![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.thelefortreport.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/bermanandmalkmus.jpg\" "\\"bermanandmalkmus\\"")
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Buried in the usual “Where Were You When?” <\/strong>inquiries (when 9\/11<\/strong> happened? when you first heard Smells Like Teen Spirit<\/strong>? <\/em> when you first heard that Amy Winehouse, Marvin Gaye, John Lennon, Bob Marley, MLK, Jr., Robert Kennedy, and John F. Kennedy had died<\/strong>?, etc.), we would add:\u00a0 Where were you when you first heard one of America’s unheralded greats, Silver Jews<\/strong>?<\/p>\n Okay, so that last one might be more of a soliloquy.\u00a0 But we will never forget that first time we heard Silver Jews.\u00a0 We were bored and heat-seeking in some ski shop in Tahoe in the winter of 1994 when we were momentarily jarred by the sounds coming out of the store’s speakers. “Hey, Ski Store Dude, when did the new Pavement come out??”\u00a0 Ski Store Dude:\u00a0 “Nah, it’s the Silver Jews, but yeah you got the Malkmus part right.”\u00a0 We’ll admit:\u00a0 we had no idea Stephen Malkmus (of Pavement) was in another band with Bob Nastanovich (also of Pavement), that was led by their college friend David Berman.\u00a0 From that winter day on we have been silvery fans of the argent Silver Jews.\u00a0 With a unique mix of indie rock, country components, and Berman’s singular lyricism and evocative vocal phrasing, Silver Jews immediately caught our attention.\u00a0 While Silver Jews never made a splash with their live playing (in part because of Berman’s stage-reticence), their songs caught part of the world off guard and imprisoned us.\u00a0 If you haven’t heard their songs, do yourselves a favor and spend some quality time with them below.\u00a0 We have recently spent most of our musical hours reliving the band’s seminal songs.\u00a0 Silver Jews’ leader, David Berman, officially disbanded the band in 2009, but we hope its not the last we hear of Berman or this band.<\/p>\n If you’re short on time, scroll down and listen to their great song, <\/strong>Random Rules<\/strong><\/em>.\u00a0 And then come back and savor them all.<\/p>\n As background, Silver Jews were formed in 1989 (a great year) while Berman, Malkmus and Nastanovich were attending the University of Virginia.\u00a0 After graduating, the lads moved to New York City and parallel universes developed.\u00a0 One universe was Silver Jews, while the other was Pavement (which busy-boy Malkmus formed with hometown friend, Scott Kannberg).<\/p>\n Silver Jews released a couple of EPs, but it was Pavement that released the first full album (“Slanted and Enchanted”<\/strong>) in 1992, followed by the seminal “Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain<\/strong>” in early 1994.\u00a0 It wasn’t until after the release of those two albums that Silver Jews released their first album, “Starlite Walker,” <\/strong>in the fall of 1994.\u00a0 As a result, Silver Jews would wrongly be characterized for years as a “Pavement side-project.”<\/p>\n Berman, Malkmus and Nastanovich were a potent mix on Starlite Walker<\/strong>.\u00a0 Berman conceived the songs in the woods of Oxford, Mississippi, and Malkmus and Nastanovich helped musically attire their bare-bones frames before the songs were recorded at Easley Studios (since destroyed by fire) in Memphis.\u00a0 On Starlite Walker, Berman displayed lyrical wisdom beyond his years (he would years-later release a highly-revered book of poetry entitled, “Actual Air<\/strong>“), and the band provided us great songs and instrumentals, a couple of which (frankly) may have warranted the accusations by Mark E. Smith<\/strong> of The Fall<\/strong>, that Silver Jews were wearing The Fall’s influence a little too prominently on their sleeves (an accusation that Smith more famously leveled against Pavement).\u00a0 On Starlite Walker, the band gave us a song for the ages: Advice to the Graduate. <\/strong><\/em>Lyrically the song provided a rare (for Berman) rosy-outlook that roundly resonated.\u00a0 And Malkmus’s signature vocals graced the chorus.\u00a0 Check it out all you new graduates (you know who you are).\u00a0 And make sure you heed the salient embedded advice:\u00a0 “Don’t believe in people who say it’s all been done.”<\/strong><\/p>\n “If you got a message Sleep on your back On the last day of your life Chorus: So you’ve got no friends and So get in some licks Chorus (2x)<\/p>\n Good morning…to the new world…”<\/p>\n Silver Jews–Advice to the Graduate<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.thelefortreport.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/SJ-SW.jpg\" "\\"SJ")
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\nLeave your name and number,
\nAnd we’ll get back to you.<\/p>\n
\nAnd ash in your shoes
\nAnd always use the old sense of the words
\nYour third drink will lead you astray
\nWandering down the backstreets of the world<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nDon’t forget to die<\/strong>
\nThe things that you do
\nWill always make your mama cry.<\/p>\n
\nWell I know you got a lot of hope for
\nThe new men (2x)<\/p>\n
\nYou wander through the night
\nAnd now you watch the sunrise through a rifle-sight
\nWell don’t believe in people who say it’s all been done
\nThey have time to talk because their race is run<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nAnd hold your head up
\nAnd soon you’ll be drinkin’ from that crystal cup.<\/p>\n