A Thought for Penny

On the loss of a good friend, at Out of My Mind.

A Splendid Idea

LeslieCo -- finding solutions to non-existent problems, exclusively at Out of My Mind.

I Feel It All

Feist, from The Reminder

It has occurred to me that this blog is purportedly about music. Perhaps I should post something related to that for a change.

A friend of mine, Robin, has recently undergone a procedure that she has long desired, and has the potential to be life-changing. And, no, it's not what you are thinking. So, for Robin, I present a live version of a great Leslie Feist song, recorded on a bus driving around L.A. for The Jimmy Kimmel Show. Why this song? Because Robin is a huge Feist fan, and she soon will be feeling it all.

Ashtray Heart

By Captain Beefheart, from Doc at the Radar Station

Don Van Vliet, aka Captain Beefheart, died of MS last weekend. I learned of it from a fellow traveler here in Blogistan, otherwise I'd be clueless.

I found Beefheart late in his music career. I was sixteen in 1980, listening to some fairly edgy stuff, like Robert Fripp, The Residents, Devo's first records, Zappa. I read a rave review, and picked up the new Beefheart (a good review was all it took back then, with disposable cash spilling out my pockets). One more record followed in 1982, then he gave up music to concentrate on his painting.

Doc at the Radar Station was a brutal thumping, with heavy rhythms, fractured blues guitars, the Captain alternately growling and screaming his poetry, occasional stretches of atonal saxophone. It was love at first listen. Not quite the sound of anarchy, maybe of a society near collapse.

I almost went with a performance clip here, but decided that the uninitiated might get a better taste with lyrics deciphered. Rock on, Captain.

"Somebody's had too much to think"

Rhode Island Is Famous For You

Erin McKeown, from Sing You Sinners

Yep, another quirky female singer-songwriter. I'm just in a mood.

This video is actually two songs, a cover of a song Blossom Dearie made famous in olden times, and a McKeown original called "Melody".

Pencils come from Pencilvania,
Vests from Vest Virginia,
Tents from Tenntessee

Verdi Cries

By 10,000 Maniacs, from In My Tribe

One of my favorite bands in the '80s. Unusually literate, with Natalie Merchant having her first go at fame. I adored her, but my wife disliked her voice, and what she described as the sameness of her songs and limited vocal range.

Still, we managed to see them twice. The first was on the Kentucky campus, opening for REM on their Fables of the Reconstruction tour (1985). The Maniacs were new to me, but I liked their set better than REM's (not a big fan of Fables). Natalie was such a free spirit, spinning on stage in a gauzy skirt and mary janes. We saw them again 2 or 3 years later at Bogart's in Cincinnati. They had graduated to the main act, supporting their incredible In My Tribe. Opening for them was an unknown Tracy Chapman, with only a guitar, just prior to her debut's release.

"Verdi Cries" is the last song on In My Tribe, ending with a gorgeous string coda. The cello has made me cry on more than one occasion.

A Horse in the Country

Cowboy Junkies, from Black Eyed Man

Cowboy Junkies debuted in 1986 with The Trinity Sessions, recorded in an abandoned church. Critics loved it. Luckily, I didn't start with that one, as I wouldn't have gone back to the well. The disc has a dynamic range running from soft and slow to softer and slower. Despite the beauty of the performance and arrangements, I always have difficulty staying awake through the whole record.

Black Eyed Man, from 1992, still has the sleepy vocals of the gorgeous Margo Timmins, but the band isn't afraid to dig in. These are deep songs with complex narratives and emotions, and repeated listens are rewarding. "A Horse in the Country" became a favorite because I can play it on the guitar, and the song is within my vocal range.

These Canadians are still at it, getting strong reviews for the new Renmin Park.

But lately it just seems to me
That this life has lost its mystery

Landed

Ben Folds, from Songs for Silverman

Though he started with a reputation for silliness, Ben Folds has become an accomplished writer and performer. His first big hit was "Brick", a story of taking his girlfriend to the clinic on Christmas for an abortion. Yeah, heavy, but a strong emotional grounding, and an engaging subtlety.

Songs for Silverman is a beautifully produced record, and choosing a song to share was difficult. "Jesusland" almost won out, but "Landed" hits me harder. Between the melodic piano and the lush strings and the high tenor, this sounds like vintage Elton John. If Gus Dudgeon wasn't dead, I'd swear he had produced it. The longing and regret of the lyrics always grabs me where I live. The bridge always makes me well up.

If you wrote me off, I'd understand it,
'Cause I've been on some other planet,
So come pick me up, I've landed.

Happy Birthday, John

Always my favorite Beatle. They were all very witty, but there was a darker edge to John, and that spoke to me.

I remember a Tuesday morning in December, 1980. I woke and sat down to breakfast. My father said, "One of your heroes died last night." He didn't say it with any malice, but not with any sadness either. He is fairly liberal, but I think he regarded Lennon as a radical. Not really a Beatles fan.

I didn't fully comprehend the news till I got to school. It was all that anyone was talking about, although, being 16, I can't imagine many of us really had much first hand knowledge of the Beatles. Still, it was a somber day. When I got home, the news was showing the huge crowds crying and singing outside the Dakota. The magnitude of the loss began to come into focus.

The two deaths that have affected me most in the world of music were John Lennon and Kurt Cobain. Cobain died on my 30th birthday. I don't know that I have ever cried about either death, but both left me feeling empty, like I'd lost a piece of myself. I don't know if that void ever gets filled again.

I think John's best solo work was his first, Plastic Ono Band. He was going through primal scream therapy at the time, and the wounds of his life were laid bare. These are songs that I have cried over, "God," and "Mother," and here, "Working Class Hero."

Hold On

Tom Waits, from Mule Variations

Yes, I know, I will soon fill this blog with songs called "Hold On". I might even make it a running gag. But I will have to like the song, and I really like this one. I was inspired to share this one by my new friend, Penny. We share a lot of common ground musically, with Tom Waits at the top of the list. If you haven't visited her yet, get on it!

Mule Variations was released in the early Aughts. Waits' music falls into several categories, and this record includes most of them: fractured gospel, corrosive stomps, creepy spoken word, and hypersentimental balladry. "Hold On" falls into the last group. The people in his songs come from the underside of society, rife with flaws, but struggling to find love. Their hearts are usually in the right place.

Well, go ahead and call the cops,
You don't meet nice girls in coffee shops.