Happy 1st Birthday, Daijams! Check out the Top 5 posts of Year 1!

I was raised on music. The nineties, ie the time I spent between ages of 3 and 13, were a blur of Dave Matthews, the Smashing Pumpkins, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, among many others. In 2010, my parents even started a Facebook community dedicated to posting YouTube videos of their favorite artists and songs. It's like a hereditary disease of the best variety.

A year ago today, I realized my friends (particularly my beloved but beleaguered roommates) were fed up with my constant babble about the live music videos I was collecting in my YouTube "Favorites" file. The videos were, at that time, heavily influenced by my budding Weezer obsession, and my roommate Allie took to asking whether I was going to listen to the "SWEATERRRRRRRRRR" song again tonight, or if she could go to sleep in peace. I took that as a sign that I needed some sort of outlet, beyond my parents' celebrated Facebook community. I wanted to create a searchable library, a canon of good live music, along with (of course, as I am a narcissistic writer, and this is just what we do) my own commentary.

So one year ago today, this blog was born.

In fact, the very first video posted here was a Weezer/Sara Bareilles collaboration. I began that post thus:

"The inaugural video on this blog is one that I have not been able to get out of my head for seven days. Seven. Full. Days. It's actually the reason I'm starting this blog: To try to get this song out of my head. I figure if I post a new live music performance every day, eventually, maybe in four or five years, I'll get this song out of my head."

Here's the video that started it all, in case you don't want to click through:

Happily, that song has been out of my head for approximately 11.5 months, thanks in large part to this blog. The daily chore of writing posts has turned into my favorite daily task, thanks in large part to the growing readership (YOU!) that has not only interacted with me via comments and Facebook postings, but in real life: The other day a friend texted me that she was sitting on a plane next to a woman actively engaged in a creepy vocal fry, which I'd written about a few days prior in a post about everyone's favorite white female rap-talk-singer, Ke$ha.Thank you again to everyone who has read and responded, or just read and enjoyed privately. If you've ever actually watched one of my videos all the way through, you're my best friend.

In an act of sentimentality, today we look back at the five most popular posts in this blog's first year of life. Let's dig in:

5)  Kelly Clarkson: "Express Yourself" and "Already Gone" (posted July 13, 2011)

In this post from last July, I mused over the talent of the only artist (save maybe Carrie Underwood) to have truly transcended the American Idol stamp on her career. Kelly Clarkson is wicked talented, and the post included two videos: her 2002 audition video and a 2009 live studio performance of her then-smash hit, "Already Gone." The progress was striking. Thank God her career didn't end with From Justin to Kelly.

4) The Rolling Stones: "Time is On My Side" (posted February 2, 2012)

After a run-in with Bill Murray at the end of January 2012, I felt the need to delve deep into this song and its history, as well as the Rolling Stones' start on the coattails of the Beatles, their progression of live show style (they got a LOT more outgoing), and the artists who did this song before the Stones made it famous.

3) Nikki Yanofsky: "Lullaby of Birdland" (posted May 19, 2011)

This then-17-year-old jazz singer has a voice beyond her years, and you guys seem to agree. Her phrasing and confidence still takes my breath away. Originally posted in May 2011, this song was in the lead for a long time until the next two artists completely obliterated her pageviews.

2) Hanson: "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'" (posted December 1, 2011)

The Hanson brothers are proof that if you're talented, and you stick together long enough (as family is hopefully apt to do), you're going to find not only the slow-soaking success that is the Holy Grail of the music industry, but also that people will really dig it when their favorite band from 5th grade is still awesome. More than three months after I posted this, and I'm still obsessed with this song.

1) Pink: "Bohemian Rhapsody" (posted November 29, 2011)

After only three months, and with more than three times the pageviews of the runner-up, Pink's version of "Bohemian Rhapsody" is by far the most viewed post on this blog. I'll credit Freddie Mercury's fashion sense, Pink's gusto, and our country's undying love of all things Queen.

Thanks for sticking with me through Year 1! If you're just joining us, Year 2 kicks off tomorrow with a post celebrating a bevy of my favorite musicians from all over the spectrum -- pop, blues, rock, even rap. Why? Because tomorrow is my birthday, and I can do whatever I want!

Until next time -- jam on!

Choose Your Own Adventure: How was Valentine's?

 So how was your Valentine's Day?

It's Wednesday, which would usually mean a post from Mr. Juke Box Hero, but a busy week combined with lavishing his lady with thoughtful Valentine's Day courtesies has put him out of commission until tomorrow.

Instead, in recognition of the likelihood that we all celebrated (or pointedly ignored) yesterday's Hallmark holiday in ways that may require some musical soothing the morning after, here are a few videos to set the mood for today. Choose your own adventure!

How did you spend Valentine's Day?
a) With my beloved! It was beautiful and perfect!
b) With my beloved! It was somewhat less than beautiful and perfect.
c) On an awkward date.
d) Alone, because I chose to be alone, goddammit.
e) Alone, with a tub of ice cream.
f) Alone, with a bottle of vodka.

Weezer: "Say It Ain't So"

I haven't posted any vintage Weezer since March, so today I'm pulling this favorite out of the vault -- a '95 performance of "Say It Ain't So" on Letterman. Rivers Cuomo had lost the bowl cut of the prior year, but his charged vocal performance and the band's tight sound had gotten even better. Cuomo is active as a lead singer, jumping and moving around, but he was wearing a leg brace during this performance after undergoing a procedure to lengthen his left leg, which was more than an inch shorter than his right. (Thanks, Wikipedia!) The leg brace forced him to stay rooted in front of the microphone, which makes this one of my favorite versions of this song. It goes from quiet and understated to jarring and heart-wrenching as Cuomo speaks directly to his alcoholic father. Watching him sing the bridge at 2:28, speaking to his father -- "Dear Daddy, I write you in spite of years of silence" -- his eyes squeezed shut, drummer Patrick Wilson rocking out in the background -- "The sun is drowning in the FLOOOD!" -- that's my favorite part of this video.

This song was the third single off Weezer's very first, self-titled album back in 1994, when they'd been playing together for just two years. "Say It Ain't So" remains one of their very best songs, a solid member of my own Top 10 Songs of the '90s (and others agree). This video also appears on the live Weezer DVD Video Capture Device.

I'll be taking a long weekend to properly ring in the new year. See you in 2012!

Bonnie Raitt: "Women Be Wise"

I haven't had much time lately to find new music. It's a part-time job, searching out and finding suitable artists to obsess over. My three-month Weezer love affair was relatively short-lived, but man was it intense. Last week my friend sent me a link to download the bootleg of the live show that initiated my passion in January. So I've been revisiting a lot of what I already listen to.

The exception is Bonnie Raitt, who I'd heard of but I had no concept of what kind of music she made or her role in the industry. Turns out she's a pretty epic blues singer-songwriter and activist, with nine Grammys to her name. And now that I've looked her up, I do recognize one of her big songs, "Something to Talk About," which is just as sassy in live performance as on a recording.

Moral of the story: I need to find me some more Bonnie Raitt.

Weezer: "Kids / Poker Face"

I love covers. They give artists a chance to play around with music, and it gives listeners a chance to gauge the performance compared to something they're already familiar with. In this video, Weezer covers MGMT's "Kids" and Lady Gaga's "Poker Face." Even though the original versions of both songs have been completely exhausted by radio play, Weezer's cover feels fresh and light-hearted, especially as they blend the two songs together.

And I want to know where Rivers Cuomo buys his pants.

Enjoy.

"Kids" and "Poker Face," performed by Weezer
"Kids" originally on MGMT's "Oracular Spectacular" (2008)
"Poker Face" originally on Lady Gaga's "Fame" (2008)

Weezer: "Undone (The Sweater Song)"

Today's goal: Write this blog post in the amount of time it takes the song to play. Ready go.

Last night I was at trivia with some friends I don't see too often and we were giving brief "life updates." I gave the basics -- work, school, social life -- and also mentioned my current musical obsession with Weezer thanks to attending a concert in January with my friend Laura (who was present for trivia and flaunts the startlingly useful skill of recognizing musicians from their high school photos). (Kurt Cobain ftw.)

My roommate rolled her eyes in my general direction and said something along the lines of, "Yeah, whenever I pass your room I hear the song about the SWEATERRRRRR."

She was talking about this song. Even more specifically, this video, which I LOVE because it's from 1994 and Rivers' hair kind of defies the passage of time. I also can't get over the rhythmic babbling. Did you catch "eggplant" in there somewhere?

Time's up. Say hi to Jon Stewart, and enjoy.

"Undone (The Sweater Song)," performed by Weezer.
Original on Weezer's Blue Album (1994).

Inaugural Post: Weezer and Sara Bareilles

The inaugural video on this blog is one that I have not been able to get out of my head for seven days. Seven. Full. Days. It's actually the reason I'm starting this blog: To try to get this song out of my head. I figure if I post a new live music performance every day, eventually, maybe in four or five years, I'll get this song out of my head.

Dear God please get this song out of my head. I think my friends are getting sick of how much I talk about Weezer. (I'm a recent convert, about two months now that I've listened to them every day.) They assume I have some sort of unhealthy obsession.

This video is proof of why they're wrong. I can't get over Rivers' voice; it's so clear and confident. The descending "Whoa" he hits in the last chorus is just money. The song itself is upbeat and fun, solid harmonies, beautiful execution, and I love the playful chemistry between Rivers and Sara. Enjoy.

"(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To," performed by Weezer and Sara Bareilles.
Original on Weezer's "Ratitude" (2009).

And welcome. Hope to see you back here tomorrow.