My family is embarking on our annual summer trip this week, starting in Seattle, ending in Portland, and exploring the coasts of Washington and Oregon in between.
Over the next couple of weeks, my Songs of the Day (posted without comment) will feature artists who hail from first Seattle and then Portland. Enjoy, and see you on the other side!
The Random iTunes Fairy is at it again, giving us a Beck twofer this weekend. Today’s track is a deep cut from the 2005 album Guero, Beck’s best-selling release in the 26 years since the multi-platinum Odelay.
Guero reunited Beck with producers The Dust Brothers, who worked on Odelay, and the album has a similar alt-hip-hop vibe. Today’s track features Jack White on bass, and was co-written with White and the Dust Brothers.
The second single from Beck’s 2008 album Modern Guilt, ‘Gamma Ray’ sounds like the ghost of a long lost surf rock song.
Beck followed Modern Guilt six years later with the wonderful Morning Phase, a spiritual sequel to 2002’s Sea Change that was a surprise Album of the Year winner at the 2015 Grammys.
I’ve come to the end of my Bob Marley deep dive but still have one day left in the week, so I’m going out with a live performance of one of Marley’s most-loved tunes. Enjoy!
Yesterday’s album, Bob Marley’s 13th, wraps up my deep dive into the catalog of one of popular music’s most inspirational talents. Marley defined an entire musical genre, crafted songs recognized all over the world, and spread a message of love, peace and social justice during a career that spanned little more than a decade.
It’s hard to imagine what the Bob Marley legacy would look like if he wasn’t taken away at just 36 years old. Consider the wealth of material he would have created over the last 40 years, and the impact he would have had on the world, culturally and politically.
Meet Me In Montauk 