Well, here we are at the end of Week 1 of this Grammy Countdown. I've really enjoyed posting this stuff for you guys and watching your reactions roll in. Keep the conversation rolling, my friends -- there's a whole new batch of songs coming at you next week.
Have we learned anything about the course of pop music through this strange experiment? Have we learned anything about what it means to be named Song Of The Year? Or have we just learned that, when I'm at home, I wear old shirts, shitty pants or shorts, and a hat that I stole from my friend's basement a couple of months ago? Who's to say? Maybe, at the very least, we've had a few toe tapping moments.
I find that making these covers is like batting practice for my own original music. There's a real benefit to digging into well-crafted songs and pulling them apart, trying to figure out what makes them tick. So the next batch of originals you hear (which you will hear relatively soon), will be in some way informed by this experience.
I'm taking the weekend off and then we'll get ramped up again on Monday. But if any of you want to leave comments or questions below, I'll try to get to them on Saturday or Sunday.
Talk soon,
Kyle
PS -- I finally got around to watching Altman's SHORT CUTS this week. I had the Criterion DVD sitting on my shelf for years, staring at me like some sort of three-hour bully: "I DARE YOU TO WATCH ME!" Boy am I glad I did. For those of you who are film people and haven't seen it, do yourself a favor. This thing is crushingly good. And it makes MAGNOLIA make a whole lot more sense...
It's pretty hard to find online, so I wish you luck in your journey. I'd lend you my DVD, but it's going back on that shelf, so that it can stare me down for another 5 years, until I watch it and enjoy it again...
