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Mahler: Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen
The only other “art song” on the list this week, Mahler’s “Ich bin der Welt...
Jerry Herman: If he walked into my life
I chose this song both because it’s a wonderful song from a great show, but...
Henry Krieger / Tom Eyen: And I Am Telling You, I’m Not Going
I chose this song because I wanted to highlight what is, without question in...
Richard Strauss: Morgen!
I wasn’t sure how to start this week of posts, so I decided to begin with my...
Malamini Jobarteh and Dembo Konte: Cheddo
When does a song stop being a song? And now we are here at the end of the week...
The Beach Boys (under the musical direction of Brian Wilson): Surf’s Up
Song Form Unformed and Reformed I pondered yesterday that the blame...
George Russell Sextet (with Sheila Jordan): You Are My Sunshine
Who is the auteur, the composer, the lyricist, the singer, or the...
Ned Rorem: Visits to St. Elizabeth’s
Marrying Words to Music I began this series for the No Song is Safe...
Dock Boggs: Sugar Baby
Can Song Be Explained in a World Where Everything’s a Song? Having become a...
Donald Fagen: On the Dunes
Our final Fagen song this week is from his astonishing solo...
Donald Fagen: Time Out of Mind
This wasn’t the first cut on the Gaucho album to speak to me; it...
Donald Fagen: Gaucho
From the opening upbeat, we know we’re in a warm bath. That beautiful...
Donald Fagen: Through With Buzz
I couldn’t resist including this truly odd song from Pretzel Logic. It’s...
Donald Fagen: With a Gun
Steely Dan. The sound track of my 20’s. What a band. It’s really all about...
Shorter/Nascimento: From the Lonely Afternoons
When Native Dancer was first released in 1974, it was marketed as a...