Martha Wainwright’s favourite Warren Zevon song: “Just incredible”
Before you think any deeper about what an album is, it is a moment in time. Yes, it’s a collection of songs that you may or may not like, and it’s a finished product that an artist uses to promote themselves, but more than anything, it is an excellent example of the state of music at the time of recording, in terms of the market, the influences impacting artists and the technology available to record it.
This feeling can be lost at times, as the way that we listen to albums these days, on various streaming sites and online, means that them being a reflection of the period when they were made is often lost. Time bends on the internet; you can be in the 1960s with the press of a button and then right back in the modern age with the skip of a track. Generally speaking, it’s a good thing, as it means music is more accessible for everyone, but the impact an album can have is sometimes lost in lieu of the definitive nature of when it was released.
When you consider someone like Martha Wainwright, whose entire life has been surrounded by music, the time stamp of an album is a vital part of the listening experience. She will have been shown so many different albums and songs in her life, so to see one and remember when she heard it and what impacted it is crucial. This applies to her favourite Warren Zevon song, as even though she was late listening to it, she remembers when she heard it and can recognise the separate time period within the track’s production, which only adds to how much she loves it.
In talking about ‘Life’ll Kill Ya’, she says, “The album of the same name is still one of my favourite records. I didn’t know Warren Zevon for his more well-known albums. I knew the song ‘Werewolves Of London’, but I didn’t make the connection to him when I stumbled upon Life’ll Killa Ya.”
She remembers hearing the record and noticing the aged production: “I was probably in my mid-twenties when it came out, at a guess… The production is, in some ways, very dated to the time that the record came out, but it’s perfect, and it’s part of why I love it so much. I felt like there was no one else like him in that moment.”
The album is very much of the moment, not only in terms of production, but it also seems poignant when you consider Zevon’s health at the time of writing. So many of the songs on the album deal with themes of death, and given that it was released shortly before he got sick and passed away, it feels like a very intimate look into his psyche during a tricky time.
“Even though this album kind of foreshadowed his illness, many of the songs relate to grappling with death and finding a way to accept it. I don’t know exactly what was going on with him at the time, but I found it so courageous,” agrees Wainwright.
In the age of the internet, the use of the album as a timestamp should be remembered. We should be able to look at them and remember when we heard them while appreciating when they were made and what they represent. Wainwright is a testament to this, as when she hears ‘Life’ll Kill Ya’, she remembers when she heard it, recognises it for the time it was recorded and sees the deeper theme in the tracks. These records are more than music; they are historical relics.