THE PITCH
Fakebook might seem like an odd choice to start my contribution to this project. An album of (mostly) covers by a band known for making noisy “indie rock”, very unlike the quiet, charming music that makes up most of this album. The thing is, when I think of records I’ve been excited to share, this is the one I’ve shared the most.
I once had a friend tell me that when she first met me, she thought I was some kind of “music pusher”, because I was always making tapes and always talking about music I was excited about. I’ve shared this one on copied cassettes, gifted CDs, and by just plain talking and talking. What’s more, I can’t remember anyone telling me “I don’t get it”. Maybe that’s selective memory, but I certainly remember other not-so-warm responses to other records I’ve shared.
Most bands start by learning other people’s songs. You play songs you love, or you share songs you want your bandmates to hear. It’s a way to find common ground and a shared musical language. Many bands make an album of cover songs they learned together. Not many include five of their own compositions. On the surface, that might seem like an act of hubris. “Our songs our just as good as these.” But really, it’s an act of love. This isn’t a band trying to impress anyone. This is a band saying, “this is the music we love”.
One other thing about this record. It is a gateway. I’d bet Yo La Tengo’s version of Speeding Motorcycle led more people to listen to Daniel Johnston than anything else. For some, it might lead to a dead end (perhaps with Yellow Sarong). Oklahoma, USA might be an eye opener for someone who’s never heard the Kinks apart from what gets played on the radio.
Not only have I pushed this one into the hands and ears of so many, I’ve listened to it countless times. I’m listening now almost 35 years after it came out. It’s winter and it feels like a warm sweater. When the summer comes around, it’ll feel like a cool breeze.
Further Listening: I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One
Kevin Turbitt
MY RESPONSE
So I arrived at this with no preconceptions or expectations beyond what you’ve told me, Kevin. No one has ever told you they don’t like it. It’s quiet. It’s charming (what do you mean by that?). I like your picture of a band figuring out who they are through the music they like. It’s from 1990 so I suppose I might have heard it with you way back when but no one else listens to Yo La Tengo around me, so wasn’t expecting to find it familiar.
And yet, and yet… My reaction on first listening was that it felt familiar. It’s straightforward – I hear guitars, drums, words, melodies I can get a handle on. I hear the fifties, sixties, seventies; I hear a country sound, a folk sound; is there a little Beach Boys thing at one point?
On the second day, I sat and read the lyrics as I listened, I looked up which were Yo La Tengo’s songs and which were other people’s. But I didn’t feel I had to get a handle on the lyrics in order to like these songs. On other days I listened while I ran and cycled and cooked and gardened. The tracks I find I’ve added a playlist by at the end of the week are Here Comes My Baby, Tried So Hard and The Summer, but there isn’t a track here I don’t like and I love the variety they’re throwing at me. On the day of Storm Éowyn I sat on my bed with the wind thrashing and the rain pelting outside and I listened while I wrote. I have always been adamant that I could not possibly listen to music while I write, especially not music with words. But somehow this works. It’s not even that I’m able to ignore it or that it’s blotting out distractions. It felt helpful. It must be a mood thing. It’s joyful. It’s playful. But mostly it’s kind of mellow. Maybe I need mellow to write.
I spent a couple of hours following the breadcrumb trails. How easy the internet makes this – I listened to the originals of all these songs (thanks largely to https://secondhandsongs.com) and I listened to the YLT versions again to see how they’d made the songs their own. Then I listened to other things by the other artists. It made me think of hanging out in student rooms listening to people’s record collections.
So what I was wondering about was this: I know I like familiar and it’s possible that I like this because it sounds familiar even though I don’t actually know any of these songs. I’ve been reading a book called This is Your Brain on Music by Daniel Levitin (yes, I am taking this project seriously! But a lot of it is going over my head.) I just read the chapter called My Favourite Things which explains how familiarity and predictability are important factors in why we like the music we like. So maybe because I could recognise the patterns of what I was hearing and categorise them (sixties, folk, etc), that made these songs I hadn’t heard familiar which set my brain up to appreciate them. Huh. Gateway.
Thank you for Fakebook, Kevin. I am charmed.
I should add that I found YLT’s I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One a harder sell. There’s also a lot more NOISE. That kind of thrashy wall of sound is exciting when it’s live and you can feel it but makes no sense to me just going into my ears in my living room.
WHAT ELSE I’VE LISTENED TO THIS WEEK
Elvis Costello My Aim is True
Christy Moore Ride On
Oh Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack
ABC Lexicon of Love
Dire Straits Making Movies
Pixies Surfer Rosa
Amadou & Mariam Dimanche à Bamako
Cat Stevens Matthew & Son
The Kinks Village Green Preservation Society
I love Autumn Sweater - it’s one of the first songs Andrew ever played me that I actually liked, and be said it reminds him of me because I always wear nice jumpers.