Tom Fair is this cool singer songwriter dude I met at the Pete Seeger birthday party at the Backstage. He writes good, sings good, and you should check him out at his myspace page by clicking on his name up at the top of this graph.
Anyway, 4th of July he sent out this excellent essay about finding reasons to be proud of America. And he capped it off with a great list of killer performances he found on youtube. And since this is just the kind of thing I like to include in the SongMine, and I've been so darn busy I haven't been keeping the SongMine hopping lately, I thought I'd share Tom's list with you. Start digging!...
TOM'S TOP TWENTY AMERICAN MUSICAL ARTISTS FOR 2009 (not in any particular order, other than the order in which I found the videos)
ELVIS / THAT’S ALRIGHT MAMA 69
Elvis unplugged and seated:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAonlWEWYF8
BOB DYLAN / BLOWING IN THE WIND
Dylan at his peak, his best - Concert for Bangladesh:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4nPJ-YYHBc
My favorite American female vocalist:
MARTINA McBRIDE / IN MY DAUGHTER’S EYES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLS0Y40WwlA
WHERE WOULD YOU BE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fRBLzffy5U
THERE YOU ARE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5Z1pR5DTd0
GEORGE JONES, TAMMY WYNETTE et al / HEROES AND FRIENDS
Guest appearance by Roy Rogers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1pw5fkJIDw
NITTY GRITTY DIRT BAND / FISHIN’ IN THE DARK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yh3ml8gzrd4
SPINNERS / RUBBERBAND MAN
Smooth and Funky – they had it all:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7KHSzf10T4
HALL & OATES / EDDIE KENDRICKS & DAVID RUFFIN
At the Apollo theatre:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2swurbxq50
EARL SCRUGGS & STEVE MARTIN et al
On Letterman – hottest guitar & banjo pickin’ you ever saw:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icMTVV5Lwaw
EAGLES / TAKE IT EASY
Hell Freezes Over version, very tight musicianship:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScG0ilS0dgI
Original Eagles line-up, also with Jackson Browne & Linda Ronstadt:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kTAT4vj_hI
BEACH BOYS / THEIR HEARTS WERE FULL OF SPRING
Beach Boys a capella:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Vy4eVYJQrs
THE HIGHWAYMEN / THE HIGHWAYMAN
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uw1bHaUk1CM
EMMYLOU, LINDA & DOLLY / TRIO
Each one takes lead on a separate song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IP0VGRDIaI
HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS / NATIONAL ANTHEM
International Good Will - bringing the U.S. to Japan:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxF9wCQTSiM
CHUCK & THE BOSS / JOHNNY B. GOODE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epHPXZBsp8M
NEVILLE BROTHERS / THE SOUND
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epHPXZBsp8M
JT & DIXIE CHICKS / SWEET BABY JAMES
If JT had three daughters, they would sound like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoN5B6UyMss
THE ICEMAN (JERRY BUTLER) / MAKE IT EASY ON YOURSELF
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbtY4eKQADo
WE ARE THE WORLD / USA FOR AFRICA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmxT21uFRwM
VENICE / THE FAMILY TREE
Local LA heroes, a great contemporary group:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcEURhzbbA8
MANHATTAN TRANSFER / OPERATOR
Smokin'!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0r8286teVgc
JACKSON BROWN / RUNNIN’ ON EMPTY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bww2prhAWEA
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