Asher Monroe is taking fans on a joyride through time with his new album Songs of the Century. Starting out in the 1930's, the album showcases Asher's take on several classic songs throughout the last 100 years, ending with an original.
Songs of the Century includes iconic tunes like "Over the Rainbow," Joe Cocker's "You Are So Beautiful," Culture Club's "Victims," Bee Gees' "Immortality," Adele's "Feel My Love" and more.
Speaking to iHeartRadio, Asher explained that the idea for Songs of the Century stemmed from a spontaneous performance of 'Over The Rainbow' seven years ago while in Mexico. He said, "It was raw, unplanned, and unforgettably real. That video would later resurface last summer when I was in Hawaii. Maybe it was the strong manna, but something whispered to me to record a proper demo. I teamed up with the island’s finest ukulele virtuoso @andrewmolinaukulele. That spontaneous idea channeled a full blown 12 song album. Instead of doing covers of the last decade or just a random collection, my spin was to take an iconic song from every decade starting with the 30's all the way to today. I chose myself for this last decade 2020 - 2030 on an original I wrote called 'There's A Time.'"
"Over The Rainbow" is the song that Asher emotionally connects to the most, but every song included on his new album are special to the singer/songwriter for a multitude of reasons as he put his spin on each one. He explained, "Sonically, I took the biggest risk on 'Nature Boy' by stripping down the production and letting the harps do most of the heavy lifting. The one that surprised me the most was 'Victims.' The 80's decade gave me the most challenge. So many big dance hits [and] power ballads that I could have chosen as a more obvious choice. I went with a more subdued melodramatic album cut that wasn't one of Boy George's biggest hits. In my humble opinion, I think it's one of his best lyrically written songs. I think the modernized production brought the song home for me and has become one of my top favorites to listen to on repeat. A lot of my family friends and fans seem to like my take on Bob Dylan's 'Make You Feel My Love.'"
If you take a look back on the last 100 years, how DO you choose what songs to include on an album like Songs of the Century? There was a method to Asher's time-traveling madness, as he shared, "I started choosing all the songs on the album by doing my homework first! I made a playlist for every decade starting with the 30's, since all 12 songs are in a chronological order of each decade starting with the 30's. For about 2-3 months, I immersed myself by just listening to any and all music of the last 100 years. Some days I was in the mood for just the 50's and 60's, other days I was in the mood for the 70's or 80's. Then, I would pick some of my favorite artists like David Bowie, John Denver, Seal, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, etc., and just listen to their entire catalogue of music. I would try to imagine myself singing any and all songs. it wasn't always the big hits that I chose to listen to, hence 'Victims' by Boy George and 'Music Is You' by John Denver that made the album were album cuts. Anything that inspired me would get saved in the corresponding decade of when they were originally released or written. Lastly, I would get advice from fans and respected colleagues on songs they thought I would sound good on. It was a process of dwindling, experimenting with my producer David Kosten until the top choices were eventually made. David was key in making everything sound cohesive."
Listen to Asher Monroe's Songs of the Century on iHeartRadio.