Songs You May Have Missed #683

16 Mar 2021 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

B.C. Camplight: “Suffer for Two (Dave Bascombe Radio Mix)” (2007)

Calling any B.C. Camplight song the “radio mix” is laughable because I’ve never heard any of his tunes on radio. He’s typically too quirky and experimental for even the independent airwaves.

But “Suffer for Two” is a bit more accessible than most of his material. If it piques your curiosity I’d recomment you check out his debut LP Hide, Run Away

If you’re ready to be challenged a little by his more idiosyncratic output, give 2015’s How to Die in the North or 2020’s Shortly After Takeoff a try. Sometimes it takes repeated listens, but eventually the hooks take hold. And the genius.

This is what Brian Wilson might have sounded like if he grew up someplace without drag racing and surfing.

See also: Recommended Albums #6 | Every Moment Has A Song (edcyphers.com)

See also: Songs You May Have Missed #499 | Every Moment Has A Song (edcyphers.com)

Songs You May Have Missed #682

14 Mar 2021 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

Bobby Darin: “Gyp the Cat” (1965)

Excerpted from Shane Brown’s blog/tribute page This is Bobby Darin:

In 1964, Bobby couldn’t get a hit record for love nor money.  In September 1964, he made his first attempt at recording his own composition Gyp the Cat, a clever pastiche of Mack the Knife, this time about a thief, and using a similar melody to the Kurt Weill song.  As with Mack the Knife, the song tells a story, and the arrangement works in the same way, with it gaining in intensity with each successive verse.  It’s a lighter affair lyrically, with a nice twist in the final verse, and would have been a better choice of single than Hello Dolly which was released instead.  Despite the British Invasion, there was clearly still a place in the singles charts for this type of material, as Armstrong’s Hello Dolly and the Darin-produced Wayne Newton hit Danke Schoen had shown.  The 1964 version of Gyp the Cat remained unissued until thirty-odd years later, with a 1965 recording of the same song issued as a B-side.  It was something of a waste of a fun Darin original, in his signature style, and showing that he could poke fun at himself through a pastiche of his earlier hit.

Songs You May Have Missed #681

07 Mar 2021 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

Steve Earle: “The Devil’s Right Hand” (1988)

Steve Earle’s enviable songwriting chops are on display in this story song about the perils of the gun.

Earle comes across like a more authentic Springsteen, and was part of a golden era for country radio in which the likes of Lyle Lovett, k.d. lang, Texas Tornados, Dwight Yoakam, Alison Krauss and Los Lobos enjoyed airplay before the format chose to eschew diversity and closed in on itself.

Los Lobos became too experimental. Lovett too artsy and sardonic. For lang, who was a lesbian and an outspoken anti-meat advocate, it was only a matter of time before country radio turned its back. And I suppose Krauss just didn’t embrace country cliche consistently enough–despite winning more Grammy awards (27) than any other female artist in any genre.

As for Earle, despite 1986’s breakthrough hit album Guitar Town, he too was soon left outside looking in. Perhaps he was just too rock for country radio and too country for rock radio (which only ever embraced one of his tunes, “Copperhead Road”)

One thing’s for sure: the lyrical gut punch the guy delivers ensures that he is more at home on public radio stations than country.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2025/05/07/songs-you-may-have-missed-778/

Songs You May Have Missed #680

03 Mar 2021 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

CarlosVives: “Matilde Lina” (1994)

Multiple Grammy and Latin Grammy winner Carlos Vives specializes in the vibrant, uplifting sounds of Columbian vallenato music.

Like Juan Luis Guerra with the bachata and merange music of the Dominican Republic, Vives updates the traditional sounds with driving percussion, lively accordian, electric guitar accents and bold, full-throated vocals.

It’s music with a joyful energy, ideal for adding a splash of color to a playlist, or perking up your drab workday afternoon.

The Clásicos de la Provincia album sold 4 million copies worldwide and well over a million in Colombia alone.

Songs You May Have Missed #679

26 Feb 2021 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

Republic Tigers: “Latter Daisy” (2020)

“What’s especially fascinating about listening to the Republic Tigers’ Mind Over Matter with the knowledge of the last seven or eight years of musical history is the fact that, had it been released when originally intended, it would’ve been way ahead of the curve.”- The Pitch.

Yes, back when this blog first spotlighted Republic Tigers with 2008’s sweeping “Buildings & Mountains”, we mentioned that their second full-length release was expected in 2012.

Well, that second LP has been completed since 2012 but…stuff happens. Legal complications caused the band to shelve the record until 2020, and the amazing thing is how fresh and modern this time capsule of an album sounds despite a lack of remixing, remastering or tinkering of any kind.

And it’s not just in the sparkling arrangements or production. Lyrics such as  “It’s time we build a wall / that keeps us thinking small” from the lead track and single “Falco Peregrinus” seem prescient, as if written in the year of their ultimate release.

But to this listener’s ear, it’s “Latter Daisy” that’s the most infectious earworm on the album. Like the two previous Tigers songs this blog has featured, give this one a few listens and you’ll find it burrowing into your brain in the sweetest way.

See also: Songs You May Have Missed #82 | Every Moment Has A Song (edcyphers.com)

See also: Songs You May Have Missed #389 | Every Moment Has A Song (edcyphers.com)

Songs You May Have Missed #678

26 Feb 2021 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

Gene Simmons: “See You Tonite” (1978)

Gene Simmons rocks. Uh, most of the time. Certainly that’s how he made his bones with his full time band.

But this Beatlesque nugget, like much of his 1978 eponomous solo album, must have taken fans a bit by surprise. “See You Tonite” brings to mind early Badfinger, or the Raspberries in one of their quieter moments. Strings and sweet harmonies from Dr. Love? Who’da thought?

Check out an unplugged Kiss performance of the song below:

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