Richard Buckner apparently set selections from Edgar Lee Masters’s Spoon River Anthology to music, on a record entitled The Hill. It came out a while ago, but hey, I’m slow on these things sometimes.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Mr. Buckner, let me just say this: he is a great songwriter and guitarist with a voice and delivery that will grow on you, kind of like how Tom Waits and Bob Dylan grow on you. Buckner has a tendency never to repeat the lyrics to a chorus, to tell abstract stories with concrete details, and to rock me on a fairly regular basis. Here are a few of his songs:

“Amanda Barker” (from The Hill)

“Jewelbomb” (from Since)

“Charmers” (from Dents and Shells)