Trailer

FromStrong Songs

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Trailer

FromStrong Songs

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Length:

1 minute

Released:

Nov 14, 2018

Format:

Podcast episode

Description

This is the trailer for Strong Songs, recorded in June of 2020. Hope you give the show a listen!

Released:

Nov 14, 2018

Format:

Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

Music: it's good. On each episode of Strong Songs, host Kirk Hamilton takes listeners inside a piece of music, breaking it down and figuring out what makes it work.

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Five Albums That Shaped Me: Strong Songs now has a Patreon! Learn more about how you can support the show here: https://patreon.com/strongsongs. Kirk gets his Patreon pitch out of the way up front, then lists five albums that have shaped him as a musician over the years, talking a little bit about why each one is great. There could've been like a hundred different albums on this episode, but hey, let's start with five. Those albums are: -- Frank Zappa, The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life, 1991 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify -- The Cardigans, First Band on the Moon, 1996 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify -- Stan Getz, Stan Getz and the Oscar Peterson Trio, 1958 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify -- Spacehog, The Chinese Album, 1998 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify -- Maria Schneider, Allégresse, 2000 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Spotify | Maria Schneider's Website ———————————— NEWSLETTER/MAILING LIST Sign up for Kirk's mailing list to start ge by Strong Songs
22 min listen
Secrets of a Great Band Director, with Janis Stockhouse: In this Patreon-funded special episode, Kirk sits down with his former high school band director Janis Stockhouse to talk about her life as a music educator. by Strong Songs
55 min listen
"Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen: Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Well, either way, this is definitely an episode of Strong Songs about Queen's genre-blending rock saga "Bohemian Rhapsody." STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs MAMA, JUST KILLED A MAN Kirk dives into Freddie Mercury's operatic opus and learns a lot about vocal technique, piano motifs, harmonic easter eggs, studio production, Strategic Brian May Deployment™, and all the ways doubling a track can make your voice sound cool in the studio. Band/Artist: Queen Album: A Night At The Opera, 1975 Composed by: Freddie Mercury Produced by: Roy Thomas Baker Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify ------ ALSO FEATURED: "Don't Stop Me Now" by Freddie Mercury from Jazz, 1978 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify "We Will Rock You" by Brian May from News by Strong Songs
50 min listen
"You Can Call Me Al" by Paul Simon: This week, Kirk breaks down one of his favorite songs from one of his favorite albums. STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs IF YOU'LL BE MY BODYGUARD Paul Simon's "You Can Call Me Al" was a single from his incredible 1986 album Graceland, and its music video introduced a generation to the wonders of goofy lip-synching and fretless bass solos. It's a harmonically simple tune with a cleverly dense arrangement, and brilliantly uses musical layering. Band/Artist: Paul Simon Album: Graceland, 1986 Composed by: Paul Simon Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify NEWSLETTER/MAILING LIST Sign up for Kirk's mailing list to start getting monthly-ish newsletters with music recommendations, links, news, and extra thoughts on new Strong Songs episodes: https://kirkhamilton.substack.com/subscri by Strong Songs
18 min listen
The Beatles, Brubeck, Bond and Beyond: It's time for an extra-long episode as Kirk answers your questions about Phil Collins drum solos, musical Wilhelm screams, odd time signatures, Beatles instrumentation, drop-tuned guitars, Bond music, and much more. STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs SHOW NOTES/LINKS ———————————— "In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins from Face Value, 1981 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify ———————————— Jennifer Hudson sings "The Star Spangled Banner" by Frances Scott Key and John Stafford Smith at Super Bowl XLIII, 2009 ———————————— A YouTube compilation of the Wilhelm Scream An excellent Vox video on the history of the "Orchestra Hit" sample "When I Think of You" by Janet Jackson, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis from Control, 1986 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify "In My Life" by Lenno by Strong Songs
49 min listen
"Africa" by Toto: On the first episode of Strong Songs, Kirk breaks down Toto's hit song "Africa," a single so good that it still lights up the Internet today. Band/Artist: Toto Album: Toto IV, 1982 Composed by: David Paich and Jeff Porcaro Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs NEWSLETTER/MAILING LIST Sign up for Kirk's mailing list to start getting monthly-ish newsletters with music recommendations, links, news, and extra thoughts on new Strong Songs episodes: https://kirkhamilton.substack.com/subscribe STRONG MERCH! Visit the Strong Songs merch store for some very cool t-shirts, mugs, totes, and more: store.strongsongspodcast.com by Strong Songs
22 min listen
"Moanin'" by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: Dust off your head charts and brush up your best licks, cause it's time to wade into the warm, welcoming waters of jazz. NOW ON PATREON Strong Songs now has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs MOANIN' This episode's Strong Song is Bobby Timmons' gospel-tinged "Moanin'," from Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers' 1959 album of the same name. Kirk zooms out a bit more than usual to talk about jazz small-group arranging, how a great solo is constructed, how jazz song-form works, and how (hopefully) to have a better appreciation for what's going on on a given jazz recording, even if you don't play. He also talks about anime. Band/Artist: Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers Album: Moanin', 1959 (recorded in 1958) Composed by: Bobby Timmons Personnel: Lee Morgan, trumpet; Benny Golson, tenor sax; Bobby Timmons, piano; Jy by Strong Songs
43 min listen
Syncopation, Subdivision & The Four Chords: The Strong Songs mailbag is overflowing, so it's time to dive in and answer some listener questions. NOW ON PATREON Strong Songs now has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs LISTENER Q&A Kirk digs into creative subdivision, syncopated melodies, major 9th chords, famous drum fills, chiptunes, "bad" singing that's actually good, jazz chords, Indian drum languages, and how to be a better music listener. Update 12/23/2020: Kirk has traveled back in time to correct this episode's erroneous diagnosis of a strange sound on Led Zeppelin's "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You." SHOW NOTES/LINKS ———————————— "The Four Chords" as performed by The Axis of Awesome on YouTube ———————————— A cool breakdown of the "Amen Break" drum fill ———————————— "Puttin' on the Ritz" by Irving Berlin, performed by Ella Fitzgerald Listen/Buy: Apple Music | A by Strong Songs
45 min listen
"Mr. Blue Sky" by Electric Light Orchestra: Today's forecast calls for blue skies, and today's Strong Songs calls for an in-depth analysis of Electric Light Orchestra's "Mr. Blue Sky." NOW ON PATREON Strong Songs now has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs BLUE SKIES It's time to welcome all our pretty faces to the human race, thanks to ELO's most enduring concert-rock classic. Kirk goes for a sunny stroll on a beautiful musical day full of layered vocals, fire extinguisher drumming, time-tested chords, Les Paul solos, vocoders, and... unexpected saxophone interludes? Band/Artist: Electric Light Orchestra Album: Out Of The Blue, 1977 Composed by: Jeff Lynne Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify ------ ALSO FEATURED: "Yesterday" by Paul McCartney from Help!, 1965 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify -- "Confirmation" by Charlie Parker, 1946, include by Strong Songs
35 min listen
"Thriller" by Michael Jackson: Darkness falls across the land, and it's the right time for Michael Jackson's "Thriller." STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs STRONG MERCH! Visit the Strong Songs merch store for some very cool t-shirts, mugs, totes, and more: store.strongsongspodcast.com IT'S CLOSE TO MIDNIGHT Kirk picks apart Rod Temperton's dance floor classic in all its groovy, corny, sound effect-y glory. Band/Artist: Michael Jackson Album: Thriller, 1982 Composed by: Rod Temperton, produced by Quincy Jones Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify ------ A NOTE FROM KIRK: It’s been a couple months since I produced this episode, and just a few days since I watched the first part of “Leaving Neverland,” a devastating new HBO documentary in which two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, detail their alleged childhood by Strong Songs
30 min listen
Hamilton, Hozier, Multiphonics & Modes: Mailbag May returns for round two, as Kirk continues catching up on listener questions. by Strong Songs
58 min listen
A Playlist For Trying Times: It's a pretty stressful time, and I (Kirk) had a feeling some of you might be cooped up, staring at your phones and anxiously checking the news. I'm right there with you. by Strong Songs
11 min listen
"Tiny Dancer" and "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" by Elton John: Elton John and his lyricist Bernie Taupin wrote so many great songs over the years that it was impossible to pick a single one for Strong Songs. So, why not do two? by Strong Songs
47 min listen
Strong TV Songs: Animated Edition: It's time for something a little different, as Kirk takes a look at the theme songs from some of the most beloved animated TV shows of all time. by Strong Songs
70 min listen
"Think" by Aretha Franklin: Let's go back, let's go back, let's go way on back to that time Aretha Franklin recorded one of her best songs. by Strong Songs
51 min listen
"Let It Go" from Frozen: What happens when you put a straight-up power ballad in the middle of a Disney movie? "Let it Go" happens, that's what. STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs LET IT GO On this episode, Kirk climbs to the top of a snowy peak and summons all his magical powers to figure out why Elsa of Arendelle's self-coronation song rocks as hard as it does, and what it says about the evolution of Disney musical numbers over the past 30 years. Band/Artist: Idina Menzel Album: Frozen Original Soundtrack, 2013 Composed by: Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify ------ ALSO FEATURED: "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey from Escape, 1981 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify "Part of Your World" by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman from The Little Mermaid, 1989 Listen/Buy: A by Strong Songs
51 min listen
"I Wish" by Stevie Wonder: Ever wish you could just be a kid again? Stevie does. STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs THE JOY THE DAY WOULD BRING Kirk breaks out the bass and digs into what makes Stevie Wonder's "I Wish" swing like it does, then looks back to some earlier Wonder tunes to guess at why his funkiest stuff tended to be in E-flat. Band/Artist: Stevie Wonder Album: Songs in the Key of Life, 1976 Composed by: Stevie Wonder Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify ------ ALSO FEATURED: "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder, from Talking Book, 1972 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify "Higher Ground" by Stevie Wonder, from Innervisions, 1973 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify "Wild Wild West" by Will Smith, Moe Dewese, Rob Fusari, and Stevie Wonder, from Willennium, 1999 Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Ama by Strong Songs
27 min listen
Tool, Game of Thrones & More Cowbell: It's time for Mailbag May, a long-running (aka brand new) Strong Songs tradition where Kirk spends the month of May catching up on listener questions. by Strong Songs
42 min listen
Trailer: This is the trailer for Strong Songs, recorded in June of 2020. Hope you give the show a listen! by Strong Songs
1 min listen
Fiddle Battles and Bad Sax: Kirk opens the Strong Songs mailbag to tackle your questions about demonic fiddle playing, lousy sax solos, Led Zeppelin counting, fake-out intros, reverb, children's music, and more. by Strong Songs
56 min listen
"Barracuda" by Heart: It's time for the hardest rocking song ever written about sea life, as Kirk takes a deep dive into Heart's 1977 body-shaker "Barracuda." by Strong Songs
47 min listen
"Tightrope" by Janelle Monáe: Whether you're high or low, you got to tip on the tightrope... and Kirk's got to tip right into a Strong Songs analysis of "Tightrope" by Janelle Monáe. by Strong Songs
55 min listen
"Satisfied" from Hamilton: A toast to the groom! To the bride! To knowing you'll always regret the sacrifice you made for your sister! Kirk takes an overdue dive into Lin-Manuel Miranda's epic Broadway musical Hamilton, focusing on Renée Elise Goldsberry's first act showstopper, "Satisfied." Regret tinges an otherwise joyous day as Angelica Schuyler remembers the night she met Alexander Hamilton, fell in love with him, and quickly realized they could never be together. It's a heady mix of complex rhyme schemes, powerhouse vocals, and musical character motifs so densely interwoven that it's hard to keep track of them all. (UPDATE 6/30/2020: This episode's audio file has been updated since it originally ran on May 1, 2019. It includes a new intro and outro, a couple of small editing tweaks, the show's current theme music, a new aside about Angelica's introduction to Alexander, and some added mentions of Alex Lacamoire, Hamilton's fabulous musical director.) Artist: Renée Elise Goldsberry by Strong Songs
50 min listen
"Dancing Queen" by ABBA: It's time to get lost in the bittersweet beats of ABBA's 1976 hit "Dancing Queen." STRONG SONGS ON PATREON Strong Songs has a Patreon! If you liked this episode (or, you know, any of them), we hope you'll consider supporting the show. Learn more here: https://www.patreon.com/strongsongs YOU CAN DANCE, YOU CAN JIVE On this longer-than-usual episode, Kirk tries to tease out some of the things that make this song so iconic and enduring, from its lush arrangement to its clever harmonies, repeating melodic motifs, and maximalist audio production. Band/Artist: ABBA Album: Arrival, 1976 Composed by: Benny Anderson, Björn Ulvaeus, and Stig Anderson Produced by: Stig Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus Listen/Buy: Apple Music | Amazon | Spotify NEWSLETTER/MAILING LIST Sign up for Kirk's mailing list to start getting monthly-ish newsletters with music recommendations, links, news, and extra thoughts on new Strong Songs episodes: https://kirkhamilton.substack.com/subscribe STRON by Strong Songs
38 min listen
"Making Christmas" from The Nightmare Before Christmas: When the full moon starts to climb, we'll all sing out... it's time to talk about the best stop-motion animated Halloween/Christmas movie musical ever made! Hee hee hee hee heeee! by Strong Songs
51 min listen
Pyramid Song, Nirvana & Marty McFly: Kirk opens up the Strong Songs mailbag to answer your questions about Marty McFly's musical instructions, Ian Anderson's flute style, Kurt Cobain's guitar tone, how to count songs by P!nk and Radiohead, and what to do if you play an "unsexy" instrument. by Strong Songs
49 min listen
Sidechain Compression & Saxophone Traffic Cones: Kirk peruses the Strong Songs inbox to answer your questions about jazz drum solos, practicing with play-a-longs, Tame Impala tunes, saxophones with traffic cones, vocal technique, sidechain compression, and several tricky rhythms. by Strong Songs
60 min listen
"Lovefool" by The Cardigans: You don't have to cry, pray, or beg - Kirk is happy to break down one of the 90s' most iconic pop hits without any further encouragement. by Strong Songs
50 min listen
"No One Knows" by Queens of the Stone Age: It's time for a journey of the mind, as Kirk picks apart one of the best hard rock tunes of the early 2000s. by Strong Songs
55 min listen
"Like a Prayer" by Madonna: Life is a mystery, everyone must stand alone... except for everyone listening to this episode, because we're traveling together through doubt and deliverance with Madonna's "Like a Prayer." by Strong Songs
45 min listen

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Titles in the series (100)

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