August 12 Playlist -- Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazelwood, "Some Velvet Morning"

Remember how I said Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots are Made for Walking" took me down a musical rabbit hole when I was six years old? Well, it happened again. And here I am at midnight listening to Nancy and Lee sing "Some Velvet Morning."

Talk about a song that sets a mood. "Some velvet morning when I'm straight / I'm gonna open up your gate / and maybe tell you 'bout Phaedra / and how she gave me life ..."

So trippy. So groovy.

I love the tension between Lee and Nancy's delivery in this song. There's a slight unsettling quality to Lee's vocals, like a guy coming out of a particularly good acid trip he desperately wants to return to, while Nancy or Phaedra is smooth and dreamy like, well, velvet.

     

Posted with Blogsy

August 11 Playlist: Kacey Musgraves -- These Boots are Made for Walkin'

I was not quite six years old when Nancy Sinatra released "These Boots are Made for Walkin'" and even at that young age it made quite an impression. In many ways, "These Boots..." was my gateway song to "Dusty in Memphis," Dean Martin's "Houston," Roger Miller's "King of the Road" and The Johnny Cash Show.

Yes, "Houston" and "King of the Road" were both released a few years earlier than "These Boots...," but this was the 1960s when songs hung around longer than a wink and a whistle. One of the great things about discovering a breakthrough favorite song is that it takes you both back in time and into the future.

Written by long-time Sinatra collaborator and unsung American music legend Lee Hazelwood, "These Boots..." combined rock attitude with country sass. And Sinatra's delivery was pure rocket fuel.

"These Boots..." as been covered by artists as diverse as Loretta Lynn, Jewel and Megadeath. More recently, Kacey Musgraves has taken her boots for a spin and she delivers. Not only is it a great cover in its own right, but it cleanses the palette nicely from that unfortunate Jessica Simpson version.