WagooMusic

The theme song from the Fox cartoon Family Guy is recognizable to almost any teenager. The jazz and big band oriented music of the show normally take cues from old movies, musicals, and songs such as The Sound of Music or the musical style of Frank Sinatra. This genre of music is the showcase of Seth Macfarlane’s first solo release album, Music is better than Words. Macfarlane, along with being the mastermind behind the comedy of Family Guy, is also vocally trained and greatly inspired by old jazz standards and show tunes. in the album, Macfarlane’s comedic mind is pushed to the side, and replaced by a professional attempt at a vocal album. From all this comes an album that takes everything it has from the sounds of a past generation and brings them back in grand fashion for a new generation to listen to.

The good:

Where this album really succeeds is in providing a window in time back to when the music of the day was completely different from what we normally hear now. Macfarlane brings back very old songs that haven’t been sung for quite some time, and from them creates an adventurous listen for those who have not delved into the genre. yet for those who have listened to the likes of Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and even older composers such as Glen Miller, this album can be seen as an updated version of old tunes. As far as Macfarlane’s singing goes, he is spot on, boasting both a fantastic vocal range and impressive use of tremolo. it is important to note the musicianship involved in the Jazz band that conductor Joel McNeely leads. McNeely is also behind the arrangements of the songs, some of his best work coming from songs such as “The Sadder but Wiser Girl” and the duet “Two Sleepy People”. overall there are a lot of good things in this album, with fun quirky songs and instrumentals that in themselves deserve multiple listens because of how intricate the swing rhythms become.

The Bad:

This album is a look back at very old songs, and this can make for an interesting listen on its own, but in the end it seems to be too driven by nostalgia to make it relevant. What would aid this album is more innovation to liven up the genre. For a lot of people, this is a hard genre of music to get into, and although this album could be a good starting album to open doors for these type of people, the genre needs to be moving in a new direction instead of just backwards. whether it comes from new original compositions, or covers of old songs that aren’t just repeats, are all things that would push this album forward.

To many, this may be completely different from what you are used to listening to, yet this should in no way be seen as a reason not to take a chance on this album. Swing beats and an orchestrated jazz band give the album complexity for those who want to listen for it, but for those who don’t, Macfarlane’s melodies alone are catchy enough to keep you entertained. in the end, although this album sits fully in the realm of nostalgia, the old show tunes and musical numbers do provide both a history of music, and a perfect example of how music in any form can entertain.

Grade: -A

What has Johnny Cash, Winston Churchill, Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Roger Daltrey, Joe DiMaggio, Rick Green, Gene Hackman, Tom Hanks, David Hasselhoff, Elton John, Michael Jordan, Frank Sinatra, Bruce Springsteen, Rod Stewart, Neil Young and Gary Coleman in common?

All these celebrities love watching miniature trains running around miniature mountains, rivers and towns.

In short, they are all train model addicts.

Johnny Cash, the American singer and songwriter, made TV commercials and endorsements for Lionel Trains in the 1970s.

Neil Young is part owner of Lionel trains.

Rod Stewart, in between getting into blondes and who know what else, spent considerable time and money on building train models. In fact, Rod’s impressive replica of new York’s Grand Central Station, complete with 100ft of tract, buildings and figures in 1940s period dress, graced the cover of Model Railroader in October 2007. an honor Rod claims to mean more than ‘being on the cover of Rolling Stones.

The late Gary Coleman is another afficionado of train models. In an online interview with ABC News, he said, currently I’m doing Lionel trains. I’m doing them as prototypically as possible, even though they are toy trains. I still like to do it as realistically as possible.

Gary Coleman also allegedly left his complete train collection to Allied Model Trains, the Original Whistle stop and the Train Shack in L.a. so if you are a train modeller, you know you are in great company. you can even get Frank Sinatra’s train layouts on DVD.

So what is the appeal of these toy trains?

First of all, they are not toys. Enthusiasts will tell you they are works of art. They are scaled down versions of the real thing. They operate like the real one. There is a sheer number of skills you need to master a working layout. you are a jack of all trades: a semi-competent carpenter, electrician, metalworker, painter, sculptor and designer all rolled into one.
There is also the joy of escapism. you can forget the business of living for hours on end while you pore over the plan for a perfect world, all of your own making.

And it’s never complete. you just keep scouring for more things to add to your model to make it perfect. Adding a mountain here, a pond there, more tracks. the list is endless. it can take you years. Then, of course, there’s the ultimate thrill of seeing your trains going round the track.

No wonder so many celebrities are hooked on model trains

OCTOBER 13, 2011

Sebastian Vettel arrived in Korea fresh from celebrating his second world championship by singing Beatles and Frank Sinatra songs in Japan.

“We had a busy Sunday after the race in Suzuka!” the latest of F1′s nine back-to-back champions smiled in Korea.

“I was in the bar with the boys and had a good time doing some karaoke. it was a very good night, very special. everyone had a couple of drinks and was very happy.

“I did Yellow Submarine, Hey Jude and My Way. Michael (Schumacher) came and joined us and we had a couple of drinks together and after that I started mixing drinks a bit and felt worse – not the best strategy!

“On Monday I had an Infiniti event in Tokyo and saw lots of fans. on Tuesday I got a bit of time to myself and allowed myself to have things sink in a bit. it was a good time in Tokyo and then I came down to the track, unfortunately without time to see much of Korea, although I hear good things about Seoul.”

Vettel confirmed that with his second title in the bag he will be out to make up for the Suzuka reversal — where he finished third to Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso — in Korea and for the rest of the season.

“When I crossed the line in Japan I knew we could have done a bit better. I would love to have won and will try to get another win this weekend. the championship doesn’t change our approach.

“It’s true that in other races we often had the luxury to go a lap longer with the tyres, whereas at Suzuka we were the ones stopping earlier than we wanted or expected. we suffered more tyre degradation than we thought.

“We have a couple of ideas about that and think we understand why the tyre wear was more, but we need to come here and confirm it because I think the tyre approach here is very aggressive.

“There will certainly be more than two stops but if it’s wet in Friday practice (which is what the forecasts are currently saying) and then dry for the race, it won’t give us much of an idea.”

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