Wang dang doo dang
Would you like to hear what joy sounds like?
If you’ve never heard Jonathan Richman’s music then I feel sorry for you. You’re truly missing out on an important part of life, namely unadulterated enthusiasm, joy, and love of life. Of course, I’m being somewhat selective when I say that. He’s a well-rounded artist, but goddamnit do I ever prefer his buoyant tunes.
For the last several months I’ve listened to little else than a mix tape of songs from throughout Richman’s post-Modern Lovers solo career that focus on the positive: songs of love and joy. From the youthful exuberance of songs like “I Have Come Out To Play” (”Gonna ride my bike past the root beer stand/purple squirt gun in my hand and I’m here to stay/oh mommy, oh mommy, I can’t eat no more/Gonna run outside that open door and I am here to stay”) to the simply-stated messages of love like “Everyday Clothes” (”I loved her, yeah I loved her, cuz that’s the way it goes/and I couldn’t have loved her more in just her plain old everyday clothes”) and “It’s You” (”Well now, you’re looking while I’m watching different girls passing by/Don’t you know that I couldn’t lose this love even if I tried?”) it’s a mix designed to make you smile your balls off.
For goodness’ sake, the guy even wrote the world’s only (good) love song to Wrangler jeans.
I’ll admit my knowledge of Richman’s greater catalogue is limited to much of the singles released during his solo career in the 80’s and the Modern Lovers material. But there’s so much to love it’s kind of hard to see that as a bad thing. His love of dancing, odes to the bank teller he has a crush on or the prospective paramour he meets on the street, his ancestral home land of New England, the wistful memories of summer days lived and lost…his songs are simply-executed stories of life and what it means to live and love. His solo career took a step back from the overt rock of the Modern Lovers; where most rockers seek to turn the amps to 11, he always seemed to pursue the gentlest, quietest, most understated sounds he could get. The songs are still rooted in basic American rock tropes but they’re undeniably his own style.
There is some irony in this entry; I’ve failed to simply state what is so engaging about music that is simply-written but endlessly engaging. Perhaps simpler still:
If you recall about seven or eight months back I was feeling pretty miserable and sorry for myself. Having been on the dumped end of a long-term relationship I was not engaging in very healthy behaviours. But true story: I heard someone play “Everyday Clothes” on a local community radio show one Saturday afternoon and it jarred me back to reality. Sometimes you just need a gentle reminder that there is a sunnier side to life that is worth keeping your head above water for.
I’ve found that to be truer than ever in recent months. I’ve moved on, I rebounded, and now I’ve started dating the prettiest little redhead I’ve ever seen. It’s impossible not to think of her incredible smile, the majesty with which she wears someone else’s cross-country sweatshirt, the sparkle in her constantly-changing green eyes when I hear these songs.
Anyhow, it’s weird to think that Jonathan Richman is almost sixty now. The overwhelming tone of perpetual youth and innocence in his music seems to contradict that fact. I expect his youthful enthusiasm will persist, regardless of his age or the age of his songs. They sound pretty timeless to me, anyway.
Jonathan Richman - It's You [3:28m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Jonathan Richman - Everyday Clothes [3:04m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Jonathan Richman - I'm Just Beginning To Live [2:49m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download Jonathan Richman - the New Bank Teller [1:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | DownloadBuy his albums through Vapour Records. He apparently doesn’t participate in the internet on any level, but hopefully someone tells him a dude in Saskatchewan loves him.
