Music Diary, Vol. -67

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

Week of Sept. 26-Oct. 2, 2022

LYRICS: R.B. Greaves, "Take a Letter, Maria"

SONG: I saw Panic! at the Disco last week more as a chaperone of my teen than as a fan, but I must concede that this particular Queen pastiche disarmed me, not least for the way its "Getting Better" quotes underscore a lyric about an abusive boyfriend.

LYRICS: Don Henley, "The Boys of Summer"

SONG: I definitely hear some Nina Simone in Benjamin Clementine, but another voice I’m reminded of is Milton Nascimento—though it may just be that the way Clementine wrings feeling out of a suspended 4th here recalls Nascimento’s ode to River Phoenix.

LYRICS: Phoebe Bridgers, "Motion Sickness"

SONG: Without question, the most haunted Beatles track.

LYRICS: Elvis Costello, "The Long Honeymoon"

SONG: I have to credit the long-defunct blog Little Hits for alerting me to this swirling, gently manic electronic track from 1969 by Silver Apples. To my ears it sounds close to bubblegum pop, if you like your bubblegum tart and snappy.

LYRICS: The Beatles, "There's a Place"

SONG: Look Into the Eyeball was billed as David Byrne’s chamber/classical record, and while I love it to pieces, this haunting, sinuous, noirish piece is the only one that really fits that description. I could listen to a whole album of this.

LYRICS: Clifford David (Sherman Edwards), "Molasses to Rum"

SONG: Attention jazzheads: The haunting sax theme that opens this great 1972 track from Gustavo Santaolalla’s Argentine prog-rock band Arco Iris sounds familiar, but I can’t place it. Original or a quote? Either way, gorgeous.

LYRICS: Rob Kendt, "Train My Ear"

SONG: As with that other song he famously sang about a river, in this stirringly serene rendition of a spiritual, Paul Robeson’s voice evokes, even embodies its title—it flows, surges, ultimately cleanses.