Thursday, February 18, 2010

Song of the Day: Grant Lee Buffalo - Mighty Joe Moon

I've been a voracious music collector since I was a sophomore in high school and got my first CD player (a 5-disc changer, nonetheless). In college, one of my roommates was a like-minded individual, and we both loved Neil Young.  I remember reading the review of Grant Lee Buffalo's Mighty Joe Moon album in Rolling Stone and it containing some NY references (in fact, I just looked it up, and it references a number of classics, including John Wesley Harding, The Band and Ziggy Stardust), and my roommate actually went out and bought it (this is the pre-Napster era, folks).

Needless to say, we both really liked this album.  The comparisons mentioned in the RS review are quite apt - like those records, it really has an acoustic, campfire songs vibe.  I could easily choose any song off the album, but the title track remains my favorite.

Why do I like it?  I absolutely love the "oh no" at the end of each verse - his voice sounds so full of longing.  Also, how his voice picks up for the second verse is genius.  The imagery in the lyrics is incredibly moving - sleeping in a log house, lying on a couch...

I got the chance to see him perform a few songs last weekend at Largo, and Grant Lee Phillips still has the voice.  And he's one helluva funny guy too, matching wits with Paul F. Tompkins.  But I digress.  Listen now:


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