Category: music

Noah Kahan – Stick Season

On By Rick McIn musicLeave a comment

Stick Season was a surprise hit by American singer-songwriter Noah Kahan,

It went viral on TikTok in mid-2023 and charted internationally. It got to #1 in Australia and the U.K.

Noah Kahan nominated for Best New Artist at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards (2024).

The song title refers to a term for autumn in New England, the period after Halloween before the winter snow begins, which Kahan called “a time of transition” and “super depressing” as “it just means that winter is coming soon and it creates a lot of anxiety” and “nobody really likes it”.

For me the video is super original. Fresh.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Now I am stuck between my anger and the blame that I can’t face
And memories are somethin’ even smoking weed does not replace
And I am terrified of weather ’cause I see you when it rains
Doc told me to travel, but there’s Covid on the planes

And I love Vermont, but it’s the season of the sticks
And I saw your mom, she forgot that I existed
And it’s half my fault, but I just like to play the victim
I’ll drink alcohol ’til my friends come home for Christmas

So I thought that if I piled something good on all my bad
That I could cancel out the darkness I inherited from dad
No, I am no longer funny, ’cause I miss the way you laugh
You once called me forever, now you still can’t call me back

Olivia Rodrigo did a cover. This should bring more attention to the original.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

My favourite cover version so far is by Our Last Night. Rockin’

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

A Complete Unknown (2024 Bob Dylan biopic)

On By Rick McIn movies, musicLeave a comment

I was dubious when hearing that Timothée Chalamet would play Dylan. BUT he was excellent.

Won the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award for Best Actor. Sang all those songs himself. Played the instruments, as well.

Supporting cast members, including Monica Barbaro as Joan Baez, Edward Norton as Pete Seeger, and Boyd Holbrook as Johnny Cash, also sang their respective roles. The performances were recorded live on set to capture an authentic feel. 

Edward Norton is a great actor. One of the best.

A Complete Unknown is a 2024 American biographical film about the early career of American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan …

… the period of 1961-1965, beginning with Dylan’s start as an American folk singer, and ending with his controversial use of electric instruments at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival.  …

Surprisingly, Dylan was supportive of the project. The movie is not true to the strict historical record, but rather tries to portrait his rise to fame in the folk music genre and the move to electric instruments.

Like everyone my age, I thought I knew Dylan’s story. I thought of him as a street poet with a terrible singing voice. Another Leonard Cohen.

BUT I realize now that Bob Zimmerman was a wonderkind super talent. The only musician to have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Well deserved.

A genius.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Ed Sheeran – Saphire Music VIDEO

On By Rick McIn music1 Comment

“Sapphire” by Ed Sheeran is Western pop with Indian – specifically Punjabi – musical influence.

Something completely different.

It’s the 3rd single from Sheeran’s 2025 studio album, Play

Ed has backpacker cred since he spent a year travelling the world, staying in cheap hostels, drinking cheap beer.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Click PLAY or watch Making of Sapphire (Studio Behind The Scenes on YouTube.

Blues Brothers Movie

On By Rick McIn books, ethics, humour, movies, musicLeave a comment

Happy 4th of July. I’ve always admired American music, technology, innovation, and film.

A perfect example is Blues Brothers 1980.

After Animal House, John Belushi had the #1 movie, #1 album, and #1 late night TV show. A huge star.

In The Blues Brothers, Jake and Elwood are on “a mission from God” to prevent the foreclosure of their Roman Catholic orphanage.

The Blues Brothers were controversial in a very American way. The intrinsically racist Hollywood film industry assumed they couldn’t sell a celebration of Black music and culture. The industry was wrong.

For example, Ted Mann, head Mann Theatres, refused to book the film as he didn’t want Black patrons. Mann was Jewish.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Belushi was self-destructive, as is the USA.

I relate more to the Canadian, Dan Ackroyd.

Dan published Blues Brothers: The Arc of Gratitude in 2024. His personal recollections of the Band with interviews with many of the key players.

Anna Daley Young ➙ “The Joker”

On By Rick McIn musicLeave a comment

The Joker (1973) was that evocative hit by Steve Miller Band.

Boston born singer-songwriter Anna Daley Young puts a fresh take on it in 2025.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

‘Cause I’m a picker, I’m a grinner
I’m a lover and I’m a sinner
I play my music in the sun
I’m a joker, I’m a smoker
I’m a midnight toker
I sure don’t want to hurt no one

Fantastic A.I. Music VIDEO

On By Rick McIn music, videoLeave a comment

This is by far the best totally A.I. generated music video I’ve seen, so far.

Easily as good as some radio hits.

The creator, Chris Johann, only has a few thousand followers on YouTube.

I can’t find this song on YouTube Music — BUT when Chris can monetize, how can humans compete?

The total cost of this music video is probably less than $1000.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

WHAT will replace your Phone and Laptop?

On By Rick McIn Apple, internet, movies, music, photos, videoLeave a comment

Former lead Apple designer and founder of io Jony Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman believe you will eventually simply stand in front of a monitor a tell it what to do. (Elon Musk would claim that you could simply THINK it what to do. 😀)

Create a feature film, for example.

A.I. image

The new A.I. device MIGHT look something like an iPod Shuffle you can wear around your neck.

Click PLAY or watch an opinion on YouTube. I don’t agree with Matthew regarding Apple Vision Pro — it’s likely an intermediate step towards the future. Eventually you won’t need A.I. glasses