Variation And More

 

Last Friday, I announced Variations For The Weekend, a possible new series. In the meantime, I've thought about it and will continue it as a loose series based on cover versions. The intention is that when I come across a cover version, I listen to the original and, if necessary, the entire album again and write a few words about it. JC was concerned that there might not be too many cheerful songs in the series—I can disagree with that.

Last week LA's Flying Mojito Bros, a couple of DJ's who regularly take on classics of the West Coast sound and transform them into funky dance numbers in a grandiose way released an old number by Tony Joe White.

Tony Joe White was an American guitarist and singer and was considered a typical representative of swamp rock. Although he came from a blues background, his music also had plenty of soul. His plucked guitar and mid-tempo songs, which he sang with a powerful baritone voice, were characteristic of his style. His fame remained limited, and until his death a few years ago, he was known more as a musician's musician. 

I only have one album of his on my hard drive. The Real Thang was his attempt in 1980 to latch onto the popular, or rather already declining, disco genre. Despite everything, it features some of his best-known songs, which have lost none of their brilliance.

Tony Joe White - Alligator Swamp

Tony Joe White - Polk Salad Annie

Tony Joe White - Swamp Rap

Monday's Long Song

 

At this point, I usually present extended songs that I have dug out of my archive. It is rather unusual for a new song to appear here, but in the case of Midding, I am very happy to make an exception. Midding is a five-piece band from Cardiff who released their first EP last Friday. On the five tracks, they celebrate a feverish brew of echoing guitars, their own interpretation of psych and noise rock. The fact that their dark sound still leaves room for melodies is all the better. A new band whose progress you should definitely follow. 

New Song On Sunday

 

Today's song comes once again from our neighbors in Austria. Cousins like Shit essentially consist of two cousins in real life, Hannah and Laura Breitfuß, who have been touring with their avant-trash music for several years now. On their new single, they don't break new ground with their stomping rhythms, indie riffs, and restrained vocals, but they have written another song about lost love that becomes more enjoyable with every listen. Indie pop as it should be.

Variations For The Weekend

 

A few days ago, I was sitting with one of my oldest friends. As always, we talked about all sorts of things and ended up discussing the global economic situation, which is becoming increasingly unstable. The creation of a new world order by the orange-haired man on the other side of the Atlantic is bringing creeping inflation, at least here in Germany, while the erosion of social standards due to employers' demands and the increasing number of bankruptcies and unemployment are leading to ever greater poverty among the population. Finally, I asked Wolfgang what song comes to mind when he thinks of poverty and homelessness. He immediately thought of an old song from our youth by Ralph McTell.

For my part, a song by Belfast singer/songwriter David McWilliams came to mind. Both songs vividly illustrate where impoverishment can lead.

Marc Almond recorded his own version of this song in 1992. It features more orchestration and a more optimistic tune, not least because he added his own verse.

This could be the start of a new series - who knows.

Whistling Thursday

 

The second installment of this short series begins with a song that took the charts by storm 40 years ago. Jangly guitars, a great melody, and the whistling at the end of the song made this one of the best pop songs of the year.

For those who don't know, Gilbert O'Sullivan is an Irish singer/songwriter who had several hits in the early 70s. Among them is Claire, which begins with whistling. Some might say that it's light music, but I liked his voice even back then.

Finally, a one-hit wonder from 1967. Whistling Jack Smith was a singer and trumpeter from Liverpool who enjoyed brief success with his whistled song, but never achieved it again.

That's How It Sounded In The Beginning

Last week, a series that had been running for over a year came to an end here. I thought about what could come next and couldn't come up with anything for a long time, until I came across The Auteurs' debut album again last weekend. What could be more obvious than to start a series dealing with debut albums?

In the early 90s, the Britpop phenomenon emerged, a genre that marked a return to guitar-based pop. Much of it was pleasant to listen to, but only a little of it was truly great. One of these bands was The Auteurs, although strictly speaking they should be classified in this genre, as elements of glam and country also appear in their songs. 

Luke Haines founded The Auteurs in 1992 and released a milestone album, New Wave, a year later. Rarely has a debut album featured so many melodic songs in different styles, covering everything from rock to melancholy that was popular at the time. Unfortunately, The Auteurs did not achieve the same status as Oasis, for example.

The Auteurs - Junk Shop Clothes

The Auteurs - Bailed Out

The Auteurs - Early Years

After the band broke up, Haines returned a few years later with the art pop band Black Box Recorder to give us more great songs. After that, success eluded him and his subsequent releases, such as his collaboration with Peter Buck, unfortunately went unnoticed by the public.

Something More From Last Year

 

Over the past weekend, I listened more closely to some bands that inspired me last year. One of them was Deeply Armed, a new band from Dublin. They recorded a song called The Healing, which is now available in several remixes. The original is a mixture of relaxed music that could have been released 40 years ago. Psychedelic and Krautrock that could have been produced by Conny Plank.

The other band that really impressed me was Thought Leadership, a band from the greater Manchester area that has released several albums. What they all had in common was a reduction to echoing guitar sounds in the tradition of Durutti Column and David Gilmour. With III of Pentacles, they have created an album that enchants with its blend of ambient, Cocteau Twins, and Johnny Marr.