Beautiful Song Of The Week

February 15

Week 562: “New Slang” by The Shins

Despite the title, this song by The Shins has nothing to do with slang; in…

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February 8

Week 561: “Night After Sidewalk” by Kaki King

For obvious reasons, I haven’t taken the subway in almost a year, and I have…

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February 1

Week 560: “Tomato Day” by Kelpe

It’s time for us to celebrate the humble tomato. And when I say humble, I…

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January 25

Week 559: “The Times are Tired” by Alaskan Tapes

The other day, in the late afternoon, I suddenly got tired. Not sleepy, or spent…

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January 18

Week 558: “Elton d’août (remix maman)” by Malajube

My wife is using an app to learn French. It’s a noble pursuit – it…

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January 11

Week 557: “Run On For A Long Time” by Bill Landford and the Landfordaires

Because I’m not a religious person, I’ve never listened to much music within the gospel…

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January 4

Week 556: “Ceffylau” by Catlin Finch and Seckou Keita

The coat of arms of Swansea, the second-largest city in Wales, is as elaborate as…

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December 28

Week 555: “All the Rest” by sad face

Last week, after recommending that people go out and try to spot the ultra-rare Jupiter-Saturn…

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December 21

Week 554: “In the Bleak Midwinter” by Gustav Holst (arr. Gjeilo)

Up here in the northern half of the world, today is the winter solstice. And…

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December 14

Week 553: “State Lines” by Novo Amor

I spent an awful lot of time looking at maps as a child. Any map…

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December 7

Week 552: “Liquid Blanket” by Matthew Solberg

It’s blanket season. Normally, peak blanket season is limited to those aimless, nebulous days between…

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November 30

Week 551: “Elegy” by Edward Elgar

It’s pretty unlikely that anyone will build a statue of me when I die, but…

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November 23

Week 550: “Longtime” by Yppah

2020 is just about done, and I can’t decide if it’s been the longest year…

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November 16

Week 549: “Prelude in E Minor” by Scott Twynholm

For years, I have wanted to feature Chopin’s “Prelude in E Minor” because it truly…

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November 9

Week 548: “Retold” by Nate Smith

I always wanted to be a drummer. Among the reasons why: It’s fun to hit…

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November 2

Week 547: “Warm Foothills” by alt-J

In 1976, Mary Leakey was leading a team of palaeontologists in Tanzania’s Oldupai Gorge. The…

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October 26

Week 546: “I Don’t Know” by Beastie Boys

If you were to walk past a high school house party in 1998, you could…

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October 19

Week 545: “Audrey Horne” by Golden Retriever

Just in case your heart needs warming, here’s the story of a golden retriever named…

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October 12

Week 544: “How to Fall in Love in a Pandemic” by Daithí

It’s been 215 days since the WHO declared a pandemic. I’m not sure whether that…

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October 5

Week 543: “Private Road” by Bent

This week’s song was suggested by a reader. Thanks, Drew! For years, driving the 2-hour…

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Beautiful Song Of The Week Posts