Rowley's Word » Music

Symphony of Science – ‘We Are All Connected’ (ft. Sagan, Feynman, deGrasse Tyson & Bill Nye)

melissajunrowley — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:56:24 +0000

“Across the sea of space the stars are other suns. We have traveled this way before and there is much to be learned.” ~Carl Sagan

We are all connected:
to each other, biologically;
to the earth, chemically;
to the rest of the universe, atomically.

[Feynman]
I think nature’s imagination is so much greater than man’s
she’s never going to let us relax

[Sagan]
We live in an in-between universe where things change all right,
but according to patterns, rules, or as we call them, laws of nature

[Nye]
I’m this guy standing on a planet.
Really I’m just a speck, I’m just a speck,
Compared with a star, the planet is just another speck.
To think about all of this,
to think about the vast emptiness of space…
There’s billions and billions of stars,
billions and billions of specks.

[Sagan]
The beauty of a living thing is not the atoms that go into it
but the way those atoms are put together.

The cosmos is also within us. We’re made of star stuff.
We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.

Across the sea of space the stars are other suns.
We have traveled this way before and there is
much to be learned.

[deGrasse Tyson]
We are all connected:
to each other, biologically;
to the earth, chemically;
to the rest of the universe, atomically.

[Sagan]
I find it elevating and exhilarating to discover
that we live in a universe
which permits the evolution of molecular machines
as intricate and subtle as we.

[deGrasse Tyson]
I know that the molecules in my body
are traceable to phenomena in the cosmos.
That makes me want to grab people in the street
and say, have you heard this??

[Sagan]
The beauty of a living thing is not the atoms that go into it
but the way those atoms are put together.

The cosmos is also within us. We’re made of star stuff.
We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.

[Feynman]
There’s this tremendous mess of waves all over in space,
which is the light bouncing around the room
and going from one thing to the other.
And it’s all really there – really, really there -
but you gotta stop and think about it,
about the complexity, to really get the pleasure.
And it’s all really there – really, really there -
the inconceivable nature of nature.

[Nye]
To think about all of this,
to think about the vast emptiness of space…
There’s billions and billions of stars,
billions and billions of specks.

[Sagan]
The beauty of a living thing is not the atoms that go into it
but the way those atoms are put together.

The cosmos is also within us. We’re made of star stuff.
We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.

Across the sea of space the stars are other suns.
We have traveled this way before and there is
much to be learned.

Song Obsession of the Week: Count to Ten, Tina Dico

melissajunrowley — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 19:00:52 +0000

Years ago, when I stomped through the streets of Manhattan stuck in the trenches of survival mode, my favorite way of obtaining peace and solace was speeding through Times Square from 3:00-4:00AM on the back of my friend David’s motorcycle. In the city that never sleeps, this hour was the one interlude when all the lights and colors, and hopes and despairs slipped into the sky without interruption. The loud and thunderous construction and the stresses that pummeled the pavement transitioned into a cool vibration, projecting a safety and unity, even a meditation. It was the one time when living a sonic lifestyle didn’t feel like we were fighting against ourselves in a world overpowered by the fast and the foolish. Dare I say, it was the one time when Manhattan took a brief but well-deserved and necessary rest.

At times I forget how much clarity comes with standing outside of the thick of the aspirations that whirl through ever curve of my mind. There is a desire I see in so many faces to reach the middle or height of professional endeavors and romantic dreams as quickly as possible, so that we may know the end, the outcome.

But…

Sometimes the fastest way to get there is to go slow
And sometimes if you wanna hold on you got to let go -Tina Dico, “Count to Ten”

Count To Ten

There are faces, there are smiles, so many teeth, too many arms and legs
And eyes and flashing buttons all around me
I’m a-watching, I’m a-breathing, I’m a-pushing, I’m a wishing
That these walls would not be talking quite so loudly
I have lost it once before I’ve pulled myself up from the floor
And I am looking for a reason to stay standing
But sometimes it’s just too much or not enough or something else
It’s so much bigger than my head, it’s too demanding

Sometimes the fastest way to get there is to go slow
And sometimes if you wanna hold on you got to let go

I’m gonna close my eyes
And count to ten
I’m gonna close my eyes
And when I open them again
Everything will make sense to me then

I have met so many people, we’ve exchanged so many words
We’ve said it all and we’ve said nothing but it’s changed us
I have know a lot of men, some were lovers, some were friends
But all together were they merely passing strangers?
They’ll control you with their silence, they’ll control you with their words
And you’ll control them with your body’s coded signals
In the wild, entangled gardens of our insecurities
We lose our heads into eachother’s hidden pitfalls

Sometimes the fastest way to get there is to go slow
And sometimes if you wanna hold on you got to let go

I’m gonna close my eyes
And count to ten
I’m gonna close my eyes
And when I open them again
Everything will make sense to me then

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-ten…

Song Obsession of the Week – Elephant Gun, Beirut

melissajunrowley — Tue, 25 May 2010 02:45:52 +0000

I am inexplicably obsessed with this song that has suadade and duende dripping from its time signature.

Dave Navarro Shares His Love for Music and His Views on Marriage (sort of)

melissajunrowley — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 03:23:34 +0000

SLASH on Los Angeles Youth Network (LAYN)

melissajunrowley — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 01:29:24 +0000

On November 22, 2009, the rock gods answered my prayers and delivered a star-studded Hollywood concert benefitting the Los Angeles Youth Network. Led by the true blue tattooed axe man himself, SLASH, the band made up of Dave Navarro, Ozzy Osbourne, Billy Idol, Tom Morello, and special guests played their hearts out to raise money for programs designed to get young people off the streets of LA. Here’s a few words from my favorite sweet soft-spoken shredder.

Michael Franti Agrees, It’s a Woman’s World

melissajunrowley — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 08:26:35 +0000

The first time I met Michael Franti I was leaning against a sweat-covered swaying wall about ready to pass out from exhaustion inside the classic live New Orleans music venue the Howlin’ Wolf during JazzFest ’03, the best vacation of my life to date. It was 5:00AM, and I hadn’t slept in at least 48 hours. I was down south promoting his group, Michael Franti & Spearhead, as well Jurassic 5 and Blackalicious. Franti and company put on what was probably the most energized, soul-diving, heart-pumping, love-juicing show I have had the pleasure of seeing. Mountains moved, the Red Sea parted, the stars aligned, and the crowd jumped with the power of one core.

After his performance, Franti approached me to say thank you for helping out with the merchandise booth. I was so out of it that I didn’t even realize who he was at first, until suddenly I felt an ominous other-worldly aura engulfing me. It was him. It was this human shaking my hand, who emitted such a positive inner-light that I almost couldn’t see straight. I felt dizzy.

“Wow, I want what he has,” I thought. ”I want to possess that kind of magic.” An influential activist, an earth-shattering performer, and an angel’s soldier among men – Michael Franti is the genuine article. I’m just glad I was able to meet him at the 11th Power to the Peaceful Festiva l, and make up for the first time we met when I nearly fell on top of him six years ago.

To My Lover, Jazz

melissajunrowley — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 12:18:59 +0000

It happened instantly, the change you made in me, the response to the questions I don’t know how to ask, and the awakening of “ A Love Supreme.” I drink my red wine to your tones over and over, and you swim through my veins in the deep end. I make a toast to you, to not knowing what’s going to happen, to journeying sideways, to circling your fifths, and to parading to your progression. And it’s not simply your trills, your thrills, and your crescendos that excite me. It’s your warmth – it’s not your words – it’s your fusion and your will to be free. Ever-present when you are live in front of me, I cannot ask for anything more, because I do not need to follow you. You are not a theory, but a feeling, and I want you to feel my hips sway. You are the genuine article, my love, America’s only indigenous art form. Belonging to not one race, country, or culture, you get along famously in Europe; but you know where your home is. And when your eyes glass over more than “Kind of Blue,” I hope you see the change you’ve made in me. I’m dancing more than I was before now that you’re “Flying Home.” - MJR

Song Obsession of the Week: “By Your Side,” CocoRosie

melissajunrowley — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 21:25:21 +0000

Stunningly simple brilliance reminiscent of all the beautiful ghosts dancing in the attic…

The Greatest Choir in the World

melissajunrowley — Sun, 31 May 2009 21:20:04 +0000

I think the old adage that the most powerful voices belong to our children is true.

Song Obsession of the Week: Miike Snow – Animal

melissajunrowley — Sun, 31 May 2009 19:53:31 +0000

Click on “Mellie_Mel” to hear the song on my Blip.fm page.

more about “Blip.fm | Mellie_Mel | Miike Snow – A…“, posted with vodpod