With the Office premiere just a night away, I thought I'd post one of my favourite Jim and Pam video's.

These guys kill me. I can't wait for the new Kanye album!

So, I went to the Brett Denin/Ben Folds/John Mayer concert last night (first concert of the sumemr season) and it was a great show. 

Brett Denin, was good, sort of a more electric Jack Johnson. He played a short set, but he sounded pretty good. 

Ben Folds was more than a little quirky, but it was a great performance. He was bouncing around, throwing his stool at the piano, and was just all kinds of energetic. He did a truly hilarious cover of a Dr. Dre song, and he ended his set with a rocking version of the Postal Service's "Such Great Heights."

This is my fifth time seeing John Mayer, and I've seen him go through a several stages - the folk stage, the heavy blues stage - and tonight I finally saw him work both of them together into a spectacular show. He did the songs everyone wanted ("No Such Thing," "Waiting on the World to Change," and "Bigger Than My Body") and some just plain great songs: "The Heart of Life," "Vultures," "Clairity (which was prefeced by "Victoria," which is from his debut EP that I never thought he'd play), "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room," "Good Love is on the Way," and "Belief." He also did a wicked blues version of Ray Charles' "I Don't Need No Doctor." It was great at the end, because he came out and did three acoustic only songs: "Your Body is a Wonderland," "Who Do you Think I Am?" and a beautiful version of "Stop this Train," and finished off with a blistering version of "In Reapir." All in all, a great show. 

And I got to thinking, and made a couple little random lists, since I was bored today:

Top 10 songwriters I could be, if I could:
1. Bob Dylan
2. Van Morrison
3. Ryan Adams
4. John Mayer
5. Ben Gibbard (from Death Cab for Cutie)
6. Bruce Springsteen
7. Jackson Browne
8. Pete Townshend
9. Robbie Robertson (The Band)
10. Tom Waits

Top 10 songs I wish I had written
1. "Desolation Row" - Bob Dylan
2. "Into the Mystic" - Van Morrison
3. "Behind Blue Eyes" - The Who
4. "Atlantic CIty" - Bruce Springsteen
5. "The Night they Drove Old Dixie Down" - The Band
6. "The Pretender" - Jackson Browne
7. "Martha" - Tom Waits
8. "English Girls Approximately" - Ryan Adams
9. "My Sweet Lord"' - George Harriosn
10. "Georgia on My Mind" - Ray Charles

Lifted from Sarah, and because she tagged me:

List seven songs you are into right now, no matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they're not any good, but they must be songs you're really enjoying now. Post these instructions in your LiveJournal along with your seven songs. Then tag seven other people to see what they're listening to.

1. It Makes No Difference - My Morning Jacket
2. I'm Gonna Find Another You - John Mayer
3. Can't Let Go - Landon Pigg
4. I Try - Ben Taylor 
5. Sail Away - Randy Newman
6. Walking After You - Foo Fighters
7. The Long and Winding Road - Ray Charles & The Count Baise Orchestra

So, I just returned from the John Mayer/Sheryl Crow show and it was awesome! It was the perfect night for it - a little cool, but that's okay - and I even saw a falling star (and yes I caught the falling star and put it in my pocket to save it for a rainy day, but that's a whole other story)!

I was really there to see John and so it kind of sucked that Sheryl was the "headliner", but I was really impressed by Sheryl's performance. She was rockin', and did a hilarious Bob Dylan impresson. Plus, it's hard to argue with a woman who ends her concert with a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Rock and Roll."

And John was amazing. He keeps getting better every time I see him. The man can certainly play the blues guitar, that's for sure, and he's still as dry and funny as ever - before performing "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room," he said the song was about "when a relationship is over, but she doesn't know it...but she will!" Nice burn of Jessica, the audience thought. Seriously, if you have the chance to see him, I highly recommend it. He puts on a great show. Here's the setlist: 

Good Love is on the Way - Try!
Belief - Continuum
Vultures - Continuum
Why Georgia - Room for Squares
Slow Dancing in a Burning Room - Continuum
Clarity - Heavier Things
Waiting on the World to Change - Continuum
Daughters - Heavier Things
My Stupid Mouth - Room for Squares
Gravity - Continuum
No Such Thing - Room for Squares
In Repair - Continuum

So yeah, it was a good night. And if you're reading this and thinking, "Gee, Clarke, that's a little commercial and mainstream isn't it?" first off...who cares? =) and second off, this Saturday I'm going to the Tristan Prettyman/Nada Surf/Guster concert, so that should put me right.

I'll end this with one of my favourite quotes from "Dreaming With a Broken Heart," a great song from John's new album (Continuum, which you should all buy) for someone:

Do I have to fall asleep with roses in my hand? 
Do I have to fall asleep with roses in my hand? 
Would you get them if I did?

Yup, here's two more stories I wrote for the paper. Hope everyone who reads 'em digs 'em:

Book Clubs are for nerds - like me! 

and

My first foray into French films!

Oh yeah, and the new John Mayer album "Continuum" is awesome! Go listen to it!

Title: The Notes of Love - Slow Dancing in a Burning Room
Author: calmacil_20
Rating: G
Ships: Harry/Hermione, Neville/Ginny, Ron/Luna
Summary: Ginny is forced to come to grips with reality and new feelings
Author's Note: Only one more character after this, and this little series is done! This was a tricky piece to write, because while I've writen Ginny/Harry break-up situations before, they were never that long or in depth, and they were always from Harry's point-of-view. This was the exact opposite - the whole story was going to be about the break-up, and it was from Ginny's POV, whom I wanted readers to be a least a little empathetic towards. I hope I accomplished that goal, so please give me some feedback on it. Thanks, and I hope you enjoy!

Cross-posted to: delusionalfans, harmony_fiction, hhr_danemma, blueflame_hhr and my own personal journal. 

All at Once

Orange Sky

Brand New Love

Let You Down

Slow Dancing in a Burning Room

Boredom at work strikes again, so here's another list for anyone who gives a damn about my tastes in music:

1. Runes Album (Led Zeppelin IV) - Led Zeppelin
2. Transatlanticism - Death Cab for Cutie
3. Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan
4. Acthung Baby - U2
5. Kind of Blue - Miles Daivs
6. Love is Hell - Ryan Adams
7. Who's Next - The Who
8. Before These Crowded Streets - Dave Matthews Band
10. Moondance - Van Morrison
11. In the Wee Small Hours - Frank Sinatra
12. Physical Graffiti - Led Zeppelin
13. Heavier Things - John Mayer
14. Getz/Gilberto - Stan Getz/Joao Gilberto
15. Rubber Soul - The Beatles
16. Blonde on Blone - Bob Dylan
17. (What's the Story) Morning Glory - Oasis
18. Pet Sounds - The Beach Boys
19. Crash - Dave Matthews Band
20. Blue Train - John Coltrane
21. Led Zeppelin II - Led Zeppelin
22. Plans - Death Cab for Cutie
23. Eat A Peach - The Allman Brothers
24. In Between Dreams - Jack Johnson
25. Abbey Road - The Beatles
26. Highway 61 Revisted - Bob Dylan
27. Music from Big Pink - The Band
28. Room for Squares - John Mayer
29. Z - My Morning Jacket
30. Songs for Swingin' Lovers - Frank Sinatra
31. Live at Leeds - The Who
32. The Photo Album - Death Cab for Cutie
33. Are You Experienced? - Jimi Hendrix
34. The Joshua Tree - U2
35. Disraeli Gears - Cream
36. Vs. - Pearl Jam
37. Pink Moon - Nick Drake 
38. August and Everything After - Counting Crows
39. Brushfire Fairytales - Jack Johnson
40. Miles of Aisles - Joni Mitchell
41. Twentysomething - Jamie Cullum
42. Under the Table and Dreaming - Dave Matthews Band
43. Linus and Lucy: The Music of Vince Guaraldi - George Winston
44. The Heart of Saturday Night - Tom Waits
45. Nasvhille Skyline - Bob Dylan
46. Led Zeppelin III - Led Zeppelin
47. Sufjan Stevens - Come on, Feel the Illionise!
48. Ryan Adams - Gold
49. White Ladder -David Gray
50. Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd
51. Poetic Champions Compose - Van Morrison
52. The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan
53. Astral Weeks - Van Morrison
54. Morning View - Incubus
55. Harvest Moon - Neil Young
56. In A Silent Way - Miles Davis
57. Come Away With Me - Norah Jones
58. Tommy - The Who
59. Graceland - Paul Simon
60. Jackson City Nights - Ryan Adams
61. It's Time - Michael Buble
62. Yourself or Someone Like You - Matchbox Twenty  

My favorite 62 favorite songs - work is boring, but since I work at a CD store, this is a good place for this list to take shape. The first...probably 5 are in order, and afterwards, it's just as they come to me...

1. Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin
2. God Only Knows - The Beach Boys
3. Transatlanticism - Death Cab for Cutie
4. The Way You Look Tonight - Frank Sinatra
5. So What - Miles Davis
6. The Best of What's Around - Dave Matthews Band
7. The Weight - The Band
8. Shelter from the Storm (Alternate Take) - Bob Dylan
9. Clarity - John Mayer
10. English Girls Approximately - Ryan Adams 
11. Baba O'Riley - The Who
12. Going to California - Led Zeppelin
13. Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You - Bob Dylan
14. Please Call Me Baby - Tom Waits
15. Proudest Monkey - Dave Matthews Band
16. Bitter Sweet Symphony - The Verve
17. Champagne Supernova - Oasis
18. Hey Jude - The Beatles 
19. Please Do Not Let Me Go - Ryan Adams
20. Blue Train - John Coltrane
21. The Girl from Ipanema - Stan Getz, Joao Gilberto
22. Blue Sky - The Allman Brothers Band
23. The Pretender - Jackson Browne
24. In My Time of Dying - Led Zeppelin
25. Gravity - John Mayer Trio
26. Into the Mystic - Van Morrison
27. Old Woman Behind the Counter in A Small Town - Pearl Jam
28. The Seeker - The Who
29. Aqueous Transmisson - Incubus
30. Pink Moon - Nick Drake
31. Someone Like You - Van Morrison
32. Round Here - Counting Crows
33. Iris - Goo Goo Dolls
34. Georgia on My Mind - Ray Charles
35. Ring of Fire - Johnny Cash
36. Crash - Dave Matthews Band
37. 3x5 - John Mayer
38. A Movie Script Ending - Death Cab for Cutie
39. Getting in Tune - The Who
40. That's The Way - Led Zeppelin
41. Hearts and Bones - Paul Simon
42. Bubble Toes - Jack Johnson 
43. Sparks - Coldplay
44. Pearl Jam - Go
45. Learning to Fly - Tom Petty
46. I Just Wasn't Made for These Times - The Beach Boys
47. Bad - U2
48. Spoon - Dave Matthews Band
49. Smoke - Tristan Prettyman
50. Crazy Love - Van Morrison
51. Stop Your Sobbing - The Pretenders
52. I'm On Fire - Bruce Springsteen
53. When We Laugh Indoors - Death Cab for Cutie
54. A Day in the Life - The Beatles
55. Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd
56. Electical Storm - U2
57. Queen of the Slipstream - Van Morrison
58. Desolation Row - Bob Dylan
59. Amsterdam - Coldplay
60. Your Heart is An Empty Room - Death Cab for Cutie
61.  Sloop John B - The Beach Boys
62. Thirteen - Big Star

I know a girl, she puts the color inside of my world,
and it's so hard for us to be so far off living our separate lives;
so I'll check the weather wherever you are 'cause I want to know if you can see the stars tonight.
And I can tell you this much, I will marry just once
'cause ever since I tried trying not find every little meaning in my life, I've been fine, I've been cool
And I am here now, and she is here now.

So close your mind and waste some time if you have to...

Something about you, it's just the way you move, the way you move me.
I'm tired of being alone, so hurry up and get here
And I, in time, will come around, I always do for you.
Your mouth was so dirty;
she's the brightest thing I got
And I can't remember life before her name.

Well, while I'm still waiting for my beta to be done, I thought I'd do this, just to let everyone know I'm not dead or anything.
List 7 songs you're way into right now, no matter how much they suck, in no particular order. Then tag seven people who have to do it too.

1. 2000 Miles - Coldplay
2. Dream Girl - Dave Matthews Band
3. Another Kind of Green - John Mayer Trio
4. Vienna - The Fray
5. Wordless Chorus - My Morning Jacket
6. Let's Stay Together - Al Green
7. Marching Bands of Manhattan - Death Cab for Cutie