Wanderer

Album: Wanderer (2018)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Running just 1:14, "Wanderer" is the title track and opener to Cat Power's 10th album. "When someone passes, you're here to deal with it in the best way that you can, for the rest of your life," she told Uncut. "That's what that song is about."
  • This was recorded as an a cappella vocal test in the studio. The song is just voices.
  • The last track on the album is a reprise called "Wanderer / Exit." This version has instrumentation, including piano and a trumpet part played by Nico Segal.
  • The song is a sun-through-the-clouds a cappella spiritual that reminded Cat Power of her family; her father sang in church, as did her grandmother. She told Mojo magazine:

    "I think of these ancestors I know didn't have TV and a phone and albums and s--t. My great grandma was a cotton picker and I know when you're singing songs together on your front porch, that's part of the history of humanity. You sing and that's what you do."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Harry Shearer

Harry ShearerSongwriter Interviews

Harry is Derek Smalls in Spinal Tap, Mark Shubb in The Folksmen, and Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.

Glen Burtnik

Glen BurtnikSongwriter Interviews

On Glen's résumé: hit songwriter, Facebook dominator, and member of Styx.

Creedence Clearwater Revival

Creedence Clearwater RevivalFact or Fiction

Is "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" about Vietnam? Was John Fogerty really born on a Bayou? It's the CCR edition of Fact or Fiction.

We Will Rock You (To Sleep): Pop Stars Who Recorded Kids' Albums

We Will Rock You (To Sleep): Pop Stars Who Recorded Kids' AlbumsSong Writing

With the rise of Kindie rock, more musicians are embracing their inner child with tunes for tots - here, we look at pop stars who recorded kids' albums.

Phil Hurtt ("I'll Be Around")

Phil Hurtt ("I'll Be Around")Songwriter Interviews

Phil was a songwriter, producer and voice behind many Philadelphia soul classics. When disco hit, he got an interesting project: The Village People.

Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, Rainbow)

Graham Bonnet (Alcatrazz, Rainbow)Songwriter Interviews

Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Vai were two of Graham's co-writers for some '80s rock classics.