So I am introducing a new (intended to be) monthly column here. Up until very recently, I’ve been religiously making mixes. Every month, I put together a mix for my friends. It was what I was listening to at that moment — whether it was a song stuck in my brain after I saw it on a commercial, a band whose pending concert I was excited to attend, or a track off a new album I had purchased that month. Eventually (late 2007 I think) they almost always had some amount of exposition, explaining my choices. They were like a semi-public musical diary, and those mixes are actually what got me this gig here at Popten.

So here’s how this pertains to you: Though I’ve been making these monthly mixes since January 2004, “Five Year Flashback” sounds so much better than Eight. (Also, I will admit privately that some of my music tastes and organizational choices in mix-making were questionable if we go back too far.) But in any case, I am going to pick my 10 favorites from whatever I was listening to five years ago, and through the magic of the internet and never deleting anything in gmail, I will dig up what, if anything, I said about said songs. And I will make you a mix. *In-line Disclaimer: For some reason I felt the need to make two mixes in January 2007, so I am picking extra songs for the mix. Enjoy.

Track Listing:
Bell X1 – Eve, The Apple of My Eye
Eisley – I Wasn’t Prepared
Eliot Morris – Will She Ever Love Again?
Esthero – Everyday Is A Holiday (With You)
The Format – The Compromise
Gomez – Girlshapedlovedrug
Grandaddy – El Caminos In The West
Griffin House – The Guy That Says Goodbye To You Is Out Of His Mind
Hem – Not California
Josh Rouse – It Looks Like Love
Joshua Radin – The Fear You Won’t Fall
Matt Wertz – The Way I Feel
Melissa McClelland – Rooftop
Travis – Love Will Come Through
Venus Hum – Pink Champagne
The Weepies – World Spins Madly On

Listen to this mix via embedded 8tracks player above, or stream it on Rdio here.

10. Donald Byrd: Flight Time/Nas: NY State of Mind

9. Dennis Edwards: Don’t Look Any Further/Eric B. & Rakim: Paid In Full

8. Grand Funk Railroad: Nothing is the Same/The Roots: Rising Down

7. Billy Brooks: Forty Days/A Tribe Called Quest: Luck of Lucien

6. Wendy Rene: After Laughter (Comes Tears)/Wu-Tang Clan: Tearz

5. Cris Williamson: Shine On Straight Arrow/JayLib (J Dilla and MadLib): The Red

4. The Jackson Five: Maybe Tomorrow/Ghostface Killah: All That I Got Is You

3. Prague Orchestra: Maria Religiosa/Nas and Jay-Z: Black Republicans

2. Ann Peebles: Trouble, Heartbreak & Sadness/Gza featuring Method Man: Shadowboxin

1. Marvin Gaye: Make Me Wanna Holler/Papoose: Flashback

My brother Jesse and me, with a spray-painted snowman in front of our childhood home, circa 1987.

Excuse me while I get a little personal. Back in September I went to visit my parents for a full 12 days. For the first time in my entire adult life, I wasn’t compelled to immediately go do something else. Sure, I had lunch dates with friends, and fit in a little karaoke. But on a whole, I mostly spent my time hanging out with my parents. And not only did no one die from it, but in fact no one wanted to kill anyone else either. Spending time with my parents was not only pleasant, but (gasp!) actually enjoyable. Each day my mom taught me how to make something different out of the secret family recipe book. My dad and I went blueberry hunting and happened upon a black bear. We all watched procedural dramas and ate dinner on the couch with the dogs. My mom shared her snuggie. My dad shared the car. For the first time since they moved across the country, Seattle really felt like home.

This week I had surgery. Nothing too serious – the kind where they kick you home the same day with a stockpile of percocet. But also the kind where I’m on (absolutely bored out of my mind) bedrest for a week. And I miss having my mom here. (Sorry dad.) It got me thinking about home. The idea of home as something ephemeral. Transient, even. Musicians across all genres have tried to capture this in song to varying degrees of success, and I’ve spent the last three days in bed (as instructed) culling the possibilities down to a suitable mix.

Mom, Dad, I don’t say it enough, but… Thanks. This mix is for you.

And Without Further Ado, The Top Ten Songs for Being Home Away From Home (Okay, okay, there are 11 songs, not 10. Sue me.):

1. Christina Perri – Arms
I shazamed this song when I heard it on the radio while driving back from Massachusetts on September 11th. It planted the seeds for wanting to make this mix in the first place.

…I hope that you see right through my walls. I hope that you catch me ’cause I’m already falling. I’ll never let a love get so close. You put your arms around me and I’m home…

2. Billy Joel – You’re My Home
I knew this song existed, and I could almost hear it in my brain, but I kept thinking it was Jim Croce or Neil Diamond or someone else whose records my dad made me listen to as a child.

…Well I never had a place that I could call my very own, but that’s alright my love ’cause you’re my home…

3. Chantal Kreviazuk – It Feels Like Home To Me
I will never forget the first time I heard this song. Scott Fried was singing it. That remains the loveliest version of this Randy Newman song I have ever heard, but the CK version is a close second. (Not to overdue references to Neil Diamond, but he also covers this song, and it reminds me of Horatio Caine in CSI:Miami.)

…Feels like home to me, feels like I’m all the way back where I come from. Feels like home to me, feels like home to me, feels like I’m all the way back where I belong…

4. O.A.R. – I Feel Home
This band takes me back to college.

…I feel home, when I see the faces that remember my own. I feel home, when I’m chilling outside with the people I know. I feel home, and that’s just what I feel. Home to me is reality, and all I need something real…

5. The Magnetic Fields – You’re My Only Home
I love how many songs off of the 69 Love Songs triptych are actually really really sad.

…I will stay if you let me stay, and I’ll go if you let go; but I won’t go far away because you’re my only home…

6. Adele – Lovesong
Yes, a cover of The Cure, but I like this version better.

…Whenever I’m alone with you, you make me feel like I am home again. Whenever I’m alone with you, you make me feel like I am whole again…

7. Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros – Home
I almost missed including this one because it is just so obvious.

…Home, let me come home, home is wherever I’m with you. Home, yes I am home. Home is whenever I’m with you…

8. Talking Heads – This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)
The first dance song at the wedding of my friends Koven and Madelyn.

…Home – is where I want to be, but I guess I’m already there. I come home, she lifted up her wings - guess that this must be the place…

9. 3 Doors Down – Your Arms Feel Like Home
From my g-chat with Alice while finalizing the song list for this mix: “I am currently listening to Talking Heads and wondering what kind of person finds it appropriate to put them on a mix with 3 Doors Down and if I will be judged in the afterlife for this decision.” For the record, I’m sure the answer is yes.

…I don’t care if I lost everything that I have known. It don’t matter where I lay my head tonight, your arms feel like home…

10. The Cinematic Orchestra – To Build A Home
Another sad one. But it has pretty piano!

…There is a house built out of stone, wooden floors, walls and window sills; tables and chairs worn by all of the dust. This is a place where I don’t feel alone; this is a place where I feel at home… Cause, I built a home for you, for me…

11. Chris Colfer (ft. Cory Monteith) - A House Is Not a Home
This song is so often covered, it was hard to pick a version. Helping to oversaturate is that it is an American Idol stand-by, highlighted in what seems like every season whether or not they have a Burt Bacharach week. I went with the Glee one, which gave me chills the first time I heard it.

…A chair is still a chair even when there’s no one sitting there. But a chair is not a house, and a house is not a home, when there’s no one there to hold you tight, and no one there you can kiss goodnight…

Several ways to listen to this. Some browsers strip the streaming code, but if yours isn’t one of them, hit play below. If you have no idea what I am talking about, you can listen to this mix on 8tracks here. Or listen to it on rdio here. If you think of any I missed, feel free to leave them in the comments. Enjoy! 

Following are 10 core songs (plus a few key honorable mentions) that provided the soundtrack to when the hero was training for a fight, or was at the big game, or needed the courage to just step up and do what needed to be done. This is the soundtrack that is going to get me to my launch date. There are videos for reference, but you can stream the whole thing at the bottom as well.

Chariots of Fire – Vangelis – Theme from Chariots of Fire
I never actually knew what this movie was about, as I’d never seen it. But now I want to.

Rocky 3 – Survivor – Eye of the Tiger
I almost cut this out of fear it was too cliche, but then I remembered the theme of this mix.

Karate Kid – Joe Esposito – You’re The Best Around
Sweep the leg! (Come on, you know you were thinking it, too.)

St. Elmo’s Fire – John Parr – Man in Motion
I’ll be honest, I really love the other song (For Just A Moment – Love Theme) from this movie way more but it didn’t fit as well.

Short Circuit 2 – Bonnie Tyler – Holding Out for a Hero
Yeah, this is also from Footloose. Who knew Bonnie Tyler was such an inspirational lightening rod?

Flashdance – Irene Cara – What A Feeling
This won an Academy Award for Best Song, a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, and an American Music Awards for Best R&B Female Artist and Best Pop Single of the Year. And yeah, it was also in The Full Monty.

Iron Eagle – King Kobra – Iron Eagle (Never Say Die)
Um, if you only watch one video in this entire list, do your self a favor and make it this one.

Teen Wolf – Mark Safan – Win In The End
100% this is the precursor to the amazingness of the final scenes in High School Musical (any of them.)

Mannequin – Starship – Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now
I honestly did not remember that this song was from this movie. But I knew it had to have been from some 80s movie. It was too inspirational not to be.

Top Gun – Kenny Loggins – Danger Zone
Duh.

Honorable Mentions:
These songs were either a) 80′s songs that were not actually in movies as the soundtrack to the training/go-get-’em scenes, or b) 100% fit the criteria, they were just a decade or two behind.

Europe – The Final Countdown
I realize that this is not a movie. It’s not even tv – it’s a bad video of someone’s tv. However, I couldn’t picture this mix without Gob Bluth.

Queen – I Want It All
This was not in any movie. But I do – I want it all. Or at the very least I want to launch this project on time.

Cast of Wet Hot American Summer – Higher and Higher
Okay when I told you earlier to watch the Iron Eagle video, I really meant watch the Wet Hot American Summer one. Chris Meloni has some serious moves.

Cast of High School Musical – We’re All In This Together
I mean, I mentioned it up above, so you had to be somewhat prepared for it. This is the one I send to my co-workers if we are still at our desks and it is after midnight. You’re welcome.

Congratulations! You’ve made it this far – Now you can stream the whole thing! Exclamation point!

At Newport Folk Festival this past weekend, I had the opportunity to interview many of the musicians playing over the two days. While I could have asked pretty much anything, I find the most interesting question to be one that is asked of me the most often: What was the last full album you’ve listened to(?). It simultaneously gives you a little window into what inspires them as artists and possibly turns you on to other musicians you may never heard of. Following is a list of a) who I asked, b) what album they said, and c) comments they had (if any) about the record/artist. At the very bottom is a mix with tracks from both the listener and the listenee.  Enjoy!

1. Sallie Ford (vocals/guitar, Sallie Ford and The Sound Outside): Deer Tick / Born on Flag Day
“I’ve been listening to that in the van a lot.”

2. John McCauley (vocals/guitar, Deer Tick/Middle Brother): The Ramones / Disc 1 of The Ramones Anthology

3. Jonny Corndawg: The Finches / On Golden Hill

4. Taylor Goldsmith (vocals/guitar, Dawes/Middle Brother): Leonard Cohen / New Skin For The Old Ceremony
Goldsmith noted “Javier Mas [archlute player in Cohen's band] was the nicest guy ever.” This conversation somehow then turned to Thomas Friedman’s “no two countries that both had a McDonald’s had fought a war against each other, since each got its McDonald’s” theory from The Lexus and The Olive Tree, though I’m not quite sure how that happened.

5. Matt Vasquez (vocals/guitar, Delta Spirit/Middle Brother): The Walkmen / You and Me

6. Brandon Young (drummer, Delta Spirit): James Blake / James Blake
“I like that he’s doing something different.”

7. Colin Meloy (lead vocals/guitar, The Decemberists): Grouper / A I A

8. John Paul White (The Civil Wars): Gillian Welch / The Harrow & The Harvest
White called me back over to add, “Top to bottom I loved it.” I like that NFF performers support each other off-stage as well.

9. M. Ward: The Louvin Brothers / Satan is Real

10. And just to make it a true popten post, I’ll round it out with my last full album: Adele / 21

Stream this mix here (note: the embed seems to be broken in some browsers. hmph.)

For those of you who prefer to stream on Rdio, you can find it (minus 4 songs) here.

I have been working on this mix for as long as I have been writing for Popten. It was at one point over 60 songs, and has morphed its way through at least 7 different versions. I found it so hard to edit down songs about New York City, especially when my only self-imposed criteria was that the city needed to be central to the story of the song, not just a passing mention. But after Chris posted a New York-centric article on public art last week, I figured I should use it as inspiration and finally get off my ass and finish this thing.

In end I did away with the songs that everyone could think of on their own — Lou Reed’s Take A Walk On The Wild Side — and some that were just too down on the city I’ve called my own for the past 4.5 years , like Jim Croce’s New York’s Not My Home. I then ordered them to tell a story:

The final twenty songs start in Brooklyn and Coney Island, and then head up through neighborhoods all over Manhattan. They take a detour through our lovely transit system, get down on being here, but then get right back up.

Amidst the track listing I’ve given you a one sentence wrap-up of why the song fits the mix, and a key lyric. If it exists, I’ve included the official video as well. And if you scroll alllll the way to the bottom, you can stream the whole thing.

The Avett Brothers – I And Love And You
Inspired by a gig at Galapagos in Brooklyn.

Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.
Are you aware the shape I’m in?
My hands they shake, my head it spins.
Ahh Brooklyn, Brooklyn take me in.

Matt Pond PA – Brooklyn Stars
About sneaking out of a one night stand.

These Brooklyn stars are small and strange
I’m under roads
They’re going home
Next to statues of saints of snow

Phosphorescent – The Mermaid Parade
Grappling with the end of a marriage at the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island.

In New York this morning; it was 8 am LA time,
and I could be there by this evening
said the girl on the airline line.
So I bought that ticket, and I got in that cab,
oh but I didn’t make it babe
to the airport like that.
No I wound up walking
out by the ocean today
and there were naked women
dancing in the Mermaid Parade.

Good Old War – Coney Island
Break up with the girl, but not the city.

I’m going to Coney Island have myself a dog
And reminisce why I still hate it here
It’s all these people with their cotton candy eyes
It’s so sweet, now put the train in gear
But I can’t let this go I’m on my way
You can only hold my diamond ring
But I’ll go crawling back to the city I love
Cause it’s already taken everything

Counting Crows – Chelsea
Break up with the girl, break up with the city.

I never go to New York City these days
Something about the buildings in Chelsea just kills me
Maybe in a month or two,
Maybe when things are different for me,
Maybe when things are different for you,
You know all of this shit, just sticks in my head

Ryan Adams – New York New York
The video was filmed on September 7, 2001, and has iconic backdrops of the city, including the towers.

I remember Christmas in the blistering cold
In a church on the Upper West Side
Babe, I stood there singing, I was holding your arm
You were holding my trust like a child
Found a lot of trouble out on Avenue B
But I tried to keep the overhead low
Farewell to the city and the love of my life
At least we left before we had to go

Daniel Merriweather – For Your Money
“For Your Money is about me trying to get by in New York – and, I suppose, New York itself trying to get by. It’s a post-9/11 ode to re-evaluating our priorities and steering away from golden calf worship.”

New York, she sits and cries
She’s had her moment of glory
Stands up, then she took the dive
From the sixty first story
Now I don’t know how it evens out
Once I saw the love was never in her eyes
But she goes on, on, she goes on
She goes on

Josh Ritter – The Curse
A cursed mummy and a curator at The Met have a love affair; Ritter’s drummer Liam Hurley created the marionettes in the video.

In New York he is laid in a glass-covered case
He pretends he is dead, people crowd round to see him
But each night she comes round, and the two wander down
The halls of the tomb that she calls a museum

Joe Purdy – The City
Written after his first trip to NYC.

Get off the boat and board a plane to JFK and I
Haven’t slept in a week
But it don’t seem to matter to the subway squeakers squeaking at my feet

Bright Eyes – Lua
A coke and booze-filled evening and the morning aftermath.

I know that it is freezing, but I think we have to walk
I keep waving at the taxis, they keep turning their lights off
But Julie knows a party at some actor’s West side loft
Supplies are endless in the evening by the morning they’ll be gone

Death Cab For Cutie – Marching Bands of Manhattan
There is comfort in sorrow.

If I could open my arms
And span the length of the isle of Manhattan
I’d bring it to where you are
Making a lake of the East River and Hudson
And if I could open my mouth
Wide enough for a marching band to march out
They would make your name sing
And bend through alleys and bounce off all the buildings

Luna – Going Home
Reflection and regret.

The Chrysler Building was talking to the Empire State
The Twin Towers were talking to each other
Saying all is forgiven
I love you still
And we’re home, home
Going home

The Pogues ft. Kirsty McColl – Fairytale of New York
A Christmas song.

They’ve got cars big as bars
They’ve got rivers of gold
But the wind goes right through you
It’s no place for the old
When you first took my hand
On a cold Christmas Eve
You promised me
Broadway was waiting for me

Interpol – NYC
Supporting the city that has supported you.

The subway is a porno
Pavements they are a mess
I know you’ve supported me for a long time
Somehow I’m not impressed
But New York cares (got to be some more change in my life)

Le Tigre – My My Metrocard
Cruising around the city with a train pass.

My My Metrocard
Think I’ll go a little but then I go far
Next stop Atlantic Avenue
Next stop Christopher Street
Next stop Transfer to the
Next stop A, C, or E

Besnard Lakes – On Bedford and Grand
Hipsters.

You wouldn’t believe the things that we saw
When we took the L-train

Mike Doughty – Thank You Lord For Sending Me The F-Train
Have you ever had to wait for the F Train? Yeah.

And I will drift back to the slope,
Some face unlit, there, stuck into the incline,
Where I will sleep off all the noise
The soot accumulated all my trials
I thank you Lord almighty up above
Just for sending out the F train to me

LCD Soundsystem – New York I Love You But You’re Bringing But Down
Maybe the best song about being disappointed in a city every written; also the last song they sang at their last show.

New York, you’re perfect, don’t please don’t change a thing
Your mild billionaire mayor’s now convinced he’s a king
So the boring collect – I mean all disrespect
In the neighborhood bars I’d once dreamt I would drink

Ray LaMontagne & The Pariah Dogs – New York City’s Killing Me
He’d rather be in Nashville; but we all feel that way sometimes just for a moment, right?

I was just kickin’ along the sidewalk
No one looks you in the eyes
No one asks you how you’re doin’
Don’t seem to care if you live or if you die
Just got to get me somewhere
Somewhere that I can feel free
Gotta get out of New York City, boy
New York City’s killin’ me

Dark Dark Dark – New York Song
Because really, in the end, where else would you rather be?

They said being here is better than wishing we’d stayed
Yes, being here is seeming to be the way
Oh being here is better than wishing we had stayed…

Congrats on getting through to the bottom! Now click below to listen, and be sure to let me know if the comments how audacious it was of me to leave _____ off my list. Enjoy!

I want to wish you all a very happy Passover! However, there are not really any awesome Passover songs, unless you count Go Down Moses, which is only awesome when my cantor brother sings it in his bass-falsetto voice.* So to make sure your Good Friday is truly great, I’ve compiled ten Easter-related songs that, even as a Jew, I (and hopefully you) can totally rock out to.  Enjoy!

*This cannot be missed. Especially if you know Jesse. (Video here.)

Track Listing:
The Hollies – Jesus Was A Crossmaker
Jill Sobule – Jesus Was A Dreidel Spinner
Kanye West – Jesus Walks
Clem Snide – Jews For Jesus Blues
Nirvana – Jesus Doesn’t Want Me For A Sunbeam
Morrissey – I Have Forgiven Jesus
Guster – Stay With Me Jesus
Kurt Vile – Jesus Fever
The Hold Steady – How A Resurrection Really Feels
Emmy The Great – The Easter Parade

By all accounts I saw 70 shows in the 10 days I was in Austin. Not only is that a lot to take in, it’s also a lot to process and a lot to recuperate from. In the past I’ve done a post with every artist I saw in the order I saw them, but since I am so behind, I figured I would do a quick one (that I am sure will not be so quick, but hey, I’m a glass half full kinda gal) to tide you over. For ease, these are pretty much in the order I saw them, not in order of favorites. They are all in my top 14% anyway. And I’m gonna try to limit myself to 3 sentences per show. Wish me luck!

Three Important Housekeeping Notes:
-All the videos below were taken by me, at the shows I thought were awesome. The exception is the video of Little Comets. My memory card went all crazypants and wouldn’t copy over the video from that show. I found one taken by someone else (yay internets!) that appears to be from the same show, so thanks YouTube user steveakajack for that one.
-Adam Rodgers is not in the mix, even though he is in the top ten list. I couldn’t find his music available for download anywhere, but the show was good enough to include anyway. Go look him up somewhere.
-These mixes can be streamed on both 8tracks (embedded below), and on rdio.com here.

1. Fitz & The Tantrums

I saw them a few times. If they tour in your area, go see them.

2. The Head and The Heart

Folksy band from Seattle, saw them at the Microsoft party. Random, but the sets were amazing.

3. Adam Rodgers

Stumbled into an empty bar with this dude playing after I heard his voice while walking down the street. This is why I love SXSW.

4. Alexander

I honestly didn’t realize Alex Ebert (of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros) had a solo project until he played after Naked + Famous. Also, I think it is amusing that a solo project warrants 7 people on stage.

5. Sugar & Gold

Sugar & Gold is dancey fun SF band. They loved their watermelon, and interacting with the crowd.

6. Geographer

Geographer is also from SF and probably would have played forever if they didn’t have to go play somewhere else. There was no set list so they let us yell out songs.

7. Wallpaper.

This was the last band I saw last year. They were a bajillion times better this year, adding a fly girl and a second drummer. Watching the two drummers work in sync was mesmerizing.

8. Preservation Hall Jazz Band ft. Jim James and Del McCoury

Fell in love with them this past summer at Newport Folk Festival, and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see them at the new Austin City Limits theater. They played some songs with bluegrass artist Del McCoury, as well as My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James.

9. Little Comets

I had never heard of this Brit band before, but after everyone I knew insisted that I had to see them, I did. Totally great show, wicked funny lead, and the album is great.

10. Warren G and Snoop Dogg (Tribute to Nate Dogg)

Last show of the festival was a Vibe tribute to Nate Dogg. Warren G was scheduled, Snoop Dogg made a surprise appearance. So much weed on stage, and the energy was insane.

Stream this mix here:

Time for a round up of the songs I like in recent commercials.(See other commercial songs posts here and here.) These ones all break down to football, cars, and winter. I think it is time for booze to step up its game – they are usually better represented here. Maybe they are holding out for Super Bowl? A girl can dream, right? But speaking of… here are some football ads I love:

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes – Home – NFL

Sometimes I wonder if the average joe crazy Packers fan is sitting in his custom RV, watching this commercial and bopping his head to the beat, reaffirming his love for his team, all the while having no idea that the singer looks like this.

The Go! Team – The Power Is On – Play 60

Beat gets stuck in my head, no fail.

Derby – If Ever There’s A Reason – Ford Explorer

Sweet singer-songwriter vibe on this one. Seems a little too sentimental a song for a commercial aired primarily during college bowl games.

Jonsi – Go Do – Ford Explorer

An obvious choice for the campaign. Wonder which came first – the slogan, or the desire to put Jonsi in a commercial.

Dawes – When My Time Comes – Chevy Silverado

It makes me so happy that this is a long commercial, and that it’s cut so that the music really shines. Hands down, this was my most played, favorite song of 2010.

Sleigh Bells – Riot Rhythm – Honda CRV

I find the comments on this video in YouTube thoroughly amusing.

The Black Keys – Tighten Up – Subaru Legacy

Love this whole album.

Matt Pond PA – Snow Day – Starbucks

Cute commercial, in that but it would never actually happen kind of way.

Rosi Golan and Human – Les 12 Jours de Noel – Stella Artois

The 30-second song for this commercial was so well-liked they actually went back and recorded a full-length version.

Ellie Goulding – Your Song – John Lewis

A beautiful cover of the Elton John song, for a commercial I saw while I was in the UK.

Blackalicious – Toy Jackpot – Target

This is my favorite song on this mix. As for Target, as I’ve said elsewhere, I loved most of their advertising this season, especially the fact that they offered all of the songs from the campaign for free download on their site. In case you were wondering, my second favorite ad of their’s was Guster’s contribution, both because I love the band, and I because I could totally relate to the spot, Tiny Christmas Tree, and it’s depiction of NYC-living. I’d have included that one here for you as well, but Target removed the spot from their YouTube channel. Lame.

Stream the whole mix here:

FYI: You can jump to the bottom to stream this, or if you prefer to listen in rdio, it is there as well.

Bad Books – Bad Books (track: Please Move)

Best Coast – Crazy For You (track: Summer Mood)

Broken Bells – Broken Bells (track: The High Road)

Free Energy – Stuck on Nothing (track: Young Hearts)

Freelance Whales – Weathervanes (track: Generator ^ First Floor)Janelle Monae – The ArchAndroid (track: Faster)

Local Natives – Gorilla Manor (track: World News)

Mumford & Sons – Sigh No More (track: After the Storm)

Suckers – Wild Smile (track: Loose Change)

Young The Giant – Young The Giant (track: Cough Syrup)

Stream this whole list here:

On this past week’s episode of Glee, Gwyneth Paltrow guest starred as the super-cool-and-hip substitute teacher. She came into a classroom flush with discontent for the outdated song choices put before them (which is a bit silly, in my opinion, since they’ve had full episodes of Britney and GaGa, but I digress.) They decide they want to sing that new Cee-Lo song. You know, the one we all know as Fuck You:

But they did a completely dumbed-down radio-friendly version of course, scrubbing it clean and subbing in the phrase “Forget you.” Which totally provides that same emotional wallop of the original:

This made me wonder what other “fuck-titled” songs might look like on Glee. So here is my playlist. I recruited my friend Keith to help me come up with radio-friendly titles/lyrics to accompany the real ones.

Cee Lo Green – Fuck You
Clean version: Forget You
Sample lyric: I guess the change in my pocket wasn’t enough I’m like, FORGET you! And FORGET her too!

Lily Allen – Fuck You
Clean version: Darn You
Sample lyric: DARN you, DARN you very, very much.

Bushwick Bill – Bushmotherfuckingwick
Clean version: Bushmotherlovingwick
Sample lyric: I’m about to tell my partner how to LOVE this girl.

Super Furry Animals – The Man Don’t Give A Fuck
Clean version: The Man Don’t Give A Rats
Sample lyric: You know they don’t give a RATS about anybody else.

Magnetic Fields – How Fucking Romantic
Clean version: How Lucky and Romantic
Sample lyric: How LUCKY AND romantic, all the stars are out.

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – This Love Is Fucking Right
Clean version: This Love Is Not At All Right
Sample lyric: Hey sister, this love is NOT AT ALL right.

Gompie – Who The Fuck Is Alice
Clean version: Who The Heck Is Alice
Sample lyric: Alice? Who the HECK is Alice?

Robyn – Don’t Fucking Tell Me What To Do
Clean version: Don’t You Dare Tell Me What To Do
Sample lyric: Don’t YOU DARE tell me what to do, do, do, do, do!

Liz Phair – Fuck And Run
Clean version: Duck And Run
Sample lyric: DUCK and run, DUCK and run, even when I was twelve

Reggie Watts – Fuck Shit Stack
Clean version: Fish Shrimp Shack
Sample lyric: You take some FISH and some SHRIMP and some FISH and some SHRIMP you gotta FISH SHRIMP SHACK, a FISH SHRIMP SHACK.

(okay, that last one is even more amazing if you apply this to the entire song – lyrics are here.)

Stream the whole things, potty-mouth words included, here:

Tracks include * Zombie * November Spawned a Monster * Is There A Ghost * (Don’t Fear) The Reaper * Werewolves of London * Vampire/Forest Fire * I’m Your Boogie Man * A Man Needs A Maid * Psycho Killer * Devil in Disguise * We Suck Young Blood * Robots

If you follow me on twitter, you may already know that 6 days ago I had an unfortunate mishap with a motorcycle (pictured above). It was not an accident, per se, as it was safely parked. In an only-would-happen-to-Morgan especially-when-she’s-on-vacation kind of way, my foot slipped off the pedal, the pedal caught my jeans, and my leg is somewhat history. It’s cool though, I have a cane. And inspiration for my next mix.

I thought I would make a mix of songs about motorcycle crashes, though there are surprisingly not all that many. I found a super large amount of 50′s and 60′s teen angst songs about crashes though, and those could’ve been a mix unto themselves. But in the interest of diversity, here are my top 10 songs about crashes – car and motorcycle – mostly old, some new; but all tragic.

It’s been a month since I first laid eyes on the Double Rainbow video, and by now I hope you have all seen it as well. But just in case, let me break it down for you. Double Rainbow is, in my humble opinion, the greatest thing to come out of the internet this year so far. It consists of an unseen dude, in the Lebowski sense of the word, marveling at the wonders of a Full On Double Rainbow All The Way. My words can’t really do it justice, and you should just watch it.

When I started seeing links all over Facebook and Twitter referring to the above piece of gold, I resisted clicking through. But it was really Nathan Fillion’s obsession with infecting our lexicon with double rainbow that made me give in. According to him, to say something is “double rainbow” is to say it is of an awesomeness unmatched anywhere else in life at that moment. The tweet that finally got me to watch the video? “Ok, I’m recommending that the new “in” phrase be: Double Rainbow. Usage example: That pizza was so Double Rainbow. Oh my god.”

As with many great viral things on the internet, the virus dies. And a month out, I’m not quite ready to let go. So here is a double rainbow mix, for your listening pleasure.*

Lady in Red – Chris Deburgh
Red Right Ankle – The Decemberists
Orange Sky – Alexei Murdoch
Orange Crush – R.E.M.
Big Yellow Taxi – Joni Mitchell
Yellow Ledbetter – Pearl Jam
Green Gloves – The National
The Big Bright Green Pleasure Machine – Simon & Garfunkel
All Blues – Miles Davis
Blue Eyes – Cary Brothers
Purple Rain – Martin Sexton
The Purple People Eater – Sheb Wooley

*Disclaimer: I know of course there were a bajillion color-titled songs I could have used for this mix, but it’s my mix and I pretty much stick by my choices. Feel free to leave your ideal double rainbow songs in the comments.

I spent this past weekend in Rhode Island at the Newport Folk Festival. I am pretty exhausted, but I wanted to get you kids this mix as soon as humanly possible. Which turns out to be close to midnight when the goal was bed by ten. So you won’t get much commentary here (maybe one day I will update this post (but probably not)) but what you will definitely get is a mix, a track listing, and some video I took over the weekend. Enjoy all three.

PLAYLIST:
The Low Anthem – To Ohio
AA Bondy – When The Devil’s Loose
Brandi Carlile – Dying Day
O’Death – Home
Jim James & Calexico – Goin’ To Acapulco
Horse Feathers – Belly Of June
Andrew Bird – I Shall Not Be Moved
Dawes – Take Me Out Of The City
The Avett Brothers – January Wedding
Preservation Hall Jazz Band – Louisiana Fairytale
The Felice Brothers – Take This Hammer (Live)
Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore – Only a Song
The Swell Season – Love That Conquers
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros – Home
The Band – The Weight

MIX:

VIDEO:
AA Bondy singing When The Devil’s Loose

Brandi Carlile singing The Story

Jim James singing Golden

Dawes singing Love Is All I Am

Preservation Hall Jazz Band ft. Jim James singing Standing On The Corner

Swell Season sing Falling Slowly by the Frames

Levon Helm singing The Weight with Glen Hansard, Richie Havens, and others

Tomorrow marks 100 days since the BP oil spill in the gulf. I know they “successfully” capped it, but as long as that sucker is still leaking, I’m saying there is still an oil spill. But this disaster got me thinking a lot about the good old days of folk – when popular music regularly included anthems for a better world. So here you go, ten songs in the spirit of activism. They are warnings of what might become of our world,  encouragements to better our environment, and frustrations upon frustrations in lyric form.

Mother Earth (Natural Anthem) – Neil Young and Crazy Horse
If you can get past the first minute of dissonance, there are some really beautiful harmonies in here.
Key lyric: Oh, Mother Earth, With your fields of green / Once more laid down by the hungry hand / How long can you give and not receive / and feed this world ruled by greed

Don’t Go Near The Water – Johnny Cash
Really, this whole song could be put into the key lyric section. I love when he stops a tells a story.
Key lyric: Don’t go near the water children / See the fish all dead upon the shore / Don’t go near the water / Cause the water isn’t water anymore

Excuse Me Mr. – Ben Harper
I loved this song when I was in college, but never really thought about the lyrics until recently. Ben Harper has a lot of great songs in the folk tradition (How Many Miles Must We March, Like a King, I’ll Rise to name a few) and though I actually love the others more, this one stands out for its finger-pointing tone.
Key lyric: Excuse me mister but isn’t that your oil in the sea / And the pollution in the air mister / Whose could that be?

Earth Song – Michael Jackson
Sure, Heal The World is the obvious choice, but I like to roll against type.
Key lyric: Did you ever stop to notice all the blood we’ve shed before / Did you ever stop to notice the crying Earth the weeping shores?

Death of Mother Nature – Kansas
Mother Nature personified. I think this song is unnecessarily scary/loud at times, but I guess that’s what they were going for.
Key lyric: We’ve strangled all her trees and starved her creatures / There’s poison in the sea and in the air / But worst of all we’ve learned to live without her

Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology) – Marvin Gaye
Couldn’t really have a mix about fixing up the world and not have this song, right?
Key lyric: Whoa mercy, mercy me, / Things ain’t what they used to be / Oil wasted on the ocean and upon our seas, fish full of mercury

Don’t Go Near The Water – Beach Boys
Another one where the whole song could be a key lyric. This is one of my favorites on this mix.
Key lyric: Oceans, rivers, lakes and streams / Have all been touched by man / The poison floating out to sea / Now threatens life on land

My Dirty Stream (The Hudson River Song) – Pete Seeger
This is about pollution in our beautiful waterways, but oil is pollution too, right?
Key lyric: At Glens Falls, five thousand honest hands / Work at the consolidated paper plant / Five million gallons of waste a day / Why should we do it any other way?

Paradise – John Prine
Okay, this is about coal mining. But coal is a fuel, and oil is a fuel. Just go with it, okay?
Key lyric: And daddy won’t you take me back to Muhlenberg County / Down by the Green River where Paradise lay / Well, I’m sorry my son, but you’re too late in asking / Mister Peabody’s coal train has hauled it away

In Our Talons – Bowerbirds
This is the most recent song here. It’s also has the most general lyrics, but I love the key one as a way to end this mix.
Key lyric: It takes a lot of nerve to destroy this wondrous earth / We’re only human; this at least we’ve learned.

America Is Not The World by Morrissey came on my shuffle the other day, and I thought “Gee, that would be a humorous song to put on a Fourth of July mix, if only I had one of those.” And then I realized how easy it would be to accomplish just that. I think in the end, better judgment prevailed and I skipped the anti-American sentiments in favor of an all-American get ready for bar-b-que and fireworks playlist. So go ahead and listen to this as you get ready for your bar-b-ques and fireworks, people!

Though I thought about just surprising you, here is the track listing:

Lee Greenwood – God Bless The USA
You can thank me later.

Ray Charles – America The Beautiful
Though I recommend checking out the Willie Nelson version, I love that equally if not sometimes more.

Celine Dion – God Bless America
Particularly awesome version, given that it was from the 9/11 memorial concert and she is Canadian.

Simon & Garfunkel – America
Great song about finding yourself

Neil Diamond – America
I had to sing this in an elementary school play about emigration. To Israel. You figure it out.

Jimi Hendrix – Star Spangled Banner
Of course.

Martina McBride – Independence Day
A song about wife beating disguised in patriotism that is sung on almost every season of American Idol. Go figure.

James Brown – Living In America
From Rocky IV and has the line “Eddie Murphy, eat your heart out.”

Whitney Houston – Star Spangled Banner
I was led to believe it would be un-American of me to leave this version of this song off the list. It’s from Super Bowl XXV.

Team America – America, F**k Yeah
But it would be even more un-American to leave this off. Enjoy.

Last night I realized something awful. I had mistakenly deleted 22 folders of music. Permanently. This is what I get for procrastinating and working on mixes at 3am. I was raised to be a loyal PC girl, so no Mac Time Machine for me. Needless to say, I was pretty devastated. I posted an account of my ineptitude on my personal tumblr, along with a list of the full albums I had lost and cared to get back. (That list is here, if you’re interested.) I then tweeted the link, and shot an email to friends I thought might be able to help. And holy god, help they did. Within 45 minutes, I had half of the list back in my possession, and at this moment am downloading the last of the files.

One of the albums I had lost was Clinging To A Scheme by The Radio Dept. On it is a song I considered sending to everyone that helped, titled A Token Of Gratitude. But then I thought, why not just one up myself and make a full mix of it. This way you all get to benefit from my stupidity. And it’s better than a fruit basket.

1. The Beatles – Taxman
2. The Robert Cray Band – 1040 Blues
3. Notorius B.I.G. – Mo Money Mo Problems
4. Spoon – Who Makes Your Money
5. Pink Floyd – Money
6. The Kinks – Sunny Afternoon
7. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings – What If We All Stopped Paying Taxes?
8. Monty Python – Money Song
9. The Jam – Burning Sky

#10 of the mix was meant to be Johnny Paycheck’s Me And The I.R.S., but I couldn’t find it anywhere but YouTube: