Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 3/18: Graham Nash and David Crosby, “Immigration Man”
When a U.S. Customs official detained then-Brit Graham Nash as he tried to enter the country, he wrote “Immigration Man.” Nash was ticked off because he wasn’t given a reason for the hold-up, which ended after people started asking Nash for his autograph. The song was the first single from on their first LP and […]
Song of the Day 3/17: The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, “Brennan on the Moor”
Sure, celebrating St. Paddy’s Day by partying is an American invention, but so is an important element of this traditional Irish outlaw ballad. The song was popularized by a Clancy Brothers recording released in 1961 (this video is from 1963) and can be traced to broadsides published in the 1860s, though it tells of events […]
Song of the Day 3/16: Bill Parsons, “She Blinded Me With Science”
Maybe Thomas Dolby is the reason Republicans distrust science — they’re afraid it will make them go blind. I like covers that show a different side of a familiar song, and this one stands out in that regard. Bill Parsons was on the folk-club circuit 20 years ago promoting his only LP, “Special Delivery,” which […]
Song of the Day 3/15: Emma Swift, “Queen Jane Approximately”
Australian singer-songwriter Emma Swift, who works out of Nashville, released a well-received album of Bob Dylan covers last August, “Blonde on the Tracks,” that I only caught up with because now that I’m vaccinized I’ve been in the car a couple of Sundays in a row, and I heard a lot of Americana on the […]
Song of the Day 3/12: Sturgill Simpson, “In Bloom”
I guess it’s my week for country-adjacent covers of rock songs. Sturgill Simpson turns Nirvana’s tuneful grunge-pop nugget into a power ballad that builds to a horn-embellished climax worth of Vegas-era Elvis. He included it on his acclaimed 2016 album “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth” because, he told Spin, “For me, that song has always […]
Song of the Day 3/11: Molly Tuttle, “Fake Empire”
Celebrated bluegrass guitarist Molly Tuttle released a pandemic-inspired cover album, “…but I’d rather be with you,” last August, and the songs represent a mix of influences you might not expect, including the Rolling Stones, the Grateful Dead, Harry Styles and Rancid. This song dates to 2007, when it was included on The National’s fourth album, […]
Song of the Day 3/10: Randy Rainbow, “Mr. Biden (Bring My Vaccine)”
I was curious about how Randy Rainbow would transition to a post-Trump political landscape. Here’s your answer — Mr. Sandman parodied for Sleepy Joe, with backup vocals by the Robinettes.
Song of the Day 3/9: Booker T. and the MGs, “Time Is Tight”
Released as a single in 1968, this instrumental jam, credited to all four members of the legendary Stax house band, became the second-biggest hit of their headlining career, peaking at No. 6. It’s easy to hear why –Duck Dunn lays down a chooglin’ bass groove and Booker T. Jones plays his Hammond B-3 like a […]
Song of the Day 3/7: Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, “The Money Song”
Man, all this agitation for raising the minimum wage to a level a person could live has been going on forever, hasn’t it? Your grandpa probably busted a gut listening to the hot young comedy duo when they cut this routine on a Capitol Records 78 — on shellac — in 1948, voicing age-old complaints […]
Song of the Day 3/5: Suzanne Vega, “When Heroes Go Down”
The story, most recently, of Andrew Cuomo, lionized during the early days of the pandemic as the anti-Trump. From Suzanne Vega’s 1992 LP 99.9F°. When heroes go down They go down fast So don’t expect any time to Equivocate the past When heroes go down They land in flame So don’t expect any slow and […]
Song of the Day 3/4: The Presidents of the United States of America, “Volcano”
This one’s in honor of Indonesia’s Mount Sinabung, which started belching hot ash a couple of days ago. PUSA, as they were known, explained the way the geology works with this song from their second album, released in 1996.
Song of the Day 3/3: Mark Chestnutt, “Blame It on Texas”
Texas’ sociopathic leadership has lifted all Covid restrictions, which makes me think they can’t secede soon enough — if it were a foreign country we could impose a travel ban. Country music loves to sing the praises of the Lone Star State, but only Mark Chestnutt told the truth about Texans — they’re insane, eager […]
Song of the Day 3/1: Drive-By Truckers, “This Fucking Job”
The need for a higher minimum wage has been apparent for many years now, and anyone who claims $15 is too much too soon should study the issue a little more (if wages had kept pace with corporate profits since the 1970s, the minimum wage would be about $23 an hour). Even songwriters have been […]
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