Music Diary, Vol. -6

For the rationale behind this mad effort, explanations here. The full series of Music Diary posts are here.

Week of Nov. 27-Dec. 3, 2023

Lyric: Yes, "And You and I"
Song: A little of the warm honey voice of Stephen Sanchez goes a long way with me, but when it’s delivering a waltz tune as inspired and hooky as this, I’m all in.

Album: Only Bill Frisell, guitar god bless him, could or would make a record that moves so fleetly and convincingly among Copland, Sonny Rollins, Dylan, Sousa, Madonna, and John Hiatt, and make it all sound quintessentially his own.

Lyric: Barry Mann, "Who Put the Bomp?"

Song: Arguably only the third best track with this title (after Hendrix and Springsteen/Pointers), this Ohio Players cut is nevertheless a delicious, could-go-on-forever proto-disco jam (and ideal for what feels like the coldest NYC day in ages).

Album: For a brief, shining moment in the early 1990s, a band from Denton, Texas called Cafe Noir made 3 great records blending gypsy jazz and Western swing with Morricone sweep and chamber music grace. This is the last of the 3; I recommend them all.

Lyric: Jesse Winchester, "Sham-a-Ling-Dong-Ding"

Song: The Ernst Schulze poem Schubert immortalized with this jewel of a tune could be summarized with another lyric, “Spring is here/Why doesn’t my heart go dancing?” As usual, Franz tells the whole story in the rising-falling shape of the music.

Album: Belatedly discovered the deceptively mellow genius of the late Terry Callier—I say deceptively because, as with Nick Drake, it’s a mistake to hear this penetrating music as gentle just because he plays acoustic guitar and often sings softly.

Lyric: Shirley Ellis, "The Name Game"

Song: So many Shane MacGowan tracks to choose from to memorialize him today, but I have to share this early banger, not only because it’s a Behan-inspired vision of sot’s Heaven but because I remember dancing to it with my late mum at a wedding.

Album: I was sold on The Pogues from their first record, RED ROSES FOR ME, and mightily impressed with their third, IF I SHOULD FALL FROM GRACE WITH GOD, so I think I’ve given short shrift to their wildly entertaining, deeply moving second effort.

Lyric: The Pogues, "Bottle of Smoke"

Song: For my this-song-should-be-a-standard file, I offer this perfect gem of a tune by Paul Stookey—a wistful jazz reverie he smuggled onto a Peter, Paul & Mary record.

Album: Some records just hit you at the right time. This unassuming neo-soul classic from Everything But The Girl came out when I was 20 and spoke to me like few records before or since. I’ve happily followed all their work since but this is still the one.

Lyric: Hank Williams, "Ramblin' Man"

Song: One of my old bandmates from Millhouse, Jimb Fisher, just did a great tribute show to our '90s heyday on XRAY.FM. This track was a highlight of our live shows (but the found audio collage at the end is all Jim). Bonus: Spot the Roddy McDowall reference.

Album: Today’s “album” is a roughly chronological playlist of songs written but not recorded by Randy Newman, from The Fleetwoods to Peter Gabriel. Some real curiosities, and a few favorites, here. Fun fact: For the earliest songs here, he was 19.

Lyric: T-Bone Burnett, "River of Love"

Song: When Prince recorded this gospel classic in 1983, he couldn’t have anticipated the beautiful, anguished video Salomon Ligthelm would one day make with it. On the other hand, it has a whiff of the prophetic about it, so you never know.

Album: I’ve never been to the Rothko Chapel in Houston, but until I do visit, this pulse-calming, sense-awakening piece by Morton Feldman takes me there. Some music seems not only to stop time but to exist outside of it; this is a prime case in point.