The John Townsend Trowbridge bracket mixes up the music world like nothing else.
It has German: “Du hast kein Hertz Johhny, und ich liebe dich so.” (You have no heart, Johnny and I love you so.” German is easy.) Brecht, Weil and Lenya had a revolutionary punk elegance impossible to categorize. And this bracket has a French number by Jacqueline Francois, the unknown wine to Piaf’s popular beer.
The top seed in this bracket has sold millions of records internationally and their opponent never escaped Boston in the mid-90s.
The 12th seed is perhaps the first rock song—recorded in the 1920s!
Paul McCartney is represented by a crazy, little-known number, which may be one of his best.
Pete Seeger (11th seed) contributes a somber little song which is more than a folk treasure; it’s simply one of the greatest recordings ever. Hardly anyone knows it. A Woody Guthrie song, Seeger makes it his own—changing it from a folk song into poetry:
My pocketbook was empty, my heart was full of pain,
Ten thousand miles away from home, bumming a railroad train.
I was standing on the platform, smoking a cheap cigar,
Listening for that next freight train to carry an empty car.
Well I got off at Danville, got stuck on Danville girl,
You bet your life she was out of sight, she wore those Danville curls.
She took me in her kitchen, she treated me nice and kind.
She got me in the notion of bumming all the time.
She wore her hat on the back of her head like high tone people do,
But the very next train come down the line, I bid that girl adieu.
I pulled my cap down over my eyes, walked down for the track,
Then I caught a railroad car, never did look back.
Here are the songs:
Click the title to listen.
ABBA—SOS
Sinead O’Connor—Nothing Compares To You
Al Stewart—Year of the Cat
Nora Jones—Don’t Know Why
Pink Floyd—Arnold Layne
Dione Warwick—Walk On By
Culture Club—Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?
Skeeter Davis—End of the World
Paul McCartney—Monkberry Moon Delight
Lobo—I’d Love You To Want Me
Pete Seeger—Danville Girl
Pine Top Smith—Pine Top Smith’s Boogie Woogie
Jacqueline Francois—April In Paris
Classics IV—Stormy
Lotte Lenya—Surabaya Johnny
Womb To Tomb—II
ABBA’s “SOS” has it all—melancholy verse, a spirited chorus, a bursting bridge, hooks galore. The Womb to Tomb number has disdain, with a meandering, strange, honest intensity. Pop music versus Drop music. If the arrangement—yes, it matters—were a little better, Womb To Tomb would have a better chance. ABBA wins. I’m terribly disappointed. I wanted an upset.
“Nothing Compares To You” gets better with time—it may be the best song which that particular era produced—what do you do when the pop peak is reached and the rebellion to that pop peak has reached its peak (’59 to ’89)? Well you try something like this in 1990—which is the second seed. Going for the upset is “Surabaya Johnny,” a song from 1929! Lotte Lenya’s performance is enough! She wins over Sinead O’Connor in double over time. Oh my God!
“Stormy” beats “Year of the Cat.” The 14th Seed advances!
Jacqueline Francois surpasses Nora Jones (better arrangement). The 13th seed is moving on! Cheers from the little French cafés.
Pine Top Smith upsets Pink Floyd! The 12th seed is moving on!
“Danville Girl” knocks off “Walk On By.” Another upset.
Lobo defeats Culture Club only because the lyrics are more coherent in telling its sentimental story—when all else is equal, this does matter.
And finally, “End of the World” edges out Paul McCartney’s romp, “Monkberry Moon Delight.” Paul and Linda’s performance is so much fun, but this Skeeter Davis song has real lyric power.
And that ends the First Round in the 2022 March Madness Tournament!
Next, we’ll see who makes the Sweet Sixteen!
#marchmadnesssongs