My Little Blue Window - Elvis Costello

My Little Blue Window - Elvis Costello

3:10

When I Was Cruel, 2002

Written by Elvis Costello

Although I consider the first half of Elvis Costello's musical output to rival that of any singer-songwriter, easily the equal of Paul Simon, Tom Waits, or Leonard Cohen at his peak, I have been sadly remiss in giving his oeuvre my serious attention since, oh, about Spike.  Featuring two of the Attractions, this song is a plea to someone addressed as "my lovely hooligan" to help the narrator see the world in a more positive light.  "Well, I was a gloomy soul, never thought I see a brighter day / The dark interior blows those silver clouds away."  If it isn't exactly a return to the jittery ferocity of his New Wave, Angry Young Man earliest material (and why would it be?), Costello sounds as energetic and inspired as he did on the sublime King of America, and that's a great thing.

Harrisburg - Josh Ritter

Harrisburg - Josh Ritter

3:55

Golden Age Of Radio, 2002

Written on Josh Ritter

This is a dark ballad, with all the elements of outlaw Americana: a figure leaving his family, a small town, a train, the devil, Heaven, train tracks.  "Some say that man is the root of all evil / Others say God's a drunkard for pain / Me, I believe that the Garden of Eden / Was burned to make way for a train."  Ritter delivers the fatalistic, almost Scriptural lyric with a nasal drone.  The melody is simple, except for a melancholy mandolin break in the middle.

Jenny And the Summer Day - The Avett Brothers

Jenny And the Summer Day - The Avett Brothers

4:15

Country Was, 2002

Written by the Avett Brothers

An acoustic ballad about being in love, young and "just out of school."  The narrator imagines just lying around, going swimming, and wanting to do anything you can for the object of your affections.  "I have a car, I have a dime / Baby, Baby / I know that won't buy anything / But I would steal you anything."  I like the way he sings baby: "beh-bay."  It's raw, it's emotional, the vocals hit some high notes to prove their passion.  Interestingly, nowhere does the song imply that the titular Jenny loves the narrator back, or is even present.  He tells her that she could go swimming, even though she's afraid to swim.  He tells her about his house in Carolina "where we can see the stars at night."  But we never hear Jenny herself.  Nor can the narrator.  "And baby I can almost hear you say / That you love me."

No Children - The Mountain Goats

No Children - The Mountain Goats

2:48

Tallahassee, 2002

Written by John Darnielle

One of the most blackly funny breakup songs ever recorded ("I hope that our few remaining friends / Give up on trying to save us / I hope we come up with a failsafe plot / To piss off the dumb few that forgave us.")  This song feels like it was written by someone drowning in poison and laughing about it. Over a bright, perky piano and upbeat strumming, Darnielle spits apocalyptic nihilism with a grin: "I hope you die / I hope we both die." It's a song about mutual destruction, sung as if it's a jaunty campfire tune. That contrast — the bouncy melody versus the scorched-earth lyrics — is exactly the Mountain Goats' magic trick.  The narrator and his partner are long past reconciliation, reveling in their shared misery like doomed lovers in a cheap motel. "I am drowning / There is no sign of land," he declares, sounding more defiant than defeated. Darnielle's voice strains and cracks, but the delivery is gleeful, an exorcism by singalong.  It's a portrait of broken love at its ugliest and most honest.

A Jackknife To a Swan - Mighty Mighty Bosstones

A Jackknife To a Swan - Mighty Mighty Bosstones
2:48
A Jackknife To a Swan, 2002
Written by Dicky Barrett, Tim Burton, Joe Gittleman

More rock than ska at this point in their career, the Bosstones here serve up a grim tale of urban violence, in which a woman is burned to death and a man, fleeing some predatory group of men, apparently runs into the path of a train.  The title evokes two types of diving, but the story makes the image more literal and visceral, as a harmless life is brutalized.  Apparently the events in the song are based on a real life incident in Boston, which (if true) makes me wonder why Barrett doesn't sound angrier.

Forget Me Nots - Hot Club Of Cowtown

Forget Me Nots - Hot Club Of Cowtown

3:18

Ghost Train, 2002

Written by Hot Club Of Cowtown

The narrator of the song has had it with false promises.  The addressee pays a lot of lip service to love, but nothing is behind them.  It's clear that presents and empty words don't cut it, so this person is being written off.  "Oh I’ve gone to the mountains, for violets and birds of paradise / But Forget-Me-Nots I’m skipping, hon, I’m leaving them behind."  This bluegrass-swing trio has been around for over 25 years, but I'd never heard of them.  Singer and fiddler Elana James has a beautiful voice, giving this kiss-off a sweet soudn that belies its ultimately sad tale.

Can't Stop - Red Hot Chili Peppers

Can't Stop - Red Hot Chili Peppers

4:29

By the Way, 2002

Written by Flea, John Frusciante, Anthony Kiedis, and Chad Smith

This funky nu-regaae, with fuzz petal effects on a clipped guitar riff and an archetypical Peppers beat, makes a case for being the Peppers' best song.  With its stuttering, staccato groove, it promotes a neo-stoner positive energy, with lyrics that are a little deep than they first appear.  "Can't stop the spirits when they need you / Mop tops are happy when they feed you / J. Butterfly is in the treetop / Birds that blow the meaning into bebop/"  I take this to refer to the positive vibes of the art and work of the Beatles, the environmentalist Julia Butterfly Hill, and Charlie Parker, respectively.  "This life is more than a read-through" is a good slogan, one that would fit on a bumper sticker, maybe not profound but effective.

Take It Off - the Donnas

Take It Off - the Donnas

2:41

Spend the Night, 2002

Written by Brett Anderson, Torry Castellano, Maya Ford and Allison Robertson

I like the Donnas.  Their brash, dumb, in-your-face pop-punk hits the same spot that Green Day did back in the 1990s.  This breakneck-paced song is from the point of view of a woman initiating an encounter.  "Stop staring at my D-cup / Don't waste time, just give it to me."  Riot grrrls don't act demure!  With a hard guitar riff, driving drum, and powerful vocals, this is a quick guilty pleasure of a song.

Make It Good To Me - Sharon Jones & the Dap-KIngs

Make It Good To Me - Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings

4:39

Dap-Dippin' With Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, 2002

Written by Bosco Mann

A slow-burn soul come-on.  The ultimate carpe diem, seize the moment song.  Over a chirping organ and pulsing horns, Jones sings it sultry, with some low and slow male chorus vocals behind her.  The narrator is brushing aside all fears of where you may have been, or what might happen tomorrow.  She doesn't want to hear any extenuating circumstances.  "Will you regret it tomorrow? / Tomorrow may not ever come / So you know you better make it good to me baby."

Don't Stop - The Rolling Stones

Don't Stop - The Rolling Stones

3:59

Forty Licks, 2002

Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards

This song is addressed to a love whose passion was one hot and fiery, maybe even dangerous, but whose love has grown cold.  "Don't you dump me on some dusty street / And hang me out to dry," he pleads.  As usual, Jagger's vocal delivery elevates the material: on paper it's a pretty by-the-numbers love song with an over-reliance on the title repeated as chorus, but he gives the words a cool mystery as the familiar Stones riffs chug along.

Domani smetto - Articolo 31

Domani smetto - Articolo 31

2:37

Domani smetto, 2002

Written by Articolo 31

Title trax!

An Italian rap band I discovered from the Masked and Anonymous soundtrack (they rapped "Like a Rolling Stone" in in Italian).  This song, whose title translates as "I'll stop tomorrow," has a more pop-rock edge to the rap, with the choruses being actually sung.  In fact, there's not much of a hard edge here; a bit like Smash Mouth than D12 or even Linkin Park.  The lyrics, which I translated, reveal an anti-authoritarian screed, not deeply political, more like on the level of Sum 41 maybe.  I dig it.