Another Sunday, another collection of underrated Holst choral works inspired by Hindu spirituality (and, in the stirring opener, the Greek pantheon). As with “The Cloud Messenger,” the lightly worn Eastern influences sound ahead of their time. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/21mnfw...
It’s on the borderline of twee, but I was ultimately won over by Amanda Pascali’s 2018 debut, a hearty collection of folk with some Italian flavor but also hints of Sufjan and Regina Spektor. Choice cut: “Uccellino (Little Bird).” #dailyalbum amandapascali.bandcamp.com/album/still-...
Paul Cauthen is almost too good to be true: an old-school country crooner with Tom Jones swagger and arena-rock uplift. The key to it all, as heard on this gorgeous 2019 record, is absolute sincerity, whether his subject is love, regret, or cocaine. #dailyalbum paulcauthen.bandcamp.com/album/room-41
Resistance-lib showtune soul and folk isn't everyone's cup of tea, but no one does it better, or with more salty vigor and heart, than Shaina Taub. Happily revisiting this 2018 joint, which includes a tune from her terrific "As You Like It." #dailyalbum
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Technically the first solo album by a Beatle, this Paul McCartney-credited soundtrack record from 1967 should probably have been credited mostly to George Martin. It’s pleasant enough faux-classical folderol, but one strains to hear any Macca signatures. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/4opUUC...
Can't recall how I stumbled on this lovely record by Dan Dorff and Ronnie Kuller, but its loose-limbed blend of chamber classical-folk, played as if they're just noodling in the parlor next door, is so up my alley it's like I dreamt it into existence. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/2CTsX8...
It may simply be a matter of timing (it came out when I was 19), but this double album will always be *the* Prince record for me. Spare, dark, and weird but also sugary, sexy, and exultant, it's the ultimate pop-rock ride. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/2QuHyv...
Spent the morning with this (literally) undersung Holst cantata, based on a Sanskrit poem about a wayward spirit trying to repent and reconnect. It’s genuinely stirring and light on exoticism. I would not be surprised to learn Philip Glass had heard it. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/0l93F7...
It may never replace her stunning debut record, ZANAKA, in my heart, but Jain’s 2018 follow-up is a solid, eminently replayable collection of deep beats and bouncy hooks. Fave tracks: “Star,” “Abu Dhabi,” and the title tune. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/1qlfzN...
Punk isn’t usually my thing but when it’s as fast and funny (and English) as on the Lambrini Girls’ latest, I’m all in. Thanks to @soundopinions.bsky.social for the tip. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/4GzF4Y...
I always get strong solo-George-Harrison vibes from this breakthrough Tom Petty record, which I mean as a high compliment. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/3ZGUBw...
Though named for its distinctive organist, Booker T. & the M.G.'s sound was uniquely equilateral, more like a jazz ensemble than a rock band: Jones's groovy organ, Al Jackson's kicking drums, Lewie Steinberg's solid bass, Steve Cropper's blazing guitar. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/1LMSiy...
I consider it just one mark of Hoagy Carmichael’s greatness that this unprepossessing grab bag of tunes, bordering on novelties, which contains only one of his great standards, was my introduction to his music; even his tossed-off stuff is genius. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/playlist/0Tk...
Another thing I can thank Kirk Hamilton's great Strong Songs podcast for: pointing me to this essential Roy Hargrove "crossover" record from 2003. It's a jazz-hip-hop-funk party in a box. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/7ocjym...
Blues and gospel are close siblings, but Blind Willie Johnson’s music allows no distinction between the two genres. His songs sound no less haunted than Robert Johnson’s, and no less beatific than Thomas Dorsey’s. The lamb throws down with the lion. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/3H90ji...
More haunted and hungover than his brilliant solo debut, George Harrison’s 1973 follow-up makes for unsettling and moving listening. 24 years to the day since he slipped from this material world, it still sounds like he’s in the room (because he is). #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/6DfpxC...
Many Yes fans swear by this 5-track record from 1977 as one of their best, and after years of trying to hear what they hear, I think I’m closer than ever—mainly because I’ve finally succumbed to the mad, labyrinthine majesty of “Awaken.” #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/5D6az0...
I was mostly a snob about synth-heavy New Wave while it was happening, but I always admired Alison Moyet's powerhouse pipes. What a belated pleasure it is now to spend a day letting this lush 1982 record wash over me. Fave track: "Bad Connection." #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/47FOg0...
I prefer their third record, BLACK AND WHITE, but there’s no denying the visceral power of The Stranglers’ aggressive, arresting 1977 debut, whose rich musical layers reward repeat listens. The bonus tracks are some of my faves here. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/38lyLe...
Guitarists Carlos Alomar and Ricky Gardiner remain the standouts on this still-fresh-sounding Iggy Pop classic, though of course its guiding, shaping personality is the inimitable, irrepressible Osterberg himself, under strong Bowie influence. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/2jnV6y...
I only just heard Judee Sill’s third album—recorded in the 1970s but not released until 2005, a quarter century after her death—and I’m happy to report it’s as rich and layered and ornery and moving as her first two. What a blazing talent we lost. #dailyalbum music.youtube.com/playlist?lis...
Came to this Conspirare record to check out the Pizzetti Mass, which I’m watching on a stream from Eastman School of Music today, and stayed for the whole luminous, lovingly rendered collection of contemporary choral work. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/2JnuTQ...
Hard to imagine a project more tailored to my tastes than Rufus Wainwright singing Kurt Weill. The new record does not disappoint: Though its vibe is more supper club than smoky cabaret, RW digs into a wide range of material with both sweep and nuance. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/5vLjeC...
Brecht wasn’t the only German playwright Weill did great work with. There was also Georg Kaiser, with whom he wrote this gorgeous opera. The only drawback to this 2-disc listen are the long dialogue scenes, but it’s worth it for the moving music. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/1DXDdK...
The new Foxwarren disc is one of those records that is both immediately pleasing and reveals layers upon layers after repeated listens. The artful braiding of dialogue into the band’s expertly woven folk-pop sound is just one of its many charms. #dailyalbum foxwarren.bandcamp.com/album/2
Is there more to the appeal of this Stravinsky suite than mere historical cosplay? Is it the equivalent of a baroque cover album? We can admit that's part of the draw without slighting his contribution: the astringent frame he puts around this old music. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/2D1LKw...
Imagine making a record this good when you were 18. Still an utterly absorbing listen after nearly three decades. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/5gVBXH...
Even before he played with Patti Smith, Lenny Kaye earned a place in rock history for this groundbreaking 2-LP compilation of 1960s psych and garage rock (reconstituted here as a YouTube playlist), which he labeled "punk rock" all the way back in 1972. #dailyalbum music.youtube.com/playlist?lis...
Love the way Caroline Shaw is able to weave Sacred Harp lyrics into an equal parts enchanting/unsettling mix of plainsong, fragmented rhythms, and sneakily complicated harmony on this piece, recorded with Dawn Upshaw, Sō Percussion, and Gilbert Kalish. #dailyalbum open.spotify.com/album/5beMIp...
“Snide” was literally in his name, but it’s not fair to remember the ornery troubadour Todd Snider (taken too soon, RIP) only for his snark and bite; I also cherish the true feeling he baked into all his work. This record is the one I turn to most. #dailyalbum
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