Theme Thursday - Love

Since today is Valentine's day, the theme for today is love. And for those of you say "St. Valentine was a murderer and Valentine's day is a fake holiday invented by greeting card companies," I say, "yes, it is, but Coca-Cola invented the Santa Claus we know and love, so what's your point?" It's so interesting to me how people "rebel against consumerism" for this one day each year, but really they're just bitter. Besides, even though it can suck for single people (especially single girls, of which I've been one many a Valentine's day), what's wrong with having yet one more day to celebrate and do something special? And just think about all the delicious candy that's going to go on sale tomorrow. Mmmmmmm... Candy. Any holiday that revolves around chocolate can't be too bad in my book.

So that's the theme for the day and maybe the plethora of good music I am about to unleash will cheer you anti-Valentine's day people up (I've actually had a somewhat terrible day myself thanks to the lovely Metro Transit Authority and Con Ed). Instead of just finding songs with the word "love" in the songs for today though, I am going to post songs that I think are really romantic.

Umbrella [mp3] - Rihanna featuring Jay-Z - "Good Girl Gone Bad" (iTunes) - Yes, I know. You indie snobs reading this are probably vomiting right now. But it really is a sweet song. It's one of the few pop songs these days that isn't just about f***ing someone's brains out (though you can't really tell that from the music video... but oh well). Listen to the lyrics. "Now that it's raining more than ever, know what we'll still have each other. You can stand under my umbrella." It's actually a very nice, romantic, simple concept for a song. And yes, it's catchy as hell.

Song No. 6 [mp3] - Ane Brun featuring Ron Sexsmith - "A Temporary Dive" (iTunes). A sweet, pretty song about how it would be easy to write a song about someone. "I would spend three or four lines on describing your eyes. And then the next three or four lines on the dimples of your smile. And then I would tell the world about the way you hold my hand, and they would understand." Aaawwwwww...

You Picked Me [mp3] - A Fine Frenzy - "One Cell in the Sea" (iTunes). This song is very close to being too cheesy, but it's a pretty song and overall I like the sentiment it expresses of finding someone special amongst the millions of people in the world.

Oh, It Is Love [mp3] - Hellogoodbye - "Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs!" (iTunes). I actually wanted to post Here (In Your Arms), a sweet almost dance-able song about one of my favorite things - cuddling. I also like how how it emphasizes the joy in even the smallest of touches, like your cheeks brushing. But I can't post that one, so I'm posting this one instead, a very cute alternative.

Spoon Me [mp3] - Ohm - "Star Fall" (iTunes unavailable). I think the title is self-explanatory.

Fading in C# Minor [mp3] - Una - "One" (iTunes). For most of you this song might not be that romantic, but - as someone currently in a long-distance relationship - the longing that this song expresses is something that I can relate to.

Love Song [mp3] - Sheila Nicholls - "Wake" (iTunes unavailable). I was torn between this and her song Bread and Water (another song with an intense sense of longing - "it's bread and water without you...") but I already posted Bread and Water somewhat recently, and this song is a nice, positive song about love.

Thank You [mp3] - Dido - "No Angel" (iTunes). I almost didn't want to post this because it was so overplayed years ago, but it really is a great love song about how that special someone can magically make everything ok. Dido has a lot of great love songs like Here With Me, Take My Hand, and the rather sad White Flag.

These Words (I Love You, I Love You) [mp3] - Natasha Bedingfield - "Unwritten" (iTunes). Another song I was hesitant to post because of overplay when it came out (and I know you hipsters are probably trying not to throw up again). Also another song about writing a love song. And she's right, there's no better way to say "I love you."

My Man (Medley) [mp3] - Regina Spektor - "Live at Bull Moose" (iTunes unavailable). A mildly disturbing song about a very unhealthy relationship, but I think that everyone experiences this kind of totally unhealthy blind love at some point.

Fairytale [mp3] - Sara Bareilles - "Careful Confessions" (iTunes). This is a song for all you bitter V-day haters out there. A sasssy, cynical commentary on the unrealistic romance of fairytales. Again, I was torn between this and her song Love Song, another slightly bitter song ("I'm not going to write you a love song cuz you asked for it, cuz you need one..."). Something tells me Ms. Bareilles has not had the best of luck with men.

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Where is she now?

With my iPod on shuffle this morning, an old favorite song of mine came on that I hadn't listened to in quite some time from an old favorite artist that I hadn't heard in quite some time. She is the British singer/songwriter Sheila Nicholls and her 2002 album, "Wake," was one of my faves for many years. Maybe it still is. So I got to thinking. What is Ms. Nicholls up to now and why do I not have any of her new albums? And thus I googled her only to find out that she hasn't come out with any new albums since her second album, "Wake," which was released when I was in high school (...weird!). Supposedly (according to Wikipedia) she was going to come out with an album in 2007 but that didn't happen and I see no word as to why anywhere on the internet. There are two new songs on her myspace though, one of which I like very much (Lay Low).

For those of you who've never heard of Nicholls before, I highly recommend giving "Wake" a listen. I was hesitant to give it a chance at first because the album expresses themes of faith and I personally don't tend to be a fan of religiously-themed music. However, it really has very little to do with religious faith (Nicholls herself doesn't seem to affiliate with any particular religion) and it really is a beautiful album. Nicholls has a lovely color to her voice and each song is filled with rich harmonies. It's one of those rare albums in which I like almost every track. My favorites are probably the sultry and haunting Bread and Water, the dramatic and full Maze. But it is really hard to pick favorites because each track is just so good. So give it a listen. And if she comes out with a new album, I will definitely be sharing the news with all of you.

Bread and Water [mp3]
Maze [mp3]

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