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We’ve got some great mixes in hand and on the way – where is yours?

About Today’s Mix:

We’re going to break from the steady stream of solid ATV fan submissions, and I’m going to share a mix of my own today with a story attached.  In today’s hard-to-believe-yet-completely-true story, our hero finds himself in love with a girl – one who loves music just as much as he does.  One who enjoys frequent road trips to other cities for the purpose of attending concerts while attempting to locate and tour every record store in the city.  Shared favorite artists/groups include Tom Petty, R.EM., Duran Duran, U2, and BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN.  Her collection has some holes in the Smithereens section, while his collection could use quite a bit of help in the Smiths section.

In the early moments of our relationship, I made her a mix CD – and then the unexpected happened – she made me a mix CD.  Believe it or not, prior to this moment, our hero hadn’t ever had anyone make him a mix – and perhaps that right there should have been a big musical red flag in those previous relationships that things weren’t quite right.  And damn, with her very first offering, she proved that she could make one hell of a mix CD.

To date, we’ve shared about 5 mixes with each other – sharing our favorites, the little known tracks, and in my case, plenty of the guilty pleasures.  It feels so good, and I wanted to share just a bit of that feeling with all of you, in musical form.

Enjoy.

Mix Notes:

Download complete mix (link is good for one week only.)

Aimee Mann/Michael Penn – “Two of Us”

In the midst of discussing Beatles covers at the time that the new remasters were released, I was reminded of quite a few of my favorites, and the Mann/Penn cover of “Two of Us” definitely sits high on the list.  Every time that I hear this version, I think about how great it would be if Mann/Penn were to make an album together.  It’s got to happen eventually, right?  I’ve always thought that this is a beautiful song, no matter who’s singing it. – from the I Am Sam soundtrack.

Tom Petty – “California”

California’s been good to me
Hope it don’t fall into the sea
Sometimes you got to save yourself
It ain’t like anywhere else
It ain’t like anywhere else

This was the original intended opener for the mix, and it comes off of Petty’s soundtrack for She’s The One, which combines with Wildflowers as the dynamic duo of two of my favorite albums by any artist.  This album is nearly completely ignored in the Runnin’ Down A Dream documentary – apparently because the album was made while Petty was going through his divorce – a period that he understandably would prefer to forget.  Quite a shame, because She’s The One is one of the best albums in Petty’s catalog.

Frank Turner – “Dan’s Song”

I just love this song, and that I heard it in September as referenced in the lyrics, while wishing I could have had more summer times with the girl.  Next summer!  From the album Poetry of the Dead.

David Byrne and Brian Eno – “My Big Nurse”

Byrne’s performance at Bonnaroo this past summer is still a magical moment, every time that I think about it.  I was standing next to a very tall, very athletically built girl during Byrne’s performance.  She let out a little squeal every time that Byrne finished a song, and I had her clearly pegged as a super-fan, because she was really into Byrne’s performance.  I finally had to ask her how many times she had seen Byrne, and she let me know that this was the first time that she had ever seen Byrne. She was very stoked in the same way that I was to finally see Byrne live, and unlike me, she wasn’t silent about how much she was enjoying the performance.  Byrne played “Heaven” a couple of songs after this one,and I was completely hooked on his performance – I can easily say that this was my favorite set that I saw at Bonnaroo – I enjoyed Byrne’s set even more than even Bruce or NIN.  I hadn’t enjoyed the Byrne/Eno album on first listen, but after I got back from Bonnaroo, I bought it nearly immediately.  From the excellently titled Everything That Happens Will Happen Today.

Brookville – “Happy”

It’s all been a pack of lies…

I will always associate this band, album, and song with my early moments getting to know the girl.  I was really tired on the night that The Trash Can Sinatras and Brookville were in town.  I probably would have bagged out to stay home if it had been all about me, but I really wanted to see the Sinatras and Brookville based on her recommendation, and like so many of the recommendations that have followed since then, I was really glad that I came out for this show.  From the new album Broken Lights.

R.E.M. – “Shiny Happy People” / Sinead O Connor – “Nothing Compares To You”

These two songs are in the category of songs that I got really sick of at the time that they were popular on the radio, but I can listen again to both of them now that a significant amount of time has gone by.  The combination of the two back to back makes me laugh, but not nearly as much as the segue into the tune that follows Sinead.

Madonna – “Crazy For You”

Swaying room as the music starts
Strangers making the most of the dark
Two by two their bodies become one

I’ve had this song on my mind for a little while now – it’s always been one of my favorite Madonna songs, and I think it illustrates really nicely why Madonna had as much success as she did.  Not only was she a great performer, she was great at delivering lyrics that she didn’t write, making you believe them.  I’ve always been impressed with an artist that can deliver a song with so much passion that you are surprised to find out that they didn’t write it.  Because there is also the opposite, the artist that sleep walks their way through a song that you can tell that they are clearly bored with it, because it’s not one of their songs.  I really love these particular lyrics – Slowly now we begin to move/ Every breath I’m deeper into you / Soon we two are standing still in time – I think that “standing still in time” lyric is SO cool.  Always have.  From the original motion picture soundtrack to Vision Quest.

Jenny Owen Youngs – “Dissolve”

JOY’s Transmitter Failure will wind up in my top ten list of albums for 2009, without a doubt.  There’s not a single dud on this whole album.

Bettie Serveert – “Crutches”

Boredom always lurks within strange places
but still I find a way to feed my mind.

I can’t recall how we ended up talking about Bettie Serveert, but I had to pull out my copy of Lamprey not long after that, and damn, this album still holds up.  I’m not sure how/where I heard the band for the first time, but I bought the album, and ended up seeing them on this tour at Peabody’s.  They totally ruled on a hot and sweaty night at the old Peabody’s.

Hall & Oates – “Someday We’ll Know”

I was surprised to eventually find out that this was a cover – the original was recorded by The New Radicals.  My first exposure to this version came when I heard it for the first time on the Do It For Love album.  This is a good example at how Hall & Oates have been great over the years at making a classic song their own.  Now, perhaps this one isn’t a classic – but it should have been, and H&O really hit the mark on this one.

Sugarbomb – “Hello”

You remember this band because this song ended up in a bazillion movie trailers in the couple of years that followed the release of the Bully album.  There are plenty of other reasons that you should know about this band, and you can school up with this good rundown over at Popdose, and at the same time grab a huge batch of Sugarbomb rarities.

Owsley – “She’s The One”

When I decided to put Sugarbomb on this mix, I immediately had the song in mind that needed to follow it – “She’s The One” by power popper Will Owsley from his second album The Hard Way.  Dude is so awesome, and his day job is lead guitarist for Amy Grant, which paid the way for him to record a self-financed follow-up to his Giant Records self-titled bomb of a debut.  I loved the s/t album, but The Hard Way completely crushes it – I’m still waiting for him to record something new.

Mark Knopfler – “Our Shangri-La”

A definite “us” kind of tune – my mind wanders when I hear this one.  There are additional good memories attached – I saw Knopfler for the first time on this tour – in Dayton, OH at the Fraze Pavilion, which longtime readers of this site will be aware has become a favorite concert spot for me over the years.  I went to the show with my longtime pal/traditional Springsteen comrade Tony, and we had the opportunity to meet Knopfler before the show – one of the coolest meet and greets I’ve attended to date.  Later that same night, Knopfler dazzled with an epic version of the Dire Straits classic “Telegraph Road,” among many other magical moments on the night.

Cracker – “I Want Everything”

Here’s another one that’s been destined for a mix since I saw Cracker in August, and every time that I made a mix, I kept forgetting to put it on.  This was originally planned as a mix opener several mixes prior, but it fit best here in the current position on this one. From the Kerosene Hat album.

Steve Earle – “Reconsider Me” (Warren Zevon cover)

I love me some Warren Zevon – Warren’s an artist that I got into more and more over the years, thanks to my buddy Kevin.  This one comes off of the Warren Zevon tribute album Enjoy Every Sandwich, which is one of the most solid tribute albums you’ll ever hear.  This particular version got new life when it was used during the first season of Californication, a show which features excellent music choices, and lots of Zevon tracks, both originals and covers like this one.

BoDeans – “When The Love Is Goob (I Mean Good)”

I love The Monday Morning Mix series especially for moments like this one, when I discover a song that I’ve never heard, from an artist/band like the BoDeans.  While I’m familiar with the BoDeans, I don’t know nearly as much about them as I should.  Thanks to Kevin’s mix earlier this summer, I heard this song which quickly inspired me to go out and purchase a few BoDeans albums to continue my education.  From the album Home.

Jules Shear – “The More That I’m Around You”

The more that I’m around you, the more there is to love…

God, so true!!!  I tried to pick one of the mixes that wasn’t too sappy, but this song is undeniably very much sappy.  Jules is another one that was introduced to me by Kevin – Like the rest of the country, I missed his role as the original creator and host for MTV Unplugged, although as soon as Kevin pointed that out, I thought “oh yeah, I remember that guy.”  Shear is one of those quality artists that every time that he puts out an album, I’m out at the record shops to pick it up.  And he never disappoints.  From the album Allow Me.

Semisonic – “Closing Time”

I know who I want to take me home…..

The girl’s inclusion of “Singing In My Sleep” on a previous mix made me think of “Closing Time,” a track that definitely falls into R.E.M. and Sinead territory above of songs that I got very tired of at their height of popularity.  And yet, it never really crossed the line completely – I’ve always enjoyed hearing this one.  In fact, this one was traditional for me on the jukebox when I’d be out at the bar with friends on a Saturday night.  From the album Feeling Strangely Fine.