Introducing the themed mixtape, more music, word free. This week concerns those means of transportation. The mixtape after the jump.
Continue reading A Mixtape Monday Presentation: Cars and Trains, Boats and Planes
Tag: Beck
A (Belated) Mixtape Monday: More Nutrients Than A Can of Soup
Sorry Ladies and Gents, I’ve been in a music blog funk as of late but i’ve got some great tunes lined up for you so sit back, relax, and enjoy. This week features some great lost versions of Beatle songs, some great live performances from the likes of The Allman Brothers Band, and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, as well as the lost soul of O.V. Wright, the smooth Philadelphia sound of Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, the eclectic sound collaging of Barton Fink, the crooning of Lou Rawls, Paul McCartney teamed up with Elvis Costello, as well as some great numbers from Lyle Lovett, The Rolling Stones, Frank Sinatra, Beck, and Radiohead. If you dig it, support the artists. The full mixtape after the jump
Continue reading A (Belated) Mixtape Monday: More Nutrients Than A Can of Soup
Mixtape Monday: In Ears
In Ear Park- Department of Eagles
The intro to this song is a beautiful weave of guitars and pianos going in and out like waves crashing into the shores that leads into an ethereal vocal and beautiful backing instrumentation, a lament on loss, the beauty of this song just speaks volumes
So Far Around the Bend- The National
I wasn’t the biggest fan of the Boxer nor did I see the big attraction to the National until this song came out. The lyrics are perfectly understated and performed, with a creative arrangement and a sentiment that everyone can identify with, it doesn’t hurt that the melody is so damn catchy as well
Veckatimest, the latest album by Grizzly Bear is full of songs that range from the sweet to the bizarre, Fine for Now starts off with a strangely beautiful vocal arrangement before turning into an otherworldly meld of guitar and drums and vocals, truly a song worth multiple listens
M. Ward has a knack for great studio production and melody, and this has a great chorus, and no theres no chinese in a single second of the recording, just a great overall song
Lost Coastlines- Okkervil River
I love the vocalist in this band, his range is affecting and his lyrics are well written, and i can hear glimmers of Paul Simons Graceland and the Jam’s Town Called Malice woven in
Like Blink 182, fun upbeat and catchy, but better because you don’t get tired of the nasal voice and the chord progression is classic
Race You- Elizabeth and the Catapults
Little known bands often provide the most happiness to the listener when they make great catchy songs, because you feel like you’re the one discovering them, it’s a little feistish and happy and just puts you in a good mood
Love this song, a little weezerish but with less pop culture reliant lyrics
Take A Walk Around the Table- White Rabbits
This song is so delightfully weird that you can’t help but listen to it over and over again
Of all the great Spoon songs there are to choose from, this is one of, if not their finest songs ever put to record
Beautiful acoustic guitar, beautiful singing, beautiful lyrics, need i even say more
Great progression and arrangement, both of which Beck has an undeniable knack for and this is one of his finer songs
Songs for the Fireflies- Josh Ritter
This is one of those songs that feels as if the performer is right in front of you not in some far off studio and the buildup is wonderful
The Honeymoon Song- The Beatles
It’s hard to find a Beatles song that the whole world hasn’t heard millions of times. This one comes from Live at the BBC and the arrangment lets Paul McCartneys voice take front and center, and how sweet and young he sounds, the only bad thing is the song ends so soon
Love every part about this song, the bass, the guitar, the singing, the build up, it works perfectly
Everything Hits At Once- Spoon
Another early Spoon song, undeniably their own, from the arrangment to the melody and the buildup as well the great guitar and piano hooks
this son builds from intimate guitar and vocals to a great energetic arrangement. Terrific vocal performance throughout
Because this song is undeniable in its classic status, love the progression and the lyrics
A Day in the Life- The Beatles
Arguably the greatest song Lennon and McCartney put together from the arrangement to the lyrics to the orchestra build up and McCartneys part. Also the interplay between the musicians is great, McCartney’s piano and Lennon’s guitar and Ringo’s drums couldn’t have fit any better
You Got the Silver- The Rolling Stones
this song goes a long way in saying that Keith Richards was as underrated a singer and songwriter as Harrison was in The Beatles.
After hours
Last call for drinks everybody pull up a chair, this mix is for those late nights whether you’re alone in a bar or in a haze or just wanting to be whisked away by the power of music, enjoy
The Allman Brothers at their boozy, wistful best
You’ll recognize the backing track, but you’ll hear it in a clearer way than ever before
You can almost watch the sun setting from the porch in the midwest listening to these guys
Aretha Franklin may best be known for Respect, but I’ve never heard her more soulful
A beautiful understated melody and lyric by the Beatles, sometimes called a rehash of This Boy by jaded critics but it has its merits and its all the more sweet
Wistful acoustic beauty
This song belongs in a Wes Anderson movie, or Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, after a character has gotten to a drunken/drugged stupor and the world around him is unfolding
The best anthems are those that are the most simple in their message, and this makes simple look complex
Is their anything better for those late lonely nights than a pianist with chops, i think not
Things Ain’t Like They Used To Be
Beautiful melody
Bob Dylan, in a bar, at 4 am, theres no other way to describe it
There is a certain familiarity and beauty in Bob Dylans meld of harmonica and guitar that the world hasn’t heard since
A criminally underrated Bob Marley song
This guy is pretty much unknown but this melody is timeless
Bruce Springsteen, sounding more forlorn than ever, and yet the songs beauty is on parallel to West Side Story
A stunning piano intro that melds into the most gorgeous acoustic guitar and piano interplay in the history of music
Frank Sinatra simply sounds better and more talented when he’s not trying to swing
For the cynic in all of us
As much as Bob Dylan wrote beautiful songs, Richie Havens interprets it as if it shouldn’t have been recorded any other way.
A nightcap to the end of a very late night, hell i can smell the bar
The Art of the Mixtape 