the national

Playlist #272

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Happy Monday! I’m currently at the beach, and genius that I am I left my laptop at home. So, this is all being done on my phone. Please forgive any glaring spelling or punctuation errors in this week’s playlist.

  1. Toby Keith and Willie Nelson, “Beer for my Horses”: It’s a tale as old as time: we’re gonna be out there fighting the good fight, so my men need whiskey and my horses apparently need beer.
  2. The Ides of March, “Vehicle”: A nice little slice of soul that I learned of courtesy of a band my dad’s cousin plays in. It’s a damn fine song.
  3. The SteelDrivers, “Heaven Sent”: Another song learned of courtesy of Cousin David. Apparently written (at least in part) by Chris Stapleton? You learn something new every day.
  4. The National, “Lucky You”: A beautiful and melancholy song that just reminds me that life is short and you should tell folks you love them. I’m not sure that’s even subtext to the song, more just what it makes me feel.
  5. Blues Traveler, “Hook”: I’m someday going to put together a playlist of songs about writing songs, and this one will go on there.
  6. The Georgia Satellites, “Keep Your Hands to Yourself”: Yeah, the old saying goes why buy the cow when you get the milk for free, but these guys really belabor the point. This song is the classic rock equivalent to Beyoncé’s “All the Single Ladies.”
  7. The English Beat, “Save it for Later”: I’m not generally a fan of the 80s or their bands, but these guys are pretty damn good. Production values feel very much of their time, but the song itself is timeless.
  8. The Breeders, “Cannonball”: A stone-cold 90s classic. If you don’t like that bass line, check to make sure you still have a pulse.
  9. The Both, “Milwaukee”: There are few things in the world that cannot be made better with the combination of Ted Leo and Aimee Mann.
  10. Johnny Rivers, “Seventh Son”: Still absolutely adore the live version of this song. It just kicks a tremendous amount of ass and doesn’t let up for a second.

Playlist #271

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Happy Monday, folks! It’s beach week – we’re heading down to Crystal Beach, TX, to meet up with my family and hang out in a beach house for a few days. But that’s not until Thursday. Monday through Wednesday is still teaching small children how to create and edit videos, and right now it’s time for a playlist!

  1. Bryan Andrews, “Backwoods Backwards”: I kept seeing this song in particular pop up in reels on Facebook for the better part of a week, and damn if it’s not a banger. Dude’s trying to reclaim outlaw country from…well, whatever the hell country music as turned in to. Bootlicking, mostly.
  2. Phoebe Bridgers, “Motion Sickness”: “Emotional motion sickness” is such a good turn of phrase that it almost makes me sick that I wasn’t the one who wrote it.
  3. Matchbox 20, “Mad Season”: There’s just something about these ’90s alt-rockers that I keep coming back to time and again.
  4. Josh Ritter, “Getting Ready To Get Down”: When you discover that you’re probably a lesbian and your parents decide to send you to a Bible college
  5. The Mountain Goats, “Training Montage”: I honestly wish this was the song that played during the training montage in Rocky IV rather than whatever Survivor song they played instead.
  6. The National, “Wake Up Your Saints”: I always love the horn section in this song. I should use more horn sections in my own music.
  7. Dan Auerbach, “Trouble Weighs A Ton”: A part of me will alwayw love songs that are just a vocal and an acoustic guitar.
  8. Sting, “Fragile”: The emotion in this song always gets to me. It’s so sad and forlorn and somber and I really just want to sit and cry when I listen to it.
  9. Golden Smog, “V”: This song, on the other hand, is so uptempo that it’s hard not to sing along when it comes on. God bless Golden Smog.
  10. Van Morrison, “Wonderful Remark”: I learned this one on the guitar a few years ago. Easy song to play, and really great to sing.

Playlist #270

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Happy Monday, folks! It’s the Fourth of July this weekend! I started the summer job late last week, and man is it strange. I’ve never even seen Roblox, let alone played it, but I still had to walk a bunch of small kids through how to create various games using the platform. It was…interesting. Not something I’m going to take up in my spare time, mind, but interesting. Here’s a playlist.

  1. Whitney Houston, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)”: I’m not usually one for ’80s R&B, but this song hits something deep and primal in my brain and doesn’t let go. It’s great.
  2. Bryan Andrews, “Yeehaw”: Remember when country music was anti-establishment and outlaw? Bryan Andrews remembers. He’s carrying on the tradition of guys like Merle Haggard, Kris Kristofferson, and Willie Nelson. He’s Johnny Cash flipping off the camera.
  3. Nanseera, “Seattle”: She’s from Uganda, but she spent a long time traveling across the United States and wrote a whole album about it. It’s pretty great.
  4. The National, “Sorrow”: Remember when they performed this song for a full six hours straight? Man, that was awesome. I could listen to it for six hours straight no problem.
  5. Paul McCartney, “Hope of Deliverance”: I feel like there’s at least one great song on every McCartney album, and this song is absolutely fantastic.
  6. Feist & Ben Gibbard, “Train Song”: A downbeat, somber song ostensibly about trains? Y’know, sometimes I don’t pay close attention to the lyrics or what a song’s theme actually is, but I still really dig the song. This is one of those instances.
  7. Rufus Wainwright, “Going To A Town”: I love this song. The rhythm of it, the piano, the way Rufus sings it…it’s just a perfect song, are there are too few of those in the world.
  8. Procol Harum, “A Whiter Shade Of Pale”: Speaking of perfect songs, I think this might be one, too. That organ just gets me every time.
  9. The Dave Clark Five, “Bits And Pieces”: How many other bands are named after the drummer? I mean, other than whatever Ringo does these days.
  10. Calexico, “Sunken Waltz”: I love the guitar riff at the beginning of this song. The whole song is great, really.

Playlist #266

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Happy Monday, folks! I’m glad we’ve finally seen the back of May; that month had it out for me, I swear. But now it’s June, and the end of the school year beckons. Here’s a playlist to start your week.

  1. Paul McCartney, “Lost Horizon”: McCartney released a new album last week. It’s pretty good. It’s a McCartney album, which I feel like is a known quantity at this point in his career. His voice is still in fine form, even if there’s the occasional warble to it, and the man still crafts beautiful melodies like most people craft bowel movements.
  2. SUSS, “Sunset IV”: These guys do “cosmic Americana,” which is ambient music with pedal steel. This particular collection, Counting Sunsets, gets the closest they’ve actually been to composing what I’d think of as songs, but it’s all very pleasant music to listen to while you do your laundry on a rainy Sunday.
  3. nep, “A Big Brown Dog Named Bagel”: a musician I discovered via Facebook last week. Her first album, which this song is from, is mostly acoustic singer-songwriter fare, while her more recent album (last year’s Noelle) incorporates more modern styles and sounds. Both are pretty good, though, and this particular song is great.
  4. Billy Bragg & Wilco, “California Stars”: Could Mermaid Avenue be done nowadays? Could you get an anti-folk folkie like Billy Bragg and alt-country darlings like Wilco together, throw a bunch of Woody Guthrie lyrics at them, and get a masterpiece like this? I’m not sure you could, but I’m glad we did.
  5. Grateful Dead, “Touch of Grey”: It’s very difficult to ever actually say exactly what a Grateful Dead song is about (other than psychedelic drugs and overlong guitar solos), but I’m pretty sure this one is about trying to age gracefully, even when you fall on your ass or you, like, drop trou in front of your fiancée’s parents. I could be wrong, though, and this one could just still be about drugs.
  6. Mike Doughty, “Grey Ghost”: I just love the rhythm and feel of this song. It’s great.
  7. Drive-By Truckers, “Everybody Needs Love”: Is this contemporary southern rock’s answer to the Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love”? Maybe. Is it a great song? Definitely.
  8. The National, “Bitters & Absolut”: Who doesn’t love a song about being an alcoholic?
  9. Bahamas, “Lost in the Light”: A lazy, laconic guitar riff helps this song lope along to those beautiful harmonies in the chorus.
  10. Camera Obscura, “If Looks Could Kill”: I love how bouncy and jangly the guitar part is in this song, and the vocals are just perfect. No notes.

Playlist #265

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Happy Tuesday, folks. I’ve got the first three days of this week off for various holidays and teacher work days, so I’ve spent the time relaxing and not thinking about what I have to do when I get back to work on Thursday. Here’s a playlist.

  1. The Gray Charlies, “Burnt Offering”: My brother released his full EP last Friday, and I think you should listen to the whole thing, but especially this song. And not just because this is the one that I wrote the words and music for. No, because the way the singer digs into it just hits right, and the strings are absolutely gorgeous.
  2. Rostam, “Like a Spark”: This is just Van Morrison’s “Astral Weeks,” right? Like, I’m not complaining, but this is just “Astral Weeks” with different words.
  3. The Pauls Band, “Penguin Parade”: A buddy of mine from work released a second single last week, and it’s pretty darn good.
  4. Shakey Graves, “Time Flies”: A lo-fi slab of acoustic-based alternative folk, which is a string of words that either immediately made you make a vomit emoji face or light up like a Christmas tree.
  5. The National, “The System Only Dreams In Total Darkness”: Aside from being the only National song I can think of with an actual guitar solo in it, the title is unnecessarily long and I kinda love it for that.
  6. Antony with Bryce Dessner, “I Was Young When I Left Home”: A Dylan cover? On one of my playlists? It’s more likely than you’d think!
  7. Hurray for the Riff Raff, “Pa’lante”: Apparently a word in Spanish that means “foward” or “keep going.” A nice little reminder that as hard as things get, as ridiculous as the world around us seems, we have to keep trying not to fuck it up too much and just move forward each time we do.
  8. Van Morrison, “Madame George”: Is it a song about a drag queen? Or about his own mother? Even Van doesn’t know. But it’s beautiful.
  9. Tom Petty. “The Apartment Song (Demo)”: I always preferred the demo version of this song, since the lyrics are a little different in the second chorus (instead of just repeating the chorus, he adds in some new words in the second run through and it just really fits and I’m sad it didn’t make it into the final version). Plus, I’m pretty sure that’s Stevie Nicks singing backing vocals on it.
  10. Daniel and the Lion, “No Ghost”: This slice of pop perfection is all Clyde’s fault. He’s the only reason I even know who this band is.

Playlist #247

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Happy Monday, folks! It’s Martin Luther King, Jr., Day today, so I’ve been sitting at home becoming increasingly concerned that the world Dr. King imagined will never come to pass. Yeah, I’m a cheerful sort today. Let’s get to the playlist.

  1. Rose Betts, “Doodles”: I learned of this Irish singer/songwriter through Facebook, of all places. There’s a certain type of singer/songwriter and a certain type of song that they write that tickles all the right spots in my brain; this is that songwriter, this is that song.
  2. Florence + the Machine, “Ship To Wreck”: The rhythm section for this song is just absolutely amazing. It slaps. Hard.
  3. Yarn, “Don’t Break My Heart Again”: String band doing string band things. Good times.
  4. Calexico, “Sunken Waltz”: Was talking with my brother about this song the other day, and he pointed out how difficult it is sometimes to understand what, exactly, a given Calexico song is really about. I mean, is this song about a carpenter who throws money randomly over his shoulder or what? Damned if I know. I just know it’s a good song.
  5. The Family Crest, “Beneath The Brine”: Speaking of songs I have no idea what they’re actually about…
  6. Birdy, “Wings”: I love this song and it especially amuses me that a musician who goes by “Birdy” named a song “Wings.”
  7. The National, “Ashamed Of The Story I Told”: One of the best covers I’ve ever heard by a band that just…got it.
  8. Phosphorescent, “Storms”: A nice little Fleetwood Mac cover. One of Stevie Nicks’s best compositions.
  9. David Gray, “Dead In The Water”: This was the song that inspired my novel The Armageddon Seed. Or at least the title, which was based on a misremembered lyric from this song (I remembered “The Armageddon seed” instead of “that Armageddon sky.” Easy mistake).
  10. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, “About To Give Out”: I just love when Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers cut loose and just have fun with a song.

Playlist #241

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Happy Monday, folks! I’ve returned from sunny, warm Florida to a much chillier Northern Virginia. But it was a good trip! We relaxed and had a lot of fun, I got to see a friend from college whom I had not seen in over 20 years, and I slept quite a bit. And the Wife’s presentation went over well! Here’s some songs.

  1. MGMT, “Kids”: Yeah, it’s the only song I or probably any of you have ever heard from this band, but it’s a pretty good song. The Wife likes it, at any rate.
  2. Madison Cunningham, “Hospital”: So the album this song is off of won a Grammy for Best Folk Album? But this is very much not folk? Am I missing something? I think I must be missing something.
  3. Eve, “Let Me Blow Ya Mind”: One of our Uber drivers in Florida was bumpin’ a throwback R&B radio station, and this was one of the songs that came up.
  4. George Harrison, “You”: In case your morning needed a little…extra texture (see, this is funny, since the name of the album this song came off of was Extra Texture) (explaining the joke always makes it funnier) (over-explaining the joke makes it even funnier).
  5. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, “Insider”: This song just about made me cry yesterday afternoon. Admittedly, I’d had a weird dream featuring my grandmother and hadn’t taken my medication yet, but the fact holds.
  6. The Gorillaz, “Clint Eastwood”: A plinky little Casio cover of this song played over the plane speakers as we were boarding our flight home. The Wife and I looked at each other and immediately felt a million years old. The songs of our youth have become muzak.
  7. The National, “Rylan”: I still just absolutely love the drums for this song. As with most songs by the National, the drums are definitely the best part.
  8. Counting Crows, “Hard Candy”: The twelve-string jangle of this song heals something in my soul every time I hear it.
  9. Jet, “Are You Gonna Be My Girl”: Stomping, rollicking fun with a sleazy guitar riff. Good way to kick off your week.
  10. Traveling Wilburys, “Heading for the Light”: The second Traveling Wilburys song I learned to play (the first was “Handle With Care,” naturally) and a whole lot of fun. I should play that one again.

Playlist #230

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Happy Monday, folks. I’ve been a bit down the past few days, which may or may not have affected my choice in music. Let’s take a look at the playlist and see.

  1. Glen Campbell, “Wichita Lineman”: Heard this song last night and it made me cry.
  2. Counting Crows, “Holiday in Spain”: The saddest song about being on holiday in Spain I’ve ever heard. I would assume being on holiday in Spain is a joyous occasion, not one so somber.
  3. Genesis, “No Reply At All”: One of the most upbeat songs about getting ghosted I’ve ever heard.
  4. case/lang/veirs, “Atomic Number”: How can a song ostensibly about the periodic table feel so sad? There’s just so much longing and loss in this song that I can’t help but love it.
  5. The National, “Afraid Of Everyone”: “You’re an oasis, darling, in my soul soul soul soul” on repeat in my brain for the rest of the day.
  6. Van Morrison, “Not Supposed To Break Down”: A Van cast off that’s better than most bands’ best song.
  7. Spoon, “Everything Hits At Once”: It sure does, It sure does.
  8. Hem, “The Part Where You Let Go”: I love this band. They’re one of my go-tos when I’m feeling down. Very cinematic and widescreen in the best possible ways.
  9. Wilco, “Handshake Drugs”: Four-chord songs are fun to play sometimes. I love playing this one.
  10. The Rolling Stones, “19th Nervous Breakdown”: I dunno if it’s the nineteenth one or not, but I do feel like I narrowly avoided a breakdown last night. Why’s the world so overwhelming right now?

Playlist #229

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Happy Monday, folks! Here’s this week’s playlist:

  1. Genesis, “Just a Job to Do”: The number of songs Phil Collins has written over the years about being a criminal just trying to do a (rather sinister) job is not a huge number, but it’s not a non-zero number, either. Was he secretly a hitman in the 1970s? Only he knows for sure.
  2. Margaret Glaspy, “These Days”: A lovely cover of the old Jackson Browne tune. It’s very sparse and slow, and I kinda dig it.
  3. Bruce Springsteen, “Born in the USA (Electric Nebraska)”: If Bruce had pursued this sound on Born in the USA rather than the athematic, keyboard-heavy style he used, maybe there’d have been fewer misunderstandings about what the song is actually about.
  4. The Cars, “Since You’re Gone”: Oh, 80s drum programming, never change.
  5. Andrew Bird, “Fake Palindromes”: This suprisingly uptempo song is so good, and apparently twenty years old now! Wow.
  6. Earth, Wind & Fire, “September”: No, it’s not the 21st of September, but Monday is the 22nd, so that’s too late. Therefore, have some EWF.
  7. The Shins, “Australia”: Is this song actually about the continent/island/country Australia? If so, what is it trying to tell us about it? I have no idea, but it’s a good song that I haven’t listened to in far too long.
  8. Veruca Salt, “Volcano Girls”: A 90s rock girl explosion of sound and energy, rather like a volcano.
  9. The National, “Terrible Love (Alternate Version)”: Still one of the best songs these guys have ever done, and the best version of the song.
  10. The Mystiqueros, “Good”: Back when I played with the group of musicians up in DC, this was one of the songs they played all the time. It’s a great song if you’ve got a group that can harmonize well.

Playlist #215

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Happy Monday! We’ve finally made it: the last week of school. And not even really a whole week. Just three days with the students and two teacher work days, and it’s all over and done until August, when we start this whole bag of nonsense all over again. Here’s a playlist to count down the hours:

  1. REM, “Everybody Hurts”: I should probably be joyous at the end of the school year, but I mostly find myself exhausted. And thinking about this song a lot. Sometimes all we see are the things and the people we’ve lost. All we see is the loss. But there’s far more to life than that. Remember the good, forget the bad, and always choose love.
  2. Van Morrison, “Only A Dream”: I still tend to think of 2002’s Down the Road as a recent or even new Van Morrison album, even though it’s old enough to drink. But the military march of this song and that beautiful sax solo get me every time.
  3. Stereo MCs, “Connected”: Connection is important. If you stumble, you might fall.
  4. Townes Van Zandt, “If I Needed You”: I’d only ever heard the Andrew Bird cover of this one. Townes’ version is a little rougher, a little simpler, but just as heartfelt.
  5. Counting Crows, “Up All Night (Frankie Miller Goes To Hollywood)”: Wait, am I just going through a depressive episode here? I think I might be. Also, I’ve struggled the past few weeks with getting to bed and sleeping at a reasonable hour. Summer tends to screw up the sleep schedule even further. This could be a problem.
  6. David Gray, “Please Forgive Me”: Okay, we’re just leaning into this now.
  7. Rilo Kiley, “A Better Son/Daughter”: “Sometimes when you’re on/You’re really fuckin’ on” is one of the best lines in music.
  8. Jackson Browne, “Fountain Of Sorrow”: It’s a good story song. I like a good story song.
  9. Jay Farrar, “Feel Free”: I like Jay Farrar’s songwriting, I really do. He’s made some great songs, some great albums, both with Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt and all by his lonesome. What are those songs about? Damned if I know. He’s great, but his writing is rather…elliptical, let’s call it.
  10. The National, “Lemonworld”: If we’re going to put together what is, essentially, a playlist of sad bastard songs, we can’t leave the National off the list. I also like the fact that the little guitar sting – that two chord strum they do in this song – gets used as interstitial music on NPR all the time.