You Got All The Love, Honey Baby, I Can Stand

Neko Case “Buckets Of Rain (Live In Austin)” – I saw Neko Case play a free show in Central Park on Friday night, and it was lovely. I haven’t spent very much time with Neko’s solo material, mainly because I’ve spent a lot of time thinking of her as being best-suited to being a weapon in Carl Newman’s pop arsenal, which I admit is a very ridiculous notion given her talent as a vocalist. The show made one thing very clear — I’d be happy to hear Neko Case sing just about anything. Her originals ranged between “quite good” and “just okay,” but the simple fact that she was singing made gave them all a significant boost, most especially this Bob Dylan cover that came towards the end of the main set. I could only half-remember “Buckets of Rain” — I knew I knew the song, but I was thoroughly stunned by Neko’s version, and suddenly quite desperate to find a recording. Luckily that wasn’t too hard. There’s a studio recording available, but despite including a very nice piano solo, it’s not quite as simple and gorgeous as this take from her live album, which has more or less the same arrangement as the show in Central Park. (Click here to buy it from Amazon.)

Michael Garrick Trio “Sketches Of Israel” – As I listen to this song, and as I write these words, it is raining in New York City. It’s dark and cool and the rain is coming down in heavy diagonal streams, hitting the ground with an even force that produces a perfect ambient hum of constant light percussion. I feel like I could just go back to sleep, or lie down on my couch and watch something stupid on television all morning, like a sick day from school. This music exacerbates the feeling with its gentle, fragile rhythm and slow, delicate melodies. It’s all in the details — the brief, soft series of staccato notes that indicate a moment of hesitation at the 1:03 mark, the way the trebly piano notes seem to burst into sparks around 2:36, and the way the bass solo pulls the composition closer to the earth near the end of the composition. (Click here to buy it from Trunk Records.)

Elsewhere: More discography blogs are popping up, including Solar Prestige a Gammon (Elton John), I Can’t Sing It Strong Enough (Pavement), Spring Sprang Sprung (T-Pain), Music From The Bachelor’s Den (Pulp).