Un re-route the rivers
Let the dammed water be
There's some people down the way that's thirsty
So let the liquid spirit free
1. Groovers and Shakers, Movers and Creators, it is my pleasure to welcome you once more to The Horse & Feather for this, our 40th Barfly Session. No one would have ever believed we'd still be neck deep in lockdown shenanigans after this length of time, yet here we are no better off than we were all that time ago in March last year with so much more than just time lost. Nevertheless, here we are.. and I'm happy you're here. You know that right? We'll begin tonight's assembly with a song that I've been playing a lot of late. The lyrics could easily weave their way into the tapestry of current times. "And last night I dreamt/I was sent to a place of innocence/Hello, old friend/We can't pretend/We're not prisoners of this life." Doves are so great at stooping down to your level... or lifting you up to theirs. I guess that's why they make me feel so connected to what they do. I think they are incredible at blurring the lines between their music, city landscapes and human emotions to leave you with a feeling. This was released just last year and comes from their album The Universal Want.
1. Doves
Prisoners
2. "A map of all your life detours." I must have read this from somewhere over the last few weeks as it's a sentence that's been drumming at my skull lately. I've been thinking about it a lot. The decisions and events that changed and shaped your life and ultimately brought to where you are today... which ultimately is right here. That's one gigantic map. Anyways, all that thinking led me to this monster of a song by Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Tribalistic drums and some major guitar shredding towards the end make this a real powerhouse of a track.
2. Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Maps
3. I really didn't ever think I'd be playing a Har Mar Superstar (real name Sean Tillmann) track on one of our Barfly Sessions but I will happily admit to being so very wrong about this guy. This fella has real soul. The song I'm putting down here was the first one he wrote from his "Bye Bye 17" album. A self confessed Sam Cooke fanatic, Tillmann wrote this in homage to his idol. "Lady, you shot me" were (reportedly) Sam Cooke's final words after being shot through the heart by Bertha Franklin. She was the manager of The Hacienda Motel in Los Angeles and said she shot Mr Cooke in self defense when he got a little over boisterous after he'd had a fall out with his lady friend. Some of the "facts" of her story were disputed and it remains a murky police case. Back to the music though. This track is something very fabulous and only goes to prove you maybe shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. Har Mar Superstar really is a superstar.
3. Har Mar Superstar
Lady, You Shot Me
4. We'll stay with a strong soul flavour for our fourth effort which was released in 1969 (a decade before I was born) by The Friends of Distinction. Now this is very very smooth. "Grazin' in the grass is a gas, baby, can you dig it." The answer is yes we can. Everything and the kitchen sink has been thrown into this track. Sure fire winner in my book.
4. The Friends of Distinction
Grazing In The Grass
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5. Not quite sure if The Fox is being very current with his song choice for us tonight. He's opted for No Rain by Blind Melon. I say this because our town is currently under flood. Our mighty river has burst its banks and some poor folks have even had to be evacuated. Great song choice though and a really memorable video with a tap dancing Bee Girl in it. Good work Fox.
5. Blind Melon
No Rain
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6. Onto track six then and I thought for this we'd play another 90's MTV klassik. Very early on when I started doing these Barfly blogs, I dedicated one session to my guilty pleasures and I almost put this on there then. If I could sing, then this would be my go to karaoke song of choice. Also it does remind me of the town of Cahersiveen in Co. Kerry where my Nana was born. There's a stretch of railroad that runs over the River Fertha. We were there a few years back and my Dad pointed it out. He remembered his train journeys over it some 50 odd years back and said that bridge used to frighten the shit out of him as you couldn't see the sides so it looked like the train had come off it's tracks and was going to smash into the rocks. Runaway Train is the song we'll play next.
6. Soul Asylum
Runaway Train
7. How quickly the time flies. We're already at our final song for the evening. I pondered on what to play us out with for a while and maybe had three or four different tracks in mind but in the end I opted for this golden oldie. I think what won me over was the lyric "Chasing mirrors through a haze." I love that line very much. Despite the sad storyline in the track, it still shines a beacon of positive light (even from 1971) and surely you would agree that is the best way to say goodnight. Leave on a high note as it were. Hang in there good people, we'll be fine. See you back here next week. x
7. Graham Nash
Better Days
