• Five O'Clock Shadow - What's It All About
• Clockwork - Creep (orig. Radiohead)
• Six Appeal - Toxic (orig. Brittney Spears)
• Da Vinci's Notebook - Title Of The Song
• BaSix - Purple Rain (orig. Prince)
• MeasureXMeasure - You Don't Treat Me No Good (orig. Sonia Dada?)
• Voicemale - Walking In Memphis (orig. Marc Cohn)
• Mosaic Whispers - Bring Me To Life (orig. Evanescense)
• Duwende - Young Leaders Of Tomorrow
• Testimony - Breathe Me (orig. Sia)

Again, as an experiment, all the older shows are moving to $2 paid donation model.  You won't have to change a thing to keep receiving the great podcast you know and love, but if you want to go back more than a few episodes, those won't be directly available for download.  Please, let me know what you think of this.  I want to be able to continue bringing you the greatest contemporary a cappella music, and I don't want to ransom it, or say you have to pay for new episodes.  If you don't want to pay a dime, that's fine, you can keep listening to the full show, no problem.  And I know this hurts new listeners more than it does old listeners, and I'm sorry for that.  Thanks for your understanding, and your donations.

Tune in to Episode #50!

And let's not forget the boatload of great music from the other groups as well!  Here's what's in the show:

• Dissipated Eight - Satellite (orig. Dave Matthews Band)
• Route 66 - Demo Medley
• An Octave Above - Sample Medley
• Down 4 The Count - Shut Up (orig. Black Eyed Peas)
• Amalgamates - Killing Me Softly (orig. Roberta Flack/Fugees)
• Dissipated Eight - Two Step (orig. Dave Matthews Band)

Route 66 and An Octave Above can both be seen at next weekend's Acappellafest 2008, along with Vocal Chaos, elmoTHUMM, and Scott Leonard of Rockapella fame.  If you are anywhere near there, you owe it to yourself to go check out this great show.

Just a reminder to the listeners; if you like what you hear, leave a comment in the iTunes Podcast Directory!  The more favorable reviews I get, the more likely others are to find the show in their searches, and that helps us all out.

Take a listen to Show #49!

Heard on this episode:

• Stanford Testimony - Breathe Me (orig. Sia)
• OnCue - Mirage
• OnCue - Lull In My Life (Gordon & Revel, performed by dozens)
• UMass Dynamics - Runaway (Orig. Jamiroqui)
• UMass Dynamics - Apologize (Orig. One Republic)
• Deep Treble - 3 songs

Also, go check out AC100 and the BACS!  Stay cool, and I'll see you around...

• Bam!
• Believe
• The Only One I Want Around
• All You Need Is Love (The Beatles)
• Summertime (Gershwin)
• No Ride

With the exception of All You Need Is Love (which you can find on Come Together: An Acappella Tribute to The Beatles), all of these tracks come from the 2006 CARA award winning album Get Down Mr. President, and were included in the playlist from the recent concert (in a Firehouse!) where I conducted the interviews.  In addition to the music, we also talk about the new guy Jake Moulton (entering in where Wes Carroll exited), the upcoming book (and possibly feature length movie) Pitch Perfect, and the new thing (which has me very excited as a post-collegiate a cappella singer) the Contemporary A Cappella League.  Thanks again to the group, and I'm looking forward to their forthcoming album, which they've just started working on.

ERRATA: At one point I say that Jake Moulton sang with Hookslide.  What??  No, , no, I meant Kickshaw.  You know, that same band that spawned Blake Lewis, of American Idol fame?  Blake was apparently brought into Kickshaw to help replace Jake.  And yes, Jake did sing in M-Pact with Rudy Cardenas, also an Idol.  So, Roo, will you be on the next season then?  And my apologies to Jake, Hookslide, and Kickshaw for the mistake.

In this long awaited episode, you'll hear:

• The Magnets - All The Wrong Reasons
• USC SoCal VoCals - Slumber (Gabriel Mann)
• UnderCover - Your Daddy Don't Know (Toronto/New Pornographers)
• Hyannis Sound - Solsbury Hill (Peter Gabriel)
• Tufts Beelzebubs - Linger (The Cranberries)
• The Magnets - In Love Since Then

Thanks for your patience!

• MAUF - The Truth
• Curious Gage - Hazy Shade of Winter (Simon and Garfunkel)
• The Richter Scales - Stockholm Syndrome
• Down 4 The Count - Four Sopranos
• 'Round Midnight - Hello My Baby (Andrew Sisters)
• Six13 - Lo Yisa Goy

Oh, and do yourself a favor and check out MAUF on YouTube!

ECASAd2

The summit starts tonight, and goes all weekend long.  I'm including the 'radio' ads for the summit, because they're fun commercials.

ECASAd1

• Six13 - Son
• UPenn Shabbatones - Ani Shelach (Neshama Carlebach)
• Binghamton Kaskeset - Birthright
• Shircago - Ani V'ata
• Brandeis Manginah - B'Shem Hashem (Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach)
• Six13 - D'ror Yikra

Some of my favorite parts of this episode: Six13's rythyms. Manginah's extra echo to bring out the choral effect. The imagery in Kaskeset's lyrics. Oh, and a tip that came in e-mail: Ani Shelach was soloed by Rachel Fried, sister to Ilana Fried of Kaskeset. It's a family episode! All of these groups can also be found on BOJAC 2006 (Best of Jewish A Cappella).

Enough already, go and listen to Show #44!

• The Faux Paz - It's My Life (No Doubt)
• The Beelzebubs - Come Sail Away (Styx)
• Duwende - Electrify
• baSix - Star People (George Michael)
• Mosaic Whispers - Meaning (Gavin DeGraw)
• Jewel Tones - Time After Time (Cyndi Lauper)

You'll find all of the above great music on Show #43 of The Acapodcast!

Don't worry, this is all a good thing, ultimately.

Peace,

Chad Bergeron

• Duwende - Come Back
• Penny Loafers - Fair
• Duke Out Of the Blue - Call Me When You're Sober
• Jonathan Coulton - When You Go
• UMBC Mama's Boys - Eli the Barrow Boy
• Duwende - Young Leaders of Tomorrow

All this and more! Press the play button below to hear this episode.

Five O'Clock Shadow was one of the first groups to say yes to being on the show, and "It's Christmas" from Misfit Toys is a stellar example of the rocking vocal originals. The lyrics make this the perfect track to start the show with.

The Blenders have put out several holiday albums over the years, and their latest is a two disc compilation called Christmas Collection, released at the same time as the new 'Christmas with The Blenders' DVD. This Minnesota group proves the ongoing power of the Midwest to produce fabulous pro groups. The group has been around since 1990, putting their own stamp on all sorts of songs. Here they are with "The First Noel".

Tonic Sol-fa has a new holiday album, On Top Of The World. If you are lucky enough to live in some parts of the US, you can also catch their PBS special on TV. "Happy Holiday" is the first track on that CD, and Irving Berlin would be tickled by the direction they take with it.

I found OnCue on the web through a happy accident. I'd not heard of this Calgary group previously, but I love their originals. Drawn from alumni of the Youth Singers of Calgary, they pack a lot of talent! "Snow Angels", from the album with the same title, is one of their excellent originals, celebrating one of the simple joys of kids and winter.

Basix is a Danish group that has gone out of their way to support the show, sending me a total of four albums from which to draw material. Last holiday show I featured a few tracks from their holiday album, Christmastime. How appropriate that this year I play their cover of "Last Christmas".

The Coats were also one of the early groups on The Acapodcast. They've covered a lot of ground and a lot of material over the years, including this refreshing take on the traditional carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen". I love traditional carols. I love new interpretations of songs. I love this song for being both at the same time.

I've been sitting on Joy by Four Shadow since they sent it to me this past summer. I was amused to receive a holiday album in the summertime, but knowing how good they are, I was happy to receive it, and pull it out for this show. Listening to them take on "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer" has had me eager for this show for months!

Jim Goodrich e-mailed me after my guest appearance on Lynn Argent's 'Cultural Soup' show, and Lynn recently pointed me to his own a cappella efforts which he has put up on The Podsafe Music Network. Jim is the only person you hear in this rendition of "The Wassail Song". Modern technology has let him sing all the parts separately and then bring them together. Thanks Jim, your range and versatility is impressive!

With over two feet of snow in recent weeks here at the house, I'm not sure I should play a song called "Let It Snow", but I'll bet OnCue gets it worse up in Calgary! This also comes from their Snow Angels album. I look forward to hearing more from them soon.

There are a plethora of traditional Christmas songs in the world, and the nostalgia around them can make it hard for new Christmas songs to gain traction. Bravo to The Blenders for coming out with "Tiny Little Christmas", and I hope it becomes a new standard.

M-pact's Carol Commission is an album full of excellent songs, but "Caroling, Caroling" may be the cream of the crop. The Winner of a 2000 CARA award, I can't be the only person to think so.

The GrooveBarbers are a group of guys who just like to get together and sing. The fact that most have them have been members of Rockapella at some point makes them different from other groups of guys out there singing for the fun of it. They might not be 'serious' about it, but they're certainly professional caliber. "We Need A Little Christmas" is just the sort of fun romp these four are known for.

Special thanks to Blue Jupiter for "Scattered Flurries", the title track from their 2003 album. The incredibly rich harmonies are the perfect piece to sit in the middle of this show and bring it together.

Christmas is not the only holiday at this time of year, and although Hannukah has come and gone (without running out of oil!), I like to include at least one Hannukah song every year as a tribute to those of us who celebrate in our own way. This year I was sent South Park's "It's Hard To Be A Jew At Christmas" by Rutger's Kol Halayla, making this one of two collegiate tracks in this show. Thanks to Bradley for sending this along.

One thing we might all wish for this season is for peace on Earth. It's a common sentiment when people are bundled together for warmth and cheer. Peace is something to be desired year round, but especially when our minds should be on family, religion, friends, and the turning of the year, instead of on conflict. I know there are a lot of unfortunate conflicts at the moment, so let's all join with The Coats as they sing "Let There Be Peace On Earth".

Four Shadow comes around again, with "All I Want For Christmas Is You", from their album Joy. Some of the lyrics in this make me question if the person expressing this is perhaps a bit misguided.

"Snowfall" from M-pact is so wonderful, it makes me hope that there's a Carol Commission 2 at some point in the future. You can be sure that if there is, I'll have it in hand for the next holiday episode of The Acapodcast.

Is there any better excuse for a vocal percussion solo than "Little Drummer Boy"? And when Five O'Clock Shadow released Misfit Toys back in 1999, very few groups could claim the level of expertise in vocal percussion that they showcase here. This was their first release with Dave "Stack" Stackhouse, who is still rocking with the group, singing bass and doing VP with the aid of a thumper mic.

Tonic Sol-fa reminds us that Christmas might be a time of crass commercialism, but we shouldn't forget it's religious origins. "King of Glory" is their homage to the nativity story, and the arrival of a very special baby boy all those years ago.

But to acknowledge the reality, there is a lot of gift shopping and giving this time of year, and everyone likes to receive something. Have you ever participated in a "Secret Santa" in your office, your school, or your community? The Groovebarbers have a few comments to be made in this track.

If you look at A Cappella holiday collections, you'll notice that "Mr. Grinch" may be a relatively recent song, but it is clearly a new traditional. I played one version last year, and I've a few more, so I think I'll start a tradition of playing a version every December. My guess is that this is a popular one for A Cappella artists, because it gives the oft neglected Bass a great solo! Of course, this one coming from moosebutter's dee's ember, you're guaranteed to be chuckling at their brand of musical mayhem.

Basix catches up with a timely song called "This Christmas". As the song says, 'This Christmas will be a very special Christmas.' May it be special for you too.

Jim Goodrich shows once again his great range by singing all the parts to "We Three Kings" all by himself. Jim, do you really have that amazing range, or did you have to use some recording tricks to get that fabulously low bass line?

This very special take on "Joy to the World" by The Persuasions was sent to me by Jerry Lawson, former front man for the group. It starts off as the old chestnut, but about halfway through, they riff on it with that magic Persuasions flavor. I am honored to share it with you.

Our last track tonight is fittingly, "The Christmas Song" by the Yale Whiffenpoofs. The Whiffs have been invited to sing carols at the White House on a number of occasions. Coming up on their Centennial year (2009), The Whiffs are the oldest collegiate group, bar none (1909). They're so rich and polished that it's hard to think of them as a collegiate group. This track comes from their album People Who Need People, and as the iconic modern carol, it seemed only fitting to close out this show.

Thank you all for a great 2007. May you all stay warm and safe this holiday season, and may happiness and joy be all around. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Press the Play button to listen to Show #41

• T Minus 5 - The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Linda/Weavers/Kingston Trio/Nylons)
• Low Key - Let Go (Frou Frou)
• Basix - Come Together (Beatles)
• Chorallaries - Don't Know Why (Norah Jones)
• Blue Jupiter - Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen)
• measureXmeasure - Only You (Yazoo)
• Spur Of The Moment - Everywhere (Michelle Branch)
• Gentleman Callers - Good Ol' A Cappella (The Nylons?)
  

Thanks again to those who wrote in, those who donated, and all of you for listening.  Send suggestions for the winter holiday show!  Oh, and here's where you can find those Basix arrangements!

• Semi-Charmed Life - Invisible Men (Third Eye Blind)
• Hotel California - Penny Loafers (Eagles)
• She Blinded Me With Science - Toxic Audio (Thomas Dolby)
• Bring Me To Life - Mosaic Whispers (Evanescence)
• Fix You - Off The Beat (Coldplay)
• Big Yellow Taxi - Hyannis Sound (Joni Mitchell)
• In Your Eyes - In Sync (Peter Gabriel)
• Kiss From A Rose - InPulse (Seal)

Listen to Episode 39, and if you're still alive in the morning, let me know what you think in the comments below!

• Silence - Off The Beat (Delerium/Sarah McLachlan)
• Hear You Me - Penny Loafers (Jimmy Eat World)
• She Talks - The Coats
• Nynex Suite - Spur Of The Moment (Tommy Tutone/Yaz/No Doubt)
• When No-one Calls - Sock
• Call Me - Da Vinci's Notebook (Blondie)

In a few short weeks it will be Halloween, and the scariest a cappella I can think of is yet another cover that every group out there has already done. There's a lot of them out there, but I want you to communicate with me and tell me what some of the most overdone songs are in the a cappella world.

• Eric Gwin - Alive
• Spiralmouth - Even Though
• Brown Jabberwocks - 7 (Prince)
• M-Pact - Fantasy (Earth, Wind, and Fire)
• Wheaton College Gentlemen Callers - Only One (James Taylor)
• Eric Gwin - Next Time You Come Around

Hey, Voices Only 2007 is finally available! Go pick up a copy!

Download audio file (Acapodcast37.mp3)

• Northwestern Purple Haze - Proud (Heather Small)
• UCSB Naked Voices - Earth Song (Michael Jackson)
• UMD Faux Paz - Other Side Of The World (KT Tunstall)
• Marblehead Jewel Tones - In My Life (The Beatles)
• Ledyard Chamber Choir - We Are (Ysaye Barnwell)
• Northwestern Purple Haze - All These Things That I've Done (The Killers)

So yeah, ending a 3 year relationship with a group is a hard thing to swallow. Send me your favorite a cappella tracks, and remind me of what I fell in love with in the first place!
Download audio file (Acapodcast36.mp3)

• T Minus 5 - American Woman (The Guess Who)
  
• Vocal Chaos - Good Things (BoDeans)
• Navi Redd - Klippies
• ElmoTHUMM - Shooting Star (Bad Company)
• Almost Recess - Maria
• T Minus 5 - One Voice

Congratulations to Matt Dunn for winning the episode #33 contest; Matt, be sure to e-mail me. To everyone, thanks for listening, and after a short vacation I'll be back in September with the back to school special!

Download audio file (Acapodcast35.mp3)

• Jerry Lawson & Talk of The Town - Islands In The Stream (Bee Gees/Kenny Rogers/Dolly Parton)
• T Minus 5 - Low Rider (War)
• Down 4 The Count - No More Blues (Carlos Antonio Jobim)
• Great Big Sea -The River Driver (Traditional)
• Copley Cats - Time and Tide (Basia)
• Jerry Lawson & Talk of The Town - Persuasions Melody

T Minus 5 is helping to put on A Cappellastock! It's Aug. 25th, in Ogden City Utah, and will be hosted by Barry Carl of Rockapella fame, and will feature Navi Redd, Toxic Audio, and more. This is an absolute powerhouse lineup, and if you can make it, you really should.

And as a reminder to listeners, I'm holding a drawing on episode #35 to give away a copy of Fitchy & Grikko, by The House Jacks. If you are a new listener, tell me who referred you, and I'll put both of you into the drawing. Enough of the words, let's get on with the show!

• The Sirens - Pride (In The Name Of Love) [U2]
• Similar Jones - So It Seems
• Four Shadow - Summer Sunday
• House Jacks - Light Of Stars
• InPulse - Life Is A Highway [Tom Cochrane]
• The Sirens - TV Medley [Various]

There's a nice block of originals in there. If you want to hear more great originals, go tune in to the CASA Originals Podcast, and tell Tim that Chad sent you!

Along those lines, starting today, you can enter into a random drawing to win a copy of Fitchy & Grikko. Here's how it works:

1. Get a friend to subscribe to this podcast.
2. Have them e-mail me (or fill out the contact form on this site), and have them say who referred them (that's you).
3. Keep your fingers crossed!

I'll collect all the names up, and pick one at random. I'll announce on show #35 who the winner is, and send out the prize.

Are you excited? Eager to hear the show? Then click play to Listen to Show #33!

• America The Beautiful - Academy Singers (Bates/Ward)
• American Girls - Chorallaries (Counting Crows)
• Walking in Memphis - Voicemale (Marc Cohn)
• Rhode Island is Famous For You - Clockwork (Blossom Dearie)
• Route 66 - The Coats (Troup/Cole)
• Star Spangled Banner - Gentleman Callers (Key/Anonymous)

My thanks go out to the many men and women who have served over the years to protect what was made on July 4th, 1776. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go see some more fireworks!

Listen to Episode #32!

Here's what you'll find in this episode of the Acapodcast:

• Similar Jones - Future Love Paradise (Seal)
• No Strings Attached - Baby Love (Mother's Finest)
• No Strings Attached - This Love (Maroon 5)
• Chromatics - Noctilucent Cloud
• No Better Cause - Times Like These
• Similar Jones - Brick House (The Commodores)
  

I break format a little bit here and play a No Strings Attached two song power pack, but these two songs (Baby Love and This Love) have so much in common, I felt they had to go together. Not only do they share the word 'Love' in their titles, but they both have a real funky groove to them.

And as a note, if everyone subscribed to the show using iTunes would be so kind as to unsubscribe briefly and resubscribe using the updated link up over there on the right... yeah, that'd be great.

If you can't wait to subscribe and have to listen to Episode #31 as soon as possible, click on the play button below!

• Hyannis Sound - The Boys of Summer
• Blue Jupiter - Lil' Red Riding Hood
• Slapdash Graduate - Counting Blue Cars
• Brown Jabberwocks - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
• KickShaw - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
• Hyannis Sound - Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay

Now listen up and take the advice of these songs: get outside, go walking in the woods, or driving with the top down, or go down and sit by the water. But take the iPod with you and crank up the a cappella hits.

Click here to listen to Episode #30!

Zulal is a trio of women from the US, reinventing and reinvigorating Armenian Folk as they get in touch with their ancestral background. Currently they are producing their second CD. They also had the distinction of being named runners-up for the CASA 2007 A Cappella Community Award for Best Folk group.

Navan is also a trio, two ladies and a gentleman from Madison,Wisconsin. Specializing in songs from the celtic cultures, they have three albums out. The most recent, Lowena, is spectacular, and I've chosen a celtiberian song from it for this episode.

Navi Redd hails from South Africa, and this all male group brings us a medley inspired by native music. This track was found on the Podsafe Music Network. Thanks guys!

Harmonytryx, a group of vocally endowed women, sings a wide variety of music. I played their cover of October Project's Sunday Morning Yellow Sky back on Episode #9.

PennYo is also no stranger to The Acapodcast. As UPenn's only Chinese A Cappella Group, you'd think I'd play a Chinese folk song, but Amazing Grace was originally penned in the 1770's in England, and has borrowed a number of different tunes from various hymns over the years. A Christian anthem, it gained the most impact in the American South, but with Christianity on the rise amongst the Chinese, it isn't much of a surprise that this fabulous Mandarin rendition exists.

Here are the tracks from Episode #29 of the Acapodcast:

• Zulal - Hars Em Gnoom
• Navi Redd - Johhny Clegg Medley
• Harmonytryx - O Sifuni Mungu
• Navan - Letontu Litokum Abulos
• PennYo - Amazing Grace
• Zulal - Sareri Hovin Mernem

Click the Play button below to listen to this episode!

Edit: Content restored through manual processes.  Anything you still can't cope with is therefore your own problem.  Please relax.

• measureXmeasure - You Don't Treat Me No Good
• UMass Amherst Dynamics - Breakfast at Tiffany's
• 2Praise - Child of the Great I Am
• WUSTL Mosaic Whispers - Take Me To The River
• RPI Rusty Pipes - Comfortably Numb
• measureXmeasure - Don't Let Your Heart

Click the play button below to tune into Episode #28!