“Judy Staring at the Sun”
by Catherine Wheel w/ Tanya Donelly
from Happy Days
1995
Buy the album on Amazon

Lance posted a Catherine Wheel song, and it made me realize that though we know much (far, far too much) about each other, there are still things to be learned. Like the fact that we’re both big Catherine Wheel fans, which has never once come up in conversation.

Reading his post about them, I realize how much we have in common in our Catherine Wheel history as well. I too came into them with on their album Happy Days. I don’t actually remember how I first heard it. Like Lance, it was likely with the song “Waydown”, though it’s just as likely to have been with this song. I can’t claim to have ever gotten into Throwing Muses much, but did learn of Tanya Donelly’s name when she was with the early Breeders, and was a big fan of Belly since their first album. So, having her involved with this album and song certainly increased the appeal. A couple of years later, in 1997, I had the pleasure of seeing a free concert in Providence, RI, with both Catherine Wheel and Tanya Donelly, which was awesome. They both had great sets, but of course also did this song.

I already liked the song, but sitting in the sun, next to the water, watching it performed live, with a girl – that’s what this song (and Catherine Wheel in general, but that’s another post) makes me think about (and man, is this video of the time).