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.

Ran Away - Compound Red

Ran Away - Compound Red

3:43

The Center Never Moves, 1990

Written by Compound Red

This DIY band from Wisconsin broke up in 1999, and this song was only released on a cassette on no label, but thanks to the magic of Spotify, everyone around the world can enjoy its lo-fi ambition.  It's got a jangly, slightly dissonant post-punk that carries a whiff of early-90s slacker energy.  The production is strictly garage-level, but the attitude level is high.  The singer turns his high, strident voice into a punchy growl at the ends of the lines, the guitars shimmer, while the drummer is positively cracking away at the kit.

Ride the Storm - Toughcats

Ride the Storm - Toughcats
2:55

Woodenball, 2012

Written by Joe Nelson

With two male lead vocalists that provide soothing harmonies, and instrumentation with guitar and banjo, this Maine trio craft an eclectic mix of influences into a blend of bluegrass, thoughtful indie rock, and classic pop lines. This song is a reflective, low-tempo number reminding us to stay grounded in times of trouble ("Haul the anchor / From the floor / Hold your own / And ride the storm").  Nelson's simple guitar part provides a memorable, repetitive hook for the melody to latch onto, while drummer and vocalist Jake Greenlaw's powerful rhythmic backing provides a firm structure.

Rock & Roll Holiday - David Allan Coe

Rock & Roll Holiday - David Allan Coe

2:07

Longhaired Redneck, 1976

Written by David Allan Coe

A self-referential song about playing country when your spirit is rock and roll.  "My friends are dying to make rock and roll stand / While we've been living in a country rock band."  But their genre is not too dissimilar: "Tune up the fiddle, rosin the bow / We could be the only country band / On a rock and roll show."  The song mentions departed giants like Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, Hendrix and Joplin; Coe urges us (and himself) to slow down and not meet the fates of those who died too young, even while reminding his band, "We've got to get up, no time to hit up / There's another crowd waiting for the music to play."

Miss America - David Byrne

Miss America - David Byrne

4:20

Feelings, 1997

Written by David Byrne and Joe Galdo

Yesterday's entry left such a bad taste in my mouth that I had to try an American-themed song again.  This time, Byrne delivers a song from the point of view of an immigrant.  Over a Latin-tinged beat and steel drums, he presents an America that is both a "super girl" with a reputation and a conqueror and manipulator.  "And I kissed America / When she was fleecing me."  Pointedly slipping into Spanish, he later says, "I've always trusted you / I love America / Why do you treat me so?"  Altogether a much more nuanced and accurate view of America, warts and all.  Byrne's song even has the "I miss America" pun that the Castellows' does.  Whew, that's better.

Miss America - The Castellows

Miss America - The Castellows

3:31

single, 2024

Written by Nicolle Galyon, Will Bundy, Ellie Balkcom, Lily Balkcom and Powell Balkcom

The Castellows are a traditional country-bluegrass trio of sisters from Georgia. This song personifies America as a country girl who headed west, left her roots, "got Rocky Mountain high," and got a little gritty and dirty in the city. Then it laments How Things Used to be Better Before Something Undefinable But Probably Progressive Happened: "But I miss America, on her front porch / Before she ever had to lock her doors / When she was still outspoken / Back before her heart got broken." It's a nice image— a free-spirited Southern woman who's lost her way but might yet rediscover the identity she always meant to have. But beneath the lovely harmonies and nostalgic twang, it's uncomfortably close to hillbilly white-pride sentiment. And that "when she was still outspoken" line? People who long for a time before they had to worry about all those nasty immigrants never stopped speaking out. A deceptively pretty song, but really just a softer, subtler "Try That in a Small Town."

My Baby's Just Like Money - Lefty Frizzell

My Baby's Just Like Money - Lefty Frizzell

single, 1951

Written by Lefty Frizzell and Jim Beck

The sad-sack narrator of this song has some rather harsh words for his lady.  "it goes to show you're just like dough / The root of all evil / For money goes from hand to hand / And my baby goes from man to man."  Frizzell's vowel-bending, honky-tonk vocals fit this sad-sack's tale of woe.  On paper, it's rather judgmental, but in his voice, it comes off as at least a little self-deprecating and playfully scolding.  The music is pure old time country: steel guitar, fiddle, and low, brooding harmonica breaks sounding like a train whistle.

My True Story - The Jive Five

My True Story - The Jive Five

2:34

single, 1961

Written by Eugene Pitt, Oscar Waltzer, and Joe Rene

A soulful doo wop story-song about the sadness of unrequited love.  She loves him, he loves another.  "Love will make you happy / And love will make you cry / Love will make the tears fall / When your lover says goodbye."  This is a true story.  Only the names have been changed.  Eugene's heartfelt vocal, backed by the high, fluttering trills of the other Five, makes this song a tearjerker for all who have recently felt the sting of Cupid's mischievous arrow. 

My Silver Lining - First Aid Kit

My Silver Lining – First Aid Kit
3:35
Stay Gold, 2014
Written by Klara Söderberg and Johanna Söderberg

I was impressed with the First Aid Kit song I posted in June, so I've been exploring more of their catalog. This one's another gem — a meditation on accepting the world's worries and shackles while holding your course anyway. "There's no starting over / No new beginnings, time races on / And you've just gotta keep on keeping on." The song features a lush weave of classic country instrumentation and stirring string arrangements that match their otherworldly harmonies. The sound is alternately epic and soaring, with violin, drums, and guitar blending into an uplifting swell. It's a bit like Fleet Foxes, but with more drive and brightness — a fuller, more spirited sound that carries you away rather than lulls you to sleep.