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Everyday I Write the Book – Elvis Costello (1983)

Today, Elvis Costello is considered an important and influential figure in the history of popular music; 35 years ago he started out playing in British pubs known as the skinny guitar player with glasses and the funny voice who looked like a computer programmer (which he was at one point). The music he was making helped him find a comfortable home within the punk and new wave scene that was emerging in the late 70’s and that paved the way for a unique career that has seen him tip toe the line between the mainstream music fan and the indie music snob. Into the 80’s he had a huge hit with the song Veronica (co-written by some dude named Paul who was in a band called the Beatles) which brought him an entirely new audience (which many of his original fans hated), and of the more than 30 albums he has released over the course of his career he has been able to find different pockets of fans with each group of songs he has released; we are talking about a guy who has recorded songs by Merle Haggard, collaborated with Burt Bacharach and performed with the Beastie Boys. Of course most recently he has become a TV star as the host of Elvis Costello Spectacle, in which if anything, you get to witness the respect he has from other musicians. I watched a taping of his interview with Bono and The Edge and the U2 guys were like two Trekkies being interviewed by Leonard Nimoy. He has just released a new album called National Ransom produced by T-Bone Burnett that I haven’t managed to get to yet, however, on the topic of his music you can’t really go wrong with any Costello track but I’m gonna go with an obvious one because it’s awesome.

Goddess on the Prairie – Hot Hot Heat (2010)

In 2001 everybody was talking about Victoria BC’s Hot Hot Heat and in 2002, along with a record deal from Sub Pop, they came to Halifax to play the Halifax Pop Explosion where in the shelter of a covered outdoor motel hallway I interviewed them under a crying sky. I’ll never forget this interview because I remember asking them: “What would you say to someone who suggested that you can’t look cool in a rock band playing a keyboard?” to which singer Steve Bays answered “I would ask them if they have ever heard of Emerson Lake and Palmer”-which I though was a fantastic answer. By 2003 they seemed poised to take over the world and then their song “Bandages” became one of a group of songs banned from UK radio because of the War in the Middle East, and you KNOW if someone sings the word “bandages” it HAS to be about war, right? Anyway, this potentially stopped that song from becoming a monster hit for them when it stalled around #25, and who knows what that could have snowballed into. Since that time they have continued to make music, did some record label shuffling, some bass player shuffling, spent a couple years building a studio, making a new record and now are supporting their latest album called “Future Breeds”. Yes, the Killers, Metric, Arcade Fire and Vampire Weekend are kings of the indie rock heap (puke I hate when people say indie rock; for the love of God, give it a category! Call it something!), but Hot Hot Heat were part of this scene/sound when it was just beginning to creep into our consciousness.

Tomorrow – Julie C (2010)

Sometimes music finds you in strange ways. I’m just finishing a book called “Bob Marley: The Untold Story” by Chris Salewicz which led me to some googling of a record label called Tuff Gong which was formed in 1970 by the Wailers (because I craved more knowledge!). The strange thing is however, it led me in a completely different direction; the Tuff Gong recording studio still exists in Jamaica and I found out that a singer from Montreal named Julie C recently did a remix of one her songs there and it’s called “Tomorrow”. The original version is pretty cool complete with a video paying homage to Bob Dylan’s Subterranean Homesick Blues, but you have to hear the Tuff Gong Reggae Remix.

Low Rising – The Swell Season (2009)

Eric Clapton famously said that the second he heard The Band, he stopped making music with Cream; that’s how good The Band was to his ears (he also tried to get into the group at one pint). Now I will admit there have been a few times I’ve felt so inspired by an artist or a song that it immediately made me want to pick up a guitar, but when I saw The Swell Season live I knew what Clapton must have been feeling. Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová with an acoustic guitar and piano, as a duo, are more powerful than most full bands I have seen….and it doesn’t hurt that the songs are amazing. I could go on and on about the history of this duo, the story they created and lived since the movie “Once” or Glen’s musical life in the band “The Frames” and how that band’s T-shirt ended up in Pulp Fiction but I will leave it at this; anyone who only knows this duo because of their Oscar winning song “Falling Slowly” should start digging, and thank me later.

I Never Cared for You – Willie Nelson (1998)

Hello, my name is Matt Wells, and I’m a Willie Nelson-oholic. I’ve read the “Tao of Willie”; I used to quote it every week on TV for Christ’s sake, gems like what Willie says about water and how important it is to the body: “You can’t make a turd without grease.” Health matters aside, I also listen to everything he says musically and would need a book to try and explain why I think he is so great but that is not my goal here; my goal is to try and convert anyone who hasn’t given Willie a chance. For a second don’t think about your grandfather’s country albums Willie Nelson, let me take you back to 1998 to the Daniel Lanois produced album Teatro. For any skeptics this is a good place to either introduce yourself to Willie or re-introduce yourself to him. This album has no genre, it’s a beautiful meeting place between Willie Nelson, Latin inspired sounds, the angel voice of Emmylou Harris and some of the most perfect percussion and drumming you will ever hear. Just trust me. If you don’t like this song then you are dead inside.