JANGLE ON!
NOVEMBER
by Eric Sorensen
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Our recent “confused” weather has stabilized in favor of the traditional mild autumn weather that the mid-Atlantic is known for. Soon, daylight savings will shorten our sunny afternoons – giving me more time to focus on indoor activities like music. This past month has featured “old friends” and some new artists/titles to enjoy. This month’s jangly recommendations incude:
X – Richard X. Heyman. Somewhere in Manhattan – in a small apartment that he shares with his wife Nancy Leigh, a number of rescue cats and a fabulous collection of guitars – dwells one of the most talented power pop artists in the universe, Richard X. Heyman. X is just the latest evidence that singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Heyman can record a superb power pop album whenever his muse moves him. Even though jangly, chiming guitars may not be prominent in the fifteen tracks on his latest release, there is always a Rickenbacker 12-string (albeit muted) in the instrument mix. Few solo artists can achieve the well-crafted “wall of sound” that Heyman does. Although I do have some favorite tracks on X, it is another Heyman release that merits a start-to-finish listen. Long may you run, Sir Richard!
Phantom Train – the Bongos. Here’s a mid-80s album that has been re-mastered and released as a testament to the great power pop scene in Hoboken/NYC during the skinny tie era. “River To River” and “Tangled In Your Web” have that strummy sound that the Feelies (later Wake Ooloo) were known for. If you order this disc from Kool Kat Musik, you will also get a bonus disc of unreleased material. Thanks to all who had a hand in resurrecting this material from its tape format and digitizing the contents for a contemporary audience.
Half-Remembered Dream – Dot Dash. I am pretty sure that I saw Dot Dash at a live outdoor festival in the D.C. area during the past few years. This band’s penchant for chiming guitars will always attract my ear. The group’s latest release features jangly tracks like “Shopworn Excuse,” “The Sound In The Shells,” “11th Hour” and “Unreal.” It’s nice to know that catchy power pop is still alive and well in the greater D.C. area.
My “Song of the Month” honors go to “Feels So Right” by Matt Wertz. This song was released in 2011, but I did not hear it until earlier this month as I was walking through the hallways in a Crystal City office complex and it was being played on the building sound system. I did some INTERNET research and tracked the song down. This is one of those snappy short pop songs that you can’t let go of. I hit the “repeat” button often after listening to this excellent song!
In the “old friends” category is Horsebreaker Star – the 1995 full-length album by Grant McLennan. One of the finest Byrdsian tracks ever recorded – “Dropping You” – was the highlight of this terrific album. “Open My Eyes” and “Girl In A Beret” were two other classic jangly songs on this album. Sadly, McLennan passed away in 2006, but he left the power pop community with a timeless album to remember him by.
I was lucky enough to be among the small group of power pop enthusiasts who subscribed to the Pop Geek Heaven 80 CDR special offer several months ago, and I have been enjoying the obscure, unreleased and rare tracks that Bruce Brodeen has been sharing with his special offer subscribers on a super-limited basis to dozen or so pop fans. Many of the tracks on these CDRs have been included in my monthly Jangle Pop compilations. Nuggets from the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and the current millennium have been featured on the discs I have received to date – including a cool cover of the Byrds’ “It Won’t Be Wrong” by the Teenmakers. It’s nice to know that chiming, jangly guitars continue to find a home in pop music, long after John Lennon and George Harrison first popularized Rickenbacker guitars.
Until next time, jangle on!
ERIC
