THE SONGS:
On "Volume 2" we've got 3 covers and 2 originals.
1. Sympathique - (Pink Martini)
2. Ignition (Remix) - (R Kelly)
3. Streets Of Spain
4. Till There Was You - (Peggy Lee/The Beatles)
5. Good To Know
*Sympathique: This classic by Portland, OR based band Pink Martini came out in the late '90s. It's popular in France. Kind of popular here in the US. At least at wineries. I first learned Sympathique in the mid 2000's to sing with my Parisienne chanteuse Coco. We were asked to sing it at a friend's wedding in Bordeaux and we've sung it in bars and cafes in Paris. Comme ça.. 
*Ignition (Remix): My friend T Sean introduced me to this incredibly catchy song back when it was a hit in the early 2000s. I attempted it with an acoustic guitar a few years later and it's remained in my wine bar sets ever since. Yes, it's by the now infamous (and incarcerated) R Kelly. I used to say after playing this song "That's by R Kelly. All charges dropped. Which, by the way, is different than being found Not Guilty." Can't say that line anymore. I still play it though. I've thought about writing a post about what songs or artists are off limits due to their personal failings, if any? And if so, where does one start and where does one stop? Certainly Michael Jackson would be high on the list. But what about lesser offenders, like Lennon (hit Cynthia), Bowie (Lori Maddux, age 14), Brian Jones (hit Anita)? Where does one draw the line? No Beatles, Stones or Bowie? And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Or do we forgive/look the other way and honor their art instead? Much to discuss. For now I choose to separate the art from the artist.
*Streets Of Spain: Walking the side streets of Barcelona, off the Rambla, I got the idea for this song. I saw street kids and drug addicts and others who were sleeping rough, on the fringes of Barcelona society. The title "Streets of Spain" popped into my head. I had also, just prior to coming to Spain, randomly read about the singer for a band called Green On Red named Dan Stuart, and his wild times of marrying a diplomat stationed in Spain, and with an excess amount of free time and money on his hands, found himself a heroin addict in short order. I kind of fused his story with the stories of the street kids I saw and used that as the basis for the lyrics. 
*Till There Was You: Of course I learned this from The Beatles. I always loved the guitar solo, so as a teenager I taught myself just that. Strangely I didn't tackle all the chords til decades later when it was a special request for a wedding I'd been hired to perform at. Then it became a set staple. This live version has no guitar solo cos it's just me. But it's fun to play! Still dig that solo. Hear the Beatles original here. Btw: I always knew it was a cover for the Beatles (cos I read the songwriting credits on the album) but I had no idea it was from the musical "The Music Man" and had been previously covered by Peggy Lee, which is how Paul heard it as a kid, probably the same age as me when I would first hear his version.
*Good To Know: Songwriters say their songs are like their children. Well this child went out and got a degree and earned a little money. I won't go into the genesis of the recording and production of the original here and now (TL;DR). But I will briefly mention that I was partially inspired to write Good To Know because of a Travis song called Writing To Reach You. I wrote this in one sitting when I lived in Venice, after walking back from my friend's Dawn & Greg's newly bought house. I was trying to shake off a hangover and picked up the guitar and this song happened. Oh, and the "earned a little money" part; Good To Know was featured in a 2 year, worldwide ad campaign for Portugal's biggest bank back in 2005-6. I got lots of nice emails from Portuguese speaking folks asking about the lyrics. Here's one of the ads they used it in.
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING!
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"Volume 3" will be up next month.
Cheers,
Brady