Songs That Make You Cry, Opinions on The Replacements & FKA twigs

cry

For one reason or another, everyone has got a handful of songs that make them cry. Jim and Greg share some of the songs that bring tears to their eyes. They also review something old and something new: they revisit The Replacements' album Don’t Tell a Soul 30 years later and share their thoughts on the new record from FKA twigs.

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Dead Man's Pop The Replacements

Dead Man's Pop

Legendarily shambolic, The Replacements were a great band often a few years ahead of its time. Their 1989 album, Don’t Tell A Soul, attempted to polish up their sound in hopes of gaining radio airplay and commercial success, a far-fetched aspiration in retrospect. Still, Sire Records saw enough potential to scrap the original mix the band wanted in favor of a more polished radio-friendly version. The album wound up going nowhere commercially, though just two years later, things may have been different post-Nevermind. Mats fans have speculated ever since what would have happened had the original mix been released. The box set Dead Man’s Pop provides a genuine article to fuel that speculation. Original producer Matt Wallace has remixed Don't Tell A Soul to capture the sound the band actually wanted back in 1989. The set also includes a session The Replacements recorded with Tom Waits around this time, as well as a complete live show.

Jim and Greg agree that the production wasn't the only problem with Don't Tell A Soul, so Dead Man's Pop can only improve things so much. Greg finds that the new mixes reveal an inspiration he hadn't previously associated with the album: Rod Stewart's 1971 acoustic-electric album Every Picture Tells A Story. Jim is most appreciative of the concert recording that's included in the box set.

MAGDALENE FKA twigs

fka twigs

Greg says that British avant electronic artist FKA twigs named her sophomore effort MAGDALENE after the biblical Mary Magdalene, a woman in The Bible who was "…miscast as a sex worker by a Pope. People don't realize that she was basically another disciple, and one of the greatest advocates of Jesus Christ's teachings in the Bible." Greg adds that to FKA twigs, Mary Magdalene represents all women "who have ever felt misunderstood, demeaned, mischaracterized… basically all women throughout history." MAGDALENE features her sweet soprano voice contrasting with what Greg terms "crunchy production... This record is art-pop to the max." He compares her style to Kate Bush. Jim agrees, but adds that FKA's genre-hopping also reminds him of Bjork at her best, and can be seen as a companion piece to Lana Del Rey's Norman F *#$%&$ Rockwell. But beyond the comparisons, Jim asserts that FKA Twigs has "a personality all her own, commenting on where romance fits in her life [and] where women fit in the world at this moment," adding "it's a really smart, and very gripping record."

Songs That Make You Cry

Feel a lump in your throat? Go ahead and let it all out as Jim and Greg play some of the tracks that personally make them cry. Want to share a song that makes you cry? Join our Facebook Discussion Group.

Jim

  • Luther Vandross, "A House is Not a Home"
  • Sarah MacLachlan, "When She Loved Me"
  • Rod Stewart, "The Killing of Georgie, Pt. 1 & 2"
  • Dome, "Rolling Upon My Day"

Greg

  • Beach Boys, "The Lonely Sea"
  • This Mortal Coil, "Song to the Siren"
  • Al Green, "For the Good Times"
  • LCD Soundsystem, "All My Friends"

Listener Picks

  • Jennifer Mackey via Facebook: The Muppets, "Rainbow Connection"
  • Jon Sheperd via Facebook: Big Star, "Thirteen"
  • Laura Williams Ambelang via Facebook: R.E.M., "Everybody Hurts"
  • Josh Rosen via Facebook: Tom Waits, "Martha"
  • Alex Orr via Facebook: Warren Zevon, "Keep Me In Your Heart"
  • @dxferris via Twitter: "Moon River"
  • Olivia Rose via Twitter: Scott Walker, "The Electrician"

Greg

Greg puts another coin into the Desert Island Jukebox, this time in appreciation of "Let Me In" from R.E.M.'s much maligned 1994 album Monster. Greg argues that despite the album's bad reputation, the track is "a beautiful mourning song" written by Michael Stipe in the wake of the deaths of his friends River Phoenix and Kurt Cobain (who died within six months of each other.)

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