"There's a time in life for Hoagy Carmichael. There's a time in life for Claude Debussy. There's a time in life for Jerry Lee Lewis. There's a time in life for Destiny's Child. All these things have their moment." ~Elvis Costello
12 Apr 2012 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: great lake swimmers, new wild everywhere
Great Lake Swimmers: “New Wild Everywhere” (2012)
Canadian folk rockers the Great Lake Swimmers plow the same field as Bon Iver or Fleet Foxes but without the critical acclaim. It’s a homespun sound with just enough sheen. Nothing world-changing here, but it’s the kind of song that deserves a place on one of those compilations you kick back to.
12 Apr 2012 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: basement days, mark erelli
Mark Erelli: “Basement Days” (2010)
Mark Erelli name-checks the 70’s and puts a lump in the throat of guys who once had rock god ambitions…and hair.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2015/08/20/songs-you-may-have-missed-542/
12 Apr 2012 2 Comments
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: fountains of wayne, the girl i can't forget
Fountains of Wayne: “The Girl I Can’t Forget” (2005)
Great power pop story song from the genre’s cleverest lyricists. The intelligence and wit of Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger is unmatched among bands making this type of music.
Pigeonholed by their 2003 hit “Stacy’s Mom”, the band made a lot of fake fans, many of whom flaked away as soon as they realized FOW’s other songs weren’t similarly written for single-celled organisms. “Stacy’s Mom Syndrome” should be the name for that phenomenon of a band having one massive hit that is totally unrepresentative of their catalog. (Sounds better than “Tubthumping Syndrome”, right?)
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2026/09/07/recommended-albums-120/
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/04/04/songs-you-may-have-missed-384/
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/07/07/songs-you-may-have-missed-443/
12 Apr 2012 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ashes to ashes, mindbenders, wayne fontana
Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders: “Ashes to Ashes” (1966)
There were a lot of good British Invasion singles that were just shoved aside for other British Invasion singles I guess. I think this one deserved a better fate than its #55 placing on the U.S. chart.
09 Apr 2012 1 Comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: black widows, butch walker, butch walker & the black widows, synthesizers
Butch Walker & the Black Widows: “Synthesizers” (2011)
Butch Walker lamenting being a little out of step with the times…and deciding it’s really okay.
See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/05/02/songs-you-may-have-missed-405/
09 Apr 2012 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: cousin norman, marmalade
Marmalade: “Cousin Norman” (1971)
England’s Marmalade were a one-hit wonder in the US (with the sublime “Reflections of My Life” in 1970) but significant hitmakers on their own side of the pond, hitting the top 40 there eleven times, including British top ten single “Cousin Norman” which has a wee bit of Van’s Tupelo Honey running through its veins.
