Music Diary, Vol. 17
For the rationale behind this mad effort, the initial post is here. The full series of Music Diary posts are here. The full playlist is above, and also here.
Week of April 29-May 5, 2024
LYRICS: Bachelor, "Sick of Spiraling"
SONG: I can't find the quote, but I know I read that Mira Nair included this lilting Mohammed Rafi tune in MONSOON WEDDING in part because her own husband had sung it to her when they were wooing. Not hard to hear why he chose it (or why it worked.)
SONG: I can't find the quote, but I know I read that Mira Nair included this lilting Mohammed Rafi tune in MONSOON WEDDING in part because her own husband had sung it to her when they were wooing. Not hard to hear why he chose it (or why it worked.)
ALBUM: The key to this 1987 masterpiece by John Hiatt is that, as great as the songs are, the easy chemistry of the band backing him (Ry Cooder, Jim Keltner, Nick Lowe) and the spare yet warm sound of the room make it sound both timeless and alive.
LYRICS: The Shaggs, "Philosophy of the World"
SONG: 2 things about this memorable 1931 Bing Crosby single: His throaty vocals sound very little like the relaxed Der Bingle of his prime. Also: The chorus is built on the I-III-IV-iv “Creep” chords—so common they’re in the air that you breathe.
SONG: 2 things about this memorable 1931 Bing Crosby single: His throaty vocals sound very little like the relaxed Der Bingle of his prime. Also: The chorus is built on the I-III-IV-iv “Creep” chords—so common they’re in the air that you breathe.
ALBUM: No one has ever sounded like Stereolab in their prime, which I think is best captured on this 1994 LP. For all its electronic edges and throbbing drones, it has a straightforward innocence and tunefulness that puts me in mind of folk music.
LYRICS: Julien Baker, "Hardline"
SONG: I’ve always liked this Tommy Wolf standard but only recently noted its wild harmonic gambits—the key-change head fake coming out of the bridge, another on the tag (“condition must be chronic”). Of course Ella makes them sound easy as breathing.
SONG: I’ve always liked this Tommy Wolf standard but only recently noted its wild harmonic gambits—the key-change head fake coming out of the bridge, another on the tag (“condition must be chronic”). Of course Ella makes them sound easy as breathing.
ALBUM: Revisiting this cosmic quasi-symphony by John Adams and marveling anew at its Big Bang opening and the floating planets and particulates it sets in motion. An awe-inspiring work.
LYRICS: Jak Malone (SplitLip), "Dear Bill"
SONG: Can’t get enough of the way the E-flat chord sails in repeatedly on the vowel “I” in this Yusuf/Cat Stevens classic. If the chorus is the wound, this bittersweet bridge is the balm.
SONG: Can’t get enough of the way the E-flat chord sails in repeatedly on the vowel “I” in this Yusuf/Cat Stevens classic. If the chorus is the wound, this bittersweet bridge is the balm.
ALBUM: This Dylan record looms so large that I’ve too often taken it for granted (it doesn’t help that the discs before and after it are faves of mine). But between the word-drunk songs and the Nashville cats, it has a too-muchness that’s just right.
LYRICS: Tom T. Hall, "That's How I Got to Memphis"
SONG: The killer opening track of Wolfy’s 2022 record BLOOD, INK, WHATEVER has a very late 1970s classic rock vibe; another way to describe it might be Fiona Apple fronting the White Stripes. The whole record is a keeper but this makes a great intro.
SONG: The killer opening track of Wolfy’s 2022 record BLOOD, INK, WHATEVER has a very late 1970s classic rock vibe; another way to describe it might be Fiona Apple fronting the White Stripes. The whole record is a keeper but this makes a great intro.
ALBUM: The centerpiece of Neil Young’s great first record with Crazy Horse is obviously the epic jam “Down by the River,” but the whole thing has that unique Young/Horse mix of grit and sweetness, ornery cussedness and exquisite sensitivity.
LYRICS: Patrick Page (Anaïs Mitchell), "Why We Build the Wall"
SONG: I can’t pick favorites from the Shakespeare-for-kids record I made some years ago, but I do particularly like Ray Bokhour’s catchy 5/4 take on this chestnut from MUCH ADO, to which I added a Springsteen-esque piano part.
SONG: I can’t pick favorites from the Shakespeare-for-kids record I made some years ago, but I do particularly like Ray Bokhour’s catchy 5/4 take on this chestnut from MUCH ADO, to which I added a Springsteen-esque piano part.
ALBUM: I kind of get why this isn’t most people’s fave Bowie record: It’s genuinely creepy and dystopian, the sound is often muddy, and his guitar playing (minus Mick Ronson) is a bit scattershot. For me, all this makes it even more compelling.
LYRICS: Sufjan Stevens, "Everything That Rises"
SONG: Among the Dylan tunes I love to play at Greenpoint Reformed Church is this defiantly hopeful burst of prophecy, whose buoyant images of equality and justice conclude with a bracing Old Testament sting.
SONG: Among the Dylan tunes I love to play at Greenpoint Reformed Church is this defiantly hopeful burst of prophecy, whose buoyant images of equality and justice conclude with a bracing Old Testament sting.
ALBUM: Though better known for his operas, Rameau worked, like his contemporary Bach, as a church organist, and his sacred music is as richly dramatic and nuanced as any of his stage work, as these 4 exquisite motets demonstrate.
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