The lyrics to this song are so simple and innocent, "Won't you let me take you home from school/ Won't you let me meet you at the pool/ Maybe Friday, I'll get tickets to the dance/ And I'll take you, ooh." However, Alex Chilton's vulnerable and world-weary vocals suggest that he knows that this young love won't last very long.
Since seeing them live, I've been revisiting the National's earlier, pre-Alligator albums which I really haven't listened to all that much. And, man, have I been missing out! They have some really great early albums. "All Dolled Up in Straps" from their Cherry Tree EP really stood out for me. The lyrics are pretty dark. It seems to be about a guy accusing his girlfriend of cheating on him, or a guy worried that the girl he's stalking might be seeing someone else. Somehow, the song still manages to be catchy. I also adore Matt Berninger's voice on the song. It sound rawer than his later work, like he's singing with a sore throat.
I listened to a lot of 80s-inspired disco pop like Sally Shapiro, The Chromatics and College in grad school. The late night vibe and bitter-sweetness really appealed to me. So naturally I fell in love with the Drive soundtrack as soon as I saw the film. This song is my favorite though; it's a nice obsessive love song.
I really enjoyed the last Wilco album. If I had listened to it earlier in the year, it probably would have been in my top ten of the year. These are my two favorite songs from the album. "Whole Love" is a short, sweet love song that sets the stage for the epic and beautiful closer, "One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley's Boyfriend)".
I hadn't really listened this band too much before seeing them in concert, but I was blown away by their performance. This song is full of anxiousness and builds slowly up until the crazy guitar work at the end.
