iTunes Random Play

Lately, I've taken to setting my iTunes library on random play and letting it go. I have about 3 days of music on my computer, so some songs get lost. Ironically, the shuffle brings them back into focus.


Right now, Nada Surf's "From Now On" got the call. I'd never heard of the band until I was driving home from a full day of teaching. From what I remember, it had been a long, tiring day in front of tired, unenergetic, sleepy students. I was whipped. Fortunately, I'd had the good sense to update my iPod before I left home. That morning, I'd downloaded an "All Music Considered" podcast. It was a live recording of Nada Surf in concert at a small club in California. Proved to be the perfect upbeat drive time music that allowed me to put the day behind me. I was never able to replicate that magic with "All Music Considered" podcasts and eventually stopped downloading them. On long drives home at night, I still thank them for Nada Surf.



Now, it's Better than Ezra's "This Time of Year." Got to be one of the greatest acoustic guitar introductions in all of music. I bought the CD years ago, for "Good," of course. I brought it home to my first single apartment, popped into the CD player and hit play. I sang along with the "Good" and "In the Blood," and sat back and listened to the unfamiliar songs. Just as I'd decided that I was undecided about my purchase, the first chords of "The Time of Year" rang out, and I was sold. Perfect song to remind you to"go on, let it be" and that we can all experience a "Friday afternoon" anytime we want to.



Now, "Fall on Me" by REM. College days, senior year, wondering if that Dartmouth boy would ever call me, wondering what the hell Michael Stipe is saying, wondering if I was ever going to finish my undergraduate thesis, wondering how long the bar across the street would keep $1 appetizers and beer for happy hour . . . all in that order. Then wondering where in hell was Athens, GA and how soon could I get there?



Up next, "Sweetest Goodbye" by Maroon 5. Since I don't listen to commercial radio, I discovered Maroon 5 through "Love Actually." I watch that movie every New Years Eve. If memory serves, this song plays when British Colin tells his equally British friend that he (Colin) is going to America because although Colin can't get laid in Britian, American girls will think that he's hot. We Americans laughed in the theater, but we watched as Colin arrived in Milwaukee and was immediately swept up by 3 American girls who thought he was hot simply because he had a British accent. We all knew that the scene was truer than any of us wanted to admit. Guess we didn't have the last laugh, after all.



Next, "With or Without You," U2 at their best. Always makes me think of someone I once knew who idolized Bono. Also reminds me of the drive from college to home - I-95 to I-287 across the Tappan Zee Bridge, to the Garden State Parkway and the New Jersey Turnpike, back to I-95 across the Delaware Memorial Bridge and home, singing along with Bono all the way.



Now, "Sunday Girl" by Blondie. I bought this song on iTunes about 2 years ago. If I heard it in the early 1980s when it was new, I don't remember it. When I bought it, I think I was aiming to buy "Heart of Glass," and got sidetracked. "Sunday Girl" is so catchy and upbeat, what's not to like? And, you can actually sing along with it, instead of muttering and humming along like we all do with "Heart of Glass."


Up next, a bit of country, Mary-Chapin Carpenter's "We're All Right." I'm a huge Mary-Chapin Carpenter fan. Time was, I'd buy her CDs after hearing part of one song. I'll admit that I'm not there anymore. "Time Sex Love" wasn't one of my favorites and made me a bit gun-shy. She got me back with "The Calling." Something about her music always hits me at the right time in my life with something that I want to, or need to, hear. "It's not too late to believe that fate has been keeping us from harm. No road maps, no lightposts, no North Star, no lifeboats, no miracle coming in sight. No voices to guide us, no angels beside us, no Shaman, no mystical light - but we're all right!" We're all right, all on our own.


And, finally, "Take Me For Longing" - Alison Krauss and Union Station. This was the first time I'd heard Alison Krauss, on a compilation CD of country music, blaring from my car stereo on a research trip in the Mississippi Delta. Blown away! "Don't choose me because I am faithful. Don't choose me because I am kind. If your heart settles on me, I'm for the taking. Take me for longing, or leave me behind." Amen. No settling for anything short of true passion. Choose a dog because he's faithful. Keep your friends because they are kind. Choose me because of something entirely different, and I'll be all of those other things. Amen, Alison.

OK, one more - "The Twist" by Chubby Checker. I bought this song as a possible accompaniment to my 1950s powerpoint slide show for my undergraduate history classes. I ended up using Bill Haley's "Rock Around the Clock." But, I still smile when "The Twist" pops up on random play. Makes me glad that my desk chair swivels.

Holiday music

Well, December is almost here and everything is turning red and green, unless you live in the NEPIW where everything is turning a dull gray so that when the blanket of snow finally arrives, you're thankful rather than annoyed.

In preparation for the holidays, I took a break from work earlier this week and loaded all of my holiday CDs into iTunes. Since that didn't take nearly enough time, I spent some time shopping in the iTunes store. I found some of my favorite, as yet unowned holiday music. Say what you want about Elton John's "Step Into Christmas," I love that song. Just makes me happy. And sometimes, there's nothing better than Bono's heartbreaking, "Baaaaby, please come home!"

In my searching, I came across many familiar titles and artists. I also came across some disturbing titles. Mixed in with "Silver Bells" and "White Christmas," the following songs sat quietly, as if they actually belonged in the list:

First, puzzling pairings of artists and titles:

• Please, Daddy (Don't Get Drunk) - John Denver: I don't care what you say, that's one festive-sounding song.
• Santa Claus (Got Stuck in My Chimney) - Ella Fitzgerald: Well, that's going to be tough to explain to the kids.

Next, pairings that seem to make sense:

• Yellin' at the Xmas Tree - Billy Idol: In the midnight hour, he yells, "Noel! Noel! Noel!"
• One Parent Christmas - Saffire and the Uppity Blues Women: Next line: "Half as many presents"
• I'll Be Stoned for Christmas - Bob Rivers: Hide the mistletoe, Bob's here!
• Codependent Christmas - The Therapy Sisters: The companion piece to John Denver's holiday classic. Please, Daddy, get drunk, because if you don't, none of us will know how to behave.
• Christmas is a Pain in the Arse - The Accelerators: Well, it certainly is for Ella Fitzgerald.
• Xmas in Jail - Asleep at the Wheel: Nobody knows the Christmas I've seen...

And, of course, the kings and queens of dysfunction and misery, the country singers:

• Leroy the Redneck Reindeer - Joe Diffie: Ah, the redneck jokes just never get old. Ha ha ha, a redneck reindeer. What do you suppose he hunts?
• Santa's Got a Semi - Keith Harling: Nothing says Merry Christmas like pumping your arm up and down, hoping Santa will blow his horn.
• Cold Beer - Tracy Lawrence: Let it pour, let it pour, let it pour.
• Let's Make a Baby King - Wynonna: Wonder where you're supposed to put the emphasis in this one. "Let's make a baby, King" means one thing, while "Let's make a baby king" means something totally different. Both are equally gross, though.

And, finally, my personal favorite:

• Santa's Messin' with the Kid - Lynryd Skynyrd: I don't even want to know that this song is about.

I'm sticking to Elton and Bono.