I think this song was the perfect way to end Heartbreaker. I imagine it wasn’t easy to pick a closing track, though. There are wild rockers, straightforward folk tunes, and just about everything in between. So it only makes sense to pick a track that’s different sonically and thematically, right? It’s set in New York City and deals with someone stealing someone else’s shirt, which is something that can’t be said for any other song on the album. Really, I’ve always felt that ”Sweet Lil Gal” sounds like something that could have been on Love Is Hell or 29, but somehow was written several years too soon.
It’s got a really open, almost live sound to it. The song’s production isn’t slick or poppy (the rest of the album isn’t, either), but probably could have fared well as a single had it been recorded differently. Of course, I like having it as an album track that only those in the know get to experience… (that was soooooo indie kid of me)
He played this solo at the piano at the Fillmore last August, and it
was really beautiful, and affecting–I’ve always liked it but he just really killed it that night.
I heard it a few years ago when he played in Champaign. He was at the piano for several other songs that night. (Playing one of my favorites: “NIghtbirds”)