Endorsement time, folks. I scored a find, yezzuh! Although I must say, I'm still in the process of going ga-ga over it. Thank goodness for clearance sales courtesy of Music One in Glorietta (sorry, last day today). Got a Putumayo CD that I've been eyeing for the longest time (it's all right) and Bloc Party's Silent Alarm (it rocks).
Wes Cunningham, who predates Jason Mraz in the acoustic pop-rock era, is a gem. Plus, unlike Mr. A-Z, he's totally indie. Meaning, he's no sellout (not that I'm saying Mraz is... love you, JM!). And--dig this--this Texan singer-songwriter was actually born in ole Philly. You know, as in, the Philippines!
>>Click here for a sampler<<
I especially lurv Good Good Feeling. For some reason, listening to the record makes me wanna go back to my aborted songwriting origins. Yes, folks, I have origins. There you have it. Another one of them not-so-secret secret life moments of mine. This was in the 90s, and I used to go nuts with the guitar at home. When you're a budding nerd (meaning you don't always find yourself in front of a book, although sometimes this can't be helped) and your parents are so strict that summer break means house arrest without pay, you develop non-traditional means of channeling that youthful spirit thing. And thus began my lingering summer fling with songwriting.
Hemingway, what am I going on and on about songwriting for? And in the same breath as the mention of such snazzy creative minds as Cunningham and Mraz, too. Just goes to show how much of a delusional music nerd I am. And the crazy thing, this stroke of insight totally comes just now, 10 years after my first ill-fated attempt to pen a runaway train of a hit.
Well, those were the days.
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Happy Hari Raya to my Muslim peeps!
