Pernice Brothers -- Live A Little (2006)

Interchangable, as in the new album has full string and brass arrangements--unlike any Pernice album since Overcome By Happiness?

I think it's Joe's best and most beautiful record since that debut: and the new "Grudge F***" sounds nothing like the original: it glides and dives like a seagull on MDMA.

It's not thrilling, radical, exciting, or fashionable though, is it? Pernice seems like one of those songwriters who's quietly, steadily, with no fuss, building a mighty fine body of work. It's just there's nothing very "rock'n'roll" or "pop" about doing that. It's a job, a career, a life, a craft. I hope he carries on doing it until he's 85. Sweet Jesus, he'll be a grumpy old git by then.

Just heard "Weakest Shade of Blue" on a Sherwin Williams paint commercial on tv. Joe Pernice is probably making more money from this ad than he did from months of touring.

ha, that's funny. well, good for him - he deserves a little cash. I've probably listened to Pernice as much as anybody this decade (it helps that my wife is a big fan too). First three Pernice Bros. records are pretty close to flawless (and the Chappaquiddick Skyline and Big Tobacco discs are great too). Discover A Lovelier You is probably the worst one, though there are a handful of great tracks. Live A Little has great production, some great tunes, but a couple of real clunkers. Overall, dude is pretty classic. Guess he's got two new records + a book coming out this year? One of the records is a covers album, I think -- the "soundtrack" to his book.

"The Ballad of Bjorn Borg" is a really fab song. I can go for a few Scud Mountain Boys songs once in a while too.

No kidding - my wife always dug Scuds/Joe P. side projects and the Pernice Bros. - but to this day she can't listen to any song on 'The World Won't End' because she thinks 'Flamin' Wreck' was some sort of prescient call about 9-11. I have a nice mini-disc from when we saw 'em at Schubas in Chicago that tour too - have to listen to that when she's not around! We both are fair to middlin' on any output after that record though ...

yeah i think World Won't End is probably the peak for him--perfect production, excellent songs. Gorgeous string arrangements. Pernice's records are filled with nice playing by Peyton Pinkerton, which is a plus too.

to this day she can't listen to any song on 'The World Won't End' because she thinks 'Flamin' Wreck' was some sort of prescient call about 9-11

Eerily Prescient Albums. Chilling.

"The World Won't End" is brilliant, I agree that it's definitely the peak for the Pernice Brothers. Not heard the Scud Mountain Boys records. "Live A Little" is pretty dull, avoided it at the time based on "Discover A Lovelier You" and upon buying it recently felt vindicated.

The Scuds' Massachussets album is def. worth hearing -- probably one of the best "alt-country" albums of the 90s, though you can already hear Pernice straining against that genre ...

Listening to "Massachussets" on Spotify, it's pretty good. Not sure how much of it I'll remember by tomorrow though.

Listen to "Holy Ghost" and esp. "Cigarette Sandwich", they're great. I think the rest drags, but I could see getting into it if you dug Pernice's voice. The cover of "Leave Me Alone" is so great on the Chappaquiddick Skyline record, though it shows you I'm not a great fan when I think a cover is by far the best thing on the record.

Chappaquiddick Skyline is actually what randomly got me into Pernice -- some of it is a little meh, but yeah, "Leave Me Alone" is amazing, "The Two of You Sleep", "Nobody's Watching", "Solitary Swedish Houses" ... those are fantastic.

yeah I gotta give the CS record another spin; but "Leave Me Alone" I think I played 40+ times during a four-month stretch a few years ago. I'll take it over the original even: the guitar work is fabulous, acoustic Hooky!