Good evening, and welcome to your selection of songs that jangle and twang. There’s a link to the Spotify playlist here if you want it, or you can use the traditional playlists below. Sometimes I can’t find the exact same version on Spotify, but I’ve done my best.
If you have an Earworm you’d like to share, please send an .mp3, .m4a or a link to adempster73@gmail.com, together with a few words about why you’ve chosen it. Next week’s theme will be songs that reference other songs, as suggested by glassarfemptee.
Worms should reach me by close of play on Sunday 30 June. Many thanks to all contributors – keep calm, and carry on!
Duane Eddy & Henry Mancini & Orchestra – Theme From Peter Gunn – Fintan28: Even Hollywood Hank couldn’t resist the Twang. Duane Eddy briefly captured the world. My fav is 40 Miles of Bad Road, which I used last year for another topic, but this always gets me moving too.
Stump – Down on the Kitchen Table – shoegazer: …the cat is licking me and giving me his tapeworms.
Monkees – Last Train To Clarksville – severin: The pre-fab four jangle wildly and sound as close as they dare to The Beatles. Especially Paperback Writer according to people who recognise chord sequences which generally pass me by.
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers – American Girl – tincanman: Petty and guitarist Mike Campbell were unabashedly determined to sound as much like The Byrds as they could to close out their debut album. Success.
Flamin’ Groovies – Shake Some Action – severin: The Groovies had a phase in 1976 when they decided to recreate and update the mid sixties jangly guitar sound. This is probably the best known example. It’s quite odd now to remember how nostalgic and long ago the 60s had begun to seem by then. For a lot of people now the 50s, 60s and 70s all blend together as pre history.
The Saw Doctors – Me Heart is Livin’ in the Sixties Still – Suzi: A twangy guitar features in this tongue-in-cheek song with a self-explanatory title. Dedicated to all those who remember the Sixties, if only hazily. My kids used to sing this to me, with smirks and meaningful looks.
Jack Nitzsche – The Lonely Surfer – Fintan28: Twang has very cinematic quality as Jack Nitzsche used to great effect on this.
Brinsley Schwartz – (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace Love and Understanding – glassarfemptee: A slight shoe-horn, but the sentiment of this 1974 song seems so apposite right now. “As I walk on through troubled times/My spirit gets so downhearted sometimes”. Nick Lowe wrote and sang this with Brinsley Schwartz, and later produced Elvis Costello’s hit version.
Rembrandts – I’ll Be There For You – tincanman: Gotta be the world’s best-known jangly guitar pop song. You could almost soundtrack a TV show around it.
Miley Cyrus – Jolene – DebbyM: Came upon this quite by accident and was surprised to enjoy this version so much.
Mark Lanegan – I’ll Go Where You Send Me – glassarfemptee: The late Mark Lanegan has some lovely twang on this demo recorded in 2002. Some demo.
Rhiannon Giddens – You Louisiana Man – DebbyM: From my ‘this woman could sing the phone book’ collection.
Hermanos Gutierrez – Barrio Hustle – glassarfemptee: The Gutierrez brothers have just released the album Sonido Cosmico, and are touring it, including gigs in August at New Century Hall in Manchester, and the Troxy.
Let’s Active – Badger – tincanman: It’s Easter in June – Mitch Easter, that is. The guitartist/ producer/engineer was the jangle pop guru behind early R.E.M., the LAs, a couple of Aussie pub-rock bands, Game Theory, and others. He and buddy Don Dixon, were named influencers for bands ranging from Stone Roses to Nirvana to Smithereens. Here’s Mitch fronting his own band from back in the day.
The Ventures – Baja – Fintan 28: Twang was pretty much foundational to surf music as The Ventures demonstrate here. Makes you want to drive south of Ensenada in search of the perfect wave that inspired this.
Chris Thile & Edgar Meyer – Why Only One – DebbyM: I love me some bluegrass when it’s played by breathtakingly good musicians.
Duane Eddy – Rebel Rouser – severin: Have twangy guitar. Will travel.
Main Playlist, blurbs above:
YouTube playlist, burbs below:
Pixies – Here Comes Your Man – MaggieB: The band refused to play this song live at first they considered it “Too pop.”
Slim Harpo – Buzzin’ – LongTallSilly: Thought I liked nothing twangly or jangly, but then I found this. Thank you Spotify.
J. J. Cale – Clyde – AliM: Well, I reckon this is Twang. And it certainly tells a story.
Old Crow Medicine Show – My Good Gal – AliM: I reckon this is Twang, too.
The Stone Roses – Waterfall – AliM: And I reckon this is Jangle.
The Coral – In The Morning – AliM: And more Jangle.
The 'Spill 
Worms are boxed, thanks all
Love Clyde! Thanks AliM 🌞
It’s great, isn’t it? 😄
@debbym “‘this woman could sing the phone book”
I’m a huge admirer. I think when you have a Grammy, a Tony, a Pulitzer, a MacArthur scholarship, and … people ought to pay attention.
Well, I suggested this topic, cos I love a bit of jangle and twang, and guessed I could rely on you all to produce some gems, as you have. I think we’re a bit more twangly than jangly. Duane “the twang’s the thang” Eddy was nailed on, of course. Special love for the understated Thile/Meyer, Nitzsche, slim Harpo, and Ventures. The Saw Doctors ideal for next week too!