the road to peace
October 28, 2006
Look at this: not only has Tom Waits gone political, but he’s written a truly great protest song that you can download for free from his record label’s website at anti.com:
“Once Kissinger said ‘We have no friends,
America only has interests’.
Now our president wants to be seen as a hero
and he’s hungry for re-election,
But Bush is reluctant to risk his future
and the fear of his political failure,
So he plays chess at his desk
and poses for the press,
Ten thousand miles from the road to peace.”
I don’t think Tom Waits has ever written a lyric that didn’t carry at least a whiff of genius. There are six other tracks for download there, too. Bargain!
I’ve been going to see a lot of bands lately — I’m excited about live music to an extent that I probably haven’t been since I was about nineteen. Two days ago I saw (occasional Tom Waits collaborators) Sparklehorse at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. They played a great selection from their four albums, including their first album, vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot — one of my favourite records of all time. But hearing their other stuff played alongside it reminded me how much good stuff there is on their other records too, which has prompted a bit of a Sparklehorse revival for me the last few days.
Another reason to be cheerful: my old friend Rich’s truly excellent band Lana. They’re one of the best live bands I’ve seen in ages, and the fact that I’m linking to their myspace page despite my profound, visceral loathing of myspace should be taken as an indicator of just how much I think you should listen to them.