To explain their playlist, She & Him’s Zooey Deschanel and M Ward wrote us a little line about each track …
She & Him’s audio advent playlist
James Brown – I Know It’s True
M Ward: “A beautiful and rare find.”
Michael Nesmith – Joanne
Zooey: “This song has such an incredibly beautiful melody. Michael Nesmith is a very underrated songwriter.”
The Carter Family – Lover’s Lane
M Ward: “Probably my favorite musical group of all time.”
Dusty Springfield – Let Me Down Easy
Zooey: “Dusty Springfield’s voice is as great as they come. This is a lesser-known song from her London days.”
Elmore James – Sho Nuff I Do
M Ward: “My favorite slide guitar player.”
The Louvin Brothers – My Baby’s Gone
Zooey: “The Louvin Brothers are genius. Like the Everly Brothers they are masters of the two-part harmony, but lesser known. It’s definitely worth buying all of their records.”
Daniel Johnston – To Go Home
M Ward: “The Beatles filtered through the mind of Daniel Johnston.”
Ozzie Kotani – Ku’u Kika Kahiko
M Ward: “Probably my favorite Hawaiian guitarist”
The Zombies – Whenever You’re Ready
Zooey: “One of my favorite bands of all time. This song is a classic. Colin Blunstone is an exceptional vocalist. There is no other group like the Zombies.”
Fats Domino – What a Party
M Ward: “Great chorus, great voice, great piano, great production.”
Gene Clark – No Other
Zooey: “He left the Byrds because he was afraid of flying. Gene Clark had a very interesting solo career with many great records. This is the title track from his haunting album No Other.”
Sonic Youth – Kool Thing
M Ward: “Revolutionary guitars.”
Christopher Parkening – Bach: Prelude 1 from Well-Tempered Clavier
M Ward: “Good song to wake up to.”
Billy Joel – Allentown
Zooey: “This song has an uplifting melody but dark subject matter: my favourite combination. One of Billy Joel’s finest.”
She & Him – Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?
M Ward: “One of the first songs we ever recorded together.”
Ella Fitzgerald and the Ink Spots – I’m Making Believe
Zooey: “This song puts me to sleep in the best way. I love all of Ella Fitzgerald’s duets with the Ink Spots but this is a favourite.”
