I Got What He Needs

Joshua Radin. This singer/songwriter stud caught my attention in 2006 with the romantic duet “Paperweight,” but stole my music loving heart during his performance last night in Toronto. Maybe it’s because he so kindly dedicated a song to me, or maybe it’s because he treated us audience members as friends rather than just paying customers who are making him money.
A musician’s stage personality, especially during song breaks is crucial to the success of their show as a whole. Some musicians get on stage, play a song or two, and then use those few seconds while they change instruments to say something like “Hey Toronto, nice to be here” or “Hi Toronto, Canada’s cold”… just something dull and irrelevant. And, the audience of course will respond with a cheer because it’s still pretty fucking cool that they’re watching one of their favourite artists perform live.

But then we have these musical artists that engage with the audience the way the Mr. oh-so-fabulous Joshua Radin did. His show wasn’t filled with stupid jokes and one-liners during song breaks; instead, he used that time to share his personal stories and feelings about the song he was about to perform next. He was charming and sincere, and because of that it produced such an intimate feel to the show. He welcomed us audience members and gave us a chance to see who the man was behind the love lyrics and acoustic guitar, which I believe is so necessary for an artist to reveal at a live performance. The stories and the emotions he associated to each song made the crowd see that he is one of the few artists these days that makes music for the right reasons. We got to see how every song he sang was as important as the next because each one of them were his words, his feelings, and his soul that he is bearing to the world.

So, what song changed my life from last night’ show? Well, I’m biased with this song choice seeing as how this is the one he heard me belt out as a request and then dedicated it to me… but regardless, it’s none other than “You Got What I Need.”

His new album “The Rock and the Tide” may have taken a more upbeat rock n’ roll route, but he still manages to return to his roots with this soothing sweet number. He starts us off with a simple romantic melody on the guitar that puts us in this instant state of comfort. Shortly after this intro, at 0:17, we hear his rock-a-bye, delicate voice whisper out:
“Baby you…you got what I need.
Baby you… you got my sunshine…”

Those words alone could make any girl’s heart melt and lustfully beat out of control at the same time. He recites these lyrics over again at 0:32, this time with the addition of the drum and the choir’s “oooh’s” in the background. It’s at this point that our bodies get hit with this feeling of love that he is emitting through his lyrics and melody.
His raspy voice then continues to croon out sweet lyrics until 2:36 (the last chorus), where we then get a hint of the power of his vocals. He doesn’t show off with it. He chooses the words he wishes to sing passionately, only romanticizing the song more.
He then wraps up this short heartfelt song by softly reciting the lyric “you got my sunshine.”

This particular song performance and Josh’s show as a whole will be one of most memorable music experiences. Not only did I leave the concert feeling more connected to this song, but I also left feeling like I knew Josh a bit better than I did walking into that concert hall.

So, bottom line?

1. Josh, if you’re reading this… let’s get married.
2. For all the hopeless romantics out there, this song’s got your name all over it.
3. A special shout out to Anya Marina. This fabulous lady rocked the opening act spot and I’ve been a fan of hers since Miss Halfway. So it was a treat to hear her new stuff, which is simply fantastic.
Oh and 4, listen to this song… it’ll change your life.

Some live action for ya: