Michael Simmons

Happy Traum EP

Big Stir

Happy Traum is a 60s folk singer who, along with his brother Artie, came out of the same Greenwich Village folk scene as Bob Dylan, but this EP isn’t a tribute to him. This is an EP by a 90s Dutch power pop band named Daryll-Ann. Simmons has covered the entire EP.

While the Daryll-Ann originals are very good, reminiscent of Aimee Mann’s 90s collaborations with Jon Brion, I prefer Michael’s covers; they're a little tougher, more contemporary, and I like his singing a bit better too. I would start with this EP, then go to the originals, which are on various streaming services and on CD. They deserve to be heard, as well as the cover EP, to hear Simmons having fun and paying tribute to a band he loves.

Andrea Weiss