Garnet's Gems

I’ve fully fallen out of the habit of posting these, but low-key this blog was not cheap, so here we go. Also, yes I know I’m posting this early, but I took several months off so I have plenty to discuss.

General thoughts & listening habits

Some of you may remember when I said that this wasn’t a folk music blog, that was apparently a lie. Turns out I’ve been doing absolutely nothing but listening to Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen lately. Sue me.

Top 5 albums of the week long time.

Going to be very vague about timelines here, because I’ve been out of sorts as of late, but I’m working from the roughly 60 albums I’ve listened to since writing the last update, here we go.

5. Carry Fire – Robert Plant (2017): 8.25

People often talk about John Lennon’s solo career, or Sufjan Stevens’, or Paul McCartney’s, but nobody seems to have noticed that Robert Plant can still f***ing sing.

Holy heck is this such a colourful and mystical album. Every song feels like a sequel to ‘Stairway to Heaven’ (like the opener: ‘The May Queen’ for example), but Plant holds tight to carving his own path distinct from Led Zeppelin. His music is soft, comforting like a warm fire and a bowl of parfait (that’s what it feels like, don’t @ me).

It’s smooth, sexy, and enigmatic. My favourite song is probably ‘Bones of Saints’, but they’re all very good. I listened to this album while enjoying an inherited train ride to Quebec, and I was very pleased.

4. Lay It Down – Cowboy Junkies (1996): 8.5

This one I actually did listen to within the last week. It’s kinda funny how they keep showing up on my lists, but this is my favourite Canadian band, and Canada’s my favourite country.

I’m not biased though, this really is a great album. It’s sexy and swaggering in a way unlike their seminal The Trinity Session, it’s cool and crisp.

Of course, Margo Timmins’ top tier whispered vocals are still present, but she gets a bit louder here sometimes.

I won’t spend too much time on this, as I’ve devoted so much attention to this band in general, so my favourite songs are: ‘Angel Mine’, both versions of ‘Come Calling’, ‘Just Want to See’, and ‘Common Disaster’. I’ve actually been using ‘Angel Mine’ to practice switching to an F chord from a non-barre chord, lot of fun.

3. Planet Waves – Bob Dylan (1974): 8.5

Every song here is very good, I can’t really pick favourites. This is definitely my second favourite album from Dylan’s country era (behind John Wesley Harding), this one swings like a line dance, while still retaining Dylan’s top-tier lyricism. Go listen.

2. 52nd Street – Billy Joel (1978): 8.75

Much like with Bob Dylan, I didn’t want to become a Billy Joel fan, but wow is he so consistently good. Every song on here is good, but ‘Stiletto’ was a surprise standout. If you like any of Billy Joel’s songs, you’ll like this album. It sounds like him in the best way possible.

1. Ingenue – KD Lang (1992): 8.75

This one I listened to immediately after making the last list. Enjoy a smooth, buttery, rich and layered album, from one of the smoothest vocalists of the 90s.

This album is a pleasant dinner party at a friend’s house, with champagne and table snacks. Like with the rest of the top three for this week, all the songs are good, but my favourite is probably ‘Miss Chatelaine’.

If you want to listen to one album from this list, it’s this one.

Reccomended songs

(In no particular order)

1. War is a God – Jesse Welles (2025)
2. Horses (Live from Double Live) – Rheostatics (1997)
3. As I Went Out One Morning – Bob Dylan (1967)
4. Blister on the Moon – Taste (1969)
5. White Mercedes – Charli XCX (2019)
6. Another Day – Paul & Linda McCartney (1971)
7. Leaving Green Sleeves – Leonard Cohen (1974)
8. I Ain’t Marching Anymore (Alternative Version) – Phil Ochs (1965)
9. Friday I’m In Love (Live from Glastonbury) – Robert Smith & Olivia Rodrigo (2025)
10. State Trooper – Bruce Springsteen (1982)

Okay, that’s it. Goodnight all!