Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CXL--Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band: Difference Is Time

This week's tune on Friday Night Jukebox I've Had a Fucked Up Week Wednesday Edition features my favorite Conor Oberst song that really has very little to do with Conor Oberst.  And just to show you how fucked up my week was, every song by Slim Jim and the Podunk Shitkickers has a video on Youtube, but the only video for this week's tune I could find was a) live, b) sounds like it was recorded in a coffee can, and c) features about a minute and a half of Conor Oberst tuning his guitar.  Woo-fucking-hoo.

Conor Oberst is, well, Conor Oberst , he of Bright Eyes and about ninety other bands (actually seven in all) as well as a solo performance or two.  The Mystic Valley Band was more or less Oberst's backing band for a few years, in which they released two albums and then took a hiatus before releasing their third and for the time being, last album.  While not quite repeating the commercial or historical achievements of The Beatles, Oberst and his backing band did have a modicum of chart success and, if nothing else, were revered and raved about by critics and the cool kids alike.  Plus they managed to write and record one of my favorite songs of this century, which now that we're seventeen years in, doesn't seem such a small sample size.

Released in 2009 on their Outer South LP, "Difference Is Time" was written and sung by the Mystic Valley Band's drummer, Jason Boesel.  Near as I can tell, it's a song about a man seeking a woman's love, a man who loved her once some time ago, and the difference between her two loves is the time that has passed and the hardening of the heart that often comes with aging.  Then again, the lyrics are a bit obtuse, so it could be about a bionic dog on Venus for all I know.  Nevertheless, it has a nice alt-country sound and would feel at home on just about any Uncle Tupelo album.  Boesel sings the frustration of a much wanted but still unrequited love, dragging out the lyrics just enough without turning the song into a twangy mushfest.  The music features a nice back and forth between an acoustic guitar and an electric guitar, with an overarching organ and piano.  Boesel closes the song repeating "difference is time" while noting that the woman of his desire, "...ain't yours and she sure ain't mine."  It's a song of resigned acceptance--which in many ways mirrors the lives most of us live in quiet desperation.

Lyric devotees note that the lyric links I found were all pretty poor, especially considering that the lyrics were included in the CD package--somehow several of them managed to turn the line ",,,and let the feelings roll" into "...and the feet is row" which might mean something to the bionic dog on Venus, but doesn't mean fuck all to those of us here on earth...

Lyric Sheet:  "There's an end I will surely meet/When I'm done dancing to this beat/On my headstone it will be written/Life is hard even if you cheat..."

Enjoy (if the link works):

Link to album on Spotify here--song #7....

Fuck Donald Trump,

emaycee