Considered by Vandross to be his “career song,” “Dance With My Father” is a tribute and remembrance of his father based on childhood memories Vandross held of his parents dancing together. “I played it over and over, and I cried and cried,” his mother, Mary Ida, said of the song. “I was amazed at how well Luther remembered his father, how we used to dance and sing in the house. I was so surprised that at 7 1/2 years of age, he could remember what a happy household we had.”
The track quickly become one of Vandross’s most requested songs, and won Song of the Year and Best R&B Male Vocal Performance at the 2004 Grammy Awards. Key change at 3:18.
“Anyone of Us (Stupid Mistake)” is featured on the 2002 debut album of English pop singer Gareth Gates, What My Heart Wants To Say. The second single released from the album, the track debuted at #1 on the UK Single Chart, and also reached the top spot in the Netherlands, Sweden, and Norway. Key change at 2:48.
“Strut” was originally featured in the 2006 film The Cheetah Girls 2, a sequel to the 2003 Disney Channel original movie TheCheetah Girls. The story traces a talented teen quartet who take a whirlwind tour of Spain to pursue their dreams of pop superstardom; it is the eighth highest-rated Disney original movie ever. Key change at 2:30.
Canadian singer Michael Buble recorded the standard “Cry Me A River” for his 2009 album Crazy Love, which was certified five times Platinum and awarded the Best Traditional Pop Vocal album Grammy Award. The BBC used Buble’s dramatic cover of the tune for its advertising of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Key change at 2:57.
Vocalist Shayne Ward was the winner of the second season of the British reality music competition The X Factor, and “That’s My Goal” was his debut single after his victory in 2005. The track sold over 300,000 copies in the two days after its initial release, making it the fastest- selling song of 2005, and ultimately the third fastest-selling song of all time in the UK. Key change at 2:48.
Australian solo acoustic fingerstyle guitarist Tommy Emmanuel has made a global career for himself over the years, covering melody, bassline, and accompaniment alike. The readers of Guitar Player magazine have twice voted him “Best Acoustic Guitarist” (2008 and 2010).
The Las Vegas Review/Journal quotes Emmanuel as saying “Chet Atkins actually said something in an interview about me that struck a chord with me. He said, ‘This guy’s the most fearless musician I’ve ever seen. I’ve never seen another player who can go jam with a jazz band and then play Django (Reinhardt) tunes and then play Spanish music and then play all of my stuff.’ I don’t know whether it’s my ignorance or my innocence, but I’ve always felt that if I understood anything at all (about a certain style of music), I’d be ready to jump in and you can throw me a solo and I’ll have a go at it.”
According to Emmanuel’s website, the respect was mutual from the moment Emmanuel, at age six, heard Atkins playing on the radio. “…Like Dylan, who made a pilgrimage from the Midwest to New York to meet his idol, Woody Guthrie, Tommy always knew he had to get to Chet. To let Chet hear his music, which had been so shaped by his years listening, and absorbing, Chet’s genius. When he finally made that trek around the globe to meet the man himself, in Nashville, their bond was immediate, and like their music, existed beyond words. Chet picked up his guitar, and the two men jammed joyously for hours. It started a lifelong friendship which shaped Tommy’s music forever.”
2000’s “I Have Always Thought of You” starts in D major but modulates to C# minor from 1:22 – 1:44 and again from 2:17 – 2:38.
“Love It When You Call” was featured on Twelve Steps and Home, the 2006 debut album of the English rock band The Feeling. The track peaked at #18 on the UK Singles Chart, and was also performed at a live concert in 2006 produced by the BBC’s charity Children in Need, which supports disadvantaged children in the UK. Key change at 2:53, then back to the original key at 3:11.
“Something Beautiful” was released as the third single from English singer Robbie Williams‘ fifth studio album, Escapology (2002). The tune, written by Williams and Guy Chambers, reached number 3 on the UK Singles chart, and peaked within the top 10 in Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Romania as well. Key change at 3:21.
Nickelback, one of the most commercially successful Canadian rock bands, makes their MotD debut with their 2006 single “Far Away.” Featured originally in their fifth studio album, All The Right Reasons, the track has been described as the group’s “only real love long” by lead guitarist Chad Kroeger, and was included on the 2010 compilation album Now That’s What I Call Love with other love ballads from the previous decade. Beginning in B major, the tune modulates up a step to Db Major for the final chorus at 2:52.
For years, Jonathan Coulton has flown under the radar for many listeners while becoming required listening for the tech set. Online tech commons Slashdot praises Coulton:
“If you haven’t heard the news, Jonathan Coulton can do anything. In 2005 he quit his job in software and became an “internet rock star and former code monkey,” eventually opening for music legends like Aimee Mann and They Might Be Giants … Coulton’s work was eventually featured in three different Valve videogames … In 2017 he was even nominated for a Tony for his work on Broadway’s SpongeBob Musical, and while co-writing some songs for Aimee Mann, he was also creating his own concept album about our tech-saturated society. Oh, and Coulton also released a crowdfunded album of 1970s soft rock covers ‘that sound exactly like the originals‘ — because he can.”
Coulton’s 2005 album Thing a Week One featured “Shop Vac,” a jaunty tribute to the banality of stereotypical suburban life. This video version, featuring wall-to-wall typography of popular brand logos, couldn’t be more fitting. The bridge at 1:59 features a modulation, followed next by a guitar solo with a beautifully animated graphic transcription. At 2:30, there’s a return to the original key.
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