In Sean's Mailbox: Feelin' good, feelin' loose

Although I'm still not convinced last week actually happened, I have approximately 3 billion new CDs to open today, which means I haven't tackled my mail since April. So let's start with that, let's clean things up around here, let's get motivated. This is gonna be a good, positive week, SD regaining some semblance of order, balance.

...although I have a Rays-Yankees game tonight, and have already made plans to leave my car at work overnight. That's gonna set me back a bit. I also plan to do some major beer-sponsored celebratory texting tonight, so if you want me to send you a rambling text message, just provide your name and number, and I'll sneak you in between innings.

Henceforth, all the new crap (including not one, but four copies of the new Bryan Adams album, 11).....

Scarlett Johansson -- Anywhere I Lay My Head (OUCH)
Neil Diamond -- Home Before Dark
Frank Sinatra -- Nothing But the Best
Duffy -- Rockferry
Robyn -- Robyn
Mindi Abair -- Stars
The Fashion -- The Fashion
Emmylou Harris -- All I Intended to Be
Gavin DeGraw -- Gavin DeGraw
Alejandro Escovedo -- Real Animal
Tokio Hotel -- Scream
Jools Holland -- Best of Friends
Charlotte Sometimes -- Waves & The Both of Us
Mason Jennings -- In the Ever
Donna Summer -- Crayons
Dokken -- Lightning Strikes Again
Clay Aiken -- On My Way Here
Josh Groban -- Awake Live

There's more to open, but after that Aiken/Groban one-two punch, I lost the spirit.

I'm totally gonna rock that new Neil Diamond, tho.

Comments

[Bassnote]

Scarlett Johansson sounds like Sinead O'Connor. I'll pass on it.

You have my deepest sympathy for having to listen to Clay Aiken and Josh Grobin in one go round.

[Sean Daly]

Not sure I'll be "listening" to either of them, actually.

[sparky]

SD have you listened to the new Neil Diamond yet? If you haven't think Cherry, Cherry and Song Sung Blues. Much better than 12 Songs and that duet with Natalie Maines is really, really good!

[jane]

Curious to know what the Alejandro Escovedo album is like... love me that alt-country. And the Jools Holland disc looks verrrrry interesting indeed.

Plus Francis Albert -- gotta be great, but obviously not new material. ;-)

[sparky]

Jane, sure the Chairman's material is new. His producer is God.

[Sean Daly]

I'm listening to the Natalie Maines-Neil Diamond duet right now. "Another Day [That Time Forgot]." More subtle than I was expecting. Doesn't really have that suckerpunch million-dollar note. Not bad, but very low-key. Nice keybs from Benmont Tench.

[Sean Daly]

Scratch that. Just got to the final minute. Not so low-key. Wonder if they recorded in the same studio?

[jane]

Oh Sparky, if only that were so. It's Sinatra month on TCM (all Frank all the time on Wednesdays and Sundays) and I'm ODing on it.

I'm a sucker for that voice and that phrasing.

[jane]

Does Benmont Tench ever do anything that's not great -- he's fab.

[sparky]

I was going to say, that evidently you didn't listen to the end.

So do you think that part of doing a duet with Diamond, is actually doing a DUET with Diamond?

[Sean Daly]

The new Frank is basically just a remastered repackaging of his Reprise hits. That said, I just put it in the desk player anyway. Why? Because listening to "Summer Wind" at least once a day is good for your health.

[sparky]

You know what I wanted to know, did Neil Diamond make all the songs greater than 5 minutes so that the older DJ's on the easy listening stations can put the songs on and go take a bathroom break due to their enlarge prostates?

[NickWithAnAxe]

If I'm not mistaken, The Aiken and Groban were released on the same day as a new Toby Keith offering. If that's not a trifecta of suck, I don't know what is.

[Bassnote]

I whole heartedly agree with your prescription of 'Summer Wind' at least once a day. I'll even recommend an entire Sinatra album a day.

[DG]

Um, maybe it's ironic (or cruel) to criticize someone's singing who's covering Tom Waits songs, but Scarlett sounds awful. And not the good-kind of awful that Tom Waits sounds like.

[Marissa]

Regarding Duffy, I'm fond of "Syrup & Honey," "Delayed Devotion," and "Distant Dreamer." "Mercy" is the only hip shaker on the CD. That isn't to say I'm let down. I love the retro sound she offers up.