The First of May

Sixteen songs for this, the first of May. Set includes new material from Paul Simon, Cut Copy, Aloe Blacc, and k.d. Lang; as well as favorites from Bob Mould, Morcheeba, War, and U2.

Press play and enjoy...



Track list:

Getting Ready for Christmas Day - Paul Simon
Shelter Me - Bob Mould
Take Me Over - Cut Copy
Livin' Thing - Electric Light Orchestra
Spill the Wine - War
Time Out of Mind - Steely Dan
Loving You Is Killing Me - Aloe Blacc
Cold Heart - Elliot Yamin
Sugar Buzz - k.d. lang and the Siss Boom Bang
Beat of the Drum - Morcheeba
You Were Never There - Diego Garcia
New York - U2
Goodbye Blue Sky - Pink Floyd
Happy Ending - Joe Jackson/Elaine Casewell
First of May - Bee Gees
Clair de Lune - Julian Bream

Black Coffee

Let's get the blood pumpin' this Sunday morning, shall we?



Set list:

Goin' Back to Cali - LL Cool J
Black Venom - The Budos Band
Voice Yr Choice - The Go! Team
Undercover - The Chain Gang of 1974
Forget That You're Young - The Raveonettes
Down by the Water - The Decemberists
An Easy Life - Broken Bells
Trust - Generationals
Black Coffee in Bed - Squeeze
The Back of My Mind - Teenage Fanclub
Who Have You Been Loving - Bobby Long
You Were Never There - Diego Garcia
Black Coffee - Peggy Lee
The Son of Flynn (Moby Remix) - Daft Punk and Moby
Red Dust - Zero 7

Star Fire

It's time for some disco, damn it! Celebrating those heady days of yester-year with classics from Norma Jean Wright, Peter Brown, Gino Soccio, Carrie Lucas, Saint Tropez, and many, many more. Press play and enjoy...



Track list:

Saturday - Norma Jean Wright
Superman - Herbie Mann
Mandolay - La Flavour
Crank It Up - Peter Brown
Dancer - Gino Soccio
I Gotta Keep Dancin' (Keep Smiling) - Carrie Lucas
One More Minute - Saint Tropez
Keep It Hot - Cheryl Lynn
Don't Stop the Music - Strange Affair
The Main Event/Fight - Barbra Streisand
Take That to the Bank - Shalamar
Walk Away - Donna Summer
Star Fire - The Sylvers
Midnight Love Affair - Carol Douglas
Star Dust - The Charlie Calello Orchestra
I'm Every Woman - Chaka Khan
Black Water Gold - KC & the Sunshine Band

Down by the Water

This week's playlist is all over the map, and includes new material from the Strokes, Broken Bells, and Danism; plus classics from Skye Edwards, Elton John, and the Beatles.

Press play and enjoy...



Playlist:

Gratisfaction - The Strokes
Los Angeles - Sugarcult
Baby, You're a Rich Man - The Beatles
An Easy Life - Broken Bells
Powerful - Skye Edwards
Omid (Hope) - Thievery Corporation
Still Sound - Toro y Moi
Love the Way (Crazy P Remix) - Danism
Red Dust - Zero 7
Shame - Gary Barlow & Robbie Williams
Down by the Water - The Decemberists
Trust - Generationals
Ten Cent Pistol - The Black Keys
Ball & Chain - Elton John
In the Hall of the Mountain King - Trent Reznor

Soul Shine

A rather eclectic selection of twenty R&B tunes to help celebrate the beginning of spring. This week's set includes new material from Adele, Blue Six, and N'dambi, as well as classics from Billy Preston, the Spinners, and Marvin Gaye. Press play and enjoy...



Playlist:

Welcome to Soulshine - DJ Cam
Lovesong - Adele
Dance or Die - Janelle Monáe
Outa-Space - Billy Preston
Ghetto - Supreme Beings of Leisure
You Used to Rock - Blue Six
Give the Drummer Some - Nickodemus
Something Got Me Started - Simply Red
My Friend - Groove Armada
Trouble Man - Marvin Gaye
Ooo Baby - N'dambi
Serpentine Fire - Earth, Wind, & Fire
Boogie Child - Bee Gees
The Seed (2.0) - The Roots (w/ Cody Chestnutt)
What's Your Name - Morcheeba (w/ Big Daddy Kane)
Honey - Moby
Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby? (Rae & Christian Remix) - Dinah Washington
Maybe So, Maybe No - Mayer Hawthorne
I'll Be Around - The Spinners
Jericho - Weekend Players

Gurlz, Gurlz, GURRRLZ!

Threadless.com is holding a contest in February in which they ask customers to put together a music mix consisting of eight songs by or about girls. After sending them a solidly estrogen-filled mix yesterday, I threw together this extended twenty-track "bonus edition" for your mid-February Sunday.

Press play and enjoy...



Track list:

Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever - Susan Tedeschi
You I Want - Jesse Thomas
Dusk 'til Dawn - Ladyhawke
Cherry Bomb - The Runaways
Suzy & Jeffrey - Blondie
Lose That Girl - Saint Etienne
Black Rat Swing - Precious Bryant
Like Any Woman Would - Patti Scialfa
L.I.E. - N'dbambi
I'm Every Woman - Chaka Khan
Can't Get You Out of My Head - Kylie Minogue
Clap Your Hands - Sia
One More Minute - Saint Tropez
The Boss - Diana Ross
Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby? - Dinah Washington
In These Shoes!? - Bette Midler
Who Let in the Rain - Cyndi Lauper
Silver Lining - Bonnie Raitt
Undress Me Now - Morcheeba
What It Feels Like For a Girl - Madonna

Mother Nature's Son

Eleven tracks for this sunny, summer-like Sunday afternoon. Press play and enjoy...



Track list:

Baby, You're a Rich Man - The Beatles
Los Angeles - Sugarcult
Even Judas Gave Jesus a Kiss - !!!
Saturday Sun - Crowded House
On a High - Duncan Sheik
Mother Nature's Son - Harry Nilsson
Get Used to It - Brand New Heavies
Got to Give It Up - Marvin Gaye
Sexy Ida - Ike & Tina Turner
Hand Covers Bruise - Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
Armellodie - Gonzales

Want to go, without a map, far away...

Sunday morning brain break: A jetliner's approach to LAX, at four times the speed...

The Winter

An eclectic set of fourteen songs to close out your January. The set bookends with tracks from Air, and also includes Ladyhawke, Bottle of Justus, Morcheeba, Lakeside, and a new track from Cake.

Press play and enjoy...



Playlist:

Sexy Boy - Air
Tough at the Top - EZ Rollers
Dusk 'till Dawn - Ladyhawke
Wave Goodbye - Bottle of Justus
Spiralling - Keane
Gamma Ray - Beck
Let's Make Love - Cansei de ser Sexy
Rome Wasn't Built In a Day - Morcheeba
It's All the Way Live - Lakeside
Doncamatic - Gorillaz
If I Ever Feel Better - Phoenix
The Winter - Cake
Tree By the River - Iron & Wine
All I Need - Air

Liner notes:

Morcheeba play at the Warfield in San Francisco on March 5.
Lakeside perform at Yoshi's next Saturday, February 5.
Bottle of Justus are at Crusen's in Peoria, IL on Saturday, March 27.

Picture Book

Fourteen songs for your Sunday. Set includes tracks from Saint Etienne, the Heavy, Michael Jackson, the Kinks, Morcheeba, and Dirty Vegas.

Press play and enjoy...



Track List:

Sun In My Morning - Saint Etienne
Take Me Over - Cut Copy
Right Down the Line - Gerry Rafferty
Short Change Hero - The Heavy
Picture Book - The Kinks
Good Lovin' - Betty Wright
Street Life - The Crusaders
Get on the Floor - Michael Jackson
That Burning Love - Edmund Sylvers
Be Yourself - Morcheeba
Wondaland - Janelle Monáe
Electric Love - Dirty Vegas
Gold for the Price of Silver - Kings of Convenience

Five Years On

On this morning, January 10, five years ago, my grandmother passed away after suffering for more than a decade in the dark recesses of Alzheimer's. She helped raise me and, while thankful she was no longer suffering from that horrible disease, her passing was like losing a parent. This one is dedicated to "Grandma Mom," with much love, from her pal.

Friday Showcase

Meet Thugfucker, a New York-based electronic duo with a psychedelic slant to their superb house beat...

Mid-Week Levity

Gerry Rafferty, 1947 - 2011

Thessalonians

Thousands of dead birds fall out of the sky and a river fills up with dead fish in Arkansas; and yesterday, more dead birds in Louisiana. OH NOS, HOMOS...it's...the RAPTURE!!

Back to the California Supremes

From KQED:

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is kicking the Proposition 8 case back to the California Supreme Court.

The federal Appeals Court said today that is asking for guidance from California on the issue of "standing," which is the right to bring a lawsuit due to a sufficient harm from and connection to the matter being considered. The court said that it could not consider the constitutionality of Proposition 8 until the issue of standing is resolved.

The court wrote that there is no precedent for deciding whether the official proponents of a California initiative - in this case Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage - have the right to "defend the constitutionality of that measure...when the state officers charged with the laws' enforcement, including the Attorney General, refuse to provide such a defense..." Both Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jerry Brown, in their [previous] incarnations as Governor and Attorney General, declined to defend the proposition.

I'm no legal expert, but I must say I like our chances on this part of the argument.

Update: Andrew Cohen's take on the 9th Circuit ruling:

...the trial court ruling by U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, which vitiated the factual and legal underpinnings of Proposition 8, still stands. And so do stringent "standing" rules. If the California Supreme Court agrees with Judge Walker - that there can be no appeal without the formal support of California's executive branch and especially its chief lawyer - Proposition 8 will be in even worse legal shape than it's been in for the past 6 months. And that's saying something.

The Earth's Giants

They've been around for 600 years, some for over 2,000 years. Behold the redwood forests of Northern California.

Growing is Forever from Jesse Rosten on Vimeo.

The Voice of America

Quote of the Day:

Everywhere I go, as much as I can, I listen to National Public Radio. It's an oasis of clear-headed intelligence. Carefully, patiently, it presents programming designed to make me feel just a little better equipped to reenter the world of uproar.

I've written before about the disintegration of journalism, of the lowered standards everywhere in today's media. As a nation we once said, give us the facts and we'll make up our own minds. Now we say, spare us the facts and make up our minds for us. We have grown impatient, and the national attention span shrinks until even a 10-minute video on YouTube can seem unendurable. Nuggets of celeb gossip distract us on our way to oblivion. Studies document the way the internet is fragmenting our minds.

-Roger Ebert, on his blog, touting NPR as the true "voice of America."

When they're not shouting, some of the voices on talk radio's left are pretty intelligent as well: Thom Hartmann, Randi Rhodes, and Stephanie Miller. Karel? That amateur is a bitter, tired queen, but that's another story for another post.

But Ebert nails it. In fact, I think he gives Americans more credit than they deserve. A 10-minute attention span? Try five minutes, and steadily decreasing. The dumbing down of America continues.

Heaven's Angel, Devil's Daughter

Let's get 2011 started off with a highly eclectic set of tuneage. Material from Buddy Holly, Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson, Bob Mould, and Minus the Bear highlight this week's playlist, along with hot tracks from Morcheeba, Quadron, and a classic from Diana Ross.

Press play and enjoy...



Playlist:

Everyday - Buddy Holly
Wondaland - Janelle Monáe
Relator - Pet Yorn & Scarlett Johansson
Cut to the Chase - Morcheeba
Skin Tight - Ohio Players
Cross-Eyed and Painless - Talking Heads
Shelter Me - Bob Mould
Dead Ending - The Hundred in the Hands
Excuses - Minus the Bear
Run Like Hell - Pink Floyd
Going to California - Led Zeppelin
Hercules - Guster
Love Is Thicker Than Water - Andy Gibb
Slippin' - Quadron
Love Hangover - Diana Ross

Unlimited Chocolate

My grandmother, who was essentially the second parent in my life from birth until the time I was 13-years-old, spent the last decade of her life in the dark recesses of Alzheimer's. I wasn't allowed to see her during those last years; my mother did not want my sisters and me to remember "Grandma Mom" as the woman lost in that deep, dementia-filled fog, but, rather, as the woman whose heart was too large to measure, who was always there for her family, no matter the reason, no matter the sacrifice.

The New York Times' Pam Belluck visited the Beatitudes Nursing Home in Phoenix, Arizona, and filed this excellent piece on a new care philosophy being tested at the facility. The approach is heartbreaking in its common sense, yet too many care facilities around the nation won't see the logic.

As Roger Ebert said when he posted this article to his Facebook page, Alzheimer care facilities around the globe should put the following motto above their doors:

Those who live in the moment must be loved in the moment.

Amen, brother.

Fix It

Quote of the Day:

Our country faces major challenges — budget deficits, high unemployment and two wars, to name just a few — and needs a functioning legislative branch to address these pressing issues. Certainly some significant legislation passed in the last two years, but too much else fell by the wayside. The Senate never even considered some appropriations and authorization bills, and failed to settle on a federal budget for all of next year. Votes on this sort of legislation used to be routine, but with the new frequency of the filibuster, a supermajority is needed to pass almost anything. As a result the Senate is arguably more dysfunctional than at any time in recent history.

-Former Vice-President Walter Mondale, explaining why it is of the upmost importance that the new Senate reform the rules of the filibuster when it is seated this week.

If Harry Reid doesn't take this up the minute this new session starts, then he'll have proved once and for all that he is not up to the leadership role his party has given him.

Happy New Year!