Maybe I just notice it more because I'm such a huge fan of Van Morrison, and own practically every CD he's ever made.

But seriously, I cannot believe how many times I've been watching a movie at the theater (or on DVD rental) and I'm always pleasantly surprised to hear that yet another Van Morrison song has made it into a popular movie.

The cinematic qualities of Van Morrison's songs make it no surprise that he is one of the most popular choices for movie music. His compositions have graced the soundtrack of many box office hits over the years." Source

And I recently read that Van Morrison won an award "for his musical contributions to film."

Here's what I've learned about Van Morrison songs in movies...

I'll admit this straight up... Jim would probably write an entirely different review than me, when it comes to Johnny Reid's latest CD, Kicking Stones. (But the chances of him actually finding the time to sit down and write a review are quite slim, so instead you get my simplistic point of view -- the facts, nothin' but the facts. I'll try to add Jim's thoughts here & there.)

You might recall that I thought Johnny Reid's previous album, "Born To Roll" was amazingly good, so it's going to be very hard for me to surpass the level of praise that I had for that CD.

Fans of Johnny Reid came from all corners of the world to see him perform at last Friday's IHRA motorsports concert event in Grand Bend, Ontario.

I couldn't go because I had to work. But Jim helped put the concert together, and he was on-site to make sure everything went smoothly. Smooth-as-pie, I'm told. (Or would that be "ice cream", Alice?)

Perhaps the coolest news from the weekend:

Yep, Jim seems to have aquired somewhat of a legendary status of his own, simply by virtue of being Johnny Reid's neighbor.

Supposedly, people were stopping by the Instigator Funny Car tent all weekend looking for "Johnny Reid's neighbor, Jim".

...he says the wrist is still healing from all the autographs.

From Alice, as posted on the message boards of Johnny's Fan Club (the Tartan Army):

"Jim was so sweet and very hospitable with us. He told us that he loves it when Johnny and the boys are practicing at his place. He said his wife (Lynnette) and him open their windows so that they can listen in! Too cool! Imagine living next door to Johnny and Jen????"

Today's post probably won't make sense to anyone other than my friend Suzie and myself (...and possibly any well-connected singer or songwriter out there).

Nevertheless, I present you with...

The "Six Degrees" of Crystal Taliefero (CT):

#1 Henry Lee Summer
...lead singer in an IU party band, biggest hit "I Wish I Had A Girl".
...he was one of the first artists CT teemed up with.
...I saw Henry Lee Summer perform once with my friend Suzie at an outdoor concert in Bloomington.

Henry Lee Summer lived in the same town as (and played at many of the same gigs as)...

#2 John Mellencamp
...many of us Bloomington people still refer to him "John Cougar".
...CT has sung & performed several of his albums, as well as on most of his tours.
...I've seen John Cougar Mellencamp many times, and I have even been to his house!

John Mellencamp is often mentioned in the same sentence with...

#3 Bruce Springstein
...including in a quote of his own: "For me or a Bruce Springsteen to sit up in our ivory towers and make comments about racism, well, we're not really in it, are we?" -- John Mellencamp.
...CT has played a key role in MANY of Bruce Springstein's projects.
...I dug Springstein when he was "the Boss" and saw him on his "Born in the USA" tour.

Bruce Springstein was the record holder for 10 sold-out shows in one year. That is, until...

#4 Billy Joel
...performed at Madison Square Garden on April 19, 2006 and announced that it was his record-breaking 11th sold-out show of the year.
...The only artist CT has performed longer with than John Mellencamp is Billy Joel.
...I saw Billy Joel in concert as part of his "River of Dreams" tour.

As far as I know, Billy Joel has absolutely NO relation to...

#5 Stacy Mitchhart
...except to say that Billy Joel has performed at the House of Blues
...and Stacy Mitchhart serves up "a shot 'o Blues fo yo ass" as the house band at Bourbon Street Blues & Boogie Bar in Nashville.
...Back in the day, CT started producing Billy Joel's "live" stuff, and that has led to a whole string of other producing gigs, including Stacy Mitchhart's latest release.
...I've seen Stacy Mitchhart in Nashville more times than I can count.

Stacy Mitchhart has the same scratchy vocals as...

#6 Johnny Reid
... and both are soulsy-Bluesy rockers at the core.
...Johnny just shared with us the fact that none other than Crystal Taliefero sings backup on a few tracks that will appear on his next album.
...Johnny Reid happens to be my neighbor, but he's probably better known as a Canadian award-winning singer who's captivating audiences of his own here in the States.

We went on a VERY spontaneous road trip this weekend.

The states we visited in 2 days:

• South Carolina
  
• North Carolina
  
• Georgia
  
• East Tennessee
  

And these guys went with us: Pat Green (Lucky Ones CD), the Warren Brothers (Barely Famous Hits) and Johnny Reid (Born to Roll).

For some reason, you can't find Johnny Reid's CDs here in the States. But we got our hands on his latest album "Born To Roll" last week... and I haven't taken it out of the CD player since!

Interesting Sidenote:
Johnny told us that they cut this album (right here in Nashville) with the intention of leaving most of it a little "raw" and "rough around the edges" -- as opposed to well-polished and fine-tuned with a lot of studio work.

...which probably explains how they were able to cut this entire album in just one day!

The bonus for listeners is that we get to hear a lot more of Johnny's "real" voice throughout the entire album, including those passion-filled long notes that he's so well-known for, plus all the rock-your-a#! screamin-out-loud chords that literally take your breath away.

I, for one, happen to LOVE the raw stuff.
But we're not talkin purely acoustical one-man/one-guitar kind of stuff here... Oh no, this is strong... it ROCKS! Even the ballads raise the roof.

From the backup vocals to the myriad of instruments used on this album, it all comes together perfectly to create a sound that's 100% Johnny Reid.

Now onto the songs...

DISCLAIMER: I'm either going to make an A$# of myself by revealing an insanely ridiculous faux pas on my part, or else I'm going to make some new friends, thanks to my ingenious discovery of some hip new music. You be the judge.

After a quick bite to eat at Baja Burrito in Green Hills (...blech! Americanized Mexican with absolutely NO flavor), last night we went to the Bluebird Cafe for yet another evening "in the round" with some up-and-coming songwriters.

Tonight's line-up included:

Well, well... it looks like the "new neighbors" who moved in next door to us are none other than big-time Canadian singer/songwriter Johnny Reid, along with his beautiful wife and two adorable young sons!

When it comes to music, we're all across the board. But one thing's for sure: We're always looking for new singers and songwriters to become acquainted with!

Here's an eclectic listing of the concerts we've been to, our favorite singers and songwriters, and the reasons we're glad to live in Nashville - Music City USA.