Weekend Music Roundup

 

Welcome to the holiday weekend...though we are now in day three of the weekend. After days of relaxing and eating and online shopping, I figured some of you might be switching to the listening portion of your weekend. At least, I know I'm at that point having spent the past few days spinning some old favorites. These are albums I was listening to most of last week and few that I've had waiting around for inclusion on the list. I'm grateful for good music...Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Skyway Man - The World Only Ends When You Die: The second album from the Nashville indie band was released last month is one the albums I've been most excited about listening to. Their debut came out three years ago, and I got to see them play during the tour of that fantastic record. The band channels their inner Dr. Dog on this record, as is showcased with the opening "Muddy Waters." Throughout the album, they play on the psychedelic folk pop rock sound, making it cleaner and tighter than the previous album, a choice that is certain to get them a wider audience. "Did Ya Know Him?," "Night Walking, Alone," and "Atom Bomb" are personal favorites on this fine record. 

John Coltrane - The Rain Dogs: This is a new digital release that just came out, but I can't find out any information as to when the recordings were made.  Given the track listing, I would say this is from around the year Blue Train came out, probably some time around '58. This is strictly hard bop Coltrane, and the fact is there is nothing much better than Coltrane in this period. It's the measuring stick for me, the framework from which I evaluate all jazz from the genre. "Moment's Notice," "I'm Old Fashioned," and "Blue Train" are great as always and the recording quality is excellent. 

Mark Eitzel - West: The third solo album from the American Music Club frontman was released in 1997, a few years after the band's initial split. Close followers of the round-up will remember that I saw him play a small show last year and was transfixed by his Leonard Cohen level of depth, both lyrically and musically. A few weeks ago, a friend let me rifle through a box of CDs that someone had dumped on them and I found this in there. This is the type of alt-country that the San Fran artist is known for, and though it felt a slightly bland (in comparison to his other work) on first listen, by the second listen, I was enthralled. A friend of mine once called Mark Eitzel an national treasure, and that is about the most accurate description I can give. 

Medicine - Barcides (Selected Early Recordings 1990 - 1991): Originally released in 2017, this compilation features early tracks from the L.A. noise rock band. This is a band I'd heard a lot back in the mid-90s, having had a friend who was a fan, but I never really got into them. I decided to give this is a listen recently and glad I did. They have a noisy sound with shoegazer elements, a sound that I wouldn't end up getting into for a few years after their '92-'93 hey day. There's a rawness to these recordings that gives them their character and I'm eager to go back to their studio albums and see if there's the same quality. "I Don't Want to Know," "Gum," "Queen of Tension," "In Your Pocket," "Time Baby 2," and "Christmas Song" are my personal favorites. 

The Beatles - White Unplugged Album: In '68, the band got together at George's house and laid down some acoustic versions of songs they'd been working on, songs that would make up the White Album. Released in 2007, this bootleg captures these sessions. I've always enjoyed the stripped down, demo versions of the Fab Four. I'd heard many of them, but never this whole album in that format and needless to say, it's a revelation. This is the album where the members were just starting to reach their creative peak as individual artists. People were so upset with they broke up, but all members would release their most profound work afterwards.