What is polyphony?

What is polyphony?

Get your notebooks out and your pencils sharpened, because today we are continuing our lesson in musical theory! If you haven’t already, please read our post about the differences between the melody and harmony.

So, last time we talked about how the melody is a sequence of notes that sound pleasing, while the harmony refers to a blending of notes. Before we go any further today, I’d like to also mention that the harmony can also informally refer to any parts of the composition that accompany the main melody. Remember, the melody is the backbone and leader of the piece, while the harmony refers to the vertical relationship between different pitches. The harmony creates chord progressions that complement the melody.

Now that we’ve refreshed ourselves on those basics, let’s take a look at a slightly more complex musical term—polyphony.

In Greek, ‘poly’ means many and ‘phony’ means voice, which contrasts with monophony, meaning one voice. As the etymology indicates, polyphony refers to music in which more than one entity—voice or instrument—plays melodic lines at the same time. This differs from harmony in the way that harmony is usually dependent on the main melody, whereas polyphonic music has each entity playing their own independent melodic lines.

However, things get tricky, because even though in polyphony, each “voice” is independent to a certain extent, these melodic lines are still connected by the overall harmonic framework. A polyphonic musical texture, therefore, still has harmony. The harmonic framework—meaning the blending of pitches to make chords—is what makes the music sound good! If a song didn’t have harmony, it would merely sound like an unpleasant cacophony of sounds. And, in case you didn’t know, ‘caco’ in Greek means bad.

Technically speaking, any music that consists of multiple “voices” is polyphonic, which would be most music. But in the Western music tradition, polyphony often refers to a particular technique called contrapuntal, or counterpoint. With this technique, there is no foreground or background lines, as with most pop songs today, but rather involves a mutual conversation between the lines. With counterpoint, the notes in each independent melodic line also coincide to create chords. Bach was a composer who loved writing in the intellectually stimulating counterpoint technique.

But chances are that if you’re reading this post, it’s because you love jazz music, so you may be wondering, what exactly does this have to do with jazz?

Well, polyphony was used in the traditional jazz that developed in New Orleans at the turn of the 20th century. In these early jazz compositions, the trumpet often played the melody, while the clarinet and trombone improvised semi-independent lines that were counterpoint in nature. And in bebop jazz—originating in the 1940s—the bass played a consistent countermelody of quarter notes that produced a polyphony with whatever other musical texture was played on top.

After that lesson in music theory, you deserve to sit back, relax, and let the polyphony of this 1993 jazz tune wash over you. Listen to the independent melodies of the bass trombone and bari sax in Mingus Big Band’s “Moanin’!”

Now that you understand musical theory better, why don’t you take a listen to the sample tracks from our newest album, My Ship, and see if you can identify the melody, harmony and chord progressions! Or just simply try to identify the different instruments that are playing simultaneously.

This post was written by Blog Editor, Jacqueline Knirnschild.

What’s the difference between melody and harmony?

What’s the difference between melody and harmony?

Face it, there are just some pop songs out there that get stuck in your head no matter how much you may dislike them. You’ll hear the song just a few times on the radio and before you know it, it’ll be playing on repeat in your mind! Songs like Ariana Grande’s “seven rings,” Camila Cabello’s “Havana” and Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe.”

But what is it about these tunes that make them so persistent and fixed in the mind?

Why it’s the melody of course, which, in pop music can usually be identified as the chorus that repeats throughout the song. For example, with “Call Me Maybe,” the first thing you probably think of is the chorus, Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy / But here’s my number, so call me maybe. This is the melody, which is usually, but not always, played at a higher pitch than the other verses in the songs, and is thus the most recognizable part.

If you’re not a musician or music aficionado, chances are that you are familiar with the term ‘melody,’ but do you really know what it means and how a melody is created? Also, how exactly does a melody differ from a harmony?

Well, it’s actually not all that complicated. A melody is simply a sequence of musical notes that sound satisfying to the ear. For example, some simple melodies that you are probably familiar with are the Happy Birthday song, and “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” Or maybe you remember playing “Hot Cross Buns” on the recorder or piano when you were in elementary school? These are all examples of melodies—aka, a series of notes arranged into a sequence that sounds very pleasing!

Usually, though, a successful musical composition consists of more than just one simple melody. Several melodies are often woven together to complexify and enrich a song. Melodies are also often also supported by other musical elements, such as chords, harmonies, and rhythms. The melody is like the backbone—it guides and supports the body of the song.

A harmony differs from a melody in the way that it stacks multiple notes on top of one another to create a sound. So, instead of being a sequence of sounds, the harmony is a blend of sounds. Harmonies involve two or more different sounds being played simultaneously. That’s why, in a choir, the vocalists must harmonize their voices—meaning they must blend the baritones (low pitched) and altos (high pitched) to create one beautiful sound.

Now, time to enjoy a jazz classic—Duke Ellington’s “Take the A Train.” Can you hear the melody in this 1939 hit?

And what about this jazz-up version of the country tune, “Are You Alright.” Can you find the melody?

Remember the chorus is usually where the melody is located, so, in this case, the melody is repeated when Janis Siegel sings “Are You Alright.” You also may be able to identify a harmony that is playing simultaneously with the melody.

If you’re looking for more jazzy country classics, check out our album, Cryin’ in My Whiskey, which is available in our store and on all major music platforms today.

This post was written by Blog Editor, Jacqueline Knirnschild.

Feature Friday with Lorca Hart

Feature Friday with Lorca Hart

Are you finding your eyes drooping at the end of a long, challenging week? Don’t worry—you’re not alone. With the schoolyear ending and summer right around the corner, I think that many of us are feeling the heat and are more than ready for Memorial Day weekend! 

And what better way to kick things off than with a Feature Friday? Today, we’re getting to know one of the West Coast’s most esteemed jazz drummers—Lorca Hart. Growing up in a musical family in New Mexico, Hart began performing in high school, then attended the California Institute of Arts and is now part of the wonderful Lorca Hart Trio! 

Drum roll please … 

If you are not playing jazz, what is your favorite music to play?

That’s a tough one—probably R&B.

If you were a song, which would you be and why?

Firm Roots by Cedar Walton. There’s something so positive and uplifting about this tune—I love the melody and it’s always a fun song to play!

Do you have a favorite place to vacation?

Maui.

Who is your dream collaboration (living or legend)?

Herbie Hancock.

What is the best piece of advice you have been given?

Don’t get so caught up in planning for the future that you can’t enjoy living in the present.

Feature Friday with Josh Nelson

Feature Friday with Josh Nelson

I don’t know about you, but this week seems to have gone by very slowly. The constant weather changes can really put my body in a funk, but alas, it is finally Friday! We made it! It is finally the end of the week, and hopefully, the sun is shining, and the rain will go away. But even if dark clouds come your way, don’t worry, we have something that’ll brighten you weekend … a Feature Friday with pianist-composer-bandleader Josh Nelson!

But first, a little more about Josh. Born and raised in Southern California, he produced his first independent album at only age 19. And he didn’t stop there—he went on to produce seven more albums. One of his latest albums, The Sky Remains,blends narrative and music to tell a story about the city of LA. Nelson has also worked with many famous musicians, like legendary vocalist Natalie Cole, with whom he toured worldwide for six years.  

Now, time to learn some more about this talented and fascinating artist …

If you are not playing jazz, what is your favorite music to play?

I also enjoy playing R&B, classical, and Brazilian music.

If you were a song, which would you be and why?

Probably “The Age of Not Believing,” which is a Sherman Brothers song from the 1971 Disney film Bedknobs and Broomsticks. It’s a classic song to me—wonderful melody, lyric and harmony!

Do you have a favorite place to vacation?

Palm Springs, California!

Who is your dream collaboration (living or legend)?

With visionary Herbie Hancock; he inspires me so much. 

What is the best piece of advice you have been given?

You can always make more money, but you can’t get the time back, so use that wisely! 

 

What’s the history of the EP & LP?

What’s the history of the EP & LP?

In order to answer this question, we need to take a quick lesson on the history of music distribution. As we mentioned in a previous blog post, vinyl records were invented in the 1940s and were the predecessors of CDs and digital audio recordings. Lately, vinyl has been making quite the comeback, and we even hopped on the bandwagon with our limited-edition vinyl record of Lovers & Love Songs, which is available in our store today.

But what came before vinyl records?

The phonautograph, invented in 1857 by a French printer and bookseller named Léon Scott, is the earliest example of musical recording. Although the phonautograph didn’t actually produce any audible sound, it did record sound waves as graphical tracings on sheet paper. These tracings weren’t used to play the music back, but rather to analyze it visually.

In 1877, Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, which was groundbreaking in its ability to both record and reproduce sound. Edison’s hollow wax cylinder became the most predominant form of musical recording in the early 20th century.

This cylinder, however, could only play for about two minutes, which led Emile Berliner to pioneer lateral-cut disc records and the gramophone. Initially, the cylinders still had better sound quality, but eventually, Berliner improved the mechanisms of the gramophone and created 12-inch records in 1903, which could play music for over four minutes! Thus began the short-lived format war between cylinders and discs, with analog discs ultimately winning, and dominating the industry until the 1980s when digital compact discs were invented.

Alright, so now that you know all about the history of music recording and distribution, you’re probably wondering, where do EPs and LPs fit into all of this?

Well, since phonograph cylinders could only hold two to four minutes of audio, all music releases in the early 1900s were essentially singles. These singles became known as SP, meaning standard play.

Then, in the mid-20th century there was a format battle between Columbia’s 33 1/3 rpm LP (Long Play) and RCA Victor’s 45 rpm. Columbia’s LP held up to two complete songs, while RCA’s version held one song on each side with better sound quality. In 1952, RCA then invented another improvement with the EP (Extended Play) 45, which had twice the recording time.

So, essentially, the EP and LP arose from a commercial battle akin to the competition between Blu-rays and DVD. The LP, however, with its ability to hold more content gained more traction than the EP.

Today, however, artists who are just starting out in their careers often release EP albums, which only have 4 to 6 songs and are thus easier and cheaper to produce than LP albums, which have 10 to 12 tracks or more.

Here at Night Is Alive, we mostly produce LP albums, like our new 2022 release, Old New Borrowed & Blue, which merges the musical artistry of new songs with jazz classics. Old New Borrowed & Blue is available in our store and on all major music platforms!

This post was written by Blog Editor, Jacqueline Knirnschild.

Mexican Music for Cinco de Mayo

Mexican Music for Cinco de Mayo

Even though Cinco de Mayo has already passed (it was on May 5th), that doesn’t mean it’s too late to celebrate the holiday that commemorates the Mexican victory over France in 1862! Because really, is there ever a bad time to drink a jalapeño margarita on the back patio?

This month, though, do more than just eat a taco and drink a margarita—delve deeper into Mexican culture by listening to these jazz songs that’ll introduce you to the music history of Mexico!

Luis Miguel – México en la piel

Translated to “Mexico on the skin,” this 2004 mariachi-inspired song celebrates Mexico by taking the listener on a trip around the country. It gives the impression that you are in a helicopter overlooking the beautiful panoramas of the diverse landscapes. Like looking at the mountain range of Chihuahua, or the craftworks made in San Miguel, climbing the Cerro de la Silla, that’s how you wear Mexico on the skin.

Luis Miguel—nicknamed “The Sun of Mexico”—is one of the biggest stars in Mexico. Since his career took off in the early 80s, he has sung in a plethora of genres, including pop, jazz, big band, and mariachi, but has always stayed true to his heritage. Unlike many other Latin singers of the 90s, Miguel never recorded in English, only Spanish. 

José José – El Triste

Mexican musician and actor José José began his career playing the guitar, singing serenades, and later, playing in a jazz and bossa nova trio. It wasn’t until 1970 though, at the Latin music festival in Mexico City, when he sang this song (translated to “The Sad One”), that he gained universal fame and critical acclaim as a balladeer.

With its unique melody and sublime lyrics about the loss of a loved one, this song instantly touched the hearts of many and catapulted José José into stardom. After the first performance, the audience insisted that the singer won the festival competition. Despite the fact that he only ended up receiving third place, “El Triste” still became part of the popular Mexican music repertoire and is now viewed as an icon of Mexican culture!

Juan Garcia Esquivel – Mucha Muchacha

Have you ever heard of “Space Age Bachelor Pad Music”? It’s the type of music that a suave, slicked-back guy would play while drinking a cocktail in his upscale apartment. “Mucha Muchacha” is a prime example of the subgenre, which was pioneered by Mexican band leader, pianist, and composer Esquivel in the 1950s and 60s. As you can probably tell from listening, this style of music is very quirky, experimental, and sophisticated. It is largely instrumental and fuses lounge music and jazz with a Latino touch.

Unfortunately, Night is Alive has not yet produced any Mexican style albums, but we have plans to add the genre to our library soon! In the meantime, if José José’s song has you feeling blue, we do have a new album out called Old New Borrowed & Blue, which features some beautifully poignant instrumentals, like “Blue and Sentimental.” The album is available in our store and on all major music platforms.

This post was written by Blog Editor, Jacqueline Knirnschild.

Is The Guitar Used In Jazz Music?

Is the guitar used in jazz music?

From Wes Montgomery to Django Reinhardt, there are many famous jazz guitarists throughout history, but is the guitar a traditional and typical jazz instrument? 

In honor of International Guitar Month, we are going to take a closer look at the role of the guitar in jazz music history. 

Early Jazz: 1880s to 1920s 

As we explored in an earlier blog post, jazz originated in New Orleans in the 1880s, where it developed from the African dance and drumming traditions of formerly enslaved peoples. 

In early New Orleans jazz, the “front line” referred to the three instruments that were played simultaneously to create a melody: the cornet, clarinet, and trombone. These instruments were used for collective “call and response” improvisation. 

During this early stage of jazz, the guitar usually wasn’t given a solo part; instead, it took on more of a supportive role. Guitars—along with drums, piano, and banjo—were used to create a steady, driving rhythm that contrasted nicely with the polyphony of the front line. 

One of the first jazz-orientated string bands was led by guitarist Charlie Galloway in 1889. Buddy Bolden’s bands also usually had a guitarist, and Nick Lucas performed the unaccompanied guitar solos in his 1922 tunes “Pickin’ the Guitar” and “Teasing The Frets.” But, the most famous jazz guitarist of this early era was definitely Eddie Lang, who, beginning in 1925 popularized the guitar as a solo instrument and is thus known as the “father of the jazz guitar.”  

Eddie Lang – I’ll Never Be The Same

Playing a Gibson L-4 guitar, Lang ultimately won the 1920s competition with the banjo, which was quickly becoming more commonplace than the guitar in jazz music. His contributions to the jazz guitar have inspired generations of musicians. 

Big Band & Swing Eras: 1930s & 40s

Although guitar had won the battle to be a consistent part of jazz, they still didn’t typically take center stage and were often drowned out by large bands. In the 1940s, Charlie Christian gave the guitar a louder voice when he electrically amplified his Gibson ES 50. The guitar was no longer just the soft steady rhythm in the background; it could be heard alongside the saxophone ad trumpet, and thus became a force to be reckoned with. 

Charlie Christian – Swing to Bop

Despite his early death at 25, Christian had a major influence on the role of the jazz guitar, especially when it came to playing intricate and impeccable solos, like this 1941 hit, “Swing to Bop.”

Innovations & Experimentation: 1950s & 60s

The 50s and 60s brought new foundations for the modern jazz guitar. Artists like Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass and Jim Hall experimented with different styles and techniques, like plucking the strings, extensive use of octaves and interactive improvisation in duos and trios. These innovators paved the way for jazz artists who were incorporating soul and R&B, like Grant Green.

Grant Green – Ain’t It Funky Now

With a unique and immediately recognizable sound that combines hard bop, soul jazz and bebop, Green’s bluesy and groovy guitar showcases the innovations of the 1960s & 70s. 

Jazz-Rock Fusion & European Styles: 1970s & 80s

Rock guitarists like Jimi Hendrix influenced the jazz guitarists of this era to incorporate rock-style signal processing effects, like distortion ad flange pedals. At the same time, the delicate and ethereal sounds of European Jazz were also impacting jazz guitarists.

John McLaughlin – Peace Piece

A British pioneer of jazz fusion, McLaughlin blends rock, world music, Indian & Western classical music, flamenco, and blues!

This post was written by Blog Editor, Jacqueline Knirnschild.

What is a reed? What is a double reed?

What is a reed? What is a double reed?

If you’re not a musician, when you hear the word ‘reed,’ you probably think of the tall, slender green leaf that grows and sways on the outskirts of ponds and lakes. But did you know that the mouthpieces of woodwind instruments, like the clarinet, oboe, and saxophone, are all made from the hollow stems of these plants?

Giant Reed (Arundo donax)
from Wikipedia.org

The cane of the Arundo donax, which is also known as the giant reed plant, is stripped of its leaves, and left outside to soak in the sun, resulting in a nice golden-brown color.  The canes are then dried by the wind, and aged for a few years, until they are placed inside a humidity-controlled factory where they are cut into smaller tubes and split into four thin pieces. Next, the cane is cleaned, cut, and sanded into a shape that is flat on one side and conical on the other. Finally, it’s time for the most important step—the reed-cutting process. With a blade, the red is shaved, gently and carefully, from the back toward the tip and then lastly, the very top is cut ever so precisely. 

Sounds like a lot of work for such a tiny, fragile, thin reed? Well, you’re right—it sure is a lot of work, but for good reason. The reed is what vibrates and creates sound. Without a reed, the instrument simply cannot be played. That is why many professional oboists and bassoonists will purchase cane—already sanded into a flat-conical shape—and cut their reeds themselves.

As a former oboe player, myself, I know, firsthand, how crucial, complex and finnicky a double reed can be. If you do not have a quality reed, your instrument will be out of tune, or it may even squawk like a dying flamingo! I can’t tell you how many times I showed up to band practice with a reed that had accidentally cracked in the case, and my oboe wouldn’t make a single sound at all! That is why you always pack a back-up, or two, or three. 

Anyway, you may still be wondering, what is the difference between a reed and a double reed? Well, it’s actually quite obvious when you think about it—a single reed only consists of one piece of finely manipulated cane and thus, must be attached to a mouthpiece, while a double reed has two reeds that vibrate against one another to create a sound. A double reed twists into the top of the instrument, standing alone, while the single reed is fastened directly onto the mouthpiece. 

Now, check out the song below, which features the wonderful Wayne Escoffery on saxaphone, to hear a single reed in action! 

John DiMartino, Joe Magnarelli & Wayne Escoffery – Tell Me Why

Despite the fact that a saxophone is made of metal, it uses a single reed, which classifies it as a woodwind, not a brass instrument. As you listen to the sax solo in this tune, you can think about and appreciate all the hard work that went into make the reed! 

And if you’re looking for more jazz music that merges the musical artistry of new songs with the jazz classics, check out our recent release, Old New Borrowed & Blue, which is available on all major music platforms and in our store today!

This post was written by Blog Editor, Jacqueline Knirnschild. 

The Art of the Album – How Design goes from Idea to Action

The Art of the Album Cover - From Idea to Action

My name is Benjamin, the creative director here at Night is Alive, and just one piece of a massive cog that tries daily to craft content for our fans and Jazz enthusiasts all across this massive globe we call Earth. My daily duties are usually things like making sure the website looks good and is working as it should, making sure the Social Media sites are unified and looking their best, and, most importantly, ensuring that all of our new music is getting into the hands of the folks who are looking for it. 

That last step, marketing our albums, ties directly into my favorite part of this job: Working on Album designs!

It’s weird to think about, but in many cases, the album design is the first thing you’re interacting with you’re introduced to a new album – even before you hear the music itself, you’re looking at the social media post, the record or CD cover, and thinking, “hmm, is this album going to be worth my time?”

The process of designing how a new album will look is always tied to the story of the music. Every album has a story, or at the bare minimum, a feeling that can then be turned into a story. Our album Lovers and Love Songs was tied to a massive love story that had listeners playing along in a massive AR game that sent them across the US traveling to random websites, and real world locations, to figure out how the story ends. A few years later when we released Cryin’ in My Whiskey we leaned heavily on the old country tropes of cowboys reflecting on a lost love while walking down a sunset dirt road. The story is important.

For Old New Borrowed and Blue we decided to let the color palette be the story. That may sound like a cop-out but here’s the thing. We, human beings, are very interesting and complicated creatures, especially when feelings are involved. There are ways that we can convey just a small part of an idea and you, the viewer’s mind, will fill in all of the blanks with a story that is unique to you. It’s like when you smell something you recognize from your past and suddenly your memory is flooded with moments that were locked behind the barriers of time. Colors, shapes, sounds, smells, tastes – all of these are tools to jumpstart your brain into weaving its own narrative.

Let’s start with the title of the Album: Old New Borrowed & Blue. Right off the bat we have 4 very strong descriptors to start from. Old and New sort of go together, so we should treat them as such. That brings our options down to 3. Borrowed is a fun idea with a great number of ways to evoke ideas of the past and interactions of taking and perhaps giving back. For this album, however, we decided to focus on Blue. Blue is great because it’s both figurative and literal. It’s a color, it’s a feeling, an emotion, a movement. In short, it was an easy choice to focus on this as our main story generation device. 

The next step is research. Jazz is about history. More specifically, it’s about Jazz’s own history. There aren’t many musical genres that hold themselves to major standards as much as Jazz does. With that in mind, we went through pretty much the entirety of Jazz’s historical music catalog looking for both places to take inspiration as well as places to veer off into new directions. Really quickly, I should mention, that even before I started the research phase I did have one possible idea: Go to the local home improvement store and just grab a ton of different shades of blue paint chips and then turn them into an almost “roofing tile” type of tactile artwork. I thought that would look cool and also have a neat 3D-ish look to it that would set it apart from the usual 2D look of nearly all other album artworks. Imagine my glee when I stumbled across Blue Note’s True Blue record and saw an obvious tie between their album design and my own idea!  I realized this color watch idea would be a great homage to an epic album.

We can’t stop there though. So far, we have one idea ready to go, but in this modern age of digital consumption, it’s a good idea to have several designs ready for the myriad uses the internet and social media offer its users. I came up with two other ideas that relied on the color blue in the abstract. One would be a simple watercolor where we just let several hues of blue mix on wet paper, and the second would be a similar watercolor technique, only contained into a shape. The final idea is to use all three designs as interchangeable “cover art”. Again, this approach lets us swap out to a fresh design whenever we want and helps keep the marketing from getting visually stale too quickly. 

Below are the photos of each design in its raw form.

And here are the those pieces of artwork placed into their final designs.

We’ve chosen Helvetica Now as our font. The reasons are simple: Helvetica is absolutely timeless and can fit seamlessly into so many different types of design. We color it to match our title theme and viola! We’re done!

The next part of the puzzle is wrapping this design around album packaging and putting it in front of the fans!

 

Benjamin Lehman

Benjamin Lehman

Benjamin Lehman is a creative director and photographer from San Francisco who now calls the eastern side of the US his home. He has worked on projects both large and small with clients that include, Apple, Microsoft, Cisco, Netgear, LA Lakers, LA Kings, Facebook, Night is Alive, and so many more!

How To Keep A New Year’s Resolution

How to Keep a New Year’s Resolution

The ball is about to drop in a few days, so you’re probably brainstorming ideas for your New Year’s resolution. Maybe you want to exercise more, eat healthier, get organized, save money, get more sleep, or read more. Whatever your goal is, we’re here to help you stick to it and make 2022 your happiest and healthiest year yet!

Make a Plan or Checklist

As the saying goes, a goal without a plan is just a wish, so you better get planning! Whether it be purchasing an agenda, making a spreadsheet, or crafting a cute poster board, you need to figure out what planning strategy works best for you. It’s important to have a physical, or digital, space to return to and mark your progress. Research also shows that crossing, or checking, items off on a list is extremely satisfying and motivating.

Reward Small Steps 

Rather than intimidating yourself with one enormous resolution, break your goal up into smaller, more manageable achievements. For example, if you want to lose 20 pounds, start by just exercising for just 15 minutes each day and limiting your late-night leftover Christmas cookie intake to just one. 

Or, if your resolution is to “get organized,” you can break that abstract idea into specific tasks that you can focus on each week, such as putting the laundry away as soon as it’s out of the dryer or creating designated drawers for all your knickknacks. Accomplishing these smaller tasks will encourage you to tackle the more difficult ones later down the road.

Develop Habits

Remember, research shows that it takes about 21 days to develop a new habit and a little more than two months to really solidify a habit, so just stick to your goals early on and things will get easier! This is also why it’s better to take small steps in the beginning while you’re still getting used to your new habit of going to bed early or reading one chapter each evening. 

Pause and Relax

Don’t be too hard on yourself and don’t get discouraged. You can do it! Whenever you’re feeling down, take a moment to pause, breathe deeply and congratulate yourself for your efforts. It’s no easy feat to grow and change as a person, so good on you for taking up the challenge! 

When you’re down, it’s also always nice to listen to some upbeat music that’ll get you smiling and up off the couch, ready to face your resolution without fear. And since music is our game at Night Is Alive, we put together a few tunes that’ll have you tapping your toes all throughout January! 

Johnny Otis – Happy New Year Baby

Remember, you’re not the only one with a New Year’s resolution—people have been making these, and sticking to them, for years. Blues musician Johnny Otis even released a song in 1948 about his! I made a resolution I’m gonna keep the whole year through.  I’m gonna give up chasin’ women, whiskey drinkin’ too…

Janis Siegel & John Di Martino – Are You Alright?

When doing something difficult, it’s always good to check in with yourself and make sure that you’re alright and that you’re not pushing yourself too hard. This 2021 rendition of the Lucinda Williams song also offers a jazzy, fresh feel that’ll encourage you to imbue your life with change in the form of new, healthy habits. 

This post was written by Blog Editor, Jacqueline Knirnschild.