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Song of the Day #6,221: ‘Peg’ – Daniel Gallup

Today is a special occasion here on Meet Me in Montauk, as frequent commenter (and my dear mother) Peg is turning 80. I could opine for hours about how caring, smart, and funny she is, but instead I’ve decided to turn today’s entry over to four people who know that firsthand: her grandchildren.

Her youngest grandkids (and my daughters) Fiona and Sophia wrote the rest of today’s blog entry, while their cousin Daniel wrote and performed the song (with an assist from Steely Dan), and Daniel’s older sister Madison created the accompanying video. Enjoy!

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Song of the Day #6,220: ‘How Bad Do U Want Me’ – Lady Gaga

I haven’t paid much attention to Lady Gaga’s music since 2011’s Born This Way, and apparently I’m not alone.

After the multi-Platinum success of 2008’s The Fame and Born This Way, Gaga saw diminishing returns for her next few albums. That included 2016’s Joanne, a move away from dance pop to soft rock. She also recorded and toured classic tunes with Tony Bennett and launched a decent acting career.

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Song of the Day #6,219: ‘Gravelweed’ – Jason Isbell

Jason Isbell has quietly become one of the most reliable and talented singer-songwriters working today. For two decades, the native Alabaman has filtered his highs and lows through his distinctly southern perspective and set them to heart-tugging melodies.

His latest album, Foxes in the Snow, is his tenth. Every one of those solo studio releases is somewhere between great and excellent. If you’ve never heard him, start from the beginning and work your way through. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

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Song of the Day #6,218: ‘What Was That’ – Lorde

Like Haim, Lorde has taken a long break between albums. Her third effort, Solar Power, came out in 2021.

That folk pop record was a departure from her usual sound, and it was met with a lukewarm response both critically and commercially. I was one of the detractors, finding it a rather dull follow-up to 2017’s excellent Melodrama.

Now she’s back, having nursed the wounds of Solar Power‘s reception, with Virgin, an album that finds her back in the synth-pop groove of her early work.

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Song of the Day #6,217: ‘Down to be wrong’ – Haim

The Los Angeles sister trio Haim is back with their fourth album, I quit. This is their first release since 2020’s Women in Music Pt. III, a record I really loved.

This album comes on the heels of a break-up that had both personal and professional ramifications. Lead singer Danielle split from longtime boyfriend Ariel Rechtshaid, who was also a producer and co-writer on the band’s first three albums. That makes I quit a potent break-up album as well as a (relatively) new sonic direction for Haim.

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