A chastised me yesterday for not leaving this post on the front page a bit longer (just the way the timing shook out, darling!), and because I am profoundly proud of how the final product turned out (and because it took about four tedious hours of cutting, pasting, and tinkering to splice it all together), I’m throwing this back up on top for the day. Three hundred sixty-seven days ago now, inspired by a flash of genius and grace at a traffic light one summer evening, I started a new “song of the day” feature on this website entitled Honey from the Hive. I had multiple goals when I decided to open up this Pandora’s box: I was looking for a way to goose reader traffic and make Brandon’s Buzz much more of a daily destination than an occasional read, as well as a way to shoehorn even more music-related fare into a blog whose primary purpose for existing was already to wax poetic on my eternal love of song. Most importantly, I had long been searching for a way to impel myself to write: write anything, write something, for this site every day. (Sadly, there are still occasional gaps between updates — though not nearly as many as there used to be — but otherwise, I couldn’t be more thrilled with how year one of this little side project has taken shape.) Looking at the list of 242 songs below is quite a trip: a wide cross-section of clashing styles are represented here — perfectly apropos, this, given my maddeningly broad tastes — and in just a minute or two, you can relive a brilliant year in the life of a lovably insane music fan, and understand with renewed clarity how every piece of my life — every friend I make, every breath I take (ha!), every movie I see, every conversation I start — is irrevocably colored by my passion and respect for the masterful melodies that score each of our days.
JULY 11: Dierks Bentley (featuring Del McCoury & The Punch Brothers) —
“Pride (In the Name of Love)” (from Up on the Ridge
) — 
JULY 12: Melissa Etheridge — “Fearless Love”
(from Fearless Love
) —
JULY 13: Tara MacLean — “If I Fall” (from Passenger
) —
JULY 14: John Mellencamp — “Case 795 (The Family)”
(from Human Wheels
) —
JULY 15: Dido — “Mary’s in India” (from Life for Rent
) —
JULY 16: Laura Branigan — “Spanish Eddie”
(from The Best of Branigan
) —
JULY 17: Sara Bareilles — “King of Anything”
(from Kaleidoscope Heart
) —
JULY 18: George Jones — “The King is Gone (So Are You)”
(from 16 Biggest Hits
) —
JULY 19: Norah Jones — “Jesus, Etc. (Sad, Sad Songs)”
(from The Fall [Deluxe Edition]
) —
JULY 20: Bernard Butler — “Not Alone” (from People Move On
) —
(more…)
names dropped with reckless abandon: "Glee", "The Big Bang Theory", "The Voice", 000 Maniacs, 10, A.R. Rahman, Adam Lambert, Afro-Celt Soundsystem, Alabama, Alanis Morissette, Amanda Marshall, Ani DiFranco, Annie Lennox, Augustana, Avril Lavigne, Barenaked Ladies, Basia Bulat, Belinda Carlisle, Ben Folds Five, Ben's Brother, Bernadette Peters, Bernard Butler, Beth Orton, Bette Midler, Billy Bragg, Billy Joel, Blake Shelton, Bobby Bland, Brad Paisley, Brendan James, Bruce Robison, Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, Bruno Mars, Buddy Miller, Candi Staton, Carly Simon, Carnie Wilson, Caron Wheeler, Cary Brothers, Cee-Lo Green, Celine Dion, Chantal Kreviazuk, Chris Botti, Chris Daughtry, Chris Isaak, Chris Wall, Christina Aguilera, Christina Perri, Christopher Cross, Clarence Clemons, Court Yard Hounds, Cowboy Junkies, Cutting Crew, Cyndi Lauper, Damien Rice, Daniel Bedingfield, Danielle Brisebois, Dar Williams, Darius Rucker, Dave Matthews Band, David Gray, David Guetta, David Mead, Del McCoury, Dido, Dierks Bentley, Dolly Parton, Doyle Bramhall II, Doyle Bramhall II & Smokestack, Duncan Sheik, Duran Duran, Easton Corbin, Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians, Elvis Presley, Eminem, Emmylou Harris, Enya, Everything But the Girl, Faith Hill, Finley Quaye, Fleetwood Mac, Foo Fighters, Fountains of Wayne, George Jones, George Michael, George Strait, Glen Hansard, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hanson, iio, India.Arie, INXS, Iron & Wine, Jackson Browne, Jakob Dylan, James Taylor, Janet Jackson, Jason Aldean, Javier Colon, Jen Trynin, Jerrod Niemann, Jerry Reed, Jimmy Eat World, Joan Osborne, Joe Purdy, Joey + Rory, John Lennon, John Mellencamp, John Waite, Jon McLaughlin, Joni Mitchell, Jonny Lang, Jose Feliciano, Josh Groban, Joshua Kadison, Joshua Radin, JTX, Julia Fordham, Kate Rusby, Katie Melua, Katy Perry, Kelly Clarkson, Kelly Willis, Kendall Payne, Kenny Chesney, Kenny Loggins, Keri Hilson, Kings of Leon, Kris Allen, Kristine W, Lady Antebellum, Lady GaGa, Laura Branigan, Lauren Christy, Lee Ann Womack, Lee Brice, Lee DeWyze, Lee Greenwood, Leona Lewis, LFO, Lil Wayne, Linda Eder, Lindsay Buckingham, Lisa Hannigan, Little Big Town, Lorrie Morgan, Lyle Lovett, Macy Gray, Madonna, Marketa Irglova, Martina McBride, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Matisyahu, Matraca Berg, Meat Loaf, Mel McDaniel, Melissa Etheridge, Meredith Brooks, Michael Grimm, Michael McDonald, Miranda Lambert, Nanci Griffith, Natalie Cole, Natalie Merchant, Natasha Bedingfield, Neil Young, Nick Drake, Nicki Minaj, Norah Jones, One Eskimo, Orianthi, Pat Benatar, Pat Monahan, Patrice Pike and the Black Box Rebellion, Patti LaBelle, Patty Griffin, Patty Loveless, Paul Simon, Pearl Jam, Peter Gabriel, Pink, Prince and the New Power Generation, Queen, Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs, Reba McEntire, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Res, Richard Marx, Rob Thomas, Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise, Rosie Gaines, Roxette, Ryan Adams, Santana, Sara Bareilles, Scala & Kolacny Brothers, Semisonic, Shania Twain, Sheryl Crow, Sinead O'Connor, Soul II Soul, Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers, Stevie Nicks, Sugarland, T'Pau, Tanya Tucker, Tara MacLean, Tasmin Archer, Taylor Swift, Teena Marie, Terence Trent D'arby, The Band Perry, The Judds, The National, The O'Jays, The Pretenders, The Proclaimers, The Punch Brothers, The Reverend Al Green, The Script, The Sundays, Tim McGraw, Tori Amos, Tracey Thorn, Train, Van Morrison, Vitamin C, W.G. Snuffy Walden, Wendy Wilson, Westlife, Wilco, William Orbit, Wynonna Judd, Yo-Yo Ma
posted in sweet you rock and sweet you roll | Comments Off on and i learn what black magic can do
(or: a year’s worth of honey from the hive)
