163. Iain Matthews Discusses Crowded House, Woodface

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Veteran English singer-songwriter Iain Matthews (Fairport Convention, Matthews Southern Comfort, Plainsong, solo) stopped by YMAAA during his recent U.S. East Coast tour to talk about Crowded House’s 1991 album, Woodface. Iain delves into his admiration for Neil Finn as a songwriter and performer, and breaks down several of the tracks on the album. He also discusses the album’s sequencing and why it stands out in Crowded House’s discography. Iain talks about why he decided to make his latest solo album, How Much Is Enough, and whether he is likely to make another one.

As Iain mentions on the show, you can keep up with his releases and tour dates on his website. Check it out! http://iainmatthews.nl/

Al is on Bluesky at @almelchior.bsky.social. This show has accounts on Instagram and Threads at @youmealbum. Subscribe for free to You, Me and An Album: The Newsletter! https://youmealbum.substack.com/. You can also support the show on Buzzsprout at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1542814/episodes or at the link at the bottom of these show notes.

1:41 Iain joins the show

2:20 Iain explains why he was so motivated to discuss Woodface

4:22 Iain talks about why he loves Neil Finn’s songwriting

8:32 Iain picks out some of the aspects of Neil Finn’s songwriting that have improved over time

11:18 Iain’s favorite song from Woodface is constantly changing

12:52 Iain and Al discuss their reactions to “Four Seasons in One Day”

17:17 Iain and Al talk about how Woodface is sequenced and how Iain sequences his albums

21:45 Iain shares his experience of seeing Crowded House live for the first time

24:51 How much did Tim Finn influence the sound of Woodface?

29:05 Iain talks about Mitchell Froom’s contributions as a producer

32:10 Iain and Al discuss some of the songs on the latter half of the album

38:28 Iain focuses on “How Will You Go” as a standout track

40:57 Crowded House has mastered the sing-along chorus

43:05 Iain discusses a couple of Crowded House albums that came out after Woodface

45:20 Iain pinpoints when he became a true Neil Finn fan

46:37 Iain identifies the other album he repeatedly goes back to

48:58 Is Iain done with making solo albums?

54:16 Iain talks about how he approached his new album

58:35 Iain shares his tour schedule

Outro music is from “Where Is The Love” by Iain Matthews.

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