
My Favourite Elliott Smith Song
The premise of this podcast is very simple - in each episode, we speak to a famous fan of Elliott Smith's to discuss their favourite song of his and how they got into his music.
Latest episodes

Jul 19, 2018 • 14min
S1 Ep14: Jason Lytle
Our guest for episode 14 is the musician Jason Lytle. Jason made his name as the frontman of Grandaddy, and it was with that band that he met Elliott Smith for the first time. Grandaddy had just released their second album, The Sophtware Slump, while Elliott had recently put out Figure 8, and they had been lined up to tour together.
In this interview, Jason discusses the moment he met Elliott for the first time, how their friendship developed and, of course, his favourite song.
We loved hearing Jason's stories, so we hope you enjoy this interview too.
Things to look listen to:
Jason Lytle playing on the Color Bars Experience tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-uMXdCUni8
Color Bars Experience website: http://www.the-color-bars-experience.com/elliott-smith/
Jason discussing Elliott in this interview from 2009: http://larecord.com/interviews/2009/06/09/jason-lytle-interview-i-just-want-to-be-that-six-year-old-kid
Waltz #1 on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/4SD4ri0Msp6DxgoXKcf6ug?si=T0LxiCNvSayIHcqy0_fN-Q
XO on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1zOxlHQGGV6EH7n4OIFTyh?si=PLpMoCgaTvqS2_EAaFHoWg
My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @MyFavESmithSong.
www.myfavouriteelliottsmithsong.com

Jul 5, 2018 • 11min
S1 Ep13: Max Bloom
The musician Max Bloom is our guest on episode 13 of My Favourite Elliott Smith Song. The frontman of the band Yuck talks us through his pick for his favourite song, his experiences covering Elliott as part of the Say Yes tribute album and why (in a weird kind of way) his music reminds Max of a certain British comedy character (see more on this in the links below).
This interview was recorded in London in June 2018. Hope you enjoy it.
Extra things to look at / listen to:
Yuck covering Bled White on Say Yes: A Tribute to Elliott Smith: https://open.spotify.com/track/0mKKOBllTOKeVXVnIp0f1g?si=va5S1R0tQGmpAFpJJfIBXg
Say Yes: A Tribute to Elliott Smith (album link): https://open.spotify.com/album/22vpNv1nma4K9wDMvIDbPg
Alan Partridge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdCfuZMD3L0
My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can find us on Twitter and Instagram.
www.MyFavouriteElliottSmithSong.com

Jun 21, 2018 • 14min
S1 Ep12: Amanda Palmer
In this episode, we speak to musician, songwriter and author Amanda Palmer.
Amanda came to prominence during the early 2000s as one half of the duo the Dresden Dolls. She's since gone on to release several successful solo albums and books, including 2014's The Art of Asking. You probably won't be surprised to find out that Amanda is also a huge Elliott Smith fan - she even appeared on an Elliott Smith tribute album called Say Yes, which came out in 2016.
It was great hearing from Amanda about the influence Elliott's music has had on her, as well as how he's able to so clearly capture what it is to be famous. Hope you enjoy this episode.
Extra things to look at/listen to:
Amanda Palmer covering Pictures of Me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8viCwhAjsLA
Bigger on the Inside by Amanda Palmer (a song influenced by Elliott Smith): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icWgTC6Y5-g
Pictures of Me on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/4q1VulxPSfvFtgHx25FlvV?si=frj8gH8OQ7avLjwLzTjm7Q
My Favourite Elliott Smith Song is produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley. You can follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

Jun 8, 2018 • 11min
S1 Ep11: Craig Bartlett
This episode is with the animator Craig Bartlett. Craig is perhaps best known as the creator of children's TV shows such as Hey Arnold and Dinosaur Train.
As well as being a great animator, Craig is also a huge Elliott Smith fan. In this edition, he talks us through his favourite Elliott Smith song, as well as an Elliott comic he drew - you can find that comic on our website myfavouriteelliottsmithsong.com.
Extra things to look at and listen to:
Craig at the Elliott Smith mural: https://www.instagram.com/p/BjuzoH6FGcb/?taken-by=myfavesmithsong
No Name #4 on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/3161kTNVNPqzGHArIpKWvU
Roman Candle on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/0vgbFgcYqm2B0csVXvo8d5
Find us on Twitter and Instagram - @MyFavESmithSong
This episode was produced by Rob Comba and Elizabeth Withstandley.

May 24, 2018 • 13min
S1 Ep10: Beatie Wolfe
In this episode, we speak to the singer/songwriter Beatie Wolfe. Beatie has built a reputation as an innovator - she combines music with technology and, last year, she was named in Wired magazine's people changing the world.
Importantly for us though, she's a huge Elliott Smith fan. Such a big fan, in fact, that she's written a song - called Little Moth - in tribute to him and had it beamed into space (yes, really). So, in this episode we speak about her favourite song, how she got into Elliott's work and why her moth analogy works.
Extra things to watch/listen to:
Beatie performing Little Moth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buWNjFmQ4uw
Beatie's album: https://open.spotify.com/album/3WsRLQElvywEUcM0xAuzfY
New Scientist article on her performance of Little Moth: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2130155-augmented-reality-brings-beatie-wolfes-new-songs-to-life/

May 10, 2018 • 13min
S1 Ep9: Jessica Lea Mayfield and Seth Avett
In this episode, a first for My Favourite Elliott Smith Song, we hear from two guests: the musicians Jessica Lea Mayfield and Seth Avett. Both artists made their names separately, Jessica as a singer-songwriter and Seth as part of the band the Avett Brothers, but they joined forces in 2015 to release the album Jessica Lea Mayfield and Seth Avett Sing Elliott Smith.
It was so enjoyable speaking to them both. They have a great chemistry and are both huge fans of Elliott's work. In the interview we cover their individual favourite song picks, as well as the album they worked on and a pet named after Elliott.
Hope you enjoy it.
Things to look at/listen to:
Jessica and Seth's Elliott Smith tribute album: https://open.spotify.com/album/45JsKQGdBmDiZxJjxE8UUW
From a Basement on the Hill by Elliott Smith (both tracks chosen by Jessica and Seth come from this album: https://open.spotify.com/album/66UbcdMK6oC2XFPLeESamq
Elliott Smith playing A Distorted Reality Is Now A Necessity To Be Free live: https://youtu.be/Nfy040FRT-U

Mar 28, 2018 • 14min
S1 Ep8: Kevin Devine
In this episode we speak to New York-based songwriter and musician, Kevin Devine. Kevin is a huge Elliott Smith fan and has covered his songs many times, so it was great to get the chance to speak to him. He's also worked closely with Rob Schnapf - the producer behind Either/Or, XO, Figure 8 and From a Basement on the Hill - and here we discuss how their relationship came about, as well as what it was like working with a person who helped shaped the career of one of his heroes.
Very much hope you enjoy this episode. Please do like, review and subscribe to the show if you can. Oh, and you can also contact me @RobComba on Twitter if you have any recommendations on who you'd like to take part.
Thanks xo

Mar 6, 2018 • 15min
S1 Ep7: Sadie Dupuis
In this episode we speak to Sadie Dupuis. Sadie is a New York based musician, who is the founder and lead singer of the band Speedy Ortiz, and she's also got a solo project called Sad13.
Sadie is a huge Elliott Smith fan and is incredibly knowledgeable about his work. She speaks about his music, and the culture surrounding it, with a passion and good humour that will be very familiar if you follow her on Twitter.
Hope you enjoy this one.

Feb 13, 2018 • 17min
S1 Ep6: Ross Harris
In this episode, we speak to Ross Harris. Ross directed three music videos with Elliott Smith - Coming Up Roses, Heatmiser's Plainclothes Man and, perhaps Elliott's most iconic video, the one for Miss Misery. You may also know him as the robot hand salesman in the documentary on Elliott, Strange Parallel.
But, much more than those impressive credentials, Ross was a friend of Elliott's, and he has some great anecdotes. So, hopefully you enjoy this slightly extended chat with Ross - he has some lovely stories about the time they spent together.

Jan 30, 2018 • 12min
S1 Ep5: Phoebe Bridgers
In this episode, we speak to singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers. Phoebe was one of the breakthrough artists of 2017 with her album, 'Stranger in the Alps', in many people's best of the year lists. She's a big fan of Elliott's and you can really hear his influence coming through on some of the songs on that album.
It was great to speak to her about (what else) her favourite Elliott Smith Song, how she first got into him and whether Elliott would use Twitter if he was alive today.
And if you haven't heard Phoebe's album, check it out - after listening to this episode first, of course.