Mike Doughty and Thin Lizzy (Phil Lynott is second from left)
Mike Doughty’s recommendation: “One of things that attracts me to Thin Lizzy is that I’m so moved by the life story of Phil Lynott, the singer, songwriter and bass player. His father was a black Guyanese guy that knocked up his Irish mom and split. He grew up a black kid in Dublin. Can you imagine how isolated that kid must’ve felt? Much of his work resonates with his very strong core of Irishness, which is poignant, given how he must’ve been taunted for his un-Irish appearance.
He’s a soulful, tortured singer, very Van-Morrison-influenced, which is really interesting, given Thin Lizzy’s solidly 70s-heavy-rock sound.
Phil Lynott died, in 1986, of septicemia – which, as far as I understand the Wikipedia entry, is basically an inflammation of every organ – brought on by a ruinous heroin and alcohol intake.
They weren’t, in my opinion, an album band – their strength was the live show. They have some amazing recordings – The Boys Are Back in Town, naturally, and Jailbreak, which has one of the most amazing, thick, rich, growly guitar sounds of all time.”
New to Thin Lizzy? Mike suggests you start here: “Actually, I’d recommend a newcomer a live album called Life/Live, a tossed-out end-of-career album. It’s slightly tricky to find–there’s a CD reissue, licensed by a small label, buyable online, but it wasn’t a particularly important album in their career.
It happens to be the first Thin Lizzy album I ever bought. I ordered it from the Columbia Records and Tapes Club as a 14-year-old, in 1985, not knowing anything about how the band sounded. Being a metal kid, it was way more soulful than anything I’d been listening to.
The cult of Phil Lynott is kind of hilarious. There is an incredibly ugly bronze statue of him standing outside a pub on Harry Street in Dublin. In fact, there is an astonishing range of bad portraits of him. As it happens, on my Tumblr, http://mkdo.co, I declared January of 2012 Bad Phil Lynott Art Month, and posted a horrible picture of him daily.
There’s a haunting connection in two of my favorite songs, Dancing in the Moonlight and Got to Give It Up. In the former, he’s a teenager staying out too late to meet a girl; one lyric is, “My father, he’s going crazy–he says I’m living in a trance.” The latter is a cry for help from a barstool, explicitly about how low he’s been brought (a hideous irony is that he introduces the tune on Life/Live with a whoohoo-is-anybody-drunk-out-there-tonight monologue). The first line is, “Tell my mother, and tell my pa, that their fine young son didn’t get too far.” So harrowing that he writes about a father that he never really had.”
About our guest author, Mike Doughty: Mike is currently a solo artist but most will remember him as the leader of Soul Coughing, a band that Doughty formed in 1992 and was deserving of Steve Almond’s praise of “making the most interesting music on the planet” for a number of years back in the ’90s. The band uniquely blended infectious grooves, jazz arrangements and, of course, Mike’s signature lyrics. There were alternative hits (Soundtrack to Mary and Super Bon Bon), albums and praise, but the group disbanded in 2000. After Soul Coughing, Mike hit the road on his own and was approached by Dave Matthews to sign to his ATO label. Fast forward several years and albums later, we find Mike still doing what he does best: releasing ultra-catchy records that are packed with his sly observations and playing those songs for adoring fans. His latest release, Yes And Also Yes is one of his best, and standout tracks Na Na Nothing (video below) and Holiday (What Do You Want) deserve massive repeats on your Spotify playlists. (Incidentally, the latter is duet with Roseanne Cash, who has been very vocal about being a big M. Doughty fan, listen to the track here). Mike has also written his first memoir, The Book of Drugs: A Memoir and the critics are raving. Popmatters.com says, “The reason why The Book of Drugs works is because it’s absolutely unflinching … A highly entertaining read … All in all, The Book of Drugs is an outstanding book.” Mike is out on the road supporting the album and the book, so be sure to visit http://www.mikedoughty.com/ to get the latest on his appearances and new releases.
Liam McCormick’s recommendation: “I love so many different kinds of music and so many different artists, that being asked to chose just one artist that moves me is an extremely hard task. Where does one start? I could talk about a number of well known artists like Miles Davis, Cursive, Claude Debussy, Kings of Convenience, Damien Rice, Feist, and so on, but I think it is more important to talk about an artist that is less known, that deserves recognition. So, my band of choice is a small group out of Stockholm called The Tiny.
One of my best friends is an amazing Swede named Lars, and because of our friendship I’ve had the privilege of being exposed to a ton of Swedish artists. Many of them are relatively unknown in the states. I first fell in love with The Tiny during a vacation in Ireland. We were driving through a dark, wooded area around the small western village of Innestoge when we decided to throw their debut album, Close Enough, on the stereo. As cliché as it sounds, as soon the first note was sung, time seemed irrelevant, like we were the only thing that mattered at that moment. Like we’d been plucked up out of our moving car and were being spoken to individually. We didn’t speak until about 15 minutes after the record finished, once we’d had time to process how the music mixed with the scenery had changed us.
Where do you begin with The Tiny? A small band of three, The Tiny carry a perfectly balanced sound. I guess I should start with their vocalist. There is something so hauntingly beautiful about Ellekari Larsson’s tone and delivery. If you’ve ever heard a Swede sing in English, the accent is amazing. It’s hard to place, sometimes sounding Irish in nature… but there is a clean, and trebly snap in the way they articulate words that make lyrics really hit you. Ellekari’s voice has a Billie Holiday-meets-Bjork tone quality, and she sings with such cautious passion that you can almost hear her heart breaking. Then, there are the equally amazing instrumentalists that help tell The Tiny’s stories. Ellekari plays piano and sometimes the pump organ, Leo Svensson plays the cello mainly, but has been also featured playing the glockenspiel and the saw, and finally, there is their double bassist, Johan Berthling. The record also features violin and viola on a few tracks.”
New to Tiny? Liam suggests you start here: “Due to their bass-heavy instrumentation, the music on Close Enough has an amazing tonal gap between the vocals and the instruments, which allows the listener to pick up every note that each player strikes. The album is recorded live, so there is a high level of musicianship exhibited by the band. Additionally, all of the clicks and breaths that are usually removed from the final product are left untouched, which makes the songs sound extremely vulnerable and organic. It is dramatic music like this – music that takes me to another place or time – that truly enables me to write the music that I write. Listen to The Tiny while driving at twilight and try not to skip any tracks. You won’t regret it.”
About our guest author, Liam McCormick: Liam is the lead singer for The Family Crest, a West Coast collective that takes a unique stab at making music. Liam started the group on 2007 with the idea of making music with virtually anyone, anywhere. Recording sessions take place in bars, churches, streets and other unconventional locations and session players include friends, fans, non-musicians…anyone who happens to be in the right place at the right time. The resulting lineup has swelled to over two hundred and fifty ‘Extended Family Members’ participating in recordings, live performances, and media projects. The songs are full sounding and expertly orchestrated, making best use of every stringed melody and back up holler. Bay Bridged recently said of the band, “…they take their earnest, anthemic cue from The Arcade Fire, but the presence of so many string and wind instruments and the talents of frontman Liam McCormick put them on a unique frequency.” The media has latched on to the group, helping fuel a series of sold out club shows and landing them a live performance on KEXP in Seattle. The buzz is sure to continue to build as the group is gearing up for SXSW and will release their new album, The Village in March. Be sure to check the The Crest Family website for pre-order info for that record, tour dates and more.
Keith Zarriello’s recommendation: “I am deeply moved by the music of Nina Simone. From the first time I heard her voice I was paralyzed. I will never hear another voice like hers for the rest of my life. She doesn’t get enough credit for being a true revolutionary. I think you could make an argument she was the first punk. She was so bad ass and yet so beautiful and vulnerable at the same time. Every cover she did became her own.”
New to Nina Simone’s music? Keith suggests you start here: “Nowhere is this more evident than on her live album, Nina Simone At Town Hall. It combines everything I love – the 1950′s (recorded in ’59), New York City and of course Nina herself.”
About our guest author, Keith Zarriello: Keith is the co-lead of The Shivers, the Queens based band that proves that all great indie music from New York doesn’t have to come out of Brooklyn. Classically trained church organist Jo Schornikow joined Zariello six years ago and since then the band has won praise from Pitchfork and The Guardian (UK) and has earned tour spots with big names like M. Ward and Deer Tick. With four solid records under their belt, The Shivers recently travelled to the UK to record their personal best collection, More in, get this, AN ALL ANALOG STUDIO (sorry, Pro Tools). Producer Adam Lasus (Yo La Tengo, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Helium) helped create an ultra-warm album that showcases both up-tempo hum-alongs (Used To Be) and brooding ballads (More, below). So go ahead and one-up your Brooklyn buddies. Support Queens, support The Shivers and check the dates for their live shows here.
Alina Simone’s recommendation: “I love Daniel Johnston. I spent three years living in Austin when his cassette tapes were still on sale for three dollars next to the cash registers of most of the record stores in town. One of the tapes I bought then, Yip Jump Music, lives in a little portable tape player I bought for this express purpose. His music manages to combine the pop genius of Beatlesque melodies with the heart-clawing rawness of outsider art. Lately I’ve been listening a lot to Rocket Ship. I love the chilling falsetto of Johnston’s voice, the way he pumps the chord organ propulsively to build the tension as we approach lift-off, and the glorious, sloppy, shimmering mess of the last verse, “The stars are blurry, we’re going fast!” The whole thing is more like an audio poem, the words anthropomorphized by the quaver in Johnston’s voice and the klang of the cheap air organ keys hitting the baseboard. As a singer, my chief concern is always, “How do I make people FEEL something? How can I make every note interesting and every word matter?” I never want to just coast through a song. I hate “mellow.” I want the tension strung like a tight wire. It’s a reason to love my music or hate it. Daniel achieves this seemingly effortlessly. We are with him in that rocketship. And even if it’s made of cardboard and the controls are nothing but a string of christmas lights, we’re taking off.”
About our guest author, Alina Simone: We learned about Alina Simone from our long time friends at Donewaiting.com and shame on us for not hearing about her sooner. This Brooklyn based indie wonder made USA Today’s Top 100 People List in 2008 and from there the praise just kept on a-comin’. Her 2008 release Everyone Is Crying Out To Me, Beware snagged 3 1/2 stars from Spin Magazine and landed on Yahoo Music and The Huffington Post’s best music of the year lists. Her new record, Make Your Own Danger has perked up the ears of Pitchfork who praised her as ‘…always being on the verge of blowing up’ and secured a solid 7.2 rating. And if all the acclaim for Alina’s music wasn’t enough, she is also getting attention in the literary world for her collection of essays, You Must Go and Win. Be sure to check Alina’s site for Summer tour dates.
Archer Prewitt’s recommendation: “I was tempted to break it to you all about the Chicago soul genius that was Curtis Mayfield, but I have to assume that you already have a good deal of his remarkable output. No, I’m going to have to go for a living Chicago genius right now. Liam Hayes. He is Plush. And I cannot recommend enough his first full-length record, More You Becomes You. This is his voice and piano with a touch of French horn, and it is a thing of beauty. Recorded by Steve Albini, Konrad Strauss and Bob Weston in 1998, at a few different locations – it clocks in at under a half hour. A real stunner. It slows your heart. Intoxicating. The coloration of these timeless melodies could only be realized and brought to life by this strange man out of time. He deeply feels this music. This record is a gift. I’ve always been drawn to and fascinated by albums that are thematically consistent: Birkin’s/Gainbourg’s Di Doo Dah, Drake’s Pink Moon, Gaye’s What’s Going On, Davies’ Instinct, Evans’ Moonbeams, Sinatra’s In The Wee Small Hours, Morrison’s Veedon Fleece, Mitchell’s For The Roses, Wilson’s Pet Sounds, Mayfield’s There’s No Place Like America Today, and the list goes on. This is not to say that Hayes’ other records aren’t perfect as well. They are – full of rich ideas and crystal-clear orchestrations that shift restlessly. Ambitious and disarmingly intimate. You can feel the struggle of their necessary birth! But, I have to say, this is the one that consistently moves me. A genuine classic, dammit!”
About our guest author, Archer Prewitt: Where to start when talking about Archer Prewitt? Before you even talk about his music career, you can rave about his other artistic outlet, his Sof Boy comic book which is quite the rage in Japan. Archer’s art work has also been published in McSweeney’s comic collection and in Chicago Quarterly. But let’s talk music, shall we? Those familiar with the Chicago indie scene may remember Archer as a co-founder of The Coctails. Archer has since released a bunch of albums and an EP as a solo artist, but he is also a member of the jazz-pop-rock-Brazllian-electronic supergroup, The Sea and Cake. The band wrapped opening for Broken Social Scene in 2010 and released their ninth album, The Moonlight Butterfly in 2011. The band is already hard at work on their next album which is expected to be released by early 2012. Follow news about the band here.
Sam Sprague of The Donkeys and The Flamming Groovies
Sam Sprague’s recommendation: “A band The Donkeys really love is The Flamin’ Groovies. Especially fond of the early Roy Loney era records. The Groovies really proved that it’s okay to span all type of genres in music, something The Donkeys really appreciate because all four of us write songs which in turns brings alot of diversity. But enough about us. The Groovies are a Rock n Roll monster. They are just so fun and excting. So many bands forget that Rock n Roll should have a lighter side. The Groovies write such amazing songs. And they just are a kick ass tight machine. Sneakers, Super Snazz, Flamingo, Teenage Head. You can’t go wrong. Teenage Head was the first one I got. I can’t believe these guys weren’t as big as The Rolling Stones. I love and appreciate all their records. I think Norton has re-released some of the early albums. Grab ‘em up and Bam-A-Lam all night long!”
About our guest author, Sam Sprague: Sam is the drummer and lead singer of The Donkeys, a band that Rocktorch learned about from, you guessed it, an artist recommendation. Craig Finn of The Hold Steady was asked during the Jim Beam Music Series who the best kept secret in music is and Craig chose The Donkeys. We snagged up their CDs and found one treasure after another. Each album is stocked with laid back tunes that would get thumbs up from Gram Parsons, Wilco and Pavement fans alike, but their appeal easily can spread beyond the alt/alt-country sphere. Are The Donkeys alternative? Country? 70′s throwbacks? We’d say yes to all and just add that this is simply good music that has to be heard. Be sure to catch The Donkeys on tour and pick up their latest album, Born With Stripes.
About our guest author, Mike Doughty: Mike is currently a solo artist but most will remember him as the leader of Soul Coughing, a band that Doughty formed in 1992 and was deserving of Steve Almond’s praise of “making the most interesting music on the planet” for a number of years back in the ’90s. The band uniquely blended infectious grooves, jazz arrangements and, of course, Mike’s signature lyrics. There were alternative hits (Soundtrack to Mary and Super Bon Bon), albums and praise, but the group disbanded in 2000. After Soul Coughing, Mike hit the road on his own and was approached by Dave Matthews to sign to his ATO label. Fast forward several years and albums later, we find Mike still doing what he does best: releasing ultra-catchy records that are packed with his sly observations and playing those songs for adoring fans. His latest release, Yes And Also Yes is one of his best, and standout tracks Na Na Nothing (video below) and Holiday (What Do You Want) deserve massive repeats on your Spotify playlists. (Incidentally, the latter is duet with Roseanne Cash, who has been very vocal about being a big M. Doughty fan, listen to the track here). Mike has also written his first memoir, The Book of Drugs: A Memoir
, on the stereo. As cliché as it sounds, as soon the first note was sung, time seemed irrelevant, like we were the only thing that mattered at that moment. Like we’d been plucked up out of our moving car and were being spoken to individually. We didn’t speak until about 15 minutes after the record finished, once we’d had time to process how the music mixed with the scenery had changed us. 
About our guest author, Liam McCormick: Liam is the lead singer for 
. It combines everything I love – the 1950′s (recorded in ’59), New York City and of course Nina herself.”
About our guest author, Keith Zarriello: Keith is the co-lead of 
in, get this, AN ALL ANALOG STUDIO (sorry, Pro Tools). Producer Adam Lasus (Yo La Tengo, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Helium) helped create an ultra-warm album that showcases both up-tempo hum-alongs (Used To Be) and brooding ballads (More, below). So go ahead and one-up your Brooklyn buddies. Support Queens, support The Shivers and 
About our guest author, Alina Simone: We learned about Alina Simone from our long time friends at 
. This is his voice and piano with a touch of French horn, and it is a thing of beauty. Recorded by Steve Albini, Konrad Strauss and Bob Weston in 1998, at a few different locations – it clocks in at under a half hour. A real stunner. It slows your heart. Intoxicating. The coloration of these timeless melodies could only be realized and brought to life by this strange man out of time. He deeply feels this music. This record is a gift. I’ve always been drawn to and fascinated by albums that are thematically consistent: Birkin’s/Gainbourg’s Di Doo Dah, Drake’s Pink Moon, Gaye’s What’s Going On, Davies’ Instinct, Evans’ Moonbeams, Sinatra’s In The Wee Small Hours, Morrison’s Veedon Fleece, Mitchell’s For The Roses, Wilson’s Pet Sounds, Mayfield’s There’s No Place Like America Today, and the list goes on. This is not to say that Hayes’ other records aren’t perfect as well. They are – full of rich ideas and crystal-clear orchestrations that shift restlessly. Ambitious and disarmingly intimate. You can feel the struggle of their necessary birth! But, I have to say, this is the one that consistently moves me. A genuine classic, dammit!”
About our guest author, Archer Prewitt: Where to start when talking about Archer Prewitt? Before you even talk about his music career, you can rave about his other artistic outlet, his 
was the first one I got. I can’t believe these guys weren’t as big as The Rolling Stones. I love and appreciate all their records. I think Norton has re-released some of the early albums. Grab ‘em up and Bam-A-Lam all night long!”
About our guest author, Sam Sprague: Sam is the drummer and lead singer of The Donkeys, a band that Rocktorch learned about from, you guessed it, an artist recommendation. 
