I walked all over the city yesterday on my various errands and also wandered through Central Park, because it was a beautiful day and I had 3 hours to kill, and all was right with the world. I didn’t listen to music constantly, but when I did, had the old iPod on shuffle. Sometimes, as we iPod owners know, the Shuffle blows, and it makes it seem like you actually own no good songs. But then sometimes it throws up a bit of magic in your way. Yesterday was kind of like that. Not perfect end to end, but great walking music. As I said: I probably walked 7 miles yesterday, all told, and was outside, on the move, from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. I ate lunch at Whole Foods, I did errands, I met a friend for coffee, then went over to a friend’s house for dinner … but here was yesterday’s shuffle. Good enough that I might want to actually create it as its own Playlist.<\/p>\n
As narcissistic as this is, I make no apology for it, because
\n1. The URL to my blog is not BigImportantTopics.blogspot.com, or DownWithTheMSM.org. It’s sheilaomalley.com, so this entire thing is an exercise in narcissism.
\n2. I have enjoyed looking at other people’s music collections – seeing where we intersect, where we divide – (Seriously: am I the only one who liked Garth Brooks’s “Chris Gaines” debacle??) – and music is a fun topic to talk about.<\/p>\n
So here’s the Shuffle that accompanied me yesterday, with tiny fragments of commentary.<\/p>\n
“Good Love Never Dies” – Liz Phair (love this one of hers – but then, I love all her stuff – it’s rare that I don’t like one of her songs)<\/p>\n
“This Land Is Your Land” – Pete Seeger – live – really captures the energy of the moment<\/p>\n
“The Deepest Blues are Black” – Foo Fighters (yum)<\/p>\n
“I’m On My Way” – The Proclaimers – had forgotten about this song!!<\/p>\n
“The Five-Fifteen (reprise)” – Christine Ebersole, from Broadway musical Grey Gardens<\/i>, a performance<\/a> that will go down in the annals of history<\/p>\n “Devil Inside” – INXS (this song reminds me so much of college, and making out on the beach with my hot boyfriend who liked to believe he was deep and tormented, when the reality was that he was a fun nerdy goofball. How did I see beneath his hot-tormented-deep surface to the nerd beneath? Because it takes one to know one.<\/a> Great kisser, too)<\/p>\n “Roll Over Beethoven” – The Beatles<\/p>\n “Home Boys Home” – The Clancy Brothers with Tommy Makem (a rousing song – I have so much Clancy Brothers in my collection that they come up all the time)<\/p>\n “Unsigned Letter” – Garth Brooks as Chris Gaines. I think I may be the only person on the planet who actually liked this weird narcissistic album<\/p>\n “You Better Believe” – The Gay Poppers – from my essential Stompin’ at the Savoy<\/i> collection – a great purchase<\/p>\n “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace Love and Understanding?” – Elvis Costello. The sad truth is that I believe I have listened to Elvis too much. I have seen him in concert multiple times. Years ago, post-college, he was in constant rotation in my collection. And … in the same way that I can no longer eat French dressing after over-indulging once when I was 10 years old – I have a hard time listening to Elvis now. But this, I believe, is a perfect song.<\/p>\n “Tymps (The Sick in the Head Song” – Fiona Apple – Love it when she gets whimsical. Dad loved her too. I remember him getting mad when I told her about the brou-haha with her record label, how they didn’t want to release her new album because it “didn’t have a single”. Dad was personally pissed off about that. “That’s so STUPID.”<\/p>\n “Secretly Dainty” – Pat McCurdy. He’s another one, like the Clancy Brothers. He literally haunts my Shuffle.<\/p>\n “Pallin’ with Al” – Squirrel Nut Zippers – I prefer them when they are harder, with a rougher edge (“Soon” is my favorite of theirs) – don’t like them as much when they get light and “jazzy”.<\/p>\n “Resolve” – Foo Fighters. My fear is that someday I will have over-listened to the Foo Fighters to the extent that I over-listened to Elvis Costello, and will no longer be able to listen to them. I try to dole them out to myself in small bites. I love them so much.<\/p>\n “The Night that Goldman Spoke at Union Square” – from the Ragtime<\/i> Broadway recording. I am in love with that musical. And the book.<\/p>\n “Ave Mary A” – Pink. I think she has a perfect rock and roll voice. Love her.<\/p>\n “Endgame #1” – From the Chess in Concert<\/i> recording (starring Josh Groban, Idina Menzel, Adam Pascal) – it’s really quite phenomenal, actually. I’ve loved that musical for decades, and always preferred the Broadway recording to the UK recording (I still stand by that) – but I am thrilled that this full show was done recently in concert – and some of the songs (“Anthem” in particular) are far superior than anything that was heard on previous soundtracks. Here he is performing it live<\/a>. The song needs to be powerful, heartfelt, sincere – without being too earnest. It needs an open throat. It needs freedom of expression. He nails it.<\/p>\n “Calling in the Wind” – The Judds. Yawn. I really used to like them – they just seem way too soft to me now.<\/p>\n “Knock Things Over” – Pat McCurdy. Go away, Pat.<\/p>\n “L.A. Song” – Beth Hart – God, I love this chick. The VOICE.<\/p>\n “Galileo” – Indigo Girls. Ahhhh. Love this song.<\/p>\n “Let Me Be There” – Olivia Newton-John. Happy!!!<\/p>\n “Help Is On Its Way” – Little River Band. This, following on the heels of Olivia, has absolutely made my entire week.<\/p>\n “Don’t Go” – Yaz. It is so rare that an iPod Shuffle gives you so many favorites in a row.<\/p>\n “Love Me” – The Phantom – this is from another great collection, Rockabilly Essential<\/i><\/p>\n “Justice” – again, from Ragtime<\/i> – a heartbreaker of a song<\/p>\n “Mamma Mia” – Meryl Streep. Go, Meryl. I mean, HONESTLY.<\/p>\n “Pretty Mary K” – Elliott Smith. A very pretty song. I love him, but the horribleness of his death really hangs over this whole album for me.<\/p>\n “Different People” – No Doubt. There was a time in my life where not a day went by that I didn’t listen to this song. Those days have passed, but I still like it.<\/p>\n “The Show Must Go On” – Queen. Oh, Queen. I have no words.<\/p>\n “Chim Chim Cher-ee” – Dick Van Dyke, from Mary Poppins<\/i>. Strangely annoying when songs like this pop up, but in a way that’s what the Shuffle is for. I’m not ever going to go, “Let me listen to the ENTIRETY of the Mary Poppins album” – just not my style, but it is fun to be reminded of songs like this one.<\/p>\n “Mind On Loving” – Little Danny. Awesomeness.<\/p>\n “Is Anybody There?” – William Daniels from 1776 – kind of heartbreaking.<\/p>\n “Difficult for Weirdos” – Robbie Williams. I will follow Robbie Williams to the ends of the earth. I buy all his albums. Boy is prolific. CHILLAX. Some songs suck, some songs are just okay, but there’s always one or two on each album that I fall in love with. This, however, is not one of those songs. But it’s fun anyway.<\/p>\n “Johnson’s Motorcar” – The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. This is from their Carnegie Hall concert, an album I grew up with. I love how the audience claps at a specific point. Goosebumps.<\/p>\n “Let’s Have Sex” – Pat McCurdy. No.<\/p>\n “All Apologies” – Sinead O’Connor – I love her cover of Nirvana’s song. Nirvana’s version is awesome, but here, she makes it into a creepy stalker song. Like the girl singing it is someone you do not want to mess with, because boiled bunnies are going to start appearing on your stove.<\/p>\n “Hair of the Dog” – Mike Viola and the Candy Butchers. I honestly do not believe that Mike Viola is capable of writing a bad song, or a boring song, or a “filler” song. He is brilliant.<\/p>\n “Get Out the Map” – Indigo Girls. Okay, girls, okay, I’ll get out the map. Stop bossing me around.<\/p>\n “She’s Electric” – Oasis. I want to like Oasis more than I do. I LOVE his voice – it’s a real anthem-rock voice, but their songs just don’t do it for me. THIS one, however, is great. I’ve been overdosing on it for a couple of weeks now.<\/p>\n “The End” – My Chemical Romance. I hear their stuff and get in touch with my inner emo tween. And my older self wants to tell them, “Boys? Take a deep breath. Relax. And please. Please. Stop shouting. Everything is going to be okay, I promise.”<\/p>\n “Hitchin’ a Ride” – Green Day. Love this song. But then, I love all their songs. There are very few that don’t catch my attention in some way. They sure know how to write a hook you could hang meat on.<\/p>\n “Summer and Lightning” – ELO. I just freakin’ love ELO. Their Time<\/i> album was the first album I bought with my own money – I was 12 years old – and seriously: I’ve never gotten sick of them since that day 5 million years ago.<\/p>\n “All I Want Is You” – U2. I am seriously so impressed with this Shuffle.<\/p>\n “Tiny Spark” – Brendan Benson. Are you familiar with Brendan Benson? He’s my new favorite singer\/songwriter. Check him out. This song is terrific. I love his voice, his lyrics, his sound, in general.<\/p>\n “You Really Got a Hold On Me” – The Beatles. Nice – I love the chaotic and improvisatory feel of the harmonizing going on in this recording. Makes you really feel that these are four HUMAN guys doing the music.<\/p>\n “Generator” – The Foo Fighters. Awesome. Great work-out song.<\/p>\n “To the Pirates’ Cave” – Klaus Badelt – composer for Pirates of the Caribbean<\/i> – I love the soundtrack. It’s quite repetitive, but I love how huge and symphonic and bombastic it is. Ridiculous, really. Fun.<\/p>\n “Hotel California” – The Eagles (live). The live version is far better than the actual recording. It’s hearing the crowd scream at the first sound of that guitar hook that really makes it.<\/p>\n “The Switch and the Spar” – The Raconteurs. They’re sometimes a bit too self-conscious for me, “we are the hippest dudes ever” – but I do like some of their songs.<\/p>\n “The Climb” – No Doubt. Try to sing this song in karaoke one night, and you will have a new-found sense of respect for Gwen Stefani’s voice and what she is able to do with it.<\/p>\n “Dancing Lessons” – Sinead O’Connor – I love the opening of this song. Really happy and light music, very unlike the rest of her stuff. Pretty, pretty.<\/p>\n “Be Bop a Lula” – Gene Vincent. It never gets old.<\/p>\n “Just For a Thrill” – Ray Charles. Awesome makeout music.<\/p>\n “Party Girl” – U2 – on their “Live from Paris” album which I adore.<\/p>\n “Popular” – Kristen Chenoweth from Wicked<\/i>. Delicious diva.<\/p>\n “Cad \u00c3\u0089 Sin Don T\u00c3\u00a9 Sin” – The Cassidys. Look, it’s nobody’s business, mkay?<\/p>\n “Drivin’ On” – The Breeders. Went through a huuuge Breeders phase. I can still see my battered little cassette tapes lining my bookshelf. Still love them.<\/p>\n “Serve Yourself” – Mark Hardwick from Pump Doys and Dinettes<\/i>. Insane. Not all that enjoyable out of context. The iPod Shuffle loses its gleam for a moment.<\/p>\n “Heroin Girl” – Everclear. Ahhhh, we’re back. Everclear is my current favorite band. Can’t get enough.<\/p>\n “Drown In My Own Tears” – Ray Charles. It’s those female back-up singers that make these songs ooze with sex. Well, and him, too.<\/p>\n “Rib Joint” – Sammy Price. Swing it!!<\/p>\n “Lida Rose & Will I Ever Tell You?” – The Buffalo Bills and Shirley Jones from The Music Man<\/i>. I grew up with this. The counterpoint still satisfies.<\/p>\n “The Jolly Tinker” – The Clancy Brothers. Okay, y’know what, boys? Enough. (Although this song does make me laugh, with the silly ba-dum-ching joke of, “So when I was a tinker …”)<\/p>\n “Wednesday” – Tori Amos. I was “off” Tori for years. It’s nice to be back on.<\/p>\n “Doctor Zhivago Suite” – Maurice Jarre – the love theme from Doctor Zhivago<\/i> (this comes from the tribute concert to David Lean, conducted by Maurice Jarre – that I reviewed here<\/a>). Beautiful.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I walked all over the city yesterday on my various errands and also wandered through Central Park, because it was a beautiful day and I had 3 hours to kill, and all was right with the world. I didn’t listen … Continue reading