First, thanks for being here :)
It means a lot that folks are entertaining my little side project. I’ve been collecting music and building ~vibe~ based playlists for myself for years now and it feels great to share that with y’all.
Going forward, I’ll send these on Tuesday and Thursdays. But, since it’s the first one and I’m excited, I thought I’d send the first one early. It’s been a hell of a week for me, so hopefully if you’ve had a rough week this can take you out of the shit and into some good feelings for the weekend.
For those of you who know me, you know that Nancy Sinatra has been the central figure that has inspired most of my dinner party playlists. If you don’t know me, then now you know that Nancy Sinatra is my muse, my inspiration, my absolute favorite. I always find myself coming back to You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ and was also very activated at a young age by These Boots Are Made For Walkin’.
This album, Nancy & Lee, is an interesting one. It crosses a ton of genres — country, pop, folk. It proved that Nancy Sinatra refused to be a one-hit wonder. That she wanted to dig deeper into something a bit darker, a bit less apologetic. What I love about this album is that it’s about love, but the outer edges of love. It’s about love fading away, the darkest moments of being in love. The rough timbre of Lee’s voice with the dreamy, crystalline sound of Nancy’s creates this will they won’t they? that weaves through each song. It’s something that is way more than 1960s pop.
Without further ado, the inaugural Dinner Music album:
Nancy & Lee - Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazelwood
Things to pair with the Nancy & Lee album:
The recipe for Korean braised short rib from the Peached Tortilla Cookbook. I’ve made this for tacos and for pasta (the pasta/short recipe is also in this book) and it’s a true crowd pleaser. It takes time, but mostly you put short rib and soy sauce in dutch oven and let it do it’s thing for a few hours.
Martha Stoumen ‘Post Flirtation’ Red Blend. I’m honestly not a huge red drinker, but this Carignan/Zinfandel is way more juicy than tannic. Plus, Martha Stoumen in an incredible female winemaker out of California. In Texas, there’s really only like… a few days of winter left (fingers crossed), so I’m getting it in before I switch back to whites and rosés.
Have an incredible, easy, delicious weekend.