Music Diary, Vol. 34
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 Aug. 26-Sept. 1, 2024
LYRICS: Beverly Mahr (Gordon Jenkins), "Crescent City Blues"
SONG: No one sounded quite like Tom Verlaine: that inimitable combination of spidery, hammering guitar and bratty vocals, of jam rock indulgence and punk economy. This jagged solo cut is an excellent exemplar.
ALBUM: Forgot how much I loved this Rush record when I was 12 or 13, staying up late with my Walkman and tripping on its prog-rock contours. Hearing it again now, I find I still love its innocence and ambition.
LYRICS: Vampire Weekend, "Oxford Comma"
SONG: I’ve loved this wistful Serge Gainsbourg ditty ever since I heard Stephanie Vlahos sing it 30 years ago, then savored the recording by Juliette Greco, for whom he wrote it. I just found this delightful live rendition with Philippe Clay (and an adorable dog).
ALBUM: Help! I’ve discovered yet another English folk singer from the 60s/70s, in this case the unspeakably sweet and gentle-sounding Vashti Bunyan (thanks to a Sara Lov cover). Fortunately, a sense of play saves her from being insufferably twee.
LYRICS: Camille, "Mars Is No Fun"
SONG: This peerless Sonic Youth cover of the heartbreaking Carpenters classic is canon: the whispery vocals, the “sad guitar” of the lyrics sounding more like a mad guitar, distorted feedback and all. Also: Don’t sleep on what the piano is up to.
ALBUM: Axeman Steve Howe came in guns blazing on his first record with Yes. From Ren Faire folk to sizzling electric rhythm-and-lead, not to mention the jolly ragtime of “The Clap,” I think of this as *his* record in a way I don’t of any other by Yes.
LYRICS: The Andrews Sisters (Johnny Mercer), "The Strip Polka"
SONG: It’s not just the inviting 60s jangle of this early Angel Olsen track that draws me in. It’s also the melody on the title line, which is first f#-e-d#-c#, then a-g#-d#-c#. That jagged leap always gets me—guess that’s why they call it a hook.
ALBUM: This double album of Falla masterworks, headlined by the incomparable Victoria de Los Angeles, is an embarrassment of riches, from the harsh beauty of the short opera “La Vida Breve” to the rousing “Sombrero de tres picos” and “El amor brujo.”
LYRICS: Ari’el Stachel (David Yazbek), “Haled’s Song About Love”
SONG: The thumping Bo Diddley beat is only one reason I love this early Thomas Dolby cut idealizing a childhood friendship. He’s always been uniquely able to make synths shimmer and pop with personality, but this one is especially vivid.
ALBUM: This American classic turns 40 next month, and it’s still as rollicking and moving, as heartbroken and soul-lifting, as ever. Los Lobos have reached great heights since this debut but I don’t think they’ve ever topped it.
LYRICS: Rob Kendt, "Suspicious Parties"
SONG: This was always my favorite Glenn Miller cut (with “Tuxedo Junction” a close second) for its understatement and for the slippery, somehow suspenseful harmony under its main riff—it’s basically a melody made of chords played by the sax section.
ALBUM: Clairo’s new record is a huge leap forward from an already strong start. The beats and arrangements have grown more dense and assertively retro, but the sound remains summery, cozy, intimate—pop that burrrows deep without forsaking lightness.
LYRICS: Judee Sill, "Lopin' Along Through the Cosmos"
SONG: If there’s a song that best expresses what I think of as tragic Christianity—the sense that we are lost despite God’s love, that the promise of salvation is a source of comfort but not the end of suffering—it is this great Sam Phillips cut.
ALBUM: All killer, no filler: This expertly curated and exquisitely performed John Rutter collection of Renaissance and Baroque choral music is straight-up gorgeous from start to finish.
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