Five Songs, Chapter Fourteen
"To Love Somebody" by The Bee Gees
A friend and I spent a few solid minutes at dinner the other night discussing the greatness of the Bee Gees. I suppose that's enough said about that.
"Lilac Wine" by Jeff Buckley
Buckley's biggest fans seem to have that crass increase in rock fervor that accompanies someone's early death, and I've always thought his stuff is wildly hit-or-miss. His take on Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" is unimprovable and a total classic, and I love "Last Goodbye," especially in the moment when he sings "Did you say 'no, this can't happen to me.' " This song has a similarly great moment throughout, whenever he draws out "I feel unsteady." Hit or miss, yeah, but that voice was something.
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" by Joe Cocker
Because I remain fairly uneducated about classic rock, the first time I heard this song was in the final scene of Layer Cake, a pretty good movie. Growing up, I mostly knew the Joe Cocker of "love lifts us up where we belong," etc., and this is, mercifully and thrillingly, a different Joe Cocker.
"Whiskey Bottle" by Uncle Tupelo
A long way from happiness
In a three-hour-away town
Whiskey bottle over Jesus
Not forever, just for now
"Citrus" by The Hold Steady
Hey citrus, hey liquor, I love it when you touch each other
Hey whiskey, hey ginger, I come to you with rigid fingers
I see Judas in the hard eyes of the boys who worked in the corners
I feel Jesus in the clumsiness of young and awkward lovers
A friend and I spent a few solid minutes at dinner the other night discussing the greatness of the Bee Gees. I suppose that's enough said about that.
"Lilac Wine" by Jeff Buckley
Buckley's biggest fans seem to have that crass increase in rock fervor that accompanies someone's early death, and I've always thought his stuff is wildly hit-or-miss. His take on Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" is unimprovable and a total classic, and I love "Last Goodbye," especially in the moment when he sings "Did you say 'no, this can't happen to me.' " This song has a similarly great moment throughout, whenever he draws out "I feel unsteady." Hit or miss, yeah, but that voice was something.
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" by Joe Cocker
Because I remain fairly uneducated about classic rock, the first time I heard this song was in the final scene of Layer Cake, a pretty good movie. Growing up, I mostly knew the Joe Cocker of "love lifts us up where we belong," etc., and this is, mercifully and thrillingly, a different Joe Cocker.
"Whiskey Bottle" by Uncle Tupelo
A long way from happiness
In a three-hour-away town
Whiskey bottle over Jesus
Not forever, just for now
"Citrus" by The Hold Steady
Hey citrus, hey liquor, I love it when you touch each other
Hey whiskey, hey ginger, I come to you with rigid fingers
I see Judas in the hard eyes of the boys who worked in the corners
I feel Jesus in the clumsiness of young and awkward lovers
Labels: Five Songs
posted by JMW at 5:40 PM
1 Comments:
Based largely on your recommendation I finally got around to listening to the new Hold Steady album and I like it quite a bit. This is my first experience with the band, so I was taken aback at first by how much they sound like Bruce Springsteen (do they always or is it just this album?), but I like The Boss so it works for me.
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