Hey all, and welcome back to another edition of What I'm Listening To! Summer is a great time to go swimming, camping, or anything outdoors. However, it's also peak music festival season! With that in mind, I decided to pick out 5 songs from artists that were legendary performances at past music festivals. Besides the usual link for the music, I've also included Youtube videos when applicable to show their actual set. I hope you enjoy!
"Going Up the Country" - Canned Heat (Canned Heat - Best Of)
Woodstock 1969 is such an iconic festival, where many memorable musical acts played. One of those acts was Canned Heat. For me, "Going Up the Country" is their most memorable song. The flute, the flute, the flute! It's a nice upbeat track where the musical instruments almost outweigh the singer's performance.
"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" - Queen (The Platinum Collection)
Live Aid 1985 blessed us with one of the best sets Queen ever did (besides Montreal, in my opinion). Freddie Mercury was a generational singer, and he made sure to show up and show out. I chose "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" because it isn't the usual first song people would think of when looking back on this concert. It's not as in your face as "We Are the Champions", but it's still a nice track. Honestly, watch this set and be amazed. I can't even imagine how cool it must have been to be here.
"Heart-Shaped Box" - Nirvana (In Utero)
Everyone loves "It Smells Like Teen Spirit" or "Come as You Are", but for me personally this is probably my favorite. Nirvana was such a breath of fresh musical air when they came out in the early 1990's. They skyrocketed to superstardom, and it was hard for the lead singer, Kurt Cobain, to deal with all of it. Their live performance at Reading 1992 is their most well known, as it was one of the last live concerts they did before Kurt Cobain's unfortunate death. I don't know how anyone who loves grungy punk music hasn't listened to this band, but if you haven't, please give them a try.
"One More Time" - Daft Punk (Musique Vol. 1)
I love Daft Punk! I got into electronica music back in the 1990's with music like "Sandstorm" by Darude. This French duo recently broke up, but they had been rocking together since 1993. With hits such as "Harder Better Faster Stronger" and "Around the World", Daft Punk solidified themselves in the House scene. In 2006, after a long hiatus from performing live, they returned at Coachella. "One More Time" is not only my favorite song of theirs, but I absolutely love the music video for it. Included below is the full performance from Coachella, and I hope you enjoy it. (Sadly, this was before "Get Lucky" came out).
"While My Guitar Gently Weeps" - Prince, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, and Steve Winwood (The Best of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame + Museum Live)
This is my favorite live one track performance ever. Prince did more with a guitar in a couple minutes than most musicians could even hope to attain in their life! While this is a song made popular from The Beatles, Prince made this song his own when he was inducted in 2004 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. My favorite part of the video I embedded below is when the rest of the musicians on stage just sit back in awe and watch him shred the guitar. Please enjoy, like I do every time I watch this. RIP Prince.
