The Butch Walker Ameliorative Effect--Proof Positive

Now that I have your attention (ha, ha), Bibi will once again tout the fabulously positive Butch Walker Ameliorative Effect.  You might say:  proof, please.  OK.  The "year" for Bibi and her fellow staff members begins at the end of August.  Although the fog of memory makes it less than pristinely clear, it seems that Bibi watched Episode 54 of Live From Daryl's House in mid or end of August.  While in many respects the flow of life did not change for Bibi, some did, in a significant way, from that point in time.  She began blogging about the wondrous Butch Walker and keeping track of the views of Say It Isn't So from that episode of LFDH at the end of August.  Began buying his cds, his dvd, his book with no thought of:  should I listen to Butch on YouTube or buy just a few mp3s before investing in him so heavily? For Bibi to invest in anything from a fiscal or emotional pov is a huge, involved decision process with lots and lots of research, time spent thinking about it, weighing the pros and cons, and FINALLY deciding yes or no.  When it came to Butch Walker, though, almost immediately, snagged a stock of blank cds to make mixtape cds to distribute to (even vaguely) interested parties, started mentioning Butch on Facebook.  Sure, there was some backlash, accusations of deserting Angus, etc., but Bibi was totally ensorcellee (enchanted, bewitched).  Started listening to Say It Isn't So (here's your chance to do so) 
The Butch version of Say It Isn't So: fab-u-lous!

daily, or more, along with Butch's cds and the BW Mixtapes.  What Bibi noted and passed on was that listening to Butch Walker music was a wonderfully effective way to get past negatives--people, situations, unavoidable tasks, that energy draining ennui--throughout the day.  You feel better, you're singing along, whatever you're working on is more fun, more satisfying and your output is just so much better.

Bibi's job is not so bad as "working at American Apparel, selling women's clothes to guys," but it could rank right up there.  The point is, Bibi's work performance is evaluated annually and review time was this past week.  Bibi's eval always comes out ok, pretty good and the number assigned to that performance is well within the keeper range.  This year, the number for this year's eval was significantly higher than last year's!  What other explanation could there be besides the Butch Walker Ameliorative Effect? 

Oh, Butch!  If you only knew how valuable you and your music are!  Thanks again, guy, for being such a great talent and being there!

Love you!

 

Butch Walker: Such a Pretty Melody

Bibi's readers know how much she LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Say It Isn't So from episode 54 of Live From Daryl's House--had to listen to it this morning to resolve some Monday family blues.  It worked, too! 

Since December 30, though, have been experiencing a huge crush on Pretty Melody.  "Oh baby we don't have to be like the rest of them....there's not a single part of me that would ever let you go.....ooooooh, oooooooh....." 

Got I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart the other day, so discovering that part of Butch's work.  Very, very interesting to Bibi.  It's Butch, but a different shade of Butch from the other albums.  Not sure how much I liked it at first, but you know how it is with Butch:  just listen, pay attention, let the words and melody flow over you.

One of my fan-tasies runs like this:  what if, I got to meet Butch and had the opportunity to get his autograph on Drinking With Strangers?   ha, ha, ha on the readers--they were thinking:  okay, a fantasy involving Butch, HOT!  Well, maybe, er, sure, just LOOK at these pictures

Butch Walker channeling hot male model

Butch Walker, spokesperson of the year for whatever--I will buy it!



Lost in thought about ... who cares?


but not for sharing on the world wide web. Please.  On this blog, the R rating is due to use of foul language, okay?  Anyway, in Bibi's fantasies, as it's playing out, I'm wearing whatever I'm wearing at the moment, so for this one at this moment, asking for the autograph in my office clothes.  Including the Ralph Lauren pumps.  Kinda funny.  Under what circumstances would Bibi be standing around Butch in her office-appropriate attire?  He'd actually be on this campus?  Happened right after work?  OMG! But anyway, in the book signing fantasy, the really big question is, what would I ask him to write?  My best ideas are lyrics from his songs, but there are so many great ones, tough.  And, admit it, a lot of the lyrics from Pretty Melody would raise eyebrows (and scorch 'em off) when you showed off the autograph.  Dilemna.

Off to a book reading and signing now.  Not Butch (sigh).  Michael Chabon, though, almost as good, right?

We will see.

Love ya, Butch!

Butch Walker--Live From Daryl's House

So there may be a few of you who haven't already heard me extol the virtues of watching Live From Daryl's House on tv or on the web.  If not, YOU HAVEN'T BEEN LISTENING!!  For the rest of my legion of readers, here's the highly anticipated blog about Butch Walker's appearance on LFDH.

It's a really good show--Daryl Hall (yes, from Hall and Oates) invites musicians to come to his house in upstate NY to jam with him and his band.  So far, the beauty of the show for me has been a re-introduction to H&O songs and getting to hear new music.  A lot of the guests are complete unknowns to me.  Not their fault; I just don't listen to new music.  Remember:  this blog is called bibilovesangus, referring to my  relatively recent discovery of AC/DC.  Although not a metal head or anything like that, mostly I like old school rock n roll.

Anyway, episode 54 of LFDH really, really changed stuff up for me.  (what a great sentence! LFDH didn't do much for my ability to express myself verbally)  Here it is, just in case you haven't seen it:

LFDH, Episode 54, May 15, 2012

Once you've watched, I'm sure you'll react just like I did and watch it over and over.  At first, I was just so taken with Daryl and Butch's version of Say It Isn't So--you can just see the joy the two shared in singing together!  Truly, incontrovertibly, a gem among versions of this song!  From August 28, when I began keeping track of the youtube viewings of this video, to today, it's moved up from 2340 to 2903.  And, no, it wasn't just me viewing it repeatedly.  It's addictive listening/watching.  Butch has such a feel for the song--very close to that sense of regretted, but understood and inevitable love fade in some of his own work.  Right now, my current fave of the episode is Sweethearts--just love it!!!!!  Sure, Butch is cute and all and of course he can sing his music with an passion and immediacy that's absolutely enthralling AND endearing, but to watch  Daryl, getting off to the song, the shared performance--man, it's fantastic!

I had read that Butch no longer did Mixtape in concert and felt sad that I hadn't discovered him early enough to attend a concert where he did sing it, so when he sings it on LFDH, OMG!  So heart rending, so close to pretty much everybody's experience with unrequited love, soooooo beautiful. The mix-cd that I've made of Butch's songs begins with Mixtape.  Closest Thing, apparently a Butch concert mainstay, is also here--guess it's the closest thing for me to getting to see Butch do it live--and again, Butch gives it his soulful all and Daryl is right up there with him.  These two are just great together!

Daryl's band comes through on all the shows, but their strengths as musicians really show up with Butch.  You expect them to be good on the ballad-y love songs, but their back up on Bodegas and Blood--killer, total rocker song--is so strong, tight, so UP, makes you want to jump up and dance around!  At home, when this song comes on, I do dance around--the cats run and hide as a safety measure.  FYI:  they LOVE Butch Walker, or at least they've come to accept that they're going to hear at least Say It Isn't So, at least once or twice a day.  Wonder if they thinkButch is better/worse than AC/DC???

Finally, during the food portion of the show, Butch and Daryl cook paella with a noted chef and Butch is wearing the LFDH apron--I have one now!!!

So, enjoy episode 54, it's great!  Discovering Butch Walker, even greater!  Paella anyone?