Hang Me, Oh Hang Me - The Deep Dark Woods

Hang Me, Oh Hang Me - The Deep Dark Woods

4:22

Hang Me, Oh Hang Me, 2007

Traditional

This Saskatoon country-rock band is clearly influenced by Gram Parsons, Son Volt, and traditional country bluegrass.  This song is a cover made famous by Dave Van Ronk, that came to more prominence when Oscar Isaak sang it in Inside Llewyn Davis.  Some sites claim the song is a Van Ronk original, but this site says it's much older, and points to a 1961 recording by one Sam Hinton.  Anyhoo,  this is the lament of a world-weary gambler or outlaw.  "Hang me, oh hang me / So I'll be dead and gone / I wouldn't mind the hanging, boys / I'll be waiting 'round here too long."  The guitar, harmonies, and drums are all pure alt-country sound.  The band puts their own spin on the lyrics, using fragments of the old ones and some apparently new.  I love the guitar work here, but the whole band is masterful here. I always like to see the new young bucks (never you mind that this came out 18 years ago; I'm old) breathe new life into the traditional tunes. 

Hey Boys - the Dillards

Hey Boys - the Dillards

2:26

Wheatstraw Suite, 1968

Written by Rodney Dillard, Mitch Jayne, H.R. Pedersen, and Dean Webb

This is a sprightly, fingerpicking bluegrass folk-rock number, defiantly throwback.  It concerns an old homesteader and moonshiner, reflecting on the successes of his youth and how he's content to just sit around talking and drinking with his friends.  He's reached the age where he's a contended, largely indifferent epicurean.  "Rear back, talk about your politics / Fight about religion and worry about war / I'll sit, a-spittin' in the fireplace / Pour a little cider when your throat gets sore."  The lyrics are light, but the band is serious about playing genuine bluegrass with skill.

Wine Wine Wine - The Nightcaps

Wine Wine Wine - The Nightcaps

2:26

single, 1959

Written by the Nightcaps

The Nightcaps were one of Dallas' first important rock bands, and released the song "Thunderbird," later made famous by ZZ Top.  Apparently they remained active until 2009!  This song is a primitive rockabilly beat made to dance to, written by the band when they were in high school.  Billy Joe Shine's nasal whine (wine?) on this song and the repeated title word for a chorus gives the song a high droning sound.  Rollicking piano and blaring horns make it a Jerry Lee Lewis-style romp.

We Are Great Again - Billy Simons Jr.

We Are Great Again - Billy Simons Jr.

3:38

Now That We've Solved Everything, 2025

Written by Billy Simons Jr.

An ironic ode the senile liar currently corrupting the White House.  "And when that grifter steps in shit / They lick his boots from heel to tip."  The world needs more musicians like this, in the vein of Woody Guthrie (and it's his birthday today, in an odd bit of synchronicity; I didn't know that until I started to write this).  Brave, well-spoken, and unwilling to play to the middle.  Unlike many political musicians, Simons doesn't let the music lean on the crutch of the lyrics, although his acerbic wit is sharp as a razor ("Forget the Paine of common sense / We reign with our incompetence").  He also lets his acoustic guitar support the song, crafting catchy melodies.  I just discovered this artist and I'll be listening to more.

Wunderbaren Jahren - Sportfreunde Stiller

Wunderbaren Jahren - Sportfreunde Stiller

3:21

So wie einst Real Madrid, 2000

Written by Peter Brugger

I couldn't find much about this German band, but this is some good old, fun-sounding, fast-paced indie rock with guitar, crashing high percussion, what seems to be an organ, and pub-singalong vocals.  It's a song about wonderful past years with friends, the halcyon times, with opportunities that shone bright but may not have been taken.

Wolf Teeth - JD McPherson

Wolf Teeth - JD McPherson

2:56

Signs & Signifiers, 2011

Written by JD McPherson and Jimmy Sutton

A stuttering neo-rockabilly-blues number, with clattering percussion, piano trills, and vocals that draw from Tom Waits and Screamin' Jay Hawkins.  The lyrics are a sort of big bad wolf come on that on paper seem to have been thought up on the spot, but McPherson's rabid delivery sells it.  "Running through the woods / Chasin' red hood / Spendin' money like a pauper / When the beggin' gets good."

Why Don't You Do Right (Get Me Some Money Too) - Peggy Lee

Why Don't You Do Right (Get Me Some Money Too) - Peggy Lee
2:28
single, 1942
Written by Kansas Joe McCoy and Herb Morand, 1936

Irresistibly fun fact about this song: it is a rewritten version of a song by the Harlem Hamfats jazz band called "The Weed Smoker's Dream."  Here it's a chastisement of a man who can't get his act together.  "If you had prepared twenty years ago / You wouldn't be a-wanderin' from door to door."  Backed here by Benny Goodman's ace band, Lee gives us a vocal of cool, controlled seduction.  It's a torch song, but delivered with a playful yet steely vocal.  She delivers the lines with a mix of sultry restraint and quiet authority, not belting it out, but insinuating.  The phrasing is jazz-perfect: slightly behind the beat, full of nuance.

Redwood Tree - Van Morrison

Redwood Tree - Van Morrison

3:05

Saint Dominic's Preview, 1972

Written by Van Morrison

A beautifully arranged folk-rock ode to a fictionalized place and time.  The narrator of the song remembers going out into nature, looking for a dog or a rainbow or maybe just to get out of the rain.  He thinks back to how much was learned since those innocent days.  "Oh redwood tree / Please let us under / When we were young we used to go / Under the redwood tree."  Morrison, who grew up in Belfast, is here imagining what it might be like to grow up around the massive California trees. and what they might inspire.  With piano and saxophones playing against the guitar, the song has a delightful melody that carries the listener along with it.

Real Mean - RVIVR

Real Mean - RVIVR

2:03

RVIVR, 2010

Written by RVIVR?

Never heard of this Olympia-based punk band, but Franz Nicolay mentioned them in his excellent book so I gave them a listen.  This song is about the dissolution of a relationship.  The narrator blamed herself and first but since then has grown and sees the antagonist as at fault.  "I tried to fix it more than you could ever know / To do things right, to be your friend and make it right / To find a thread that I could start to sew."  It's not particularly fast-paced, for a punk song, but the guitars come in jagged, aggressive bursts.  The song concludes, "You're old enough to know the difference between being real and being mean."  It's a sentiment you might hear from a sophomore, but at just two minutes, we can forgive a little emo heartbreak.