1. Bargain (live)- The Who

• "I'd gladly lose me to find you, I'd gladly give up all I had, to find you I'd suffer anything and be glad. But like, one and one don't make two, one and one make one." This song is either about a willingness to sacrifice/suffer anything for spiritual salvation or a notice to get on down to your local Nissan dealer to find great sales on the latest Xterra. Perhaps it's about both at the same time. As a music fan I'm supposed to be bothered when artists "sell out" and license their music for commercials and TV shows, but I could care less. "Bargain" is brilliant and the song's meaning doesn't change no matter how it is re-purposed. If you need a reminder we are talking about a band who embraced commercialism to the point that their third album was filled with advertisements and titled "The Who Sell Out". A framed original vinyl copy of "The Who Sell Out" is a recent addition my music collection. This particular live version of "Bargain" comes from the Deluxe Edition of "Who's Next". It's good, but my favorite version of the song is a live Pete Townsehnd solo acoustic performance from "The Oceanic Concerts" album featuring Townshend and harpist Raphael Rudd. The "Oceanic" version of "Bargain" lacks the familiar synthesizer part and The Who's thundering heard rhythm section of Moon and Entwistle but in turn we get the purest presentation of song possible.

2. Misery- Brendan Benson

• "When every time I open my mouth, another page of the book torn out, put me out of my misery, 'cause I can't help myself anymore, I've become my own worst enemy (put me out of my misery)." When I tell folks I like Brendan Benson the most common reply is "who?", followed by "you must be a Jack White fan". Brendan does partner with former White Stripes front man Jack White in the Raconteurs but it has nothing to do with my love for Brendan....plus I'm yet to understand the hype around Jack White. "Misery" comes from Benson's 4th full length studio album "My Old, Familiar Friend" (2009). If you grew up on The Cars and enjoy Electric Light Orchestra you can't go wrong with this record. Power pop is alive and well if you want it to be. The last time I saw Brendan Benson he was playing a show at the Trocadero theatre in Philadelphia with The Posies. It turned out to be Brendan's birthday that night and his tour mates surprised him on stage with a number of birthday cakes which were passed through the crowd. Initially unable to find anything to cut the cakes, someone on stage asked if anyone in the crowd had a knife. It struck me as a funny question since anytime I'm out in Philly I assume I'm the only one not carrying a knife.

3. Bigger Than My Body (live)- John Mayer

• "Maybe I'll tangle in the power lines, and it might be over in a second's time, but I'd gladly go down in a flame, if a flame's what it takes to remember my name, to remember my name." "Bigger Than My Body" was the lead single from John Mayer's sophomore album "Heavier Things". I won't say this is a paint by numbers song but it fits the mold of "we need an up tempo pop/rock single to launch this album" so well...like it was born to play that part. "Bigger Than My Body" with it's electric guitars did represent a bit of a new sound for Mayer who's previous album "Room For Squares" was almost exclusively an acoustic affair. "Heavier Things" turned the acoustic/electric ratio upside down. While dominated by electric songs it is best remembered for the acoustic hit "Daughters". I first heard "Daughters" live at the intimate Knitting Factory in NYC in 2003 prior to the release of "Heavier Things" and like probably everyone else in the room realized I was listening to a hit song. Looking back, the song on "Heavier Things" that best predicted the sound to come for Mayer is "Wheel". If you placed "Wheel" on Mayer's next release "Continuum" it would be right at home. In that regard I suppose it's fitting that "Wheel" closes "Heavier Things".

Back Up In Your A** With The Resurrection Edition

1. Too Late for Goodbyes- Julian Lennon

• "Ever since you've been leaving me, I've been wanting to cry, now I know how it feels for you, I've been wanting to die, but it's much too late for goodbyes." This is the song you hear at the Wawa and think to yourself, the 80's weren't that bad. If you don't find yourself at a Wawa from time to time you are missing out. "Too Late for Goodbyes" comes from Julian's 1984 debut album "Valotte". In the parlance of 1984 I'd say this song is doubleplusgood. The production is text book mid 80's but "Too Late for Goodbyes" is good/catchy enough that the dated production can't stop my enjoyment. I'm not sure what's creepier- Julian Lennon's vocal resemblance to his father John or Dhani Harrison's visual resemblance to his father George. I'm a pretty good judge on being creepy but I'd say it's too close to call. Julian wasn't able to sustain a career in music but I can't imagine the life of Beatle spawn being too rough. As a footnote, when Julian's parent's divorced Paul McCartney wrote "Hey Jude" to comfort him (Paul felt it would be easier to sing Jude than Jules). It turns out the movement we need is on Julian Lennon's shoulders.

2. Shut Em Down- Public Enemy

• "I like Nike but wait a minute, the neighborhood supports so put some money in it, corporations owe, they gotta give up the dough, to my town or else we gotta shut em down." "Apocalypse 91- The Enemy Strikes Black" represents the last album from Public Enemy's golden age. Arguably the most important group to come out of the 1980's, P.E. would lose steam after "Apocalypse 91" until they found their footing again with 1998's "He Got Game". Chuck D put corporate America on notice with "Shut Em Down". Why should the "hood" support Nike when the corporation doesn't invest in the community? Ice Cube hit the same note in 1991 with his song "The Wrong N**** to F*** With" when he spoke out against buying Raiders gear-"stop giving juice to the Raiders, cause Al Davis never paid us." Since 91 there are countless examples of clothing/apparel companies that have watched profits soar from hip hop community support without giving back to the inner city. If you dig "Shut Em Down" be sure to check out the Pete Rock remix version available on "Def Jam recordings Greatest Hits". Bonus footnote: the Public Enemy logo- a silhouetted b-boy in cross hairs was designed from a sketch of Cut Creator, LL Cool J's original DJ.

3. Kicking Television (studio version)- Wilco

• "I'm serious, you'll see, I'm working on my abs, I'm working on me, oh I'm kicking, yeah I'm calm, oh I'm kicking, television, television." In 2005 Wilco released the "A Ghost Is Born Tour EP" to compliment the release of 2004's "A Ghost Is Born" album. The EP features a few live songs and two studio recordings not found on "A Ghost Is Born"- "Panthers" and "Kicking Television". The later finds the band in punk/garage rock mode, a departure of sorts from their typical sound. "Kicking Television" would go on to become the name of Wilco's 2005 live double album. Last year the band released "Kicking Television: Live in Chicago" on vinyl (with bonus tracks) for the first time in conjunction with National Record Store Day. I ordered it online and haven't taken it out of the box, preserving it's mint condition status. This past weekend I celebrated National Record Store Day 2011 by picking up Kanye West's "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" (fantastic) and Neutral Milk Hotel's "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea" (insane) on vinyl. Perhaps caught up in the celebration I opened both albums. I may live to regret that but my turntable seems pretty happy about all the attention it's getting.

Lost In My Mind Edition

1. Second Last- Lucky Day

• "So I'm gonna spend the cash I've got, so I can be a cosmonaut, save you a seat in my earthling spot, I wish you could go with me, and show you what you never see." It seems like just yesterday that I was at the New York City CD release show for Lucky Day's sophomore release "Rise & Fall". Arelene's Grocery was the backdrop for a great evening of music. If you've seen the film "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" then you've seen a glimpse of Arlene's Grocery. The film also takes you into Jimi Hendrix's Electric Lady studios. Visiting Electric Lady has become a growing obsession for me but that's a story for another time. After Lucky Day's CD release show my friends and I somehow wound up next door at the Golden Slipper, a house of burlesque where our MC for the evening was a tall gay gentleman dressed in a tight shinny bunny costume. That's definitely a story for another time. "Second Last" is trademark Lucky Day with tight pop melodies, a hook that brings you back, and vocals that are silky smooth. Washington DC-area Lucky Day is in a bit of a hiatus at the moment but there are rumors that the lead singer has another project in the works- Lionel Jones. Details are scare but Lionel Jones will purportedly seek to revolutionize everything we know about music. If you have a red, green, and black liberation jump suit it may be time to dust it off.

2. Remix For P Is Free- Boogie Down Productions

• "I said to myself this tape sound funky, riding past the 116th street junkie. Because the girlies is free, 'cause the crack costs money, oh yeah, I said the girlies is free, 'cause the crack cost money, oh yeah!" I'm not sure where I was when I first heard "Criminal Minded" (1987) the game changing debut from Boogie Down Productions but if I had to guess it was sometime in 1990. I found the then essentially out of print album on cassette at the Granite Run mall. Score. Without being graphic, "Remix For P Is Free" tells the story of a Strawberry or two. What is a "Strawberry" you ask? N.W.A. provided the most succinct definition in the song "Dopeman"- "Strawberry is a girl selling p#ssy for crack to the dopeman." If you want a fascinating account of the crack-cocaine explosion of the 1980's with a heavy dose of government conspiracy theory, "Dark Alliance" by Gary Webb is a must read. The main focus of the book is the alleged direct CIA involvement in the spread of the drug. Even if the conspiracy theory stuff doesn't float your boat you'll get amazing insight into the story of Freeway Ricky Ross (the real Rick Ross). Freeway Ricky built an unparalleled crack-cocaine empire that at it's zenith in the 1980s brought him millions a week. Millions a week is a lot of rocks. Fans of newer hip-hop should recognize the beat for "Remix For P Is Free" as it serves as the musical basis for the phenomenal song "Definition" (2002) by Black Star- the duo of Mos Def & Talib Kweli.

3. Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's- Wesley Willis

• "McDonalds will make you fat, they serve Big Macs, they serve quarter pounders, they will put pounds on you, rock and roll McDonalds! rock and roll McDonalds! Rock over London, rock on Chicago, Wheaties- breakfast of champions." Where do I being with this musical masterpiece? The first time I heard this (in the early 2000's) on the radio I pretty much lost my mind. When I saw the film "Supersize Me" in the theatre and "Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's" came on I was unbelievably amused. The only musical moment that surpassed this in the film was the use of Curtis Mayfield's "Pusherman" with the direct implication that Ronald McDonald is the fast food equivalent of a crack dealer who preys on children. "Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's" is brilliant on so many levels. Lyrically it's on par with anything folks like Dylan and Lennon/McCartney ever conjured up. The music is outstanding as well. If the music is not a pre-recorded Casio keyboard backing track, I don't know what is. My favorite thing about "Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's" musically by far is the breakdown. Who doesn't love a good breakdown? Where would hip-hop be if not for the breakdown? (the answer is nowhere). We get a 50 second breakdown (in a song that clocks in at 2:25) where nothing happens....other than the glorious Casio backing track doing it's thing. Genius.

100th Post Edition

1. Who Needs Shelter- Jason Mraz

• "Good day sunlight, I'd like to say how truly bright you are, you don't know me, but I know you see you're my favorite star, fa-la-la-ollow you I will so let's get moving." With a trip to San Diego coming up it's pretty fitting that I get a Mraz song to talk about. "Who Needs Shelter" is a slow mellow acoustic number from Jason's major label debut "Waiting For My Rocket To Come". I especially dig the syncopated interplay between the acoustic guitar and mandolin featured in the intro and found throughout the song. Perhaps inspired by the torrential rains that preceded and threatened to cancel his last concert in Philadelphia (an outdoor show at Penn's Landing in the summer of 2009) "Who Needs Shelter" was a late addition to the shows set list. Hearing this older gem that night was only eclipsed by the "Curbside Prophet"/"Gypsy MC" mash up that featured verses from G. Love and K'nnan. Speaking of Philadelphia native G.Love, he'll be at the House of Blues in San Diego this Friday night. Maybe I'll need to drop by. If you check out "Who Needs Shelter", dig it as much as I do and want to play it on guitar, be sure to use drop D tuning and capo your 2nd fret...otherwise you'll just make a fool of yourself.

2. Let's Not Get Carried Away- Wilco

• "I got a million things that I'd rather do, than to play rock 'n' roll for you, oh honey if I blow your fuse, can I please be excused?" With a trip to Chicago coming up it's pretty fitting that I get a Wilco song to talk about. If you pick up Wilco's "Sky Blue Sky" album on iTunes you'll get "Let's Not Get Carried Away" as a bonus track. If not you'll want to track down a copy of the "Sky Blue Sky" Bonus EP (where you'll find this song and other goodies as well). If you've done all that and you still don't have enough of 2007 era "Sky Blue Sky" sessions material then you should hunt down a copy of the "Unlikely Japan" single; an early demo version of "Impossible Germany". If that won't quench your thirst I'm not sure what else to prescribe. "Let's Not Get Carried Away" has a lot to like- Jeff Tweedy's rock 'n' roll scream, Nels Cline's ridiculous guitar runs and drummer Glen Kotche even morphs into John Bonham ala "Moby Dick" if only for a brief stretch. Of course as a Who fan I like drum solos to end with an exploding drum kit but we can't always get everything we want. "Sky Blue Sky" is Wilco's sixth studio album and it's as exciting and vibrant as anything they've recorded. Most bands have long since run out of big ideas and sounds by their sixth record, if they even make it that far.

3. Loving Wings- Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds

• "You lightly lifted me away, out of a darkness cold and gray, and I work beneath the midday sun, my cool blue water you have come." Maybe I'm supposed to plan a trip to Charlottesville sometime soon. I really don't see myself there until the fall of 2012 when the Nittany Lions visit the University of Virginia "Wahoos" for a football contest. I do love the pageantry of intercollegiate athletics. More immediately I plan to catch up with Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds this summer in Atlantic City NJ for the Dave Matthews Band "Caravan" three day mega concert. "Loving Wings" has been released on half a dozen live albums. Yours truly only has it in my collection thanks to it's inclusion on the Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds "Live in Las Vegas" album. Apparently there is no studio version of the song to date. "Loving Wings' is sad and sweet and is lyrically built around the idea of redemptive love. "Angels have all gathered 'round, to hear me sing my love out loud." As I've stated before Dave is a very spiritual dude despite claims to the contrary.

1. The Thrill Is Gone (1969 Single Version)- B.B. King

• "The thrill is gone baby, the thrill is gone away, you know you done me wrong baby, and you'll be sorry someday." I'm not sure I can explain why, but there is something so cinematic about "The Thrill Is Gone". Maybe it's all the strings juxtaposed against B.B. King's guitar licks and howling vocals. In any case this is one of the crown jewels in B.B.'s catalogue and the blues genre in general. Like other King staples ("Sweet Little Angel, "How Blue Can You Get?", "Every Day I Have The Blues") we aren't talking about an original but by the time he's done with it the song is unmistakeably his. I won't try to measure King's importance to blues/American music other than to say it's monumental. His recording career started in 1949 and made such an impact that he received a Grammy lifetime achievement award 24 years ago. Remarkably King is still recording and touring as we speak. To help put that in perspective for me, the guy is older than Joe Paterno, which is to say he may have known Methuselah.

2. Avenues (Acoustic Version)- Whiskeytown

• "All the sweethearts of the world, are out dancing in the places, where me and all my friends go to hide our faces, yea avenues run one way, yea and streets they run the same." Before he became a solo artist Ryan Adams fronted the alt-country outfit Whiskeytown. 1997's "Strangers Almanac" is the album that probably best represents the band. If you have "A.M." or "Being There" by Wilco you have a good sense for the general sound on "Strangers Almanac". Whiskeytown's "Pneumonia" album may be their best, but it's more of an Adams solo project much like "All Shook Down" was more Paul Westerberg than Replacements. A few years back the fine people at Geffen Records released a Deluxe Edition of "Strangers Almanac" with a lot of extra goodies. The "acoustic" version of "Avenues" sounds like a slightly paired down demo of the original studio version (which is also acoustic). It's not Adams' best stuff but it's not bad either. One of the more intriguing inclusions on the Deluxe Edition of "Strangers Almanac" is a rather rough (but enjoyable) cover of Fleetwood Mac's classic "Dreams". Listening to Adams struggle with the vocal makes me feel better for not being able to sing it myself.

3. The Love You Save- The Jackson 5

• (J5) "S is for save it, T is for take is slow, O for is Oh no!, P is for please, please don't go!" (Jermaine) "The love you save may be your own" (Michael) "Some day you may be all alone" (Jermaine) "Stop it!" (Michael) "Save it girl!" (Jermaine) "Baby...ooooh." Last week I spun a yarn about how I acquired Better Than Ezra's "Deluxe" album while working as a painter. It's time I unfurl another tale from my painting days. Each day our painting crew listened to a pretty standard set of songs on our commute to and from our sites. We listened to these songs on cassettes (look it up). Those songs included "ABC", "I Want You Back", "The Love You Save" by the Jackson 5, "Copacabana" by Barry Manilow and last but certainly not least "If I Only Knew" by Tom Jones. Though I sadly can't remember the specific steps there was even a choreographed dance for "The Love You Save". What I do remember more vividly was that our undisputed theme song that summer was Eric Clapton's "Let it Rain". If if rained enough we all got a day off which was much better than the money we were making for work. I can remember my friend John doing a tribal rain dance on more than one occasion (in the yards of our customers) to help the skies open up in our favor.

1. Next Time- BareNaked Ladies

• "It's a shame I have to wait until the ending, everything I've yet to break is surely bending, every vow I ever take is just pretending, that this mess I make is worth defending." The studio version of "Next Time" is a solid song from the under appreciated "Everything To Everyone" album. "Everything To Everyone" is the album that had that song about chimps. In conjunction with the release of the album, the Ladies recorded a live in studio DVD featuring acoustic performances of eleven of the album's fourteen songs. Six of those live recordings were released as the "Everything Acoustic- EP". The live acoustic version of "Next Time" is amazing. Save the "Rock Spectacle" (pronounced "Spec-tak") live version of "Break Your Heart" this is the best live recording I've ever heard from the band (and I've heard more than my fair share). Steven Page's vocals are spectacular and balanced perfectly with Kevin Hearn's piano. The backing vocals/harmonies, particularly those of bassist Andy Creeggan, are gorgeous. "Next Time" never speeds up in tempo, in fact it slows down for the bridge, yet the intensity of the song consistently swells throughout. The live version of "Next Time" is worth seeking out.

2. This Time Of Year- Better Than Ezra

• "Well there's a football in the air, across a leaf blown field, yeah and there's your first car on the road, and the girl you'd steal." "This Time Of Year" is a nice acoustic song from Better Than Ezra's debut album"Deluxe". It's the album that put the band on the map with the mega-smash "Good" (dat's right!). I can vividly remember how I acquired "Deluxe". It was the summer of '95 and I was the foreman of a painting crew...not that I had ever picked up a paint brush prior to that summer. Working in Delaware, Wilmington's WSTW 93.7 FM offered the best variety of modern hits (though I was never quite comfortable that they played a version of TLC's "Waterfalls" that edited out Left Eye's rap verse). Listening to WSTW one morning we heard the announcement that they were giving away free tickets at a promotional spot nearby to see Firehouse at the Big Kahuna (a.k.a Kahunaville). For those that don't remember, Firehouse was the hair-metal band that sang "Love of a Lifetime". You can only imagine our excitement. I immediately called for a lunch break even though it couldn't have been past 10:30 in the morning. When we met up with the "prize patrol" (no idea if they called themselves that) they had to inform us that we couldn't have tickets because we were under 21. My one friend/painting colleague Ryan told them that we "just bolted from our jobs!" (true), "could be fired!" (doubtful) and "we don't care because we want to see Firehouse!" (flat out lie). They felt bad enough to let us each have a CD, and "Deluxe" has been mine ever since.

3. Only Happy When It Rains- Garbage

• "You want to hear about my new obsession, I'm riding high upon a deep depression, I'm only happy when it rains. Pour some misery down on me." I remember "Only Happy When It Rains" for being a popular radio song in the late 90s but I mostly remember it for being used in an episode of the X-files. The episode had nothing to do with the song so maybe what I really remember is the episode. That episode, "Terms of Endearment" from season six concerns demon fetal harvesting. Yes, demon fetal harvesting. This demon guy, who Mulder suspects could be the devil himself, keeps spawning demon babies- complete with horns and a tail. He keeps knocking up different women but the poor guy just wants a normal baby. At the end of the day the joke is on him when a demon woman ("demon woman, woman demon") uses him so she can have a demon baby. A few years ago one of my best friends had a daughter- I asked if she was born with a vestigial tail and got no response. I found that kind of suspicious. In any event I read on the Interweb that Garbage is working on a new album. Good to know.

1. Half a Heart- BareNaked Ladies

• "Standing on a crumbling wall, tethered to a cannonball, anyone with half a heart would help me out, before they ever let the other half find out." Not to be confused with "Half of My Heart" (a song John Mayer recorded as a vehicle to knock Taylor Swift's country boots from here to Czechoslovakia) this is BNL song that does not feature any teen tarts. "Half of My Heart" comes courtesy of the "BareNaked Ladies Are Men" album; a rapid fire follow up to "BareNaked Ladies Are Me". I like the idea that the title of their 8th studio album could be used to clear up any ambiguity with the band's name....15 years into their recording career. On "BareNaked Ladies Are Men", "Half a Heart" serves a much welcomed mid-tempo acoustic number. It is surrounded by a number of upbeat/up-tempo electric guitar rock songs that are a bit too peppy, collectively speaking. "Half A Heart" is a cardio cool down on the treadmill of life. With no more insight into this song and space to fill, I feel the urge to share a story from the day I met the BareNaked Ladies. I remember being struck by seeing Kevin Hearn (piano, accordion, guitar, et al) relaxing with a copy of Fyodor Dostoyevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov", presumably reading it for pleasure. Having read the book for an AP English class in high school I couldn't imagine it as light reading for anyone but there we were. I told Kevin when he was done with the book to check out the film as it features William Shatner. He seemed both surprised and amused. Books are always better than the movie but when Shatner is involved all bets are off.

2. Nightingale Song- Toad The Wet Sprocket

• "And little ever changes when you view it from the sky, and the damage we encounter, the earth just passes by, and little ever changes if anything at all, just reminds ourselves how small we are." What is it about a sweet acoustic guitar riff, great lyrics/vocals/harmonies, and hand claps that I like so much? Oh yea, all of it. A tambourine is a nice touch as well. "Nightingale Song" gives me all that in 2:03. Toad The Wet Sprocket, who are touring as we speak, really hit their stride in 1991 with the album "Fear". The album is most remembered for songs like "Walk On The Ocean" and "All I Want" but it's superb from top to bottom. "Fear" found an audience when alternative rock was alternative; a pre-grunge era when the college charts bore no resemblance whatsoever to the pop charts. In the interest of full disclosure I didn't find out about this album until I was in college. In 1991 I was far too immersed in Public Enemy in particular and overthrowing the establishment in general to appreciate songs like "Butterflies" and "I Will Not Take These Things For Granted." These days I enjoy my Glen Phillips autographed guitar and long walks on the beach.

3. They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)- Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth

• "I reminisce so you never forget this, the days of way back, so many bear witness to fitness, take the first letter out of each word in this joint, listen close as I prove my point." For our next number we are returning to the classics. "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" is a tribute to "Trouble" T. Roy, a dancer for Heavy D & The Boyz who died in a tragic accident in 1990. Shortly before his death I saw him perform at the old Spectrum when Heavy D helped open for Public Enemy in 1990. "Trouble" T. Roy is also referenced by Q-Tip on A Tribe Called Quest's "Vibes And Stuff". Pete Rock's work on "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)" is brilliant. We're not talking about an obvious sample of a hook from an old hit song. The samples-"Today" by Tom Scott (the main sax part) and "When She Made Me Promise" by The Beginning of the End (the intro) are brief moments from rather obscure songs. With a masterful track to work with C.L. Smooth does not disappoint. Instead of the mindless "cash, money, hoes" mantra en vogue in popular hip-hop thanks to rappers like Jay-Z, C.L. Smooth is a lyrical emcee....a storyteller with something to say. This is early 90's hip-hop at it's best before "The Chronic" ushered in an era that pushed positive/conscious/politically aware hip-hop out of the mainstream. Speaking of that 1990 P.E. show, another one of the opening acts was Digital Underground. I did the humpty dance that night along with a then-unknown backup dancer for Digital Underground named Tupac Shukar. Sure, I was at my seat and he was on stage but at that moment Pac and I were together.