From her 1996 The Girl Next Door album, Crystal Bernard from NBC TV’s Wings performs this country-western tune.
REVIEW:
To her credit, Crystal Bernard delivers a polished vocal performance on the bittersweet “Eleven Roses.” The song itself, however, doesn’t stand out all that much. One can attribute it to a standard-issue country-western melody that sounds merely sufficient. Bernard’s endearing voice makes up some of the difference, as “Eleven Roses” should be a fine choice for country playlists.
As part of their hit 2000 album, All That You Can’t Leave Behind, this U2 song was eventually released as among its singles.
REVIEW:
This one literally makes no sense. First digging a ‘hole like a mole,’ but then now there’s an elevation? The worst part about this one isn’t the ridiculous lyrics, sadly. “Elevation,” on top of having one of the most expensive music videos of all time, is a hot mess that never seems to have a true meaning. Bono himself even said that it was just a song to let loose, making listeners wonder if “Elevation” maybe came straight out of Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.
Simple Minds performed this pop tune for 1985’s The Breakfast Club soundtrack. Among the subsequent ‘80s anthology albums this song appears on is VH1: The Big 80’s The Big Movies released in 1998.
REVIEW:
Not only is this signature Simple Minds hit synonymous with The Breakfast Club, it remains a fond reminder of mid-80s high school pop. Its poignant lyrics re: remembering all of your friends is just timeless. The ‘la-la-la’ chorus becomes perhaps too repetitive late in the song, but the distinctive melody alone is a gem. For any 80’s pop or movie tunes playlist, Don’t You (Forget About Me) is really a ‘can’t miss’ prospect.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 9 Stars
Note:An ideal companion download would be John Parr’s “St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion)” from 1985’s St. Elmo’s Fire movie soundtrack. This tune also appears on various 80’s compilations.
For the 1993 Gettysburg film, composer-conductor Randy Edelman’s epic opening credits anthem accompanies black-and-white photos of the real-life battle participants fading into portraits of those actors portraying them. Suffice to say, its combined audio-visual effect is stunningly poignant.
REVIEW:
While much of Edelman’s Gettysburg score is relatively subdued, this instrumental delivers a sense of dramatic immortality. Decisively representing the film’s historical accuracy, Gettysburg’s“Main Title” is a gripping theme worthy of its place among the best-ever for Hollywood’s war films. Highly recommended!
It’s the fourth track of Blake Shelton’s 2011 album: Red River Blue.
REVIEW:
Until his back-up chorus chimes in, Shelton’s low-key vocals don’t sound particularly appealing. The song progressively gets better, but the ultra-folksy “Get Some” is really more of an acquired taste. It’s an okay inclusion for the album – however, “Get Some” likely isn’t one of Shelton’s better download options.
This live 1993 performance of 10,000 Maniacs comes from their MTV Unplugged album recorded from the same-named cable TV series. Natalie Merchant was still the group’s lead vocalist at the time. The track leads with Merchant’s brief spoken intro, as if reading from a young woman’s mid-19th Century journal traveling across the American West.
REVIEW:
Including spot-on instrumentals, “Gold Rush Brides” offers a contemplative slice-of-life re: American pioneer women taking their own leap of faith as expectant mothers in the Old West. What brings the poignant subject matter to life is Natalie Merchant’s sympathetic, down-to-earth vocals. Poetically conveying this often-overlooked aspect of Old West history, she sounds very much in her creative element.
Through this song, Merchant elegantly helps one imagine sights and feelings experienced by these lonely young women traveling long days by caravan — clearly far from home, a supportive bond of sisterhood becomes imperative. This track further demonstrates the same kind of narrative magic Merchant infuses her subsequent 1995 solo album, Tigerlily, with. “Gold Rush Brides” proves an underrated gem worth re-discovery.
It’s the sixth track of Blake Shelton’s 2011 album: Red River Blue.
REVIEW:
This upbeat dance hall tune sounds somewhat reminiscent of Kid Rock’s cover of “Sweet Home Alabama” – then again, this song’s own references to Alabama may just be coincidental. Including the rollicking instrumentals, it’s also the type of radio-friendly tune that Tim McGraw might well come up with. Even if this song doesn’t seem original, “Good Ole Boys” is still pretty entertaining for what it is.
From the soundtrack of 1971’s Diamonds Are Forever starring Sean Connery, this James Bond tune was recorded by Welsh singer Shirley Bassey. This song has since been re-released on some compilation albums, primarily multiple updates of the Best of Bond … James Bond (which includes the franchise’s theme songs to date).
Note:Best of Bond .. James Bond includes a 40th anniversary edition in 2002 and a subsequent update in 2008 for Chris Cornell’s “You Know My Name” from Daniel Craig’s Casino Royale.
REVIEW:
As the second in Shirley Bassey’s trilogy of Bond themes (1964’s “Goldfinger” and 1979’s “Moonraker”), “Diamonds Are Forever” is a wonderful showcase. Working off an ideal melody, Bassey’s alluring vocals bring the song’s lyrics re: a lady’s love affair with diamonds wonderfully to life. Yet, if one had to determine which of Bassey’s three Bond tunes is the least significant, then it’s this one.
It doesn’t have quite the iconic panache of “Goldfinger. Though not by much, Bassey’s inspired effort salvaging “Moonraker” surpasses “Diamonds Are Forever,” as far as being an original pop tune – frankly, anyone who can make an analogy to a space shuttle work as an elegant love song deserves immortality.
As for “Diamonds,” it’s still cheesy fun hearing this 60’s-ish song, but the tune doesn’t leave as much of a lasting impression as her other two themes do. Nevertheless, Bassey’s contribution to “Diamonds Are Forever” slyly steals the thunder from Connery’s brief return to the Bond franchise following a four-year hiatus. There’s no doubt that this tune is the best asset of perhaps the worst-ever Bond film.
Paula Cole performs and wrote this soft rock tune for her 1996 album, This Fire.
REVIEW:
Its breezy melody blends well with Paula Cole’s classy self-reflective lyrics. In good company with similarly ruminating songs by Sarah McLachlan and Natalie Merchant, the upbeat “Me” proves an ideal vocal showcase for Cole. As a download option for ‘90s soft rock playlists, Cole’s “Me” definitely deserves a chance for re-discovery.
It’s the eleventh track off Bryan Adams’ 1991 album, Waking Up The Neighbours. Adams’ frequent collaborator, Robert John “Mutt” Lange, wrote this track.
REVIEW:
This low-key tune doesn’t stand out, but Adams still does the song ample justice. Impressively, this rock album’s production quality is so consistently good – the backlash is that most of its fifteen tracks comprise one large above-average pack, with “Depend on Me,” among them. Though it likely runs a little long, the tune is a solid treat, should one download the complete Waking Up The Neighbours album.
