"Essence" by Lucinda Williams
I like to think of this song, the title track off Lucinda Williams' first post-Grammy bonanza release, as sultry country, a style that Williams owns…
"Bonnie and Clyde" by Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot
Maybe it's just that I'm a sucker for anything sung in French, but this has to be in my top ten songs of all time.…
"These Little Monkeys" by Jonathan Fire*Eater
It's funny how I can remember the first time I heard Jonathan Fire*Eater (I was wrapping up college in spring of 1998), my first exposure…
"All for Swinging You Around" by The New Pornographers
I generally like The New Pornographers pretty alright. I generally like Neko Case pretty alright. When Neko Case steps out of the backing-vocal spot with…
"King Rocker" by Generation X
Every once in a while (well, only when I happen to listen to Generation X), I wonder what Billy Idol's doing with himself these days.…
"Crunch Cake" by Isotope
Fittingly, when I turned my iPod on and adjusted it to the much-loved Shuffle option, it chose to play a track off an album that…
"The Walk" (acoustic) – The Cure
Maybe Robert Smith was a little sore that his band's 1991 appearance on MTV's Unplugged never got the chance to be released on album. Maybe,…
"Punks In the Beerlight" by Silver Jews
The danger of playing iPod Roulette with an iPod full of compilations from a mix CD club I've been in for four years is that…
"3:33 A.M./The Insomnia Waltz" by Aveo
The loss of Seattle's own Aveo was one of the great tragedies of the indie rock world. The echoing, slightly incoherent vocals of lead singer…
"Heart and Soul" by Huey Lewis and the News
Wo-oh!So what. I like Huey Lewis and the News. So do you. In fact, I have several songs by them, mostly from the mid-'80s releases…