Song of the Day, August 21: You Can’t Miss It by Peter Blegvad

Today’s song is You Can’t Miss It by Peter Blegvad. It appears on his finest solo album, 1983’s The Naked Shakespeare. The album is a collection of reflections on life, love, lust, and circumstance, all passed through Blegvad’s unique perspective. This song clocks in at only 1:43, a quirky sentiment with minimalist accompaniment. The core of the song is actually a spoken poem, with the title admonishment framing it.

You can’t miss it
If you’ve never had it.

Enjoy this delightful meditation today.

Song of the Day, July 7: A Little Something by Slapp Happy

Today’s song is A Little Something by Slapp Happy. Written by band member Peter Blegvad, it features on their second and third albums. Originally recorded in 1973 as Casablanca Moon, the intended second release was rejected by Polydor and shelved. After they switched to Virgin in 1974, the band re-recorded the album at the label’s request and released as Slapphappy. The original recording finally surfaced in 1980 on Recommended Records, retitled Acnalbasac Noom (read it backwards) to reflect the bizarre journey the songs had taken.

The original album is very true to Slapp Happy’s sound, with a raw avant-rock sound. The second iteration is strangely florid, with dreamy instrumentation and very little bite. A couple of the songs fare well, but mostly the Slapphappy approach is a failure. A deceptively simple ode to love, A Little Something requires the edginess of the original recording to work. Dagmar Krause’s off-kilter delivery over a quirky musical foundation saves the lyric from being cloying and lets the listener know that there’s more to love than the simple pairing that she describes.

Here’s a little something for all you lovers
Snuggle deep down inside your covers
Make yourselves at home and I’ll sing you a song about love.
It can start with just a chance encounter
He doesn’t know a single thing about her
A casual thread but Lo! it led to love.

Enjoy this delightful ode to romance today.

Song of the Day, March 8: Last Man by Peter Blegvad

Today’s song is Last Man by Peter Blegvad. Taken from his 1985 album Knights Like This, it’s a song of isolation and despair.

I am the last man, the last man, the first man was Adam
But I am the last
And there’s no parallel with Eden.

Literate, witty, and deeply touching all at the same time, it’s classic Blegvad. Enjoy this sad song today.

Song of the Day, August 14: Meantime by Peter Blegvad

Today’s song is Meantime by Peter Blegvad. This is the first song I ever encountered by Blegvad when my friend Chris said, “you HAVE to hear this.” While he is always a great lyricist, this is perhaps his finest moment. Demonstrating his love of language, Blegvad plays with the words “mean” and “time” to create a menacing and compelling set of vignettes. With its stripped down production, this simple song proposes both a sense of inevitability in life and the will to fight it: “Life has a throat, we learn to grab it.”

Blegvad’s music is sadly under-appreciated. He creates wonderful stories, mysterious abstractions, and fun word games all with an adventurous approach to the music. Today is his 60th birthday, so let’s celebrate the stories that “all start once upon a meantime.”

Song of the Day, July 18: How Beautiful You Are by Peter Blegvad

Today’s song is How Beautiful You Are by Peter Blegvad. A wonderful singer and songwriter, the quirky Mr. Blegvad has spent most of his musical career as an American in Europe. For the past two decades he has lived in England working as a cartoonist and occasional musician. Blegvad’s work ranges from folky acoustic songs to rocking collaborations, to avant garde works with the likes of Henry Cow. Taken from his brilliant 1983 album, The Naked Shakespeare, this is a song of a love that endures the most trying of circumstances.

From the window of our honeymoon
The night looks a mite bizarre
They’re burning us in effigy
And smoke’s blots out the stars
They’re torturing our servants
By the light of an armoured car
Please don’t ask if it’s the end of the line
As I never could see that far
Tonight I’d rather look at you
How beautiful you are

Enjoy this dramatic and wonderful song today.