"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
10 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: connie converse, house
Connie Converse: “House” (2026)
We elsewhere told the tale of singular folk songwriter Connie Converse, her inspired music, disappointing career and mysterious disappearance.
To the 2026 reissue of her How Sad, How Lovely album was added this bonus, previously unreleased track.
It’s one more example of her lyrical gift, and a heartfelt reminder of all the things “home” can mean.
03 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: run away to mars, talk
Talk: “Run Away to Mars” (2021)
Canadian Nicholas Durocher, professionally known as Talk, specializes in soaring, emotionally-charged choruses and songs about isolation and disconnectedness.
During a COVID-era stint as an out of work musician living in his parents’ basement, a lonely, depressed Durocher wrote “Run Away to Mars” after watching the movie Interstellar.
The song went viral on TikTok a year after its release. It appears on Talk’s 2023 debut album, Lord of the Flies & Birds & Bees, which was nominated for multiple Juno Awards.
Durocher, ironically, has connected with a large audience by singing about feeling disconnected, and become a star by continuing to sing like that young man in his parents’ basement.
03 Jul 2026 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: summertime climb, the flashing lights
The Flashing Lights: “Summertime Climb” (1999)
Led by singer/guitarist Matt Murphy, this Canadian foursome’s roots as a 60’s cover band showed on their independently released 1999 debut.
The sound of power pop is definitely the sound of summer.
26 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: lovergirl, madison beer
Madison Beer: “Lovergirl” (2026)
Madison Beer first achieved notice when Justin Bieber shared link to her singing a cover of “At Last” at age 13.
Three albums into her career the Long Island native has established herself as a first-rate songwriter, albeit one whose singles and albums routinely perform better outside her native US.
After four singles were released from her 2026 locket LP, the melancholy “Lovergirl” was the lead single from the album’s deluxe edition.
06 Jun 2026 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: amazing blondel, three seasons almaine
Amazing Blondel: “Three Seasons Almaine” (1971)
Amazing Blondel took their unique Classicist Renaissance blend a step further on 1971’s Fantasia Lindum LP than on the previous year’s Evensong.
The album’s title track was a 10-section, 20-minute suite (or fantasia) that comprised the album’s entire first side.
Harpsichord, recorder, lute, harmonium and dulcimer adorned lyrics about leafy lanes, lovers and lasses, woodsmen, ploughboys and verdant countrysides, sung in unapologetically English accents.
The phrase “baroque pop” is thrown around, even in this blog, to describe contemporary pop songs onto which is grafted some antique instrumentation.
Amazing Blondel deserves the description–like no other.
See also: Recommended Albums #98 | Every Moment Has A Song
31 May 2026 Leave a comment
in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: daniel me estas matando, silvana estrada, tenias que ser tu
Silvana Estrada (with Daniel, Me Estás Matando): “Tenías Que Ser Tú” (2018)
Mexican singer and songwriter Silvana Estrada, winner of the Best New Artist Latin Grammy Award, was born to parents who were both luthiers. She plays a Venezuelan cuato onstage that was built by her father.
Silvana was singing as soon as she could talk and was writing songs and playing a variety of instruments by the time she was in high school.
“Tenías Que Ser Tú” (“It Had to be You”) is from her acclaimed 2018 Primeras Canciones EP and is recorded with duo Daniel, Me Estás Matando (Daniel, You Are Killing Me) who specialize in romantic ballads and bolero.
The chorus:
Ay, ay, ay, it had to be you
For better or for worse, it had to be you
