Monthly Archives: March 2010

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Song of the Day #593: ‘Clutch’ – Shea Seger

Here’s one for the “where are they now?” file. Of course, nobody really knew where Shea Seger was then either. Then would be 2001, when she released her first (and only) album, The May Street Project.

Seger is an interesting mix of a Norah Jones-style balladeer and a hip-hop sensibility. She strikes me as a more accessible version of Ani DiFranco or Tori Amos, which if you think about it is a really great thing to be. I don’t know if I can think of anybody recording today who fits that niche. The May Street Project was well-received critically and Seger had a minor hit with today’s SOTD.

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Song of the Day #592: ‘The Road to Ensenada’ – Lyle Lovett

Last September, during a Lyle Lovett theme week, I singled out one song from his album The Road the Ensenada and promised to highlight two other songs — the album’s best — on future dates. I fulfilled half of the promise in November, when I featured ‘Her First Mistake‘ as a Song of the Day. Today I complete the mission.

For my money, the title track of The Road the Ensenada is possibly the finest song Lovett has ever written, and among the finest I’ve ever heard. That’s high praise for a relatively simple song but Lovett is no stranger to high praise, at least from this corner.

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Song of the Day #591: ‘Rock With You’ – Michael Jackson

I was listening to Off the Wall the other day, and especially digging this song. The album isn’t quite the equal of Thriller but it’s a terrific funk/pop record.

Started wondering what ever happened to Michael Jackson. He just sort of disappeared after Dangerous.

Turns out he died last year. How did I miss that? Must have been drowned out by all the coverage of Farrah Fawcett’s passing.

I salute you, Jacko! You will be missed.

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Song of the Day #590: ‘London Bridges’ – Josh Rouse

Josh Rouse kept up his ‘one album per year’ pace and released Country Mouse City House in 2007. The album picked up where Subtitulo left off, both thematically and musically, and for my money it’s the first Rouse release that suggests he’s treading water.

That perception won’t last, however, as I’ve just read about Rouse’s next album, due out in March of this year. It’s called Turista and based on the clips I’ve heard, he has now had enough time to immerse himself in his Spanish surroundings that it’s showing up in big ways in his music.

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Song of the Day #589: ‘It Looks Like Love’ – Josh Rouse

Josh Rouse spent the year after Nashville‘s release in Spain, where he moved in with girlfriend Paz Suay. So the Nebraska boy who made his name in Nashville was suddenly a Spaniard.

His next release, 2006’s Subtitulo, reflected the move in its lyrics as well as, to some degree, its music. The album is predominantly made up of Rouse’s brand of smart acoustic pop but he introduced a few Latin flavors, including Suay’s charming vocals on one track.

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