A pretty simple song today!  Go for a walk on Queen Street in Toronto and you’ll understand the song.  Lots of different people out there, lots of different styles, ethnicities etc and it can all be beautiful if you look at it the right way:)

I loveeeeeeeeeeee her voice in this song! It was featured on both One Tree Hill AND Grey’s Anatomy!

Enjoy it:)

I’ve been walking in the same way as I did
Missing out the cracks in the pavement
And tutting my heel and strutting my feet
“Is there anything I can do for you dear? Is there anyone I can call?”
“No and thank you, please Madam. I ain’t lost, just wandering”

Round my hometown
Memories are fresh
Round my hometown
Ooh the people I’ve met
Are the wonders of my world
Are the wonders of my world
Are the wonders of this world
Are the wonders of my world

I like it in the city when the air is so thick and opaque
I love to see everybody in short skirts, shorts and shades
I like it in the city when two worlds collide
You get the people and the government
Everybody taking different sides

Shows that we ain’t gonna stand shit
Shows that we are united
Shows that we ain’t gonna take it
Shows that we ain’t gonna stand shit
Shows that we are united

Round my hometown
Memories are fresh
Round my hometown
Ooh the people I’ve met

Are the wonders of my world
Are the wonders of my world
Are the wonders of this world
Are the wonders of my world

Today’s song is from someone we haven’t really heard much from in years: Lauryn Hill! She had an amazing album called The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. I’m pretty sure my cousin Kristine and I listened to the song “To Zion” on repeat one summer!

The song I’m writing about is called Lose Myself. I think if you could pick songs for your life’s soundtrack, this one would be my “learning to love” stage. For years, I really and truly believed that I would not get married. Ever. I tried to find a reason for the horrible things that were said and done to me by people that I loved (in relationships, not family). I finally rationalized with myself and decided that my purpose in life when it came to love was to be that person who had it bad, to show others what they really had, what love was really supposed to be.

Sure, I had some good times and I really believed I was in love. I’m sure I was for a while but I cried so many times over the years. I kept a lot of it inside and it affected me greatly. I have a very hard time trusting people. I don’t like myself a lot of the time. I rarely believed in myself enough to think the person I was with could actually like me. I think it ruined some great relationships but thankfully, it might have ruined some crappy ones too ha ha.

Lauryn talks about how she would do anything for love. “all I ever wanted was love”. It sounds like shes talking about putting up with a lot of garbage just so that she had a “boyfriend” and so that she had someone to be in love with. It seems clear that this person was selfish and used her love. Even if it wasn’t physical abuse, or actually coming out and saying very mean things, emotional abuse can happen.

Throughout the song, she looks back and sees that this string of broken hearts has resulted in trying to push away someone who really does love her now. She apologizes for not being able to love completely at first. Of being afraid of letting someone in. The song then appears to take a happier tone, and she is thankful for the strength she had to endure the terrible relationships, to face her fear of love and to finally find the happiness that lives inside of love.

So, to the guy who was the person in the first part of the song: thank you for treating me that way. For forcing me to see what a sad and hurtful heart looks like. Thank you for forcing me to see I’m stronger than what you put me through.

To the guy who came after that. I’m sorry that I allowed that guy before you to cloud my judgment and limit my ability to enjoy what you gave me at that time. I might have never appeared to be happy or thankful for what you did, but I’m strong enough to see now that you helped me grow and gave me the push I needed, even if it hurt like hell at the time.

To the last guy in the song and in my song. Thank you for having the patience and the intelligence of the heart to see past my shit and wait for me to come around. Thank you for never letting go of me no matter how hard I pushed you away. I am the girl at the end of this song now. I no longer believe I’m that person meant to show others how lucky in love they are. I am that person who learned how to see how lucky in love she is! Although things hurt like hell, I’d do it all over again if it meant finding you in the end. You are my forever! Love you<3

To everyone reading this: I hope you never give up on love. Just because someone has hurt you and caused you to feel unworthy, you aren’t. Maybe you made some mistakes, but so long as you learn from them, it wasn’t worthless. Love isn’t perfect and I don’t think it’s just handed to us. I hope you can find the beauty in your heartbreak, learn from it, add the cause of it to your list of deal-breakers for your next relationship and love like it’s your last day!

I hope you enjoy it! It’s upbeat and catchy and a great addition to my soundtrack in life
Lose Yourself – Lauryn Hill
______________________________________________________________________________________
I used to do it for the love a long time ago
And all I ever wanted was love
I used to love without fear a long time ago
And all I ever wanted was love
Then somebody came around and tried to hurt me
Tried to make me feel like I was unworthy
Took a pure love and tried to make it dirty
Truth was they never did deserve me
No!

Chorus:
I had to lose myself so I could love you better
I had to lose myself, had to lose myself so I could love you better
Had to lose myself, had to lose myself
So I could love you better
Had to lose myself in love
And that’s just the way it is…

Couldn’t tell me I was love when I needed it
When, all I ever wanted was love.
Should a told me just me because I’m worth receiving it
But all I ever wanted was love
There’s is something awkward about the selflessness it takes to
Give love and the good that it makes you!
True love can never really forsake you
But it took a little while just for me to see!

Chorus:
I had to lose myself so I could love you better
I had to lose myself, had to lose myself so I could love you better
Had to lose myself, had to lose myself
So I could love you better
Had to lose myself in love
And that’s just the way it is…

I had a paralyzing fear of facing failure
And I couldn’t love you perfectly with fear in my head
So I peerlessly had to face the danger
So I could come back and love you whole instead
All of your soul I said!
So I could love you better

Chorus:
I had to lose myself so I could love you better
I had to lose myself, had to lose myself so I could love you better
Had to lose myself, had to lose myself
So I could love you better
Had to lose myself in love
And that’s just the way it is…

And so it goes that I never meant to hurt you
Couldn’t stay but I never meant to desert you
Whole lot a things I just had to work thru
Time to heal and restore my selfworth too
Confrontation of my fears and anxiety
Cried a whole lot years I suffered quietly
And though it may have taken years I can finally
Tell you that you were always on my mind!

Chorus:
I had to lose myself so I could make it better
I had to lose myself, had to lose myself so I could make it better
Had to lose myself, had to lose myself
So I could make it better
Had to lose myself in love
And that was just the way!

Bridge:

Takes strength to absorb all the abuse I did
Great love to absorb all the misuse I did
Hey baby it’s not an excuse I give.
And I’d do it all again because for you I live

Takes strength to absorb all the abuse I did
Great love to absorb all the abuse I did
Hey baby it’s not an excuse I give.
And I’d do it all again because for you I live

Chorus:
I had to lose myself so I could make it better
I had to lose myself, had to lose myself so I could make it better
Had to lose myself, had to lose myself
So I could make it better
Had to lose myself in love
And that was just the way!
And that was just the way it is…

It’s Friday and I’m too lazy to pick out a good, meaningful song! Besides, you’ve read one too many sappy songs this week ha ha.

I love love love when bands do cover songs.  It gives you a new appreciation for both versions.

Here is a rather random set of cover song from the album Punk Goes Crunk ha ha ha.

So this is the original song some of you might remember.  It’s called Still Fly by Big Tymers

Still Fly video

Here is the awesome new cover by The Devil Wears Prada. I love this one!… especially the breakdown and the dancing that goes on during it in the video lol.

TDWP does Still Fly

Here is a horrible, crappy Akon song

Akon ick!

Here is a better version done by The Maine

a MUCH better version of I Wanna Love You

and last but not least, I think we all know Misery Business by Paramore?

The original song by Paramore

Well this is the BEST cover haha

Sea of Treachery’s version!

Enjoy!! If you still want more covers. I suggest these ones:

Rihanna’s Umbrella by All Time Low
Kanye’s Stronger by 30STM
Gnarles Barkley’s Crazy done by Shawn Colvin
Eddy Arnold’s Make The World Go Away by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood
Neil Young’s Heart of Gold done by Serena Ryder

Today’s song is by my reigning man of music, Mr. Dallas Green. There isn’t another persons voice who I think I love anymore than his! I will be seeing him in concert in June again. Yes again! I think he’s ranking up there with the amount of times I’ve seen Hedley lol.

The first time I heard this song I felt a sense of peace. I found a big part of me in the part of the song where he says ” You need not to find a cure for everything that makes you weak.
You need not to reach for the stars when life becomes so dark”

I’m always looking at the bad or less-desirable qualities and habits that I have. I’m also looking for ways to hide them because who would want someone with anything but perfect traits right? lol.. I know. I’m wrong but I suppose that’s an internal dialogue that I’ve yet to find! This song reminds you that you don’t need to find a way to fix everything that makes you weak or “flawed”. That you need to be who you are and only then, can you find happiness and love.

There is also a calmness that comes when you are “in the dark”. You reflect on things, you learn from them but you have to allow yourself to feel that darkness to gain anything from it. Although the darkness doesn’t hold any answers, it can show you the way you don’t want to be.

Overall, the song speaks to me of someone who has endured a difficult but rewarding life. Who has finally found themselves after years of searching for the one thing that can make you forever happy. Find who you are supposed to be and be that person. Just accept who you are, flawed or not. So long as those flaws aren’t hurting anyone else or breaking any laws, just be you and love with all of your heart until the very end.

Against The Grain by City and Colour.Video from The Orange Lounge Acoustic Sessions

—————————————————————————————————————–

You need not to climb mountaintops,
You need not to cross the sea,
You need not to find a cure for everything that makes you weak.
You need not to reach for the stars when life becomes so dark,
And when the wind does blow against the grain,
You must follow your heart,
You must follow your heart.

When all your friends have come and gone,
And the sun no longer shines,
And the happiness for which you long is washed away like an ocean’s tide,
When all the hard times outweigh the good,
And all your words are misunderstood,
When the day seems lost from the stars
You must follow your heart,
You must follow your heart.

If you feel you’ve paid the price,
And your wounds should cease to heal
And everything you love in life spins like a winding wheel.
If you should wake to find you’re abandoned,
And the road you’ve traveled leads to a dead-end
When death creeps in to play it’s part,
You must follow your heart,
You must follow your heart.

So today’s song doesn’t really need lyrics… I’m sure you all know it.. Hey Ya by Outkast?? The lyrics aren’t really important to me, therefore I’m not posting them lol.

This guy’s take on the song is awesome though. He’s got such a nice voice and I love the soft guitar in it!

Enjoy:)

Hey Ya cover by Mat Weddle

Next to Dallas Green, Ray Lamontagne’s voice is my favourite male voice (ok, and maybe David Gray lol).

I think this song is a realistic love song. Not the lovey-dovey it’s-never-going-to-happen-to-me type. I think the chorus is so amazingly romantic, almost fairy-tale like. The song then talks about the realities that we all face in the world. We all cry, we all face catastrophe in some form and we all see the results of war and crime. If we don’t open our eyes and face these things head on, we can’t really be alive right? I think this song explains that the world is a scary place but if you have someone that will hold you and walk with you through this crazy world, it will be easier to face. It is kind of similar to one of the voiceovers from my favourite show; One Tree Hill.

“Every once in a while people step up, they rise above themselves.
Sometimes they surprise you, and sometimes they fall short.
Life is funny sometimes, it can push pretty hard, but if you look close enough you find hope in the words of children, in the bars of a song and in the eyes of someone you love.
And if you’re lucky, and if you’re the luckiest person on this entire planet, the person you love decides to love you back.”

Here is the audio of the song.
Hold You In My Arms
—————————————————————————————————-
“Hold You In My Arms”

When you came to me with your bad dreams and your fears
It was easy to see that you’d been crying
Seems like everywhere you turn catastrophe it reigns
But who really profits from the dying
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you forever
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you in my arms forever

When you kissed my lips with my mouth so full of questions
It’s my worried mind that you quiet
Place your hands on my face
Close my eyes and say
Love is a poor man’s food
Don’t prophesize
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you forever
And I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you forever

So now we see how it is
This fist begets the spear
Weapons of war
Symptoms of madness
Don’t let your eyes refuse to see
Don’t let your ears refuse to hear
Or you ain’t never going to shake this sense of sadness
I could hold you in my arms
I could hold on forever
And I could hold you in my arms
I could hold forever

The first song is called Pretty Amazing Grace and it’s by Neil Diamond. It’s from his newly released album, Home Before Dark.

To me, this song is both spiritual and hopeful and the guitar is pretty awesome in it as well. I think everyone could use some pretty amazing grace in their life and I think everyone should try to be someone else’s pretty amazing grace. I hope everyone finds their pretty amazing grace, both spiritually and in love.

This is the audio track. The lyrics are below:
Pretty Amazing Grace
————————————————————————————-

Pretty amazing grace is what You showed me
pretty amazing grace is who You are
I was an empty vessel
You filled me up inside
and with amazing grace restored my pride

Pretty amazing grace is how You saved me
and with amazing grace reclaimed my heart
love in the midst of chaos
calm in the heat of war
showed with amazing grace what love was for

You forgave my insensitivity
and my attempt to then mislead You
You stood beside a wretch like me
Your pretty amazing grace was all I needed.

Stumbled inside the doorway of Your chapel
humbled in God by everything I found
beauty and love surround me
freed me from what I fear
ask for amazing grace and You appear

You overcame my loss of hope and faith
gave me a truth I could belive in
You led me to a higher place
showed Your amazing grace
when grace was what I needed

look in a mirror I see Your reflection
open a book You live on every page
I fall and You’re there to lift me
share every road I climb
and with amazing grace You ease my mind

Came to You with empty pockets first
when I returned I was rich man
didn’t believe love could quench my thirst
but with amazing grace You showed me that it can

In Your amazing grace I had a vision
from that amazing place I came to be
into the night I wandered
wandering aimlessly
found Your amazing grace to comfort me.

pretty amazing
pretty amazing
pretty amazing
pretty amazing
pretty amazing
pretty amazing
pretty amazing
pretty amazing

You overcame my loss of hope and faith,
gave me a truth I could believe in.
You led me to that higher place
showed me that love and truth and hope and grace were all I needed.