Song of the Day 11/29: Ted Hawkins, “Sorry You’re Sick”
I have to thank the Spotify algorithm for introducing me to Ted Hawkins, whose tragic life story is even more incredible and diverse than his repertoire was. Hawkins was born…
Song of the Day 11/28: Naudo Rodgriguez, “Bette Davis Eyes”
I keep discovering stuff on YouTube I never would have searched for. I don't even remember what I was looking for when I ran across Naudo Rodgriguez (some sources spell…
Song of the Day 11/25: The Cranberries, “Ode to My Family”
Happy Thanksgiving! Or, as they call it à Paris, jeudi. American culture is consumed everywhere, so Parisians are aware of Thanksgiving, but only expat Americans celebrate it. In some regards,…
Song of the Day 11/24: Dire Straits, “So Far Away”
Mark Knopfler wrote this song, which appeared on his band's 1985 mega-hit album "Brothers in Arms," about the difficulty of conducting long-distance relationships by telephone. Speaking from experience, even 35…
Song of the Day 11/22: Bennett Wilson Poole, “Soon Enough”
Guest post by Nathan Arizona UK Americana sounds like a contradiction, but don’t tell the British. A lot of fans and websites there are devoted to both contemporary and classic…
Song of the Day 11/21: John Wesley Harding, “There’s A Starbucks (Where The Starbucks Used To Be)”
If John Wesley Harding were as popular with the public as he is with other musicians, he'd be a household name. Or would Wesley Stace be a household name? The…
Song of the Day 11/20: The Clash, “Somebody Got Murdered”
Actually, two somebodies. Their names were Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber, and while a Wisconsin jury and the judge who oversaw their killer's trial exonerated him, they were murdered nonetheless,…
Song of the Day 11/18: Lee Moses, “Bad Girl”
People who love soul music have to deal with the fact that artists stopped making it about the time that disco gobbled up R&B and funk in its Hustle-dancing wake.…
Song of the Day 11/17: Bob McFadden and Dor (Rod McKuen), “The Beat Generation”
The French apparently have a weird idea of American music, at least if what they play in the local supermarché is any guide. This 1959 novelty single, for example, written…
Song of the Day 11/16: Wings, “Give Ireland Back to the Irish”
Today's Open Thread notes the completely foreseeable problem Northern Ireland is posing to the feeble, delusional brains behind Brexit. The solution to the problem is simple: Give Ireland back to…
Song of the Day 11/14: John Cale, “Half Past France”
Most American music fans know Welsh musician John Cale through his role as a founding member of the Velvet Underground. But his career in avant-garde music began years before he…
Song of the Day 11/12: The Jam, “All Around the World”
Guest post by Nathan Arizona Before TV fragmented so you never have to watch something that’s not exactly what you want, you had to take what they gave you. On…
Song of the Day 11/11: The Royal Guardsmen, “Snoopy vs. the Red Baron”
In France, Armistice Day is still a big deal -- a natural reaction, I suppose, considering most of the fighting in what was dubbed a "world" war was done on…