Lord Have Mercy On Me

Tundra “Satellites” – Video treatment: A group of people (the band?) walk through the wilderness on a summer evening near a pond or a lake. We never see close-ups of the people; every shot with a human in it is taken from a distance or with the figure in silhouette. Everything is shot in black and white, with a lot of greys on black. We see trees sway slightly in the breeze, and watch as moonlight ripples over the water. There are shots of the people sitting around a campfire and skipping stones in the water. Halfway through, the people take off their clothes and enter the lake. As the song ends, we pull farther away from the action, ending on an expanding panoramic view of the lake and the wilderness around it, the human figures becoming smaller and smaller until you can no longer see them.

This is taken from Tundra’s debut ep, which also includes a long instrumental titled “Evlin Anjra” which is among the most beautiful drone rock pieces that I have ever heard. (Click here to buy it from Microclimate.)

Mary Lou Williams “Anima Christi” – This is a selection from the recently reissued album Black Christ of Andes, an amazing collection of Williams’ gospel jazz recordings from 1962. I am not a religious man, but this is the sort of secular music that makes the idea of being one seem somewhat appealing. Essentially, this is a modified version of the 14th century Catholic prayer “Anima Christi” set to a lovely gospel melody, and sung with an easy, confident passion by the Ray Charles Singers. (Click here to buy it from Amazon.)