Amos Lee “Windows Are Rolled Down” (2011)
The Power Of Music I had definitely heard of folk singer/songwriter Amos Lee before this week but frankly knew next to nothing about him or his music. Then, due to circumstances I’ll get to later, I was forwarded the following note, which Lee had just issued to his fan mailing list on the day he...... Read More
Poco “A Good Feelin’ To Know” (1972)
..the group Poco, a band whose warm harmonies, jangling guitars and checkered membership put them at the nexus of the incestuous late ‘60’s/early ‘70’s California country-rock scene..... Read More
Rod Stewart “You Wear It Well” (1972)
Like a picture being worth a thousand words, sometimes one example is worth a thousand lyrics. Co-written with guitarist Martin Quittenton, 'You Wear It Well' is Rod Stewart’s musical recital of a letter sent one hot afternoon by a bored guy to his ex-girlfriend... Read More
Simon & Garfunkel “Cecilia” (1970)
Friends, I have to ask: What the hell was up with Cecilia?! She’s getting it on with Paul, at his place and in the middle of the afternoon yet, and as soon as he takes a little bathroom break she’s got someone else hopping into bed with her? How did this other guy even get...... Read More
Beatles “I’ve Got A Feeling” (1970)
There’s not a lot to say about the Beatles that hasn’t already been said, so I won’t try much here. But I chose this song because in many ways it seems a perfect exemplification of what made the Beatles what they were – which was, c’mon, the greatest band of all time. This was at...... Read More
Don Henley “Boys of Summer” (1984)
One of this blog's regular readers, perhaps motivated by my apparent dismissiveness for lyrics, first in a post on the Drive-by Truckers and then in a follow up with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, has written in to be heard from. For our first-ever... Read More
David Bowie “Stay” (1976); Apollo 100 “Joy” (1972)
I started going to NY Rangers games at The Garden with my dad when I was about 7 or 8 years old, and it was love at first, ah, skate. Hockey immediately became, and will unquestionably always be, my favorite sport. The moment when the players first take the ice just prior to the game...... Read More
Bob Seger “The Fire Down Below” (1976)
You’re listening to a good tune, enjoying it as you go through the verse-verse-chorus-solo sections, and at a certain point as the chorus circles around again, you feel the coda forming, the familiar parts of a song wrapping up, and sadly you know it’s about to end. And then – euphoria! – it re-starts. Even...... Read More
Beach Boys “God Only Knows” (1966)
Here’s an absolutely ridiculous question I posed to myself recently: What’s the most perfect pop song ever? Is it a classic hit, an obscurity, some underappreciated gem? God only knows, right? Again, the premise is absurd, picking one song as most sublime among all others. But hey, let’s give it a shot: For me, what...... Read More
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes “Blowin’ In The Wind” (2001)
Some readers of this esteemed blog expressed some objection to my all-too-casual dismissal of the “voice of a generation," Bob Dylan, within a prior post on the Drive-By Truckers. I’d like to try to atone for that now by featuring what is undoubtedly... Read More