#Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer

[jenroses]

Youtube sometimes offers up pieces of history and this one is one that I'm almost certain Tumblr hasn't seen, but I really think more people should know about Dave Carter.

It's hard to talk about. Dave died in 2002, very suddenly, after starting transition. Hormones had been started but no public announcements had been made. None of us know the name Dave would have gone by. No public request for pronouns was ever made.

Dave was a poet, and made magic on the stage. Some of those songs might have changed over the years, as our understandings of social justice changed, but the heart of them was so, so strong.

And someone recorded this concert a year before Dave died, and despite the grainy old footage, it is so worth a listen. Pretty much all Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer's music is up on Youtube, but most of it is just the music, this shows them performing together.

I saw them live, so many times, and the amount of poetry Dave managed to pack into the music was astonishing. I think I learned about them circa 1998, they were playing the local holiday market. By 2002 Dave was gone. They were super well known in the folk circuits during that time, well deserved. Anyway. Give a listen.

The last song Dave ever wrote was called Phantom Doll, and while most of Dave's songs were about death (in remarkably positive ways, usually) this one feels like a trans anthem.

Lyrics are in the comments on Youtube.

[ereborne]

Song of the Day: August 21

“Tightrope” by LP

[sanjerina]

Shuffle your 'on repeat' playlist and post the first ten tracks, then tag ten people

I was tagged by @heresluck!

I don’t really have an “on repeat” playlist, so I threw together my different favorite playlists (mostly sorted by vibe, emotion, or which fandom I associate with which songs) and shuffled them into a giant “list of bangers to belt in the car.” I skipped repeated artists (look, Ani DiFranco’s late 90s-early 00’s run was *formative*)

(1) Because the Night (Live MTV Unplugged) - 10,000 Maniacs

(2) Parachute (Serbian Ghenea mix) - Ingrid Michaelson

(3) Darkness, Darkness - Richard Shindell

(4) Hail Mary Shy of Redemption- Eddie From Ohio

(5) Pick Yer Nose - Ani Difranco

(6) When I Go - Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer

(7) Ladder - Joan Osborne

(8) You Gotta Be - Des’ree

(9) Pilentze Pee (Pilentze Sings) - Bulgarian Women’s Chorus

(10) Scarborough Fair - The King’s Singers ft. Manuel Barrueco

I feel 2000s pop is underrepresented in this sample, so please allow the additions of the first two that shuffled up:

(11) Sober - P!nk

(12) If I Were a Boy - Beyoncé

The most played non-Hamilton musical on my iPhone is either the 2009 Idina Menzel/Josh Groban CHESS or the 1998 OST for THE PRINCE OF EGYPT. That feels representative.

The most played classical piece is the 1955 version of Glenn Gould playing Bach’s Goldberg Variations, which is directly wired to affect my nervous system like Valium.

If you have noticed that I haven’t listened to much new music, well spotted! @heresluck and @kouredios are working on me, as are a couple of other friends, but I have been remiss about putting together new playlists, as I have spent most of the last two years listening to audiobooks (especially the Murderbot Diaries and the Goblin Emperor books).

Tagging @megastoat, @cincoseis, @white-throated-packrat, @fremedon, @agentreynard, @dsudis , @changingthingslikeleaves, @bgoodg and @cereta if they’ve thus far escaped being tagged by someone else and would like to play. But anyone is welcome!

[kckatie]

Bonus Folk Friday track: Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer - When I Go

[fuck-you-upmusicbracket]

omg I completely forgot about this until now but if it's the week of Trans Music TM boy do I have something that will fuck you up

(first of all cw for a trans person dying)

There was this folk/country duo that released music under the name "Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer". One of them was a closeted trans woman (or possibly transfeminine nonbinary person) and this was brought to light years after her death from a heart attack by Tracy, the other half of the duo and apparently the only person who ever knew.

Bearing that in mind, listen to Farewell To Saint Dolores. Kills me! For obvious reasons!

"Can you stay until tomorrow, there is no one here to save.

So spoke our lady of eternal sorrow, from the shelter of the cave.

She took me to the jesse house of women, and sanctified me there.

And the ageless face that witnessed me for certain, when my own could not be found."

------

And actually I'm also gonna recommend Hey Diddle Diddle, a sweet little happy ditty about how life could be so simple and happy, especially if you just fit in. How for some people it really is that easy and the world is so lovely. There are no complicated things to worry about and it's wonderful. We could have that, here is what it's like, but also it's a fantasy world with fantasy characters.

I think this is also very much deserving of the title of "fucks you up music" even though it is very cheerful and almost comforting!

I love that trans music week TM has become a thing. Also that description fucked me up a LOT. Something about queer folks living in hiding their whole lives, but relying on some special person to truly know them... history man.

[the-october-country]

"When they hear my bowstrings tightnin' Angels gay, devils frightnin' C'mon fire and midnight lightnin'

To the garden gancy

Hail the wayward werewolf howlin' Haints and shades and goblins growlin' Fiends and demon deevs a-prowlin' When I break and fancy

Shine the merlin moonbeam eye Set my dancin' feet to fly O'er the dark and dervish sky I go like the raven"

This is another one @owlpockets turned me on to, and I discovered a wonderful interview about the album, by Mike Devlin at Music Matters Review, which speaks about the goddess imagery of this song towards the end.

And with that in mind, Elizabeth Sandifer's piece on Eruditorium Press thoughtfully explores the complexities of Carter as a trans songwriter working in a mythic mode, and deserves to be read alongside discovering her songs, though a trigger warning applies as the piece extensively discusses posthumous misgendering both in general and in the context of Carter's life and work.

[dodger-chan]

Get to Know Me (Tag Game)

Rules: answer + tag ~9 people you want to get to know better and/or catch up with

Tagged by @sthound

Favorite color? 

Black (I know, I know, but it is black)

Last song? 

Gentle Soldier of My Soul (Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer, because I apparently only listen to two bands now...)

Currently reading? 

So I just finished The Glass Key (Dashiell Hammett) and am about to start a reread of The People's History of the United States (Howard Zinn). Also the tumblr book clubs: Moby Dick, North and South, Letters from Jeeves, and Journey to the West.

Currently watching? 

Did you not see my reading list? Who has time for television? (Soon Darling Spouse will want to watch something and I'll make time but until then no tv.)

Currently craving? 

Rain. 

Coffee or tea? 

Tea.

A hobby you would like to try?

Drawing.

An AU you’re working on/thought of?

Well, I'm finishing up edits on the final chapters of Reveal the Yearning Desert, and I think I've finished writing all the side stories (another Nancy pov and an El pov) for it. And reading my uncle's book inspired me to start what will be the last (chronologically) story in A Bliss Like This. I thought winter was the season of endings, but apparently it's August.

Tagging, with no pressure @babeluda @tinyyellowflowers-blog @greenlikethesea @sharpbutsoft @motsimages @rosethevoid

[iyote]

tagged by @its-a-coffin, tyy

5 songs I've had recently playing on repeat... ah I haven't actually been listening to music that much lately

I Go Like The Raven - Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer Woodpecker woman, chip-away, whittle Carve my name in a hickory fiddle Dance all night, dream just a little I go like the raven

Brand New Love - Sebadoh Any thought could be the beginning Of the brand new tangled web you're spinning Anyone could be a brand new love

Pink Snow - The Cribs But were you better on your own? To all my sisters I promise you this, that I'll try and be brave for you

uhm

aaa

[lirillith]

So @elvisgrace tagged me to share five songs I listen to, and I'm chronically terrible at remembering to do these things (oh look, there's one where Suzume tagged me back in September) but there's only one way to fix that!

So, well.... I'm a longtime weeb and I go through long stretches of not really listening to music and occasional acquisition periods, and I could easily just fill this up with anime opening songs - hell, with 90s anime opening songs - but to try to represent the kind of stuff I listen to:

Idol - Yoasobi

Kageboushi ~ Itsuka Mita Yume - by Hinayukki

Terra's theme by Nobuo Uematsu

Earth as a Character Gallery, one of the duel songs from Revolutionary Girl Utena

Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer - Red (Elegy)

So you have: Yoasobi, a recent discovery; Vocaloid; JRPG soundtracks in general and FF6 in particular; Utena duel songs; and spare, cryptic folk music.

This is why I always used to panic and act like a total weirdo when coworkers would ask me "so what kind of music do you listen to?"

[chiropteracupola]

How about 2, 18 and 51 for Spotify unwrapped? 👀

2. House A Habit by We Are The Guests

18. I Go Like The Raven by Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer

51. Ni Na La by Solas

[thewickedbohemian]

Fellow Oregonian here and if the comedy music duo is who I think it is I think they're still somewhat going (used to be on their mailing list but not anymore) but why it hasn't seemed like they've put out new music in a while is because their pandemic project was writing a stage musical

Anyway, to help you find good Oregon artists even though we're not literally bound by this challenge if we don't want to be here's a list of a bunch of them at least according to Wikipedia (albeit just the ones I've heard of/what I'd have to listen to other than some showtunes because my rule on how this challenge would apply to showtunes is if any member of the original cast of the show is from your state you can listen to the whole cast album (which gives me a bunch of shows but I'd be most excited about Hadestown and Lizzie))

Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer

Case/Lang/Veirs

The Decemberists

Everclear

Courtney Love

M. Ward

Savannah Outen

Quarterflash

Modest Mouse

The Shins

Sleater-Kinney

Elliott Smith

Todd Snider

Spoon

Meredith Brooks

Collin Raye

and I'd also have access to a lot of songs I wouldn't otherwise thanks to the many covers done by Peter and Evynne Hollens

AKA I'd miss a lot of stuff and why is there this weird trend of Oregonian artists being one-hit wonders

[ereborne]

Song of the Day: August 22

“When I Go” by Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer

[jayofolympus]

For the character ask: Obi-Wan Kenobi?

Favourite thing about him - His dedication. He commits to a path and sticks with it

Least favorite thing about him - Let's be real, the man can be a bit arrogant sometimes

Favourite line - I'm a big fan of the iconic "Hello there!" 🤣

More seriously though, I think "In my experience, there is no such thing as luck." is one of my favourites because of how it introduces us to how the Force works

BrOTP - Obi-Wan & Anakin! Their friendship and brotherhood is so tragic and heartbreaking

OTP - I'm a filthy multishipper, but I have a massive soft spot for CodyWan, as well as a love for the potential for toxicity and mutual destruction in ObiMaul

NOTP - Obi-Wan/Satine. I think it does them both a disservice for them to have them as anything but wistful for what might have been. They would never have worked together long term

Random headcanon - He doesn't actually like tea all that much, but he drinks it to feel closer to Qui-Gon

Unpopular opinion - Obi-Wan does not show the sort of respect to some of his opponents, particularly Maul and Savage, that a good Jedi should extend toward even their enemies

Song i associate with them - I mean... Duel of the Fates is on more than one of my playlists. (I'm partial to the Epic Version, by Samuel Kim)

I also tend to associate him with Tanglewood Tree, by Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer

Favorite picture of them -

He's so pretty, and for what reason? He deserves to be tied up more

[kckatie]

Tonight’s Folk Friday earworm: Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer - I Go Like the Raven

[padrespaleale]

Variety

What is your favorite genre of music? My tastes in music have varied over the years. From the days of heavy metal, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath to the singer-songwriters like John Hiatt, Bruce Springsteen, and Stevie Nicks. My Pandora channels reflect my preferences in music, such as Bruce Springsteen, John Hiatt, Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer, Kate Rusby, and The Band. Each has a slightly…

[genderqueerpond]

21: Favourite song with a person's name in the title.

okay I have to give this to Heather on the Moor by Alexander James Adams, even though it's only sort of a name title, because hello. Fucking Power Move

I mean absolutely everything he does is iconic but like. okay. REALLY QUICK version of his Lore; Alexander James Adams is a trans man who performed and recorded for 20+ years under the name of Heather Alexander. When he came out, he did so by explaining to his fanbase that the musician they had all been following was in fact a changeling, and he, the real child, had been in faerieland all this time while "sidhe" established a music career in his absence. However Heather has now gotten tired and gone home, and Alec, after defeating the faerie queen in a fiddle battle, has proven himself worthy to take his rightful place in the real world, as a real boy, and has inherited her music career.

He then proceeds to remake almost three albums worth of previously released songs, many of them as duets incorporating parts of the original vocal track. And THIS ONE. THIS ONE. He could've said, nah I'm not doing this song anymore, and it would have been entirely understandable and no reasonable person would have thought any less of him for it. Instead he does THIS, and puts it on an album right after "Stolen Child"

Insane iconic power move I die

---

honorable mentions to Kate and The Ghosr of Lost Love by Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer because I love the fiddle part, and Caroline by Espers because I was just listening to it and I like it a lot!