I've had the theme for this weeks #threetunetuesday sponsored by @ablaze written down in my Google Keep notes for quite a while now. It's pretty common for me to come up with themes on the fly like that and writing them down helps me remember them for future use.
Then again, sometimes they are totally unplanned and I have to push my regular schedule to fit them in. That's not the case here.
I've been on the fence about this weeks theme for a while now. @whywhy feels I should make it a contest. I've tried those in the past and engagement just isn't what I had hoped for. On top of that, if I have to beat around the bush as to the theme, then that means there is less for me to write about in the actual post.
To be honest, even as I write this, I am still not sure what I am going to do. I kind of feel like one of the songs is a dead giveaway for what the theme is. I have a feeling within just a couple minutes of me posting this, someone is going to get it.
Maybe I am wrong though, there are plenty of weeks that @whywhy thought his songs were a dead giveaway and not a single person could come up with the answer. I certainly don't want that as I definitely want to reward someone, but I guess we will see.
Contest Time!
Alright, I made up my mind. I'm going to make this a contest. The first person that guesses the theme of the songs this week will get 5 HSBI donated to them from my @bozz.sports account. Let's see just how good you folks are!
If I had to list my top ten greatest albums of all time, it would be an excruciating task that would likely take me much longer than any sane person can imagine. There is little doubt in my mind that U2's The Joshua Tree would make that list. It was virtually the soundtrack of my teens. Between this album and Achtung Baby, I am shocked that I never wore out the CD's.
It's hard to pick out any one specific song that makes The Joshua Tree so good. There are several major hits from that album that most of you probably know by heart. If you dig a little deeper into the album, there are a couple of other ones that really get in your head and surprise you over time.
"Running To Stand Still" is one of those songs. It's got a haunting melody, it soft and subtle and crazy wild all at once. I think the best way I can describe it is a wave. It's like a wave crashing into the beach. It builds and builds and builds and then the crescendo and finally the soft splash of the water hitting the sand and then receding. It's hauntingly good.
I'll be the first to admit that I was a little late to the party when it comes to the Black Crowes. Okay, I was a lot late to the party. It wasn't until within the last ten years that I probably really got into them. Of course I remember when some of their biggest hits first came out on the radio, but for whatever reason, they didn't resonate with me as much as they do today.
I have one of their greatest hits albums saved as a playlist in my Spotify account and I have a feeling if I went back and looked, I have probably played that album over a hundred times in the recent past. The stuff is just that good. They were recently doing a tour where they played one of their best albums in its entirety for the show. I didn't get the chance to go, but I sure wish I would have. It's my goal to get some Black Crowes on vinyl even if it is a Walmart reissue.
"She Talks to Angels" is another haunting song that kind of builds into a rolicking good rhythm by the end of the song. It's actually such a good song that it inspired the final song I am going to share. I can still remember sitting in my bedroom on Saturday morning listening to the American Top 40 Countdown and this song playing.
Quite some time ago, @mrsbozz and I got the chance to see Hootie and the Blowfish at a local casino. We had a friend that was always getting tickets for shows, but she rarely ever went herself. She would always ask me if I wanted the tickets for this show or that show. We got to see several artists like Jewel and Hootie and the Blowfish because of that lady. She is passed away now, but I will never forget her kindness.
The Hootie show was great and it brought back some really fond memories from the 90's and some of our younger years. I remember a time before I met @mrsbozz and I would drive around a camp I worked and and just blast Cracked Rear View through my car stereo.
Of course now Hootie lead singer Darius Rucker is a solo country artist and I have had the chance to see him twice in that capacity. Although "Let Her Cry" was a big hit for Hootie and the Blowfish, he still plays it during his solo performances. I honestly think it is one of the best songs he has ever written and he attributes that to the Black Crowes.
I saw an interview with him and he was saying that he was trying to write a song like "She Talks to Angels" and that's where "Let Her Cry" came from. Those are some big shoes to fill and I think he did a fantastic job of it.
That's all I've got folks! Let's see who can be the first one to guess the theme this week. No obvious hints, just listen to the songs and see what you can figure out. If no one gets it in a couple of days, I'll give a hint, but I don't think that is going to be necessary.
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