The Highlight of My Year

Looking back, it was a good year.  If I had to pick the one thing that blew me away or made an impression on me it had be the Decemberists in concert.  This was quite unexpected on my part, because I didn't know much of them. But when tickets became available, Julio insisted we must see them.  He tried to play me one of their songs before the concert, but I wasn't very interested in his song choice.  I was unaware of how diverse their music really is.  It turns out our favorite Decemberists songs are very different.  I had no time to blog when I did see them in July, so I'm finally able to share with you an awesome experience.

It was warm summer night at the Mann Music Center in Philly.  It's nice to think of that weather now being in December.  We had great seats.  The band had recently begun having a full orchestra behind them, since their budget increased with their popularity.  They are described as folk rock which does them justice somewhat.   Sometimes, they are very folk sounding.  Other times, their songs resemble folk only because of their storytelling nature.   I like how Stephen Colbert describes them as "hyper-literate prog rock."  This is because they make (sometimes obscure) historical or literary references in a lot of their songs.  Mostly, their music is touching, sometimes funny, and beautifully arranged. 

After the show, I was happy to have a husband who already had most of their music.  So when we got home, he could immediately download it in my music player.  The newest album the Crane Wife and Picaresque are my favorite albums.  There is no way to stay in a bad mood when listening to "the Sporting Life. " "The Crane Wife (part one)"  comes in a close second.  Even my daughter has come to love that song and we sing it together.  It is the Japanese story of a man who mends a crane's wing.  The next day, she returns as a woman and they marry.  You'll have to Wikipedia the rest.

It's worth taking a minute and listening to a live version of "the Crane Wife"  I have hand selected from YouTube for your listening pleasure.  The singer talks for a little bit and then the song begins. If you don't like this song, I'll bet there is a Decemberists song out there for everyone.  Don't be like me and judge the band based on one song.