I’ve been working on some pretty disparate playlists this month, from 554 problem, a glitch-pop and indie mix, to 556 good intentions, ten of my favorite rap/R&B songs in the recent weeks. 555 don’t pretend leans heavily in the folk direction, a return to my home base, a palate cleanser, if you will.
I’ve chosen some of my longtime favorites for today’s issue, starting with Andrew Bird. The first song of his that I ever heard was “Simple X” from his album Armchair Apocrypha (2007). Andrew Bird has been a giant in the indie folk space since the leak of this record in January 2007. When it was finally released in March, it sold over 100,000 copies.
Bird is known for his live shows, in which he utilizes loop pedals to create lush instrumentation by himself. He whistles, plays violin, and sings. It’s amazing to watch him keep it all straight in his mind, play the parts in time so that they layer perfectly. This video of him performing “Simple X” at Bonaroo from 2006 showcases his ability to multitask and still sound better than the record.
“Manifest” is one of the most popular songs from My Finest Work Yet (2019). It features Madison Cunningham on backing vocals; their voices blend so well that she sings harmonies on most of the album and often performs with Bird live. This cover of Cate Le Bon’s “Are You With Me Now?” is sublime—Madison’s precise guitar playing coupled with Andrew Bird’s prodigious fiddling would be enough, but on top of that they can both sing. “Manifest” is a great example of the superb nature of their collaboration; the song was recorded live to tape, as was the whole record. The song sounds that good in a single take.
The song speaks to a disaster anxiety in a world that seems not to care:
I'm starting to question my manifest destiny
My claim to this frontier
I'm coming to the brink of a great disaster
End just has to be near
The earth spins faster, whistles right past you
Whispers death in your ear
Don't pretend you can't hear
Andrew Bird’s presence in the folk community has changed it for the better; his collaborative work has connected many artists: Esperanza Spalding, The Mountain Goats, Thao and the Get Down Stay Down, My Morning Jacket. His work with all these artists has been consistently innovative and good. He has multiple versions of the song out—this duet with Erika Wennerstrom that features a really good guitar line and this quintet version. He’s known for reworking his own work, always to the benefit of the piece.
I first heard about Blake Mills as the touring guitarist for Jenny Lewis of Record Store lore. He toured with Fiona Apple and opened for her in 2012. He was later nominated for a Producer of the Year Grammy for his work on the landmark Alabama Shakes record Sound & Color (2015). He even played guitar on the Andrew Bird album Are You Serious (2016).
I love his solo work, especially that of his self-titled album: “It’ll All Work Out,” “Hiroshima,” and “Wintersong” are some of my favorites. There’s a video of him performing “Wintersong” inexplicably in France with Jesca Hoop. “Hey Lover” features a female vocalist, which it turns out is Danielle Haim. The song is also about her, because she used to date Blake Mills… this stories of man’s reach just get wilder.
I’m just going to touch on Jeff Tweedy, because I want to mention his Substack, Starship Casual. I’ve been really enjoying his demos in my inbox every few days, as well as his short dispatches regarding life on tour or musings on memory. I love it when my favorite musicians start Substacks; The Lung by Neko Case and The Melting by Patti Smith are particularly good ones. I’ll take more time later to write about Jeff as an artist, separate from Wilco, and a fascinating personality, but for now, I’ll simply leave you with some background on this record: Sukierae (2014) is named after Jeff’s wife and is the collaboration effort of Jeff Tweedy and his son Spencer. Can you think of something more wholesome and good than that? I sure can’t.