Marisa Anderson Tara Jane O'Neil

stream Marisa Anderson & Tara Jane O'Neil's 7" of Gene Clark & Cole Porter covers

Portland guitarist Marisa Anderson and LA avant-folk musician Tara Jane O’Neil have been “friends and occasional collaborators for years” (Marisa’s words) and as you may remember, they toured together in 2018. That same year, they recorded covers of Cole Porter‘s 1943 song “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To” and Gene Clark‘s 1969 song “Polly” in TJO’s backyard, and those covers are coming out as a 7″ single this Friday (4/10) via Jealous Butcher Records (pre-order). The duo say:

TJ and I recorded these songs in her backyard studio in February of 2018. We’ve been friends and occasional collaborators for years, crossing paths and sharing stages and the timing was right to capture a certain moment. I was on my way back from Mexico, not quite ready to return to the grey skies of the Pacific Northwest, and to me these songs capture a bit of lazy California winter, crossing paths with a trusted friend, playing guitars and singing old songs. – Marisa Anderson

Cole Porter and Gene Clark are among my favorite songsmiths and rendering their music during that warm midwinter of wildfires and aftermaths was perfect. Marisa and i have had an adventurous collaborative friendship, playing sonics and playing standards. The songs on this 7 inch are a cool continuation of our shared journey. – tjo

They turn both songs into intimate, hushed folk songs, and both covers are true reinventions and truly worth hearing. “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To” recently came out, and “Polly” premieres right here, along with a video. Watch that video and listen to both songs below.

Marisa and Tara were also supposed to tour together again this spring, but that tour has been postponed to the fall.

Marisa also has a collaborative album with Dirty Three and Xylouris White’s Jim White, The Quickening, coming May 15 via Thrill Jockey. You can stream lead single “The Lucky” from that:

Tara also just released this live album, recorded in December 2019: