Cat Power-The Greatest

Cat Power, "Lived In Bars"

Cat Power, "Willie"

Cat Power, "I Don't Blame You"

I've been meaning to put these tracks up for a few weeks now, which in a perverse way is right on schedule for me, if that makes sense. Anyway, Cat Power is one of my favorites, that rare combination of talent, courage and crippling. I mean, the fact that she has stage fright and is unable to perform because of that is so endearing to me I cannot put it into words. Combine that with a truly amazing voice and heartbreaking songs and you have a winner.

These tracks come from her most recent album, The Greatest, her Memphis album. While sadly no one from Three 6 Mafia turn up, some of the best studio musicians from that city did. What came out is one of the early contenders for album of the year, a beautiful, soulful album that never comes across as a gimmick. In fact, it almost seems like Chan Marshall was meant to be singing back in the 60s for a label like Stax, putting out amazing 45s that DJs and collectors would be bidding up on eBay today. Cop the album here, as it is real necessary. How necessary? It's called The Greatest and has boxing glove jewelry on the cover. Nuff said.



As a bonus, I added the opening track off of her previous album, You Are Free. "I Don't Blame You" is one of the most haunting, perfect songs I have ever heard, a masterpiece. If you don't already have that album, stop reading and buy it. Palm Sounds Out, Dance Hall Hips, To Die By Your Side and Dreams of Horses have a few of her cover versions

-Didn't believe? You can see me on the cover of today's edition of the Metro Philadelphia [pdf file] in all my ugly, hairy glory. I want to throw up seeing myself.

-To get over the horror of that terrible vision, grab the live Clap Your Hands Say Yeah show over the BM Rant. It's from the 9:30 Club in D.C. and gives all of us who missed out on tickets a chance to hear a show from this tour. I kinda slept on these guys when the hype first hit, but after hearing the song at Making Time, their debut CD has not left the iPod Most Played list. How can you not love a Philly/Brooklyn group with a lead singer who has a strange singing voice? I don't know either. There is also a Belle and Sebastian show from the same venue and that Arctic Monkeys NPR broadcast I mentioned a few days ago. Thanks guys.

-This article is probably only interesting to me, but whatever. The New York Times looks at the last days of a synagogue and the Jewish community in Tajikstan.