Tunes-day Trio: I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends

We all have rough days.

Days when we are exhausted, exasperated, and/or extended beyond what we can handle.
Days when we need an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on.

So today the Tunes-day Trio shares some songs about supporting/strengthening/carrying on.

The honorable mentions:

-"I'll Stand by You" by The Pretenders, made me happy to be reminded of this solid share, Rachel!
-"You Raise Me Up" by Josh Groban, I'm not really a JG fan, but this is spot on, Miss Megan
-"With a Little Help From My Friends" by The Beatles, one of the more upbeat support songs on this list
-"Hold On" by Wilson Phillips, some very deep lyrics in this one, contributed by Miss Megan

I hadn't heard these next two before, but AmandaStretch shared them, and I liked them very much:
-"All Will Be Well" by The Gabe Dixon Band 
-"You Can Close Your Eyes" by James Taylor

And a final honorable mention that's particularly special to me from junior high and high school:

-"Lean on Me" by Bill Withers

It was tough separating the Tunes-day Trio from the honorable mentions, but these three rose to the top:

"You'll Never Walk Alone" from Carousel, sung by Sissel

I'd never heard this song before, but it's beautiful, especially when sung by Sissel. I like that it isn't specific (in the song, at least) as to who is walking with the person, so it can be taken in different ways. Thanks for broadening my musical knowledge, Miss Megan.

"Carry On" by Fun. (acoustic version)

Some days, this is the song that gets me through. Kinda feels like a human version of Dory's "Just keep swimming" mantra from Finding Nemo.

"Stand By Me" by Ben E. King

This goes right along with Rachel's share by The Pretenders, so I think it rounds out this list nicely. When the chips are down, and maybe we are, too, sometimes we just need to know that someone will stand by us and care about us while we're struggling, helping us to rise back up.

Next Time
Now that we've explored a little of the support and helping each other when times aren't at their best, maybe we ought to lighten the mood a bit. In fact, I know we should. We have a lot to be thankful for, as life is (generally) very good for us all.

So how about we make the topic of the next Tunes-day Trio: gratitude/thanks/thankfulness.

Because we're all very blessed to have what we have.

Please submit your song suggestions in the comments, and let's all join together in a big thanks-fest!

Tunes-day Trio: Satisfy that Sweet Tooth

Ok, ok, ok. It's been forever since the color-themed Rainbow Connection trio post.
My interest in blogging waned, but it's waxing now, so we'll take advantage of that while we can.

Turns out there are a whole lotta songs that fit a sweetness/sweets/candy theme.

Plenty of honorable mentions this week:
- "Candy" by Mandy Moore - thanks for the reminder of this gem, Erin Masi!
- "My Boy Lollipop" by Millie Small, graciously pulled from the archives (1964) by AmandaStretch
Props to Miss Megan for these next five. Clearly we were raised on oldies.
- "Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond, because Boston deserves a little extra love right now
- "Sweet Darlin" by She & Him
- "Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows" by Lesley Gore, makes me think of my brother Dave every time
- "Sugartime" by the McGuire Sisters, talk about a trio of old-school wholesome hotties
- "Lollipop" by the Chordettes, for best vocal percussion punctuation to a chorus
And I'll throw some newer tunes in for good measure.
- "Pour Some Sugar on Me" by Def Leppard, *insert stripper-related joke here*
- "Sex and Candy" by Marcy Playground, total downer song, why did we all like it so much?
- "Tootsee Roll" by 69 Boyz
- "Milkshake" by Kelis, a family favorite when waiting in line pretty much anywhere

You have to admit, that's a stellar bunch of honorable mentions.

All leading up to these three delicious selections for the Tunes-day Trio:

"Sugar, Sugar" by The Archies

I had no idea the song had been written for the cartoon, or at least released through that venue. Such a catchy song, and you can't help but smile and feel happy listening to this tune from simpler times.
Another great pick, Megan.

"Candy Man" by Christina Aguilera

So many elements I like about this song. Great old-style music, Christina's pipes, and the military video.
Good call, Amanda.

"Stuck Like Glue" by Sugarland

Just an all-around fun song, and it's peppy as any could be. Plus, Sugarland is excellent in concert, so I'm happy to give them a special shout-out. Oh, and as a bonus, it kind of goes along with next week's theme in a couple of its lyrics, too.

Next Time
For the next one, we're gonna do something a little more subdued.

Thinking of how hard it is to run the 26.2 miles of a marathon, and also thinking of the people who lost loved ones in the Boston Marathon explosions, I think it's appropriate to do a theme showing support and offering strength to keep going in hard times.

Which is why the theme is supporting those in need/shared strength/carrying on.

We can all lift each other up in our times of heartache and pain.

So if there's a song that's buoyed you up, please share the title and artist in the comments.
Maybe it'll be a much-needed boost to someone else who's having a rough day.

Tunes-day Trio: Rainbow Connection

George Strait, the King of Country, provided last week's Tunes-day Trio (TT, for short).

This week, we're going more generic with the theme of Colors.

I loved getting suggestions from readers, and I've included them because they made for a fun triple.

Honorable mentions:
- "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" by Eiffel 65, maybe the most annoying song of my high school years
- "Mellow Yellow" by Donovan
- Cyndi Lauper's deep tune "True Colors"
- "Lady in Red" by Chris de Burgh, which was (maybe still is?) played at every church dance
- and of course, Kermit the Frog's "Rainbow Connection"

Okay, now the three chosen songs:

"It Ain't Easy Being Green" by Kermit the Frog

Pretty impressive that he's got two shout-outs in this blogpost, and somehow I didn't even think of this one. So thanks to my sister Megan for reminding me of this perfectly themed song.

"Valentine" by Delays (from the album You See Colours)

I'd never even heard of this band before, let alone the album, but my friend Amanda recommended it, so I gave it a listen. British pop has put out some pretty good stuff over the years, and I liked this one, too. If you'd like, the whole album is available with one button click here. Oh, and the song is called "Valentine", and next week is Valentines Day. Perfect timing!

"Try" by Pink

Pink is one of the most underrated performers out there right now, and this video proves it, in my opinion. Singing, dancing, acting, all at the same time. And doing quite well at all three, too.

I'll admit, I'm very happy about how the TT had a song, album, artist setup. Thanks for making that possible, Megan and Amanda!

Next Week
Alright, so since next week is indeed Valentines Day, I considered just doing the subject of love, but that's waaaaaaay too broad. It's basically 95% of all music.

So instead, let's go with the topic of sweetness/sweets/candy.

Not sure if that's too specific, but I guess we'll find out together, eh?

So once again, if you've got a song that's related to the topic in some way (title, lyrics, artist, whatever), let me know by writing in the comments.

Tunes-day Trio: He's a Strait Shooter

Last weekend, the one and only George Strait was in Salt Lake City for a concert.

He brought Martina McBride along, and (from personal experience) they both rocked the ESA.

So I figured this Tunes-day Trio would highlight three great songs by the "King of Country".

Note: picking just three is a tough task. He's been entertaining for over 30 years and has 59 number-one hits in his career. That's a lot of options to choose from!*

Fool Hearted Memory (1982)

That was his first hit. Classic country, eh?

Check Yes or No (1995)

Probably my favorite George Strait tune. And Becca even recognized it! Who'd have guessed that the Utah guy would know more country music than the Tennessee girl?!

River of Love (2009)

Here's his latest #1. Still going strong.

You'll be missed, George! Happy retirement!

*A small sampling of other George Strait hits: Ocean Front Property; All My Ex's Live in Texas; You Know Me Better Than That; Carried Away; Carrying Your Love With Me; Write This Down; The Best Day; She'll Leave You With a Smile; I Hate Everything; She Let Herself Go; Give It Away; I Saw God Today; Love Without End, Amen; Troubadour

Next Week
Ok, I'm thinking these Tunes-day Trio's could be even more fun if we do them together.

Here's my idea: I'll give next week's topic, and if a song comes to mind, please let me know in the comments, and I'll figure it into next week's post (if multiple people comment on the same song, then it's likely a shoe-in).

On that note, here is next week's topic: Colors

If you've got a song that's related to colors in some way (title, lyrics, artist, whatever), let me know by writing in the comments.

Tunes-Day Trio: Gritty Gals

As announced yesterday in my Metallica Monday post, this is a new music series I'm gonna do here.

Welcome to the first Tunes-day Trio!

Today I figured I'd start it off with three songs I've really been digging recently.

They've got some edge to them, maybe even more so for me, considering the first songs I ever heard from these three artists seemed to be in the soft & sappy genre.

"My Oh My" by Tristan Prettyman

The first song I heard from Tristan was "Love, Love, Love". Funny how the topic can be pretty similar, but the delivery makes such a huge difference in conveying the message.

"Happy Pills" by Norah Jones

Clearly, Norah's breakout song was "Come Away with Me". Or was it "Don't Know Why"? I'm not sure. Either way, she's made a lot of music since those two and her new album is a fun chance to see how much she has stretched herself since she hit the big-time.

"Raise Hell" by Brandi Carlile

Ok, so the first song I remember hearing from Brandi was "The Story", which does get a bit heavy musically at some points. But "Raise Hell" seems to take things another shade darker, in my opinion.

If it means a chance to keep exploring and remembering awesome songs like these every week and grouping them together for your enjoyment, I'm pretty excited about these Tunes-day Trio posts.

I've already got a bunch of ideas, but if you, my beloved readers, have any suggestions for a topic, that could be a fun challenge for me to explore and try to fit what you give me...

Metallica Monday: Tuesday's Gone

It's been a little while since I've done a Metallica Monday.

To be honest, I've been busy living life, and blogging hasn't been a high priority. Sorry.
Also, I've realized that eventually I'm going to run out of Metallica songs to use.

Which is why I'm going to use this Metallica Monday to introduce a new set of music blogposts here on Guy Smiley's Guts:

The Tunes-day Trio

It'll be a set of three songs that have a theme or something in common.
And it'll be on Tuesdays.
Hence the Tunes-day Trio

Like Metallica Monday, it may not be every week, but I'll try to make it a regular post.

Anyway, Metallica did a great, topic-appropriate cover of a Lynyrd Skynyrd's tune:

Tuesday's Gone

That maybe isn't their cleanest version (on the Garage Inc. album, FYI), but it's more interesting to watch than a lame slide-show of Metallica pics, which is mostly what YouTube has to offer.

Here's to the remaining Metallica Mondays and its successor set, Tunes-day Trio!