Posting daily at 1pm central about all kinds of things. One day it's dating, the next it's TV commercials. I hope you're entertained. Professional photos on SmugMug – https://benwilder.smugmug.com
There are quite a few songs I’ve heard that were simply remakes of an older version. An easy one to use as an example is “Can’t Help Falling In Love.” Everyone and their mother knows this song was made popular by Elvis Presley.
But this isn’t the version I heard first. For me, it was the recording by UB40 that I fell in love with in the early 1990s.
There are other songs, too, that are only a newer artists take on an old classic. So my question is this:
Does a person generally like the first version they hear of a song, even if it’s not the original artist singing it?
Alien Ant Farm “Smooth Criminal,” Boyz II Men “In the Still of the Night,” Jeff Buckley “Hallelujah,” Whitney Houston “I Will Always Love You,” and Sinead O’Connor “Nothing Compares 2 U” are arguably better covers than the originals, along with many, many other songs. If you heard these first, would you think they’re better than Michael Jackson, The Five Satins, Leonard Cohen, Dolly Parton, and Prince’s originals?
What are your thoughts? Do you have a few cover favorites you like better than the original? Chime in below!
I was standing in the kitchen of my house and felt something I didn’t expect to feel at this particular moment. Five minutes prior, I was lying on the couch watching an episode of Lost In Space. After the dramatic last few minutes, I clicked off the TV and thought about preparing for bedtime. That’s when I felt it.
Something was crawling on the back of my neck, much to my dislike. I thought to myself… “Gosh, I really hope this is just a……” WAIT! There is absolutely nothing I could hope this was. I swiped at it, flinging it to the kitchen floor. Yep, everyone’s worst nightmare. A baby roach. And I’ll save you time; according to Google, a baby roach is called a nymph. Well, this was more of a toddler than a baby, but yikes.
What’s the worst thing that’s happened to you? At least now, after this story, you may can say to yourself, “At least I didn’t have a roach crawling on my neck!”
I can’t say whether the tides are changing in country music but if you use the recent CMA Awards as any sort of example of what country music is like today, you may notice who wasn’t there.
Remember back in the early to mid-2010s when “bro-country” became a thing? Artists like Florida Georgia Line, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, and others all had hit songs that were somewhat generic and formulaic with lyrics about drinking or dancing girls or backroad parties. Obviously there was success in that subject matter, but there was also a lot of pushback from traditional country music fans and well-known country artists.
Fast forward to 2019, the 53rd annual CMA Awards airing on ABC and featured no, not bro-country, but a heavy dosage of bra-country. The women of country music! Get it? Bra… women… women wear bras? It’s just a little diversion from bro-country to remind us all that bra-country is great! The CMA Awards was hosted by the amazing trio of Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, and Carrie Underwood and if you didn’t get a chance to see the fantastic opening number, here it is.
I’m sure fans were happy to hear and see a lot of more traditional country being showcased, celebrating legendary women in country music, and not hearing the likes of Florida Georgia Line, Luke Bryan, and Jason Aldean… none of whom were in attendance.
If you want to read a full recap of the show performances click here.
Concerning those CMAs, I was really only surprised by a couple things…
Garth Brooks winning Entertainer of the Year. Grady Smith says it best here…
Actually, that’s it. I was surprise by one thing. Garth. Over Eric Church and Carrie Underwood. Come on! Like Grady is, I’m also a fan of Garth Brooks, but it definitely seemed like he just swooped in and took the award away from others who genuinely deserved it.
I also don’t like Kacey Musgraves, there, I said it. But she’s a big part of the bra-country movement and if the future of country music is how the CMAs looked this year… I’m back in! I love most of the women featured on the show, plus I love Eric Church, Little Big Town, Miranda Lambert (I almost dated her, you know), Dierks Bentley, and plenty of others.
Omaha, Nebraska — Kanye West’s new album “Jesus Is King” has listeners all over the globe in a full trot with excitement, and it’s topping nearly every chart, even debuting at #1 on the US Billboard 200.
Christians have been very vocal about their support of Kanye’s gospel album. A quick check on Twitter or Facebook and you’ll quickly realize there is nothing but Psalm-like praise for the entirety of the record, from the east coast to the west coast and every coast in between. Well, almost every coast.
“I’ve never really been a rap guy.” This kind of statement is taboo in Christian circles since the release of “Jesus Is King,” but a Nebraska man known as the only Christian who hasn’t listened to, and loved, Kanye West’s new album is ready to face his critics.
Meet Trevor Gaines. “Kanye seems like a nice enough guy. I can’t say whether I’d vote for him in 2020, or 2024, you know?” Mr. Gaines is, of course, referring to news that broke this morning of Kanye West’s plans to run for US President in 2024.
“Politics aside, I’ve gotten a lot of backlash for not checking out [Kanye’s] new music. In fact, last Sunday when I went to drop my offering in the plate, I was told to stop, to instead use that money to download ‘Jesus Is King’. I think I heard someone whisper ‘WWJD.’ Well, I don’t know exactly what Jesus would do, you know? Does he like rap music? Look what’s in the Bible. Psalms is basically the journal of a struggling singer/songwriter… and that’s in the Bible.”
At the time of publication, Trevor has yet to listen to a single track from “Jesus Is King.” Friends and family, as well as church-goers in his community, are praying for him and urging him to repent.
For the longest time I’ve thought of myself as a sucker for a good romantic comedy. It’s true, rom-com’s are my favorite movie category, and I’m only a little embarrassed to say that! As a dude, shouldn’t I like action or gory films or just straight comedies? I don’t know, I like what I like. So now that I’ve confessed this to you, here’s a list of a few of my favorite romantic movie endings, and I’ll try hard to pick out a favorite scene from each.
The Wedding Singer
Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler in their 329th movie together but this one is set in the 1980s. Most romantic scene in the movie is in the airplane with Adam singing to Drew, with the help of Billy Idol… a very very memorable moment.
Elizabethtown
This whole movie is amazing. If you haven’t seen it, take a couple hours one night and let yourself be immersed in the humor of life in the south- crickets chirping at night, screened porches, big family gatherings, and romance! Towards the end there’s a scavenger hunt of sorts involving Kirsten Dunst and Orlando Bloom, and it’s an amazingly romantic way to wrap up the story. This movie is in my top 3 all time favorites.
Serendipity
The beautiful Kate Beckinsale stars in this along with John Cusack. A story of fate, chance, and doing everything you can to find “the one,” I really like this movie! My favorite scene, without giving too much away, is when the guy (John C) opens up a particular book and finds her (Kate B) name written in it. That’ll make more sense if/when you seen the movie, but it’s a really heart-stopping moment.
Hitch
Will Smith and Kevin James… need I say more? OK, I will. It’s got a fantastic cast including Eva Mendes and Amber Valletta. Amber is also the star of this Keith Urban music video. The movie is equal parts comedy and romance, and has a really great ending. My favorite scene…
Will: “Where are you going?”
Kevin: “Skydiving!”
Never Been Kissed
Another Drew Barrymore movie, also set in the 80s, but this time she’s an adult posing as a student to find out more about what popular life is like. Also stars David Arquette as a funny popular guy. Great movie, and this one is my #1 music to movie combo. The scene where Drew is on the baseball field standing on the pitcher’s mound waiting for her love interest to arrive… the countdown clock hits 0 and the guy doesn’t show up… major letdown… crowd is deflated, as is Drew…. then from the furthest end of the bleachers, teacher comes briskly down the steps to the Beach Boys “Don’t Worry Baby” and it’s quite the moment! Whoever thought to use that song in that moment, major kudos to you. That’s the best scene, capped off with this exchange…
Teacher: “Sorry I’m late, it took me forever to get here.”
Drew: “I know what you mean.”
Dan in Real Life
Steve Carrell in a more serious role, although very likable and still funny at times. This movie builds and builds and by the end, you’re cheering so much for Steve’s character. The best scene is a song by Steve and Dane Cook. Such a deep moment for Steve’s character…
Enchanted
Amy Adams is a cartoon princess who gets whisked away into a physical 3-dimensional world (the one we live in, ya know?) and it’s so charming and funny. Her character is really cute and by the end, she’s in love but not with a cartoon prince. The scene I remember the most (besides the squirrel going “bloop, bloop, bloop!” with the ice tea) is a dance featuring a great song by Jon Mclaughlin. The song steals the moment, but the romance is real, too.
Jerry Maguire
I don’t suppose you can have a list of romantic movies without including this one. “You had me at hello” became a phrase everyone and their mother knew, along with “You complete me.” Of course, there was also “Show me the money!” but that one wasn’t quite as romantic as the former quotes. Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger are the two sharing the romance, and it’s a great movie. I’d say it’s in my top 10 because it combines humor, sports, and love. Here’s the scene that’s uber lovely…
Thanks for checking out my list! What are some of your favorite romantic movie endings?
Out of the Wilderness 