12 by The Honeydogs

Here's the drill: 12 songs to summarize an artist's career, in chronological order (of course). This one features...

The Honeydogs arose from Minneapolis as part of the alt-country "craze" that swept through the nation in the mid-1990s. In the early 2000s they - like Wilco and the Jayhawks before them - made a successful transformation into an ambitious Beatle-esque chamber-pop band, culminating in the dystopian concept album 10,000 Years. This list covers their first 8 years and 6 albums.

Since songwriter Adam Levy has a gift for one-liners, I'll limit my commentary to a favorite line from the song.

If you have Amazon Music Unlimited, you can listen along here. And keep an eye out for "12 More by the Honeydogs" coming soon!

1) "Those Things Are Hers" (from The Honeydogs, 1995)
"There's the ring, that once held us together / She wants it back, so I'm sending it next week"

2) Your Blue Door (from Everything, I Bet You, 1996)

"Would you lie to me, with the cheapest form of flattery?"

3) "Over You" (from Everything, I Bet You, 1996)

"Give me the strength to walk / out the door and feel the shock / of the cold air / of loneliness"

4) "Kandiyohi" (from Everything, I Bet You, 1996)

"Yeah I hear she's engaged / I didn't mean to ruin your week"

5) "I Miss You" (from Rumor Has It, 1997)

"But we made love for hours / In my head"

6) "Rumor Has It" (from Rumor Has It, 1997)

"The sun and the stars and the planets and the Earth / Were separated from each other at birth"

7) "Sour Grapes" (from Here's Luck, 2001)

"Yeah, it's lonely at the bottom / It takes everything I got to keep from sinking like a stone"

8) "Red Dye #40" (from Here's Luck, 2001)

"You're a third rate first date, it's clear"

9) "Losing Transmissions" (from Here's Luck, 2001)

"We rob Peter, then we sucker-punch Paul"

10) "Rosie Flores Came To Town" (from Island of Misfits, 2002)

"The buses weren't runnin' / but we all got around."

11) "The Rake's Progress" (from 10,000 Years, 2004)

"All I need is a pretty girl / And a pretty big gun"

12) "10,000 Years" (from 10,000 Years, 2004)

"They're melting their toys down for the war effort / All of the kids stand in line to enlist."

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