Hello October 2013

Fall is officially here, and the leaves have start falling from the trees around Dobbs Ferry.  I have been working as a personal fitness trainer at http://herostrong.org/
for more than a year now.  My main interest in training, besides helping clients to solve postural imbalances, is in to help people enjoy running as a means to developing an aerobic base.

Currently, I have two running classes open for more participants:

Wednesday mornings from 11am to 12 noon;

and

Sunday mornings from 9:30am to 10:30am.

All classes begin with dynamic warmups; followed by running with technique suggestions and corrections;  ending with cool down stretches.  Both of these classes are beginner to beginner/intermediate.  Message me through my facebook page:
http://facebook.com/john.runtrainer
if you live in the Dobbs Ferry, Rivertowns/Westchester NY area and would like to join one of the classes.
   
I am starting to go back through all the links for playing and purchasing songs.  If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please feel free to message me. 

Best,John

Song: citites in dust | Band: Siouxsie and the Banshees < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 84

I found this song on a compilation, and placed it on my running playlist that I have on my ipod shuffle. At the start of my first half marathon a little while ago, it came on as the first song, and propelled me along for a good part of the first mile. It is a longer song (over 8 minutes), but has an energetic bass and drums with enough subtle variation to sustain interest during any part of a run. It isn't one of those songs with a pounding beat...more of a driving, expansive beat.

Hungry On Arrival (Spring Heel Jack Remix | Outernational Meltdown

Song: Hungry on Arrival (Spring Heel Jack Remix) | Band: Outernational Meltdown < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 84

I found this song on a compilation, and placed it on my running playlist that I have on my ipod shuffle. At the start of my first half marathon a little while ago, it came on as the first song, and propelled me along for a good part of the first mile. It is a longer song (over 8 minutes), but has an energetic bass and drums with enough subtle variation to sustain interest during any part of a run. It isn't one of those songs with a pounding beat...more of a driving, expansive beat.

Note: While exploring the BPM of this particular song, I used a small application that allows you to tap your space bar, or click your mouse to the beat in order to figure out the BPM (Cadence BPM Tapper). I wound up getting a reading around 170 BPM. All of the various applications I have been trying recently (BeaTunes, Cadence, Tangerine!, and Mixmeister BPM Analyzer) all come up with 84 BPM. I still wonder what the exact correspondence to song BPM my running cadence has, since I always seem to keep a steady 84 BPM, no matter how fast or slow the song. Particular songs just seem to give a boost.

There's No Other Way | Blur

SONG: There's No Other Way - BAND: Blur < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 112

An oldie (?) from 1991 (?). The drummer really whacks the snare drum hard and the guitar plays a really cool lick. The reverb on the vocals reminds me of most of the pop bands from around that time (and a bit before).

A Little Less Converstaion | Elvis vs. JXL

SONG: A Little Less Conversation - BAND: Elvis vs. JXL < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 114

Elvis had a new hit. This song is from one of Elvis' movies, Live a Little, Love a Little, from 1968. In 2002, the TV special version of the song was remixed by Junkie XL for the NIKE Football World Cup advertising campaign. A single, credited to "Elvis vs. JXL," was issued and was a Number 1 hit in over 20 countries, as well as showing up on Elvis' 30 greatest hits as number 31. This song has a great Timbales part!

Listening to and/or Buying MP3s

If you have spent any time here, you know that you can listen to the whole songs via the top link in each post. All of those links have been tested and now work. If, for some reason, you would like to purchase an MP3, you can now do so via the Amazon MP3 player, and shortly, you will be able to do the same through the itunes store. Note that the Amazon player, as well as the itunes player will only play a excerpt of each song.

At present, the BPM listings may be slightly inexact, since I have been using a manual BPM tapper, which is a little inaccurate. I will correct these as time goes on. If you happen to know the exact BPM, please feel free to add a comment...it would be appreciated!

Busting Up a Starbucks | Mike Doughty

SONG: Busting Up a Starbucks - BAND: Mike Doughty < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 115

The idea of busting up a Starbucks has probably crossed a lot of people's minds, maybe as the result of caffeine withdrawal, or perhaps as a reaction to grand mediocrity in atmosphere...who knows. The songs doesn't really explain, but it has a very catchy chorus. The snare drum rings with the snare off, being whacked nice and hard by the drummer. The bass line along with the acoustic guitar and bass drum keep the momentum going in the song...even a saxophone solo near the end.

Solitary Man | Chris Isaak

SONG: Solitary Man - BAND: Chris Isaak < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 156

This song was on one of my very first running tapes. I used to run over the Brooklyn bridge, and down the Promenade in Brooklyn Heights, breathing in all those exhaust fumes. Maybe the wind was blowing them elsewhere, but I am sure I got a good wiff. This song has a great backbeat (at least this version). It was originally done by Neil Diamond, but I think the brass part bopping behind his voice really detracted from the song. Maybe when the song came out, that was the hip magic bullet for producers (the brass section). While looking for the non-existent link for the Isaak version on Amazon, I found this version by a group called Smokestack Lightnin', which is kind of fun.

Fast As I Can | Stone Temple Pilots

SONG: Fast As I Can - BAND: Stone Temple Pilots < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 192

Double sticking on the snare drum gives this song a really nice push. The guitar riff is really energetic. I am not really sure about the lyrics though...I don't get the line about the liquor store, but with running songs, I find I can overlook the lyrics (usually); however, that said, if you listen to something over and over again, you are bound to find out things you never really wanted to know. 50 per cent!

Just Because | Jane's Addiction

SONG: Just Because - BAND: Jane's Addiction < Click to Stream whole song

BPM: 98

The bass drum is really heavy in this song mixed with nice bright snare, and the wall of sound metal fuzz guitar creates a nice forward motion. The lyrics are pretty good as well, with a nice round reverb, and a doubling on the chorus. I also like to run to Three Days (BPM: 105), but it starts out slow and doesn't double time until 3:01 into the song (so I usually anticipate the double timing right from the start). Your milage may vary with the latter.