On the Right Side of Christmas 2024

    It's that time of the year again so I'm back with another Christmas compilation (and all of the previous Christmas compilations are available for download).  I'm not quite sure how it happened, but this one is a bit more mellow than most of the previous compilations.  I also don't think there's any cuts that would offend anyone so it's probably fine to put on at any family holiday gatherings. :)

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Merry Christmas From The Family	Robert Earl Keen
Christmas Spirit	Julia Lee and Her Boyfriends
Mr. Santa Claus	Nathaniel Mayer
Santa Plays the Trombone	Poppa John Gordy & the Dixielanders
Doña Santos	Héctor Lavoe & Willie Colón & Yomo Toro
Red Lights (Merry Christmas)	Dreams So Real
Santa Claus Is Back In Town	Tav Falco
Little Jesus Boy	The Violinaires
Santa's On His Way	Kitty Wells
Please Daddy (Don't Get Drunk This Christmas)	Loose Cattle
If You See Rudolph	Gretchen Wilson
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas	Hem
Blue Christmas	Alela Diane
Good Morning Blues (I Wanna See Santa Claus)	Count Basie
Sha La da La La (Christmas Time)	The Sha La Das
Happy Xmas (War Is Over)	John Lennon
Daddy, Come Home for Christmas	James & Lucky Peterson
Santa Claus, Do You Ever Get The Blues?	Roomful Of Blues
Beboppers' Christmas	Cordell Jackson
Christmas Greetings	Lord Kitchener
All I Want for Christmas	Huey "Piano" Smith & the Clowns
BLUE CHRISTMAS	Nicole Atkins
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen	Mary Hopkin
Auld Lang Syne	Urban Surf Kings

 

Beat the Retreat: Songs By Richard Thompson

           As the older readers of this blog probably remember, the 90s produced a whole lot of tribute albums resulting in a bit of snarky backlash by the end of the 90s.  And to be sure, there were a lot of middling ones, though most of them could boast at least a couple of solid or unconventional cuts.   One of the very best tribute albums from that period, Beat the Retreat: Songs By Richard Thompson, is out of print.  I've included several of the cuts on other compilations I've put together, but there's a lot of other gems as well.  Enjoy!

P.s.  If you also want to hear Richard Thompson  sing his own songs, I put together a two disc compilation. 

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Shoot Out The Lights	X
Wall Of Death	R.E.M.
When The Spell Is Broken	Bonnie Raitt
Turning Of The Tide	Bob Mould
For Shame Of Doing Wrong	Syd Straw & Evan Dando
Down Where The Drunkards Roll	Los Lobos
Beat The Retreat	June Tabor
Genesis Hall	June Tabor
I Misunderstood	Dinosaur Jr
The Madness Of Love	Graham Parker
Just The Motion	David Byrne
Valerie	BeauSoleil
A Heart Needs A Home	Shawn Colvin & Loudon Wainwright III
Dimming Of The Day	The Five Blind Boys Of Alabama
Farewell, Farewell	Martin Carthy & Maddy Prior
The Great Valerio	Martin Carthy & Maddy Prior

Dig Those Cats!

      With all the kerfluffle in American politics about "childless cat ladies" back in August, I decided that I should put together a compilation of songs about cats.  I know it's kind of cliched and I am also well aware that several of the songs here are about "cats" as cool folks, rather than feline creatures.  But as I warily began putting the collection together, I started to appreciate it a compelling unifying theme.  Hope the "dog persons" like it, too. :)

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Mean Eyed Cat	Johnny Cash
Kansas City Kitty	Ambrose Haley and his Ozark Ramblers
Leave My Kitten Alone	The Sonics
I Call My Baby Pussycat	Parliament
Cat On A Hot Foam Board	New Dimensions
Put Your Cat Clothes On	Carl Perkins
Something For Cat	Henry Mancini
The Lovecats	Tanya Donelly, Dylan In The Movies
Cats And Dogs	The Head And The Heart
Phenominal Cat	The Kinks
Alley Cat Ska	Tommy McCook & His Ska-Talites
Stray Cat Strut	Stray Cats
Cats and Dogs	Toni Price
Wildcat	The Hot Club Of Cowtown
Cool For Cats	Squeeze
Wild Cat Blues	Chris Barber's Jazz Band
Nashville Cats	Flatt & Scruggs
Tom Cattin'	Buck Owens
The Big Cats Of Shambala	Matthew Sweet
Facts About Cats	Timbuk 3
Farmyard Cat	Prefab Sprout
What's New Pussycat?	Tom Jones

A Certain Kind of Light: A Tribute to the Bee Gees

   For the longest time, I thought that the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack represented a major comeback for the Bee Gees after numerous years without any major hits.  And yes, I watched the documentary about them several years ago, and I coulda sworn that this was also the message in the documentary.  But really, it was only two albums in the early 70's that didn't do well and then in 1975, two years before Saturday Night Fever, they released Main Course, which featured Nights on Broadway and Jive Talking.  I also learned on Allmusic.com today that they wrote To Love Somebody for Otis Redding, which made me a little sad because I think he would have absolutely nailed that one.  Not that Nina Simone didn't, but that really was a song tailor made for Otis.  Sigh.  Anyway, hope folks enjoy the collection.

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I Started a Joke	Low
Si No Eres Tú (If I Can’t Have You)	Flor de Toloache
Inside And Out	Feist
New York Mining Disaster 1941	The Levellers
Melody Fair	The Jigsaw Seen
Gotta Get A Message To You	José Feliciano
Nights On Broadway	Candi Staton
Massachusets	Insect Surfers
Jive Talkin'	Ronnie Dyson
You know It's for you	Chris Von Sneidern
The first mistake I made	Phil Seymour
I Laugh In Your Face	Tommy Keene
Give A Hand - Take A Hand	The Staple Singers
Run To Me	Raul Malo
I Can't See Nobody	Joe Simon
Kilburn towers	The Idle Wilds
Staying Alive	Havana Lake
How Can You Mend a Broken Heart	The Stylistics
One Minute Woman	Bill Brandon
To Love Somebody	Nina Simone

 

Brazilian Legends: Jorge Ben, Gal Costa, and Elza Soares

I decided to take a little break from my yearly Texas Legends series this year and instead go a little further south for a Brazilian Legends compilation.  Alas, both Elza Soares and Gal Costa died in 2022.  But Jorge Ben is fortunately still alive at 85 and underappreciated (at least in the U.S.)

   If you are newcomers to Ben, Costa, and Soares, a lot of their recordings are only available on Spotify or Youtube.  I would particularly recommend Jorge Ben's Ben É Samba Bom and O Bidu, Costa's Fa Tal: Gal a Todo Vapor and 1969, and Soares' Elza Pede Passagem and Se Acaso Você Chegasse.

 Late Update:  Since the subject is Brazilian Legends, I've reupped both Caetano Veloso collections as well as the Brazil Classics compilation.

  Download both discs

Disc 1 Falsa Baiana	Gal Costa
Que Maravilha	Toquinho & Jorge Ben
Deixa Isso Pra La	Elza Soares
Rio Carnaval dos Carnavais	Elza Soares
Apareceu Aparecida	Jorge Ben
Desafinado	Gal Costa
Primeiro Eu	Elza Soares
Tuareg	Gal Costa
Pais Tropical	Jorge Ben
Mas Que Nada	Jorge Ben
Eu Sou Terrivel	Gal Costa
Boato	Elza Soares
Eu Vim Da Bahia	Gal Costa
Pressentimento	Elza Soares
Onde Anda O Meu Amor	Jorge Ben
Disc 2
Canário da Terra	Elza Soares & João de Aquino
Baby	Gal Costa e Caetano Veloso
Nascimento de um principe african	Jorge Ben
Meus Filhos, Meu Tesouro	Jorge Ben
Barato Total	Gal Costa
Bom Dia Portela	Elza Soares
O Dia Que o Sol Declarou o Seu Amor Pela Terra	Jorge Ben Jor
Dedo Duro	Elza Soares
Criola (Ao Vivo)	Jorge Ben Jor
Biscate	Gal Costa
Presente Cotidiano	Gal Costa
Lição de Vida	Elza Soares
A Tamba	Jorge Ben
Sambou Sambou	Elza Soares
Negro Amor	Gal Costa & Jorge Drexler