william tyler Archives

Back in February, folk artist William Tyler put his personal spin on a selection of songs during his second appearance on the Aquarium Drunkard’s Lagniappe Sessions. The session is now available on digital platforms and features covers from the likes of Yo La Tengo, Fleetwood Mac, in addition to work from composers like Antonín Dvořák and George Frideric Handel. The complete list of covers includes sparse instrumental versions of the Mac's classic "Go Your Own Way," Dvořák's "New World Symphony," Handel's "Sarabande," and Yo La Tengo's "Tears Are in Your Eyes." Tyler explained some of the more unconventional choices on his Lagniappe Session page. "Dvořák wrote this symphony while he was an expat living in the States at the close of the 19th century," Tyler said. "He was tremendously influenced by American folk idioms and gospel music, and this theme has passed into our collective unconscious so effortlessly that it’s hard for people to remember that it was written by a Czech composer and not, in fact, a homegrown folk tune." As for Handel, Tyler explained, "Bach is of course the big daddy of Baroque, but Handel is the calm, steady middle brother. This is a powerful, deceptively simple theme that gained a lot of more recent fame as the 'theme song' to Kubrick’s film Barry Lyndon." He added: "There is something so grand and somber about this melody that it’s hard to imagine it as anything other than a funeral processional, but I guess this was Handel’s version of a 'slow jam.'"

william tyler

Stream William Tyler’s Aquarium Drunkard Lagniappe Session Featuring Covers of Fleetwood Mac and Yo La Tengo

William Tyler – “Call Me When I’m Breathing Again”

William Tyler Announces New Album Goes West, Releases “Fail Safe”

2016 Was a Great Year to Stop Worrying and Embrace the Grateful Dead

Review: William Tyler’s Instrumental Folk Is History on ‘Modern Country’

Lie Perfectly Still and Stream William Tyler’s Beautiful ‘Modern Country’ Right Now

SPIN’s 7 Favorite Songs of the Week: The Julie Ruin, William Tyler, and More

Jack White Enters Publishing Game With Third Man Books

Nashville’s Son: The Life and Death of an Indie-Rock Prince

William Tyler’s ‘Whole New Dude’ Is a Rootsy Road-Trip Epic

David Bevan’s 25 Best Albums of 2013

Hear William Tyler, Angel Olsen, and More Live on ‘Folkadelphia Sessions Volume One’ Compilation

Stream Promised Land Sound’s Glorious, William Tyler-Assisted Debut Album

William Tyler Remakes Cult Drag-Racing Film for ‘Portrait of Sarah’ Video

Bonnaroo 2013: The 10 Best Things We Saw on Saturday

30 Must-See Acts at Bonnaroo 2013

Solange, William Tyler, Mac DeMarco Join Bonnaroo 2013 Lineup

William Tyler, ‘Impossible Truth’ (Merge)

The 5 Best Things We Saw at SXSW Thursday: Killer Mike, Mikal Cronin, Chance the Rapper

10 Albums You Can Hear Now: Dave Grohl, Marnie Stern, ‘Spring Breakers,’ and More

William Tyler: Guitar Phenom Mulls Apocalypse, Replies With Instrumental Grace

Stream William Tyler of Lambchop’s Full, Hypnotic ‘Impossible Truth’

William Tyler Imagines Ronald Reagan’s Atari Apocalypse in ‘Impossible Truth’ Teaser Video

5 Best New Artists for February ’13

Hear Lambchop Guitarist William Tyler’s Misty ‘Cadillac Desert’

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