Indy Telecom & Industrial Media

Yesterday, out of the blue, I popped a CD that had a collection of songs by Joan Baez and Bob Dylan.

Simply listening to their voices and their lyrics drove a shiver down my spine. I could literally feel myself standing there and it was beautiful, and quite moving.

In a way, they defined an era when artists actually cared for the world around them, and a culture where they stood for what they believed in. Baez’s voice is gorgeous, deep and her lyrics are from a time when people like her were willing to drive home their point at whatever cost. Dylan was no different, and he was a poet first, a poet who sang for the soul of the world.

When the CD got done, I turned on radio, where songs ranged from some meaningless rap (on women, booze and assorted nonsense) to unadulterated junk. I turned to some news channel that talked about the importance of Christians to be aggressive, while another one was saying how poor Britney Spears needed help for her idiocy.

In a way, it is an unfortunate turn of events. We’ve moved away from artists who cared about the world, such as Baez, Dylan and Lennon, to people like Spears who don’t give a damn about anything other than their own tantrums and fame.

I cannot see Britney Spears protesting against the War in Iraq, or joining the Olympic protests against China. Instead, I see her doing unbelievably immature things for the sake of attention. I see the death of an era of responsible global citizens and the emergence of immature, childish fame-hogs who care for nothing other than themselves, and sometimes, not even that.

But for the moment, listen to the song that beautifully captured a time that I’d have been proud to have been a part of.

I usually don’t write about music, mostly because I’ve a wide and eclectic taste and my likes and dislikes are often fleeting.

But last evening, I was at the local Barnes and Nobles looking around when they had some fantastic music that was being played. So, I walked up to the lady at the counter and asked her about it. No, I literally waltzed up to the lady and asked her what was being played, because it sounded absolutely fabulous and very danceable.

She called up the music and movies department, and they told me that it was a Putumayo collection, of Tango and Latin dance music. That’s all I needed to hear.

Now, Akshay had introduced me to the Putumayo collection, with their Blues Around the World, which I absolutely loved. Ever since, I’ve been gobbling up their music the way ogres gobble up evil, little kittens.

So, when the lady told me it was the Putumayo collection, I immediately asked her if she had any more similar music lying around. And of course, she did. So, I heard a few and ended up buying their Tango Around the World, Cuba and Afro-Latin Party collections.

Excellent music — and very highly recommended! The only downside, of course, is this unexplainable craving for a margarita and a beach. And a dance floor, of course.

A few weeks back, Delana got us tickets to the Trans Siberian Orchestra as a congratulatory gift.

It was one of the most amazing sound and light shows that I’ve ever been to. While the first half was rather boring and Christmas-y (with a tonne of proselytizing), the second half was beautiful. And either way, the music and the light show was fabulous.

A must see — very highly recommended!

I just returned from for one of the most wonderful concerts that I’ve seen in my life — G3 live. The lineup consisted of Paul Gilbert, John Petrucci and Mike Portnoy (both from Dream Theater) and of course, Joe Satriani.

And I almost died when all three came on stage and started playing Jimi Hendrix numbers. Guitargasm Extreme!

And here are some pictures to satisfy your curiosity — sorry about the poor quality. Taking pictures wasn’t exactly my first priority!