Anatomy In Song

I’m super far behind so it’s gonna be a two-fer today. I’ve written about most of the following artists at some point in time previously so I’m not going to go in depth with the introductions now and I’m busy as shit this week so you’re all spared a novel. Whew! There are some Grey’s faves here like Beck, Let’s Go Sailing, The Whitest Boy Alive, Maria Taylor (my personal favorite) and the super chic and ultra hip Nouvelle Vague along with newcomers so sit back, learn a bit and listen a lot.

Season 3, Episode 20: “Time After Time”

Amy Winehouse – “You Know I’m No Good”

This is one of the tracks I chose to showcase when I gave Amy’s Back To Black the #14 spot on my best of list for 2006. She may be no good but this song is amazing. If you’ve been living under a rock and don’t know who Amy Winehouse is, I strongly urge you get yourself a copy of the album that everybody but you is raving about.

Maria Taylor – “A Good Start”

Maria Taylor – “Clean Getaway”

If you pay attention at all to my Last.fm playlists then you’ll know how much I have loved Maria’s latest effort, Lynn Teeter Flower. I’ve been meaning to give her an appropriate write up for awhile (and in fact actually began a post not too long ago that sits in my drafts as I type this) but you know how life and responsibilities and all the really important things get in the way of silly nonsense like blogging so now is a great opportunity to talk about her. As half of Azure Ray, Maria’s made quite a name for herself the past few years not only with her solo efforts but for her collaborative work with Moby and most recently Saddle Creek label mate Conor Oberst on Bright Eyes’ new album, Cassadaga. (Which I highly recommend!) Fresh off the heels of having seen Maria live last month, I was tickled shitless when I heard my two favorite tracks from Lynn Teeter Flower on Grey’s last week. If you haven’t checked Maria out yet what ARE you waiting for? Seriously!

The Whitest Boy Alive – “Burning”

I’ve already touched on The Whitest Boy Alive (that's what she said!) when “Fireworks” was featured on the show in February so I’m not going to ramble on and on save to say that I was happy to hear them on the show again. The group is currently touring Europe and I’ve no idea when they’ll hit the states but be certain I’ll catch at least one show when they do.

Lullaby Baxter – “Fontana Fontaine”

It only took a decade for Lullaby Baxter to go from being a Montreal waitress to a recording artist featured on one of America’s most popular television programs and since I’m in a hurry and too lazy to give you the 4-1-1, check out her bio and press information for yourself and take her music for a spin. I like it…I like it a lot.

Nouvelle Vague - "Dancing With Myself"

I really enjoyed Nouvelle Vague’s resurrection of the 80’s on their self titled debut; I thought it was brilliant to take some of the most beloved and over produced tunes from that time and make them brand new and shiny clean in the simple way that they did. They’re back at it again this year with Bande A Part and in the same fashion they’ve put a new spin on classic favorites. I like this version of the Billy Idol ditty. Maybe you will too. Check out their cover of Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” while you’re at it…the verdict is still out on that one for me.

Season 3, Episode 21: “Desire”

Anna Waronker – “How Am I Doing”

If her voice sounds familiar it’s because Anna Waronker gets around...in a good way. The former lead singer for the L.A. based indie rock group That Dog and member of Ze Malibu Kids has contributed her music not only to many benefit compilations but to several film and television projects as well with Clueless, Josie & The Pussycats and Dawson’s Creek being the most popular. Anna founded her own record label with her sister-in-law Charlotte Caffey and released her debut album, “Anna”, on Five Foot Two Records in 2002 and is scheduled to release her follow up, “California Fade” sometime this year.

In order to segue way: Anna’s brother is the on again, off again drummer for Beck and she’s backed Beck on several of his tracks that were recorded in her brother’s studio. Speaking of Beck…

Beck – “Nausea”

Do I REALLY need to tell you anything about Beck after all this time? I think not. I just wrote about him in February so whatever I said then still stands now I’m certain. But to show you how connected and awesome he is, I will use another segue way and tell you that he’s pals with and has worked along side producer and keyboardist Greg Kurstin on several projects.

Speaking of Greg Kurstin…

The Bird & The Bee – “Again & Again”

Greg Kurstin and Inara George (LOVE HER!) joined their talents to create The Bird & The Bee (another group I have a draft post for…God I’m too busy!) and released their Again and Again and Again and Again EP in October of last year. On the heels of the success and critical acclaim they received for it they released their self titled debut on the celebrated Blue Note label in January again to rave reviews. “Again & Again” is the opening track on that album and I gotta say it’s one of their best. “Fucking Boyfriend” is my personal favorite (and a remixed version of it earned them the top spot on the US Hot Dance Club play chart) but “Again & Again” is a close second for the album’s best effort. Pick up the LP when you get a chance and definitely get your hands on a copy of her solo album All Rise the moment you can.

Fun Fact: Inara is the daughter of legendary rock musician Lowell George of Little Feat fame. LOVE me some Little Feat!

The Reddmen – “The Secrets of Amanda Prine”

New to me, The Reddmen are an indie group from South Dakota of all places. Their label has this to say about the group:

2 brothers, 10 years - 1 goal: 100% lo(ud) fidelity recklessness. Self-taught, self-produced, and self-destructive, this crew continues to leave a trail of smashed instruments, ruined bass players, shattered eardrums, and broken hearts in its wake.

And from their Myspace page:

advocates of lo(ud) fidelity recklessness and sassy pop numbers inspired by fashion savvy girls for boys of lost love in tight clothes everywhere. the reddmen are the essence of lo-fi power pop.

Take that as you wish. All in all, I like the song and I think it was a great fit last night.

Let’s Go Sailing – “Better Off”

Been there, done that with Let’s Go Sailing. In the event you need a refresher, click here.

"No one ever told me that grief felt so like fear."

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am in a thousand winds that blow,
I am the softly falling snow.
I am the gentle showers of rain,
I am the fields of ripening grain.
I am in the morning hush,
I am in the graceful rush
Of beautiful birds in circling flight,
I am the starshine of the night.
I am in the flowers that bloom,
I am in a quiet room.
I am in the birds that sing,
I am in each lovely thing.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there. I do not die.

-Mary Frye

KT Tunstall - "Heal Over"

“There’s nowhere that I’d rather be than sitting getting old in the shade of the same old tree...”

Cerys Matthews’ Never Said Goodbye was among my contenders for best of 2006 last year deservedly. The past seven years have found Cerys working not only on her solo career away from Catatonia but also on herself. She’s successfully battled heroin and alcohol addiction, become a wife and mother and was a citizen of the great city of Nashville, Tennessee for awhile before returning to her UK roots last year. Never Said Goodbye is an indie/folk/pop fusion that struck a chord with me last year. I stumbled upon it by way of checking in on the new releases offered up by one of my favorite labels, Rough Trade Records (home to Indie powerhouse artists Arcade Fire, The Decemberists, The Strokes and Jarvis Cocker to name but a few). Cerys’ quirky voice grabbed my attention but the cleverly crafted tunes had me sticking around throughout. I really loved this album through and through and even though most people I shared it with weren’t all that impressed, I’ve been listening to it again this afternoon and I still think it's great. And to me, that’s good music...if I can pick it up and have it hit me at just the right time to make an impact and then put it away and pick it back up again weeks, months or even years later and still enjoy it then I know it’s good.

Ms. Matthews turns 38 years old today so in honor of her birthday I thought I’d write a bit about her and repost some of her songs that I love.

"Streets of New York" - Cerys Matthews

"Oxygen" - Cerys Matthews

"Open Roads" - Cerys Matthews

"Seed Song" - Cerys Matthews

"A Bird In Hand" - Cerys Matthews

"Though I know I'll never lose affection for people and things that went before,"

"...I know I'll often stop and think about them; in my life I love you more."

For my birthday I received a daily desk calendar…the Playlist 2007 Desk Calendar. Each day it has either a playlist of songs, random and obscure facts, birthdays of famous artists, quotes by artists and others about music or music history. Every single day I get some little something music related on my desk calendar. I like it. A lot. It was a great gift. So…periodically I’ll share them here when I don’t have the time to devote to expansive posts on the great music of the moment.

If you know me, then you know how much I love the Beatles. If you’ve been to my home then you know how much I love the Beatles. If you don’t know me at all, I’ll just go ahead and reiterate that I. LOVE. THE. BEATLES. Today’s entry depressed me a little as it reads: The Beatles broke up this day in 1970. In a press release accompanying promotional copies of his new solo album, Paul McCartney announced that he had no plans for working with the Beatles because of “personal differences, business differences, musical differences.”

What the entry doesn’t tell you is that 27 year old Paul McCartney was actually the only one of the Beatles who hadn’t quit at the time. The Beatles actually began to break up in 1968 when Ringo left the group for a spell during the recording of the White Album. After a few weeks, he re-emerged and all was right with the world. George was next to leave during the production of Let It Be Lennon informed Paul, Ringo and George in the fall of 1969 that he was leaving the group and would not be coming back but at Paul’s insistence did not announce his departure due to the fear that Let It Be would tank in the wake. Seven months later, Paul decided he too would jump ship and issued a press statement that accompanied his first solo album, McCartney, which gave a broad list of reasons why he would never record with the Beatles again…at the top of the list were his personal, business and musical differences with John Lennon. This move by McCartney led the public to believe, mistakenly, that he had quit the band when in reality he was the only member who hadn’t quit.

This little entry on my calendar doesn’t delve further into the nightmare split that caused lifelong friends to wage media wars on one another…it doesn’t relay the absolute devastation of legions of fans…it doesn’t talk about how as 1970 came to a close, Paul McCartney sued Allen Klein, Ringo, George and John asking for the legal dissolution of The Beatles & Co. and it doesn’t explain how Yoko Ono became the most blamed and hated women in rock history. The ongoing feud between Yoko Ono and Paul McCartney is still alive and well in this decade. In 2003, Paul had Yoko up in arms over the changing of songwriting credits on many re-released songs that he and John had on giving himself top songwriting credits and even as recently as 2005 Yoko’s appearance and subsequent statements eluding that Paul had a less than stellar voice and that his songwriting ability wasn't on par with John's at the Q awards led to a bit of a spat between herself and Sir Paul.

A full 8 years before I was born and nearly 40 years ago and this makes me sad even today. Why? Why were millions of people devastated when the Beatles broke up? Why did the Beatles have such an enormous impact on the world? What would their music have evolved into as the decades progressed had they stayed together? It would take me ages to weigh in on those questions appropriately but today, 37 years after the Beatles "broke up" I choose to just focus on the music they made together that I and millions before me (and God willing millions after me) continue to adore. Here is a mix of 37 of my favorite Beatles tunes from my favorite albums…enjoy!

“And I Love Her” from A Hard Day’s Night

“I’ll Follow The Sun” from Beatles For Sale

“You’ve Got To Hide Your Love” from Help!

“You’re Going To Lose That Girl” from Help!

“In My Life” from Rubber Soul

“If I Needed Someone” from Rubber Soul

“Yesterday” from Yesterday…And Today

“Day Tripper” from Yesterday…And Today

“Eleanor Rigby” from Revolver

“Got To Get You Into My Life” from Revolver

“Tomorrow Never Knows” from Revolver

“With A Little Help From My Friends” from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

“When I’m Sixty-Four” from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

“A Day In The Life” from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

“Strawberry Fields Forever” from Magical Mystery Tour

“Penny Lane” from Magical Mystery Tour

“Back In The U.S.S.R.” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“While My Guitar Gently Weeps" from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“Happiness Is A Warm Gun” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“I’m So Tired” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“Blackbird” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“I Will” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“Cry Baby Cry” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“Don’t Pass Me By” from The Beatles also referred to as The White Album

“Come Together” from Abbey Road

“Something” from Abbey Road

“Here Comes The Sun” from Abbey Road

“Hey Jude” from Hey Jude

“Don’t Let Me Down” from Hey Jude

“Paperback Writer” from Hey Jude

“Revolution” from Hey Jude

“Lady Madonna” from Hey Jude

“Can’t Buy Me Love” from Hey Jude

“Let It Be” from Let It Be

“The Long And Winding Road” from Let It Be

“Get Back” from Let It Be

“There are two things I will carry in my pockets at the end, “

“…oh, my darling, you are one of them.”


I’ve had Oh, My Darling for longer than I care to admit after finally giving it a listen a few weeks ago and falling in love. I suppose in my pile of “TO LISTEN” discs I kept passing this one by because of her name. Basia Bulat. What kind of name is that? What type of music is someone like that going to be pumping out? God, I’m such a redneck sometimes. Even though it took me awhile, I am finally here to tell you about Basia’s music.

Garnering comparisons to Joni Mitchell, Natalie Merchant and Leslie Feist just to name a few, she actually doesn’t remind me a lot of any of those amazing ladies. Don’t get me wrong…I can understand why the comparisons were made but I just don’t consider them really accurate. I think of her as a hybrid. Cross Dido’s powerfully haunting voice and Tracy Chapman’s brilliant folk sensibility and you’ll have an idea of what to expect when you throw on Oh, My Darling when it drops across the pond on May 21^st. Spend the extra cash and buy the import. You won’t be sorry. It’s a lovely album through and through.

“I Was A Daughter” – Basia Bulat

“Before I Knew” – Basia Bulat

“Oh, My Darling” – Basia Bulat