To quote the early 1980s, tiger-striped, spandex-wearing Rod Stewart, “some guys have all the luck.” The only “artists” I could harass into composing scores to the words in my still unpublished one-part play Pickly!: The Really Sour Pickle was my uncle on drunken kazoo and Daniel Baldwin. I mean, my uncle kicks ass on the ‘zoo, and Baldwin does a mean second-rate Tom Waits impression (especially when sitting behind a miniature piano), but compared to Worried Noodles, it sounds like Impotent Noodles. I am not sure how Scottish artist David Shrigley did it, but he has mustered up contributions from Deerhoof, Dirty Projectors, Max Tundra, Mount Eerie, Franz Ferdinand, Grizzly Bear, David Byrne, YACHT, Liars, TV On The Radio, and 32 more artists who wrote and recorded songs based on his work! To quote the early-1970s, jeans-with-leather-crotch-patch-wearing Rod Stewart (what the... again?), “every picture tells a story.”
Post-Disco Rod and Boozy-Dude Rod would both have to admit that Shrigley’s scribbles lend themselves nicely to a musical liaison. Worried Noodles -- a 39-song double-disc collection -- will be released October 23 through Tomlab (and on 3xLP in 2008). Shrigley is known primarily for designing album covers, creating wry cartoons, sculptures, animated film, videos, and photos... pretty much your average all-around socially sharp, oft-hilarious, multidisciplinary artist. Worried Noodles (The Empty Sleeve) originally came out as an LP-shaped lyrics and illustration book two years ago. Since then, many heroic musicians and worthless civilians have embraced Shrigley’s work. But only artistic admirers are on Worried Noodles, the album.
Disc One:
1. Roger Ferguson - “Welcome Singer”
2. Christopher Francis - “One”
3. Grizzly Bear - “Blackcurrant Jam”
4. R. Stevie Moore - “Live in Fear”
5. Phil Elvrum & Nick Krgovich - “Whatcha Doin”
6. Scarlett’s Well - “Maybe”
7. Psapp - “Sad Song”
8. Aidan Moffat & The Best Of’s - “Your Hands Are Cold”
9. YACHT - “I Saw You”
10. Simon Bookish - “Prince of Wales”
11. Deerhoof - “You, Dog” (AKA “Kidz Are So Small”)
12. Hank - “Baby’s Bible”
13. Marriot 1262 (TV On The Radio Portland Chapter) - “Sweet, Sweet Potato”
14. David Byrne - “For You”
15. James Chadwick - “The Wooden Floor”
16. Islands - “Joy”
17. Cotton Candy - “A Sentimental Song”
18. Franz Ferdinand - “No”
19. Alig Fodder - “The Hole”
20. Cibelle - “Elaine”
Disc Two:
1. Dirty Projectors - “Come Forward”
2. The Curtains - “Show Me the Way Things Work”
3. Max Tundra - “A Truce”
4. Munch Munch - “A Squirrel”
5. Liars - “Panic Button”
6. Tussle (fest. David Shrigley) - “A Clash of Hands”
7. Trans Am - “The Film”
8. John Shankie - “A Song”
9. Scout Niblett - “The Bell”
10. Final Fantasy - “Joys”
11. Mount Eerie - “A Sentimental Song”
12. The Dead Science - “Once I Found a Diamond”
13. Lord Cut Glass - “Maybe”
14. No Kids - “Another Song”
15. Hot Chip - “No”
16. Casiotone For the Painfully Alone - “The Pretty Girl”
17. Mitch Friedman - “Awesome”
18. Pyrolator & Stoya - “Elaine”
19. Les Georges Leningrad - “Manager and Coordinator of Prostitutes”
