As I'm typing this, it's about 95 degrees outside, heat index of 110 and a 50 percent chance of thunderstorms later. In short, it's unbearable. Typical summer in Nebraska.
There are a ton of songs that remind me of summer. Recent tunes include Animal Collective's "Summertime Clothes" and The Flaming Lips' "It's Summertime". But the song and group that best conjures up memories of summer is Morphine.
For most people, summer music is supposed to be carefree, party-oriented and light whereas winter music is supposed to be dark, intense and more than a tad isolationist. But obviously a person's mood isn't fully dependent on the weather. Enter Morphine.
The band's minimalist lineup (two-string bass guitar, baritone sax, and drums) resulted in one of the most distinct sounds in rock in the '90s. Sandman's two-string bass and Dana Colley's baritone sax created plenty of spaces where drummer Billy Conway expertly filled in when needed and like all great artists, let the silences occupy as much space as the music.
The best introduction I can think of for a Morphine initiate is "All Your Way." The bass riff perfectly eases into Colley's sax. If you could somehow translate into music the feeling of riding in your car with all windows down on a warm summer night, "All Your Way" would fit the bill perfectly. It also comes from an album with one of the strongest 'Side A's in rock.
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