{"product_id":"m-ward-for-beginners-the-best-of-m-ward","title":"M. Ward - For Beginners: The Best of M. Ward","description":"\u003cp\u003eFor Beginners: The Best of M. Ward does exactly what it promises, gathering 14 songs from the Portland songwriter's Merge years onto a single limited-edition LP.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMatt Ward built his reputation on hushed, crackling folk-blues and a fingerpicked guitar style steeped in old records, before finding wider audiences through She \u0026amp; Him and Monsters of Folk. This set draws heavily on Transfiguration of Vincent, Post-War and Hold Time, sequenced for flow rather than chronology, so it plays like an album rather than a résumé.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChinese Translation and Poison Cup show his gift for melody wrapped in mystery, and his slowed, dreamy take on David Bowie's Let's Dance glides straight into Never Had Nobody Like You, one of his brightest rock and roll moments. Vincent O'Brien adds a dose of dusty melancholy along the way, and Hold Time, the title track of his 2009 album, arrives near the end as a graceful exhale.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe real surprise comes at the end. Cry is a stripped-back cover of the Godley \u0026amp; Creme song, recorded with Melbourne's Folk Bitch Trio inside MONA, the Tasmanian art museum, and it marked his first new recording for Merge since 2018.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNewcomers get an ideal starting point, and long-time fans get one more reason to drop the needle on that warm, weathered voice.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Alliance Entertainment","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57351089094961,"sku":"673855085012","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0704\/2026\/7313\/files\/M._Ward-For_Beginners_The_Best_of_M._Ward.jpg?v=1793977221","url":"https:\/\/vinyl.com\/products\/m-ward-for-beginners-the-best-of-m-ward","provider":"Vinyl.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}