TWDQ

Sunday Random 10

2012-01-22T23:04:00.002-06:00

Finally starting to get wintry here in the land of TWDQ. Fortunately, not wintry enough to shovel or blow winter out of the driveway.

Let's see what the little green Nano has in store for today.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Mary Lou Lord - His Indie World

Nick Lowe - I Read a Lot

Ry Cooder - Do Re Mi

Todd Snider - Disorganized Crime

Elvis Costello & The Attractions - This Year's Girl (Live)

Fountains of Wayne - Nightlight

Split Lip Rayfield - Fallen

Tracey Thorn - Late in the Afternoon

Al Green - You Ought to Be with Me

The Avett Brothers - All My Mistakes

The wonderful Mary Lou Lord song that leads this off is one we'll throw on repeat, so this list could well have been ten repeats of that. Couldn't find it on YouTube, but there is a nice version from the BBC in the link above. Nick Lowe is aging so, so gracefully. We highly recommend his most recent album. Couldn't find a live clip of the Split Lip Rayfield tune, but do check out the clip to see the awesome gas tank bass.

We even got a little Al Green this week, which is a pretty good excuse to link to the other Al Green we got this week. The kid thought the aside to the wings was so The West Wing.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2012-01-15T22:41:00.003-06:00

Let's see what the little green Nano produced this morning!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

XTC - Blame the Weather
The Beatles - Sea of Time
The Beatles - Lovely Rita
Dr. John - Mos' Scocious
Brook Benton - Rainy Night in Georgia
Lyle Lovett - Cowboy Man
Los Lobos - Carabina .30-30 [Live]
The Temptations - My Girl
Elvis Presley - Blue Moon of Kentucky
Arcade Fire - Rebellion (Lies)

Love that it picked up from last week's XTC song at #10 to leading off with XTC this week. (Again, not that the odds of it hitting an XTC tune are terribly long.) The first of the Beatles tracks is one of the instrumentals from Yellow Submarine. (The odds of hitting a Beatles tune are way shorter than XTC.) Brook Benton's tune is from the album that is pound-for-pound the Best Album in Our Collection. [1] There's our choice for the Best Band America has Produced [2], followed by The Tempts singing The Greatest Song Ever Written, and the B-side of the record that made it all happen for The King. It wraps with those crazy Canadian kids who were the highlight of last year's Grammys telecast. [3] Not a bad ten at all.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Is Mitt Romney a serial killer?), already in progress.

[1] Atlantic Rhythm & Blues 1947-1974 - Volume 6 1966-1969. Try to find a 2-album set with more great songs on it, we dare you.
[2] Excellence in a broad variety of styles, solid body of work, longevity, same lineup all these years.
[3] But were noticeably absent from tonight's commercial for this year's ceremony.

57 Channels and Nothin' On

2012-01-09T20:29:00.003-06:00

Saw the following item in the latest Comcast Xfinity e-mail under the heading "Editor's Top 5 Picks":

Rob: Rob Schneider stars in this new sitcom as a bachelor who marries into a tight-knit Mexican-American family.

An "editor" picked that? Sweet Mother of Pearl, we've only seen the commercials for this stinkfest, so here's This Week's Discussion Question:

How much cash would someone have to pony up to get you to watch an episode of that "editor's pick"?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "I think there's an editor with a death wish -- or a new Mercedes," "To paraphrase Arthur Dent, 'Ah, this is obviously some strange usage of the word "stars" that I wasn't previously aware of," or "Hell, it'll make the Republican presidential debates look like Masterpiece freaking Theatre."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10

2012-01-09T20:15:00.002-06:00

Let's see what the little green Nano offered up this week!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Erik Brandt - The Ballad of Janos Sinko

Blind Pilot - We Are the Tide

Husker Du - Makes No Sense At All

Nick Lowe - Somebody Cares for Me

Ike Reilly - Put a Little Love In It

Wilco - Someone Else's Song

Wilco - Solitaire

John Hiatt - When New York Had Her Heart Broke

Los Straitjackets - Close to Christmas (The First Noel)

XTC - Generals and Majors

We're thinking about catching Mr. Brandt opening for Koerner and Glover in the near future. Bought the Blind Pilot album via download on Saturday after seeing them on Letterman (and recalling my buddy Tom raving about them). We're suckers for a band with an extra tom-tom player. Five bucks on Amazon. The Husker tune is the A-side of the single we bought years ago for the terrific B-side, the video of which we'd never seen until just now. There's a pair of pretty obscure Wilco tunes, and Los Straitjackets track is from their terrific new album, Yuletide Beat. And let's just say that as time goes by, the chance of an XTC tune popping up in the mix gets more and more likely.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2012-01-02T22:44:00.003-06:00

Happy New Year! Here's what the Nano dropped on New Year's Day 2012!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Eurythmics - Missionary Man

The Band - When I Paint My Masterpiece

Gear Daddies - African Killer Bees

Florence + the Machine - Hurricane Drunk

Wilco - Handshake Drugs

Fountains of Wayne - Revolving Dora

Todd Rundgren - Marlene

The Beatles - Get Back (Let it Be...Naked)

Old 97's - Love Is What You Are

The New Standards - The Dark End of the Street

Hope 2012 is off to a good start!

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Iowa? Really?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (catching up for 2011)

2012-01-02T22:36:00.002-06:00

Getting caught up here after a long holiday week. Here's the last of the 2011 randoms. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

12/18/2011

The Coasters - I Must Be Dreamin'

Joe Henry - This is My Favorite Cage

Florence + the Machine - Cosmic Love

Fountains of Wayne - All Kinds of Time

The B-52's - Good Stuff

Ivy - She Really Got to You

Todd Snider - Unorganized Crime

The Beatles - Misery

Diane Birch - Forgiveness

The Staple Singers - Respect Yourself

12/25/2011

Ry Cooder - Taxes on the Farmer Feeds Us All

Susan Werner - Sunday Mornings

Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman - Easy Chair

Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman - Everything to Everyone

Marvin Gaye - Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)

Wilson Pickett - I'm In Love

Over the Rhine - Here It Is

Dolly Varden - Balcony

The Replacements - I'll Be You

The Ike Reilly Assassination - Garbage Day

Didn't have a lot of holiday music on the Nano this year--or anywhere, for that matter--so it's nice that Over the Rhine's terrific Christmas tune turned up on Christmas Day.

"I'm wrapping up my love this Christmas and here it is."

Peace on earth, goodwill to all...

Sunday Random 10

2011-12-17T17:47:00.000-06:00

Before we get another week in the hole, let's clean out the queue of Sundays.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

12/04/2011
John Coltrane - Everytime We Say Goodbye
Laura Nyro - Stoney End
Dan Zanes and Friends - I Am What I Am
Dwight Yoakam - Wichita Lineman
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Simplest Love
The Autumn Defense - Why I'm Like This
Professor Longhair - Whole Lotta Loving
Allen Toussaint - Just a Closer Walk with Thee
The Beatles - Long, Long, Long
Allen Toussaint - West End Blues

The Nano was in a jazzy New Orleans mood, it appears.

12/11/2011
Dolly Varden - Some Sequined Angel
Wilco - That's Not the Issue
Ricky Nelson - Hello Mary Lou
Badfinger - No Matter What
The Honeydogs - I Miss You
Greg Brown - Tenderhearted Child
Professor Longhair - Meet Me Tomorrow Night
Yusuf - Heaven/Where True Love Goes
Fountains of Wayne - The Girl I Can't Forget
Nick Lowe - All Men Are Liars

Even though we didn't get tickets for the Wilco/Nick Lowe shows last week, the Nano apparently thought we should have.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-11-27T22:17:00.003-06:00

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! We're thankful for you and we're thankful for music! Shall we see what the little green Nano served up today?

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

Tres Chicas - Drop Me Down
Hank Williams - Jambalaya (On the Bayou)
Ace - How Long
Muddy Waters - Stuff You Gotta Watch
The Who - We're Not Gonna Take It
Drive-By Truckers - The Righteous Path
Michael Penn - Mary Lynn
The Who - Call Me Lightning
The Rascals - Mustang Sally
Todd Rundgren - I Saw the Light

Bonus 11 and 12 because, um...well, it's the first Sunday in Advent, so it's the Christmas season, and um...yeah, like the "Twelve Days of Christmas", and it's a Christmas song, so that's a sign that we ought to do twelve! Yeah, that's it! (Actually, 11 was a pretty great song and then twelve is brand new and we simply must mention it.)

Rodney Crowell - Closer to Heaven
Los Straitjackets - Que Verdes Son

Okay, we see the Nano is liking The Who this week. Ace's one and only hit appears (though Paul Carrack went on to have several more), there's some Hank Sr. and Muddy, and the terrific lead track from the great Something/Anything?, which we'd strummed on the uke earlier in the day.

Now to the bonus tracks. The Rodney Crowell song is the beautiful closing piece from the Joe Henry-produced Sex & Gasoline and we introduced a bunch of folks to Los Straitjackets' first holiday record several years ago, but didn't get in early enough to get one of the limited run of the Yuletide Beat CDs, so we ended up downloading it last week and "Que Verdes Son" is one of those tracks. We're not sure why we waited so long. Go. Get. It.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (While Jimmy Fallon and The Roots are apologizing for the sexism, shouldn't they also apologize for assuming our former Congresswoman knows enough about what she speaks to be lying?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (x3)

2011-11-20T22:07:00.002-06:00

Yeah, we've been busy, busy, busy. Here's what the little green Nano's spit out the last few weeks.

11/06/2011

Wilco - Black Moon (Alt.)

Feist - Cicadas and Gulls

Rod Stewart - Reason to Believe

The Beatles - Here Comes the Sun

Robert Palmer - Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)

Buffalo Springfield - Mr. Soul

The Beatles - Rain

Wilson Pickett - In the Midnight Hour

Ivy - Distant Lights

Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Anita Briem) - C'est Si Bon

(A few new tunes here. We like the new Wilco album better than Wilco (the album) but not as much as Sky Blue Sky. The new Feist is quite good. The new Ivy record is heavy on the electronica, but we're liking it.)

11/13/2011

The Beatles - Sexy Sadie

The Civil Wars - 20 Years

Steve Goodman - Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Steve Cropper & Felix Cavaliere - One of Those Days

Dwight Yoakam & Buck Owens - Streets of Bakersfield

The Civil Wars - Girl with the Red Balloon

Arcade Fire - Sprawl I (Flatland)

Erik Brandt - Shit List

Joe Henry - Last One Out

The Replacements - I'll Be You

(The Nano likes The Civil Wars, too. Dwight and Buck are terrific.)

11/20/2011

Ryan Adams - Ashes & Fire

Laura Nyro & Labelle - I Met Him on a Sunday

Rockpile - Play That Fast Thing (One More Time)

The Beatles - Honey Pie

Husker Du - Love Is All Around

The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations

Titus Andronicus - Theme from "Cheers"

This Train - The Missing Link

The Rascals - Love Is a Beautiful Thing

Elvis Costello and The Attractions - This Year's Girl (Live)

(The new Ryan Adams record is gorgeous. You know how we feel about Ms. Nyro's collaboration with Labelle that predates "Lady Marmalade" by a couple of years. Yes, the Huskers' are covering the theme from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. It was a B-side that any respectable Minnesotan ought to own. Nice to hear This Train after seeing Mark Robertson's current band Thursday night.)

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Christiane Amanpour's roundtable today: George Will, Peggy Noonan, Matthew Dowd, and Paul Krugman prompts us to ask (again) "What liberal media?")

Wedding Bell Blues

2011-10-31T22:19:00.002-05:00

So Kim Kardashian filed for divorce today after 70 days of marriage to NBA player Kris Humphries. Irreconcilable differences. Seventy days. Hard to imagine things couldn't be worked out after such a lengthy effort at reconciliation.

Here's This Week's Discussion Question:

Tell us again how allowing gays to get hitched undermines marriage?

Please keep the discussion civil and feel perfectly free to wander off into "Why are you famous?" and "Can we never hear her name again, please?"

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10 (x2)

2011-10-31T22:03:00.002-05:00

Been a couple of busy weeks, so let's get caught up on what's shaking with the little green Nano.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

10/23/2011

Rod Stewart - Seems Like a Long Time

The Kinks - Susannah's Still Alive

Jonathan Rundman - If I Ever Get There

The B-52's - Debbie

The Civil Wars - To Whom It May Concern

The Waterboys - Sweet Thing

R.E.M. - Romance

Los Lobos - Carabina .30-30 (live)

Dolorean - Beachcomber Blues

The Replacements - Achin' to Be

Try explaining to someone under the age of, oh, thirty-five, that Rod Stewart was once a vital and critically-acclaimed artist. Good luck.

10/30/2011

Erik Brandt and The Urban Hillbilly Quartet - Helplessly

Ike Reilly - The Assassination of Sweet Lou Diablo

The Beatles - Get Back

Joe Henry - A Friend to You

Jonathan Rundman - No More Walls

Rosanne Cash with Johnny Cash - September When It Comes

Kaivama - Mosalarium

Ivy - Suspicious

The Rutles - Joe Public

Golden Smog - Easy to Be Hard

Just loaded UHQ's fine "Amelia's Boot" over the weekend. Also tunes from the new Kaivama and Ivy records, and Gary Louris's take on "Easy to Be Hard" is simply gorgeous.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Monday Random 10

2011-10-17T23:50:00.004-05:00

Sunday was a busy day at TWDQ HQ, so we fired up the little green Nano late that night for a few tunes and--especially since Derek and the Dominos' 20-minute live version of "Let it Rain" came up midway through--we decided to shut it off and go on shuffling along in the morning. When we plugged the iPod into the laptop at work, none of what played showed up under "Last Played" so we needed to do it all again.

Fortunately, it gives the Nano an opportunity to choose something from a couple of lunchtime acquisitions.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Marvin Gaye - Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)

Lost Dogs - I'm a Loser

Jonathan Rundman - Oswiecim

Derek and the Dominos - Keep on Growing

The Ike Reilly Assassination - Good Work

XTC - Stupidly Happy

The Baseball Project - The Ballad of Mike Kekich and Fritz Peterson

Bruce Springsteen - Fire

Neil Young - Southern Man

Bob Dylan - Boots of Spanish Leather (demo)

Well, no 20-minute guitar epics and none of the recent acquisitions turned up, but it was worth redoing if only to link to Sal Nunziato's stupidly wonderful piece on a stupidly wonderful song.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Nick Punto in the World Series?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-10-10T00:09:00.002-05:00

Today's shuffle played out on the flight to Houston. Was a beautiful day in MN, rainy in TX. We're glad we took the late flight out.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Rosanne Cash - Sleeping In Paris

The Beach Boys - Sloop John B. (live)

The Decemberists - January Hymn

Jackson Browne - Doctor My Eyes

Aaron Neville - Stand By Me

Los Straitjackets - Ana (Anna)

The Hold Steady - A Slight Discomfort

Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Couldn't I Just Tell You

Boiling Point - Long Way (All the Pretty Reasons)

The Twilight Hours - Yes

The King is Dead might be our favorite album of 2011. Los Straitjackets' Rock en Espanol is a terrific album of 50's and 60's rock 'n roll done in Spanish, of course. (Los Lobos' Louie Perez's liner notes are pretty terrific, too.) Mr. Sweet and Ms. Hoffs cover our favorite Todd Rundgren tune, and we close with a couple of local bands. Boiling Point is our worship leader's band and the Twilight Hours are half of Trip Shakespeare (John Munson & Matt Wilson) making really fine, tuneful pop.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Take Me Out to the Cathedral

2011-10-09T02:28:00.003-05:00

At the Values Voter Summit, Bryan Fischer, of noted hate group the American Family Association, suggested that the United States hasn't been attacked by America-hatin' Muslims since Sept. 11, 2001 because we started singing "God Bless America" instead of the "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" during the 7th inning stretch.

Take it away, Brian:

"By God's blessing, we have not been hit by a Muslim attack since 9/11," Fischer said. "I suggest that in part, we have Major League Baseball to thank. You remember that the week after 9/11 Major League Baseball converted the seventh inning stretch from the singing of 'Take Me Out To The Ballgame' to the singing of 'God Bless America.'"

"Now 'God Bless America' is not just a song, it is a prayer. When we sing that we are inviting God to bless America, to stand beside her and to guide her through the night with a light from above," Fischer said.

"So for one brief, shining moment every night, Major League Baseball has converted our stadiums into cathedrals in which tens of thousands of ordinary Americans lift their hearts and voices as one and ask God to watch over and protect the United States," Fischer said.

"Ladies and gentleman, I think that those prayers have been heard and they have been answered," Fischer said.

First, some clubs only sing GBA on Sundays (for which TWDQ thanks God). We believe the Yankees do it every game less out of patriotism than to use Ronan Tynan's 17 minute rendition to ice a visiting pitcher that's in a groove.

Second, nothing got "converted". We still sing 'em both on Sundays at Target Field. More people sing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game". Way more.

Third, though it may be a prayer, GBA is a sentimental, mawkish, schlocky prayer. Woody Guthrie disliked it so much he wrote "This Land is Your Land"--originally titled "God Blessed America for Me"--in response.

Fourth, his last line reminds us of a great line in Barbara Brown Taylor's "An Altar in the World":

“I do not know any way to talk about answered prayer without sounding like a huckster or honeymooner. When someone wants to tell me how God has answered prayer, those are the first two possibilities that occur to me, anyway: 1) This person wants to sell me something, or 2) This person is not quite sober yet.”

And lastly, the last time we checked, Irving Berlin, who penned GBA, was Jewish, leading us to This Week's Discussion Question.

So wouldn't that be synagogues instead of cathedrals?

Please keep the discussion civil and please do not wander off into "Values? What values?" but do feel free to wander off into your Slim Pickens impression. (Quote #2, to be precise.)

Discuss.

She's Gone

2011-10-05T22:03:00.002-05:00

We interrupt This Week's Discussion Question to bring you the news that former half-term Gov. Sarah Palin will not run for the presidency in 2012.

In other news, the sun rose in the east today.

Palin's decision means, of course, that TWDQ's CEO will not be consuming his headwear in front of City Hall at high noon on November 6, 2012, as promised had the FHTG been the GOP nominee.

The story we linked to is headlined, "Sarah Palin's Decision Not to Run Shocks Supporters", which brings us to This Week's Discussion Question:

Really? Who didn't see this coming?

Please keep the discussion civil and try to keep the guffaws down.

Discuss.

Idiot Wind

2011-10-03T22:20:00.002-05:00

While we're waiting for country music stations all over Amurica to sponsor rallies to burn and smash Hank Williams Jr. records, here's This Week's Discussion Question:

Who gives a rat's behind what Hank Williams Junior thinks about anything?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "That's a mighty generous use of 'thinks', bucko," or "Remember kids, don't drink before breakfast."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10

2011-10-03T21:58:00.002-05:00

Let's see what the little green Nano kicked out on this first Sunday in October!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

Son Volt - Route
The Beatles - The Long and Winding Road (from Let it Be...Naked)
Badfinger - No Matter What
Alice Cooper - Billion Dollar Babies
Los Lobos - La Pistola Y El Corazon
Titus Andronicus - Four Score and Seven
Eurythmics - Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves
Everything But the Girl - Oxford Street
Fountains of Wayne - Acela
The Beatles - Only a Northern Song

Really nice mix this week. Son Volt's debut, Trace, is one of those albums we could sing along to from start to finish by heart but couldn't name the song titles at gunpoint. (Seriously, this album is so deeply engrained that on a family vacation, I pulled the family off the freeway to see St. Genevieve, Missouri. A co-worker told me he'd also done the same side trip.) We're always thrilled by the Phil Spector-free version of McCartney's ballad following the 28 year wait after hearing it for the first time in the film "Let it Be" in 1976. There's Donovan's guest shot with Alice, some excellent rootsy Los Lobos (The Best Band America Has Yet Produced, in our not so humble estimation), some Civil War-based (sort of) Jersey rock, Aretha & Annie, and the vastly underrated and underheard Tracey Thorn and EBtG.

And, boys and girls, right there at number three is the first full-flower of power pop, with a tune from the fine new album by our current favorite power pop purveyors checking in at number nine.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Odds and Sods

2011-10-01T10:07:00.004-05:00

We've had a few little things we wanted to get off our chest lately, so let's unload:

Norquist to Buffett: Send Government Your Money - Here's the Envelope, You Pay for the Stamp

TWDQ to Grover: Here's the short pier, you take the hike.

Crazy Train Keeps A-Rollin':

Seriously, how can anyone take this lunatic seriously?

Montana GOP Fears School Lunch Fraud is Eating Taxpayer Money

Yeah, beating up poor kids for their lunch money is the way out of our economic malaise.

There, that feels better.

Back tomorrow with tunes...

The Great Beyond

2011-09-25T20:38:00.002-05:00

Was a little surprised the Nano didn't turn up any R.E.M. today in the wake of Peter, Mike, and Michael hanging it up this week. (It seems like it's got a spidey-sense about those kinds of things.)

Had read some buzz about them and I have a strong memory of hearing "South Central Rain (I'm Sorry)" on an AM station while commuting home along I-694 one sunny afternoon and digging the jangle. I also loved Peter Buck's 12-string work on the Mats' great "I Will Dare", so I bought Reckoning, and in the not-yet-codified TWDQ Hierarchy of Recording Artists, they quickly became a "buy their new album on release day" band.*

* That said, didn't pick up Green until years later. Maybe they were playing it on the radio so much I didn't think I needed to. Never did get Up or Behind the Sun, possibly because I'd heard them first. ;-)

Loved Life's Rich Pageant, Document, Out of Time, Automatic, and yes, even Monster. "What's the Frequency, Kenneth" still makes me want to grab a guitar and play along. Loud. And move like Peter Buck. The kids loved "Shiny Happy People" and even though I've seen it a thousand times, still think the "Losing My Religion" video is pretty terrific.

Only ever saw 'em live once. They were on the Vote for Change tour with Bright Eyes, Fogerty, and Springsteen (with interloper Neil Young) in 2004 and they were terrific, with an energetic Stipe bouncing all over the Xcel Energy Center stage. Got back on the release day bit with Accelerate, which is a terrific record.

So thanks, Bill, Peter, Mike, and Michael. It was a great run.

This is still my favorite:

Sunday Random 30 (catching up...)

2011-09-25T20:14:00.002-05:00

Okay, so "back tomorrow" ended up being a fortnight. Been crazy busy. Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's catch up.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

09/11/2011
Wilco - At Least That's What You Said
Ricky Nelson - Hello Mary Lou
Loggins & Messina - House at Pooh Corner
The Kinks - Days
Los Lobos - A Matter of Time
Radiohead - How Do You?
Paul Simon - So Beautiful or So What
Steve Goodman - Somebody Else's Troubles
Professor Longhair - No Buts, No Maybes
Joe Henry - Hello Stranger

Interesting that the first track on the tenth anniversary of 9/11/2001 was from the one of the first notable post-9/11 albums. It seems like every September 11th since 2001 has been a beautiful, sunny day, just like that morning.

09/18/2011
Wilco - Someday Soon
Fountains of Wayne - Someone's Gonna Break Your Heart
The Beatles - For No One
Fountains of Wayne - Please Don't Rock Me Tonight
Old 97's - Streets of Where I'm From
Ben Folds - Gracie
The Baseball Project - Ted F***ing Williams
The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations (live)
Peter Wolf (w/Shelby Lynne) - Tragedy
Dan Zanes - Hallelujah, I'm a Bum!

Leading off with Wilco again. I think the Nano's getting ready for The Whole Love on Tuesday. (We're listening to them streaming live on NPR this very moment, singing along to "Jesus, Etc.") A couple of FoW tunes, including one from their excellent new Sky Full of Holes and one from their debut. The verse about Gracie falling asleep on Folds' arm chokes me up every time.

Started the Sunday New York Times Crossword when we hit shuffle on the Nano. We let it go for these...

The Replacements - I Will Dare
The Beatles - It's Only Love
The Who - Squeeze Box

...and finished it in the middle of this one.

Derek and the Dominos - Roll It Over (live)

Beat that.

09/25/2011
Professor Longhair - Go to the Mardi Gras
The Beatles - It's All Too Much
The Kinks - Apeman
Over the Rhine - All My Favorite People (demo)
Jonathan Rundman - Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus
The Who - 5:15
Johnny Cash - So Doggone Lonesome
Wilco - Poor Places
Lucinda Williams - Sweet Love
Earth, Wind & Fire - Can't Hide Love

Bonus 11 - Gear Daddies - One Voice (I Wanna Drive the Zamboni)

Nice mix this morning. More Wilco, The Kinks' great "Lola" follow-up single, a terrific rocker from Quadrophenia, and my favorite EWF tune. I think the Nano knows they started playing exhibition hockey this week, too.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Who Knows Where the Time Goes? (Random 10 catch-up)

2011-09-10T10:26:00.002-05:00

Did anyone get the license number of the car that ran over August? Wow.

We've been to Maine and back and are still in the final throes of remodeling the living room at TWDQ, so let's get caught up on a month's worth of random tens.

08/14/2011
Old 97's - Marquita
Little Feat - All That You Dream
Janelle Monae - Locked Inside
Dan Zanes - Alba Mananera
The Coasters - Riot in Cell Block #9
The Kinks - See My Friends
Adele - Daydreamer
Paul Simon - Getting Ready for Christmas Day
Jonathan Rundman - The Prophetstown Tornado
Bob Dylan - Mama, You Been On My Mind

Bunch of stuff here from relatively recent acquisitions (97's, Feat, Adele, Simon).

08/21/2011
Al Green - Full of Fire
The Coasters - Youngblood
Old 97's - Curtain Calls
The Avett Brothers - Tin Man
The Thorns - I Can't Remember
Vince Guaraldi - Samba de Orpheus
Marshall Crenshaw - Better Back Off
Girlyman - Invite Me In
The Avett Brothers - The Ballad of Love and Hate
Nick Lowe - Without Love

Nothing at all new here, but a very nice mix.

08/28/2011
Over the Rhine - Only God Can Save Us Now
The Thorns - I Can't Remember
Jonathan Rundman - Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - I'll Still Be True
Lost Dogs - Pray Where You Are
Muddy Waters - Train Fare Home Blues
Legendary Shack Shakers - Everything I Ever Wanted To Do...
Uncle Tupelo - Whiskey Bottle
Suburbs - Drinking with an Angel
Sam Cooke - Only Sixteen

No recent tunes, but those lush Thorns harmonies pop up again this week. Nice run of liquor tunes leading into Sam Cooke's teenage lament.

09/04/2011
R.E.M. - What's the Frequency, Kenneth?
Kaivama - Pirun Polska
She & Him - Ridin' in My Car
Lost Dogs - Red, White and Blue
Los Straitjackets - Magia Blanca
XTC - Mermaid Smiled
Boiling Point - Incomplete
Mavis Staples - Last Train
Golden Smog - Glad and Sorry
The Replacements - Dose of Thunder

We've always appreciated the noisy Monster album, She & Him's NRBQ cover jangles so nicely, and the Smog's cover of the Faces is really a wonderful tune.

Back tomorrow with a fresh ten. We'll see if the Nano knows what day it is and pushes out a somber mix. Maybe even a question or two.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-08-07T12:48:00.002-05:00

Wow, productive morning at TWDQ HQ! Got international calling set up so TWDQ can communicate with the kid in Russia, made an international call, and got the Sunday Morning Shuffle in by...okay, 1 p.m.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Lone Justice - The Train
Fountains of Wayne - Fire in the Canyon
Lost Dogs - Jesus Loves You, Brian Wilson
Little Feat - Old Folks' Boogie (Live)
Muddy Waters - Still a Fool
Bettye LaVette - No Time to Live
Crowded House - Nobody Wants To
Jimi Hendrix - The Stars That Play with Laughing Sam's Dice
Bob Dylan - 4th Time Around
Jonathan Rundman - Dialysis Carpool

Nothing from the new Fountains of Wayne album, which has been dominating the various players around TWDQ HQ, but we did get one from their previous release along with a Little Feat tune from the recently-acquired Waiting for Columbus. Also, the fabulous Crowded House tune led off one of our annual Faves compilations.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("Off by $2 trillion? Is it any wonder these clowns missed the boat on sub-prime mortgage securities?), already in progress.

Friday Not At All Random Ten (Tiny Cabana Edition)

2011-08-07T12:14:00.004-05:00

It was a gorgeous day, we were running an errand over lunch with the sunroof open and windows down.

Let's...Hit...Repeat!

We now return you to This Week's Discu...

No, no, no! Hit "Play" again!

Sunday Random 10 (x 2)

2011-07-31T21:26:00.002-05:00

Been crazy around TWDQ HQ, between the final throes of a remodeling project and the kid getting ready to go to Russia.

Here's what the little green Nano offered up the last couple of Sundays. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

07/24/2011
The Beach Boys - I'm Waiting for the Day
The Wild Tchoupitoulas - Big Chief Got a Golden Crown
Nick Lowe - All Men are Liars
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - She May Call You Up Tonight
The Beatles - And Your Bird Can Sing
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - And Your Bird Can Sing
Patty Griffin - Icicles
Neil Young - Like a Hurricane
Adam Again - River on Fire
The Avett Brothers - Shame

07/31/2011
Brendan Benson - Feel A Whole Lot Better
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - She May Call You Up Tonight
The Hold Steady - Stuck Between Stations
Kirsty MacColl - Innocence
Derek & The Dominos - I Looked Away
Wilco - Dreamer In My Dreams
Radiohead - Anyone Can Play Guitar
Adam Again - Hopeless, Etc.
Tom Waits - On the Nickel
The Baseball Project - The Magic Mitt of Jason Byles

Bonus 11th track: U2 - Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of

Last week's ten was pretty remarkable for the back-to-back "And Your Bird Can Sing" renditions. Also, if you've never heard Adam Again's haunting "River on Fire", go check out the clip. We really miss Gene Eugene. Same goes for Patty Griffin's "Icicles".

This week's list is really interesting because each of the first two tunes was a lead-off track on one of our annual Faves compilations, immediately followed by another Faves track. Also, Derek & The Dominos remains Mr. Clapton's career high point.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("Do you suppose Paul Krugman spent this morning's This Week roundtable listening to Grover Norquist, yearning for such a sock?"), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-07-17T12:04:00.002-05:00

It's hot and muggy outside, so let's see what the little green Nano offered up to cool us down.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Mavis Staples - Downward Road
The Decemberists - January Hymn
Robert Plant - Angel Dance
The Replacements - Bastards of Young
The Decemberists - Rox in the Box
Joe Henry - A Friend to You
AfroCubism - Djelimady Rumba
The Suburbs - Drinking with an Angel
Lyle Lovett - An Acceptable Level of Ecstasy
Buddy Miller - That's How I Got to Memphis

Couple of tunes from the excellent new Decemberists album, couple from great Twin Cities bands (not counting The Jayhawks backing Mr. Henry), and a couple featuring Buddy Miller (he's the guitarist in Mr. Plant's Band of Joy).

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("What liberal media?"), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (a bunch of them)

2011-07-10T23:10:00.002-05:00

Yeah, sure we'll be back later in the day with a fresh ten, you bet.

Here's that Sunday's ten, plus the holiday weekend edition and...wait for it...today's random ten!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

06/26/2011
Eddie Vedder - Without You
The Avett Brothers - I Killed Sally's Lover (Live)
The Hold Steady - Your Little Hoodrat Friend
The Beatles - When I Get Home
Steve Dawson - Temporary
Sam Dees - The World Don't Owe You Nothing
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Willin'
The Beatles - Lady Madonna
Eddie Vedder - Can't Keep
Johnny Cash - Come In Stranger

07/03/2011
The Baseball Project - The Ballad of Mike Kekich and Fritz Peterson
Fountains of Wayne - All Kinds of Time
Nick Lowe - True Love Travels on a Gravel Road
Fountains of Wayne - Leave the Biker
Earth, Wind & Fire - Sing a Song
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - The Game Gets Old
Ry Cooder - Fool for a Cigarette/Feelin' Good
Sam Cooke - Only Sixteen
Wilco - Everlasting Everything
Kirsty MacColl - You Just Haven't Earned It Yet Baby

07/10/2011
Marshall Crenshaw - What Do You Dream Of?
Solomon Burke - Cry to Me
Jonathan Rundman - What Wondrous Love is This
Erik Brandt - Ain't Broke
The Beatles - If I Needed Someone
Robert Brown and The Sons of The South - Nobody Knows
Beki Hemingway - Fort Bragg
Jonathan Rundman - Church Directory
Lucinda Williams - Kiss Like Your Kiss (The Kitchen Tapes)
Beki Hemingway - Saturday

And today's bonus 11th, since you've all been so patient:
Ivy - Digging Your Scene

So three weeks ago, the Nano had a thing for the sweet new Eddie Vedder "Ukulele Songs" record and the Fab Four. Last week it was Fountains of Wayne (new album available for pre-order now!) and this week it was into Ms. Hemingway and Mr. Rundman in a big way. We also think it's reminding us about the new album Mr. Brandt will be recording this coming week.

We'll try to be more prompt next week.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("How do you reach a compromise with people who doesn't understand the meaning of the word?"), already in progress.

Catching up...

2011-06-26T07:10:00.003-05:00

Before we fire up the Nano today, let's review the weeks we've missed here due to a lot of stuff goin' on (most notably, this project):

06/05/2011
XTC - The Wheel and the Maypole
The Beatles - Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite
Tom Waits - Lucky Day (Live)
Boiling Point - Pieces of Me
R.E.M. - Can't Get There from Here
Aaron Neville - I'm So Glad (Trouble Don't Last)
The Weepies - When You Go Away
Bob Dylan - Masters of War (demo)
Suburbs - Tape Your Wife to the Ceiling
Adam Again - Worldwide

06/12/2011
Florence + The Machine - I'm Not Calling You a Liar
The Smiths - Hand in Glove
Bruce Cockburn - Waiting for a Miracle
John Coltrane - Summertime
Joe Henry - Curt Flood
Jonathan Rundman - Read the Signs
The Beatles - Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey
This Train - A Million Years
Fountains of Wayne - Richie and Ruben
Dan Zanes - Lincoln & Liberty

The Fountains of Wayne tune is a preview they've posted from their forthcoming album, due out August 2nd. Yeah, we'll be at the record store that day. Before lunch.

Back later today with a fresh ten.

Update: Hey wait, we weren't quite caught up...

06/19/2011
Lucinda Williams - Soldier's Song
Muddy Waters - Gypsy Woman
Joe Henry - Short Man's Room
The Baseball Project - Gratitude (for Curt Flood)
The Bangles - Eternal Flame
Jonathan Rundman - David & Peter & Thomas
Jonathan Rundman - I'm Alive and Sleep Deprived
Van Morrison - Cleaning Windows
The Belfast Cowboys - Domino
Jenny Lewis with The Watson Twins - Rise Up with Fists!!!

That's better.

What Goes Around...

2011-05-30T10:17:00.002-05:00

In our previous episode, we wondered if an offensive"prayer" by a lunatic would derail a vote on an amendment that would chisel discrimination into the state constitution.

Well, it didn't derail it, so in November 2012, the voters of Minnesota will get to decide about the rights of other Minnesotans, which is just plain wrong, regardless of whose rights they are.

It did, however, have some karmic consequences for the "pray-er." He'd already been booted off one right-wing station prior to the "prayer" and in the wake of it, was dumped from another, leading to This Week's Discussion Question:

Just how crazy do you have to be to be too much for stations who air Michael Savage and Rush Limbaugh?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "Didn't start this fight? Are you kidding, you coward?"

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10 (x2 - Holiday edition)

2011-05-30T10:10:00.002-05:00

Been another couple of busy weeks at TWDQ HQ. Ran through a random 10 yesterday while scraping wallpaper paste and when we plugged the little green Nano into the laptop, the Last Played column didn't show it'd played anything since Friday.

We fired it up again this morning, so here's what fell out first the last coupla weeks:

05/22/2011
Dan Zanes - The Shantyman's Life
Lucinda Williams - Ugly Truth (The Kitchen Tapes)
Over the Rhine - Sleep Baby Jane
Steve Cropper & Felix Cavaliere - One of Those Days
Fountains of Wayne - Sink to the Bottom
The Smiths - What Difference Does it Make?
This Train - Baby Baby
Alice Cooper - Elected
Johnny Cash - Folsom Prison Blues
Ringo Starr - I'm the Greatest

05/29/2011
Uncle Tupelo - New Madrid
The Rutles - Joe Public
Bob Dylan - Ain't Gonna Grieve
The Band - When I Paint My Masterpiece
Ike Reilly - Good Work
The Beatles - Blue Jay Way
Fountains of Wayne - Stacy's Mom
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - I'll Still Be True
Tom Waits - House Where Nobody Lives
The Bad Plus - Smells Like Teen Spirit

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Save It for Later

2011-05-21T00:16:00.003-05:00

First, we bring you the breaking news that today's Rapture has been postponed because after this opening "prayer" at Friday's Minnesota House of Representatives session, Jesus will likely still be throwing up at the appointed hour. At this time, a Rapture make-up date has not been scheduled.

Based on the video clip of the incident, Jesus may need a stint on the 15-day disabled list, followed by a brief minor league rehab assignment rapturing mice and small birds to make sure he's back in rapturing shape.

Which brings us to This Week's Discussion Question:

How sweet would it be if that lunatic's "prayer" torpedoed the anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment vote?

Please keep the discussion civil and do feel free to wander off into "When you speak for me, you don't speak for me."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10 (x 2)

2011-05-15T21:38:00.002-05:00

Been so busy we don't even remember what we've been doing that kept us from posting. Let's see what the Nano's tossed out over the last couple of Sundays.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

05/08/2011
Radiohead - Thinking About You
Uncle Tupelo - Graveyard Shift
Talking Heads - Heaven
The Beatles - Only a Northern Song
Bob Dylan - The Times They Are A-Changin' (demo)
Rosanne Cash - Seventh Avenue
Bob Dylan - A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall (demo)
Fountains of Wayne - Number 45 Sunblock
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Up From Below
The Bar-Kays - Soul Finger

05/15/2011
Derek & The Dominos - Got to Get Better in a Little While (Live)
The Beatles - When I Get Home
Buddy Miller (feat. Ann McCrary) - No Good Lover
Girlyman - Tell Me There's a Reason
The Beach Boys - You Still Believe in Me (Live)
Odetta - The Times They Are A-Changin'
The B-52's - Party Out of Bounds
Wilco - Walken
XTC - Church of Women
Afrocubism - Dakan

And a bonus because you've been so patient: 11. Ritchie Valens - La Bamba

Starting to see some newer stuff here. Picked up a used copy of the Dominos' excellent Live at the Fillmore on Record Store Day, so this week we started with a 13-minute track. The young man can play a little bit. Too bad that band only lasted one album. We got a couple of versions of Dylan's anthem, including his own Witmark demo on piano. The Buddy Miller tune is from the fine new Majestic Silver Strings record with Bill Frisell, Marc Ribot, & Greg Leisz.

We'll see if we can get this up in a more timely fashion next week.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Why not both, Newt?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (x 2)

2011-05-01T23:04:00.002-05:00

Whole lotta painting and baseball going on, not much blogging. Started up the Nano en route from TWDQ HQ to play at the Sunrise service and the two tunes it kicked out were entirely appropriate. Finished up the rest while applying some Ancient Marble after spending a glorious Sunday afternoon at the ballpark witnessing what, sadly, remains the most recent win for the local nine. This week, we fired up the Nano after the 5 p.m. service.

So let's see what else it had queued up. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

04/24/2011
The Beach Boys - We Got Love (Live)
U2 - Peace on Earth
Joe Henry - Flesh and Blood
Old 97's - Big Brown Eyes
The Kinks - See My Friends
Old 97's - You Belong to My Heart
The Who - Happy Jack
Steve Dawson - Out of Your Mind
Joe Henry - Buckdancer's Choice
Boiling Point - Incomplete

05/01/2011
The Turtles - Happy Together
Tom Waits - The Part You Throw Away
Ringo Starr - No-No Song
Jonathan Rundman - Church Directory
Erik Brandt - Who Am I Making the Bed for When You Aren't Here?
Girlyman - Invite Me In
Janelle Monae - Cold War
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Alone Again Or
Gear Daddies - Dream Vacation
The Turtles - Elenore

Final tune on Easter Sunday is from the band led by the worship leader with whom we played that morning. This week we had some excellent bookends, especially since "Elenore" is pretty much "Happy Together" inside out in a blatant attempt at a hit. (It also features some of the most sublimely dumb lyrics in rock 'n roll.) Thanks again to Dave Biljan for insisting the Gear Daddies put out their odds and ends on Cant Have Nothin' Nice all those years ago.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("Why does anyone care what Donald Trump thinks about anything?"), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-04-17T21:10:00.003-05:00

Did today's shuffling with paint brush in hand, so the little green Nano accompanied the second coat of Ivoire on the dining room wall.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

The Hold Steady - Banging Camp
Muddy Waters - Train Fare Home Blues
The Decemberists - Sons & Daughters
Paul Simon - Rene and Georgette Magritte with Their Dog After the War
Kaivama - Edina Speedtrap
Dolly Varden - Overwhelming
The Beatles - I'm Looking Through You
The Rascals - Easy Rollin'
Tom Waits - Falling Down (Live)
Split Enz - What's the Matter with You

Sadly, I don't have any Red House Painters on the Nano. The Kaivama is a new acquisition and while we didn't get anything off the fine new Paul Simon record that hit the racks this week, we did get a wonderfully-named song from the underrated Hearts and Bones.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

So Listen, Mister D.J., Keep Those Records Playin'...

2011-04-16T13:34:00.002-05:00

Happy Record Store Day from all of us at TWDQ HQ! We hope you're celebrating the occasion in the traditional manner.

Here's This Week's Discussion Question:

Isn't every day Record Store Day?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "No, it isn't."

Discuss.

Meanwhile, we're gonna go find some good stuff that'll eventually show up on a future Sunday Random 10.

Sunday Random 10

2011-04-10T20:01:00.002-05:00

It's Sunday again! The last little bit of snow is melting off the grounds at TWDQ HQ, so let's see if spring's in the air on the little green Nano. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Jack Logan - Town Crier
Old 97's - Doreen
Wilco - My Darling
Girlyman - I Know Where You Are
Los Lobos - I Got to Let You Know (Live)
Professor Longhair - Boogie Woogie
Professor Longhair & His Blues Scholars - Hey Now Baby (Live)
Los Lobos - 27 Spanishes
Allen Toussaint - Bright Mississippi
The Pogues - Bottle of Smoke

The Nano still must think it's Mardi Gras since it pulled up a couple of 'Fess tunes and one from the terrific Allen Toussaint. It brought back a Los Lobos tune from last week and bookended the Longhair tracks with a new Lobos tune from last year's fine Tin Can Trust. "Doreen" is the early 97's at their frantic best and The Pogues' profane ode to a race horse is from the essential If I Should Fall from Grace with God.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("Could we send Mississippi down to Triple A and bring Puerto Rico or Guam up to the 50-state roster? Even if Mississippi's out of options, it ain't like Canada or Mexico is going to claim them off of waivers." And please do wander off into "And why the hell is anyone asking an idiotic question like that in twenty-freaking-eleven?"), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-04-03T22:20:00.004-05:00

...and it's actually still Sunday! Let's find out what the little green Nano shuffled up this week.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Todd Rundgren - The Range War
Todd Rundgren - All the Children Sing
Boiling Point - Stars Are Falling
The Smiths - Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
Joe Henry - Nico Lost One Small Buddha
The Beatles - Chains
Los Lobos - I Got to Let You Know (Live)
Katrina & The Waves - Walking on Sunshine
The Neville Brothers - Every Day
Jonathan Rundman - Ah, Holy Jesus

Well, no Baseball Project songs off their fine new album (or even "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" or "A Dying Cub Fan's Last Request"), but we did get two of our favorite Todd tunes right off the bat (pun fully intended) and we hope to be humming Katrina's big hit next Saturday evening as we get our first live glimpse of the local nine.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("Where have you gone, Dude-You-Have-No-Koran Guy? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you."), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-03-27T23:04:00.002-05:00

Let's see what the little green Nano shook out this week. It's the only thing green around TWDQ HQ since Tuesday night's storm blew in and left another layer of white.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Bob Dylan - I'll Keep It with Mine
The Suburbs - Girlfriend
Jimi Hendrix - Pali Gap
Johnny Cash - Guess Things Happen That Way
Jonathan Rundman - Oswiecim
The Rolling Stones - Play with Fire
Jules Shear - Sad Sound of the Wind
Wilco - The Lonely 1
Ike Reilly - Morning Glory
The Waterboys - This Land is Your Land

Nice mix there. "Sad Sound of the Wind" is another of those great lost singles of the early 90s and why The Suburbs were never big outside of Minneapolis/St. Paul, we'll never know.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

I'll Be Back

2011-03-21T20:36:00.002-05:00

Horrific natural disasters like the Japanese earthquake and tsunami tend to bring the stupid-ass theologians out of the woodwork, so here's This Week's Discussion Question:

Would it really count as The Second Coming if Jesus just popped by briefly to say "Stop. Talking. Now." to a few folks?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "That wouldn't be a brief stop, chief."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10 (x 2)

2011-03-21T20:29:00.002-05:00

Crazy, crazy busy around TWDQ HQ. Didn't get to the iPod last week until Monday and until late Sunday this week, so let's see what the little green Nano shook out on Mardi Gras and St. Paddy's weeks. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

03/13/2011
The Beatles - With a Little Help from My Friends
Split Enz - Straight Old Line
Steve Dawson - Out of Your Mind
Los Lobos - La Bamba
Muddy Waters - Trouble No More
Guided by Voices - Queen of Cans and Jars (live)
The Beatles - Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
The Faces - Maybe I'm Amazed
The Beatles - Rock and Roll Music
The Avett Brothers - Ill With Want

03/20/2011
Bruce Springsteen - The Brokenhearted
Todd Rundgren - Torch Song
The Beatles - Don't Let Me Down
Los Lobos - On Main Street
Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - Here and Now
Professor Longhair - Go to the Mardi Gras
The Ike Reilly Assassination - When Irish Eyes Are Burning
The Baseball Project - The Death of Big Ed Delahanty
Elvis Presley - I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone (Slow version)
Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman - Easy Chair

And a bonus because you've waited--all three of you--so patiently, the 11th song that popped up this week was the lead track on this year's Faves compilation:

Steve Dawson - Obsidian

Well, we got about as Mardi Gras as you can get with 'Fess, but Ike Reilly's about as close as we got to St. Paddy's, so maybe next week we'll get some Pogues or Waterboys or Van the Man.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question--and hang on, kids, there's an actual one coming in a few minutes, already in progress.

Rookies and Steroids

2011-03-07T21:14:00.002-06:00

Couple of quick items while we're at it.

Numero uno, the Minnesota Twins have a great ad agency. Nice bit of acting by young Mr. Valencia. And who knew first base coach Jerry White could croon?

Numero two-oh (copyright Molly), Fred Clark must be juicing, because he's been hitting them out of the park one after the other over at the great Slacktivist blog for several weeks now.

Sunday Random 10

2011-03-07T21:06:00.002-06:00

Yeah, yeah, yeah, we should just call it Bi-Weekly Sunday Random 10. Let's find out what the little green Nano shuffled up the last coupla Sundays. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

02/27/2011
Mavis Staples - You Are Not Alone
Lookbook - Real Love
Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Tom Waits) - Corrinne Died on the Battlefield
Eddie Floyd - Knock on Wood
The Beatles - Good Night
Bettye LaVette - It Don't Come Easy
Otis & Carla - Tramp
Bruce Springsteen - Candy's Boy
Dolly Varden - Forgiven Now
Phoenix - Lasso

03/06/2011
XTC - Wounded Horse
The Beatles - Rock And Roll Music
Aaron Neville - Stand By Me
Fountains of Wayne - Amity Gardens
The Beatles - The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill
Bob Dylan & The Band - You Ain't Goin' Nowhere
Talking Heads - City Of Dreams
Tom Waits - House Where Nobody Lives
Michael Franti & Spearhead - Say Hey (I Love You)
Muddy Waters - She's Nineteen Years Old

We did update a couple of things in the blogroll and added a couple of new ones (we are digging the new Baseball Project album these days).

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("You really want to go there, Gov? Oh yeah, there's a Mr. Koch on line 2...), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-02-21T20:43:00.002-06:00

Been a couple of busy weeks, so here's another two-fer from the little green Nano.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

02/13/2011
The Temptations - All I Need
The Crazy Teens - Crazy Date
Bruce Springsteen - The Brokenhearted
Todd Rundgren - You Cried Wolf
The Avett Brothers - Talk on Indolence (live)
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - Money
Fountains of Wayne - Hey Julie
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
Rosanne Cash (feat. Elvis Costello) - Heartaches by the Number
Old 97's - Color of a Lonely Heart Is Blue

02/20/2011
The Beatles - Flying
Robert Plant - House of Cards
Jonathan Rundman - I'm a Liar
XTC - I'm the Man Who Murdered Love
Johnny Cash - Train of Love
Wilco - Sunken Treasure
Old 97's - Big Brown Eyes
Split Enz - The Devil You Know
The Ventures - Wipe Out
The Avett Brothers - Go to Sleep

And even with a couple of Old 97's tunes, we failed to catch the boys Sunday night at First Avenue. Hope they made it through the Blizzard du Jour to their next gig.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Super Sunday Random 10

2011-02-06T21:58:00.002-06:00

While the Green Bay Packers are celebrating their victory in Debut of New Commercials Bowl XVL, let's see what the little green Nano unpacked today!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint - Who's Gonna Help Brother Get Further?
Crowded House - Locked In
Wilco - How to Fight Loneliness
The Twilight Hours - Forgot Me Now
Professor Longhair - Stag-O-Lee
Brendan Benson - You Make a Fool Out of Me
Marshall Crenshaw - Someday, Someway
The Twilight Hours - Yes
XTC - Love on a Farmboy's Wages
Erik Brandt - Locks

Hmmmm, no Black Eyed Peas. Again.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-01-30T15:21:00.002-06:00

We actually did the shuffle last Sunday morning, but the rest of the day (and week, as it turned out) got busy and we never posted, so you get a two-fer today.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

01/23/2011
Al Green - Let's Get Married
Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - Geometry
Talking Heads - Once in a Lifetime
Talking Heads - Love --> Building on Fire
Joe Henry - Shut Me Up
Girlyman - Could Have Guessed
Bob Dylan - Man on the Street
Michael Smith - The Dutchman
Dan Zanes - Lo Que Digo
Professor Longhair - Tipitina (Live)

01/30/2011
Wilco - Airline to Heaven (live)
Joe Henry - Our Song
The Hold Steady - Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night
Lookbook - Real Love
Crowded House - Better Be Home Soon
Muddy Waters - Mannish Boy
The Beatles - All My Loving
The Who - See Me, Feel Me
Janelle Monae - Sir Greendown
Kirsty MacColl - Caroline

Lotsa really good stuff there. "Geometry" and "Better Be Home Soon" are gorgeous pieces of pop, Muddy's vocal is ferocious and spine-tingling, and Joe Henry's "Our Song" is nothing short of amazing.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (Monday Morning Edition)

2011-01-17T21:59:00.002-06:00

Crazy busy day yesterday so we shuffled up the iPod this morning at work.

And promptly forgot to log the first ten.

Fortunately, there's the "Last Played" column, so Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Aaron Neville - Let's Live

Tom Waits - Live Circus

Aaron Neville - You've Got to Move

Professor Longhair - How Long Has That Train Been Gone

Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Gimme Some Truth

The Animals - Gonna Send You Back to Walker

XTC - The Last Balloon

Johnny Cash - Big River

Bob Dylan - Farewell

Jonathan Rundman - I'm a Liar

The Nano must be sick of the snow and ready for Mardi Gras with the two Aaron Neville tunes and the 'Fess tune stacked up front. Can you blame it?

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Danged Good Stuff

2011-01-15T13:10:00.006-06:00

Let's praise some terrific stuff from the teevee and the intertoobz this past week.

First, if you haven't already seen it, go watch the first five minutes of Jon Stewart hammering Fox News' criticism of the Tucson memorial service. After Laura Ingraham, Charles Krauthammer (we're guessing), and David Gergen wring their hands over the behavior of the crowd, the perpetually smug Michael Gerson concludes with "You can either have a pep rally or a memorial service. You can't have both." Stewart sends that hanging curveball into orbit:

You ever been to an Irish wake? I've never been sadder and laughed harder in my life. And I got news for you guys: "Amen" ain't that far from "woo hoo!"

Then at Slacktivist, TWDQ's favorite blog, Fred Clark takes apart Brit Hume's petty complaints about the Native American blessing that opened the service:

If Brit Hume would like, he could arrange to host a seminar on comparative religion, a forum for discussing the merits and demerits of burning sage or blessing the four-legged creatures or turning to the four corners of the world. In such a forum he'd be free to tell us what sort of rituals, prayers or blessings he prefers, what sort of rituals, prayers and blessing he doesn't care for, and why.
But if Hume ever shows up at a funeral or a memorial service or any other gathering of mourners, his job there is to shut up and mourn with those who mourn.

Amen (and woo hoo!), Fred.

Lastly, if this video of a tune by one of TWDQ's favorite musicians doesn't want to make you move to Fayetteville, NY just for the cool public library and librarians, we have to talk:

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sorry Seems To Be the Hardest Word

2011-01-09T12:39:00.002-06:00

An aide to former half-term Gov. Sarah Palin says the crosshairs on this map--since scrubbed from her PAC website--were "surveyors' marks", not rifle sights.

TWDQ respectfully calls bullshit and offers This Week's Discussion Question:

What the hell ever happened to "We're sorry, we were wrong."?

Please keep the discussion civil and feel free to wander off into "If they were surveyors' marks, why remove the map from your site?" or "Why did Sarah herself call them 'bulls-eyes' in a tweet?" or "Methinks the lady doth protest too much."

Discuss.

Calmly.

Sunday Random 10

2011-01-09T12:23:00.002-06:00

Here's what the little green Nano shuffled up on this sad, sad Sunday morning:

Fountains of Wayne - Revolving Dora
Jonathan Rundman - Chopin's Heart
The Hold Steady - Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night
Split Enz - History Never Repeats
Split Enz - Matinee Idyll (129)
Peter Wolf - Overnight Lows
Wilco - I Am Trying to Break Your Heart (live)
Pete Special - St. James Infirmary
Ray Charles & Diana Krall - You Don't Know Me
The Coasters - That Is Rock & Roll

The Nano seems to be exploring the new Split Enz compilation we picked up in November, but hasn't chosen anything from the Christmas/year end shopping acquisitions.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2011-01-02T23:36:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year! Let's see what the little green Nano shuffled up today.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Over the Rhine - Born
Uncle Tupelo - Give Back the Key to My Heart
Split Enz - I Walk Away
Jonathan Rundman - Get Behind the Wheel
The Beatles - A Taste of Honey
Beki Hemingway - Simplicity
The Kinks - You Really Got Me
Los Straitjackets - Ana (Anna)
The New Pornographers - Sing Me Spanish Techno
Dan Zanes & Friends - I'm Flying

Nothing from the Christmas gifts or year-end shopping acquisitions. Hmmm. Still some really good stuff here, since four of these tunes (the opener and the last three) made one of our year-end Faves CDs.

As always, feel free to post your own tens in the comments.

All the best for a great 2011 from TWDQ!

We now return you to...yeah, like there's a fresh question being discussed.

Sunday Random 10

2010-12-26T22:29:00.002-06:00

Hope you're enjoying a great holiday weekend! Didn't load anything new onto the Nano this week, so let's see what popped up this morning.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

The Waterboys - World Party
Vigilantes of Love - Unsuccessful
Gear Daddies - Dream Vacation
Vince Guaraldi - Treat Street
XTC - Greenman
Split Enz - Shark Attack
Otis Redding - Respect
Bruce Springsteen - The Promise
Derek & The Dominos - Tell the Truth
Otis Redding - These Arms of Mine

And one more since you've all been so good this year:
The Waterboys - Fisherman's Blues

Guess the Nano wanted to hear some non-Charlie Brown Christmas Guaraldi and really wanted to hear a lot of Mike Scott and Otis. The title tune from Springsteen's "Darkness" leftovers is a terrific song.

As always, feel free to post your own random tens from your own devices down in the comments.

Thanks to all three of you who read this regularly for another great year!

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (The Intelligence Committee? Heh.), already in progress.

Sunday Random Ten

2010-12-19T22:01:00.002-06:00

Let's see what the little green Nano has for us this week!

Let's... Hit... Shuffle!

Bob Dylan - Tomorrow Is a Long Time
Eric Lugosch - Good News
Los Lobos - On Main Street
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Maggie May
Johnny Rivers - John Lee Hooker
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - I'll Still Be True
The Who - Won't Get Fooled Again
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Ohio
Girlyman - Soldiers
Vince Guaraldi - Star Song

Didn't pick up any of the holiday tunes we loaded last week, but there's a interesting little juxtaposition of a couple of great 70's political songs by The Who and CSN&Y.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Wow, Fox News viewers are the most misinformed! Who knew?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (Snowpocalypse Edition)

2010-12-12T20:34:00.002-06:00

Greetings! TWDQ HQ is shoveled and blown out from the fifth worst blizzard in recorded history in our native state, so here's this week's shuffle, along with last week's. (We had last Sunday's mix all ready to go, but just didn't find time to post it, so you're getting another tw0-fer this week!)

Let's... Hit... Shuffle!

12/05/2010
Marshall Crenshaw - What Do You Dream Of?
The Replacements - Never Mind
Fountains of Wayne - Yolanda Hayes
Split Enz - Years Go By
The Pogues - A Pair of Brown Eyes
Steve Dawson - Sweet is the Anchor
Barbara Lewis - Hello Stranger
Del Amitri - Being Somebody Else
Bill Evans Trio - My Foolish Heart
XTC - Life Begins at the Hop

12/12/2010
The Temptations - Don't Look Back
John Stirratt - Wayfaring Stranger
Rosanne Cash - Motherless Children
Bruce Springsteen - Ties That Bind
Old 97's - W. TX Teardrops
The Rolling Stones - Tumbling Dice
Over the Rhine - Cruel and Pretty
Them - Baby Please Don't Go
Ted & Marcia Johnson - Erie Canal
Miles Davis - Flamenco Sketches

We should note that the version of "Erie Canal" (from the Old Town School of Folk Music Songbook - Vol. 1, as is the tune by Wilco bassist Stirratt) doesn't mention a mule named Sal. It's the cool one they didn't teach you in school, whose chorus goes: "Oh, the Er-i-e was risin'/The gin was gettin' low/You'd scarcely think we'd get a drink/Till we get to Buffalo, oh, oh/Till we get to Buffalo." Sal, schmal, we'd have loved singing that in elementary school.

As always, feel free to post your own random tens in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("Is this a sign of hope for America?"), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-11-28T22:42:00.002-06:00

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend! We're especially thankful for little green Nanos that shuffle up great music, so let's see what it has for us this week.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Mumford & Sons - The Cave
Adam Again - It Is What It Is
Legendary Shack Shakers - Nightride
Old 97's - Over the Cliff
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - Nobody's Baby
Girlyman - House Song
Johnny Cash - There You Go
Over the Rhine - Changes Come
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - Without a Heart
Fountains of Wayne - Fire Island

As always, feel free to post your own tens in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (C'mon! Is there no one else in Washington on Sunday mornings?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-11-22T06:20:00.002-06:00

Let's see what the little green Nano shuffled up yesterday!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
Los Lobos - Tears of God
Wilco - I'm Always in Love
Crowded House - Mean to Me
Talking Heads - This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)
Talking Heads - Once In a Lifetime
Adam Again - Worldwide
Alice Cooper - I'm Eighteen
Diane Birch - Fools
Rosanne Cash - Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow

Nothing from Mr. Springsteen's new double-disc set (which is good, but also proves that he rather astutely chose what made the cut for Darkness on the Edge of Town), but some of our all-time favorite artists are in this list. We were concerned that there wasn't going to be anything from the 21st century until Ms. Birch and Ms. Cash came through at the bottom of the batting order.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Sarah Palin, voracious reader?), already in progress.

Sunday Random Ten

2010-11-14T20:52:00.002-06:00

It's Sunday! In the space of one week, we went from raking leaves to blowing snow at TWDQ HQ, so we spent the morning looking out at the fresh blanket of white, listening to what the little green Nano cooked up.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

The Beatles - Long Tall Sally
This Train - Great Atomic Power
The Hold Steady - Banging Camp
Elvis Presley - Baby Let's Play House
Peter Wolf - Lying Low
Erik Brandt - Hanna Marie
Tom Waits - Goin' Out West (live)
Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - Geometry
Neville Brothers - Hey Pocky Way
Al Green - Let's Get Married

Lots of great stuff here, kids. We're starting out with the Fab Four again, followed by a band near and dear to our hearts covering the Louvin Brothers making evangelical hay while the Cold War shone, and there's some Elvis from the room we once wept in. It liked Peter Wolf so much it played the same song again this week, delivered a lullaby from a great local guy whose day job is teaching at our alma mater, Mr. Waits' making big plans for the coast ("I don't need no makeup, I got real scars"), a pop gem from the former dB's, then the Nevilles at their funkiest and, bringing us back to Memphis, the Reverend Al.

Feel free to post your own random tens in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Could we get this chart plastered everywhere in the next few weeks, please?), already in progress.

Miss You (revisited)

2010-11-09T18:08:00.005-06:00

We have a follow-up to a previous edition of This Week's Discussion Question!

Yep, no one misses you, Mr. President.

Of course, maybe it's easily explainable. Here's This Week's Discussion Question:

Do you suppose all the conservatives were over at ABC watching Dancing with the Stars, where there's a chance a Palin could actually win?

Discuss.

Update: Yeah, that might be where they were.

Sunday Random 10

2010-11-07T22:26:00.002-06:00

Had the Sabbath gasbags on briefly this morning at TWDQ HQ, but after a few minutes of Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) on ABC's This Week, we could hear brain cells screaming so we decided it was time to fire up the Nano.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

The Beatles - I Saw Her Standing There
Kirsty MacColl - He's on the Beach
Wilco - Say You Miss Me
Neil Finn - Truth
Vince Guaraldi - Oh, Good Grief
Peter Wolf - Lying Low
Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Jason Isbell) - Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out
Stevie Wonder - Golden Lady
Allen Toussaint - St. James Infirmary
Wilson Pickett - I'm in Love

Kinda cool to have this week's shuffle kick off with that great "One, Two, Three, Faw!" and we think the Preservation Hall Jazz Band record is lobbying to be named Album of the Year. Really good stuff, kids.

Feel free to post your own tens in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Seriously, you 6th Districters, what the hell were you thinking?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (Wednesday recount edition)

2010-11-03T17:41:00.003-05:00

Did this week's shuffle while raking the back 40 of TWDQ HQ Sunday, but when we came inside to back through the tracks to jot 'em down for posting, we inadvertently reset the Nano's shuffle, so we created another shuffle on Monday morning. Since then, things have been kinda busy.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle! (Again!)

- The Smiths - Ask

- Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - She May Call You Up Tonight

- Robbie Fulks - Fountains of Wayne Hotline

- The Beatles - Act Naturally

- Crowded House - Locked Out

- Paul Simon - Ace in the Hole

- Fountains of Wayne - Barbara H. (live)

- The Smiths - Hand in Glove

- The Who - The Real Me

- Stevie Wonder - He's Misstra Know It All

The Nano continues to like the newly-acquired Smiths collections and we get some real Fountains of Wayne to go along with Robbie Fulks' absolutely brilliant ode to the pop geniuses' stellar customer support.

As always, feel free to post your own random tens in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("What the hell is wrong with voters in the 6th District?"), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-10-24T14:05:00.002-05:00

Hey! We're posting on time! (Don't get used to it...)

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

Professor Longhair - Looka, No Hair
Crowded House - Everything is Good for You
Talking Heads - I Wish You Wouldn't Say That
Van Morrison - Sweet Thing
Phoenix - Armistice
Elliott Smith - Last Call
Joe Henry - Richard Pryor Addresses a Tearful Nation
The Smiths - Nowhere Fast
The Lamont Cranston Band - Keep on Drivin'
The Jayhawks - The Liquor Store Came First

Only a Smiths tune from our more recent acquisitions, but some old favorites popped up this week, like one from Crowded House's Recurring Dream best-of (our musical comfort food), one from Joe Henry's terrific Scar (the soundtrack to the painting of the living room at the old TWDQ HQ), and a couple songs from a couple of great local bands to wrap up.

Feel free to post your own random tens in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (So what exactly DO Muslims wear?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-10-17T15:42:00.002-05:00

Time to find out what the little green Nano offers up this week.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Johnny Rivers - Mountain of Love
John Legend & The Roots - Shine
Son Volt - Route
Wild Tchoupitoulas - Here Dey Come
Bill Evans Trio -My Foolish Heart
Neville Brothers - Performance
The Beatles - Pepperland
Old 97s - Mama Tried (live)
Steve Dawson - Worry Worry Worry
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Maggie May

Let's see. There's our all-time favorite Johnny Rivers song; a track from the fine new Legend/Roots collaboration; a couple doses of New Orleans; more evidence that the Nano loves the $1 copy of Evans's Waltz for Debby; a mental note that the next time we need room for more tunes, the orchestral tracks from "Yellow Submarine can go; and Mr. Sweet & Ms. Hoffs reminding us that Rod Stewart, who's about to release volume five of his Great American ~~Sedative~~ Songbook albums on Tuesday, was a critically and commercially acclaimed artist making records that were anything but phoned-in.

Shuffle up your own device and share your random ten in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 for 10/10/10 (and belated random 10)

2010-10-10T20:04:00.003-05:00

Here's what the little green Nano shuffled up on these last couple of unseasonably fabulous autumn Sundays. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

10/03/2010
Fountains of Wayne - The Girl I Can't Forget
Phoenix - Lisztomania
Jonathan Rundman - Grace is Crying Her Eyes Out
The Replacements - We're Coming Out
Jonathan Rundman - The Prophetstown Tornado
U2 - Zoo Station
Bill Mallonee - Wintergreen
Dan Zanes & Friends - Thumbelina
Frontier Ruckus - Nerves of the Nightmind
Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Cory Chisel) - Some Cold Rainy Day

10/10/2010
Bill Evans Trio - Milestones
Thee Midniters - Whittier Blvd.
Fountains of Wayne - Stacy's Mom
Peter Case - Put Down the Gun
Aaron Neville - Waiting at the Station
Laura Nyro - Be Aware
Jackson Browne - Fountain of Sorrow
Muddy Waters - Walkin' Thru the Park
Dave Rawlings Machine - It's Too Easy
The Bangles - Bell Jar

Didn't think quickly enough to load a 10cc album on there. Oh well.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-09-26T21:22:00.002-05:00

Been busy, blah, blah, blah. Thanks for your patience. Here's what the little green Nano's shuffled up the last three Sundays.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

09/12/2010
Jill Scott - Bedda at Home
Robert Cray Band - Chicken in the Kitchen
The Ike Reilly Assassination - When Irish Eyes Are Burning
The Smiths - Girlfriend in a Coma
Nick Lowe - Let's Stay In and Make Love
The Replacements - Swingin' Party
Nick Lowe - I Live on a Battlefield
Ivy - Be My Baby
Elvis Costello - Radio, Radio
The Bill Evans Trio - Waltz for Debby (Take 1)

09/19/2010
Lucy Wainwright Roche - Bridge
The Bill Evans Trio - My Foolish Heart
Steve Dawson - Ten Thousand Pounds
Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Pete Seeger & Tao Rodriguez-Seeger) - Blue Skies
Erik Brandt - 1-4-5
Elvis Presley - I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone (Slow Version)
Neil Young - Harvest
Patty Griffin (feat. Julie Miller) - Coming Home to Me
Jonathan Rundman - Dialysis Carpool
Lucy Wainwright Roche - Poison

09/26/2010
The Kinks - Tired of Waiting for You
Neil Finn - Dream Date
The Kinks - All Day and All of the Night
Dan Zanes & Friends - I Don't Need Anything But You
Old 97's - Can't Get a Line
Los Lobos w/Mavis Staples - Someday
The Beatles - Because
The Beatles - I Me Mine
Brian Wilson - Summertime
Tom Waits - Get Behind the Mule (Live)

"Summertime," from the new Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin, was a fantastic tune to listen to in the car on this gorgeous first Sunday of autumn.

Feel free to shuffle up your device and post your own random tens in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question--and hey, we just had one!--already in progress.

Sorry, Charlie, for the imposition...

2010-09-26T13:48:00.006-05:00

The Minnesota Family Council and the National Organization for Marriage are running a TV ad complaining that gubernatorial candidates Mark Dayton (DFL) and Tom Horner (Ind.) favor "imposing gay 'marriage' on Minnesotans" by not supporting the right of the people of Minnesota vote to amend the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage.

Interestingly, the ad opens with shots of a women's suffrage rally, a banner from the Selma march, and a shot of the U.S. Constitution fading to Dr. Martin Luther King, trumpeting the importance of the right to vote.

Watch:

So here are This Week's Discussion Questions:

How do you think a vote on voting rights for women would have gone around the turn of the 20th century?

How do you think a vote on civil rights for blacks would have gone in Alabama in 1965?

Is this a road you really want to go down?

Really?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "Would this 'imposition' turn my traditional marriage 'gay'?" or "Biblical view of marriage? How many wives did Solomon have again? Not counting concubines, of course."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10 (Ernie Banks edition)

2010-09-06T14:52:00.004-05:00

Hope you're enjoying your Labor Day weekend! It's a beautiful day* so let's play the last two Sundays' Random 10s that we didn't get around to posting the last couple of Sundays.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

08/29/2010
Mary Chapin Carpenter - Iceland
Kirsty MacColl - They Don't Know
Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Del McCoury) - Careless Love
Vigilantes of Love - Certain Slant of Light
The Rolling Stones - As Time Goes By
Deer Tick - TWenty Miles
Elaine Moore - Just a Closer Walk with Thee
Coldplay - Viva La Vida
Ry Cooder - It's All Over Now
The Beatles - I'm Only Sleeping

09/05/2010
Elvis Presley - Hearts of Stone (Live)
Los Lobos - Be Still
U2 - Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
R.E.M. - (Don't Go Back to) Rockville
Bruce Springsteen - Jungleland
Los Lobos - Burn it Down
Joe Henry - Civilians
The B-52's - Strobe Light
Joe Henry - Good Fortune
Deer Tick - Twenty Miles

*(Okay, it's raining right now, but work with us here...)

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (If the Bush Administration spent eight years screwing up the economy, why does the Obama Administration only get 18 months to clean up their mess?), already in progress.

I'm with Stupid (or Evil)

2010-08-25T18:26:00.003-05:00

Jon Stewart poses This Week's Discussion Question and Wyatt Cenac and John Oliver both make strong cases:

Is Fox News Evil or Stupid?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "Evil! Evil! Evil!" or "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" or "Could we break it down on a personality-by-personality basis? Beck, stupid. Hannity, stupid. Rove, evil..."

Discuss.

Sunday Random Ten (Let's Play Two!)

2010-08-22T23:00:00.002-05:00

Was on the road last Sunday so we'll make it up with a doubleheader today.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

08/15/2010
Van Morrison - Have I Told You Lately
Beki Hemingway - Siouxanne
Nick Lowe - Hope For Us All
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - Something's Changed
Uncle Tupelo - Gun
The Beatles - Cry Baby Cry
The Mercy Seat - He Said
Joe Henry - Bellwether
Crowded House - Weather with You
Joe Tex - Show Me

08/22/2010
World Party - Private Revolution
Tinted Windows - Back with You
The Decemberists - The Perfect Crime #2
The Hold Steady - The Swish
Tom Waits - Hold On
The Beach Boys - Let's Go Away for Awhile
Fountains of Wayne - Elevator Up
Bill Mallonee - Wintergreen
Del Amitri - Here and Now
Johnny Rivers - Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

Was kinda tough this week. Just added the fantastic new "Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin" and when we hit shuffle today we swear we heard the little green Nano whisper "Are you sure you wanna do that?"

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (You want to get worked up about how much vacation President Obama takes? Really?), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (Monday Edition, Tuesday Publication)

2010-08-10T21:01:00.003-05:00

Been nuts around TWDQ HQ, so we didn't get to the Nano until Monday, and haven't gotten to posting until Tuesday.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Nick Lowe - When I Write the Book
The Beatles - Slow Down
Solomon Burke - I Need Your Love in My Life
Gnarls Barkley - Crazy
Kirsty MacColl - Innocence
Joe Henry - I Flew Over Our House Last Night
Del Amitri - Crashing Down
The Cars - Let's Go
The Beatles - Revolution 9
The Swell Season - Paper Cup

Track 9? "Revolution 9". We swear the iPod's messing with us.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-08-01T20:38:00.002-05:00

Let's see what the little green Nano has in store to ring in August!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - I Learned the Hard Way
Rosanne Cash - Black Cadillac
The Mercy Seat - I Am a Pilgrim
The Beatles - Maggie Mae
Dan Zanes & Friends - Goodnight, My Someone
Vince Guaraldi - Christmas Time is Here
Dolly Varden - Some Sequined Angel
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Into the Great Wide Open
The Pogues - Sally MacLennane
The Faces - (I Know) I'm Losing You (Live)

We're just going to say that the Ms. Jones tune is a strong contender for the 2010 Faves compilation, unless one of the other fine songs on that album (What? You don't have it yet? Go!) muscles its way past it.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question (Really, Anne Rice? You've never heard of any of the other flavors that aren't anti-gay*, anti-feminist, anti-artificial birth control? Really? Really?!?), already in progress.

*Sadly, our flavor can't yet claim this one. Someday, someday.

They'll Know We Are Christians By Our Love, Pt. 72610

2010-07-26T16:50:00.003-05:00

As we pose This Week's Discussion Question, Jesus is leaning over a toilet bowl somewhere, asking one of the angels to help him hold his hair back.

The stupid never stops, does it?

Please keep the discussion civil and feel free to channel Stephen Colbert: "I believe it's divinely inspired, because whenever I tell people what they're doing, they always say, "Holy shit."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10

2010-07-25T11:41:00.002-05:00

Let's see what the little green Nano is shuffling up on this gorgeous Sunday morning!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Ry Cooder - Fool for a Cigarette/Feelin' Good
Over the Rhine - Nobody Number One
World Party - When the Rainbow Comes
Ike Reilly - Seven Come Eleven
The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
Johnny Rivers - It Wouldn't Happen with Me
The Beatles - Don't Pass Me By
The Replacements - Swingin' Party
Continental Drifters - I'm a Dreamer
The Replacements - Valentine

The Johnny Rivers song is about how you'd be better off with him than one of the Beatles or Ricky Nelson, so it being wrapped by Beatles tunes, especially one sung by Ringo, who's name-checked in the song, makes us wonder what exactly Jobs' people stuck in that shuffle code.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-07-18T10:05:00.002-05:00

It's Sunday again! Much quieter around TWDQ HQ this weekend, save for last night's storms, so here's this week's offering from the little green Nano.

Let's...Play...Shuffle!

Elvis Presley - Money Honey (Live)
Elvis Presley - Blue Moon
Aaron Neville - The Greatest Love
Del Amitri - Roll to Me
The Hold Steady - Banging Camp
The Avett Brothers - All My Mistakes
Fountains of Wayne - Strapped for Cash
This Train - Who's Stopping You
Joe Henry - Cold Enough to Cross
The Hold Steady - The Sweet Part of the City

Looks like the Nano had a thing for Elvis and The Hold Steady this week.

Had a funny spell of shuffling the other day. Aretha Franklin singing "R-E-S-P-E-C-T, find out what it means to me" followed by the Old 97's "If I had half a brain left after my debauchery, I'd give up the other women and the W-I-F-E."

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10 (Monday Edition)

2010-07-12T17:47:00.002-05:00

Busy day at TWDQ HQ yesterday, so here's the Monday Edition of Sunday Random 10.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Fountains of Wayne - Imperia
Rosanne Cash - Miss the Mississippi and You
Patty Griffin - Wiggley Fingers
Wilco - Outtasite (Outta Mind)
The Who - My Generation
Wilco - Jesus, Etc.
The Avett Brothers - Kick Drum Heart
Los Lobos - Shakin' Shakin' Shakes
Eddie Cochran - Nervous Breakdown
The New Standards - Hey Ya

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("Can you blend a vuvuzela?") already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-07-04T22:38:00.002-05:00

Happy Independence Day to our fellow Americans!

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Van Morrison - Bright Side of the Road
The Swell Season - Fantasy Man
Patty Griffin - I Smell a Rat
The Beatles - Strawberry Fields Forever
Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs - Back of a Car
Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - To Be Loved
Kathleen Edwards - In State
Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman - No Regrets
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Here Comes My Girl
Crowded House - Something So Strong

Well, it came up half American today. Couple of Brits, an Irish/Czech combo, a Canadian, and we wrap with New Zealand's finest. (We admit to grabbing a guitar and hitting the replay button on Ms. Edwards about ten times before moving on with the last entries. Go click that link if you haven't heard it. Or this one.)

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question ("How can you let a .158 hitter pound a pinch-hit salami?"), already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-06-28T22:15:00.002-05:00

Busy day yesterday at TWDQ HQ, first out celebrating birthdays and anniversaries with a New Orleans brunch, then back to HQ for some televised baseball & World Cup, then some lawn mowing and a movie. Finally got around to the little green Nano late last evening. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Jason Falkner - Miracle Medicine
The Beatles - Honey Don't
Laura Nyro - He Was Too Good to Me
Shawn Colvin - You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
XTC - Books Are Burning
Old 97's - Color of a Lonely Heart is Blue
The Jayhawks - Six Pack on the Dashboard
Dave Edmunds - Girls Talk
The Beat Farmers - Happy Boy
Joe Henry - Stop

If you've only heard "Happy Boy" on the daily segment on Ian & Margery's radio show, you're missing a couple of verses that might put one off one's breakfast.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-06-20T22:54:00.002-05:00

Sorry we missed you last week, been a whirlwind couple of weeks around TWDQ HQ and while we shuffled up the iPod last week, we didn't get around to posting. So here's another two-fer.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

06/13/2010
The Beatles - You Won't See Me
Oberhofer - o0O0o0O0o
Fountains of Wayne - You're Just Never Satisfied
Professor Longhair - Thank You Pretty Baby
Jonathan Rundman - In Thee Is Gladness
Stevie Wonder - Higher Ground
Laura Nyro and Labelle - Gonna Take a Miracle
Shawn Colvin - Polaroids
Rosanne Cash (w/Neko Case) - Satisfied Mind
Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman - Easy Chair

06/20/2010
Lucy Wainwright Roche - University Drive
Van Morrison - Wild Night
This Train - Seafoam Green
Sarah Jaffe - Stay with Me
Los Lobos - One Time One Night
Kirsty MacColl - Can't Stop Killing You
Professor Longhair - Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand
The Replacements - Here Comes a Regular
Ike Reilly - The Assassination of Sweet Lou Diablo
Patty Griffin - Flaming Red

Let's see...we just saw the amazing Ms. Griffin last evening with the amazing Buddy Miller, there's a pair of tunes from 'Fess reminding us that we must get ourselves to New Orleans some time, we're looking forward to Ms. Cash's gig at the free bandshell at the State Fair this August, and we've already mentioned Laura Nyro & Labelle's wonderful Gonna Take a Miracle album and if you don't already have it, you should stop reading this instant and go get it.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Graveyard Shift

2010-06-06T12:04:00.002-05:00

After catching Jake Tapper's roundtable on This Week this morning, here's This Week's Discussion Question (Thanks for the idea, Arianna!):

Man, how much overtime does the PolitiFact crew have to put in when Liz Cheney's on This Week?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "Why does anyone care what Liz Cheney thinks about anything?" or "Holy crap, I agree with George Will that Bud Selig did the right thing! Sorry to anyone who got splattered when my head exploded."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10

2010-06-06T11:56:00.003-05:00

Before we head out for some quality contemplative time behind the TWDQ HQ lawnmower, here's what spilled from the little green Nano this week.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

U2 - Until the End of the World
The Beatles - When I'm Sixty-Four
Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Cinnamon Girl
Sally Seltman - Harmony to My Heartbeat
Crowded House - Everything is Good for You
World Party - And I Fell Back Alone
Fairground Attraction - Falling Backwards
The Beatles - Hold Me Tight
Los Lobos - I Will Go Sailing No More
Dan Zanes and Friends - I'm Flying

Feel free to post your own random ten in the comments.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-05-31T13:33:00.002-05:00

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! We at TWDQ hope you're taking time out to honor the memory of those who've served this nation and all those who have gone before.

Here's this week's shuffle:

Wilco - Say You Miss Me
Ike Reilly - God Damn Shame
Fountains of Wayne - Peace and Love
Over the Rhine - Suitcase
The Muppets - Wipe Out
Joe Henry - Tiny Voices
Rhett Miller - Refusing Temptation
The Hold Steady - The Smidge
Fountains of Wayne - Hung Up on You
Patty Griffin - Mary

Way poppier this week. Looks like the little green Nano is back from its Tom Waits obsession.

Still looking for time to post a question or two. In the meantime, the right-wing hissy fit about the President's Memorial Day plans not including Arlington National Cemetery (which the president--even the Republican ones--hasn't always done every Memorial Day, but facts always seem to get in the way of a good hissy fit, don't they?) does make us wonder if we were this damned whiny during the eight years of Junior's administration. It's a shame nobody could be bothered to get worked up over torture or a war sold with lies.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

The iPod Has Been Drinking (or Sunday Random Tens)

2010-05-23T21:09:00.003-05:00

Sorry we missed you last week, kids. Been busy 'round TWDQ HQ. Here's a couple of weeks worth of Sunday Random 10s for you.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

05/16/2010
The Pogues - The Broad Majestic Shannon
Mary Lou Lord - Speeding Motorcycle
Sam & Dave - Hold On, I'm Comin'
The Replacements - Valentine
The Replacements - Nightclub Jitters
Norah Jones - Young Blood
Gear Daddies - Time Heals
Dave Brubeck Quartet - The Way You Look Tonight (Live)
Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman - No Regrets
The Coasters - I Must Be Dreamin'

05/23/2010
Mary Chapin Carpenter - Mrs. Hemingway
Over the Rhine - Ohio
Tom Waits - Metropolitan Glide (Live)
Tom Waits - Trampled Rose (Live)
Over the Rhine - Born
Beki Hemingway - Over With
Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Tom Waits) - Corinne Died on the Battlefield
Vince Guaraldi - Mr. Lucky
Tom Waits - Shiver Me Timbers
Over the Rhine - All I Want Is Everything

This week's list is really interesting. Once that first song kicked in, I was wondering if one of Ms. Hemingway's cuts would pop up. Sure enough! Then the little green Nano definitely had it in a big way for Mr. Waits and we swear it KNOWS we contributed to the Let's Make a Record project so Over the Rhine could spend this past week in Los Angeles recording their new album with Joe Henry. (Mr. Henry's luminous "Love Is Enough" from the excellent Civilians made an appearance a few songs after the initial ten wrapped up.)

Gonna be a busy week, but stay tuned, we might have an actual question here soon.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-05-09T21:14:00.003-05:00

Hope everyone had a nice Mother's Day! Gorgeous day here.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Crowded House - Not the Girl You Think You Are
Old 97's - Can't Get a Line (Live)
The Beatles - One After 909
The Ike Reilly Assassination - I Will Let You Down
Bob Dylan & The Rolling Thunder Revue - A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall (Live)
Crowded House - Everything Is Good for You
Joe Henry - Want Too Much
Jason Falkner - Take Good Care of Me
Neil Young - A Man Needs a Maid
Preservation Hall Jazz Band (feat. Pete Seeger & Tao Rodriguez-Seeger) - Blue Skies

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-05-02T20:40:00.002-05:00

Hey, it's Sunday again! And no Discussion Question again! It's a good thing we got us an iPod, eh?

Here's what it shuffled up today. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

Jonathan Rundman - Kuortane
Patty Griffin (feat. Buddy Miller) - Never Grow Old
The Pogues - Sit Down By the Fire
The Heardsmen - She Knows It
The Beatles - Get Back
The B-52's - Mesopotamia
World Party - When the Rainbow Comes
Tom Waits - Get Behind the Mule (Live)
Bruce Springsteen - Backstreets
Joe Henry - Widows of the Revolution

Wow. That's about as solid a list as it's ever produced. We're going to see Mr. Rundman Wednesday night and Ms. Griffin (w/Mr. Miller opening) in June. We just saw the amazing Mr. Henry in March. The Pogues and Springsteen tunes are from our stack of desert island discs. The Heardsmen tune is from one of our favorite film soundtracks. The kid played in a B-52's cover band while in college. We wore out World Party's Goodbye Jumbo and Waits' "Mule Variations back in the day. And, of course, it all comes back to The Beatles. (BTW, "Help" was the 11th tune up.)

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question already in progress for several weeks now. We know, we know.

Sunday Random 10

2010-04-25T20:36:00.003-05:00

It's Sunday and you know what that means? (We mean besides the Twins blowing the final game of a series instead of sweeping.)

It's time to see what the little green Nano's going to cough up! Let's... Hit...Shuffle!!!

The Replacements - Gary's Got a Boner
Los Lobos - La Bamba
The Beatles - I Need You
Laura Nyro and Labelle - I Met Him on a Sunday
Talking Heads - Love -> Building on Fire
Rufus Thomas - Walkin' the Dog
Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey - Some of the Parts
Over the Rhine - Born
Dan Zanes - California
Kristina Train - I Can't But Help

Interesting mix. Once again, if you don't already have that Laura Nyro and Labelle album Gonna Take a Miracle, it's less than eight bucks here. Go! We are also huge fans of the Dan Zanes record, which is so loose and fun it made Springsteen's Seeger Sessions disc seem like a dull lecture.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-04-18T22:21:00.003-05:00

It was a beautiful Sunday in TWDQ's neck of the woods and we got mildly sunburned watching baseball, which is a possibility once again in TWDQ's neck of the woods! Now it's time to fire up the little green Nano.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle...

Over the Rhine - When You Say Love
Peter Wolf (w/Neko Case) - The Green Fields of Summer
She & Him - I'm Gonna Make It Better
Elvis Presley - Good Rockin' Tonight
Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - When the Other Foot Drops, Uncle
Gnarles Barkley - Crazy
The Beatles - Two of Us (Let it Be...Naked version)
Johnny Cash - Luther Played the Boogie
The Beatles - Let It Be (single version)
The Twilight Hours - Dreams

Thanks to everyone who raved about the new Wolf record. We're so glad we picked it up.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

This Is How We Do It

2010-04-13T22:51:00.002-05:00

Here's This Week's Discussion Question:

Isn't this beautiful?

Please keep the discussion civil and do feel free to wander off into "Da da da da da" or "All together now!"

Sing.

What the World Needs Now, Vol. 41110

2010-04-11T20:24:00.002-05:00

Since she didn't show up in today's random 10, here's This Week's Discussion Question:

Why is anyone still watching American Idol?

Please keep the discussion civil, but for cryin' out loud, people, if you want a new singer who came out of obscurity, there isn't a better story than a funky, gritty, 50-something former Rikers Island corrections officer fronting a top-notch soul band.

And if you want to watch competition, baseball season just started.

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10

2010-04-11T20:18:00.002-05:00

It's Sunday again! Let's see what the little green Nano has to offer this week.

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

The Beatles - Lonesome Tears in My Eyes
The New Standards - Maps
The Rascals - Lonely Too Long
Miles Davis - Blue in Green
XTC - Ball and Chain
The Who - Substitute
Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl
Kirsty MacColl - Can't Stop Killing You
The Pogues - If I Should Fall from Grace with God
Patty Griffin - Carry Me

Cool. Something from the newly-acquired Beatles "Live at the B.B.C." and the title track from one of our Desert Island albums.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-04-04T21:21:00.002-05:00

Let's see what springs from the little green Nano on this Easter Sunday. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Wilson Pickett - I'm in Love
Dan Zanes - Phone Call Home
Dan Zanes - The Colorado Trail
Dan Penn & Spooner Oldham - I'm Living Good
The New Standards - Bring It On Home to Me
The Beatles - I'll Cry Instead
The Who - A Legal Matter
Nick Lowe - Homewrecker
Fountains of Wayne - Joe Rey
Dusty Springfield - I Don't Want to Hear It Anymore

Hope you all had a great day! We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-03-28T13:22:00.002-05:00

It's Sunday again! Hey, did we mention that we're in the paper this morning?

Well, let's see what surprises the little green Nano has in store for us today. Ready?

Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Kristina Train - I Can't But Help
The Suburbs - Rattle My Bones
Dan Zanes and Friends - Gary, Indiana/The Wells Fargo Wagon
Shawn Colvin - I'm Gone
Muddy Waters - She's Nineteen Years Old
U2 - FEZ-Being Born
Miles Davis - All Blues
The Coasters - Smokey Joe's Cafe
Allen Toussaint - Solitude
Professor Longhair - Mardi Gras in New Orleans

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Papers

2010-03-27T22:57:00.002-05:00

Hey! We're in the Sunday paper!

Hot, Hot, Hot

2010-03-23T22:40:00.002-05:00

We interrupt This Week's Discussion Question to point you--once again--to Fred Clark's blazing work at Slacktivist.

Boy, oh boy, Fred OWNS the internets these days.

Go. Read. Now.

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10

2010-03-21T22:44:00.003-05:00

Been a busy day at TWDQ HQ, so we had to wait until tonight to see what the little green Nano would shake out. Ready? Let's...Hit...Shuffle!:

Son Volt - Roll On
The Rascals - See
Wilco - Muzzle of Bees (live)
Wilco - Misunderstood
Johnny Cash - I Walk the Line
Gear Daddies - Get It Right Someday
The Beatles - Rocky Raccoon
Dusty Springfield - So Much Love
The Decemberists - A Bower Scene
XTC - That Wave

We'll have more in a few days on a couple of great shows that book-ended last week, as well as some more pointers to our favorite blogger, who is currently owning the internets, so stay tuned.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-03-14T16:53:00.002-05:00

It's Sunday again, so Let's...Hit...Shuffle!:

The Who - Call Me Lightning
Kirsty MacColl - Caroline
Allen Toussaint - Blue Drag
Tinted Windows - Back with You
Gary U.S. Bonds - Not Me
Muddy Waters - (I'm Your) Hoochie Coochie Man
Gear Daddies - No One's Home
Over the Rhine - Here it Is
Joe Henry - Monkey
The Beatles - If I Fell

Hope you've all adjusted your clocks accordingly and will enjoy the later sunset this evening. We're off to a darkened jazz club to see the artist responsible for the penultimate tune and the production on the third track.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Monday Morning Rock (Belated Sunday Random 10)

2010-03-08T20:07:00.003-06:00

Didn't get around to shuffling the little green Nano yesterday, so here's the mix from Monday morning. Let's...Hit...Shuffle!

Van Morrison - Domino
Joe Henry - Prelude: Light No Lamp When the Sun Comes Down
Gnarls Barkley - Crazy
Jonathan Rundman - Continental Divide
Joe Henry - Lighthouse
Bob Dylan & The Rolling Thunder Revue - Hurricane
Aaron Neville - Waiting at the Station
Tom Waits - What's He Building?
Brendan Benson - Feel Like Taking You Home
Alice Cooper - School's Out

The little green Nano must know we're going to see Mr. Henry next Sunday evening at a cozy little jazz club. The list also features no fewer than three tracks from the annual faves compilations we've been assembling since 2003.

Mr. Waits' spoken-word track is also a long-time favorite from which some of the TWDQ HQ crew regularly recite lines: "He has no friends, but he gets a lot of mail. I'll bet he spent a little time in jail," or "I'll tell you one thing, he's not building a playhouse for the children," or just "What the hell is he building in there?" (Naturally, one needs to recite these in his/her best Tom Waits growl.)

And last, but not least, the final cut prompts This Week's Discussion Question:

Is there any verse more rock 'n roll than this?:

Well, we got no class
And we got no principles
And we got no innocence
We can't even think up a word that rhymes

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "Grease is the time, is the place, is the motion; Grease is the way we are feeling," or "Well, since she put me down there's been owls pukin' in my bed..."

Discuss.

I'm Talking to You...

2010-03-01T19:16:00.003-06:00

We're pleased to introduce "I'm Talking to You,"* a new feature on This Week's Discussion Question that will consist of open letters to whomever we feel like addressing open letters.

Chuck Todd, I'm talking to you:

While watching the 2010 Olympic Games coverage, we saw the spots for your new show, The Daily Rundown, where you gush about how much you love politics. "I wish every day was Election Day," you say.

Well, every day isn't election day, Chuck. The rest of them are governance days, which are important not for how they impact an elected official's chances of getting re-elected two or four or six years down the road, they're important for how they impact people's everyday lives.

If you want to cover horse racing, apply for a transfer to NBC Sports and knock yourself out every damn day.

(While Googling around for Chuck's line in the commercial, we learned that we're thinking like the pros.)

Sports networks, I'm talking to you:

We're not waiting four more years for our two-week fix. Cut a bunch of your poker programming and give us curling!

John Yoo, I'm talking to you:

If we'd just been given a pass on professional misconduct for our part in writing memos that authorized torture, we'd be keeping such a low profile that we'd be looking up at Dick Cheney's final approval rating. But hey, if you want to keep flapping your yap until somebody finally gets fed up and indicts your arse, be our guest.

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

* We regret that we were unable to find a YouTube clip of Mary Lou Lord performing the title song.

Sunday Random 10

2010-03-01T19:13:00.003-06:00

Had shuffle going while painting one of the bathrooms at TWDQ HQ yesterday, so here's a belated posting of yesterday's Random 10.

Let's...hit...shuffle!

Brendan Benson - Garbage Day
Dan Zanes - The Railroad Cars Are Coming
Dusty Springfield - Goodbye
The Beatles - All Together Now
Fountains of Wayne - Peace and Love
The Kinks - Dedicated Follower of Fashion
Uncle Tupelo - Anodyne
Wilco - Far, Far Away
Vince Guaraldi - Star Song
Wilco - Heavy Metal Drummer

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

Sunday Random 10

2010-02-21T22:19:00.002-06:00

We interrupt This Week's Discussion Question for a special "Twins' Pitchers and Catchers Reporting Day" edition of Sunday Random 10, so Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

The New Standards - September Song
The New Standards - London Calling
Rickie Lee Jones - It Hurts
Lucy Wainwright Roche - Chicago
XTC - Books Are Burning
Dusty Springfield - Live Here with You
Fountains of Wayne - Strapped for Cash
Van Morrison - Wild Night
The Beatles - From Me to You
Muddy Waters - Don't Go No Farther

We now return you to This Week's Discussion Question, already in progress.

You Talk Too Much

2010-02-14T19:15:00.003-06:00

Caught a bit of the former Vice President on ABC's This Week with Some Reporter this morning and it prompted This Week's Discussion Question:

How many times can you publically confess to war crimes before you get formally charged with them?

Please keep the discussion civil and do not wander off into "No, we don't miss you either, Dick."

Discuss.

Sunday Random 10

2010-02-14T19:10:00.002-06:00

It's Sunday! Let's...Hit...Shuffle!!!

Al Green - You Ought to Be with Me
Los Lobos - Wicked Rain (Live)
Elvis Costello - Alison
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife 3
U2 - Zoo Station
The Clash - Train in Vain
Interference - Gold
The Hold Steady - Don't Let Me Explode
Tom Waits - That Feel
The Beatles - Sea of Holes

Ooh! Couldn't have been a more appropriate opener than the Reverend Green! Happy Valentine's Day, everybody!

Miss You

2010-02-10T17:22:00.002-06:00

You never know where This Week's Discussion Question will pop up so you have to keep your eyes open.

A couple of questions arose over the weekend, one in a Nashville hotel ballroom and one along an interstate highway not far from TWDQ HQ, so as Mr. Cub would say, "Let's play two!"

How's that Hopey, Changey stuff workin' out?

and

Miss me yet?

Please keep the discussion civil and please, do not read from the crib notes scrawled on your palm.

The correct answers, however, are "One helluva lot better than it would have if you'd been elected," and "Considering Princess Dumbass of the North Woods, we miss you only in the same way that you made us unexpectedly nostalgic for Dick Nixon," respectively.

Discuss.

O Say, Can You See Who Are You?

2010-02-07T22:43:00.004-06:00

The championship of American football was decided this evening, raising several opportunities for discussion.

And now, Bridgestone Tires presents the Doritos/Bud Light/E*Trade Super Bowl Edition This Week's Discussion Questions:

Why isn't "America the Beautiful" the National Anthem?

Could we please give the old rockers a rest?

Did CBS push to have The Who because all 42 CSI shows use a Who tune in their opening credits?

Is Dave Letterman a genius or what?

and

WHO DAT?

Please keep the discussion civil and feel free to wander off into "Ms. Underwood sure has guts to sing that lame anthem after what the Queen did," or "To their credit, after a rusty "Pinball Wizard", Pete and Roger tightened it up nicely," or "Football season's over!!!"

Discuss.