Faraway You - Marah

Faraway You - Marah

3:31

Kids In Philly, 2000

Written by Dave Bielanko, Serge Bielanko

After a few foghorn-like notes (from a bagpipe?), the song explodes with harmonica, organ, piano, xylophone, banjo, and other percussion. Singer Dave Bielanko's ragged voice comes in, as he relates a tale of riding a bus, watching the filthy city go by ("I seen a rain-soaked mattress / 'Neath the apartment house of death / Strewn in a vacant mess / All watered-down and wet"), when he spies someone he loves kissing another person.  He goes white as he realized how far away she is.  As arena-sized "Ohhh" backing vocals come in, the song clatters along like Steve Earle with the Pogues, or a whole band of Bruce Springsteens.  This band is new to me; how could I have missed them all this time? 

A Friend Like Me - The Interrupters

A Friend Like Me - The Interrupters

2:52

The Interrupters, 2014

Written by Aimee Allen, Jesse Bivona, Justin Bivona, Kevin Bivona and Tim Armstrong

Very much a Tim Armstrong-influenced *cough* song, this has themes of loyalty, ground well-trammeled by Rancid.  "And if you ever need a savior / I mean now not later / I tell you I am the one."  With a sing-along chorus, a bouncing ska beat, and swirling guitars, it's the female-fronted Rancid that we all have to accept since the real thing has gone dormant.

Feel You Around Me - NRBQ

Feel You Around Me - NRBQ

3:31

Tiddlywinks, 1980

Written by NRBQ

This song, which starts off its album, has a playful, simple melody that evokes children's music; it almost sounds like it's being played on toy instruments, with chimes and bells accentuating the soft vocals.  Lyrically, it's a love song in which the narrators proclaims his need for a loved one: "Everybody does something in life / I do what I'm required to do / And I can take most anything / But I couldn't last a day without you."  All his friends mock him for this apparent change in im; perhaps they find his uxorious slant to be weak-willed and drippy.  But he doesn't care; his life has been turned upside down.  It's charming and warmly relatable.

Fine To Me - Pokey LaFarge

Fine To Me - Pokey LaFarge

3:58

In the Blossom Of Their Shade, 2021

Written by Pokey LaFarge

LaFarge is an interesting character.  His musical style is blend of, and influenced by, neo-swing, Americana, swing, jazz, ragtime, and Appalachian folk — that "old, weird America," as Greil Marcus put it.  Over boogie-woogie piano, walking bass, and handclaps percussion, LaFarge talk-sings in a nasal croon about someone in his life who is "the rock I cling to when there's a riptide in the sea," and "just like superglue."  It's a slinky, rocking, strut of a song that makes you want to get up and dance.  It feels fresh and new but with a familiar, old-timey feel.

Fast As You - Dwight Yoakam

Fast As You - Dwight Yoakam

4:48

This Time, 1993

Written by Dwight Yoakam

I've always really liked Yoakam's rock sensibility, and on this track he definitely rocks, throwing in recognizable rockabilly and Elvis-era guitar licks. I often think of Yoakam's material as rock with a country voice.  The song is from the point of view of someone who has been the vulnerable and uncertain one in the relationship, and now warns that he in turn might become the one who leaves people hurt and heartbroken.  "You'll control me, oh, so boldly / Rule me till I'm free / The pain that shakes me finally makes me / Get up off of my knees."  It's a muscular blend of roots-rock and country, and a fiery declaration of defiant pride.