pretty much everyone in my generation (I was born a year before the Walkman was). Sony will no lo
The song "Big Rock Candy Mountain" describes a hobo's paradise, featuring all the things a good hobo needs -- from lakes of whiskey to cigarette trees and lax law enforcement. I have compiled a list of the amenities available at the original Big Rock Can
"Hallelujah" is a song written by Leonard Cohen in 1984, and never officially released as a single. It has become famous mainly through cover versions, and has been recorded by hundreds of artists. In 2008, American Idol contestent Jason Castro sang a v
Last week, Justin Timberlake appeared on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon to promote his new movie role. After the interview, the pair launched into a fully choreographed hip-hop medley that has come to be known as "The History of Rap" (although it focuses h
Cher's done a little bit of everything. She's blown up the pop charts, hosted a hit variety show, and even won an Oscar. Let's take a look at five things you might not know about the woman who was born Cherilyn Sarkisian.
In 1814, Francis Scott Key saw the tattered remains of the American flag still blowing in the breeze after Fort McHenry had been bombarded by the British all night. The rest, as you probably know, is history.
Famous composer Ludwig van Beethoven began to lose his hearing around the age of 25. By the time of his death, he was completely deaf. But that never stopped him from writing some of the most beautiful music the world has ever known. Beethoven is proof th
They'd be quite awesome at karaoke.
Now, I like big butts as much as the next guy. But I was floored when I came across the Wikipedia entry for Sir Mix-a-Lot's classic "Baby Got Back." This erudite description of the song reads like a college essay. I now present the entire "Synopsis" of
If an object can produce a tone, someone somewhere will make a musical instrument out of it. Some are handed down from antiquity and some are a product of the internet age, but all eight of these are instruments most people are not familiar with.1.
I'm going to see a Beatles tribute band tonight. I know; it will never come close to the real thing, but it's probably as close as I'm going to get. Sadly, with such a huge catalog of song titles to create an awesome, punny band name from, this band is
You know the songs, but do you know what they're really about? Here are the stories behind some popular tunes. 1. "Hey Man, Nice
Middle school music classes will offer you a trumpet, flute, clarinet, drums, and a few other everyday musical instruments. Learn to play one of them and one day you may be asked to play a very different instrument that you might even fall in love with. H
Next week I'll be writing about some of the worst hold music I've ever had to sit through. In researching the post, I discovered that in the U.K., Greensleeves is the most loathed hold music tune. This makes sense, as the song originates in their neck of
You know him as the man who sang "White Christmas" and co-starred in a slew of movies with Bob Hope. But here are some facts about Bing Crosby that might surprise you.
The musician is kind of like a modern-day Forrest Gump.
The Know Your Meme Blog has a great introduction to the history and technology behind Auto-Tune, the audio effect first introduced in 1997 and made popular when Cher's single "Believe" made heavy use of the effect in a way that was never intended -- empha
Two weeks ago I wrote about The Story of Pi, a semi-educational retro video that visually explains Pi. One commenter (lynn) pointed out a song I hadn't heard before, The Pi Song by Antoni Chan and Ken Ferrier. I present it below for your weekend edutain
On January 1, 1969, Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger wrote artist M.C. Escher a letter asking Escher to provide an image for the Stones' second volume of greatest hits, entitled Through The Past Darkly. Jagger was a big Escher fan, and addressed the l
Few things go together as well as bicycles and music. If you didn't already know that, there are plenty of people who will prove it to you.The
Did you know that Vincent van Gogh has inspired (at least) three great songs? The first I want to share with you is by Jonathan Richman with the Modern Lovers backing him up (iTunes link), and it's really sweet -- smart, funny, and even moderately educat
In some cities, driving a taxi is considered an important, valued, even elevated vocation. Sometimes those cabbies become famous.
[It is with sadness that we report Les Paul's death today, at the age of 94. I had the pleasure of meeting Les a couple times when I was playing guitar with Pat Martino. Pat and Les were good friends, and the three of us had drinks once when Les had his s