Tag: John Mayer

Music Monday – Volume Twenty Six

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1) Jessie Ware – Imagine it was us

Catchy, irresistible dance track. Love this.

2) Charlie Simpson – Thorns

Great song off Charlie’s début solo album with a catchy, beautiful melody.

3) Charlene Soraia -Caged

Great pop track.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPY2QxeU5Ag

4) Stereophonics – Have a nice day

Such an uplifting, catchy song which is perfect to lift your spirits at the beginning of the day. Always reminds me of the summer and always makes me feel great.

5) Ronan Keating – Life is a rollercoaster

Cheesy Pop at its best. Catchy, uplifting and a fine, fine song. One of my favourite songs of all time.

6) Friendly Fires – Hurting

Such a catchy song with a 1980’s electro-feel to it.

7) The Vamps – Smile

Perfect closing track to The Vamps’ début album. A catchy, feel-good anthem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UtVqsF7dFA

8) The Vamps – Lovestruck

A slightly darker track on The Vamps’ début album, this is a great song.

9) Robbie Williams & Brad Paisley – Collision of worlds

A perhaps less known track, this appeared on the soundtrack to the movie ‘Cars 2’. The lyrics are witty and very cleverly written and it’s such an awesome song.

10) John Mayer – 83

A great little song that appeared on John’s début ‘Room for Squares’ that deals with nostalgia and wishing to be a child again. It’s easy to relate to and a fantastically written song.

Music Monday – Volume Twenty Five

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1) Katy Perry – This is how we do

This is so catchy, so cool and such a great, uplifting summer song. One of her best off ‘Prism’ and I’m so glad Katy’s releasing it as a single. Great video too.

2) Tulisa – Young

Whatever you think about Tulisa and N Dubz in general, this remains one heck of a tune. This is uplifting, summery and so damn catchy.

 

3) Take That – It only takes a minute

A massive guilty pleasure, this was a great interpretation of an old disco classic. Its sound and production has certainly been left in the ’90’s but it still sounds awesome and Take That’s version is perhaps the best loved and most known version. Such a catchy chorus.

 

4) Take That – Once you’ve tasted love

One of Take That’s most underrated songs of their entire career. It may have been on their début ‘Take That and Party’ which is undoubtedly cheesy and lacks credibility in places but it remains a great, great album. This song is infused with electro-pop influences and it’s just so well written/produced. Big chorus too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTSoPCNLN0U

5) The 1975 – She Way Out

Almost a year later and I’m still just as addicted to The 1975’s début album as I was upon my first listen. ‘She Way Out’ is definitely one of my favourites. It’s repetitive but it’s so damn good, so catchy and has an unbeatable sing-along chorus.

6) Jessie Ware – Tough love

I’ve heard this on the radio for months now and I’ve begun to realise I fall in love with it a little bit more with every listen. It’s soft, understated but remarkably beautiful. So chilled out and a great song.

7) John Mayer – Good love is on the way

A song that’s never appeared on a John Mayer studio album, this has only been included on John’s live albums. It’s an awesome song, however. I love the guitar instrumentation and the lyrics. Very catchy and an awesome tune. Would love a studio version someday.

8) Charlie Simpson – Long road home

I decided to check out Charlie’s new album the other day and was pleasantly surprised. Every song was beautifully written with smooth harmonies and heartfelt lyrics. This is the opening track to Charlie’s second album and it’s a killer opening. Awesome tune.

9) Charlie Simpson – Hold On

Smooth, fluttering harmonies and gorgeous lyrics. Love the guitars in this and the feel of the song in general. Incredibly beautiful.

10) Madonna – Don’t tell me

One of Madonna’s best, I particularly love the stutter-y production on this. It’s smooth, low-key and very summery. I loved Madonna’s music of this era – the country themed songs and minimalistic production.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRLHro9EPD0

 

Music Monday – Volume Twenty Four

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1) Mark Owen – Stars

Mark Owen’s solo career is massively underrated. All of his four solo albums have been fantastic but have achieved only moderate success. 2013’s ‘The Art of Doing Nothing’ is probably his best and lead single ‘Stars’ is a masterpiece. Unusual chord structure, electronic sounding, fantastic instrumentation, beautiful vocals and thoughtful lyrics. SO good.

2) Mark Owen – Giveaway

The opening track to ‘The Art of Doing Nothing’. Haunting introduction, Mark’s echoing vocals and a fine way to open the album, building into a catchy track.

3) Demi Lovato – World of chances

I discovered John Mayer had co-written this song with Demi for her 2009 album so decided to check it out. It’s a beautiful song and I can hear both artist’s influences stamped all over it. Such a great track.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pC3oCfh57BA

4) Republic of Loose – Comeback Girl

Catchy as hell with minimalistic instrumentation. Great summer track.

5) Take That – When we were young

Beautiful song that deserved to fare better in the UK singles chart. A song that returned Take That back to their pop-rock style after the whirlwind that was 2010’s ‘Progress’, it’s warm, heartfelt and beautifully performed.

6) Take That – Happy Now

One of my all time favourite Take That songs and one of the best from their career. An amazing backing track from Gary Barlow with paranoid, robotic and dark verses before a disco, Bee-Gee-esque chorus that’s catchy as hell. It’s an incredible piece of electro-pop with well-written lyrics and the blend of the dark verses with the optimistic, catchy chorus works fanatically and makes it stand out amongst other songs of a similar genre.

7) Take That – What do you want from me

Haunting, heartfelt and emotional. Mark Owen puts his heart and soul into this and Stuart Price’s production is incredible. Awesome song.

8) Michael Jackson – Scared of the moon

Out-take from the ‘Bad’ album which appeared on the 2005 box set; ‘The Ultimate Collection’. It’s simple with just Michael’s voice, a piano and strings but it is absolutely stunning. Michael & Quincy Jones were right to leave it off ‘Bad’ as it simply wouldn’t have fit but it’s an incredibly beautiful song nonetheless.

9) John Mayer/Lawson – Gravity

John Mayer’s signature tune, this is absolute perfection. Silky smooth, Blues-infused and with minimal but heartfelt lyrics. It’s a song John tried to write for a long time before finally getting it right. Lawson are one of my favourite bands who also admire John. They have performed a cover of this song a couple of times, both live in concert and on a live-stream. Their cover is absolutely beautiful so I am including it below too.

10) John Mayer – Wheel

Understated, soft closing track to 2003’s ‘Heavier Things’. It’s a beautiful song with fantastically written lyrics and it has the ability to leave you heartbroken. Gorgeous track and the perfect way to end an album.

Music Monday – Volume Fifteen

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1)      Sam Smith – Restart

SO catchy. I have no idea why this is only available on the deluxe edition because it’s probably my highlight of the album.

2)      Darius – Maliblue

I found this in someone’s summer playlist on Spotify. A really catchy electro track.

3)      Ella Henderson – Ghost

Heard this on the radio the other day and loved it. Had no idea who it was until Grimmy mentioned after and it was a pleasant surprise! I always liked Ella on the X Factor but wasn’t sure if she’d go anywhere after the show. This is easily one of the best songs around at the moment so she’s heading in the right direction! Co-written by one of my favourite songwriters, OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder.

4)     Laura Mvula – She

LOVE this. The harmonies are gorgeous and it’s just a very powerful, beautiful song.

5)      Alexia Keys & John Mayer – Lesson learned

Beautiful song by two very talented artists. Very chilled out.

6)      Peter Andre – I feel you

Bit of 90’s cheese. I know he’s not liked by any but I really like him as a person and as an artist. Love this soppy ballad 🙂

7)      Matt Cardle – It’s only love

This man is so bloody underrated. Such a talented guy. Really love this song.

8)      Kelly Rowland – Can’t nobody

Bit of a throwback. Really love how catchy this is.

9)      Usher – Good kisser

So damn catchy. Love those dreamy harmonies!

10)   Laura Mvula – Yellow

The original by Coldplay is one of my favourite songs of all time. I love Laura Mvula and I found her performance of this the other day on YouTube and fell in love with her all over again. One of the most talented women to emerge from the UK in years. Stunning piano-vocal version of a beautiful song. Some of those chords give me goosebumps!

Music Monday – Volume Fourteen

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1)      John Mayer – Edge of desire

A song I’ve always loved but I fell even deeper in love with it in this past week after watching a live performance of it. The lyrics are some of the best ever written and it’s such a beautiful, emotional song that I can really relate to.

2)      Peter Andre – I do

People may scoff at Peter Andre but he has created a great swing/retro album. This is a lovely song.

(You’ll have to Spotify this one!)

3)      John Mayer – Free fallin’

One of those rare songs that happen to be better than the original. Amazing.

4)      Katy Perry – Teenage dream

This never gets old. Reminds me of summer 2010 – it will always remain my teenage anthem.

5)      East 17 & Gabrielle – If you ever

An underrated 90’s R&B classic, this is SO good. Another song that is better than the original. Brian Harvey’s vocals are silky smooth and Gabrielle has one of my favourite female voices EVER.

6)      The Cranberries – Linger

Just absolutely unique and beautiful.

7)      S Club 7 – Show me your colours

Again, before people scoff at this being by S Club 7, listen to the track first. Awesome song.

8)      Pharrell – Angel

Catchy as hell. Pharrell is a genius.

9)      TLC – No Scrubs

This girl group were one of the best of the 90’s. This remains an absolute tune. SO good.

10)   Katy Perry – Thinking of you

An underrated track by Katy, this is one of her best. One of very few songs she wrote on her own, this needs to be heard by more people so they realise how talented she actually is. Beautiful, relatable lyrics.

Music Monday – Volume Thirteen

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1)      The Days – Never give up

This came on shuffle the other day and I fell in love with it all over again. Never heard anything else by these boys but this is still SO good. So catchy and upbeat.

2)      Roxette – You can’t put your arms around what’s already gone

Another little song that popped up on shuffle! This band is so good – the album this is from is incredible. Great lyrics to this track.

3)      John Mayer – Vultures

A song I always overlooked until about a month ago. John Mayer is such an underrated writer. Amazing lyrics and I just absolutely love this.

4)      Simon Webbe – Free

Simon is of course a member of British boyband Blue. His debut solo album ‘Sanctuary’ is one of my favourite albums released, surprisingly enough. It’s just a perfect balance of upbeat and slow tracks and every song is fantastic. This is co-written by one of my favourite songwriters and I love how soft and beautiful this is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZj_dNPiiD8

5)      BBMak – Next time

These guys were such an awesome band. Most of the current boybands would envy these harmonies. There’s not enough harmony in boybands these days in my opinion. Great little song.

6)      Pharrell Williams – Frontin’

This was on The Nixtape on Radio 1 and I forgot what an absolute tune it is! Pharrell is a genius.

7)      The 1975 – So far it’s alright

This = my jam. That is all!

8)      John Mayer – All we ever do is say goodbye

One of my favourite songs of all time. The lyrics are so perfect and so easy to relate to. I fell in love with this over a year ago and it just always reminds me of summer. It also, for some reason, reminds me of one of my favourite movies, ‘Brokeback Mountain’. I have no idea why this is but it makes the track even more special for me.

9)      Ronan Keating – Lost for words

Just really love the feel of this song. Lyric content is great too.

10)   Sam Smith – Leave your lover

I think Sam Smith is incredibly talented but every song he has released so far (aside from ‘Latch’ and ‘La la la’) has really annoyed me. I’ve been waiting for something to really impress me and not become irritating. Well he’s finally done it. This is so, so beautiful. So soft and delicate with fantastic lyrics.

Music Monday – Volume Eleven

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1)      John Mayer – Something’s Missing

I can SO relate to this song sometimes. When you wonder exactly why you are feeling down when, in fact, you are lucky.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrlNN-RsJUc

2)      Keith Urban – Sweet Thing

Found this through watching a concert Keith & John Mayer did together a few years back. I can’t get enough of this song right now, so uplifting! Really fallen in love with Keith’s music.

3)      Fleetwood Mac – Gypsy

My favourite Fleetwood Mac song. Just love the idea, the lyrical content and the beautiful harmonies. They are an incredible band.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WZ3na8NGjY

4)      The Common Linnets – Calm After The Storm

Yes, sounding like ‘Every breath you take’ aside, it’s a very beautiful song. I missed Eurovision this year but checked out this song because of the controversy. Love it.

5)      Paloma Faith – Stargazer

Love Paloma and this is a great song.

6)      Zero 7 – Destiny

Always reminds me of summer – so smooth, so beautiful and an incredible song.

7)      Robbie Williams – Deceptacon

So hauntingly beautiful it’s unreal. Underrated track by far.

8)      Bombay Bicycle Club – Feel

This is an incredible song. Pays homage to Indian music but in a way that makes it mainstream. So damn catchy.

9)      Coldplay – Stawberry Swing

Just love this, I really do. It’s the instrumentation – so unique.

10)   Foster the people – Pumped up kicks

Irresistible. So catchy 🙂

Music Monday – Volume Eight

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1)      Rebecca Ferguson & John Legend – Burning bridges

Stunning. Love both artists, particularly John. Their voices blend together perfectly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvBOG9I3kpo

2)      Paloma Faith – Impossible Heart

So catchy. Love Paloma!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRONQsJddSw

3)      John Mayer – Wildfire

An awesome country-styled song that makes me feel really summery

4)      One Direction – You and I

Before anyone scoffs, give this a listen a few times and you may realise what I mean when I say this is so beautiful. Probably one of my favourite songs from this year so far and I love it more with every listen. Fantastically written, I particularly love the climax of the song with the guitars and Zayn’s amazing high note.

5)      One Direction – Little black dress

Love the rock edge this song has. Really catchy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h70qwjL-jzM

6)      The 1975 – Settle down

Been in love with this for a while but Radio 1 keep playing it and it sounds so good on radio.

7)      George Michael – Through (Symphonica version)

Normally I don’t allow myself to include a song twice in these playlists but this is a different version. I love this song anyway but live, with an orchestra, it makes it even more powerful. The lyrics are fantastic and the orchestra makes it so beautiful.

8)      George Michael – A different corner

I’d never taken much notice of this until I bought George’s Symphonica album. I really paid attention to the lyrics and everything and I’ve fallen in love with it. Very simple but powerful all the same. “Turn a different corner and we’d never have met” is an awesome lyric. I’ve included a live performance from Parkinson in the late 90’s as I love the more acoustic version!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JGfC9SyPJs

9)      Snow Patrol – Batten down the hatch

I bought ‘Up To Now’, their Greatest Hits and whilst I know about 40% of the songs, the rest I don’t. I haven’t been disappointed though! This is an awesome song.

10)   Snow Patrol – Cartwheels

I never knew of this track either but I am also loving this right now.

Music Monday – Volume Seven

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I’d say this is perhaps my most heavily modern weighted playlist yet! I’m just really loving a lot of the current chart music at the moment which is pretty rare for me. Hope you’ll discover some new songs through this playlist and remember to check back every Monday where I’ll post my ten favourite songs of the moment.

1)      Gary Barlow – Jump

Beautiful song co-written by Gary with another of my favourite writers – Tim Rice-Oxley from Keane. I’ve always found it a greatly inspiring song but hearing it live and seeing the visuals at Gary’s 02 Arena gig I attended last week made me fall even deeper in love with it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NrVR-Wkp48

2)      Mr Probz – Waves (Robin Shulz remix)

Love the feel of this track. So chilled out yet so catchy – loving hearing this on Radio One at the moment.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MH9qWemtPo

3)      Kings of Leon – Temple

Love a bit of Kings of Leon! This reminds me a little of their previous song ‘Supersoaker’ which I also love. Just catchy and fantastic as always.

4)      Duke Dumont – I got you

I know this has been around for a while now but I’ve only just sat up and took notice of it! My love for this track grows with every listen – it is SO catchy and so summery. Cannot get enough of this. Best thing about this track is the steel pans!

5)      John Mayer – The Age Of Worry

I’ve loved this for ages but only fully paid attention to the lyrics of this track lately. So inspiring.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHsCGwH7P6g

6)      Katy Perry – Birthday

SO glad Katy has decided to release this track as her next single. It’s my favourite from ‘Prism’ – full of cheeky innuendo and so incredibly catchy.

7)      Sigma –  Nobody to love

I wasn’t sure what to make of this on the first few listens but it’s so damn irresistible. Repetitive but awesomely catchy.

8)      Whitney Houston – I have nothing

I watched ‘The Bodyguard’ which happens to be one of my favourite films on Saturday night and so I’ve been going through a Whitney obsession again. This track was kinda overshadowed by ‘I will always love you’ but it’s still my favourite from the soundtrack. Incredible song and as always, Whitney’s voice was flawless.

9)      Whitney Houston – I will always love you

Despite its fame I was never really fussed about this song until a couple of years ago. It’s just a beautiful interpretation of an original track by Dolly Parton. Definitely one of the greatest, if not THE greatest pop vocal performance of all time.

10)   John Mayer – Queen of California

This sounds so great in the sun as it’s SO summery. Been listening to this loads recently.

Music Monday – Volume Five

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1)      Yazoo/The 1975 – Only you

Came across The 1975’s live cover from Dermot O’Leary’s Radio 2 breakfast show the other day. It’s a beautiful simplistic cover which made me look at the original in an entirely new light. Since then, I have been listening to both over and over again. Vince Clarke – the writer and musician on the original track is a genius and Alison Moyet’s voice is amazing.

2)      The Vamps – Last night

This is just so catchy and irresistible. Really love this

3)      Gary Barlow – Since I saw you last

One of my favourites when I first listened to the album but I placed it on the back burner for a little while whilst I enjoyed other other songs. Since the release of the video, however, I have fell head over heels back in love with this. It’s so powerful, so emotive and so catchy.

4)      John Mayer 3×5

A catchy, well-written little track towards the end of John’s debut album ‘Room for squares’. I love listening to this on a calm, warm day when I am walking on the way to somewhere. The lyrics are fantastic.

5)      Jakwob – Somebody new

Keep hearing this on Radio 1 and I think it’s awesome.

6)      Meanie C – Be The One

A track off Mel’s debut album ‘Northern Star’, this is so simple but so beautiful. I find it very summery and have been listening to it on repeat recently.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpIhKPytkjg

7)      Kylie Minogue – Fine

The closing track to Kylie’s current album ‘Kiss me once’, this is so fresh and so current yet also loyal to Kylie’s iconic sound. Can’t get enough of this right now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkd6i05uUfs

8)      Paloma Faith – Only love can hurt like this

This is an awesome track penned by Diane Warren (who’s written with and for Celine Dion, Aerosmith, Sugababes, Beyonce, Gary Barlow and others). I love it’s retro/motown feel and Paloma sounds incredible on it.

9)      The 1975 – Robbers

Yep The 1975 are in yet another one of my playlists. This song is just so beautiful and emotive. Really looking forward to seeing the video once it’s done.

10)   One Direction – Strong

A friend told me to listen to this and I haven’t looked back since. Say what you want about One Direction but they have some great hits and songs to their name and this is one of them. Really love the power of the chorus, especially the melody. Discovering new favourite songs through friends is the best.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZmcSUjdq0U