Mystery Jets, Twenty One

Whenever autumn comes around, I start to think about my annual "top ten" lists. 2008 was a bit of a strange year, because even though I listened to quite a few new albums that came out in '08, very few of them actually stuck with me. Which ones stuck you'll probably find out in December (who can resist "best of"-lists in December? I sure can't!), but one of them will definitely be Twenty One by the Mystery Jets.

In 2006, I missed out on their debut Making Dens, but their single for 'Young Love', featuring the aggravatingly young and talented Laura Marling caught my ear and listening to Twenty One, I was definitely impressed. It gets said quite a lot since two of the band members are father and son, but the Mystery Jets are such an unusual, great band; the fact that they got their start on Eel Pie Island probably says enough.

Everyone probably has their own definition of what "pop music" is exactly, and a lot of people think "pop" is automatically a derogatory term, but when I say that Twenty One is perfect pop, I mean it as the biggest compliment. Beautifully crafted songs, with great lyrics and incredible heartache mixed in with deliriously happy bounce-around-the-room tunes; it's definitely one of the best albums this year.

As the saying goes, you should never judge a book by its cover, but a good record sleeve is an amazing thing, and Twenty One's got it:


I love the unusual colours and light in the photograph. A chap named Nacho Alegre created the artwork for the album, and you can check out his photographic diaries of the time he spent with the Jets during the recording of the album, which is a great bonus for curious music fans like me who love knowing how their favourite albums came to be.







Songs:
Mystery Jets, Behind the Bunhouse (amazon)
Mystery Jets, Two Doors Down (amazon)


More on the Mystery Jets:
· Mystery Jets on Wikipedia.
· 'Two Doors Down'-video on YouTube.
· 'Half In Love With Elizabeth'-video on YouTube.

it hurts me, li'l darling

The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard & Clark is one of my all-time favourite albums. It's a record that I remember playing in the background when I was about five, and a couple years ago Adam Green's Gemstones caused me to dig it out again. Dillard & Clark are mostly forgotten these days, which is such a shame. Fronted by ex-Byrds-founder Gene Clark and "banjo virtuoso" Doug Dillard (who apparently played on the Bonnie and Clyde-soundtrack), the band included ex-Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers' Chris Hillman and Michael Clarke on mandolin and drums and Bernie Leadon (Flying Burrito Brother and later of the Eagles).

They released two brilliant records in the late sixties: Fantastic Expedition and Through the Morning, Through the Night. While Expedition consisted of mostly original songs, Through the Morning was a collection of country/folk standards such as 'Rocky Top' and 'Kansas City Southern'. One of the originals on the album, 'Polly', is one of their overall best tracks. I was surprised to find (through last.fm), that Robert Plant and Alison Krauss thought to cover it for their album together, Raising Sand. It goes without saying that I prefer Gene Clark's version, but I s'pose it's not half-bad.

Dillard & Clark, Polly (amazon)
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Polly Come Home (amazon)

While checking out Amazon, I noticed Robert Plant and Alison Krauss also did a cover of 'Through the Morning, Through the Night' (the song). I hope this'll generate some new interest in the Dillard and Clark-records, because nostalgia aside, they're beautiful and interesting records - with a guy named Sneaky Pete Kleinow on steel guitar, you really can't go wrong.

Dillard & Clark, Through the Morning, Through the Night (amazon)
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Through the Morning, Through the Night (amazon)