Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Company In My Back” (Live Version from Kicking Television) by Wilco Live albums. They are the most maligned recordings by critics, yet the fans just love them. You don’t believe me? Ask Peter Frampton, The Allman Brothers, Led Zeppelin, Yes, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Neil Young, Neil Diamond, Little Feat, The Who, Lou Reed, Cheap Trick and Kiss to name a few, who have made classic live albums and have benefitted from huge sales. Heck, live albums are so ingrained in our pop culture, that you can probably name each of the live albums I’m referring to above, just by the list of artists. In the...

  Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#721 in the Series) is The Mountain Goats, The Sunset Tree There’s something about the Mountain Goats that provokes delirious, unbridled reverence amongst a large portion of their fans; a level of veneration that goes beyond that which many bands can claim. I’m not talking about gangs of screaming kids or the usual “I‘m your number one fan!” type of nutcases you get at almost every gig, but a deep, profound respect that comes from a band having touched some part of a fan’s life in an important way. Maybe it’s Mountain Goats’ main man John Darnielle’s way with a witty, insightful lyric. Maybe it’s his way of telling dark tales of...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#468 in the Series) us Chris Hillman, The Other Side. I think most people that are frequent visitors to the Cool Album of the Day site are familiar with our love for “Americana” music are probably familiar with Chris Hillman.  I’m not going to take for granted that that means you!  So before we talk about this 2005 project called The Other Side, allow me to give you a little background on this talented musician. I’m not going to start from the very beginning, that would take hours.  Believe me though when I say it’s a fascinating story.  You would not be wrong by saying that he was one of the originators of the...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (# 443 in the Series) is Art Brut, Bang Bang Rock & Roll. Sometimes an album that makes perfect sense comes out of nowhere. My friend Fred sent me Art Brut’s 2005 debut years ago. Art Brut writes simple and quick pop songs (the longest tune is 3:45 long). These guys have put the fun back into rock and roll. The absolute star of Art Brut is “singer” and sarcastic front man Eddie Argos. Eddie narrates his songs as much as he sings them. His greatest talent is his bombastic wit and strong sense of cynicism. “Yes, this is my real singing voice” Eddie proclaims. Bang Bang Rock and Roll jumps to a...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#305 in the Series) is Ryan Adams and The Cardinals, Cold Roses. I’ve always appreciated artists that know the history of their roots and are not afraid to pay homage to them as well. This is the case with Ryan Adams. I’ve read more than once about his love for artists like Gram Parsons. His previous band, Whiskeytown were known for adding more than one Gram tune to their set lists.  They even performed Gram’s, “A Song For You” on a tribute album. He’s also mentioned acts like Tom T. Hall, and Big Star as adding to his roots.  How well respected is Ryan Adams?  Well enough to have Willie Nelson ask him...

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#156 in the Series) is The Decemberists, The Crane Wife. The Decemberists are one of the more current bands that I’ve written up here on Cool Album of the Day. They have been a band since 2001 and actually began getting known about 2005. This coinciding with their move to a major label. They hail from Portland, Oregon.  The band’s name refers to The Decembrists revolt in Imperial Russian.  Many, including band leader Colin Meloy view the 1825 revolt as a communist revolution. The Crane Wife album was inspired by a Japanese folk tale.  And you thought Rock and Rollers were shallow people! This was the band’s first album for Capitol Records.  It...