Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Ladies, A: Fiona Apple

Song: "Parting Gift"
From the album Extraordinary Machine

Fiona Apple:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: It's almost as if all of Fiona Apple's marketing and Web pages stopped in time when she released Extraordinary Machine. One of the headlines under the NEWS section on her Web site (listed above) is "the long awaited new album
extraordinary machine, in stores now"... If you don't remember, E.M. was released in 2005.

It took six years to make E.M. and we've heard very little from Apple since... perhaps we can anticipate a new album in another two years. — BJ

Ladies, A: Tori Amos

Song: "'97 Bonnie and Clyde"
From the album Strange Little Girls

Tori Amos:   Web site

DJ comments: The original version of this song (by Eminem) sounded almost jokey, whereas this Tori Amos version brings out how fucked up the song is in a different context. This version is incredibly spooky, truth be told. — cwc

Ladies, B: Pieta Brown

Song: "Remember The Sun"
From the album Remember The Sun

Pieta Brown:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: Pieta Brown played at The Mill during Mission Creek week. She and her husband, Bo Ramsey, never cease to amaze me together. Outside of working with Pieta and her father, Greg, he has also produced some of Lucinda Williams work.

Brown released her newest album, Flight Time, late last year. Remember the Sun was her previous album, released in June, 2007. I suggest everyone start a Pieta Brown collection, as all her releases are fantastic. — BJ

Ladies, B: Bjork

Song: "Army of Me"
From the album Post

Bjork:   Web site

DJ comments: I would like to see Bjork team up with Sigur Ros for an entire album. Iceland, unite! — cwc

Ladies, C: Cat Power

Song: "Woman Left Lonely"
From the album Jukebox

Cat Power:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: Wow, Chris, Cat Power is older than you. I didn't think such a thing was possible.

Chan Marshall was born in Georgie on January 21, 1972. After dropping out of high school, she took on the name Cat Power to perform around Atlanta. In the early-Nineties, Cat Power moved to New York City where she opened for acts like Liz Phair, leading to her work with Sonic Youth's Steve Shelley.

I've been reading a 2006 interview with Spin magazine, and Cat Power sounds a bit crazy. She was an alcoholic for a long time, and she's been noted for seeing visions... She's been diagnosed with severe depression. This is an excerpt from the interview:

On the fourth day, I woke up and I was like, "Shit, Susanna is not coming back. Maybe Susanna is just part of your split personality. Maybe everyone's part of your split personality. Maybe your mom doesn't exist. Maybe you aren't you. Maybe you're really 75 years old and you're homeless with cancer and you're on a respirator, and when you open your eyes, you're going to see that you're dying." So I got out of bed and went right up to the mirror. At this point, I was raw. I hadn't seen myself. I hadn't brushed my hair. I wondered [if I looked in the mirror], would it be me? And I looked. And I looked like me. Like the inside of me. Like a little kid. When I saw my face, all I wanted to do was protect that person. And I realized, "What are you doing here?"

Anyway, "Woman Left Lonely" is a Janis Joplin cover. — BJ

Ladies, C: Jill Cunniff

Song: "Happy Warriors"
From the album City Beach

Jill Cunniff:   Web site

DJ comments: Luscious Jackson (and now Jill Cunniff) is one of those bands I don't listen to very often but when I do it makes me happy. — cwc

Ladies, D: Kimya Dawson

Song: "Tire Swing"
From the album Juno

Kimya Dawson:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: One of Dawson's influences on Myspace is Jesse and the Rippers... awesome.

I had no idea Kimya Dawson was one of the original members of The Moldy Peaches. I also had no idea she named her child Panda... how do celebrities come up with their kids' names? — BJ

Ladies, D: Marianne Dissard

Song: "Le Lendemain"
From the album L'Entredeux

Marianne Dissard:   Web site

DJ comments: French, the language of love. Madame Dissard has hooked up with one of those Calexico fellows, so she has some smarts as well. — cwc

Ladies, E: Erykah Badu

Song: "Sometimes..."
From the album Baduizm

Erykah Badu:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: Erykah Badu is collaborating with Steven Lopez, a Los Angeles artist, adding to his Midnight Series. You can read up on his celebrity portrait series here and here.

Badu is also playing Bonnaroo this year. I highly suggest checking out the lineup. She's one of MANY fantastic artists making their way to Tennessee. — BJ

Ladies, E: Eleni Mandell

Song: "It Wasn't the Time (It Was the Color)"
From the album Artificial Fire

Eleni Mandell:   Web site

DJ comments: A little cooler than the Mandrell sisters. Check out this song from Mandell's new disc. — cwc

Ladies, F: Aretha Franklin

Song: "Chain Of Fools"

Aretha Franklin:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: My family and I recently went to a trivia night in Davenport, and this was one of the questions we missed:

"Who was the first woman to be inducted into the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame?"
Answer: Aretha Franklin

— BJ

Ladies, F: Leslie Feist

Song: "One Evening"
From the album Let It Die

Feist:   Web site

DJ comments: One of the numerous gorgeous songs on Let It Die. — cwc

Go here for the awesome video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqVKOilZO2A

Ladies, G: Laura Gibson

Song: "Spirited"
From the album Beasts of Seasons

Laura Gibson:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: Go see Laura Gibson at the Picador tonight. — BJ

Ladies, G: Charlotte Gainsbourg

Song: "The Songs That We Sing"
From the album 5:55

Charlotte Gainsbourg: Web site

DJ comments: Last time I thought about Serge Gainsbourg's daughter, it was back when she suffered a cerebral hemorrhage following a water skiing accident. She's doing better now; in fact, she's working on a new album with assistance from Beck. — cwc

Ladies, H: Billie Holiday

Song: "What A Little Moonlight Can Do"
From the album Billie's Best

Billie Holiday:   Web site   Wiki

DJ comments: Probably my all-time favorite female musician. I love, love, love Big Band music, and Billie (Lady Day) is the queen of the genre. — BJ

Billie and Louis Armstrong:

Ladies, H: Polly Jean Harvey

Song: "Down by the Water"
From the album To Bring You My Love

PJ Harvey:   Web site

DJ comments: Originally I always found PJ a great musician but not all that easy on the eyes. And then this song (and accompanying video) came out. Mind changed. — cwc

Ladies, I: Ingrid Michaelson

Song: "Be OK"
From the album Be OK

Ingrid Michaelson:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: I never know whether someone is popular on regular radio stations, mainly because I never listen to music outside KRUI and whatever is on my iPod. This girl is pretty poppy, but she's a good I girl. Perhaps we'll play it before the Top 40 stations do. — BJ

Ladies, I: Janis Ian

Song: "Tea and Sympathy"
From the album Between the Lines

Janis Ian:   Web site

DJ comments: While I was tempted to play "At Seventeen," I decided to go with this lesser known track, one that deserves some love. — cwc

Ladies, J: Etta James

Song: "How Big of a Fool"
From the album R'n'B Dynamite

Etta James:   Web site   Wiki

DJ comments: Etta wasn't the prettiest, but she had a lot of talent and a lot to say. She won four Grammys and 17 Blues Music Awards, and she was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Blues Hall of Fame and the Grammy Hall of Fame... twice. You ain't no fool, Etta. — BJ

Ladies, J: Sharon Jones

Song: "Inspiration Information"
From the album Dark Was the Night

Sharon Jones:   Web site" target="_blank">Web site

DJ comments: Another cool contributor to the latest hip compilation. — cwc

Ladies, K: Alison Krauss

Song: "Rich Woman"
From the album Raising Sand

Alison Krauss:   Web site   Wiki

DJ comments: A country girl who gets to share duets with a former Zeppelin, James Taylor and Elvis Costello. That's impressive. What's more impressive is that she has won 26 Grammys -- five more than Stevie Wonder. She holds the record for women, so it was only appropriate that she be involved on our Ladies List. — BJ

Ladies, K: Carole King

Song: "Smackwater Jack"
From the album Tapestry

Carole King:   Web site

DJ comments: Tapestry is one of those albums you take for granted, I suppose. A true sign of something good, right? — cwc

Ladies, L: Peggy Lee

Song: "Fever"
From the album The Best of Miss Peggy Lee

Peggy Lee:   Web site   Wiki

DJ comments: This has to be one of the sexiest songs ever performed. I love the rest of Peggy Lee's collection, but "Fever" has to be her most recognized song, and for good reason. Meow. — BJ

Ladies, L: Loretta Lynn

Song: "Portland, Oregon"
From the album Van Lear Rose

Loretta Lynn:   Web site

DJ comments: Featuring Jack White on the guitar. A song about Brittany's favorite city in the world. — cwc

Ladies, M: Aimee Mann

Song: "Momentum"
From the Magnolia soundtrack

Aimee Mann:   Web site

DJ comments: Until the PT Anderson film Magnolia, I had a low opinion of Aimee Mann, having only experienced her work with 'Til Tuesday ("Voices Carry") and her solo album I'm With Stupid, which didn't have much staying power for me. However, the Magnolia songs won me over. On a side note, I just read the great rock 'n' roll memoir by Aimee's good friend Jen Trynin, who will have to make an appearance in next week's show. — cwc

Ladies, M: Alanis Morissette

Song: "Hand In My Pocket"
From the album Jagged Little Pill

Alanis:   Web site   MySpace

DJ comments: Alanis is by far the most influential female musician from my early life. I've probably listened to Jagged Little Pill more than any other album, solely because it came out when I was 10 or so. Fuck the Spice Girls, Alanis provided all the Girl Power young Brittany Jade ever needed. — BJ

As the movie Dogma showed us, Alanis Morissette's voice might kill you. — cwc