If its not a rhapsody, well it will just have to do...

An old friend of mine recently dropped her job, kidnapped her sister and set out on the open road. Traveling with little more than a working vehicle, a digital camera and a vague notion of where they'll sleep that night the two are making there way across the US. 

Music and long drives are like peas and carrots, so I figured I'd whip up a quick mix tape and email it over to them.  Considering I was choosing from the limited selection of music on my work laptop I was shocked at how much I liked the mix. Still it was missing something, and from there I couldn't help but think it needed some liner notes to be fully appreciated.  

My afternoon was ruined.

I clearly couldn't e-mail these notes to them.  It would have freaked them out. 

So I brought to migas.  For your listening enjoyment or fodder to mock, have at it: "Trip to Cleveland:  Road Daze Fall 2009 BFF"  along with some song notes, a couple good pieces of trivia and every overblown rock cliche this side of "sun drenched california psych pop"

Download zip file here: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/999987/No%20Trip%20to%20Cleveland.zip

Mendocino (1969)- San Antonio native Doug Sahm was originally signed to cash in on the popularity of british invasion bands. The marketing wizards came up with the name The Sir Douglas Quintet to give these Texans an air of aristocracy to match their regal sound. Sahm and the other blokes in the band headed to San Francisco in 1966, where for the only time in the city's history it was a cultural center, creating something on par with its physical beauty.  Even though SDQ was a center piece in the creation of the scene, Texas was never far from Sahm's heart and he returned to Texas in 1969.   But to show that it was nothing personal, Sahm penned this love letter to his adopted city.  Its hard to find a better example of the window between garage rock and psycadelic sounds.

Second Hand News (1970) This under-appreciated album opener provides a refreshing balance to the played to death tracks off of Rumors. Along with the jaunty acoustic guitar work and dynamic harmonies News stands alone atop an all too short list of catchy, not so subtle pop songs that address the mysteries and power of cunnilingus. 

40 Dogs Romeo and Juliet (2009) Austin native Bob Schneider has been ready to break it big for the past twenty years. Since his excellent Lonelyland the hardest working man on the third coast has been cultivating a sound that might best be described as what Jack Johnson would sound like if he wasn't so terrible. This latest single is more conservative than his previous efforts but brings it home with a snappy, fun, summer groove that makes you unashamedly crank up the volume, roll down the windows and get dirty to some good adult oriented rock.

40 Day Dream (2009) I was lucky enough to catch Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros during south by southwest. I left impressed and convinced that I had discovered something new. I soon learned that Columbus had already found them, and I was an old man.  Nonetheless, 40 day dream captures the organic, join the band, no shower no problem, hippie energy of the outfit.

Kick Drum Heart (2009)The Avett Brothers have caught some flack from fans for this faux lo-fi, new wavey cut on the otherwise sonically rich I and Love and You. I guess I can see that, but fuck it- the song makes me want to dance.

Borderline (2009) The Flaming Lips give this dance-hall classic a shot of ketamine chased with cough syrup. The hazy verses and droned out climaxes lead to Wayne Coyne's echo hall chorus and almost adds gravitas to what Madonna made sound like bubble gum.

Abandoned Love (1975)Widely bootlegged and revered by Dylan hardcores it took ten years for this song to surface on an official Dylan recording. Recorded in 1975 as his first marriage dissolved, this chestnut is as well written and fresh sounding as any of the material released while Dylan was busy inventing rock and roll a decade earlier.

Use Yr Love- (2007) KT Perry's classy cover of the Outfield 80's classic tale of guy who turns to a young impressionable girl for comfort while his current steady is out of town. Working with epic lines like "don't you know I like my girls a little bit older" Perry adds her own twist to this wholesome family favorite. Surprising fact: Along with their chosen handle, The Outfield expressed their love for america's pasttime in several different tracks.  The kicker?  They're limey's. 

The Man Behind the Drums (2009) Like the Grateful Dead, the ardor of Robert Earl Keen's hardcore fans results in him being dismissed by tastemakers.  But along with the glory of binge drinking, white hatted southern frat boys are right about this guy. REK is a serious songwriter who doesn't let that get in the way of having a great time. On this tribute to Levon Helm, Keen falls short of besting the Drive by Truckers's "Danko/Manuel" in the quest for the best song about The Band, but that's stiff competition and Man Behind the Drums serves as a worthy companion piece.

Midnight at the Movies(2009): Justin Townes Earle is able to play old time texas swing and not-nashville country music with an authenticity that so many alt-country bands feign. At least I think so, without a reference point I can only rely on the way his voice on this track melts me. The lyrics drip like honey through a light Texas-waltz and makes a lonesome activity turned casual encounter sound as American an outing as attending a high school football game.

Sugar (2009) : I know very little about Birmingham Alabama's Vulture Whale. Along with their btown brethren, The Dexateens, this band was recommended by the good folks over the Adios Lounge. Now there is a blog worthy of your eyeballs. Though postings have slowed, the recommendations and in depth studies of artists both new and old have been driving my music purchases for over a year now. So when Lounge Chief Proprietor LD raved that Sugar was what "pop music should sound like" I knew I had a safe bet.

Mother and Child Reunion (2007) Good piece of trivia. Paul Simon got the name for this song at a chinese restaurant where the menu featured an egg and chicken dish called the Mother and Child Reunion. I love that story.  But its only once and a while that you get shown the light in the strangest of places. The Morning Bendersfound their in a more familiar place- They set up a four track in their bedroom, recorded some of their favorite songs on whatever instruments were available and posted them on-line. This might be the best of "The Bedroom Covers" but its worth downloading here and judging for yourself.

Rhapsody (2001):While Alejandro Escovedo was awarded "Artist of the 90's" by No Depression in 1996, he created saved some of his best work for this 2001 release. I'm not sure if Rhapsody is the best song to post, but it has the rare quality of sounding familiar on the first listen but not derivative. For you fans of political miscellany  When informed that his rocker "Castanets" was on the jogging mix of President George Bush, Escavedo decided to stop playing the crowd favorite live.

Kingpin (1996):The opener at the first Wilco concert I saw has been my favorite Tweedy song ever since. Bob Egan's peddle steel makes its way inside of your body, slides under your spirits and wiggles them right on up to the top. .

The Weight- The best cover of the best song out there. Enjoy.

Tex Mex Mile (2009)- God bless the Gourds. The ever brilliant Kevin Russell captures the fun, slightly sloppy, irreverent essence of Americana at its finest. Originally titled the "Tex Mex, Tattoo Pakistani Package Mile" Russell turns the shady legal and illegal commerce between hookers, hippies and other undesirables into a romantic and joyous depiction of a South Austin that had changed long before I arrived.  Much like the South Congress streetwalkers described here, the Gourds "ain't good looking but they got that freaky style".

Comments

[Ryan]

Love the mixtape. Though hard to justify no THS.

[Bluetooth Johnson]

I haven't listened to this mix yet, but 2 things stand out. 1. The Aretha/Duane cover of the Weight might be the best cover of all time. When evaluating a cover song, one needs to ask the following questions:
a) Is it different than the original?
b) Was anything added?
c) Does Duane Allman play on it?
Answer to all three is yes. Anything Aretha sings can't be bad and is guaranteed to be different than The Band. Spice it up with the tasty slide licks, horns and back-up singers and it's a home run (my favorite part is the little horn fill, followed by "yeah yeah yeah!" into "catch me a cannon ball..." The 'Go down Moses' verse is also Aretha at her best. The best thing you could say about this or any cover is that you could put it and the original on a mix tape and you'd love listening to both back-to-back.
2. Bob Dylan invented rock and roll? Come on Randall, you're better than that. Bobby D was a fine songwriter, but rock and roll was already invented by the time he came around and I would say was largely unchanged by his presence. I would say that Bob Dylan is to music as Jack Kerouac is to literature. You just said that to make Ryan think you were cool.

[Powiz]

Great post! You should do this daily now that you've got the keyboard shortcut thing down....