Daniel Merriweather Unleashes His Golden Pipes on America

OH what I wouldn't give to hear Aussie singer/songwriter Daniel Merriweather's golden pipes live at the House of Blues in Boston on April 30th. Daily Variety called him a star and I have no doubt about that. I've been in love with this guy's voice since I heard his guest vocals on Mark Ronson's "Stop Me," and have been following his various featured vocals on other tracks since. When I learned Merriweather was doing a solo record, OF COURSE I got excited.

Like all good music these days, Merriweather first released the album in the UK (June 1, 2009), where it managed to chart in the #2 spot - followed eight months later by it's U.S. release on February 23rd. First single, "Change" peaked at #8 on the charts, while second single "Red" fared better, peaking at #5. Further singles did not do so well, with "Impossible" peaking at #67 and "Water and a Flame" featuring British soul singer Adele failed to chart altogether. I'm a firm believer that an artist's overall success should not be determined chart success. Merriweather is a talented lad and he deserves success and recognition...in the U.S. too and from the looks of things, he's well on his way.

Merriweather recently performed on The Late Show with David Letterman, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live and Last Call with Carson Daly. What's more - Dan Merriweather is VH1's "You Oughta Know" featured artist! Quite a plug, if you ask me. What I love about Merriweather is the raw quality of his vocals. The guy can sing, no doubt, but it's a little rough around the edges. The raspy quality to his voice just OOZES sexuality and soul and spills out wherever you hear his music played.

As if all of these high profile U.S. television performances weren't enough, Merriweather is currently on tour with British R&B singer Corinne Bailey Rae, who's launching her own comeback of sorts, after a 4 year hiatus. The North American tour kicked off on April 9th in Vancouver and takes the talented duo to 15 cities throughout the United States and Canada. Next Friday, on April 30th Merriweather will be hitting the stage at the House of Blues in Boston. *DROOL* Now I did consider buying tickets earlier but just never got around to it. Now, of course, I'm kicking myself.

Love & War

If you haven't picked up a copy of the album, Love & War yet, what are you waiting for? It's brilliant! While his ballads are beautiful, I'm more a fan of up-tempo fare like "Change," featuring Wale. That being sad, "Red" is GORGEOUS, and I love his duet with Adele on "Water and The Flame." Love & War was produced by Mark Ronson (of course) and takes inspiration from a variety of diverse artists.

“I’m as inspired by Q-Tip and A Tribe Called Quest as I am by Vivaldi, Stevie Wonder, Jeff Buckley, or D’Angelo. There are artists who are archivists—they make music directly derived from music they love. I make music by subconsciously blending things I’ve heard throughout my life.”

The album is a little bit retro, which really suits the raw quality of his vocals. The album also features GORGEOUS instrumentation and orchestral arrangements throughout, which only complement the singer's pipes. If you aren't familiar with Dan Merriweather yet, get ready to be blown away.

If you get a chance, check out Dan on tour with Corinne Bailey Rae:

4/24 - Detroit, MI - St. Andrews Hall

4/26 - Toronto, ON - Queen Elizabeth Theatre

4/28 - Montreal, QC - Club Soda

4/30 - Boston, MA - House Of Blues

5/1 - Philadelphia, PA - TLA

5/3 - New York, NY - Webster Hall

5/4 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg

5/11 - Atlanta, GA - Center Stage

5/13 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club

5/14 - Baltimore, MD - Rams Head Live

Check out Daniel Merriweather on the web:

Official Site//MySpace//Facebook//Twitter//iTunes//YouTube

In My Stocking...

Let the post holiday spending begin! Last week I got myself a pair of the BOSE ear buds. So far so good. The sound quality is excellent and they are very comfortable. I think they are quieter than my iPod ear buds which is also a plus. I don't want anyone to tell me to turn my music down AND there's nothing I dislike more than hearing someone elses music on the train or bus.

In addition, I did a little shopping on CDWow.com. They were having a post-holiday 40% - 80% off sale for CDs, DVDs and other things, running till New Years Eve. With their free shipping and large selection of imports, I thought I'd stock up. Here's the rundown on what I got:

CHERYL COLE - 3 WORDS

I've been listening to Cheryl Cole's album non-stop since it leaked. It's really a quality pop album, if you ask me. While there is a little bit too much of will.I.Am for my liking, the tracks are all solid. I'm absolutely loving the second single, "3 Words," featuring Mr. will.I.Am. The video for that single is absolutely stunning. I also dig the forthcoming 3rd single which has been announced as "Parachute." Check out Cheryl on the cover of UK music magazine, Q, on newsstands now. Hot Tracks: "3 Words," "Parachute," "Fight For This Love," "Rain On Me," "Heaven"

ALICIA KEYS - ELEMENT OF FREEDOM

I haven't purchased an Alicia Keys album since her debut. I'm honestly not too sure why I purchased this, her fourth album. Keys is undoubtedly talented but lately her genre of music as a whole just hasn't impressed me that much. I think that given my state of mind of late, more mellow sounds are calming and relaxing to me, rather than the driving dance/electro beats that I've craved up until now. I'm always on the lookout for that next emotional ballad to unlock the waterworks in my eyes. With Keys' knack for writing emotive and passionate songs, combined with her crazy piano and vocal skills - it's pretty safe to assume that there are some cry-worthy songs on this album. Hot Tracks: "Doesn't Mean Anything," "Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart," "Wait Til You See Me Smile," "Love Is My Disease," "Put It In A Love Song," "Through It All," "Empire State Of Mind (Part II) Broken Down," "Un-Thinkable (I'm Ready)"

LEONA LEWIS - ECHO

Leona Lewis' second album has been growing on me in the months since my initial review. The more I listen to Echo, the more easily I am able to connect to it. My initial complaint was that there weren't enough up-tempo numbers, with Lewis instead resorting to her standard brand of "boring" ballads. Perhaps that was unfair. There's definitely a place for big ballads. Not every artist needs to sing up-tempo Gaga-esque dance tracks. At this time in my life, I need all of the big, beautiful sad ballads I can get my hands on. I guess you can say that this purchase was an emotional one. Leona releases "I Got You" next in the States and rumor has it that "Outta My Head" will serve as the next international single. Both are stand outs in my opinion. Hot Tracks: "I Got You," "Love Letter," "Fly Here Now," "Brave," "Alive," "Outta My Head," "Broken"

WILL YOUNG - THE HITS

Will Young is one of my biggest celebrity crushes. The handsome singer/actor has struck me ever since I first heard of him back when his career was just taking off in the UK. Not only is Young a talented singer, but he's also a role model, coming out as a gay man. He also had brilliant role in Mrs. Henderson Presents..., a beautiful little British film. It's hard to believe that this young talent (only 30 years old) has had four albums out since winning Pop Idol back in 2002. His greatest hits album (titled The Hits) features 12 songs taken from his first four albums, plus two new tracks - single "Hopes & Fears," and "If It Hadn't Been For Love." Young has a reportedly brilliant collaboration with Groove Armada and is rumored to be working on a more dance/electro album for his next project. Well...we know how well that turned out for Robbie Williams (see Rudebox) but I love Will and think a dance album will really suit his voice. Hot Tracks: "Leave Right Now," "Your Game," "Friday's Child," "Switch It On," "All Time Love," "Who Am I," "Changes," "Hopes & Fears"

ALEXANDRA BURKE - OVERCOME

I think Alexandra Burke's debut album was what I was looking for in Leona Lewis' second album. There are ballads but there are also plenty of up-tempo club friendly tracks. That being said, I think there's room for both artists. As I mentioned above, I've really become attached to Leona's Echo. Alexandra's album is definitely suited for the U.S. Top 40 market and may even get some play on U.S. R&B radio stations. Leona's album is definitely more suited for adult contemporary radio stations, though it seems to be getting some play on mainstream radio as well. Regardless, I have space on my iPod for both X-Factor winners. They both do their own thing and do it well. Burke will reportedly be re-tooling her debut album for U.S. markets, but will be releasing the same videos that have already seen a UK release. U.S. audiences can expect Burke's new album to drop sometime in 2010. Hot Tracks: "Bad Boys," "Broken Heels," "Nothing But The Girl," "You Broke My Heart," "Overcome," "It's Over"

In addition, I snagged these albums:

WHITNEY HOUSTON - I LOOK TO YOU

JOSS STONE - COLOUR ME FREE

THE SATURDAYS - WORDSHAKER

THE SATURDAYS - CHASING LIGHTS

ANNIE - DON'T STOP

JAMIE CULLUM - THE PURSUIT

DAVID GUETTA - ONE LOVE

Next week (January 5th) I'll likely be picking up brand new albums by Katharine McPhee (Unbroken) and the debut album, Animal by Ke$ha. Oh and January 26th sees the release of the much anticipated album The Sea by Corinne Bailey Rae. Lots of good music coming in the New Year.

Corinne Bailey Rae Is Back!

See, now this is the kind of news that just makes me smile. Corinne Bailey Rae first started tugging at my heart strings with her super sunshiney single "Put Your Records On" back in 2006. Following the release of her debut self-titled album, Bailey Rae went straight to #1 one on the UK Album Chart as well as the top of the UK R&B Albums Chart.. The album did amazing well overseas as well, peaking at #4 on the Billboard 200 and has sold over 4 million copies worldwide. Both a critical success as well as a chart success, expectations were high for Bailey Rae's follow up record...but would we ever hear from the talented Grammy-nominated chanteuse again?

Sure, Bailey Rae released a live CD/DVD in 2007 but what about new material!? Well, the tragic death of her husband Jason Rae in March of 2008 seemed to put any future music plans on hold and she sort of disappeared from sight. Well, kids - put your records on because Corinne Bailey Rae is going to be back in 2010 as she prepares to release her first new album in four years! The Sea is set to be released in the UK on February 1st and on February 2nd in the U.S. and was co-produced by Bailey Rae herself along with Steve Brown and Steve Chrisanthou - the latter served as producer throughout much of her debut.

The new album will see a departure from the happy and carefree sounds that filled up her self titled debut, instead replacing happiness with the more melancholy themes of loss and grief. Totally understandable. Bailey Rae has had a rough couple of years and has most likely had time to do a lot of soul searching and writing about her feelings. Despite the depressing undertones of the new album, "a sense of beauty and wonder ultimately radiates from the album’s dark corners," according to a press release. Billboard.com reports that "the breezy pop soul" of her debut have all been replaced with more "deeply personal songs."

“There is something miraculous that pushes you along, makes you keep going, makes
you carry on. It’s really about the mystery of that. In fact, the whole album is about that in a way; it’s about loss but it’s also about hope, about keeping going and trying to find that beauty,”
Bailey Rae said in an interview with the U.K.’s Observer Music Monthly back in October.


During her first major live performance since the death of her husband, Bailey Rae debuted songs from The Sea at The Tabernacle in West London on November 23rd. According to Billboard, highlights include emotional ballads ("I'd Like To Call It Beauty" & "I'd Do It All Again"), an up-tempo number likely to be the album's first single, called "Paris Nights & New York Mornings." Also straying away from the sounds of her last album are a couple of songs with "jazz and soul touches augmented by a rockier sound" ("Are You Here?" and "Paper Dolls"). Balancing out the set, Rae incorporated 3 of her hits - "Like a Star" "Put Your Records On" and "Til It Happens to You."

Whatever soulful sounds come out of Corinne Bailey Rae, it's evident that she has been missed by her fans (myself included). Playing such an intimate gig allowed for the fans in attendance to send her lots of love up onto the stage, with one fan shouting "We missed you!." Bailey Rae replied - "I missed you too." Indeed. Welcome back, love.

Check out Corinne Bailey Rae on the web:
Official Site//MySpace//Facebook// YouTube//Twitter