Powerful And Triumphant And Lonely All At The Same Time

June 30, 2015 7:35 PM

“Happy people don’t need you to say you understand. As an artist I don’t have much to say to happy people. And that works out great because they’re busy being content. For the rest of us, coming to terms with rejection, failure, death, and the fragility of love is very important. Some people are self-conscious about these things and maybe they don’t want to talk about them, but sometimes it just feels good to know you’re not alone. Books and music do this better than possibly anything else."

Author Joe Bonomo explores the sadness, yearning, and warmth of the music of Greg Cartwright.

An abbreviated, chronological summary of Cartwright's work starts with...

Compulsive Gamblers

Sour & Vicious Man
You Don't Want Me
Two Thieves
Stop & Think It Over

...followed by the bassless garage rock outfit...

Oblivians

Bad Man
Do The Milkshake
Feel All Right

...though the bulk of his work has been with...

Reigning Sound

Break Up, Break Down

Since When
I Don't Care
Goodbye
I'm So Thankful, which is discussed at length in the article.

Time Bomb High School

Stormy Weather, perhaps my favorite example of a cover song that transforms the original
Brown Paper Sack
I Walk By Your House
Reptile Style

Too Much Guitar

We Repel Each Other
Your Love Is A Fine Thing
You Got Me Hummin'
I'll Cry
Drowning

Love And Curses

Break It
Trash Talk
Call Me
Debris
Love Won't Leave You A Song

Abdication... For Your Love

Lying Girl
Watching My Baby
Not Far Away

Shattered

North Cackalacky Girl
Never Coming Home (which has my favorite string arrangement in a rock song)
Falling Rain
Once More
In My Dreams
I'm Trying (To Be The Man You Need)

And for what it's worth, the Reigning Sound put on a great live show of screamers, Sam Cooke covers, rockabilly, and the remainder of their catalog. Enjoy!

posted by Turkey Glue (5 comments total)

Greg Cartwright is a national treasure. He also did a great album with Mary Weiss of the Shangri Las singing his tunes.
posted by pablocham at 10:16 PM on June 30, 2015

My brother-in-law gave me a compulsive gamblers tape once. I'd say I wore it out but the tape was really a USB stick and I still line up those bits and bytes. A great band, great songs.
posted by From Bklyn at 2:12 AM on July 1, 2015

This is a lovely article. I distinctly remember hearing "Stormy Weather" on the local college station in high school and being absolutely astounded -- even more so when I found out how little-known they were, and how extensive a back catalogue Greg had. They kind of fell off my radar for a while, but I'm delighted for the reminder.
posted by jeudi at 6:22 AM on July 1, 2015

Hot dang! Greg produced an album my husband played on, and when we went to go see Reigning Sound several years later, they chatted after the show like old friends. Great guy.
posted by St. Hubbins at 7:39 AM on July 1, 2015

Greg is an old friend, and one of the most talented and important musicians to come out of Memphis in the last 25 years. The Oblivians were one of the most influential American bands of the 1990s. Jack Oblivian sold Jack White the guitar he played during the White Blood Cells era, which was also recorded in Memphis.

Here's a self-link to a video I did for The Oblivians in conjunction with my documentary on the Antenna club. It's a cover of the Lightning Hopkins song Vietnam War Blues, and it may just be the band's finest moment.
posted by vibrotronica at 9:44 AM on July 1, 2015 [2 favorites]