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World's Finest

by The Special Pillow

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  • Full Digital Discography

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    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of The Special Pillow Meets the Space Monster, That's the Way It's Got to Be, Mind Wipe, 1921, World's Finest, Sleeping Weird, A Billion Years Ago, Hudson River Dreamboat, and 2 more. , and , .

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1.
Sunday night light dies Time to hide inside and idle Kind of trying times Find your mind fried on arrival As you’re folding hours up into years Sunday afternoon was made for tears And without a doubt, there’s more trouble due The worst part of the week is the week in review As you’re folding ours up into yours Monday morning opens many doors Do you know the one you’re walking through? The worst part of the week is the week in review
2.
I Woke Up 01:58
I woke up And the paradigm had shifted And the curtain had been lifted And I felt so glad I woke up And the status quo had crumbled And the patriarchy tumbled I felt so happy ******************* And all of this is for you Everything is as it should be All of this is for you Things were better when I woke up I woke up I woke up ******************* I woke up And the love bomb had imploded And the fat cats were demoted And I felt so glad I woke up And the Age of Man had ended The animals befriended me I felt so happy ******************* And all of this is for you Everything is as it should be All of this is for you Things were better when I woke up I woke up I woke up
3.
You’re gonna make it through With soft gels and serious eyedrops And I’ll be there for you We’ll learn the serious ways the worm can turn A serious mountain to move A serious stairway to climb **************** You think about it all day A serious stairway to climb But when you think about it all day A serious waste of your time ****************** We’re gonna put things right With hot stones and serious eyedrops If there’s a guiding light We’ll learn the serious places it can burn A serious boulder to roll A serious stairway to climb You think about it all day A serious stairway to climb But when you think about it all day A serious waste of your time
4.
Hanging out in nowheresville On a Tuesday night Looking for a sleeping pill Or the inner light We could catch up on demand We could go to sleep See the season turn to sand Watch the mission creep I try to keep in mind I always try to keep in mind There’s no such thing as too much time Well, the things that you think that you’re leaving Are the things that will always be there And the things that don’t look good on paper Are like flowers that bloom in the air There’s no such thing as too much time There’s no such thing as too much time
5.
Open up your eyes All you have to do is open your eyes And you’ll realize Monday’s puzzle’s solved Oh you know It’s so easy Why’d you make it hard when it’s so easy? Oh you know It’s so easy Monday’s puzzle’s done Just get out of bed All you’ve got to do is get out of bed When you clear your head Monday’s puzzle’s solved Oh you know It’s so easy Why’d you make it hard when it’s so easy? Oh you know It’s so easy Monday’s puzzle’s done
6.
ALL YOUR SKILLS CAN’T PAY THE BILLS BUT YOUR ACT REALLY KILLS. ALL THE STARS WILL LIGHT THE WAY. IT’S GONNA BE THE WORLD’S GREATEST PAINTING OF A MILKSHAKE, BABY. THE WORLD’S FINEST POEM ABOUT A TEENAGE CASUALTY: THAT WAS ME. NOW I’M OLD BUT I STILL CAN’T LET IT BE THAT WAS THEN, THIS IS WAR. WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU SAY THAT ANYMORE? ALL THE FISH IN THE SEA CAN FORGET SO CAN WE. ALL THE STARS IN THE JARS WILL GET THEIRS; WE’LL GET OURS.
7.

about

After twenty-five years in showbiz, The Special Pillow are right where they started: flying below the radar in Hoboken, New Jersey, creating a distinctive string-driven sound—a heady brew encompassing concise ’60s-flavored pop gems, dreamy psychedelic reveries, and a propulsive drive redolent of the antipodean indie acts of the ’80s. To commemorate their silver jubilee milestone, The Special Pillow has unleashed World’s Finest, an old-school six-song EP laden with catchy and confounding songcraft.

World’s Finest—the follow-up to the Pillow’s acclaimed 2018 album, Sleeping Weird—continues their collaboration with engineer Mitch Rackin. Featured players include bassist, songwriter, and majordomo Dan Cuddy (ex-Hypnolovewheel); charter Special Pillow member Katie Gentile (Run On, Mad Scene) on violin and viola; longtime collaborator Peter Stuart (Headless Horsemen, Tryfles) on a staggering array of guitars; and Eric Marc Cohen (Fly Ashtray, Autobody) on drums and percussion. All the band members contribute vocals, and the celestial choir is enhanced by the dulcet tones of folk chanteuse Debby Schwartz (of P.G. Six. Psych-O-Positive, and solo renown). Multi-instrumentalist Robbie Lee supplies mellifluous embellishments on an arsenal of flutes, and ecstatic and celebratory horns on the title track are courtesy of Steven Levi and Cheryl Kingan (The Scene Is Now, 75 Dollar Bill). Capping off the digital version is a hallucinogenic remix of the single “I Woke Up” via North Carolina noisenik High Tunnels, aka Dan’s old Hypnolovewheel colleague Dave Ramirez.

Charming, idiosyncratic, and overflowing with instant classics, World’s Finest marks a new high point in The Special Pillow’s storied oeuvre.

Praise for The Special Pillow and Sleeping Weird

“The ambition of this release is breathtaking and, amongst the synth squeal, swift punchy psych work-outs and lengthier instrumental avenues, there’s always an underlying sense of melody. . . . A satisfying mixture of creative zeal that still anchors itself to the bedrock of catchy pop. . . . Superb . . . [an] exceptional venture.” —Shindig!

“As electrifying as ever . . . For them, it is a labor of love, an uncontrollable expression that reaches a spiritual level.” —Soundblab

“Still wearing their psychedelic hearts on their sleeves but now with a dark edginess etched in outline . . . an absolute tour de force.” —Terrascope Online

“Chock-full of eclectic goodness, they confirm their status as an essential underground band.”
—Here Comes The Flood (Top 5 Albums of 2018)

credits

released June 26, 2020

Songs by Dan Cuddy (c) Superb Rain Songs (BMI), administered by Rough Trade Publishing

Arranged and performed by The Special Pillow at The Seaside Lounge and Concrete Sound, Brooklyn, NY

Dan Cuddy: bass, vocals
Katie Gentile: violin, viola, vocals
Peter Stuart: guitars, vocals, electric sitar, 8-string bass, mandolin
Eric Marc Cohen: drums, percussion, vocals

Plus!
Debby Schwartz: vocals, vocals, everywhere
Robbie Lee: flute, alto flute, bass flute, and bass recorder on “The Week in Review” and Baroque flute, bass flute, slide whistle, and Renaissance clarinet on “Monday’s Puzzle”
Cheryl Kingan: baritone saxophone and alto saxophone on “World’s Finest”
Steven Levi: cornet on “World’s Finest”

Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Mitch Rackin

Design by Bonnie Shelden
Cover illustration by Ricki Moskowitz

Thanks a million: Georgina Keenan, Rob Weisberg, Joe Belock, Dave Ramirez Chris Mahoney, Lyle Hysen, Yo La Tengo (4eva), WFMU, Issyra Gallery, Retrofret

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The Special Pillow Hoboken, New Jersey

For the past two decades, The Special Pillow have operated from the margins of the marginal, creating a distinctive string- driven sound—a heady brew encompassing concise ’60s-flavored pop gems, dreamy psychedelic reveries, and a propulsive drive redolent of the antipodean indie acts of the ‘80s. ... more

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