Today's Song of the Day, as chosen by John Richards, host of The Morning Show on KEXP, is "Almost Home" by Gary Louris, from the 2021 album Jump For Joy on Sham/Thirty Tigers.
It's been a while since Gary Louris has released a solo album, but The Jayhawks frontman returns on June 4th with the full-length Jump For Joy, his first since 2008's Vagabond.
Today's Song of the Day was originally meant to be a jingle for an AT&T commercial. When they turned it down, a friend suggested Quaker. When they changed their mind on using it, he told American Songwriter he "wrote a chorus and a verse, and a bridge, and it became what it was supposed to be.”
He continues, saying that lyrically, the song is "a lot of looking back, reassessing with a microscope, then at a distance — so from outer space to nose-on-the-ground. Life sometimes carries you in new ways, but if you can stop and look around, you can learn to appreciate where you are, instead of where you’re going and where you’ve been.”
Finding good new music can be a full time job, so let KEXP help! In Our Headphones brings you five song recommendations every Monday, straight from KEXP’s DJs and Music Directors. Join hosts Janice Headley and Isabel Khalili on this never-ending journey of music discovery.
Host Emily Fox and KEXP’s editorial team talk with artists about the stories behind their songs and the experiences that inform their work. Through each conversation, we uncover the humanity behind the music, allowing us to hear it in a whole new way.
