Sept. 29, 2020
The Queen is Dead, Re-imagined
I happened upon a couple-of-years-old notepad recently and was leafing through the pages, when I found a kind of creative thought experiment I'd forgotten about. A friend had put forth the challenge to create a tribute album to a favorite LP and choose the artist/song combinations for the re-imagined version – a kind of musical fanfic, one might call it.
As it is "the best" record by my favorite band, and in general one of my favorite albums ever, I naturally chose The Smiths' The Queen is Dead. While it's true that some of my choices might differ were I to re-think this now almost three years later, I remain enamored with the original results. Just imagine...
A1 - "The Queen is Dead" - Savages
A2 - "Frankly, Mr. Shankly" - Gorky's Zygotic Mynci
A3 - "I Know It's Over" - Parenthetical Girls
A4 - "Never Had No One Ever" - Tracey Thorn & John Grant
A5 - "Cemetry Gates" - Phoebe Bridgers
B1 - "Bigmouth Strikes Again" - Ezra Furman
B2 - "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side" - Marlon Williams
B3 - "Vicar in a Tutu" - Richard Hawley
B4 - "There is a Light That Never Goes Out" - Future Islands
B5 - "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" - The Minders
Please, somebody make this happen! xo
Sept. 27, 2020
Last Week in Coffee
Catch A Cover with Your Coffee on the air every morning around 7:40MT. Here's what we heard this past week.
Monday (9/21): Concrete Blonde playing Leonard Cohen's "Everybody Knows"
Tuesday (9/22): Marika Hackman playing Grimes' "Reality"
Wednesday (9/23): Low playing Bruce Springsteen's "I'm on Fire"
Thursday (9/24): Draag playing Pinback's "Loro"
Friday (9/25): Bedouine, Waxahatchee, and Hurray for the Riff Raff playing Big Star's "Thirteen"
Sept. 22, 2020
Fleet Foxes' Autumn Surprise
Ah, how refreshing – a crispness in the air... and a new Fleet Foxes record with less than 24 hours of pre-hype out today and released on a Tuesday, no less (#bringbacknewreleasetuesday). What fresh heaven is this?
Shore is the title of the fourth record and first in three years from the band led by Robin Pecknold, and it's out in its entirety today with an accompanying short film to go along with it. I believe I'm gonna jump into this one like it's a pile of leaves.
Sept. 20, 2020
Last Week in Coffee
Monday (9/14): Boy & Bear playing Amy Winehouse's "Back to Black"
Tuesday (9/15): Ty Segall playing Harry Nilsson's "Gotta Get Up"
Wednesday (9/16): Angelique Kidjo playing Talking Heads' "Once in a Lifetime"
Thursday (9/17): Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings playing Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)"
Friday (9/18): Making Movies playing Tears for Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"
Sept. 12, 2020
Last Week in Coffee
Catch A Cover with Your Coffee on the air every morning around 7:40MT. Here's what we heard this past week.
Monday (9/7): DEVO playing Allen Toussaint's "Working in the Coalmine"
Tuesday (9/8): Futurebirds playing 'Til Tuesday's "Voices Carry"
Wednesday (9/9): Perfume Genius playing Mazzy Star's "Fade Into You"
Thursday (9/10): Seu Jorge & Almaz playing Roy Ayers' "Everybody Loves the Sunshine"
Friday (9/11): Hot Chip playing the Velvet Underground's "Candy Says"
RIP, Toots Hibbert
Frederick "Toots" Hibbert, legendary frontman of reggae pioneers Toots & the Maytals, passed away Sept. 11 due to complications from COVID-19.
Original songs like "Pressure Drop" and "Funky Kingston" are essentials, to be sure, but the band also built a name with their interpretations of songs by others. Have you ever heard their versions of Ann Peebles' "I Can't Stand the Rain" or Otis Redding's "Hard to Handle"?
Sept. 4, 2020
Some Deep Cuts...
...as found in this week's Inside Track newsletter (yours truly, editor). Delivered to your inbox every Thursday, subscribe here.
- R.E.M., My Morning Jacket, Soccer Mommy, Jamila Woods, The Decemberists, Jay Som, Devendra Banhart, and many more are among those included on the benefit compilation Good Music to Avert the Collapse of American Democracy, available for just 24 hours TODAY.
- Wilco announced a gigantic reissue of their still under-appreciated third album Summerteeth, out Nov. 6. Of note, the CD version includes a 26-song set recorded 11/1/99 at the Boulder Theater. Maybe you were there?
- Hot Chip plays DJ on the latest release in the long-running Late Night Tales series, out Oct. 2. Hear their new take on the Velvet Underground's "Candy Says."
- Paste points to a new documentary about Disneyland's short-lived early '80s sci-fi band Halyx, described as "part Star Wars, part KISS, and entirely amazing."
- The National's Matt Berninger is gearing up for the release of his solo debut next month by giving away "a handmade mix CD, made with love, by Matt Berninger."
- Oooh, interesting! A new book asks musicians about the song they want to die to. Jim James, Angel Olsen, Stephen Malkmus, Andre 3000, Phoebe Bridgers, Wanda Jackson, and lots more are included.
Last Week in Coffee
Catch A Cover with Your Coffee on the air every morning around 7:40MT. Here's what we heard this week.
Monday (8/31): Fruit Bats playing Smashing Pumpkins' "Today"
Tuesday (9/1): The Bangles playing Big Star's "September Gurls"
Wednesday (9/2): Nation of Language playing Pixies' "Gouge Away"
Thursday (9/3): Black Pumas playing Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car"
Friday (9/4): Yo La Tengo playing The Byrds' "Wasn't Born to Follow"
Sept. 1, 2020
Hello, September!
#INeverGoFarWithoutALittleBigStar
