This Random Weekend has become something of a theme weekend on its own, with the second quiet country ballad in a row popping up today. The melody of today’s song even sounds a lot like yesterday’s.
Lyle Lovett’s 2009 release, Natural Forces, is a collection of both Lovett originals and songs he covered by other Texas musicians, including Townes Van Zandt, Robert Earl Keen and other lesser-known songwriters.
One of the neat things about Random Weekends is happening upon songs that I’ve long ago forgotten I own.
Today’s track is a cut from Mary Chapin Carpenter’s 1990 album Shooting Straight in the Dark. It’s a lovely ballad about the end of a relationship, specifically the man’s apathetic reaction to his lover walking out on him.
I was all set to write that another previous weekend artist was showing up on Random Weekends, but then I realized Ben Folds hasn’t gotten the weekend treatment (yet).
I guess I just assumed he had because I’ve featured so many of his songs on the blog, including the entirety of his first album with Ben Folds Five.
Brad Paisley, who had his own weekend series, has decided to make an appearance on Random Weekends.
Today’s song is from Paisley’s fifth album, 2008’s 5th Gear, and it is not a favorite of mine. That album, in general, represents something of a slump for Paisley, falling between his four best records — Mud On the Tracks and Time Well Wasted on the one side and American Saturday Night and This is Country Music on the other.
When a random dip into 10,515 songs turns up a track from Madman Across the Water, arguably Elton John’s best album, something is going right.
In addition to the apocalyptically awesome title track, this album features ‘Tiny Dancer’ and ‘Levon’ — that trio alone qualifies it for the pantheon. I’ll admit I’m not as familiar with the other six tracks, including today’s SOTD.
Meet Me In Montauk 