The Record: Contemporary ART and VINYL, edited by Trevor Schoonmaker (Duke University Press, 2010), is both beautifully produced and delightful to read. Meditate on the photographs of phonograph-inspired art, or on the dozen or so brief essays, which are – to a person – all interesting. No kidding. I often just skip around in a book like
As noted in my last Christmas music post, I’ve made a lot of these mixes, each one different. Last year, I decided to make a mix of downbeat – even somewhat depressing – holiday music. This is it. 1. Blue Christmas Bright Eyes (2002)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 2:22 Elvis’s version has been so overplayed that it’s no longer
Happy St. Nicholas Day! Â For today’s treat, it’s the holiday tunes that no December should be without. Â Well, in my humble opinion, anyway. Â Over the past decade, I’ve assembled 9 or 10 different holiday mixes (all with completely different songs). Â The idea for this mix is to include favorites from all of those mixes. Â In
As promised, it’s the seventh and final Halloween mix! Â Ella Fitzgerald, the Doors, Talking Heads, Snob Scrilla, Flogging Molly, the National, and many others. Â Hope you’ve enjoyed these mixes. Â Happy Halloween! 1. Bewitched theme (1964) Â Â Â 1:02 The theme to the television sitcom (1964-1972) about a witch named Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery), her husband Darrin
Welcome to the sixth Halloween mix. Â Lambert, Hendricks & Ross; Curtis Mayfield; Charlie Daniels; Billy Bragg; Van Halen; Donovan; and, of course, many more…! 1. Halloween Spooks Lambert, Hendricks & Ross (1959) Â Â Â 2:17 The vocalese trio from their Hottest New Group in Jazz LP. Â If you like vocalese, then – well, then you
And… here’s the fifth of seven Halloween mixes. Â They Might Be Giants, Tom Jones, Undertones, Flaming Lips, the Archies, and more! Â It’s a very busy week, but I’m going to do my utmost to get these all up prior to the 31st. 1. Dr. Evil They Might Be Giants (1999) Â Â Â 1:50 From Austin
And now, it’s part IV of my Halloween mix series – to be followed in short order by V through VII! Â Judas Priest, Belle & Sebastian, Old 97’s, the Puppini Sisters, Sammy Davis Jr., Echo & the Bunnymen, and more! Â Enjoy! 1. Living After Midnight Judas Priest (1980) Â Â Â 3:27 From the band‘s album
Welcome to the third Halloween Mix!  Some more by artists from previous Halloween mixes (the Clash, Robyn Hitchcock, Squirrel Nut Zippers, They Might Be Giants), plus plenty that appear here for the first time: Laurie Anderson, Cozy Cole, Garbage, Hoodoo Gurus, Rockwell, Spike Jones, Swan Dive, and many more. 1.     This is Halloween Panic! at the
On last week’s mix, I felt obliged to include many of the songs people expect on a Halloween mix. Â You’ll hear more such songs in the coming weeks (“Zombie Jamboree,” included on this mix, is one). Â But you’ll also hear other songs, such as Roybn Hitchcock’s “The Devil’s Coachman,” Eyeball Skeleton’s “Eyeball Skeleton,” and the
Welcome to the first of seven Halloween mixes. Â Yes, you heard me correctly: seven. Â I’ll be posting one per week until the week of October 25th, when three mixes will appear. Â This first mix includes a lot of the songs you’d expect, with a few you might not. Â Enjoy! 1. Â Â Bach’s Toccata from