U.S. Presidential Box Set Released This Fall
6/30/2008 By Josiah Hughes

With the U.S. presidential election at the forefront of many people’s minds (okay, maybe Euro 2008 or the NKOTB reunion at the moment, but soon enough), Standard Recording Co has announced the release of a box set called Of Great and Mortal Men: 43 Songs About 43 Presidents.

The three-disc box set, which includes contributions from the likes of Xiu Xiu, Smog’s Bill Callahan, Low’s Alan Sparhawk, and many many others, will commemorate each U.S. president with a song, and the promise of a digital download for a song saluting the upcoming 44th president (*cough*Obama*cough*).

First there was Sufjan Stevens’ 50 states project, and now this? Come on, Canada! Step up your game!

Of Great and Mortal Men tracklisting:

Disc 1:
01 George Washington: Washington Dreams of the Hippopotamus [ft. Vince DiFiore]
02 John Adams: Armed With
Only Wit and Vigor and the U.S. Navy [ft. These United States] 03 Thomas Jefferson: The Mouldboard of Least Resistance
04 James Madison: Zinger
05 James Monroe: The Last Cocked Hat [ft. Marla Hansen]
06 John Quincy Adams: Death in the Speaker's Room
07 Andrew Jackson: Benevolence [ft. Califone]
08 Martin Van Buren: The Little Magician [ft. Tom Brosseau]
09 William Henry Harrison: So You Don't Have To
10 John Tyler: Hindsight Falls on Deaf Ears [ft. Bill Callahan]
11 James Polk: The Other Is Better / The Landscape to Transform [ft. Monahans]
12 Zachary Taylor: Rough and Ready
13 Millard Fillmore: The Proof Is in the Pudding
14 Franklin Pierce: My Only Enemy Is Myself

Disc 2:
01 James Buchanan: God Will Strike You Down [ft. Marla Hansen]
02 Abraham Lincoln: Malice, Charity, and the Oath of God [ft. James Jackson Toth]
03 Andrew Johnson: Was Ever Alone?
04 Ulysses S. Grant: Helicopters Above Oakland
05 Rutherford B. Hayes: The Beard of God
06 James Garfield: Seven Months
07 Chester Arthur: The Epitome of Dignity
08 Grover Cleveland: Bees and Honey
09 Benjamin Harrison: Kid Gloves Hands Surplus to Big Sugar
10 Grover Cleveland: Rubbermouth
11 William McKinley: Czolgosz's Dream [ft. Magnolia Summer]
12 Theodore Roosevelt: The Sherman Act Does Not Care
13 William Howard Taft: There Was No Longer Use to Hide the Fact That It Was Gout [ft. Marla Hansen]
14 Woodrow Wilson: A Life Among Men [ft. Jamie Stewart]

Disc 3:
01 Warren Harding: An Army of Pompous Phrases
02 Calvin Coolidge: On Silence [ft. Radar Bros.]
03 Herbert Hoover: Woe Is a Spoon-Shaped Heart [ft. Marla Hansen]
04 Franklin D. Roosevelt: Illuminating the Bright Lines
05 Harry S. Truman: Suits and Fine Trousers vs. Hiroshima [ft. Denison Witmer]
06 Dwight D. Eisenhower: When Ike Walked the Land [ft. Alan Sparhawk & Mark Kozelek]
07 John F. Kennedy: There Is No Plan
08 Lyndon B. Johnson: Ladybird Take Me Home [ft. Steve Dawson]
09 Richard Nixon: 2 Under Par Off the Coast of Africa [ft. Tom Carter]
10 Gerald Ford: Now You See It, Now You Don't See It [ft. Vince DiFiore]
11 Jimmy Carter: A Great Beam of Light [ft. Rosie Thomas]
12 Ronald Reagan: Such a Marvelous Dream [ft. Califone]
13 George H. W. Bush: It Was Foreshadowed Here: The Beginning of the End
14 William J. Clinton: The Mighty Lion Will Not Roar Again
15 George W. Bush: Though the Night

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