Fill to me the parting glass
And drink a health whate'er befalls
Then gently rise and softly call
Good night and joy be to you all
1. Praise be. You have made it through to 2021 and it's a fine privilege to have you all back here for 7 more tracks which I feel are fitting for a brand new year which (lets face it) can't be much worse than the one we've just experienced. So what can we expect from The Barfly Sessions this year? I'm sorry but I don't rightly know the answer to that. Lets get it straight, there's no deep thinking behind this blog. After all, we're talking about a bespectacled fella playing songs from within his shed whilst having a drink and writing about them. MI5 need not worry about anything yet. I like what we do here though. I had a dream years ago that I owned a small cinema in my local town and I was pictured in the local paper whilst wearing a lovely purple jacket. No doubt I'd done something very important and inspiring to make the news. Sadly I've never owned a purple jacket (where do these dreams come from?) let alone a cinema (which if I DID I'd call a Picturehouse anyway so there) but I do have this legacy, sorry, BLOG and surely that counts for at least something. Right then, enough nonsense. Lets play our first song of two thousand and twenty one. It suits us perfectly as it's titled "The New Year" and it comes off a 2003 album called Transatlanticism but if I could draw your attention to the following lyrics which I love very much. "I wish the world was flat like the old days/Then I could travel just by folding a map/No more airplanes, or speed trains, or freeways/There'd be no distance that can hold us back." The way Ben Gibbard sings those last lines is... well just poignant isn't it? Much like that whole album come to think of it. Enjoy this one folks. It's really fantastic. Oh yes, I almost forgot... Happy New Year.
1. Death Cab For Cutie
The New Year
2. Late night tracks are a massive part of what this blog is all about. Whilst I love the idea that it's communal - and that's the big picture here - I am very much aware that our readers/listeners will be tuning in individually and I live in hope that least some of these songs can reach through and leave a more personal birthmark. Think of this blog as a launcher of emotional grenades. If just two or three hit target each month, I can call it a success. Our next song is definitely one I'd call a late night track so let's pull the pin on this one from 1963 and see if it leaves a mark. I'm confident it will. When Betty Harris sings "loneliness, loneliness" it's a game changer for me. The hiss and crackle of the needle only adds to the majesty. I'm happy I can put it on here for you.
2. Betty Harris
Cry To Me
3. There are songs which have something about them which put a hook in you from the get go. This from 2018 is very much one of those. I would call it a travelling song but you may think otherwise. i'm a big fan of the understated guitars and the way that the vocals provide such intensity. I got on board with this one right from the start... or certainly the memories from my 20 yr old self did.
3. Briston Maroney
Freakin' Out On The Interstate
4. In a previous Barfly Session - all the way back to Session 16 in fact - I wrote about being on a rooftop in London and looking out over the city. When I first heard this song by Sylvan Esso I was transported back again to that moment. I think it would be quite a thing to have such a view for when you need it and if I DID have one this is the song I'd be listening to. This track conjures up an image of a world slowed down and perhaps for a brief time, a chance to live just for the moment. Christ when was the last time we did that? Those moments are fleeting and too few and far between. This song is called Rooftop Dancing.
4. Sylvan Esso
Rooftop Dancing
5. As The Fox has jibbed us again (out buying a fancy new car he tells me) I've got the opportunity to use his spot for a bit of Country music. It's a genre that we probably don't play enough of on here. No wonder The Barfly Sessions hasn't quite taken off in Nashville but lets try and put that right. It's a strange one really as I know it's deemed unfashionable in many quarters but I do listen to a fair decent amount of Country music in the bar. Willie Nelson in particular. It's good honest music in my opinion and The Horse & Feather always has a place for that. My old boss used to hate it. "Can't stand them whining bastards crying about their dogs going missing or the hinges on their barn doors going rusty" he used to say, "it's all a load of bollocks." Haha. Funny bloke but anyways I've decided on this one as I feel it'll suit us just fine and also, I can play it for my wife Siobhan to say thanks for putting up with me for yet another year as we begin a new one. There is literally only one person in the world who I think of when I hear this track and she's the best thing to ever happen to me by a Country & Western mile (oh that's very clever. I see what you just did there Leon.) It's a really sweet song and you can hear it for yourself if you press the link below. "You're the rock in my roll. You're good for my soul, it's true. I'm head over boots for you." Just perfect.
5. Jon Pardi
Head Over Boots
6. "Back when you said we would grow old on a porch in the golden sun." I wanted you to hear this brand new track from New York based Jovan Perez. It's a song that's been on constant play in here and it gets better and better on each listen. It plays like smoke moving round the room and I think it's really intimate and special. Nothing more to add on this. Love those delicate little jazz backdrops too. Just listen and take it in.
6. Jovan Perez
Feel Again
7. I've chosen Lissie to see us out tonight. I saw her in Manchester a few years ago and she was a one woman blizzard. One of the best and most memorable performers I've seen. No fancy gimmicks. No ridiculous stage costumes. Just her with a guitar and she was awesome. Really awesome. I thought the end of this song would be a good way to begin the year 2021. "Cause the best days of my life are coming for me." Hopefulness/Positivity/Optimism you see. God knows we could all do with a bit of that. Thank you friends. See you next time if you're free and we'll do it all over again. Byeeeee for now.
7. Lissie
Best Days
