My Favourite Elliott Smith Song

Latest Episodes:

S1 Ep17: Marissa Nadler Aug 30, 2018

Show notes

Our guest for episode 17 is Marissa Nadler. Marissa is a singer-songwriter based in Boston, Massachusetts. She regularly cites Elliott Smith as a big influence on her and also took part in the same Elliott tribute show as our guest for episode 16, Yoni Wolf.

In this interview, Marissa talks about covering Elliott for that show, how his music has helped her as a shy person and her selection for her favourite song.

It was lovely speaking to Marissa for the podcast. Her answers both on the song, and about Elliott's music in general, are very thoughtful, so hope you enjoy it.

Extra things to look at / listen to:

Marissa covering Pitseleh by Elliott Smith: https://youtu.be/-owQSCA_Jmw

Pitseleh by Elliott Smith on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/1Q0sk7b7PAGjgC3R5zyuWt?si=wAfuU2u9T0WvXofj4Dpicg

XO by Elliott Smith on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1zOxlHQGGV6EH7n4OIFTyh?si=AXyLG0oQTeSma6m_uBY8hw

My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook @MyFavESmithSong.

www.myfavouriteelliottsmithsong.com

S1 Ep16: Yoni Wolf Aug 16, 2018

Show notes

Yoni Wolf joins us from his holiday in North Carolina for episode 16 of My Favourite Elliott Smith Song. Yoni is a musician and producer from Cincinnati, Ohio, and is probably best known for his work with his band, Why?

Although his work is musically quite different, Yoni became interested in Elliott Smith because the sentiment of his music resonated with him. He talks about this during the episode, as well as his favourite song pick and what it was like playing at a Smith tribute show a few years ago.

Hope you enjoy it.

Extra things to look at / listen to:

Yoni Wolf covers Say Yes at Elliott Smith tribute show: https://vimeo.com/77886136
Yoni discusses Elliott in this interview for Stereogum: https://www.stereogum.com/1528172/musicians-pay-tribute-to-elliott-smith-who-died-10-years-ago-today/franchises/sounding-board/
Angeles by Elliott Smith on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Ziohm1Ku8E2yUDYoclfhO?si=iM3YYk6oSgyT7MLERkRuwg
Either/Or by Elliott Smith on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/5hryhrT7wEdLnZCbJX9F6L?si=Bu9S7LcvSAG7rd1WoRT8Ig

My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley.

www.MyFavouriteElliottSmithSong.com

S1 Ep15: New Monkey Studio Aug 02, 2018

Show notes

A few years before he passed, Elliott Smith bought a recording studio in Van Nuys, California. He poured his heart and soul into the place - buying vintage analogue equipment and staying in there for weeks at a time to try and fix it. He called the studio New Monkey because, it is said, this big new commitment was like a monkey on his back.

In this special episode, we speak to the three guys who now run New Monkey Studio. Robert Cappadonna and Joel Graves - who bought the studio from Elliott's family in 2004 - and Greg Cortez, who has been working with the pair since 2009.

We begin with, what else, a discussion of Greg's favourite Elliott Smith song, before discussing some of the studio's history, the guests who've visited and how it's doing now with Robert and Joel.

They are doing a great job building on Elliott's legacy, so it was such a privilege to be able to speak to them. They were also kind enough to master this episode on Elliott's old console.

Things to look at/listen to:

New Monkey Studio website: http://newmonkeystudio.com
Everything Reminds Me of Her on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/3nkdVXnH4xC6f3YZS0C8pC?si=26QKiCxpQCaUC0vSvuuF3g
New Monkey (the song) from New Moon: https://open.spotify.com/track/257KKUjp1uISAGG3000M8W?si=tRi7a_8vSsecfzXStDTZIA
A nice interview with Robert and Joel from 2006: http://articles.latimes.com/2006/feb/01/entertainment/et-monkey1

My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook @MyFavESmithSong.

www.myfavouriteelliottsmithsong.com

S1 Ep14: Jason Lytle Jul 19, 2018

Show notes

Our guest for episode 14 is the musician Jason Lytle. Jason made his name as the frontman of Grandaddy, and it was with that band that he met Elliott Smith for the first time. Grandaddy had just released their second album, The Sophtware Slump, while Elliott had recently put out Figure 8, and they had been lined up to tour together.

In this interview, Jason discusses the moment he met Elliott for the first time, how their friendship developed and, of course, his favourite song.

We loved hearing Jason's stories, so we hope you enjoy this interview too.

Things to look listen to:

Jason Lytle playing on the Color Bars Experience tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-uMXdCUni8

Color Bars Experience website: http://www.the-color-bars-experience.com/elliott-smith/

Jason discussing Elliott in this interview from 2009: http://larecord.com/interviews/2009/06/09/jason-lytle-interview-i-just-want-to-be-that-six-year-old-kid

Waltz #1 on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/4SD4ri0Msp6DxgoXKcf6ug?si=T0LxiCNvSayIHcqy0_fN-Q

XO on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1zOxlHQGGV6EH7n4OIFTyh?si=PLpMoCgaTvqS2_EAaFHoWg

My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @MyFavESmithSong.

www.myfavouriteelliottsmithsong.com

S1 Ep13: Max Bloom Jul 05, 2018

Show notes

The musician Max Bloom is our guest on episode 13 of My Favourite Elliott Smith Song. The frontman of the band Yuck talks us through his pick for his favourite song, his experiences covering Elliott as part of the Say Yes tribute album and why (in a weird kind of way) his music reminds Max of a certain British comedy character (see more on this in the links below).

This interview was recorded in London in June 2018. Hope you enjoy it.

Extra things to look at / listen to:

Yuck covering Bled White on Say Yes: A Tribute to Elliott Smith: https://open.spotify.com/track/0mKKOBllTOKeVXVnIp0f1g?si=va5S1R0tQGmpAFpJJfIBXg
Say Yes: A Tribute to Elliott Smith (album link): https://open.spotify.com/album/22vpNv1nma4K9wDMvIDbPg
Alan Partridge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdCfuZMD3L0

My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can find us on Twitter and Instagram.

www.MyFavouriteElliottSmithSong.com

S1 Ep12: Amanda Palmer Jun 21, 2018

Show notes

In this episode, we speak to musician, songwriter and author Amanda Palmer.

Amanda came to prominence during the early 2000s as one half of the duo the Dresden Dolls. She's since gone on to release several successful solo albums and books, including 2014's The Art of Asking. You probably won't be surprised to find out that Amanda is also a huge Elliott Smith fan - she even appeared on an Elliott Smith tribute album called Say Yes, which came out in 2016.

It was great hearing from Amanda about the influence Elliott's music has had on her, as well as how he's able to so clearly capture what it is to be famous. Hope you enjoy this episode.

Extra things to look at/listen to:

Amanda Palmer covering Pictures of Me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8viCwhAjsLA
Bigger on the Inside by Amanda Palmer (a song influenced by Elliott Smith): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icWgTC6Y5-g
Pictures of Me on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/4q1VulxPSfvFtgHx25FlvV?si=frj8gH8OQ7avLjwLzTjm7Q

My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

S1 Ep11: Craig Bartlett Jun 08, 2018

Show notes

This episode is with the animator Craig Bartlett. Craig is perhaps best known as the creator of children's TV shows such as Hey Arnold and Dinosaur Train.

As well as being a great animator, Craig is also a huge Elliott Smith fan. In this edition, he talks us through his favourite Elliott Smith song, as well as an Elliott comic he drew - you can find that comic on our website myfavouriteelliottsmithsong.com.

Extra things to look at and listen to:

Craig at the Elliott Smith mural: https://www.instagram.com/p/BjuzoH6FGcb/?taken-by=myfavesmithsong
No Name #4 on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/3161kTNVNPqzGHArIpKWvU
Roman Candle on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/0vgbFgcYqm2B0csVXvo8d5

Find us on Twitter and Instagram - @MyFavESmithSong

This episode was produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley.

S1 Ep10: Beatie Wolfe May 24, 2018

Show notes

In this episode, we speak to the singer/songwriter Beatie Wolfe. Beatie has built a reputation as an innovator - she combines music with technology and, last year, she was named in Wired magazine's people changing the world.

Importantly for us though, she's a huge Elliott Smith fan. Such a big fan, in fact, that she's written a song - called Little Moth - in tribute to him and had it beamed into space (yes, really). So, in this episode we speak about her favourite song, how she got into Elliott's work and why her moth analogy works.

Extra things to watch/listen to:

Beatie performing Little Moth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buWNjFmQ4uw
Beatie's album: https://open.spotify.com/album/3WsRLQElvywEUcM0xAuzfY
New Scientist article on her performance of Little Moth: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2130155-augmented-reality-brings-beatie-wolfes-new-songs-to-life/

S1 Ep9: Jessica Lea Mayfield and Seth Avett May 10, 2018

Show notes

In this episode, a first for My Favourite Elliott Smith Song, we hear from two guests: the musicians Jessica Lea Mayfield and Seth Avett. Both artists made their names separately, Jessica as a singer-songwriter and Seth as part of the band the Avett Brothers, but they joined forces in 2015 to release the album Jessica Lea Mayfield and Seth Avett Sing Elliott Smith.

It was so enjoyable speaking to them both. They have a great chemistry and are both huge fans of Elliott's work. In the interview we cover their individual favourite song picks, as well as the album they worked on and a pet named after Elliott.

Hope you enjoy it.

Things to look at/listen to:

Jessica and Seth's Elliott Smith tribute album: https://open.spotify.com/album/45JsKQGdBmDiZxJjxE8UUW
From a Basement on the Hill by Elliott Smith (both tracks chosen by Jessica and Seth come from this album: https://open.spotify.com/album/66UbcdMK6oC2XFPLeESamq
Elliott Smith playing A Distorted Reality Is Now A Necessity To Be Free live: https://youtu.be/Nfy040FRT-U

S1 Ep8: Kevin Devine Mar 28, 2018

Show notes

In this episode we speak to New York-based songwriter and musician, Kevin Devine. Kevin is a huge Elliott Smith fan and has covered his songs many times, so it was great to get the chance to speak to him. He's also worked closely with Rob Schnapf - the producer behind Either/Or, XO, Figure 8 and From a Basement on the Hill - and here we discuss how their relationship came about, as well as what it was like working with a person who helped shaped the career of one of his heroes.

Very much hope you enjoy this episode. Please do like, review and subscribe to the show if you can. Oh, and you can also contact me @RobComba on Twitter if you have any recommendations on who you'd like to take part.

Thanks xo

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