Video of the Week: Daniel Johnston Makes My Wife Cry

Hell Is Asking to Be Loved

“Adagio,” Charlie Haden & the Liberation Music Orchestra
Haden is one of the great jazz bassists and on and off over the last 40 years he has gathered together various musical luminaries (Carla Bley, Gato Barbieri, Don Cherry, and Paul Motian, to name only a few) and released five albums as the Liberation Music Orchestra. The last track from the 2005 album Not in Our Name is one of the saddest pieces of music ever written, Samuel Barber’s “Adagio.” Here’s a live version. Oliver Stone used it to powerful effect, too.

“Slime & Oxygen,” Black Lips
If you like your rock dirty Black Lips fit the bill nicely!

“Pieces of What,” MGMT
Burn all indie-slackers!

“Swimming,” Sunset Rubdown
This Pacific Northwest band is one of those acquired tastes. I’m not sure I’ve acquired it just yet.

“Detective Daughter,” Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton
This is a really good book-end to Charlie Haden. Emily Haines’s father, Paul, was a jazz lyricist and poet, whose most well known work is a collaboration with Carla Bley called Escalator Over the Hill. Emily designed her album cover for Knives Don’t Have Your Back as a tribute to him. I had the chance to interview her when I was at The Current.

Colbert Looks Delicious in Feist's iPod Outfit

I Stand Upon This Stupid Platform

“Forget,” Mission of Burma
Peter Prescott’s martial drumming keeps the song in check as it quickly builds up steam and boils over at about the 2:20 mark. Mission of Burma are masters of controlled chaos. Greg Milner wrote this article for Salon in 2002, the year the band reunited.

“From Blown Speakers,” The New Pornographers
I dig The New Pornographers, but would I be as into them if Neko Case and Dan Bejar weren’t in the band? Not bloody likely! This song has more life performed live.

“Get Ready,” The Temptations
Heavenly falsetto, courtesy of Eddie Kendricks. I've secretly always wanted to be a Motown backup singer.

“Gunshy,” Liz Phair
It’s just too bad that she couldn’t replicate the depth of her debut. Her work afterward is so devoid of anything remotely resembling Exile in Guyville.

“Billion Dollar Babies,” Alice Cooper
I remember as a kid being very afraid of Alice Cooper, what with the snakes and the blood and the what-have-you. Tipper Gore didn’t help matters much. He represented the “dark side,” or so she and her ilk warned. Alice explains his on-stage persona in this interesting video from the CBC. He likes to golf, dammit! How scary can the man be?

Video of the Week: The Big Lebowski in Two Minutes and Fourteen Fucking Seconds

Honey My Heart Was Not Born to Be Tamed

Pneumonia decided to kick my ass last week, but here we go!



“Red,” Dirty Three
What Warren Ellis does with a violin oughta be illegal!

“Old Shoes (& Picture Postcards),” Tom Waits
My man!

“Let’s Build a Car,” Swell Maps
Swell Maps were a noisy British band from the late 70’s, that later were cited as influences of bands like Pavement and Sonic Youth. The band was formed by brothers Nikki Sudden (gtr, vox) and Epic Soundtracks (drums), both of whom would later go on to have mildly successful solo careers. Epic died in 1997, Nikki in 2006.

“Then He Kissed Me,” The Crystals
Classic. The Ramones and the New York Dolls were heavily indebted to 1960’s girl-groups like The Crystals. So was Martin Scorsese.

“Devotion,” MC Solaar
My favorite French MC!

Video of the Week: Bjork Communes With 3-D Bison in "Wanderlust"

From Darkness Dreams Are Deserted

“Dedicated to the One I Love,” The “5" Royales
We’ve all heard the version popularized by The Mamas & The Papas. Here’s the original. The great Lowman Pauling was an early, and very underrated, blues guitarist.

“Mar Nha Confidente,” Cesaria Evora
It’s hard to look out my window right now and see traces of snow and a blustery wind. Here’s a song that needs to be played on a warm summer evening. Cesaria is a master of the fado form.

“Be Easy,” Ghostface Killah
Well, there’s a rough segue for you. It’s a track from Ghostface’s Fishscale album. He’s got another one out now called The Big Doe Rehab that I need to check out to satisfy my occasional hardcore rap jones. I just love his family-friendly message where he basically says, “Hey, look, don’t bring your lady to the club and act surprised when she goes home with me.” It’s a lifestyle I think we can all relate to, right?

“Bartali,” Paolo Conte
If Tom Waits were an elegant Italian man he’d be Paolo Conte.

“I Don’t Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Met),” Bob Dylan
Dylan and The Band (called The Hawks at the time) are just on fire on this song! On this whole set, in fact. This is a song from Volume 4 of Dylan’s Bootleg Series, the live concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 1966. At the time, Dylan was rubbing a lot of audiences the wrong way by having the audacity to plug in his instrument and play songs that weren’t overtly political. His folk fans had this weird and totally misplaced sense of ownership over his art. How dare he grow and evolve, they seemed to be saying. A man in the audience actually said, “I’m never going to listen to you again!” Dylan responded, “I don’t believe you! You’re a liar!” He turned to the band and said “Play it fucking loud!” They proceeded to launch into the most scorching version of “Like a Rolling Stone” I’ve ever heard.

Video of the Week: The Roots Destroy the Star-Spangled Banner...Literally!

Work It, Make It, Do It, Makes Us

“Got No Shorty,” Sean Kingston
I like to believe I’m an open-minded dad. Minnie’s taste in music runs the gamut: she likes hipster stuff and she likes Top 40, too. She’s a well-rounded girl. I’ve even come around on some of her ultra-popular faves. I dig me some Rihanna every now and then, but Sean Kingston has got to go! It’s a cover of a cover, and I think that’s what bugs me about it. Sean nicks David Lee Roth’s silly-ass version of a medley popularized by Louie Prima. The sad thing is, Sean Kingston probably has no idea who in hell Louie Prima is.

“Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger,” Daft Punk
All right, back to the good stuff. How about an electronic hand-jive? This is the track that serves as the basis for Kanye West’s Grammy-winning hit, “Stronger.” Daft Punk, in turn, sampled Edwin Birdsong’s “Cola Bottle Baby” for their song. The circle of life…

“Stick With Me Baby,” Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
What a great collaboration Raising Sand is! He actually sings in a way that he never really did with Zeppelin. No bombast. No shouting. Not that there was anything wrong with that. But, this is just sweet music with one of country’s best artists.

“The High Party,” Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
Brief conversation after “The High Party” pops up on Shuffle:
Laura: Oh! Is this Ted Leo?
Me: Yeah.
Laura: God, I hate Ted Leo!

“I Hear a Symphony,” Diana Ross & The Supremes
A Holland-Dozier-Holland production.

Video of the Week: Nick Cave Struts with The Bad Seeds in "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!"

Kick Out the Jams, Brothers and Sisters!!

"Kick Out the Jams," MC5
Ahh, yes, the Motor City 5, featuring lead singer Rob Tyner, a finalist in the homeliest rock-n-roller contest. He knew how to sport an afro, though.

"Ordinary Guy," Joe Bataan
Part of the great roster of Fania artists in the late 60's. Coining the term "salsoul," he was an early practitioner of an R&B and Latin blend. This song is great because it starts out mellow and then morphs into a killer salsa beat. Fania has reissued most of his early records and they're worth looking for. I also put this song on a recent Muxtape.

"Blue Train," John Coltrane
The title track to his 1957 Blue Note release. It features Lee Morgan on trumpet, Curtis Fuller on trombone, Paul Chambers on bass, Kenny Drew on piano, and Philly Joe Jones on drums. A perfect tune for a blue day.

"A Grain of Salt," John Doe
During Bill Deville's Ironman day of broadcasting at SXSW, he had a chance to hang out with the former X frontman. How cool is that?

"Don't Knock My Love, Part 1," Wilson Pickett
It reached #1 on the U.S. R&B charts in 1971.

A Belated Shuffle

Sorry for the late post, fellow Shufflers...



"Emma, Get Me a Lemon," The Walkmen
The New York City band is working on the proper follow-up to A Hundred
Miles Off, a yet-to-be-titled disc slated for release later this
spring. In the meantime, they released a song-for-song cover of Harry
Nilsson's 1974 album Pussy Cats to mostly tepid reviews. Did anybody hear
this thing?

"So Far to Go," Common
Co-starring D'Angelo. We first heard this beat on J Dilla's 2006
disc Donuts, which was released just three days before he died of
complications from lupus. "So Far to Go" was also featured on Dilla's
posthumously released album The Shining. Common explains Dilla's
influence. The sample is "Don't' Say Goodnight" by the Isley
Brothers.

"Hallelujah," Jeff Buckley
Is there a better cover of this song?

"Cherry Chapstick," Yo La Tengo
One of my favorite YLT songs, this is from And Then Nothing Turned
Itself Inside Out. Here's a cool live video.

"Roda Viva," Chico Buarque w/ MPB-4
A little samba for your Friday. Buarque was a little more conservative,
musically, than some of his Brazilian peers like Caetano Veloso,
Gilberto Gil, and Gal Costa. Of course, that didn't stop Brazil's
military dictatorship from harassing him. It was hard out there for a
Tropicalista!

Behold the Power of Sock Puppetry

"Let's Stay Together," Al Green
Yeah, you've heard it a million times, but have you ever heard a couple of sock puppets do it?

"I.C.B.," New Order
This is a song from New Order's 1981 debut, Movement. This album doesn't get much respect but I think it's pretty good. Yes, it sounds like Joy Division with lasers but it's still a decent bridge between JD and the sound New Order would perfect on their next album, Power, Corruption & Lies. Here's some live footage from Berlin in '81. It's not the best quality, but still may hold interest for fans.

"Al Bine," Ali Farka Toure
I think this was the first song I heard by Toure. I love the lazy saxophone on it.

"Right Out of Your Hand," Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
Nick Cave rules.

"Everything Man," Talib Kweli
The opening cut from Eardrum has a nice shot out to The Treacherous Three, the group that launched Kool Moe Dee into the hip-hop stratosphere.

I Got More Game Than Parker Brothers!

"Drown in My Own Tears," The Smithereens
Ok, so, maybe The Smithereens weren't fashion plates, although you have to admit that Pat DiNizio had a way with a chapeau. And maybe they're weren't exactly easy on the eyes, either. But, dammit, I know killer hooks when I hear them! Their first two albums are really good. Come on, people! Who's with me?

"Breather," Laika
You are getting very, very sleepy...

"Butter," A Tribe Called Quest
The Low End Theory has been well-represented in the Shuffle, lately.

"The Lie and How We Told It," Yo La Tengo
From I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One. Well, another baseball season is upon us and many of you might know that YLT are lunatic New York Mets fans. In fact, they name-check Shea Stadium on "Moby Octopad," another track from this album. Ira Kaplan, with the help of Mets legend Ed Kranepool, explains the baseball origin of the band's name. In other sports news, Twins fans get to suffer through a season of watching Johan Santana in a Mets uniform.

"Tropical-Iceland," The Fiery Furnaces
You just never know what you're going to get with these two. In a case of democracy run amok, the band has decided to let fans chart the direction of their next album.

I Am Young and I'm Alive

"In the Round," The Cardigans
The Swedish quintet put out a best-of CD earlier this year. I'm still waiting for their compilation of Black Sabbath covers. Nina Persson's side project, A Camp, is reported to be releasing its second album later this year, again with the help of Mark Linkous of Sparklehorse. A Camp's first disc, from 2001, was a journey into country. In fact, Nina's got that quiver in her voice that reminds me a little of Emmylou Harris. "In the Round" is from The Cardigans' most recent album, Super Extra Gravity.

"Banta," Daby Toure
Toure (no relation to Ali Farka and Vieux Farka) is a Mauritanian singer-songwriter who is just as influenced by someone like Mark Knopfler as he his the music of his homeland. Pleasant stuff.

"Lume, Lume," Fanfare Ciocarlia
A little Roma music is good for the soul.

"Break You Off," The Roots
One of my favorite hip-hop acts. ?uestlove and Black Thought are the bomb! The Roots are looking at a late April release for their 10th album, Rising Down. The steamy video guest stars the actor Hassan Johnson, known to many as "Wee-Bey" Brice from The Wire, R.I.P.

"Juanita," The Flying Burrito Brothers
Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman basically invented country-rock. This track is from The Gilded Palace of Sin, one of those archetypal albums that traces a huge arc from the roots of a musical movement to its present-day form, in this case what we've come to call "alt-country." Chris Hillman was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991, along with the rest of The Byrds. In 2006, the documentarian Gandulf Hennig filmed a biography of Parsons's life, Fallen Angel. If you're into the history of music, it's a must-see.

I Gotta Make Moves!

“No Time to Play,” Guru f/ D.C. Lee & Ronny Jordan
Guru put out the first volume of the Jazzmatazz series in 1993, and it just about perfectly embodied the whole hip-hop/jazz movement. He recruited jazz heavyweights like Donald Byrd, Branford Marsalis and Roy Ayers to put a jazz vibe that hip-hop had only been starting to incorporate. It really is amazing and belongs in every music lover’s library. On “No Time to Play,” Ronny Jordan plays guitar and D.C. Lee contributes vocals. She used to sing with Paul Weller’s The Style Council. In fact, they were once married and have two children.

“What?,” A Tribe Called Quest
I generally consider this the lead-in track to “Scenario.”

“Cars and Parties,” Edith Frost
Edith Frost is a singer in the alt-country vein and deserves more time on the air. Any time on the air, really. She’s been spending the last year or so making guest appearances on the albums of other artists like Sonny Smith, The Zincs and Morning Recordings. She hasn’t put out a record of her own since 2005’s It’s a Game. This song comes from her Drag City release, Wonder Wonder.

“It’s All in Your Mind,” Beck
As Mac Wilson said last week, it just wouldn’t be a Shuffle without Beck.

“Loving Cup,” The Rolling Stones
I love, love, love this song!

I Search the Place for Your Lost Face

Somebody, somewhere, once said that where there is love, there is pain. This week The Shuffler cranked out five songs about five different kinds of love. Sometimes randomness is a beautiful thing. I’ll just let the music speak for itself.



“All These Things,” Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint

“Tired of Being Alone,” Al Green

“Babe, I’m Gonna Leave You,” Led Zeppelin

“I Hope That I Don’t Fall in Love With You,” Tom Waits

“Lonesome Day Blues,” Bob Dylan

It Burns, It Burns!

“Go Fun Burn Man,” Mission of Burma
A two-minute adrenaline boost!

“Take Me Home,” Brother Ali
Brother Ali, like all great MC’s, is able to take the boasting and braggadocio of rap and make it appealing. He has supreme confidence but he displays it in a way that doesn’t turn off the audience. And the video is cool, too.

“Hours,” TV On the Radio
I’m waiting for any news of a new TV On the Radio album. Two years ago, when Return to Cookie Mountain came out, I felt like that album put the band at the head of the indie rock table. And I said so at the time. Their ability to span genres was unparalleled, in my opinion. I’m not ready to back off from that viewpoint, but if they don’t put something out soon, I may have to reevaluate.

“Keep It Hot for Daddy,” Soul Position
What a killer track this is! Love and hip-hop are often seen as diametric opposites. This is about as “sensitive” as you’re gonna hear an MC get. Blueprint’s vocal delivery is fantastic and RJD2’s beats and samples are as funky as ever.

“Nabori,” Cheo Feliciano
One of the great Puerto Rican singers. My dad was a huge fan of Cheo’s sweet voice, which was a constant presence in our house when I was a kid. Larry Harlow, who was born Ira Kahn and played a huge role in introducing salsa and boogaloo to a wider audience in the 60’s and 70’s, plays piano on this song from 1973.

Now Tell Me I Can't Tear It Up

I always wanna be by your side...



“The C in Cake,” Gastr del Sol
I love guitar noodlings, particularly on a Sunday morning when I’m trying to clear my head. Gastr del Sol was formed by David Grubbs, indie rock royalty as far as I’m concerned. Fans of Squirrel Bait and Slint know what I’m talking about. The song’s title was the inspiration for those other cool Chicago noodlers, The Sea and Cake. And it segues really well into the Shuffle’s next song…

“You Really Got Me,” The Kinks
I’m about to reveal something potentially blasphemous. Faced with the choice of the original or Van Halen’s cover, I’ll take the cover. I know, I know, it’s a shame, a disgrace, a shandeh, if you will! It’s only because the first time I heard the classic it was accompanied by Diamond Dave’s yowl and Eddie’s fret-tapping. It’s iconic for me at this point. Van Halen really messed me up.

“Last Snowstorm of the Year,” Low
From Trust. I like this record a lot. Alan Sparhawk’s other project The Retribution Gospel Choir is finally releasing its self-titled debut on Mark Kozelek’s Caldo Verde label. Looking forward to that.

“Unison,” Bjork
Bjork is on my long list of people I’d want at my dinner party. Mostly because you never know when she’s gonna freak out and beat the hell out of somebody. And her husband, Matthew Barney, is definitely invited. That dude is out there! This is my favorite song from Vespertine. Here she is giving me chills at London’s Royal Opera House.

“Show Business,” A Tribe Called Quest
Tribe hooked up with Lord Jamar and Sadat X from Brand Nubian on this cut from their masterpiece, The Low End Theory. They paint a pretty dismal portrait of the rap industry. And this was 1991. It hasn’t gotten much better. For a long time now, the major labels have been churning out a style of rap that is virtually indistinguishable from pornography.

Washed My Face in the Rivers of Empire

It’s a Bobapalooza!



“Standing in the Doorway,” Bob Dylan
Nobody paints a picture quite like Dylan. Whether it’s a kiss-off song or a song of heartache, his music is something that isn't merely listened to; it's something you inhabit. I’ve always loved that about him. It’s like you can hear his footsteps as he’s walking along. Time Out of Mind is loaded with songs like this. Here he is as Jack Fate in a scene from Masked and Anonymous.

“Sunken Waltz,” Calexico
Calexico is the remedy as we prepare for another brutally cold weekend. I’m always in the mood for that Southwestern vibe. “Sunken Waltz” is the opening number on Feast of Wire, which I highly recommend. I just love the accordion on this track. Joey Burns talks about the tune in a 2004 interview on National Public Radio.

“Song to Woody,” Bob Dylan
I found this really interesting article from a 2001 issue of Sing Out Magazine. It does a great job of outlining Dylan’s influences and highlights the issue of borrowing from source material, particularly when it comes to the folk tradition. Here, Dylan gets a nice introduction from George Harrison in this 1992 appearance.

“Razorblade,” The Strokes
Man, this song just sounds so out of place in this set! Weren’t The Strokes going to save rock and roll around the turn of the century, or something? What we really found out was just how much Albert Hammond, Jr. carried that band.

“Isis,” Bob Dylan
Finally, here’s Dylan from the Rolling Thunder Revue tour, made up in all his glory. His band was absolutely on fire! Has anyone ever seen Renaldo & Clara, the movie that he made during this period? It may not be the finest film ever produced, but at this point it should be considered a fascinating piece of music history.

Did the Shuffle gods shine on you this week?

Touch It Real Good If You Want a Piece

Come on, no whammies! No whammies!



“Conventional Wisdom,” Built to Spill
Built to Spill are still touring in support of You in Reverse. They recently announced that they’ll be appearing at the Langerado Music Festival on the Big Cypress Indian Reservation in southern Florida this March. Here’s a live version from a gig in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Doug Martsch is apparently a big hoops fan. You can challenge him to a game of one-on-one right here.

“Parachute Woman,” The Rolling Stones
OK, pointless debate time. Here’s a thorny question for you? What band, generally speaking, are you more in the mood for: The Beatles or The Rolling Stones? I think this was the mysterious fifteenth question that the Buddha refused to answer. I’ve got to go with the Stones on this one. The short explanation is that I lean towards music that comes from the gut more than from the head. The Stones are more visceral than The Beatles and that’s just more attractive to me.

“Vicious,” Lou Reed
Featuring a guitar hook that never gets old, this is the lead-off track to Transformer. Here he is doing an extended live version in Paris in 1974. The band plays it extremely tight as Lou attempts to break the land speed record! A mellower Reed later explains Andy Warhol’s role in the creation of the song.

“Burnt Out Car,” Saint Etienne
This English trio is probably best known for their dance treatment of Neil Young’s “Only Love Can Break Your Heart.” Sarah Cracknell has said the group plans to release a best-of disc later this year. Considering they put out a singles collection just three years ago, I’m not sure the world is quite ready for another one.

“Hollywood Freaks,” Beck
Nooooo! Just when I thought I’d escaped him, Beck drags me back into his funky clutches. Midnight Vultures is such a ridiculously over-the-top album. Which is exactly why it’s so enjoyable. “Hot like a cheetah, neon mamacita”? “Hollywood Freaks” was the song where I actually began questioning Beck’s sanity. He does know how to bust a move, though.

What popped up on your player?

I Tell You Love, Sister, It's Just a Kiss Away

Let us pray.



“Why Me Lord?,” Johnny Cash
With all the talk of “greatest” songwriters going on around here this week, I would be shirking my duties if I didn’t give an honorable mention to Kris Kristofferson. Along with composing this tune, he also wrote “For the Good Times,” “Help Me Make It Through the Night,” and a little ditty called “Me and Bobby McGee.” Here he is with the great Texas hippie Doug Sahm in a short scene from Cisco Pike. Sahm cracks me up.

“Gimme Shelter,” The Rolling Stones
One of the greatest lead-off tracks in rock history. I’ve heard this song a quadrillion times but I always stop what I’m doing when that signature guitar opening hits my ears. The Stones appeared on Ed Sullivan as he introduced the song as a track from the new album, Let It Be. Priceless. Michael Sragow wrote about the genesis of the film Gimme Shelter in this 2000 Salon article.

“Carousel,” Iron & Wine
Sam Beam has one of the best beards in rock. He keeps it so well-groomed. Here’s a nice live version from nearly a year ago.

“Sunrise Sunset,” The Fiddler on the Roof OST
Whoa, how did that get in here? I have to admit a soft spot for Topol and this song. What can I say? I’ve got a daughter who’s growing up way too fast.

“Simmer Down,” Bob Marley & The Wailers
Early Marley tends to get forgotten sometimes. This was his first hit (1964) and set him apart from other artists as far as social awareness was concerned. Clement Dodd, who developed the “Studio One sound” of early ska and reggae, was the producer. It also reminds me of Cheri Oteri.

Listen Up and I'll Tell a Story

No jinx this week, as I had feared in last week’s Shuffle. Unless you consider a 45% appearance rate by Beck a jinx.



“Round the Bend,” Beck
Beck successfully channels Nick Drake’s melancholia on this song from 2002’s Sea Change. In other news, Odelay is being reissued on January 29.

“Can’t Stop Thinking About Her,” The Red Button
Poptastic deliciousness by this duo from Los Angeles. Seth Swirsky is an accomplished pop songwriter, making music for people like Al Green, Rufus Wainwright, Jane Weidlin and a host of other artists. Mike Ruekberg is Alex Chilton reincarnated. Well, that is, if Alex Chilton were dead. Anyway, local music aficionados will remember Mike from his days fronting pop trio Rex Daisy. And who can forget his alter-ego Monty De Carlo in 2 Tickets 2 Paradise? Sweet.

“Story of an Artist,” Daniel Johnston
This song breaks my heart every time. As luck would have it, and as Christina Schmitt told us last week, Daniel Johnston is playing a gig at First Avenue in February. He epitomizes the term Outsider artist. The Devil and Daniel Johnston is an absolute must-see.

“The Slummer the Slum,” The “5” Royales
Making their second straight Shuffle appearance, this song is like a blueprint for the blues-rock that would follow in its wake. Plus, whenever I hear the word “roy-yal,” I think of this scene in Pulp Fiction. “Royale with cheese” does sound a lot more appetizing, doesn’t it?

“Iko Iko,” The Dixie Cups
The history of a song is always appealing to me. And this tune’s New Orleans heritage is particularly interesting.

I Have To Be Crazy to Ever Think Someone Could Love a Nobody Like Me

Everybody wants to be somebody's somethin'.




“All My Life,” Steve Earle
A song from 2000’s Transcendental Blues. Steve Earle is one of my heroes. There aren’t many artists who have the testicular fortitude to write a song in the voice of John Walker Lindh, the so-called “American Taliban” (“John Walker’s Blues”) or bust a lusty move on the Secretary of State (“Condi, Condi”). Robert Chalmers profiled Earle last summer in the British newspaper, The Independent, with the provocative headline “Is Steve Earle America’s Greatest Living Songwriter?” I don’t know if he’s the greatest. He’s certainly the bravest. Here he is as Waylon on the greatest TV drama in the history of TV dramas, The Wire.

“Trying to Explain,” Matt Elliott
First operating under the name The Third Eye Foundation, Matt Elliott is a musician who has relied heavily on sampled sounds and drum and bass rhythms to create his atmospheric sound. This is an instrumental interlude from his 2005 album Drinking Songs, put out on the Ici Dailleurs imprint.

“We Don’t Need,” Daby Toure
This lovely tune is from Stereo Spirit, which made my year-end list of stand-out albums from foreign born artists. Toure (no relation to Ali Farka and Vieux Farka) is Mauritanian. The album showcases his love for Western style song-writing while still maintaining that West African lilt that I love so well.

“Priests Knees,” Destroyer
Just what is a “west-coast maximalist” anyway? The usually media-shy Dan Bejar did this surprisingly revealing interview for Exclaim! during the run-up to the release of Destroyer’s Rubies. I love his quirky pop sensibility and I admit, whenever a New Pornographers album comes out, I listen to his songs first. Two parts Bowie, one part Al Stewart? I don’t know if Bejar is into doing covers but “Year of the Cat,” Destroyer-style, absolutely needs to happen. Look for a new Destroyer album this spring.

“Just As I Am,” The “5” Royales
One of the early R&B and doo-wop groups, this quintet were huge hitmakers. The thing was, though, they made hits for other people. James Brown, Aretha Franklin, the Shirelles, and the Mamas & the Papas all recorded tremendously popular versions of the band’s songs. Lowman Pauling, the main songwriter and lead guitarist, also inspired a generation of blues-rock guitarists with his fiery guitar work.

The News Today Will Be the Movies for Tomorrow

O, Shuffler, why have you forsaken me?




“Start of Something New,” Original Cast – High School Musical
I told you I live with a seven-year old girl, right? I apologize, in advance, to anybody who gets this song stuck in their heads over the weekend. I hope this makes it all better.

“Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum,” Bob Dylan
This is from Love and Theft, part of Dylan’s 21st Century trilogy. Or, rather, is it from Junichi Saga’s 1989 book Confessions of a Yakuza? Remember that whole kerfuffle? Whatever became of that? A tempest in a teapot, perhaps.

“Boys Don’t Cry," The Cure
Here’s Robert Smith doing his goofy, little Robert Smith dance.

“For Today I Am a Boy,” Antony & the Johnsons
Antony Hegarty’s voice is simply not from this planet. In this interview, from the March 17, 2005 Daily Telegraph, Antony discusses his background in experimental theater and his musical inspirations. While Boy George certainly was an influence, Marc Almond may have been an even stronger touchstone.

“A House Is Not a Motel,” Love
What do The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s, Pink Floyd’s The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, and Love’s Forever Changes have in common? They were all released in 1967. Sean Murphy, in an article published in PopMatters shortly after Arthur Lee’s death in August 2006, makes a persuasive case for “Forever Changes” as the album that truly stands the test of time. Here’s Arthur Lee with a 2003 incarnation of Love playing at the Glastonbury Festival.