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In spite of my large music collection, I’m always on the lookout for something new. As part of this quest for new music, about once a month I check the iTunes top 100 albums just to see if there’s anything there that catches my ear.

This week, I stumbled across this little gem of an album: Sara Bareilles – Little Voice. You owe it to yourself to run, not walk, to uhm, the nearest computer and download this record from iTunes. It’s the best $7 you’ll spend this week.

She’s a singer/songwriter from California, and this is her debut record. She’s got an amazing sound. Her songwriting channels a bit of Joni Mitchell. She’s got a soulful voice that reminds me a lot of Fiona Apple and a bit of Natasha Bedingfield. Most of the songs have great hooks, and several are very radio friendly. You can listen to the single “Love Song” on her website: www.sarabmusic.com.

She’s on the verge of making it big, in my opinion. It’s a shame the record industry spends so much time on trying to manufacture new artists via shows like American Idol when there are plenty of talented people like Sara out there looking for their chance. I’d much rather see young artists like these have the opportunity to make it in the music biz over any of the Idol winners.

How big of a difference is a great singer versus a singer/songwriter? Well – let’s put it this way. Almost forty years after they broke up, the Beatles still have a major impact on musicians today. The Monkees? Not so much.

So, give her record a listen and if you like it, spread the word!

UPDATE 07/06/2005:

AOL has posted a page with links to videos from some of the performances:

http://music.channel.aol.com/live_8_concert/highlights

Why was this show important?

Twenty years ago yesterday, another huge concert event called live aid occurred. Two concerts in London and Philadelphia ran most of the day with a large number of bands that were big in the mid 80s. They were trying to raise awareness and money to help aid poverty in african countries.

Although live aid and other efforts like it have raised millions of dollars in aid and have done a great deal to help this part of the world, the effort has simply been a band aid for the problem, not the cure.

The organizers of live 8 realize this, and they are shooting for a bigger, more important goal. End poverty in these countries. Period. But, in order to do that, things have to happen on a much larger scale than they have ever done in the past. So, live 8 is focusing on the G8 summit, where 8 of the wealthiest nations get together and talk. They already have Tony Blair, the british Prime Minister, on board, and he will present their idea to the other nations.

So, if they’re talking to world leaders, why should we care? Well, do you really think President Bush is going to listen to the likes of Bob Geldolf and Bono? Probably not. That’s where the concerts come in. The concerts are meant to attract attention of us, the people, in order to raise awareness of the situation. The president may not listen to a couple of rock stars, but he will pay attention to the concerns of millions of his constituents. I read somewhere that he appears to be on board with this and may double the amount of relief effort to africa. He’s a president on his second term, and like most presidents, he’s thinking about the legacy he will leave behind.

It’s an intriguing idea. Wouldn’t it be nice for the United States to make a difference in part of the world without sacrificing a single soldier, or firing a single shot?

Go here to find out more: www.live8live.com.

Now, about the shows themselves…

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Man, if all country songs were this funny, I might actually listen to it…

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