Spotify Playlist available here
Funk #49 by the James Gang – Joe Walsh is a bit of a “lost” guitar hero. He doesn’t seem to have broken through the generational gap to get the same respect as Hendrix, Page, Clapton, Beck, Santana, et al. But he totally deserves it. Part of me wonders if this is due to his legacy being spread between James Gang, his solo work, and the Eagles with the latter overshadowing the former but I digress. Regardless, how can that intro riff and the groove(s) that follows not blow your mind or, at the very least, set your ears on fire?
Down Home by Brent Cobb – Like a lot of people recently, I’ve been keeping an ear to the ground for anything Dave Cobb is involved in. This track, with its laid-back thump, is from the Southern Family concept/compilation album and sounds to these ears like it could have been recorded on a front porch as the sun came up on a late spring Saturday morning. If this song and his recently announced signing to Low Country Sound are any indication of things to come then I can’t wait to hear Brent’s next album.
Dog On A Chain by Emitt Rhodes – I had never heard of Emitt Rhodes before Bob Lefsetz wrote a Lefsetz Letter about his album Rainbow Ends, a 43-years-in-the-making follow up to his last record. My curiosity got the better of me and I stumbled into a 70s singer-songwriter album outside of time, full of conversational introspection and jangly acoustic guitars. The rock embellishments never venture into “heavy” territory but they do give the songs more organic feel, drive and dynamics than most modern singer/songwriters (and their producers) have in their records. This song (and this record) uncovered a rabbit hole that I’m still falling down. We’ll have to meet at the bottom and compare notes.
Brace For Impact (Live A Little) by Sturgill Simpson – I am a music fan. I can find something I like in almost every genre I’ve come across. And I’m a huge Sturgill Simpson fan. So I don’t mind in the least when he incorporates sounds from classic rock and Memphis soul into his brand of country music. This song was the first “single” released from his highly anticipated third album, A Sailor’s Guide To Earth, and sent a lot of “fans” running towards the hills. Frankly, I was a little disappointed we didn’t get any massive, wobbly drops or a “(Produced by/Featuring Skrillex)” credit based on Stu’s professed love of EDM during the last album cycle. I’m still digesting the album as a whole (which seems to be the way it was meant to be heard). But I think this song, with its thick instrumental layers, prog-style Moog flourishes, and extended outro, did exactly what it was meant to do upon release and shook up expectations based on previous releases. I can certainly dig it.
Burning House by Cam – At some point last year, country music radio programmers decided to use their inside voice for a change. Lyrically, this song takes a winding path and I’m not sure it ever quite gets where it’s going. But the subdued interplay of acoustic guitar and strings plus the delicate vocal delivery hit all of the right points with me to be potent. The vast majority of the songs in popular music talk about the heart but, listening to this song, I feel a sweet, slow burning ache in mine for 4 minutes.
Rain Plans by Israel Nash – We live in a magical time. If your favorite artist of yesteryear is either no longer active or has maybe taken a hard left turn from the music you loved, someone else loved it even more than you did and decided to copy everything about it. Israel Nash isn’t the Neil Young we deserve but he’s the Neil Young we get right now. That might sound like a dig but he’s actually really, really good at it. I bought both of his Rain Plans and Silver Season albums immediately after watching a few live sessions on YouTube. Perfect rainy day music.
This Beggar’s Heart by Darrell Scott – Darrell Scott is one of my absolute favorite artists and songwriters (you would probably recognize other people’s versions of his songs such as “Great Day To Be Alive” by Travis Tritt or the Dixie Chicks’ “Long Time Gone”). Personally, I prefer his versions, hands down. An acapella version of this song hides on the back side of 2010’s massive A Crooked Road, a double album featuring Scott on almost every instrument. (Fun fact: he was also a multi-instrumentalist in Robert Plant’s Band of Joy.) I personally prefer the reworked version featured here but it is almost impossible to go wrong with Darrell Scott no matter where you choose to start. His freshly released Couchville Sessions is also great.
Save It For Later by Pete Townshend – Full disclosure: the version of this song that would be on this playlist if available on Spotify can be heard here:https://youtu.be/NSWdug1HiCg I first heard this song on the Netflix series Love. To my ears, this is how acoustic guitars should sound when recorded. The lyrics are half mumbled but the sonic quality and sparse arrangement (with little instrumental flairs added at just the right times) more than make up for it. And again… that guitar sounds amazing! (Honorable mention: the original version of this song is in one of my favorite movies of all time, Kingpin. See if you can catch it in the movie.)
She Burns by Foy Vance – I loved a few of the songs on Foy Vance’s debut album Hope enough that each of his subsequent albums has been a must buy for me. I haven’t heard this album in its entirety yet but it seems like Foy decided to try the acoustic folk artist goes 80s pop route a la Joy Williams of the Civil Wars. Based on past work, I was not expecting the electronic elements here but I think they work. I can definitely appreciate an artist challenging themselves to step outside their comfort zone. A quick disclaimer: His overall catalog as it has developed is hit or miss for me but the hits are definitely solid.
30 Hours by Kanye West (EXPLICIT) – The Life of Pablo is the Mr. Potatohead of hip hop albums. Kanye’s first six albums were classics and each was a masterwork unto itself with distinct qualities from the others. The Life of Pablo ultimately falls short of this because its constantly evolving, work-in-progress nature prevents it from being a definitive artistic statement. There are some songs that I like a lot… but there are so many songs on the album as a whole that the quality of those cuts gets diluted. That said, the G.O.O.D. Friday version of this song, with its more polished feel is the perfect soundtrack to a late night cruise when the only goal is to burn a quarter tank of gas.
I’m Sorry (feat. Shiloh) by Swell (EXPLICIT) – This song was a random Soundcloud suggestion. I love the groove and the intentionally opacity of the mix… But most of all I love the bass and the groove.
Please Be With Me by Cowboy – This songs takes our playlist back to the front porch on a quiet Southern Sunday. A lesser known classic in the Capricorn Records catalog, there are a lot of rumors and misinformation about who may or may not be playing on this song. The tender vibe and choice harmonies are so good that I don’t really care. Even if it’s not Skydog playing the slide on this song it fits perfectly. It takes me back to the first few years I was exploring music on my own and absorbing everything I could. Elegance in simplicity are sorely lacking in the world today but we can still take 3 or 4 minutes to unwind thanks to songs like this.
That’s all I’ve got for now. Keep your hands to yourself and your eyes turned to Heaven.
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