Songs You May Have Missed #793

16 Sep 2025 Leave a comment

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

The Sallyangie: “Lady Mary” (1969)

The Sallyangie were a British folk duo comprised of a 16-year-old Mike Oldfield and his 21-year-old sister Sally. Their single LP, the gently ethereal Children of the Sun, will be either musical balm or emetic depending on your affinity for fey Lord of the Rings-inspired Renaissance Faire soundtrack music.

Some critics have panned the sound quality, the singing, Mike’s musicianship and the dated, naive fairytale-cum-hippy essence of the music, but its inclusion here tells you what I think of their appraisals. Of course, I’ve read Tolkien’s trilogy five times and attend the Ren Fest yearly…

Of undeniable quality are the arrangements contributed by one David (now Dee) Palmer, whose brilliance graces some of Jethro Tull’s greatest and most complex work.

Mike Oldfield is best known for a tune about as far removed from Children of the Sun as it could possibly be: “Tubular Bells” a.k.a. the theme from The Exorcist.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2021/04/07/songs-you-may-have-missed-688/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2022/07/03/songs-you-may-have-missed-732/

Songs You May Have Missed #792

13 Sep 2025 Leave a comment

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

The Decemberists: “O Valencia!” (2007)

“Hyper-literate” is an adjective often applied to songwriter Colin Meloy of the Decemberists. And his eclectic influences include British murder ballads, 70’s power-chord prog rock, the Civil War, sea shanties, Japanese folk tales and much more in between.

Meloy definitely favors the “archaic” entries in his well-thumbed thesaurus, giving his ambitious writing a distinct sepia tint beyond the linguistic reach of most writers. But it’s the ability to make all this accessible to the pop music ear that is the true genius of the man.

His hyperliteracy fuses with hyper-catchy pop sensibilities here as Meloy threatens to “burn this whole city down”–in the most appealing pop rock way.

Songs You May Have Missed #791

12 Sep 2025 Leave a comment

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

Mick Flannery & Susan O’Neill: “Baby Talk” (2021)

Irish singer and songwriter Mick Flannery’s successful collaboration with Susan O’Neill (herself an up-and-coming Irish songwriter) on this song grew into a full album of duets between the two.

Flannery’s rootsy sound and sorrowful songwriting find a sympathetic match in O’Neill’s vocals, which approximate a wounded Stevie Nicks vibe here.

No less than three of Flannery’s albums have reached number one in his native Ireland, where he’s one of that country’s most acclaimed songwriters.

Songs You May Have Missed #790

04 Sep 2025 Leave a comment

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

Stackridge: “Do the Stanley” (1973)

If Monty Python’s Flying Circus had been a progressive folk-rock band…

Meet southwest England’s Stackridge, the band who had the distinction of being both the opening and closing act at the first Glastonbury Festival in September of 1970.

Their singular, quirky stylings sound a bit like a musical bridge between the Kinks’ more lighthearted fare and 10cc.

Their songs–full of odd twists, unexpected instrumentation and crackbrain vocal extemporizing–are the musical equivalent of an untidy rummage sale.

A fun one.

The one-off single “Do the Stanley” could have been a UK hit. But it wasn’t.

Seems the BBC, uptight about a lyrical reference to the Queen, restricted airplay for “Stanley”.

In any case, one can’t quite imagine hearing it (or any other Stackridge tune, actually) alongside “Take it Easy” and “25 or 6 to 4” on American radio in 2025 or 1973.

Songs You May Have Missed #789

31 Aug 2025 Leave a comment

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

Moon Safari: “Too Young to Say Goodbye” (2013)

The words I used to describe Moon Safari on a previous post apply just as well to this song, so I’ll reprint them with only slight modification here:

Moon Safari represents an astounding juxtaposition of seemingly incompatible musical components: the surprise-around-every-corner complexity of prog rock alongside an almost boy-bandesque propensity for catchy pop hooks, and a five-part harmony vocal sound simply unmatched in their genre.

At its absolute best prog rock is a triumph of possibility over musical triteness and cliché. It stretches the envelope. But it doesn’t need to tear the seams–to sound so “original” that it challenges more than pleases.

And that’s what Moon Safari seem to understand: ultimately music–even relatively complex music–is meant to be enjoyed. Melodic and instrumental hooks abound here. But like the best prog, it’ll take you many repeated listens to assimilate the song entirely–to be able to sing every lyric on cue and hit every correct note of the solo on air guitar or synth.

Ornate, yet entirely accessible. A treat for fans of complex music, but a great bridge into the genre for fans of more mainstream bands (Styx come to mind).

(End quote.)

This song in particular will forever be tied to a mental snapshot from my own life. It was the moment in which I gave in to the inevitable and drove away for the final time from the home of a woman with whom I’d had a fitful short-lived and one-sided relationship.

As I navigated the 45-minute trip home, this song on repeat, these lyrics, sung in a tearful near-shout, were something of a balm of self-medication:

We’re much too young to say goodbye
But I won’t waste another day here by your side
When it comes to love, you don’t have a clue
You don’t have a heart, but you could easily break mine
It’s time to say goodbye

Music, indeed, is there for you when no one else seems to be.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/08/16/songs-you-may-have-missed-465/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/08/04/recommended-albums-52/

Songs You May Have Missed #788

31 Aug 2025 Leave a comment

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

The New Pornographers: “Sing Me Spanish Techno” (2005)

Another slice of hooks, harmony, and enigmatic lyrics from the New Pornographers’ third–and probably best–release, 2005’s Twin Cinema.

They could have been a great power pop band had they not decided to be something a little quirkier.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/03/19/songs-you-may-have-missed-366/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2012/03/14/songs-you-may-have-missed-52/

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