TRACK LISTS FOR ALL ESOPUS CDS
Full-length streaming tracks from the CDs incliuded in all of our sold-out back issues (Esopus 1-7) are available on our music player. Follow the links to each CD below or navigate between CDs in the player by choosing from the drop-down menu on the upper right.
ESOPUS CD #1: PUBLIC DOMAIN
Musicians were asked to create a song based on public-domain material.
1. Wide Right, "Hallelujah, I'm a Bum"
2. Haley Bonar, "Moonshiner"
3. The New Year, "Sinking Ship"
4. tre/molo, "El Ya Sabia"
5. Mark Eitzel, "From the Mind of M. Applegate, Beautician"
6. Phosphorescent, "Home on the Range" [clip only]
7. DJ Afro, "Electro-Merengue-Clásico"
8. Jet Set Six, "House of the Rising Sun" [clip only]
9. Parker and Lily, "Smashing Party" [clip only]
10. Discar, "Somebody"
11. Pat Irwin, "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair"
12. Dean Wareham, "Beautiful Dreamer"
ESOPUS CD #2: MISSED CONNECTIONS
Musician-couples wrote a song inspired by the Craig's List "Missed Connection" personal ad of their choice.
1. Low, "I Know What You Did Last Summer"
2. Rich Creamy Paint, "Re: Please Convince Me That All Men Don't Cheat" [clip only]
3. The Kennedys, "Jesus on Second Avenue"
4. Antietam, "Through Ginevra's Eyes"
5. $mall ¢hange and Jules/C, "Mind-Blowing Epiphany"
6. agf/dlay, "You with Now"
7. Chris Frantz & Tina Weymouth, "Behind the Monkey House"
8. The Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players, "East Village Rocker with a Missed Connection"
9. Chemistry Set, "Why Did You Leave Me So Cold?"
10. Green Sweater Collection, "You Shoulda" [clip only]
11. Fantastic Lovers, "The Huge Body of Water That Surrounds Us"
ESOPUS CD #3: PRODUCT DISPLACEMENT
Musicians were asked to choose ad slogans or jingles and “embed” (disguise) them in original songs.
1. Scott McCloud, “Map”
2. El May, “Order in the Nothingness”
3. Sonic Boom & Delia Derbyshire, “Only the Loveliest” [clip only]
4. Connie MacNamee, “B-Flat Blues”
5. Jad Fair, “Love and Laughter”
6. David Naugle & Joy Howard, “The Right Thing”
7. The Baptist Generals, “Raw from Self-Destruction...”
8. The New Black, “Don't Leave Home”
9. Western Keys, “When You Return” [clip only]
10. Alan Licht, “The Whole Thing”
11. BONUS TRACK The Wrens, “This Boy Is Exhausted” [clip only]
(from The Meadowlands, Absolutely Kosher, 2003)"
ESOPUS CD #4: IMAGINARY FRIENDS
We invited Esopus readers to submit descriptions of their "imaginary friends" from childhood, then asked participating musicians to choose one description and write a song based on the friend. Read the descriptions here.
1. The Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers, “Lisa”
2. Tim'm T. West, “Brown Buick, Brown House”
3. Vetiver, “Quiri Quirano”
4. Kimya Dawson, “The Competition”
5. Solex, “Little Doo Dootz”
6. Kate Pierson & Pat Irwin, “Bunnies” [clip only]
7. Jon Langford, “W”
8. Ruth Gerson, “Kibby, Zocky Merino, and the Man with the Moustache”
9. Grant Hart, “Barbara”
10. Avey Tare, “Judy Biworker” [clip only]
11. JFK, “Henny-Penny”
12. Tara Jane ONeil, “Delores”
13. The Caulfield Sisters, “Judy”
ESOPUS CD #5: AUDIO-VISUALS
Musicians were asked to choose a work of visual art and write a song inspired by it.
1. Cadence Weapon, “God Bless My Brother”
2. Jim White, ”Plywood Superman” [clip only]
3. The Mountain Goats, “Porcile”
4. Alina Simone, “On Being Complicated”
5. Josephine Foster, “Two-Harp Blues” [clip only]
6. Autoparty, “Juliette vs. the Ink Blot”
7. Meg Murray, “Ode to Bunnatine”
8. Sankofa, “They All Die”
9. Jesus Licks, “Terrible Beauty”
10. Kevin Blechdom, “Dying Robot”
11. Grasshopper w/ O.C.D. Bottle Factory, “Back in No Time”
12. Britta Phillips, “Song of You”
ESOPUS CD #6: HELP WANTED
Musicians selected a job listing—whether from the internet, their local paper, or a supermarket bulletin board—and then created a song inspired by it.
1. Ambrosia Parsley & the Elegant Too, "Girls: Must Be Single and Very Pretty”
2. The Strugglers, "Western Director"
3. LD & the New Criticism, "Sex Surrogate"
4. Electric President, "Laboratory Technician (We Will Walk Through Walls)" [clip only]
5. Owen Tromans, "Astronomer"
6. Amy Rigby, "A Taste of the Keys" [clip only]
7. Devendra Banhart & Noah Georgeson, "The Nurse" [clip only]
8. Marissa Nadler, "Nude Not Required"
9. Magnetophone & John Darnielle, "Systems Thinking Business Modelling Consultant"
10. Grizzly Bear, "Pine Cone Café"
ESOPUS CD #7: OUJIA
Esopus sent Ouija boards to 13 musicians, who then used their experiences—spiritual or otherwise—to create songs.
1. The Rosebuds, "In the Backyards"
2. Patrick Cleandenim, "The Sho"
3. The Focus Group, "We Are Coming Back to Dance with You"
4. Danielle Stech-Homsy, "Ferris"
5. Tom Krueger, "Ouija"
6. Excepter, "HA"
7. Asobi Seksu, "Bounce"
8. Saturday Looks Good to Me, "Spelt Out"
9. TheSwimmingPools, "WeAreTheMagic"
10. Carolyn "Honeychild" Coleman, "New Hands (Submarine Mix)" [clip only]
11. Greg Weeks, "With Fine Precision the Plants Descend"
12. The Earlies, "Mimic"
13. El Perro del Mar, "Hello Goodbye"
ESOPUS CD #8: SPAM
Contributors were invited to pick a piece of email spam and craft a song related to it in some way.
1. Final Fantasy, "Flare Gun" [clip only]
2. The Submarines, "Agents of the Corps” [clip only]
3. Greg Tate's Garage Band, "Call of the Wily” [clip only]
4. Frida Hyvönen, "For Me to Say” [clip only]
5. Lost in the Trees, "Walk Around the Lake” [clip only]
6. The Family Doctor, "The Secret Rite of Tantilization” [clip only]
7. Harmony and Pollution, "My Rumania” [clip only]
8. Dylan in the Movies, "Graduation Day" [clip only]
9. The Moral Loopholes, "Imperfections" [clip only]
10. Needle, "Sunday on Prozac" [clip only]
ESOPUS CD #9: DREAMS
ESOPUS readers sent in transcripts of their dreams, and musical acts each selected one to serve as inspiration for a song. Read all of the dreams here.
1. Black Moth Super Rainbow, "One Day I Had an Extra Toe" [clip only]
2. White Whale, "A Heavenly Light that Shines" [clip only]
3. Paavoharju, "Sumuvirsi" [clip only]
4. Hank, "Me and My Daddy Are Walking in the Desert" [clip only]
5. Ida, "Moon Flower" [clip only]
6. Dirty Projectors, "One Kill" [clip only]
7. High Places, "Oceanus" [clip only]
8. Califone, "Two/The Machinery in Your Stomach...," [clip only]
9. Lucy Wainwright Roche, "Poison" [clip only]
10. Ta’Raach & the Lovelution, "Montparnasse" [clip only]
11. Cheval Sombre, "I Sleep" [clip only]
ESOPUS CD #10: GOOD NEWS
Musicians were invited to choose and interpret pieces of news they felt could be construed as “positive” to use as the inspiration for brand-new songs. Links to the original articles appear below.
1. The Real Tuesday Weld, "Love at the Death Hotel" ("DEATH HOTEL") [clip only]
2. Neko Case and Carl (A.C.) Newman, "Yon Ferrets Return" ("BLACK-FOOTED FERRETS RELEASED IN KANSAS") [clip only]
3. Chris Rehm, "Impendin' Recession" ("TREASURY CHIEF: TAX REBATE CHECKS TO GO OUT IN MAY") [clip only]
4. Marnie Stern, "Fathom Five" ("'MIRACULOUS' RECOVERY FOR MAN WHO FELL 47 FLOORS") [clip only]
5. Busdriver, "I've Always Known" ("L.A. GANGS: NINE MILES AND SPREADING") [clip only]
6. Man Man, "A Song for Liza Minnelli" ("LIZA MINNELLI RECOVERS QUICKLY FROM STAGE COLLAPSE") [clip only]
7. Langhorne Slim, "Priceless" ("STOLEN MUNCH PAINTINGS FOUND SAFE") [clip only]
8. Ryan Adams, "A Song in the News" [clip only]
9. Gowns, "Butterfly Knife" ("TWO AGAINST ONE") [clip only]
10. Catherine McRae, "Boredom Arcades" ("CONEY ISLAND: RIDES AGAIN?") [clip only]
11. Atlas Sound, "Sleeping Village Appears Empty" ("MOST AMERICANS “VERY SATISFIED” WITH THEIR PERSONAL LIVES") [clip only]
12. Artificial Workshop, "Miracle Man" ("MIRACLE ON 66TH STREET: WINDOW CLEANER SURVIVES 47 STOREY FALL") [clip only]
ESOPUS CD #11: ADVICE
Participating musicians were asked to choose an item from an advice column or any other source offering some type of counsel, then use it as the basis for a song. Links to original items appear below.
1. The Muslims, "Inside Job" READ ITEM [clip only]
2. Shearwater, "Helix" READ ITEM [clip only]
3. Wye Oak, "In Defense of Fetish" READ ITEM [clip only]
4. Brazos, "Passenger" READ ITEM [clip only]
5. Faca, "Two Tango" [clip only]
6. Nina Katchadourian, "Castaway" READ ITEM [clip only]
7. Lucky Dragons, "To Lilly at Age 15 20 25" READ ITEM [clip only]
8. Jenny Owen Youngs, "Thanks, Mesopotamia!" READ ITEM [clip only]
9. The Wingdale Community Singers, "Never Ever Fall" [clip only]
10. Come Rad Comrade, "Spinning Us Around" READ ITEM [clip only]
11. Stuart Dahlquist, "New World Order Rising" READ ITEM [clip only]
ESOPUS CD #12: BLACK AND WHITE
Musicians were invited to pick a black-and-white film to use as the inspiration for a song.
1. Sand Pebbles, “Blue Eyes in Black and White,” based on Hud (1963).
FILM CLIP [clip only]
2. Caledonia Miission, “The Ballad of Blaze Tracy," based on Hell’s Hinges (1916). [clip only]
3. Me Succeeds, “Eine Symphonie des Grauens,” based on Nosferatu (1922).
FILM CLIP [clip only]
4. Two Dark Birds, “The Saddest Music in the World,” based on The Saddest Music in the World (2003).
FILM CLIP [clip only]
5. Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson, “Ciao Manhattan (First Draft),” based on It’s a Wonderful Life (1946).
FILM CLIP [clip only]
6. Sam Amidon, “Vance,” based on The Furies (1950).
FILM CLIP [clip only]
7. DJ/rupture, “El Verdugo,” based on El Verdugo (1963).
FILM CLIP [clip only]
8. Lisa Cerbone, “Scout Meets Boo,” based on To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). [clip only]
9. The Ruby Suns, “I’d Like to Go Swimming,” based on Metropolis (1927). [clip only]
FILM CLIP
10. Nat Baldwin, “Darker Numbers,” based on Raging Bull (1980). [clip only]
FILM CLIP
11. Nina Nastasia, “Repulsion,” based on Repulsion (1965).
FILM CLIP [clip only]
ESOPUS CD #13: NOSTRADAMUS
Esopus asked musicians to base their songs on one quatrain from the French astrologer.
1. Frightened Rabbit, "Son C" [clip only]
2. Natureboy, "Ode to Merry Maid" [clip only]
3. Savoir Adore, "Secret Fires" [clip only]
4. Laura Gibson, "Sky and Sword" [clip only]
5. French Horn Rebellion, "The Chart (of Plancas' City)" [clip only]
6. Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez, "Unseen Silver" [clip only]
7. Lia Ices, "Cymbal Trumpet and Bell" [clip only]
8. Gejius, "Parallel Lives" [clip only]
9. Phil Kline, "Days Without Rain" [clip only]
10. Raelian Geto, "Curved Beards Like Crescent Moons" [clip only]
11. Julianna Barwick, "Stole" [clip only]
ESOPUS CD #14: ARTISTS
Musicians each picked one visual artist to serve as the inspiration for a song.
1. PS I Love You, "Carlyn Bezic" [clip only]
2. Tim Fite, "Chuck Close" [clip only]
3. Dream Diary, "El Lissitzky" [clip only]
4. Sharon Van Etten, "Esao Andrews" [clip only]
5. Bells in Cairo, "Jules Bastien-Lepage" [clip only]
6. I Was a King, "Kare Kivijarvi" [clip only]
7. Big Troubles, "Guy Debord" [clip only]
8. Memoryhouse, "Gian Lorenzo Bernini" [clip only]
9. Follow That Bird!, "Diego Gravinese" [clip only]
10. Emily Zuzik, "Ernst Kirchner" [clip only]
11. Erica Spring, "Gunta Stolzl" [clip only]
12. Doveman, "David Dunlap" [clip only]