2000 Great Songs #1398: By The Time My Head Gets To Phoenix
I have to admit I was unfamiliar with singer-songwriter Peter Bruntnell until Mary Lou Lord covered "By The Time My Head Gets To Phoenix" on her excellent 2015 record Backstreet Angels. That record, alongside a few new originals, offered a thoughtful and varied collection of covers; and while I was familiar with most of them, this pleasant bath of sweet sweet jangle, sent me scurrying off to track down the original. It's found on 1999's Normal For Bridgewater , which turned out to be a pretty great record, Americana-tinged folk-rock and pop (which makes this of a piece with yesterday 's nod to Kevin Tihista's Red Terror). "Phoenix" makes for a wonderfully catchy, bittersweet ballad that seems perfectly designed for inclusion on a circa-2000 mixtape or coffee shop playlist, something you'll find yourself subconsciously humming the rest of the day. Solo acoustic remake: In-store performance: Mary Lou Lord cover: Mary Lou live in studio: See the en...
