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And When It Becomes Too Frustrating To Blog About The World, Blog About Music

Lauren

As of this last week, I have rediscovered my long-time love for Nick Cave. Many years ago, someone gave me “Murder Ballads,” a fascinating concept album that reconfigures the folk tradition of tales of murder for a modern audience. The album includes interesting and unexpected duets and some rather shocking songs.

Two years ago, I blogged about Nick Cave and the search for Stagger Lee, the beginnings of the gangster persona in black neighborhoods of the Midwest coinciding with the rise of the blues, after reading a fascinating article on the history of the song.

Stagger Lee — “While he was waiting to record an album, Nick Cave was reading a book on urban black folklore and came across a version of the Stagolee toast. Cave decided to record it for two reasons. He was fascinated, in the first place, by the homosexuality of this particular version.”

Wild Rose — duet with Nick Cave and Kylie Minogue

Henry Lee — duet with Nick Cave and PJ Harvey

The Curse of Millhaven — whence came my only nickname, Loretta

Baby I Got You Bad — from the B-sides released this March; all other listed songs from “Murder Ballads”

For less provocative versions of “Stagger Lee,” see Fats Domino, Lloyd Price, and Dr. John.

12 thoughts on And When It Becomes Too Frustrating To Blog About The World, Blog About Music

  1. I love Nick Cave. And when I’m angry or need time to stew, I pop in this album and feel a need to clean. Unfortunately I don’t get angry nearly as often as my cats shed. Which is good in some ways.

  2. Hey, I was just listening to that album this morning. A few years ago I saw a Nick Cave show where he did Stagger Lee, complete with extra verses at the end — he goes to Hell and meets Satan, and you’re just waiting for him to get his comeuppance, but Stagger Lee turns out to be an even bigger badass than the Devil. Classic.

  3. My only criticism of Nick Cave is that he’s completely ruined me for other rock music. I pop in an album by someone else, and soon find myself wondering why I’m not listening to Nick Cave instead, because Cave’s stuff is so much better.

    There’s not a lot of music out there that I find really speaks to me. But every other Nick Cave song has me thinking, “God, yes, EXACTLY.”

  5. I too have a serious passion for Nick Cave. Murder ballads was the first album of his that I bought. I just happened to pick up the headphones at a Virgin Megastore listening post and discovered something I felt I’d always been waiting to hear. I love it all, but I think “No more shall we Part” is my current favourite.

  6. I’ve always liked Nick Cave’s version too, being surprised at its rawness after hearing so many softer versions (Furry Lewis, Mississippi John Hurt, etc), but the Guardian UK article was actually fascinating. Who knew that Stagger Lee had a role in turning black Americans away from the Republican party?

  7. Ah now Lauren you’ve just bought a tear to my eye. I’m a huge fan and saw him play earlier this year, he’s amazing in every way. And even more so for becoming the artist he is considering he grew up in small town Australia, which is not known for fostering gothic rock music or art.

    He has also written a new Australian film coming out in the next few months that looks interesting.

  8. Stagger Lee is a great story. I just put on the version from Sleepy LaBeef’s very fine ‘Strange Things Happening’ (Rounder Select). I can’t believe that’s the only recording of it I have, but it appears to be the only one I’ve loaded on iTunes. Will have to remedy this.

  10. I adore Nick Cave. Another album all about people gettin’ killed is the recent Songs of Misfortune by the Love Hall Tryst–better known as John Wesley Harding, Kelly Hogan, Nora O’Connor, and Brian Lohmann. They’re all songs that are mentioned in JWH’s book (Misfortune, published under his real name of Wesley Stace) done in lovely and haunting 4 part harmony, including an amazing cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Joan of Arc”.

  11. I always enjoy your music posts; you post a lot of things I’d never have heard of otherwise. And for once, hey! I can contribute 🙂

    I don’t know if you’ve got/are interested in this version, but here you go. It’s the 1927 Frank Hutchison recording that’s in the Anthology of American Folk Music; a much more country version. The editor’s notes (which are all very tongue-in-cheek) for this song reads “Theft of Stetson hat causes deadly dispute; victim identifies self as family man.”

  12. After the levee broke the other day I drove my chevy to the record shop and picked up johnny cash’s greatest hits to listen to the old blues song-five foot high and rising.
    The floods in the mississippi delta were regular occurrences in the old days of the share croppers on the land-this song is just so evocative.
    I also took home american man 111,with cash’s great renditions of contemporary songs including nick cave’s “the mercy seat”.
    Cave and cash,both men in black,what a double!

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