very talented Pop artist has released him latest CD titled United States Of Mind and Wow! It's good.I wish it weren’t the case but, it’s not everyday that I get a CD from an artist that I can just pop in and comfortably listen to from beginning to end. There is usually a song or two that I just can’t force myself to get through. Not at all the case with United States Of Mind. Every track is enjoyable and was pretty easy for me to listen to from start to finish.These days it’s a very rare CD on which every single song is good or better than the one before it. This CD is certainly one of those rare CDs.Listen to this CD and I believe you’ll find there's not much to dis-like about it. The songs are inspired, the production is simply outstanding, and Horace Silver is clearly in top form. So much so that if you're even mildly into Pop music you'll enjoy this CD.While the entire CD is really very good some of my favorites are track 6 - disc 1 - Permit Me To Introduce You To Yourself, track 9 - disc 2 - How Much Does Matter Really Matter, and track 14 - disc 2 - SummaryMy Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 1 - That Healin’ Feelin’. It’s a great track!United States Of Mind Release Notes:Horace Silver originally released United States Of Mind on October 5, 2004 on the Blue Note Records label.CD Track List Follows:DISC 1: 1. That Healin' Feelin' 2. Happy Medium, The 3. Show Has Begun, The 4. Love Vibrations 5. Peace 6. Permit Me To Introduce You To Yourself 7. Wipe Away the Evil 8. Nobody Knows 9. There's Much To Be Done 10. Acid, Pot Or Pills 11. What Kind Of Animal Am I 12. Won't You Open Up Your Senses 13. I've Had A Little Talk 14. Soul Searchin' DISC 2: 1. Big Business 2. I'm Aware Of The Animals Within Me 3. Old Mother Nature Calls 4. Total Response 5. Merger Of The Minds, The 6. Cause And Effect 7. Forever Is A Long Long Time 8. My Soul Is My Computer 9. How Much Does Matter Really Matter 10. Horn Of Life 11. Who Has The Answer 12. From the Heart Through The Mind 13. All 14. SummaryPersonnel: Horace Silver (piano); Andy Bey, Salome Bey, Gail Nelson (vocals); George Coleman , Harold Vick, Houston Person (tenor saxophone); Randy Brecker, Cecil Bridgewater (trumpet).

Super talented Jazz artist Marc Antoine has released him latest CD on the GRP Records recording label, entitled Universal Language.Refreshingly, this was one of those CDs I was able to just pop in and comfortably listen to from beginning to end. Every track is enjoyable and was pretty easy for me to listen to from start to finish.Universal Language has a nicely varied, mix of 10 tracks that are very well written songs by this clearly gifted artist. With many of the songs displaying a lot of the kind emotion that makes for a really great listen. Clearly drawing from what I can only imagine are him own real life experiences. At different points touching on the most real emotions like love, heartbreak, pain, failed relationships and unattainable romance. They’re all here.Overall Universal Language is excellent from beginning to end. One of those CDs that after a few listens the songs are just etched into your memory. A must have for the Jazz fan. Really sensational from beginning to end.While the entire album is really very good some of my favorites are track 4 - Children At Play, track 9 - Point Of View, and track 10 - CrossroadsMy Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 1 - Palm Strings. It’s a great track!Universal Language Release Notes:Marc Antoine originally released Universal Language on February 15, 2000 on the GRP Records label.CD Track List Follows:1. Palm Strings 2. Valerio 3. Celta 4. Children At Play 5. El Camino 6. N.Y. Strolling 7. Elikya (Hope) 8. Bossa Nouveau 9. Point Of View 10. CrossroadsPersonnel: Marc Antoine (nylon acoustic & steel-strings guitars, percussion, programming); Lokua Kanza (vocals, guitar); Cara Jackson (vocals); Andy Snitzer (saxophone); Jim Hynes (trumpet); Michael Davis (trombone); Dave Valentin (flute); Philippe Saisse (piano, keyboards, drums, percussion, programming); Jeff Golub (electric guitar, electric sitar, mandolin); Will Lee, Mark Egan, Andre Magna (bass).

One word describes the CD Unplugged from Maxwell... AWESOME!It's a rare day indeed that I get a CD from an artist that I can truthfully say does not have a bad track in the bunch. I'm more than happy to announce that’s exactly what I must say about this one. There simply isn’t a bad one in the bunch. No fillers here at all, with each song standing tall on it's own.Pop music fans will recognize some of the well known guests that have been assembled to play along with Maxwell on several of the tracks. Artists like Gloria Agostini and Gerald Tarack just to name a couple.I’m of the opinion that Unplugged is certainly Maxwell’s best work in a few years. A totally enjoyable CD and an outstanding release. What I call must have music. I give it two thumbs up because it’s a collection that even the casual Pop fan can appreciate and enjoy.While the entire album is really very good the truly standout tunes are track 4 - This Woman’s Work, track 5 - Whenever Whereever Whatever, and track 7 - Gotta Get: Closer.My Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 1 - The Suite Urban Theme. What a nice track!Unplugged Release Notes:Maxwell originally released Unplugged on July 15, 1997 on the Columbia label.CD Track List Follows:1. The Suite Urban Theme (The Hush) 2. Mello: Sumthin (The Hush) 3. Lady Suite, The 4. This Woman's Work 5. Whenever Wherever Whatever 6. Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder) 7. Gotta Get: CloserUnplugged Album Notes Personnel: Maxwell (vocals); G/Mo (guitar); Gloria Agostini (harp); Gerald Tarack, Matthew Raimondi, Veronica Salas (violin); Susan Poliacik (cello); Andre Roberson (saxophone); Russell Gunn (trumpet); Darrell Smith (Fender Rhodes electric piano, Hammond B-3 organ); Michael Neal (bass); Kerry Griffin (drums); Angel Luis Figueroa (percussion); Michael Dickerson, La Tina Webb, Khaliq (background vocals).

What makes a great song? It's a big question, and one that has been written about endlessly in an attempt to unravel the "formula" for creating a world dominating smash hit record. Sure, there are some basic rules and if you were to examine a handful of the most successful or popular songs of the last four decades, they do have certain things in common. Intro, verse, bridge, chorus, verse, bridge, chorus, middle 8, chorus, chorus etc springs to mind! We can examine things like structure, melody and production very easily but for a greater understanding of the "smash", we need to look at concepts. Have you ever wondered why some songs seem to "connect" with people and others don't? When asked why people like a song, they will usually say something along the lines of "I like the tune" or "it's got a great beat". Very rarely will the average music consumer tell you they love a song because of the clever way it's been written, or because the music sounds like it was really hard to play. People simply aren't interested in that stuff. They're interested in the elusive combination of a great melody and a lyric that they can relate to, and preferably sing along to.Of course this isn't true of all genres of music, for the purposes of this piece I'm referring mainly to pop music, as this is the domain of the hit single! Yes there are lots of brilliant, intelligent musicians and songwriters out there whose music never isn't even near the radio and probably never will be. Whilst the music industry is partly responsible for this, it doesn't change the fact that (generally speaking) if you want to have a big song, you have to be able to connect with lots of people. And that means delivering a message that is clear, simple, catchy and easy to relate to.This means thinking very carefully about what you're song is actually about. It can be so easy to get wrapped up in the details of the music itself, such as which chords to use? How the melody should go? How should the snare drum sound?) Sometimes the central concept of the song can often end up as an afterthought. As a producer and songwriter I get to hear lot of demos from new artists, some of whom are quick to tell me very confidently which of their songs are the singles, or "radio friendly". More often than not, the song they point out is the one they've laboured over the most, or the song with the lyrics about their ex girlfriend / boyfriend. Sometimes this can mean their lyrics that are so personal to them that they're in danger of not meaning anything to anyone else! So it helps a lot if you are able to step back from your work and ask yourself - if I had never heard this song, what would I think about it? Do I know what it's about? More importantly, do I care what it's about?Let's look at a couple of recent example of the smash hit song. Love him or hate him, James Blunt's "You're Beautiful" was undeniably one of the big pop songs of 2005, launching a multi-million selling worldwide career for the artist. Cynics will point out that there was a major label and some powerful marketing behind him, which is also true, but they were marketing something that was already going to be relatively easy to sell, because of the simplicity of the concept, the music and the lyrics. I don't think it's too unreasonable to suggest that without this song, the level of his success wouldn’t been as great, and it certainly wouldn't have happened as quickly. The sentiment behind Blunt's song is extremely simple. Perhaps this is why people connected with it? It's essentially a "grass is greener" song, where the main character is imagining a relationship with a stranger he's just encountered. It's also very memorable, even from a first listen. You may not know all the words to the verses straight away, but the chorus is instant. There is never a moment where you're not sure what the lyrics are because "you can't hear them properly". Now imagine the same music, but with cryptic, clever lyrics that only you understand. Does the song still have the same ability to connect with a large audience? Or just to you? ( This can lead us into a whole other area - who are you writing music for, but that’s another topic in itself! ) Now try it the other way around ; take the lyrics and sing them with a new melody over some complex chords in a clever time signature - is it still a hit? it's very unlikely!In 2007, Rihanna's "Umbrella" had a similar impact on the world of pop. The song is built on an infectious beat and very few chords, and again there is a strong concept behind this song. If you look at the lyrics it's more than just another "I love you baby" type thing, but it also has the a very simple main hook, which hits you the first time you get to what I call the "pay off", the "ella - ella - ella - eh - eh - eh" bit, an infuriatingly catchy modern pop moment! Would the song stand up without this hook / gimmick? Yes I think it would, because the gimmick sounds like an addition to the concept, not the concept itself. In other words "Umbrella" is already strong without it, but as a pop record this hook puts into a whole other league. What I'm getting at here is the importance of considering exactly what it is you're are saying in your songs. It’s not usually enough just to have a great beat or a great riff, try and think of these things are the starting point! It's also important not to confuse "simple" ideas with "dumb" ideas. Writing complicated pop lyrics is relatively easy compared with writing good simple pop lyrics, and great lyricists will write on several levels providing you with deeper meanings if you want to look for them. This is a skill that is harder than it sounds and can take a long time to develop. Early Motown records are a good example of this sort of thing, where the writers provided a catchy "surface" meaning that sounded like great pop music, but underneath there was often another motivation (sometimes with social or political overtones) Smokey Robinson and Marvin Gaye were among those who dabbled with this sort of writing, and were responsible for creating some staple pop hits that were accessible to everyone, but often had a second "layer" of meaning. So you don't have to "dumb down" you're masterpiece to get your message across, just try disguising it a bit, you'll be adding depth to your work and you'll be in good company!Of course the most important part in focusing on the concept of your song is having a concept to begin with. What do people want to hear about? Themes of love and loss are the most popular, anecdotes about feeding your cat will not grab people's attention the same way. If you spend a bit of time considering what you're actually saying, and how people will interpret your "message", you should be able give your work a better chance of connecting with your audience. Instead of spending three hours on the snare drum, spend three hours on making your central idea something people can relate to, as generally people don't listen to songs because of how the drums sound! And you never know, you may even be giving yourself a greater chance at that world dominating chart-topping success in the process

It is amazing to see the passion for singing that runs in most of the people. It is believed by many that this is a god gifted talent and cannot be inculcated however so many examples exist that contradict this belief.It's a little more complicated then the question of either you have it or you don't. There are many places around the world that train voices with very little natural talent and produce amazing singers.Limiting singing to just a form of art is unjust as it is also a science and above all a field of unequal devotion and dedication. Even if you are not born with so much talent you can learn by putting in enough effort.One needs proper guidance in order to enhance their voice and this is beyond the scope of natural talent. Of course people born with melodious voices have an edge but not so much in the long run. Lack or absence of natural talent can be made up for if one understands the psyche of the process. It is the training regime that one undergoes that defines your singing abilities and thus if you are fortunate enough to come across the right kind of guide the process is simplified and people with very little talent can reach par excellence.Singing has many components which can be broadly classified as having a good voice and the ability to carry out a tune. Many people with phenomenal voices fail miserably in carrying a tune. Even people who are claimed as born singers undergo the same difficulties with they are unable to understand and synchronize with the melody.Basically if one knows how to use their voice and find appropriate tunes that can be carried with that voice they can become phenomenal.Many people with excellent voices fail to get noticed as they don't know what to do with the voice hence each person who wants to sing has to undergo through the same training irrespective of the status of their voice.Thus if given proper guidance anyone can become a singer. Vocal training is a tedious process that is really complicated by some tutors and is claimed to be a lifestyle by them. Learning how To Sing comprises of many aspects that require years of practice to master. It involves learning and practicing scales, breathing exercises and much more. The practice is directed towards establishing a powerful melodious voice