The Weekender #2: Your Must Hear, Watch, & Read Guide
The Weekender #2: Your Must Hear, Watch, & Read Guide
This weekend, we're listing to Liquid Mike and Herbie Hancock, and watching Jazz on a Summer's Day and Prince's Super Bowl Halftime Show.
The Weekender is a curated listening, watching, and reading experience to give your weekend a sensory upgrade. Subscribe to get The Weekender in your inbox free every Friday.
What to Listen to This Weekend
Liquid Mike - Paul Bunyan’s Slingshot
Paul Bunyan's Slingshot, the latest offering from Marquette, Michigan's indie rock outfit Liquid Mike, landed on the scene last Friday and has quickly built up a passionate fanbase.
The album is a compact powerhouse, delivering 13 dynamic tracks in a tight 25-minute span, showcasing a vibrant mix of alt rock and power pop. The group's confidence is palpable throughout the album, fueled by upbeat rhythms, bold guitar riffs, and memorable hooks that stick with you long after the music stops.
They manage to reinvigorate the punk rock spirit with a nod to the glory days of Blink 182, with the sardonic wit of Fountains of Wayne. Take for instance, the opening lines in “K2,” featuring a wild Coldplay joke:
We were playin' the choking game / […] You fell down / When you passed out / The rush of blood straight to your head / You pissed your pants / And they were all yellow.
For a deeper dive into the album's backstory, check out an engaging interview with Mike Maple, the creative force behind Liquid Mike, on
’s Substack.
Herbie Hancock - Head Hunters
Happy 50th Anniversary to Herbie Hancock’s classic and accessible jazz cornerstone Head Hunters. The funky album sold over a million copies, making it one of the best-selling record in jazz history.
The talented ensemble behind Hancock, known as the Head Hunters, has remained active over the years, producing music both with and without Hancock. Despite various changes in the lineup, a historic moment is on the horizon: Hancock has announced a landmark concert featuring the original Head Hunters band for the first time since 1973, set to take place at the Hollywood Bowl on August 14th.
There’s no better time than the present to give this one another spin. While there are only four tracks, each one demonstrates why Head Hunters has endured as a classic; there's not a moment to skip. Surprisingly, this album is tough to find on vinyl for an affordable price, so hopefully this anniversary brings some new remasters or reissues with it.
What to Watch This Weekend
Jazz on a Summer’s Day
Streaming: Amazon Prime Rental | Blu-ray
Speaking of jazz classics, I watched Jazz on a Summer’s Day for the first time this week, a 1959 concert film set at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival in Newport, Rhode Island. Praised by Paul Thomas Anderson as the "gold standard" of music films, its cinema verité style encapsulates the ephemeral grace of jazz—a spontaneous, improvisational art form that resonates deeply with the film's essence.
The film, directed with finesse and intimacy by fashion photographer Bert Stern, showcases an extraordinary lineup, including Jimmy Giuffre, Thelonious Monk, Sonny Stitt, Anita O'Day, Dinah Washington, Gerry Mulligan, Chuck Berry, Chico Hamilton with Eric Dolphy, and Louis Armstrong with Jack Teagarden — a summit meeting of jazz greats unlikely to be replicated.
It’s a vibe from the very first note, featuring gorgeous soundscapes over footage of America’s Cup yacht races taking place yards away in the harbor. Whether you're seeking an immersive experience or a sublime background ambiance, akin to the Sade live show highlighted in last week’s issue, Jazz on a Summer's Day is a great way to spend 90 minutes.
Super Bowl LVIII
Streaming: Paramount Plus
An estimated 125 million people will be tuning in for the San Francisco 49ers vs. Kansas City Chiefs this Sunday night. On a personal note, I need a favor from the thousand or so of you reading this: if running back Isiah Pacheco wins MVP, I win $2500, so please send your thoughts and prayers in that direction.
Usher will be the halftime entertainment, and I have a WORLD EXCLUSIVE on who will be joining him on stage: Alicia Keys, Lil Jon, Ludacris, Jermaine Dupri, and H.E.R.; it should be a fun one!
Speaking of half-time shows, the consensus best halftime performance, besides Left Shark, was Prince in 2007. In the NFL’s infinite wisdom, I can’t embed the performance here, but you can watch it on YouTube, and you should.
Prince electrified with a medley of hits like "1999" and "Let's Go Crazy," alongside classic covers of "Proud Mary" and "All Along the Watchtower." But the standout moment was "Purple Rain," performed as the heavens open up and drenched the stadium. Super Bowl officials informed Prince that it would be pouring buckets during his performance and asked if he needed any accommodations. He replied: “Make it rain harder." Legend.
What to Read This Weekend
Last Friday, Paul McCartney’s best-selling, post-Beatles release got a 50 year underdubbed vinyl and streaming release that removed a lot of the bells and whistles that were added after the original rough mixes to get closer to the original recording.
For a deeper dive, check out
’s excellent review on the new entry in the McCartney canon.
Hey thanks for reading! We’ll be back early next week with new vinyl releases and some special announcements! Until then, rock on!
Jazz on a Summer’s Day looks amazing. Will tune in. Thanks!
Thank you for the acknowledgement. The Underdubbed mix is intriguing.
I must watch that Prince performance. I’m currently reading ‘This Is What It Sounds Like’ by Dr Susan Rogers, (and Dr Ogi Ogas) who worked with Prince on ‘Purple Rain’ and intending to listen to more of his music.