Country singer KT Oslin died the other day; she was 76. When I heard the news, I initially thought it was another singer, KT Tunstall who died, but the latter KT is much younger and is still with us. It reminded me of a funny story though.
Picture it: We're in Brewster, Washington back in 2012, not long after I met my friend Brandon Arago. We both love music, and over the years have turned each other on to various artists and songs. Brandon is more of a heavy-metal kind of guy. But like the saying goes, you can't judge a book...
This one particular time, I came to him with a song and music video I'd just discovered that I was certain he didn't know of. It was KT Tunstall's "Suddenly I See" - a bouncy, extremely catchy tune about female empowerment. I love the song and the very creative music video that she made for it.
Anyway, I said, "Hey Brandon, listen to this!" and hit "play." Within literally two notes (I swear), Brandon screamed, "AAARRRGGHHH! KT Tunstall...turn it off...TURN IT OFF!" He was holding his fingers in his ears and had an expression on his face like I was performing an appendectomy on him without anesthesia. Kind of like the expression peope get when forced to listen to Nickelback, same thing.
Apparently, the song was from 2006. I'm always late in discovering music. And in 2006, a teenage Brandon was working on the ground/maintenance crew at Giants Stadium in New Jersey. KT Tunstall was set to perform in concert one night, and Brandon and his crew were getting the place set up during KT's sound-check. The song she used to calibrate the mics and speakers and such was, "Suddenly I See." Over and over. And Over. Brandon said, "I must've heard that damn song a hundred times. I hate it!"
I must admit that Brandon has turned me on to way more music and artists than I have recommended to him. It was he who introduced me to the group, Stick Figure whose album "Set In Stone" literally changed my life. But back then it was funny how he'd heard of KT Tunstall and her song when I didn't think it possible.
And so here, for your listening and viewing pleasure (I hope!) is KT Tunstall with "Suddenly I See."
2 comments:
I would have sworn before I clicked the play button that I have never hear of her or that song but I have.
I never recommend songs to anyone of my friends mostly because I have weird music tastes. I actually like Nickelback for example. I often play a compiled playlist when working in my garage and pre-pandemic people would stop by wanting to talk while a Crash Test Dummies song was playing in the background. They would be okay with that but when the next song was Kenny Login's Return to Pooh Corner, I could see the what the fuck look in their eyes.
Fortunately I'm old enough now that I don't care what people think and so I let it play on.
LOL, Ed.
When I researched the song, "Suddenly I See," I found that it has been used aplenty in movies, TV shows and commercials. Lots of people have probably heard it and not known what it was or who sang it. I hope it has made Ms. Tunstall tons of money.
Funny that you mention compilations. I have one of those portable bluetooth speakers that I set up in my garage when I'm out there working on the motorcycles. I have a couple of Spotify playlists that I listen to. Some of them...well...as you say, passersby would undoubtedly get that "WTF" look if they got too close. The songs on my "Disco" playlist are *fairly* conventional and familiar, right up until the point where ol' Leif Garrett comes on singing his one-and-only(?) dance hit, "I Was Made For Dancing."
But I agree with you about recommending music to friends.
Our individual tastes are usually too unique and varied, and what I might think is the Greatest Song Ever Recorded, most of my friends would probably go, "Meh." On the other hand, Brandon and I have surprisingly similar taste in music, coming from as different backgrounds as we do. If we were both 16 again, we'd probably form a band. An instrumental band. Neither one of us can sing worth a crap ;-)
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