Change of Pace (postive music)

[dohhhhh6]

I've been listening to a lot of enraged singers dropping the F bomb on society like no sane man would recently. But all of a sudden, I find myself wanting something that isn't angry. Something positive. Something with good feeling in it. I just want a change of pace right now.

 

So I'm asking you, "What is some good music that doesn't involve some guy complaining about the negatives in his life."

 

I've raided my parent's cd collection and got a few gems to start me off with, such as Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits and some Beatles stuff, but I crave more.

 

Thanks for your time and help, guys.

[JLM]

It's not my thing but maybe that's why lots of bassist's here play in church.

There's always the Beatles. "Good Day Sunshine" is the first that comes to mind.

[davebrownbass]

How refreshing!

 

That said, even the greatest music of Beethoven has it's own darkness. The great thing about Beethoven is that, at the end, good always triumphs over evil.

 

Also, Paul Simon has been known to write a dark song every once in a while. Just because it sounds light...Their antiphon to "Scarborough Fair" is as dark as anything Roger Waters ever wrote.

 

Music with "joie d'vie?" Well, this may sound vapid, but the old group Bread combines surprising musicianship with wonderful songwriting. As a bonus, you get to hear picked bass on a ballad...and it works.

 

The Beach Boys and Chicago also come to mind as groups with a positive message and interesting musicianship.

 

I'll bet you'll like Sade (gifted in making you feel accepted for who you are) and Carole King. Do you have Carole King's "Tapestry?" Absolutely one of the 10 greatest records of all time. Mix in some James Taylor and even a Carpenter's album.

 

How about the BeeGees? I wrote them off, but I purchased their latest album...a retrospective. They wrote incredible, uplifting music. Of course, wade through all that disco.

 

But for me, when I want to get away from the negativity, I seek out Bach and Mozart. Absolutely incredible music; life changing. Find Bach's "Orchestral Suite #3, in D" and listen to "Air." (Now known famously as "Air on the G String.") In just 48 measures Bach seems to both accept the difficulty of life on earth, and promise hope for a brighter tomorrow.

[Bouncer]

Try out some of these Christian bands, the messages in the songs are very clear and uplifting for all......

For Hard Rock try 12 Stones, P.O.D,Chevelle

For light Rock try Third Day,Audio Adrenaline

For Contemporary try Newsboys, SonicFlood, Jeff Deyo.

Christian or not, the songs are very uplifting and moving and give you a spiritual happiness.

[rumpelstiltskin.]

i like chevelle, but i think of them as being pretty angry, even if they are christian. i mean, it's not as if you can't get angry because you love Jesus.

 

robb.

[Bouncer]

You're right about Chevelle Robb, they do have that angry type of sound, maybe that was'nt a good example. Although the music is positive, it has a very agressive tone.

[Jode]

I am SO F**KING TIRED of all the downer music that is devouring the charts. I can sum up modern rock/nu-metal's general message in one sentence for you:

 

My life sucks, and I'm taking it all out on YOU!!

 

Hey, pal, f**k you. I've got enough problems of my own without having to listen to you being close to the edge and about to break. Anyone else remember what life was like back when rock and roll was all about having a good time? My current musical partner and i decided that we were going to make a conscious effort to not load up our repertoire with depressing shit, because it's EVERYWHERE these days, and the general malaise in music doesn't need any extra help from us - quite the contrary, in fact.

 

In the immortal words of The Partridge Family, "Come on, get happy!" (Ya little bastards!)

[jeremy c]

Youssou N'Dour...Nothing's in Vain

Richard Bona....Reverence

 

actually if you listen to African or Caribbean music, it's all positive music, nothing negative.

 

anything by Sting

 

Nora Jones....Come Away With Me

 

The Soundtrack to Oh Brother Where Art Thou

 

Any Alison Krauss

 

And of course, any instrumental music....listen to some jazz.

 

There's a lot of stuff out there. Turn off your radio and start looking. And maybe stop listening to rock for a while.

[40hertz]

also you can listen to any solo recording of thurston moore.

 

[alexclaber]

I strongly recommend Richard Bona's solo albums. Absolutely beautiful music.

 

OTOH I've been feeling particularly angry recently, well yesterday and the day before to be precise. Spending an afternoon taking (repeatedly delayed) trains to and from London to its satellite towns and then having to contend with London drivers whilst tired out and on a small folding bike isn't conducive to being a happy bunny. Amazing how helpful humming Pantera and Metallica is in these situations!

 

On the subject of positive music, can anyone recommend any particularly great albums with Ray Brown? I have Night Train and The Trio Live (with Oscar Peterson) and I want to learn to walk like Ray, IMO no-one fills the role of a jazz bassist better.

 

Alex

[Connie Z]

Hi LadY! Great Question!

 

Love Ballads such as: And I Love Her - The Beatles

Cute and Sweet love songs such as : Chapel Of Love - The Dixie Cups

Rockin high energy and fun : Great Balls of Fire - Jerry Lee Lewis

Inspiring for a future rocker : Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry

High energy and fun : Rock Around The Clock - Bill Haley And His Comets

 

Those are just a few examples of "types" of songs.

 

And any "funny" songs are great, such as:

If You Wanna Be Happy - Jimmy Soul

Double Shot Of My Baby's Love - The Swingin' Medallions

Lola - The Kinks

Poison Ivy - The Coasters

Snoopy Vs. The Red Baron - The Royal Guardsman

 

Hope those helped!

 

... connie z

[Ouizel]

Some of Little Feat's tunes fit the catagory. Like 'Dixie Chicken', 'Let It Roll', and 'Hate to Lose Your Lovin', to name a few. They're still around and making great music. Check 'em out, you won't be disappointed.

[dcr]

There's good stuff out there. I get really tired of downer music; Pink Floyd is pretty heavy, but I think they get it right. Most of the time, you're right, it's just someone with nothing to whine about, whining about everything. It is absolutely sickening.

 

Try world music. Jeremy suggested African; Youssou N'Dour is great, & anyone who can feel bad listening to Papa Wemba has big, big problems. I love Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's album "Mustt Mustt" (w/ Darryl Jones on bass, btw!). You'll be amazed at how much better most of the rest of the world is doing in music. Start with a compilation; believe it or not, Starbuck's puts out decent world music compilations (aided by Peter Gabriel).

 

I also dig Creedence; you just can't feel bad. Supertramp is a great band; "Breakfast in America" is a classic album, & just has a great feel to it. Third Day are also great. Two progressive bands, Spock's Beard and the Flower Kings, are absolutely marvelous musicians, and their music is very positive. Talking Heads.

 

I also like Steely Dan; is it positive? Not really, but it's often humorous, & they treat dark things with heavy doses of irony, so it's all good.

 

Coltrane albums like "Blue Train" and Miles albums like "Kind of Blue" feel absolutely wonderful. Every time you listen, it's like hearing music for the first time. No lyrics, but the music is a spiritual experience. These are only a place to start.

 

Some "positive" stuff is actually cheesy, and you don't want that either. But I find that most of the best music is both positive & of high quality. Positive music can deal with life's downsides. You don't have to be cheesy or unrealistic to be positive. It's all in how you deal with it, either self-indulgently or constructively.

 

Self-indulgence is WAY overrated.

 

Good on ya, Lady!!

[Warlock1016]

Go find some Weird Al records...incredible musicianship, and it never fails to make me smile at the very least.

 

Jim West, Steve Jay, and Jon Schwartz are three of the most underrated players ever, because their boss is a lunatic. *G*

[MartinJ]

I've been listening to Van Morrison's Brown Eyed Girl and Wild Nights the past couple of days (trying to learn/understand the basslines). Seemed like upbeat, happy (even sappy?), tap-your-foot kinda stuff to me.

[Thomas Wilburn]

Great bass playing positive music comes from a local band here around DC called Sam's House. I recommend checking them out. They're at samshouse.com, I think, and their CD is on CDBaby.

[BenLoy]

Hem

[ClarkW]

Ryan Shupe and the Rubberband

 

Extremely talented (every last one of them!), excellent songwriting, very entertaining music that always puts a smile on my face. Support up-and-coming artists! When they are famous you can brag to your friends that you heard them first!

 

I would recommend the Simplify album, but If I Were a Bird is excellent, as is their live album. Their newest and the Christmas CD hasn't arrived in my greedy little mailbox quite yet.

 

To top it off, they are incredibly nice guys, too.

[Rik]

If you want positive lyrics combined with exceptional bass playing, you can't beat Rush (yeah, I'm an obsessive/compulsive Rush fan).

 

"If the future's looking dark

We're the ones who have to shine

If there's no one in control

We're the ones who draw the line

Though we live in trying times

We're the ones who have to try

Though we know that time has wings

We're the ones who have to fly..."

 

And as far as putting the fun back into rock & roll, you can't beat Bowling For Soup.

[Afro_Man]

A good song to listen too would be Foo fighters - everlong, its all about the perfect moment and how he doesn't want it to end (thats what i think anyway) Some stuff by weird al yankovic always makes me smile. Cheer up there is lots of good songs out there just don't listen to any pop punk (also known as the teenage love genre be cause all the songs are like "i love her, she doesn't like me" or "my girlfriend dumped me") and nu metal (winge winge raarrg winge) small rant over.

[davebrownbass]

This great performance by Ray Stevens opens with the Christian Children's song "Jesus Loves the Little Children."

 

And then:

 

Everything is beautiful in its own way

Like a starry summer night or a snow covered winter's day

Everybody's beautiful in their own way

Under God's heaven the world's gonna find a way

There is none so blind as he who will not see

We must not close our minds we must let our thoughts be free

For every hour that passes by, you know the world gets a little bit older

It's time to realize that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder

Chorus

Everything is beautiful in its own way

Like a starry summer night or a snow covered winter's day

Ah, sing it children, everybody's beautiful in their own way

Under God's heaven the world's gonna find a way

We shouldn't care about the length of his hair or the color of his skin

Don't worry about what shows from without but the love that lives within

We gonna get it all together now and everything's gonna work out fine

Just take a little time to look on the good side my friend

And straighten it out in your mind

 

Everything is beautiful in its own way

Like a starry summer night or a snow covered winter's day

Ah, sing it children, everybody's beautiful in their own way

Under God's heaven the world's gonna find a way

[saxofunk]

Originally posted by Warlock1016:

Go find some Weird Al records...incredible musicianship, and it never fails to make me smile at the very least. *G*

Wierd Al - now that's the stuff! And he's still touring. Hey, someone has to come play Tulsa once in awhile.

 

I like this thread, even though I don't have much to say. I never did get in to the whole 90's wave of "How misearable can I be and take the world down with me" music.

 

Get youself some funk, or some great Gospel.

[...]

More suggestions:

 

Stevie Wonder - Songs in the Key of Life

 

Contains more brilliant music than most people can write in a lifetime. Herbie Hancock's electric piano tone on the song "As" is one of the best things ever. Nathan Watts just tears it up all over this album. The rarely mentioned gem "All Day Sucker" just kills; Stevie's left hand can play a bass line or two.

 

Pat Metheny Group - Pat Metheny Group

 

I don't think songs get more perfect than "San Lorenzo"; especially when played on some good speakers with all the lights out.

 

J.B. Horns - Funky Good Time Anthology

 

The JB's. Fred. Pee Wee. Enough said. Biggity bam.

 

Earth, Wind, and Fire - I Am

 

Booty shakin' good times.

[davebrownbass]

Boy, I just keep getting more and more...

 

What about Rare Earth.

 

Not much better song than:

 

I just want to celebrate another day of livin'

I just want to celebrate another day of life

I put my faith in the people

But the people let me down

So I turned the other way

And I carry on, anyhow

That's why I'm telling you

 

I just want to celebrate, yeah, yeah

I just want to celebrate, yeah, yeah

Another day of living,

I just want to celebrate another day of life

 

Had my hand on the dollar bill

And the dollar bill blew away

But the sun is shining down on me

And it's here to stay

That's why I'm telling you

 

I just want to celebrate, yeah, yeah

Another day of living, yeah

I just want to celebrate another day of living

I just want to celebrate another day of life

 

Don't let it all get you down,

Don't let it turn you around and around

And around and around

 

Well, I can't be bothered with sorrow

And I can't be bothered with hate, no, no

I'm using up my time by feeling fine, every day

That's why I'm telling you I just want to celebrate

Aw, yeah

I just want to celebrate yeah yeah

Another day of living, yeah yeah

I just want to celebrate another day of livin', yeah

I just want to celebrate another day of life

 

Don't let it all get you down, no, no

Don't let it turn you around and around,

And around and around, and around

Around round round

'round and around round round round

don't go 'round

[Gord -B]

I would agree with the idea of positive music being a good thing. Especially in light of the recent findings directly linking a positive outlook with a longer healthier life. But... i can't help but admire a lot of music that may be considered depressing, (i would see it more as 'reflective'.)

 

I just think that (and this a huge generalisation) its hard to be moved by music which literally says everythings fine, musicians as a species generally aren't fine at all (well the ones i know personally)

 

But theres a time for being reflective and a time for breakin the funk out, make no mistakes about that. - Gord

[dcr]

How did I not think of the OBVIOUS?!?

 

Get you a big ol' box of MOTOWN, stuff from the 60s. E.g. there's a 4-disc set of their hits from 1959-1971 that I'd love to get. And every person who loves music should own "Standing in the Shadows of Motown."

 

This music is fun and feels great. It is also performed by some of the best musicians on the planet. You'll have a good time, and get a bass master class to last you the rest of your life!

[Gord -B]

You're missing out on the ultiamte feel good band. !Van Halen!, pretend you don't own any of their records and that goes for most of the 80's 'hair' metal thing. And while your at it get your top gun album out aswell. (if somethings worth doing its worth doing well)

 

The Darkness (as i keep bringing up) are hugely positive. All the jam bands, phish, blues traveller.

 

Jamiroquai, The entire genre of funk, disco, motown...

 

But if thats not doin your street cred too much good. Some good positive bands from the U.K are the coral, the thrills and athlete. For the listener requiring a more 'heavy' suggestion i would go with primus, presidents of the u.s.a....

[getz out]

Well, you can be depressing and dark without bein angry. Listen to some old Ben Harper, Jack Johnson, or G. Love & Special Sauce. Some VERY depressing stuff, but not the old-school Rage Against the Machine thing.

[_Sweet Willie_]

Seattle rap superstar, Sir Mix-a-Lot, always gets me feeling cheery with a healthy dose of..."I like bit butts and I cannot lie..."

 

A little George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic has been known to raise some spirits as well!

[Basshappi]

Oingo Boingo... if you aren't pumped up and sweating profusely afterwards you're not doing it right!