October brings us lots of returning artists to the playlist. Beirut, Harry Nilsson, and the amazing Allison Russell are among the seven returnees we’ve got for you this month. This is might not the most cohesive collection we’ve presented. We don’t care. Here are eleven good songs for you…
Show notes from our October 2024 Spotify Podcast:
We started with Big Al’s ten submissions and Phoebe’s ten submissions, but our finished, 11-song playlist is put in an order that we think makes sense musically. Which is not same same order that we pick the songs during the picking ceremony heard during our podcast.
Song notes (Quotes are from song lyrics):
- “Listen. The sweet peals of moonlight-induced lovemaking on the streets tonight. Listen. The soft purr of motorbikes are ready to strike up the night alight”
black midi is back for a second visit. We decided that their “Welcome to Hell” is “catchy”! - “They call it night, they call it night, and I call it mine”
Beirut is also back for visit number two, but the first time since very early in our playlist history. Phoebe also found this great Reddit “Ask Me Anything” session that Zach Condon did in 2022 that’s worth a read! - “Said ‘Doctor, ain’t there nothin’ I can take?’, I said ‘Doctor, to relieve this bellyache?'”
And without further ado (but with considerable disclaimers), we tentatively and embarrassingly submit to you the odd, hilarious, and highly problematic Harry Nilsson video below. - “When’s a doll, doll, doll, not a doll, doll, doll? If you look hard then you will see.”
The Bookshop Band writes songs inspired by literature. They often perform in… bookshops! - “Her daddy got a big aeroplane, her mommy holds all the family cash, a beautiful blows, I stay at the corner, she is living in and out of tune”
CAN was a band that Al had never heard of. Phoebe’s vast musical knowledge comes through again! - “And if the bastards ever come, promise me you’ll take the kids and run, I may be weak and I may be frail, but I can throw them off your trail”
The Quiet Hollers’ “Mont Blanc” is just first rate songwriting, and the clip below is a rare case of us actually liking a music video. The vibe just suits the song so well. - “Every election feels like a perfect crime, like you could fool all the people all the time, they say the water isn’t rising, but your shoes are soaking wet”
Peter Mulvey has been in our playlist twice before as a member of the short lived but much loved Redbird. This is his first appearance as a solo artist though. Listen to the lyrics here. “29¢ Head” might be twenty years old, but it feels like it was written today. - “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could lay there, where the waves meet the rocks in wispy air?”
Lemoncello’s Laura Quirke has been with us once before, but she’s back with her duo-mate Claire Kinsella for the lovely “Mantlepiece”. - “I think I’ve grown a little thinner without you riding my coat tails, I would trade it in all again, for a nice stroll in your skin, just to cure what ails”
The early Shakey Graves song “To Cure What Ails” is his third appearance in our playlist. It might be our favorite of his. - “In a field full of ripe young flowers, why do you choose me? It’s almost like you’r trying to find something wrong with me.”
We’re so impressed with Marley Hale’s musical presence. “To Those at My Window” is her first appearance here. - “I made some choices, some were made for me, for the way I survive, I make no apology”
We both agree that Allison Russell is the standout of this playlist. If you get nothing else from us this. month, pay attention to “All Of The Women”.
Both our Spotify playlist and our podcast are updated and released around the first of each month. We’re recorded monthly in the warm and cozy hug of the OML Studios in lovely downtown Manchester, Richmond, Virginia.
Thanks to Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey for help in recording this month. Theme music is from “Red Eye” by E’s Jammy Jams, accordion music by Andrew Huang. Basketliner by Blue Dot Sessions. Trois Gnossiennes 3 by Blue Dot Sessions. Our Only Lark by Blue Dot Sessions. Lahaina by Blue Dot Sessions. Golden Grass by Blue Dot Sessions. Country Butter by Blue Dot Sessions.
Featured image: Fog. Big Meadows Campground, Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, USA.
If you have questions or suggestions, please drop us an email.
See you next month!
