Thursday, December 27, 2012: Kingston Trio - M.T.A.

I was blessed enough to talk about the music my mother had loved before she passed away.

While I still have a few days left of this blog, I'd like to make a nod to the music of my father.

This could have been a lot of things, from The Oak Ridge Boys to the music of Roy Acuff or even the mad genius of Spike Jones.

But these days, it's classic harmonies of the pioneering folk group the Kingston Trio.  He can listen to these guys for hours on end, no lie.

So, this one's for you, Dad.  Better riding the MTA than sitting in a Tijuana Jail, that's a fact.

Thursday, December, 16, 2010: Sean Kingston - Little Drummer Boy

So, I've been working on the Christmas/Holiday selections for next week.

And I just don't know what to make of them.

I mean, to be honest, there is an ocean of "Christmas" music out there, and Christmas music and "cool" usually don't belong in the same sentence.

And it doesn't help that every single person, duo or group on the face of the planet manages to pump out a Christmas album or three during their career.

Christmas with REO Speedwagon? Really?

I'm sure I could have really dug deep to find the coolest cuts, those tough to find tracks, those perfect gems that encapsulate the power and irony and frustration of the modern holiday season, those songs that truly speak out of time and into the place of awe and wonder.

But, the reality is, I didn't. I did about a couple of hours research on this here old interweb, and have come up with some good stuff.

Not great stuff, if I'm honest. No earth shattering discovers or truly genius selections (I'm still giddy over my Black Friday selection, I amaze even myself sometimes.) but good stuff nonetheless.

And besides, there is always that cool contingent who expect songs like Tom Waits singing "Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis".  Those misguided musos who always default into obscure hipster mode, especially during this season.  However, I'm just not convinced that those type of songs totally work. In fact, I'm pretty sure I included the Mormon Tabernacle Choir just to piss those people off.

I'm happy with (most) of next week, and as I'm the final arbiter, I guess that's what really matters.  We'll see.

Here's a taste.

Enjoy this little island of joy in this sea of holiday madness.