Elliott Smith: “Waltz #2 (XO)” (1998)
On the heels of Elliot Smith’s Academy Award-nominated work (“Miss Misery”) for the Good Will Hunting film soundtrack, he signed with a bigger label and released a bigger sounding album.
Smith was still writing songs of torment, depression and addiction. But adding horns, string arrangements and Chamberlin, Smith at least made the darkness sound more (musically) attractive than ever.
Quoting Jayson Greene’s XO album review in Pitchfork:
“‘Waltz #2”, Smith’s lead single, deals rather conspicuously with the troubled dynamic that Smith observed between his stepfather, Charlie Welch, and his mother, Bunny.
The song is set in a karaoke bar, the characters a man and wife taking turns on the stage. The woman selects “Cathy’s Clown” (”Don’tcha think it’s kinda sad/That you’re treating me so bad?”), while the man returns the message, with a vengeance, choosing “You’re No Good.” “Waltz #2” is a song about people singing subtext-loaded songs to each other.”
See also: Songs You May Have Missed #210 | Every Moment Has A Song
