Hump Day Song of the Day - Sugar - Robin Schulz, feat. Francesco Yates

I just heard this song the other day and it was nice because I had forgotten about both it and the artist.  His 2015 album by the same name is classic from beginning to end.  Check out Sugar...

New Music Fridays, August 24th, 2018 - Abbreviated

It's been a rough week and I have little time for this weekly post, but I can't miss it totally.  Here are some hot new songs for this week.  Just click the links to check em out...

Home With You - Liam Payne

Goodbye - David Guetta, Jason Derulo, Nicki Minaj, Willy William

How I See It - Dounia

Right Now - Nick Jonas, Robin Schulz

Lake Effect Kid - Fall Out Boy

All the Time - Kim Petras

Bad Boy - Tungevaag, Luana Kiara

Song of the Day - I Believe I'm Fine - Robin Schulz & Hugel

One of my favorite deejay/producers, Robin Schulz, has a brand new album out.  The record is called Uncovered and it has already spawned the hit singles Shed a Light, with David Guetta and Cheatcodes and OK, written by James Blunt.  Here's the latest, a collaboration with French artist Hugel, and it's the same kind of pleasing-to-the-ears dance vibe as you would expect from Robin.  Check out I Believe I'm Fine...

Song of the Day - Find You - Nick Jonas

After what seemed like along hiatus, Nick Jonas has been trickling out new songs these past couple of months.  Here's the second, and the most radio-friendly, of three new songs by Nick, which I included on September 15th's New Music Fridays.  The chill vibes of Find You is said to be Robin Schulz-inspired, with the coupling of acoustic guitar and electronic beats.  Maybe that's why I like it so much!  Check out Find You...

New Music Fridays, September 29th, 2017 - The Week's Hottest Tracks

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of New Music Fridays.  After what was a monumental week of great new music last week, this week's crop is somewhat less crowded, though not without some noteworthy stuff.  Let's check it out...

Beautiful Trauma - P!nk

I am so excited for the new P!nk album that's coming in less than two weeks now.  On Friday the ultra-talented singer-songwriter released the title track to the album, Beautiful Trauma.  My first impression is that it's not as catchy and immediately likable as What About Us, but I am 100% certain its going to sink in very soon.  Check it out and see for yourself...  

Oh Child - Robin Schulz

The latest from German deejay/producer Robin Schulz's newest and highly anticipated album, Uncovered, is typical of his style...chill and dancey and very pleasing to the ears.  Check out Oh Child...

Famous - ROZES

You probably already know singer ROZES, whose real name is Elizabeth Mencel, from her vocals on The Chainsmoker's smash Roses and she recently sang on Galantis' Girls on Boys.  Well now she's got her own song and it's pretty good.  The vocals are crisp and the track itself is very catchy and dancey.  Check it out...

Fight and F**k - Terror Jr.

The pop/dance project known as Terror Jr. has just released a new track that, despite the title, is pretty darn smooth, bass-y, and funky.  Nice tune!  Take a listen... 

Well, as I told you, after a week of lots of great new music, this week's picks are a bit scarce, though as always there's always something new and noteworthy to discover.  Enjoy the week!

Song of the Day - Shed a Light - David Guetta & Robin Schulz, with Cheat Codes

Here's a repeat post of a tune from way back in January featuring not one, but tow legendary deejay/producers, David Guetta and Robin Schulz.  It's a shame that it's been out this long without much fanfare because it's really a great tune that incorporates the respective sounds of these talented individuals.  Check out Shed a Light..

Song of the Day - Shed a Light - Robin Schulz & David Guetta & Cheat Codes

Wow!  When I saw that Robin Schulz and David Guetta had collaborated on a song together, I immediately had to download it.  Unsurprisingly, it's a pretty darned good song that melds the best of both of their respective sounds, as well as production trio Cheat Codes.  Great tune!  Check out Shed a Light...

Song of the Day - Heatwave - Robin Schulz, featuring Akon

I've been so happy to see that Robin Schulz has put out a new single from his fantabulous album, Sugar, and it's one of my favorites.  Heatwave features silky smooth-voiced Akon over an island-jammish music track that's easy on the ears and perfect for a summer sunset.  I'm just not sure about the chicken in the video, though, lol.  Check out Heatwave...

Song of the Day - Save Tonight - Robin Schulz, featuring Solamay

I wanna close the curtains

‘Cause all we need is candlelight

You and me and a bottle of wine

To hold you tonight

Well, we know I’m going away

And I wish, I wish it weren’t so

So take this wine and drink with me

Let’s delay our misery

Save tonight, fight the break of dawn

Come tomorrow, tomorrow, I’ll be gone

Save tonight, fight the break of dawn

Come tomorrow, tomorrow, I’ll be gone

Tomorrow, I’ll be gone

Tomorrow, I’ll be gone

When I reviewed this track back in December, I said that it was one of the few songs off Robin Schulz' Sugar album that I often skipped.  At the time I thought it was no match for the original, which I even posted that same month.  Well, over the past few months I've learned to appreciate this new version of a classic and I'm loving it all around.   This version carries the same basic melody as the original, only a little more polished, and singer Solamay's raspy vocals give the tune a whole new, and comforting, feel.  Check out Save Tonight...

Song of the Day - Love Me Loud - Robin Schulz M-22, featuring Aleesia

Here's one of my favorite tunes off of Robin Schulz's Sugar.  This one's very pleasant and uplifting and I simply love singer Aleesia's sexyish voice.  I woke up with it in my head this morning and knew I had to post it.  Check out Love Me Loud...

Robin Shulz' "Sugar" - A Track by Track Review

It's been a long time since I've reviewed anything on here, other than my commentary in my Song of the Day posts. With so much new stuff out there lately, I've been wanting to put out some thoughts on what's good and what's not. I've been itching to review Janet Jackson's Unbreakable, Avici's Stories, Ellie Goulding's Delirium, Adele's 25 and more, but I just haven't had the time. Well, I've got a little at the moment, so I'm going to share a review of my favorite album of the season and that's Robin Schulz's Sugar.

You may know Robin Schulz from his melancholy and mesmerizing working of Lilly Wood and the Prick's hit Prayer in C last year, and I've posted a few of his songs both from his last record, Prayer, and the current one that I'll be commenting on below. Robin Schulz is a German deejay/producer whose touches on the songs he reworks simply catch my ear with every tune, and after his successes with Prayer in C and remixes of Mr. Prob's Waves and Clean Bandit's Rather Be, Robin seems to be shooting for stardom and competing with the big name deejay/producers like Avicii, Calvin Harris and the like with his latest, Sugar.

Sugar begins where Prayer left off, only this time in a more pop friendly manner. With tender melodies and funky beats, differing guest vocalists on each track, Sugar is an awesome mix of funky jams and chill beats, and a must for anyone who loves dance music with chill vibes.  There's not one song I can say I truly dislike. Check out my thoughts on Sugar...

Headlights

Oh, I know why you chasing all the headlights

Oh, 'cause you always tryna get ahead of light

Baby, when you go

You know I'll be waiting on the other side

And I know it's cold 

But if you stay then I could keep you warm at night

Sugar opens with the song Headlights, a tender and beautiful song with sung by raspy voiced singer Ilsey. The song starts out with some very melancholy strums of the guitar, but soon revs up into more uplifting and inspirational strings. The song was released ahead of the album, way back in April, and it actually reached #17 on Billboard's Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart.

Sugar

Now this was the song that got me from the start!  What so far is the biggest single off the album, the title cut one of the best tracks on the whole thing, and that's saying a lot.  With funky guitar riffs and smooth vocals from Canadian singer Francesco Yates, this one's as smooth as anything and oh so funky!  Check it out...

Sugar how you get so fly... 

Heatwave

The third track off of Sugar features smooth-voiced Akon on vocals.  This one's typical of the R&B singer's style, melodic and catchy and it stays in your head long after a listen.  Check out this island jammish mix of the tune on Akon Beatz YouTube page right here.

Yellow

This collaboration with English production team Disciple is very mellow.  Not my favorite, but it still does what chill music is supposed to do, and that's provide some pleasing, relaxing beats as a background to almost anything.

Show Me Love

From what appears to be the newest single, Show Me Love has the potential to do very well.  I posted it as Song of the Day last week and it garnered a respectable number of clicks.  I've also played it for some friends who all liked it, as well.  This one is another chill tune, melancholy and melodic and it features some really nice male vocals, presumably from an artist named J.U.D.G.E., who is credited with collaborating on this track.  Great song!

Love Me Loud

Here's a super-pleasing tune that's also got potential.  I simply love the vocals from folkish singer Aleesia, and the chorus is both uplifting and super-catchy.  Love Me Loud is another favorite after the title cut.  Check it out...

Pride

Oh, this one's just so sweet and happy!  With jazzy horns and soulful R&B vocals, this tune sounds like something that would come out of a modern-day Motown.   Another great one with some help from the French production team of Nius and soFLY, as well as some sampling of Marvin Gaye.

Find Me

Find Me is a haunting electronic jam that would work great on a late-night dance floor. 

Titanic

The horns that begin this song sound like a call to arms from the Planet of the Apes, lol.  Seriously though, this is another nice one, but it's pretty much as dramatic as the movie by the same name.  If we go down, we'll go down together...

This Is Your Life

Out of all the songs on Sugar, this one reminds me the most of Robin's previous set.  It's very chill, very melodic, and again a perfect background song for any situation.

Save Tonight

When I came across this one on my first listen of Sugar I immediately recognized it.  Unfortunately it is the only song I sometimes skip off the album, and that's only because the original version of the song, by Eagle Eye Cherry, was such a good song that to me it's hard for anybody to match the intensity of the original.  This version features a female singer named Solomay and it's nice, but no match for the original.

4 Life

I can't help but think of Macy Gray when I hear this one.   Guest vocalist New Zealander Graham Candy has a most unusual voice for a male singer, but I checked out some of his own stuff and sure enough, those are his vocals on the track.  Nevertheless I will probably always hear Macy when I listen to this nice love song.

Wave Goodbye

Here's a song that reminds me of something Avicii would do.  It's with bluesy, jazzy and a little dancey/chill-loungey collaboration with producer Henry PFR and singer Jeffrey Jey of Eiffel 65 fame.  Great production and definitely a nice complimentary jam to this set! 

World Turns Grey

Here's yet another head bobbing groove mix, this time of New Zealand singer Princess Chelsea's World Turns Grey.  This one also has a melancholy feel, as the title might lead you to believe, only this time it's the piano and soft vocals that give the song its aura.  Nice! 

Moonlit Sky

Under the moonlit sky

The stars fall and die

How the sea rages, oh love braises

It's like the world you've known

Before it's lost and gone

Unlike a world you've seen

Before it's lost to me

The final track has got a familiar voice, and feel, to it.  Electronic music legend Moby offers up his services in this nicely produced tune, and The Void Pacific Choir lends an ethereal, gospel feel to this beautiful song.

So there you have it!  If you're a fan of quality electronic music that's varied, danceable and just utterly enjoyable then I highly recommend Robin Schulz's Sugar.  One of the best albums of the season!

Song of the Day - Show Me Love - Robin Schulz

In case you haven't noticed, I love Robin Schulz!  I've already posted a few songs from his awesome new record, Sugar, and believe me there'll be more to come.  Here's his latest single, a nice, relaxing jam that would sound great on the radio...

Song of the Day - Headlights - Robin Shulz, featuring Ilsey

Oh, I know why you chasing all the headlights

Oh, 'cause you always tryna get ahead of light

Baby, when you go

You know I'll be waiting on the other side

And I know it's cold 

But if you stay then I could keep you warm at night

I am so digging Robin Shulz's newest project, Sugar.  I posted the eponymous single a couple of weeks ago and there are so many more from this one that I want to post, but we'll do that a little at a time.  I tested the first few songs in the car over the weekend with my pals Eric and Gary and they were like, who is this?...they both liked what they heard.  Here is the opener to the record, a beautiful and tender tune that is typical of Robin's chill sound.  Check out Headlights below...I am sure you're gonna like it!

Song of the Day - Sugar - Robin Shulz, featuring Francesco Yates

Got me tripping higher than the ceiling

Ooh, baby it's the ultimate feeling

You got me lifted feeling so gifted

Sugar how you get so fly

Well I finally downloaded some new music the other night, so for the foreseeable future I hope to be bringing you some fresh stuff to learn and to love.  I first started digging Robin Shulz a little over a year ago when his mix of Lilly Wood and The Prick's Prayer in C had me mesmerized for months.  I soon bought his Prayer album and was loving it!  So of course when I saw he's got a new one, I hit that download button without even listening.  My instincts are usually right when it comes to music, and I know a good deejay/producer when I hear one.  Here's the title cut to Robin's newest, Sugar...kinda retro funky...loving it!

Summer Jams Song of the Day - Prayer in C - Lilly Wood & The Prick (Robin Schulze Remix)

Yah, you never said a word
You didn't send me no letter
Don't think I could forgive you?

See, our world is slowly dying
I'm not wasting no more time
Don't think I could believe you

Here's a jam that just gets me to the core.  I like to say that Robin Shulze's remix of Prayer in C was an early discovery for me, as I first posted it a long, long time ago.  The song has got this steady, mesmerizing music track and Lilly Woods' raspy voice combined with those lyrics...woof!  Awesome song! I actually heard if for the very first time at a club last night at Cherry's in Fire island and boy was I loving it.  I'm so glad it's caught on because it deserves to...

Song of the Day - Changes - Faul & Wad Ad Vs. Pnau

Baby I don't know

Just why I love you so

Maybe it's just the way

That God made me this day

Here's a tune I've posted before.  It's by French electronic duo Faul  Wad Ad and it's surely worth a listen.  The song features a hypnotic backbeat behind a vocal chorus of children...simply mesmerizing!

Song of the Day - No Rest for the Wicked - Lykke Li (Robin Schulz Mix)

Today's song and it's timing are very appropriate.  I almost always get my Song of the Day up and running about 6 a.m., but this morning I found myself waking up at 6:30 a.m., the time I usually leave for work.  The reason for that was a loooonnnngggg day yesterday, with more than 8 hours of it spent on the road sandwiched around lunch at Carmine's and the hit Broadway show Wicked with my students.  Stay tuned for a little on that at John's World later on, but for now check out Lykke Li's No Rest For the Wicked, a very chill tune...

Song of the Day - No Rest for the Wicked - Lykke Li

It's a dreary day here in New York and the song I'm sharing fits perfectly with its feel.  I'd first heard this one, by Swedish singer/songwriter Lykke Li, as a remix on German deejay/producer Robin Schulze's album, Prayer, and I was hooked immediately by the musical hook.  I just had the opportunity to hear the original version of the tune and the very same hook is there, only it's much more melancholy.  I love melancholic songs, especially on a dreary day like today.  Check it out...