Diane Taraz
The Aggravation Tango

© 2022 Diane Taraz, Raisin Pie Music (BMI)
Recorded and mastered by Larry Luddecke at Straight Up Music in Arlington, Mass.
Produced by Diane Taraz.

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Diane Taraz
vocals, guitar

Peter Tillotson
upright bass

Billy Novick
dueling clarinets

Larry Luddecke
hand drum, shoe interjection

I hasten to say this is NOT an autobiographical song. My partner and I get along just fine whilst trapped in our abode. But there have been moments when I have wished my darling would go away, just for a little while. And I have heard tell of couples who got fed up to the gills with one another's company during pandemic isolation. Hence, this song, which I gleefully composed with the aid of a thesaurus and my trusty rhyming dictionary. It is astounding how many synonyms there are for aggravated; I did not come close to using them all.

I love nothing better than to hire excellent musicians and turn them loose. Peter Tillotson growls away on his bowed bass, and adds a porcupine quill you will probably only notice if you listen for it. Billy Novick's instrumental argument is glorious, so annoying but so inventive!

The cherry on the top comes halfway through the instrumental break. I have made many recordings with Larry Luddecke at his Arlington studio, Straight Up Music, and on every project there comes a moment when some mistake needs to be fixed. Larry invariably suggests that instead of fixing it we add a voice saying Nice shoes! The listener's ear will be distracted by this phrase and pay no heed to the mistake.

We never did it, of course. But The Aggro Tango, as Larry calls it, is finally the perfect place for a shoe compliment. There was no wrong note to cover up, but I am just delighted to feature Mr. Luddecke, panned far to the side, exclaiming over the beauty of footwear, which is always especially nice when made for dancing the tango.