Music Diary, Vol. -56

The rationale behind this mad project is here. The full playlist is above, also here.

Week of Dec. 12-18, 2022

LYRICS: Dawn Upshaw (Sondheim), "Like It Was"

SONG: Like McCartney, Schubert was a peerless melodist who could also write irresistible bops, and the third movement of his cello quintet has it all: raw open harmonies, a relentless stomp, a lovely breather. You could even dance to it.

LYRICS: Richard and Linda Thompson, "Dimming of the Day"

SONG: Everything the British guitarist Davy Graham touched sounded so sharp and lively, it’s hard to pick a fave. But this angular, grooving Bobby Timmons/Art Blakey cover is near the top of my list.

LYRICS: Patti Smith, "Dancing Barefoot"

SONG: I can’t decide what I like best about this vintage Ananda Shankar bop: the funk electric guitar, clattering drums, sputtering bass, tabla, flute, organ, sitar. Luckily I don’t have to decide, they’re all there and it’s glorious.

LYRICS: Blossom Dearie (Arlen/Harburg), "Napoleon"

SONG: From Sean Lennon's underrated 2006 record Friendly Fire, I keep returning to this haunting major-minor earworm, with shifting harmonies worthy not only of his dad but of his dad's former writing partner.

LYRICS: R.E.M., "Exhuming McCarthy"

SONG: I can make no claims of timeless significance about this retro funk singalong by the British band The Bees, but I've played and replayed this so frequently, and with so much joy, that it might as well be my "Louie Louie."

LYRICS: Randy Newman, "I Think It's Going to Rain Today"

SONG: Any band can invoke retro sounds but Kacy & Clayton go harder, and ultimately deeper imo. Any song on their 2017 album The Siren's Song makes the point but this one is especially sweet; some real Sandy Denny vibes here.

LYRICS: King's College Choir (Holst/Rossetti), "In the Bleak Midwinter"

SONG: The two things I love most about this Dolly Parton banger: the jolting chord changes that suggest the lyric’s peripatetic theme, and the confident intimacy with which she addresses the deity. Of course she’s on speaking terms with God. (Note: I'd forgotten when I shared this that it's a Billy Joel song.)