Christmas Mix 2010

If you never noticed how melancholy many Christmas songs are, you'll notice it here...

1. "Valley Winter Song" Fountains of Wayne, a bittersweet wintertime travelling song.
   
2. "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" U2's soundcheck recording, from the first A Very Special Christmas charity album, is my favorite version of this sad Christmas song.
   
3. "Baby It's Cold Outside" Ray Charles & Betty Carter, or, as my wife calls it, the almost date-rape song? No means no, Ray!
   
4. "Christmas Wrapping" The Waitresses' charming New Wave white-girl rap. Why hasn't there been a romantic comedy movie based on this song?
   
5. "Sleigh Ride" Ella Fitzgerald, a terrific Christmas record.
   
6. "Have Yourself Christmas Trouble" Mr Fab & The RIAA rearrange all the words of Bing Crosby's "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" to tell a bleaker story: "Hang yourself up upon the highest bough", "Faithful friends who are dear to us, will be far away"...
7. "Do They Know It's Christmas?" Band Aid was the ideal post New Wave supergroup for me, 12 years old, going on 13, for Christmas 1984.
   
8. "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" Judy Garland sings it with the original, super melancholy lyrics.
   
9. "I'll Be Home For Christmas" Aimee Mann, another hopeful Christmas song.
   
10. "Winter Wonderland" Ray Charles' version, as heard in When Harry Met Sally...
    
11. "White Christmas" Clyde McPhatter & The Drifters, maybe my favorite recording of this song.
    
12. "Evil Santa" Bill Murray & Gilda Radner, from the National Lampoon Radio Hour.
    
13. "Santa Claus is Coming To Town"[live] One of my all-time favorite Bruce Springsteen performances. Electric!
    
14. "Christmas Song" [live] Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds
    
15. "Let It Snow" Vaughn Monroe, as heard at the end of Die Hard.
    
16. "Auld Lang Syne" [live] Guy Lombardo
    
17. "Skating" Vince Guaraldi Trio

(I assembled this mix in 2010 but never posted it to the blog until 2011. That's why it's backdated to 12/25/2010.)

128 Teenage Dream

1. "Holiday" Vampire Weekend
2. "No One's Gonna Love You" Band Of Horses: I bought this song after Cee Lo Green covered it on this new album.
3. "Sweet Thing" Van Morrison
4. "Teenage Dream" Glee Cast Version: No one's going to believe me when I say I have no patience for the TV show, but I love The Warblers cover songs. This one gives me chills.
5. "Satisfied" Cee Lo Green: Anyone who wears their love of Prince so proudly has my support.
6. "I Would Die 4 U" Prince & The Revolution
7. "Blue Jean" David Bowie: I used to try to minimize the number of songs which reappeared on mixes over and over again. Over the years this habit became calcified to the point where mixes were loaded with: new songs + old songs which I didn't love. I am trying to loosen up and include some "golden oldies" where appropriate!
8. "The Suburbs" Arcade Fire: I like this song, even if the rhythm section is super-cliche'd, and it's a little too long.
9. "You Are The Best Thing" Ray LaMontagne: great fun, even if he's super derivative.
10. "The Difference" The Wallflowers
11. "The Word" The Beatles
12. "Way Down Now" World Party
13. "Ruthless People" Mick Jagger: The edit of this song which opens the eponymous movie is much shorter and better. This one drags on for 4m30s.
14. "I Belong To The Band" Mavis Staples
15. "Crazy About You" Whiskeytown
16. "No More No More" Aerosmith: Does anyone remember when Aerosmith was an active rock and roll band which didn't record ballads for movies? Me neither.
17. "It's Only Wednesday" Crash Kings: I think I heard this song in the movie Zombieland?
18. "Valerie" The Zutons: what the heck is a Zuton?

"Recycled" Cover Songs: Yankee Swap 2010

The theme of the Yankee Swap this year was "Recycled Christmas" so I assembled (with editing help from Emily) an all-covers mix:

1. "I Saw Her Standing There" The Smithereens recorded their own song-by-song remake of Meet The Beatles, called Meet The Smithereens.
2. "Don’t Bring Me Down" (Live) The New Pornographers covering the ELO classic, Live from Soho.
3. "Hackensack" (Live) Katy Perry unplugged, covering Fountains of Wayne. Who knew she had such good taste?
4. "Every Little Thing (He) Does Is Magic" From Shawn Colvin's all-covers album Cover Girl
5. "Burning Down the House" A terrific remake of The Talking Heads from Bonnie Raitt's live Road Tested album. Perhaps the most radical remake of the mix.
6. "It's My Life" It's great to hear a remake of a New Wave one-hit wonder, especially so well done by No Doubt.
7. "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" Wilco covers Steely Dan for the Me, Myself, and Irene movie soundtrack.
8. "This Charming Man" Death Cab For Cutie increases the tempo on this Smiths classic. From their CD You Can Play These Songs With Chords.
9. "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing Baby" An Ashford & Simpson oldie from Michael McDonald's Motown album.
10. "Everyday Is A Winding Road" Who knew Prince was a Sheryl Crow fan?
11. "Train In Vain (Stand By Me)" Annie Lennox covers The Clash on her all-covers CD Medusa.
12. "Teenage Dream" This a capella cover of Katy Perry might be the most exciting performance I've ever heard on the TV show Glee. 
13. "People Get Ready" In the a capella theme, The Housemartins cover Curtis Mayfield's song on their album London 0 Hull 4 (that might be a soccer reference?)
14. "High & Dry" British wunderkind jazz pianist Jamie Cullum covers Radiohead on this album Twentysomething.
15. "Mrs. Robinson" The Lemonheads' cover of Simon & Garfunkel was a late addition to their album It's A Shame About Ray... after it was a surprise hit as a standalone single.
16. "Whole Lotta Love" Carlos Santana's manager must have noticed there's two types of albums which aging icons sell well-- covers albums and collaborations. Why not put them together for Guitar Heaven: The Greatest Guitar Classics Of All Time? Chris Cornell was born to sing Led Zeppelin.
17. "...Baby One More Time" I think Fountains Of Wayne covered Britney Spears ironically. From their odd-and-ends collection Out-Of-State Plates.
18. "I Will Survive" I know for certain that Cake covered this Gloria Gaynor disco classic ironically. From their CD Fashion Nugget.
19. "In Between Days" Ben Folds covers the awesome Cure song on his EP Speed Graphic.
20. "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word" Ray Charles & Elton John duet on Ray's album Genius Loves Company.
21. "More Than This" The Charlie Hunger Quartet are joined by Norah Jones on the Roxy Music song, on their CD Songs from the Analog Playground.
22. "Green Onions" Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers cover the Booker T & The MG's instrumental -- best known as the song they play during pitching changes at baseball games -- on their Live Anthology box set.