What's The Connection? Cherokee

There are a lot of ways to land on Cherokee, and this one covers more ground than most. It opens stretched all the way out, then snaps back into something more familiar and keeps shifting from there, bouncing between styles that don’t usually line up but manage to hold together anyway. The Indian connection is easy, but the approaches are all over the place, sometimes straight, sometimes barely related at all. Even Cher makes sense once you get there, which is kind of the whole point.

What's The Connection? Cherokee

01 Billy Ray Cyrus - Trail Of Tears

02 Gordon Lightfoot - Cherokee Bend

03 Jimi Hendrix - Cherokee Jam

04 Chet Baker - Cherokee

05 Manowar - Spirit Horse Of The Cherokee

06 Jerry Harrison - Cherokee Chief

07 Merle Haggard - Cherokee Maiden

08 Robbie Robertson - Cherokee Morning Song

09 Europe - Cherokee

10 Canned Heat - Cherokee Dance

11 kd Lang - Sweet Little Cherokee

12 Steve Howe & Martin Taylor - Cherokee Ridge

13 Paul Revere & the Raiders - Indian Reservation (The Lament Of The Cherokee Reservation Indian)

14 Hot Club Of Cowtown - Cherokee Shuffle

15 Beau Brummels - Cherokee Girl

16 Michael Martin Murphey - Cherokee Fiddle

17 Joni Mitchell - Cherokee Louise

18 Onie Wheeler - White Lightning Cherokee

19 John Denver - Trail Of Tears

20 Moon Mullican - Cherokee Boogie (Eh-Oh-Aleena)

21 Cher - Half Breed

What's The Connection? Get Up 2

Same idea, just with a little less discipline this time. It starts in a groove you recognize, then gradually pulls in sounds that don’t usually sit next to each other but manage to make sense anyway. The Connection is still obvious, but the ways artists get there are all over the place, from tight funk to looser swings and a few moments that feel like they might fall apart if you look at them too closely. Some tracks push, some resist, and a few seem to be negotiating the whole Get Up thing in real time, which is exactly what keeps it interesting.

What's The Connection? Get Up 2

20 Brass Construction - Get Up To Get Down

21 The Esquires - Get On Up

22 James Brown - Get Up Offa That Thing

23 Suzy Q - Get On Up And Do It Again

24 Parliament - P. Funk (Wants to Get Funked Up)

25 Bob Marley & The Wailers - Get Up Stand Up

26 Tata Vega - Get it Up for Love

27 Jodeci - Get Up On It (Instant Flava Mix)

28 Lil Brian & the Zydeco Travelers - Get Up On That Zydeco

29 Desmond Dekker - Get Up Edina

30 The Cramps - Let's Get Fcked Up

31 Ministry - Git Up Get Out 'N Vote

32 Instant Funk - I Got My Mind Made Up (You Can Get It Girl) (12' Remix)

33 Ringo Starr - Gotta Get Up To Get Down

34 Yes - I Get Up I Get Down (Remix)

35 Anna Kendrick - Get Back Up Again

36 TobyMac - Get Back Up

37 Yoso - Time To Get Up

qBk

Every so often I end up with songs that did not make it into other picks, not because they were not good enough but because they just did not fit what I was building at the time. Rather than let them disappear I started throwing them into the three letter series, and the name is exactly what it looks like. I just randomly hit keys. This pick has no real theme and I am not going to pretend it does. What it has is twelve songs I genuinely like that needed a home. They should not go together and yet somehow they sort of do. Have a listen and see if you agree. That is what this is.

qBk

01 Transglobal Underground - Temple Head (Burundi Mix)

02 Ozomatli - Cut Chemist Suite

03 Cage The Elephant - Shake Me Down

04 Not Bnot Avraham - Rai (instrumental)

05 Black Ivory - Mainline

06 Material & Nona Hendryx - Bustin'out

07 North End - Kind of Life (Kind of Love) (12 inch Vocal)

08 Santana - Oye Como Va (Remix)

09 Maximum Joy - Stretch

10 Emilie-Claire Barlow - These Boots Were Made for Walkin'

11 Shriekback - Nemesis (Extended Mix)

12 Michael Bennett - I Regret It All

Rock Relics 3

This pick closes out this chapter of the series and I will be honest, putting it together felt a little like saying goodbye to an old friend. Not because the music is going anywhere but because narrowing it down is genuinely hard when every song on the list deserves to be there. There is one track in particular that I think stands above everything else here and if you know it you already know which one I mean. There will probably be a Volume 4 at some point, just not right away. I need to live with these three for a while first. This pick has range, it has weight, and it has that thing that all the best Rock Relics volumes have where it sounds better end to end than it has any right to.

Rock Relics 3

37 Led Zeppelin - Rock And Roll

38 ZZ Top - Cheap Sunglasses

39 Steely Dan - Bodhisattva

40 Eagles - Heartache Tonight

41 Creedence Clearwater Revival - Have You Ever Seen the Rain

42 Rolling Stones - Honky Tonk Women

43 Kinks - (Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman

44 Bob Seger - Old Time Rock & Roll

45 Stealers Wheel - Stuck In the Middle with You

46 Grand Funk - The Locomotion

47 Brownsville Station - Smokin' In The Boys Room

48 Kiss - I Was Made For Lovin' You (Original 12'' Single)

49 Nazareth - Hair Of The Dog

50 Shocking Blue - Venus

51 Van Halen - Dance The Night Away

52 Van Morrison - Domino

53 Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody

54 Doobie Brothers - China Grove

55 The Knack - My Sharona

56 Thin Lizzy - The Boys Are Back In Town

Rock Relics 2

I had a fire engine red 1964 Mustang once. Purists would say I ruined it as a classic and they are probably right. I stuffed the largest engine I could fit under the hood, which made it look like it could outrun anything on the road. It could not. But the sound system was something else entirely. Separates, subwoofers in the trunk, sound paneling throughout the whole car. Inside that thing this music was a physical experience. Outside the car you could barely hear it because of all the dampening I put in the panels. So it just sat there looking menacing and fast, quietly shaking itself apart from the inside. This pick is the soundtrack to that car. The kind of rock that was built for exactly that situation, big, loud, unapologetic, and best experienced at a volume that makes the rearview mirror vibrate. That is what Rock Relics is. My old Mustang in playlist form.

Rock Relics 2

19 Ike & Tina Turner - Proud Mary

20 Toto - Hold The Line

21 Lynyrd Skynyrd - Sweet Home Alabama

22 Aerosmith - Sweet Emotion

23 Foghat - Slow Ride

24 Electric Light Orchestra - Don't Bring Me Down

25 AC-DC - Highway To Hell

26 Grateful Dead - Truckin'

27 Ram Jam - Black Betty

28 Bachman-Turner Overdrive - You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet

29 Free - All Right Now

30 Cars - Just What I Needed

31 Rolling Stones - It's Only Rock 'n Roll (But I Like It)

32 Three Dog Night - Joy to the World

33 Eddie Money - Two Tickets To Paradise

34 Who - Won't Get Fooled Again

35 Van Halen - You Really Got Me

36 Cheap Trick - I Want You To Want Me

Rock Relics 1

This pick is where the series begins and honestly it might be my favorite of the three just because of what it represents. These are the songs that were everywhere when I was growing up. On the radio, at a party, blasting out of somebody's car in a parking lot at the wrong volume for the neighborhood. You did not choose to love this music, it just happened to you whether you were ready or not. I have been collecting and playing music my whole life and I still cannot fully explain why certain songs just lodge themselves permanently into your brain, but every track on this volume did exactly that to me at some point. That is what Rock Relics is really about. Not nostalgia exactly, more like evidence that some music just refuses to age no matter how many times you have heard it.

Rock Relics 1

01 Elvis Presley - Always On My Mind

02 Guess Who - American Woman

03 Aerosmith with Run DMC - Walk This Way

04 Foreigner - Feels Like The First Time

05 Sweet - Ballroom Blitz

06 Boston - More Than a Feeling

07 Rolling Stones - Miss You (12 Special Disco Version)

08 Foreigner - Hot Blooded

09 Grand Funk - Some Kind of Wonderful

10 AC-DC - You Shook Me All Night Long (Ultimix Remix)

11 T. Rex - Bang a Gong (Get It On)

12 Alice Cooper - School's Out

13 Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way

14 Heart - Barracuda

15 Blue Oyster Cult - (Don't Fear) The Reaper

16 Elton John - Crocodile Rock

17 Queen - Crazy Little Thing Called Love

18 Kinks - Lola

What's The Connection? Groovy 1

This Groovy connection runs from sunshine pop to punk to dub to Texas boogie, and the word shows up in every single title whether it earned it or not. Some of these tracks ARE in the groove and many might be groovy, too. Some of them are just using the word the way everyone did for about a decade, like a verbal tic nobody could shake. I always wished I was groovy. I drove a VW bus for a while, which should have qualified me, but I'm not sure I ever really pulled it off. The racing Bug definitely didn't count. What does count is how totally groovy the cover is!

What's The Connection? Groovy 1

01 The Love Generation - Groovy Summertime

02 P.P. Arnold - (If You Think You're) Groovy

03 Classic Example - That's Groovy

04 Harpers Bizarre - The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)

05 Young Fresh Fellows - Where is Groovy Town

06 Winston Groovy - Please Don't Make Me Cry

07 Pillbugs - Neo Mega Quasi Ultra Super Groovy

08 Militant - Hot & Groovy

09 Nancy Sinatra - Your Groovy Self

10 The Farm - Groovy Train

11 Jakie Mitoo - Groovy Spirit

12 Fabulous Caprices - Groovy World

13 Paraffin Jack Flash Ltd. - Blue 'n' Groovy

14 Harmony Grass - What a Groovy Day

15 New Colony Six - Treat Her Groovy

16 Capt. Groovy and his Bubblegum Army - Capt. Groovy and his Bubblegum Army

17 Larry Harlow - That Groovy Shingaling

18 Lollipop Fantasy - It's A Groovy World

19 Ray Johnson - Kinda Groovy

20 Mad Professor With The Robotiks & Lee Scratch Perry - Groovy Dub

21 Phil Collins - A Groovy Kind Of Love

22 The Clash - Groovy Times

23 The Mike Flowers Pops - A Groovy Place

24 ZZ Top - Groovy Little Hippie Pad

What's The Connection? Groove 2

Sixteen more, and the word still isn't tired. This batch runs the full map — rock, funk, reggae, zydeco, soul, and a little something from the bayou — and every single one of them has groove right there in the title where you can see it. Some of these are obvious. Some of them you might not have heard in years, or maybe ever. That's kind of the point. The Salsoul Orchestra will tell you it doesn't have to be funky to be a groove, and honestly, this whole volume proves it. There will be a third connection, eventually. The word has more left in it than I think.

What's The Connection? Groove 2

17 Ace Frehley - New York Groove

18 Talking Heads - Double Groove (Unfinished Outtake)

19 Rodney Franklin - The Groove

20 Skyy - Groove Me

21 Tower Of Power - So I Got to Groove

22 Teena Marie - Behind The Groove

23 Heatwave - The Groove Line

24 Lil Brian And The Zydeco Travelers - It's A Zydeco Groove

25 Paul Carrack - I Live By The Groove

26 Prince - Get Yo Groove On

27 Tiki Tokkers - Global Groove (Hana Hou)

28 Salsoul Orchestra - It Don't Have To Be Funky (To Be A Groove)

29 Bunny Wailer - Rock N Groove

30 Chocolate Milk - Groove City

31 Lee Scratch Perry - (I Got The) Groove

32 System - Don't Disturb This Groove

What's The Connection? Groove 1

Not "groovy." Not "groovin'." Not even "grooves." Just groove — singular, present tense, like it's happening right now, because it is. They aren't all funky. Not all of them are even dancefloor. But every single one of them has that thing — that locked-in, can't-explain-it feeling that makes you close your eyes and nod your head whether you're in a club or your kitchen. That's the groove (at least the word) and it doesn't care what genre you filed it under. I had to start somewhere, and groove felt like the right word to open with. There's a reason it became its own language — musicians talk about being in it, losing it, finding it again. There will be more of these connections, the word is big enough to go a few rounds. But this is where it starts. 

What's The Connection? Groove 1

01 Deee-Lite - Groove Is In The Heart

02 King Floyd - Groove Me

03 Heatwave - Gangsters Of The Groove

04 Madonna - Into The Groove

05 The Tardy Disco-nesians - Grandpa Got The Groove

06 One Way - Mr. Groove

07 MC Hammer - Addams Groove

08 T-Connection - Groove to Get Down

09 Funkadelic - One Nation Under A Groove

10 Peaches & Herb - Shake Your Groove Thing

11 Heaven 17 - (We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang

12 Maceo Parker - Maceo's Groove

13 Archie Bell & the Drells - Let's Groove

14 Led Zeppelin - We're Gonna Groove

15 Earth, Wind & Fire - Let's Groove

16 Isley Brothers - Groove With You

Gee Whiz, You're Neat, Repeat

This one I just finished. The first two had been archived somewhere in my brain for years and this one felt like it had been waiting in line. Same idea, same no-real-genre situation. Some of this leans retro, some of it is newer artists doing what the old artists did, and some of it is just stuff that fits the mood. This pick brings the whole series to 105 tracks, which probably says more about me than I'd like to admit. I always think of it as doo-wop even though only part of it actually is. Gee Whiz, here we are anyway.

Gee Whiz, You're Neat, Repeat

78 Fabulous Poodles - When the Summer's Thru

79 The Capris - Morse Code Of Love

80 Liquorice John Death - High School Confidential

81 Curtis Lee - Gee How I Wish You Were Here

82 The Royal Jesters - Take Me For A Little While

83 Yvonne Caroll & The Roulettes - Gee What A Guy

84 Paris Sisters - I Love How You Love Me

85 Jakki O - Ooo...Aaah

86 Don & Juan - What's Your Name

87 The Ink Spots - If I Didn't Care

88 Dicky Doo And The Don'ts - Click-Clack

89 Capris - There's A Moon Out Tonight

90 The Ditty Bops - Sister Kate

91 Ariana Grande - Tattooed Heart

92 She & Him - Why Do You Let Me Stay Here

93 Mayer Hawthorne - When I Said Goodbye

94 Tracey Ullman - They Don't Know

95 Cyndi Lauper - He's So Unusual

96 Lil' Rob - Barely Getting By

97 Ray Barretto - A Deeper Shade Of Soul

98 The Five Satins - In the Still of the Night

99 Olly Murs - Dance With Me Tonight

100 Frank Zappa - You Didn't Try to Call Me

101 The Marcels - Blue Moon

102 Starlighters - Zoom

103 Question Mark And The Mysterians - Can't Get Enough Of You Baby

104 Ruben And The Jets - If I Could Only Be Your Love Again

105 Meghan Trainor - Dear Future Husband

Gee Whiz, You're Neat Too

I knew I was going to make a second volume almost immediately after finishing the first one. Then I thought about it for a while. By a while I mean years. This pick picks up where the first one left off, which is to say it doesn't really have a genre either. There's more variety this time. A little further forward in a few spots. Some of this was stuff I'd been sitting on, some of it showed up while I was looking for something else entirely. That's usually how it goes. Gee Whiz, where does the time go.

Gee Whiz, You're Neat Too

40 Billy Stewart - Sitting In The Park

41 Big Daddy - I Want Your Sex

42 Ruben And The Jets - Dedicated To The One I Love

43 The Platters - (You've Got) The Magic Touch

44 The Monotones - Book Of Love

45 Four Seasons - December 1963 (Oh What A Night)

46 Johnny Staton & The Feathers - Charlene

47 Candye Kane - Forgive Me

48 The Zombies - Goin' Out Of My Head

49 Fats Domino - I'm Walkin'

50 The Skyliners - Since I Don't Have You

51 Big Daddy - Like A Virgin

52 Skip And Flip - Cherry Pie

53 Clovers - Love Potion Number Nine

54 Frankie Valli And The Four Seasons - Big Girls Don't Cry

55 Big Sandy - Have Love Will Travel

56 The Chords - Sh-Boom

57 Chordettes - Lollipop

58 Big Daddy - Ice Ice Baby

59 Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers - Why Do Fools Fall In Love

60 Lesley Gore - You Don't Own Me

61 Little Caesar & The Romans - Those Oldies But Goodies (Remind Me Of You)

62 Ritchie Valens - Donna

63 Anthony & The Sophomores - Play Those Oldies, Mr. Dee-Jay

64 The Stray Cats - I Won't Stand In Your Way

65 10cc - Donna

66 The Earls - Remember Then

67 Ginny Arnell - Dumb Head

68 Paul Anka - Put Your Head On My Shoulder

69 The Dubs - Could This Be Magic

70 Boyz II Men - In The Still Of The Nite (I'll Remember)

71 Ruben And The Jets - Charlena

72 Big Daddy - Stayin' Alive

73 Sam Cooke - Wonderful World

74 Frank Zappa - Deseri

75 Dicky Doo & The Don'ts - Nee Nee Na Na Na Na Nu Nu

76 The Drifters - This Magic Moment

77 Coasters - Searchin'

Gee Whiz, You're Neat

It all started with a Rhino Records LP I got from Big Daddy. If you don't know Big Daddy, the short version is: they took current hits and recorded them as if they were made in the 50s. It was genius and hilarious and I played that record to death. And then I thought, well, what if I just put the real thing next to it? Old and new in one pick. Most people call this kind of music doo-wop, and some of it is. But some of it is rock and roll, and some of it is early soul, and some of it is just whatever teenagers were listening to when their parents weren't home. I still don't know what to call it. Gee Whiz, I just know it sounds right together.

Gee Whiz, You're Neat

01 Carla Thomas - Gee Whiz

02 The Crows - Gee

03 Big Daddy - Super Freak

04 Everly Brothers - All I Have To Do Is Dream

05 The Penguins - Earth Angel

06 Dion & The Belmonts - A Teenager In Love

07 Big Daddy - Just What I Needed

08 The Flamingos - I Only Have Eyes For You

09 Big Daddy - Eye Of The Tiger

10 The Diamonds - Little Darlin'

11 Big Daddy - I Write The Songs

12 Chuck Berry - Almost Grown

13 Rap Reiplinger - Acafella Jive

14 The Platters - Only You (And You Alone)

15 Fats Domino - Ain't That A Shame

16 The Essex - Easier Said Than Done

17 Del Shannon - Runaway

18 Big Daddy - Bette Davis Eyes

19 Mark Dinning - Teen Angel

20 Frankie Valli And The Four Seasons - Candy Girl

21 The Big Bopper - Chantilly Lace

22 Jerry Lee Lewis - Breathless

23 Bill Haley & The Comets - Rock Around The Clock

24 Big Daddy - Ebony And Ivory

25 Danny And The Juniors - At The Hop

26 Big Daddy - The Rose

27 The Cadillacs - Speedo

28 Little Richard - Send Me Some Lovin'

29 Everly Brothers - ('Til) I Kissed You

30 Big Daddy - Whip It

31 The Diamonds - The Stroll

32 Dion And The Belmonts - I Wonder Why

33 Gene Chandler - Duke Of Earl

34 Big Daddy - Hit Me With Your Best Shot

35 Big Daddy - You Don't Bring Me Flowers

36 Frankie Valli And The Four Seasons - Dawn (Go Away)

37 Big Daddy - Hotel California

38 Buddy Holly - Maybe, Baby

39 Jewel Akens - The Birds And The Bees

Funky Disco (Leopard) 6

Here we go with another round of that sweet spot where funk gets extra bouncy and disco gets extra nasty, and Volume 6 keeps the groove rolling with more 70s/early 80s heat — heavy on the bass lines, tight horns, and those irresistible dancefloor slaps, so Pick your favorites and crank it up because this one’s built for the party that refuses to quit. Funky Disco keeps growing. Got a track that belongs in the next one? Drop it in the comments — especially if it’s got that raw, sweaty, get-down energy we love.

Funky Disco 6

80 Commodores - Funky Situation

81 Skyy - First Time Around

82 The Tardy Disco-nesias - Grandpa Got The Groove

83 Parliament - Aqua Boogie (A Psychoalphadiscobetabioaquadoloop)

84 Fred Wesley - Blow Your Head

85 Cameo - Keep It Hot

86 Ohio Players - Skin Tight

87 The Fatback Band - Backstrokin'

88 Mass Production - Welcome To Our World (Of Merry Music)

89 The Bar-Kays - Too Hot To Stop (Pt. 1)

90 Slave - The Party Song

91 Graham Central Station - The Jam

92 T-Connection - At Midnight

April Fools 4

Happy April Fools! Some birthdays you just never forget. My cousin's falls on April 1st, which means every year her birthday message doubles as a prank threat. She's a good sport about it. That's also why the April Fools series exists — a once-a-year excuse to dig deep into jokers, jokes, and jokey energy across genres, eras, and languages. Volume whatever-this-is keeps that tradition going with 24 tracks spanning reggae dub, hip-hop, psych rock, new wave, French ye-ye, German schlager, and a few left turns even I didn't see coming. The Pick this round is Faith No More's reading of "I Started A Joke" — a cover that somehow out-saddens the Bee Gees original, which is saying something. As always, the joke's on you if you sleep on this one.

April Fools 4

64 Scientist - Joker Dub

65 Billy Myles - The Joker (That's What They Call Me)

66 Duran Duran - 911 Is A Joke

67 MCM And The Monster - Serious Joke

68 Eric B & Rakim - I Ain't No Joke

69 Sharon Van Etten - Joke Or A Lie

70 Garden Odyssey - The Joker

71 The Laurie Johnson Orchestra - Joker

72 Brian Jonestown Massacre - When Jokers Attack

73 Nina Hagen - Life Is A Joke

74 Conny Froboess - Jolly Joker  (Holl)

75 Robbie Williams & The Orb - I Started a Joke (I Started An Orb Mix)

76 The Ventures - Joker's Wild

77 Cherrie Vangelder-Smith - Jokers

78 Henriette Coulouvrat - Can't You Take A Joke Ha Ha Hi Hi!

79 Druids - Girl Can't Take a Joke

80 The Milestones - The Joker

81 kd Lang - The Joker

82 Faith No More - I Started A Joke

83 Lee Scratch Perry - The Joker

84 REM - The Worst Joke Ever

85 Wolfmother - Joker & The Thief

86 Queens Of The Stone Age - Running Joke

87 Pet Shop Boys - I Started A Joke

Deadbolt Picked

Since I have been looking at and listening to a variety of rockabilly, it only makes sense that I make this pick. Deadbolt says they are the scariest band ever. I don't know about that but they are fun. Horror pop, surf or surfabilly, psychobilly and their own brand of voodoobilly, I think they are cool. These are my favorites and even include a couple of tracks from one of their side projects I also like. It does not contain every fan favorite, but it does have many of them. It's my pick, so I included all my favorites. Ilike that the name plays off the lock illusion I attribute to their band name. That's why there are bones in the locking mechanism. Even though you technically can't pick a bolt.

Deadbolt Picked

01 Deadbolt - Blacktop Fever

02 Deadbolt - Voodoo Moonshine

03 Deadbolt - Hang Em High

04 Deadbolt - Hillbilly War

05 Deadbolt - Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

06 Deadbolt - Orange Blossom Special

07 Deadbolt - One Day I Will Kill You

08 Deadbolt - Tiki Man

09 Deadbolt - Telephone The Dead

10 Deadbolt - Zulu Death Mask

11 Deadbolt - Down In The Lab

12 Deadbolt - James Bond Theme-You Only Live Twice

13 Deadbolt - Voodoobilly Man

14 Deadbolt - Scare Me

15 Deadbolt - El Paso

16 Deadbolt - Cockeye

17 Deadbolt - Truck Driving S.O.B.

18 Deadbolt - Billy's Dead

19 Deadbolt - Last Time I Saw Cole

20 Deadbolt - El Perversio

21 Strangers 1800 - Rawhide

22 Strangers 1800 - Hang 'Em High

Shuckin' And Jivin' 2

I still have no idea what "genre" of music this pick is. There are hints of country and hints of hillbilly hick and some that doesn't at all. I asked AI to look at it and it said: Eclectic. I guess so. A couple of these artists appeared on volume 1 of Shuckin' & Jivin' but most are new to this series. I only think of hunting Brer Rabbit in the middle of the country about to meet up with the boys of Deliverance and driving a Harley. The cover is part of the ride that used to be at Disneyland from Bear Country Jamboree. None of the songs have anything to do with that. A few about drinkin' and eatin', a couple of covers and a few what I believe they call novelty records. It just all sounds good together. To me.

Shuckin' And Jivin' 2

23 Delta Spirit - Trashcan

24 Kaleo - Way Down We Go

25 Chickasaw Mudd Puppies - Chickenbone

26 Slim Cessna's Auto Club - This Is How We Do Things In The Country

27 The Record Company - Off The Ground

28 JJ Grey & Mofro - Country Ghetto

29 Highly Suspect - My Name Is Human

30 Pokey LaFarge - Something In The Water

31 Slobberbone - Gimme Back My Dog

32 Mumford & Sons - Little Lion Man

33 The Felice Brothers - Frankie's Gun!

34 Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Beat The Devil's Tattoo

35 Elle King - Ex's & Oh's

36 Shakey Graves - Dearly Departed

37 Gear Daddies - (I Wanna Drive The) Zamboni

38 Hayseed Dixie - Highway To Hell

39 Asylum Street Spankers - Beer

40 Caamp - By And By

41 The Gourds - Gin And Juice

42 Old Crow Medicine Show - Wagon Wheel

43 Reverend Horton Heat - Eat Steak

Auto-Mo-Billy

This one started on the stupid idea of the name. I wanted to get Rockabilly songs on this pick that all had something to do with cars. Automobiles. I am not really a car guy. My wife. She knows cars. People all around me know cars. My next door neighbor was a champion racer. Friends that love cars. I've actually had some cool cars in my life, but mostly it wasn't on purpose. I always wanted a VW Bus, so I had one of those. I've had English sport cars. An MG-B GT (which was fun just because of all the letters), a Spitfire (wouldn't mind getting another one of those.) I once had a car that had parts of five different model names on it (and five different shades of red paint - I called it my Hot Tamale). My fastest car ever was not my 1964 Mustang which I ruined by making it fast and loud and modern, but an old VW Bug that was also converted to be fast. Porsche engine. It was fun, but I got too many tickets in it. This comp is missing some big name car songs, but I don't care.

Auto-Mo-Billy

01 Psycho Devilles - Psycho Cadillac

02 Bob Cass - Corvette Baby

03 The Crew - Red Chevrolet

04 Wally Hughes - Convertible Car

05 Jack Kitchen - Hot Rod Boogie

06 Harry Hutchins - Rockin' Rollin' Cadilac

07 Rocky Davis - Hot Rod Baby

08 Flyin' Cats - Hot Rod Gang

09 Billy Burnette - Hot Rod Hillbilly

10 Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps - Race With the Devil

11 Sonny Wallace - Black Cadillac

12 Bobby Brown & The Backup Boosters - She Knows Cars

13 Brian Setzer Orchestra - Drive Like Lightning (Crash Like Thunder)

14 Tom Tall - Hot Rod Is Her Name

15 Arkie Shibley & His Mountain Dew Boys - Hot Rod Race

16 Gene Simmons - Peroxide Blond And A Hopped Up Model Ford

17 Jimmy Carroll - Big Green Car

18 The Camtwisters - Hotrod Twist

19 Pat Davis - Spinner Hub Caps

20 Session '57 - Cool Cruisin' Car

21 Richie Deran - Girl And A Hot Rod

22 Bill Sherill - Cadillac Baby

23 Bobby Verne - Red Hot Car

24 Tommy Lam - Speed Limit

25 Joyce Green - Black Cadillac

26 Larry Dowd - Pink Cadillac

27 Commander Cody & His Lost Planet Airmen - Hot Rod Lincoln

28 Bill Parsons - Hot Rod Volkswagen

29 Eddie Ringo - Full Racing Cam

30 Stray Cats - Look At That Cadillac

Bobby Orlando Big O

I'm very torn about this pick. I would never have said that I am a big fan Hi-NRG and yet without knowing the term, I am and always was a big fan. Everyone visiting this blog knows that I put on a lot of disco and frankly that's kind of what it is. I think of Giogio Morodor and Donna Summer I Feel Love. And one of the prolific purveyors of Hi-NRG productions was Bobby Orlando especially in the 80's. This pick is just a sampling of stuff he did. From writing to producing and everything in between Bobby O  had control of the dance floor for years. And a lot of it I had no idea he was a part of until later. Divine and the Flirts are a good example of my ignorance. I knew the tracks and played the songs, but I wouldn't have classified it as that genre and I had no idea that the Big O had anything to do with them. Enjoy revisiting this selection or hearing it with new ears.

Bobby Orlando Big O

01 Roni Griffith - Desire

02 The Flirts - Passion (Extended Mix)

03 Free Enterprise - Make It On My Own

04 Bobby O - She Has A Way

05 Girly - Working Girl (One Way Love Affair)

06 Divine - Native Love (12'' Version)

07 Oh Romeo - One More Shot

08 Hippies With Haircuts - Eye On You

09 Waterfront Home - Take A Chance On (On Me)

10 Bobby O & Claudja Barry - Whisper To A Scream

11 Beachfront - Once In A Lifetime

12 Gina Desire - Breathless

13 Banana Republic - Lonely Too Long

14 Wow - Bring On The Men

Swing Swing Swing 4

Four volumes in and I am clearly not over this. More is coming! The pick runs from the golden era heavyweights who invented the whole thing through the neo-swing revival acts that proved it never actually died. I think it just went underground for a while. As an amateur ballroom dancer for years, emphasis on amateur, there is nothing quite like a good swing tune for reminding your feet what they're supposed to be doing even when your brain has other ideas. This volume has a little more muscle and defiance to it than the previous three. Either way it swings. From sex to war to just drinking, it's all here this time. And every time. All through the ages.

Swing Swing Swing 4

65 Benny Goodman - Don't Be That Way

66 Duke Ellington - C Jam Blues

67 Gavin Povey & The Fabulous Oke She Moke She Pops - Hook Line & Sinker

68 The Indigo Kings - How Can It Be True

69 Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - What's The Matter With You

70 Harry James & His Music Makers - Two O'Clock Jump

71 The Lazy Jumpers - Salt And Pepper Boogie

72 Robyn Adele Anderson - Immigrant Song

73 Count Basie - Shorty George

74 Keely Smith - Swing, Swing, Swing (Sing, Sing, Sing)

75 Fletcher Henderson And His Orchestra - Wrappin' It Up

76 The Atomic Fireballs - Man With The Hex

77 Erskine Hawkins - Tippin' In

78 Woody Herman - Four Brothers

79 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - You & Me & Bottle Makes 3 Tonight (Baby)

80 Charlie Barnet - Skyliner

81 Jennifer Rocket - Stand Up Baby

82 Phantom Alley Swing - Pocket Full of Stars

83 Artie Shaw - Begin The Beguine

84 Maria Muldaur - It Ain't The Meat (It's The Motion)

85 Glenn Miller - Pennsylvania 6-5000

86 Jimmie Lunceford And His Orchestra - For Dancers Only

87 Louis Jordan And His Tympany Five - Choo Choo Ch'Boogie

88 The Mighty Blue Kings - Baby Drives Me Wild

89 Rob Heron & The Tea Pad Orchestra - Pull The Other One, Rob!

Salsoul Selection

This selection/pick sits right in the middle of a very specific corner of disco — the Salsoul Records world, which was its own thing even within the broader New York scene. Salsoul had its own DNA: Latin percussion, gospel-inflected vocals, lush orchestration, and a particular sense of drama that set it apart from the more stripped-down funk happening elsewhere. It's not the same universe as Patrick Adams, but there's definite overlap in spirit if not in sound — both were chasing something bigger and more emotional than the average dancefloor demanded. The label gave us some of the most beloved twelve-inch singles ever cut, and the remix culture around it — Gibbons, Pettibone — was as important as the records themselves. Thirteen tracks, no filler.

Salsoul Selection

01 Touch Of Class - I'm In Heaven

02 Loleatta Holloway - Hit And Run

03 Instant Funk - I Got My Mind Made Up

04 Bebu Silvetti - Spring Rain

05 The Salsoul Orchestra - Ooh I Love It (Love Break) (Moplen Radio Edit)

06 Charo & the Salsoul Orchestra - Dance A Little Bit Closer (Extended Version)

07 First Choice - Let No Man Put Asunder

08 Skyy - Call Me

09 Candido - Jingo (Original Shep Pettibone 12 inch Remix)

10 Carol Williams - More

11 Double Exposure - Ten Percent (Walter Gibbons 12 inch Mix)

12 Inner Life featuring Jocelyn Brown - Ain't No Mountain High Enough

13 Joe Bataan - Latin Strut

PAP Smear (Patrick Adams Pick) 3

This is the final piece of the Patrick Adams pick. I've been relistening to this, over the last few days and it's just good. And several of these disco tracks are probably stuff you had no idea were even related to Adams. Unless maybe you were a DJ, then maybe. A couple of repeat bands in here from previous volumes, even one track that supposedly is higher rated than previous pick. But I know what I like. Last volume I linked to another record label and here is another reason why I picked that label: Herbie Mann covering Celi Bee in a jazzy dance-y way.

PAP Smear 3

23 Bumblebee Unlimited - Love Bug

24 Dazzle - Slipped Disco

25 Sine - Just Let Me Do My Thing

26 Four Below Zero - My Baby's Got E.S.P.

27 Patrick Adams Presents Phreek - I'm A Big Freak (R•U•1•2)

28 Logg - You've Got That Something

29 Inner Life featuring Jocelyn Brown - Ain't No Mountain High Enough

30 The Sparks - Woe Woe

31 Universal Robot Band - Dance And Shake Your Tambourine

32 Marta Acuna - Dance, Dance, Dance

33 Rainbow Brown - Let's Go Another Round (Tom Moulton Extended Mix)

34 Herbie Mann - Superman

35 Wish & La-Rita Gaskin - Nice And Soft

PAP Smear (Patrick Adams Pick) 2

Patrick Adams pick is continued on this second volume. Not sure why I added smear to this, since I definitely am not trying to smear him. In fact his legacy is unsmearable. But Patrick Adams Pick was too deliciously going to be PAP and that's what I thought of. Another non-New York disco outfit also came to mind and that was TK (Terry Kane) Records. Sunny and free Florida but also a healthy production team. Lots of different one off band names with Adams and lots of mentoring of young groups hoping to make it. And he gave them the best possible start. Lots of people like the boys from Chic credited Adams after he died and listening to some of these chord progressions you can hear why.

PAP Smear 2

11 Musique - Keep On Jumpin' (Remix)

12 Sine - Happy Is The Only Way

13 Dazzle - You Dazzle Me!!!

14 Sandy's Gang - Hungry (12' Extended Version)

15 Black Ivory - I Keep Asking You Questions

16 The Golden Flamingo Orchestra - The Guardian Angel Is Watching Over Us

17 Logg - I Know You Will (Larry Levan 12 inch Remix)

18 Rainbow Brown - Till You Surrender (Special Remix)

19 Louie Vega, Patrick Adams & Cloud Two featuring Anane - Rebel Nation

20 Patrick Adams - Jack In The Bush

21 Venus Dodson - Night Rider

22 The Shades Of Love - Come Inside (12'')

PAP Smear (Patrick Adams Pick) 1

If you have followed this site for awhile, you know that I love disco and also that I love following producers. This Patrick Adams pick does both. Going through his stuff was amazing and there was a deluge of songs, bands etc that I had not connected to Adams. This is going to be three volumes long. I was fascinated how even though they didn't work together there were some sonic parallels to Rinder & Lewis. One was East Coast, one was West. They didn't do the same stuff, but I kept hearing it underneath. Anyway this volume has the first song I ever owned by Patrick Adams (and I had no idea then it was him). In case you are wondering, it was Musique. But listen to these songs!

PAP Smear 1

01 Phreek featuring Christie Shire - Weekend (12'' Extended Version)

02 Wish & Fonda Rae - Touch Me (All Night Long)

03 Inner Life featuring Jocelyn Brown - Make It Last Forever

04 Patrick Adams Initiative - Kings And Queens

05 Universal Robot Band - Barely Breaking Even (Club Version)

06 Musique - In The Bush

07 Caress - Opportunity

08 Bumblebee Unlimited - Lady Bug (12 inch Mix)

09 Cloud One - Atmosphere Strut

10 The Sparks - Cool It

Almost Made It

I am not going to go over every band in here on this pick. Just suffice it to say that many of these bands led to bigger bands later, or to play with much bigger bands, or to get hits with someone else. Look them up, all the info is available. Some Canadian bands that should have hit big, too. Check out my Not Hits for related stuff. I have seen some of these bands in little clubs before they turned into hit monsters. I've even been in the personal recording studio of at least one. Whoo, I'm important. No. They were not big at the time at all. Anyway, check them out, follow where they went.

Almost Made It

01 Uncle Rainbow - Anyway The Wind Blows

02 Shooting Star - Hang On For Your Life

03 Highway Robbery - Fifteen

04 Granicus - Bad Talk

05 Angel - Tower

06 Orion The Hunter - So You Ran

07 Legs Diamond - Stage Fright

08 Badlands - Dreams In The Dark

09 Harlequin - Innocence

10 Prism - Don't Let Him Know

11 Max Webster - Paradise Skies

12 Hush - Gotta Get Back To You

13 Zebra - Tell Me What You Want

14 Starz - Cherry Baby

15 Spys - Don't Run My Life

16 Trillion - Big Boy

17 Touch - Listen (Can You Feel It)

18 Michael Stanley Band - He Can't Love You

19 Shnazz - Bad Boys

20 Hanoi Rocks - Tragedy

Worst Songs Ever 2

You didn't think there were only 21 did you? Notice, that I telegraphed that there were 40 in the total list (look at the cover closely). Yesterday was just the warm up, today is the finale. Now this pick will give you the full top 40 of the worst songs ever. Not sure why anyone would purposely try to listen to these more than once, but beauty is in the ear of the beholder they say (Or something like that). I really though I had posted these two a long time ago and someone brought up that I never followed through, so here it is. The thing that's funny is that several of these songs have been on client's Must Play list. Most were years ago, though. 

Worst Songs Ever 2

22 Des'ree - Life

23 Limp Bizkit - Nookie

24 Newsong - The Christmas Shoes

25 Sisqo - Thong Song

26 Hampton The Hampster - The Hampster Dance Song

27 Cheeky Girls - Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum) Radio Edit

28 Counting Crows Ft Vanessa Carlton - Big Yellow Taxi

29 Black Eyed Peas - My Humps

30 James Blunt - You're Beautiful

31 Nickelback - Rockstar

32 Artists For Haiti - We Are The World 25 For Haiti

33 Insane Clown Posse - Miracles

34 Justin Bieber & Ludacris - Baby

35 Cher Lloyd - Swagger Jagger

36 Rebecca Black - Friday

37 Double Take - Hot Problems

38 Alison Gold - Chinese Food

39 Play N Skillz featuring Redfoo, Lil Jon, Enertia McFly - Literally I Can't

40 Jake Paul - It's Everyday Bro

Worst Songs Ever 1

The following songs in this pick have been named by critics, broadcasters, composers, and 
listeners as the "worst ever". Examples of sources include VH1's 50 Most Awesomely Bad Songs Ever and Blender magazine's Run for Your Life! It's the 50 Worst Songs Ever!.  They are in release date order. From 1953 to 2017. Some of these songs were commercially successful, some highly catchy ear worms (see the Too Catchy series).  Most DJ's realize that the "Must Play" list and the "Do Not Play" list often overlaps. And yet at least a few of these songs will never make it to the must play list.

Worst Songs Ever 1

01 Harry Kari & His Six Saki Sippers - Yes Sir, That's My Baby

02 Napoleon XIV - !aaah-Ah, Yawa Em Ekat Ot Gnimoc Er'yeht

03 Beatles - Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

04 Legendary Stardust Cowboy - Paralyzed

05 Richard Harris - Macarthur Park

06 Paul Anka with Odia Coates - (You're) Having My Baby

07 Paper Lace - Billy, Don't Be A Hero

08 Rick Dees - Disco Duck (Pt. 1)

09 Reginald Bosanquet - Dance With Me

10 The Tweets - Birdie Song

11 Paul McCartney with Stevie Wonder - Ebony and Ivory

12 Spandau Ballet - True

13 Black Lace - Agadoo

14 Phil Collins - Sussudio

15 Starship - We Built This City

16 Bobby McFerrin - Don't Worry Be Happy

17 Vanilla Ice - Ice Ice Baby

18 4 Non Blondes - What's Up

19 Billy Ray Cyrus - Achy Breaky Heart

20 Take That - Could It Be Magic

21 Mr. Blobby - Mr Blobby

World Domination 6

I've always built these the same way a good night out actually works — you don't open at full speed and you don't end there either. You find an entry point, let the room warm up, push it somewhere it didn't know it was going, then bring it back down so nobody feels mugged on the way out. This pick does exactly that, and if you listen straight through you'll feel it in your legs before you figure out what's happening. Fifteen tracks, half a dozen languages I can't speak, corners of the map I've never been to, and it all fits together like it was always supposed to. That's the whole point of this World Domination series. That has always been the whole point. One hundred and three tracks in and I'm still not done taking over.

World Domination 6

89 Waqal Studio - Dhaanto Cusub Dirgaax (Jigjiga Dhaanto Party)

90 King Sunny Ade - Ja Funmi (Mr West Remix)

91 Cornershop - Brimful of Asha (Norman Cook Remix)

92 Tiki Tokkers - Global Groove (Hana Hou)

93 Batuk featuring Lebon, Giovanni Kiyingi & Winnie - Forca Forca

94 Bajofondo Tango Club featuring Ryota Komatsu - Pa' Bailar

95 Shantel - Disko Partizani

96 Manu Dibango - New-Bell (Hard Pulsation)

97 Sergent Garcia - Acabar Mal

98 Sofi Tukker - Drinkee

99 DJ Arafat - Tapis Velo

100 Kinky - Oye Como Va (Extended Mix)

101 Coati Mundi - El Coco Loco (So So Bad)

102 Salome De Bahia - Outro Lugar (Club Mix)

103 Malcolm Mclaren - Soweto

World Domination 5

I’ve spent enough nights at SOB’s in NYC to know that "Sounds of Brazil" was always a convenient misnomer for a much wider, deeper kind of global friction. I’d sit there with those big bottles of Xingu black beer, bracing for the long taxi ride back and the inevitable late-night mess—usually involving me holding back some girl’s hair while she puked in my hotel bathroom. It was a gritty, high-fidelity education in how a relentless beat can occupy a space and the people in it. This latest pick for my ongoing quest for world domination is built on that same infectious, earth-shaking stomp. Just the kind of high-velocity rhythmic authority that doesn't need a translator to take over a room. Turn it up; the occupation has officially entered its next phase.

World Domination 5

75 Dengue Dengue Dengue - Simiolo (Dazed Dog Remix)

76 Konk - Your Life (Party Mix)

77 Talking Heads - I Zimbra (12" Version)

78 Basement Jaxx - Samba Magic

79 MC Fioti with Future, J Balvin, Stefflon Don & Juan Magan - Bum Bum Tam Tam

80 Kabza De Small & DJ Maphorisa featuring Ami Faku - Abalele

81 Art Of Noise - Yebo! (Mbaqanga)

82 Nicola Cruz - Colibria

83 Tejun Trouble - Bayou Boogie!

84 Chancha Via Circuito featuring Mateo Kingman - Ilalу

85 Bnot Avraham - We Build Together

86 Balkan Beat Box - Hermetico

87 Mungo's Hi Fi featuring Pupajim - Bike Rider

88 Ah Puch & Di Conch Fritters - San Pedro All Day

Swing Swing Swing 3

I'm on a Swing kick aren't I? Three in a row! But they're all good. A couple of big band versions of newer songs, but the bulk are not. But this pick is a combination of traditional swing bands and some of the new vanguard of swing. Get the last two days writeups for more. I'm tired and going to bed. Sorry, no long blurb today. And it's the same cover as before.

Swing Swing Swing 3

42 Benny Goodman - King Porter Stomp

43 Pink Turtle - Walk On the Wild Side

44 Duke Ellington - It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)

45 The Flying Neutrinos - Mr. Zoot Suit

46 Squirrel Nut Zippers - Put A Lid On It

47 The Jive Aces - Bring Me Sunshine

48 Indigo Swing - Swing Lover

49 Louis Prima - Jump, Jive, An' Wail

50 Count Basie & His Orchestra - Jumpin' at the Woodside

51 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - Go Daddy-O

52 Vanguard Aces - Rocco's Joint

53 Erskine Hawkins - Tuxedo Junction

54 Big Joe Turner - Boogie Woogie Country Girl

55 Steve Lucky & Rhumba Bums - Jump Back

56 Robin McKelle - Abracadabra

57 Brian Setzer Orchestra - This Cat's On A Hot Tin Roof

58 Louis Jordan - Caldonia

59 Royal Crown Revue - Barflies At The Beach

60 Lionel Hampton - Hamp's Boogie Woogie

61 Nat King Cole And His Trio - Get Your Kicks On Route 66

62 Cherry Poppin' Daddies - Brown Derby Jump

63 Ella Fitzgerald - Undecided

64 Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys - Jumping From 6 To 6

Swing, Swing, Swing 2

Volume two of this pick and the floor is still jumping — same mix of golden era heavyweights and neo-swing acts that proved the whole thing never really went anywhere, it just went underground for a while. I've said it before but there is nothing quite like a good swing tune for reminding your feet what they're supposed to be doing even when the rest of you hasn't had enough coffee. This volume gets a little wilder than the first, leans a little harder into the revival side, and somewhere in the middle there is a brand new track that is either about clean eating and healthy living or absolutely is not, depending on who's asking. Stripping away any pretense, this is just more of what the first one was — music built for a room full of people who want to move and aren't overthinking it. And I know, Happy St Patrick's Day. At least the cover is green...

Swing, Swing, Swing 2

19 Cherry Poppin' Daddies - Zoot Suit Riot

20 Benny Goodman - Stompin' At The Savoy

21 Count Basie - One O'Clock Jump

22 Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - Oo Poppa Do

23 Lionel Hampton - Flying Home

24 Atomic Fireballs - Spanish Fly

25 The New Morty Show - In The Groove

26 Tommy Dorsey - Opus One

27 Bill Elliott Swing Orchestra - Bill's Bounce

28 Gene Krupa - Bugle Call Rag

29 Duke Ellington - Cotton Tail

30 Anita Hardcok - I Need a Stiff Cocktail Tonight

31 Royal Crown Revue - Hey Pachuco!

32 Maha Mayhem - Whole Lotta Wellness

33 Artie Shaw - Frenesi

34 Harry James - Ciribiribin

35 Crescent City Maulers - Jump, Jive, an' Wail

36 Jimmie Lunceford And His Orchestra - Rhythm Is Our Business

37 Glenn Miller - Chattanooga Choo Choo

38 Cab Calloway - Minnie the Moocher

39 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - Mr. Pinstripe Suit

40 Johnny Favourite Swing Orchestra - We Still Talk the Way Lovers Do

41 Woody Herman - Woodchopper's Ball

Swing Swing Swing

This pick starts with the big band era and doesn't apologize for a second — Goodman, Ellington, Basie, Miller, Sinatra, Prima, all the usual suspects doing what they did better than anyone has since, and then it opens up into some of the deeper cuts that don't get enough daylight. I've been an amateur ballroom dancer for years, emphasis on amateur, and there is nothing quite like a good swing tune for reminding your feet what they're supposed to be doing even when your brain disagrees. The playlist runs from the classic radio names through some of the neo-swing revival acts that proved the whole thing still had a pulse, and stripping away the nostalgia for a second, this music just moves — it's built for a room full of people who want to have a good time and aren't overthinking it.

Swing Swing Swing

01 Les Brown - Leap Frog

02 Benny Goodman - Sing, Sing, Sing (with a Swing)

03 Glenn Miller Orchestra - In The Mood

04 Duke Ellington - Take The A Train

05 Dean Martin - Who's Got The Action

06 Andrews Sisters - Bei Mir Bist Du Schon (Means Your Grand)

07 Dinah Washington - Christopher Columbus

08 Count Basie Band - Shiny Stockings

09 Frank Sinatra - Fly Me To The Moon (In Other Words)

10 Dean Martin - Who Was That Lady

11 Louis Jordan - Is You Is, Or Is You Ain't (Ma Baby)

12 Louis Prima - Just A Gigolo-Ain't Got Nobody

13 Joe Liggins - The Honeydripper

14 Blue Plate Special - Night Out

15 Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers - Blue Skies

16 Dem Brooklyn Bums - Baseball Bat Boogie

17 Fly-Rite Boys - Rosetta

18 Steve Lucky & The Rhumba Bums - Jumptown

Stripping

Yesterday and the day before were two volumes that were more about what was actually played at the strip club I worked at — this one is a different animal. This pick is more of a stripping playlist for home, the kind of tracks that have that slow-burn, take-it-off energy whether or not they ever saw the inside of a club, though a few of them did make it onto the rotation. The mix goes places you might not expect, from classic soul to new wave to pure 90s R&B, and it holds together better than it has any right to. I still have a soft spot for that whole world, even if I don't get out to those places much anymore — it was a job that taught you not to judge, and most of the people in it were a lot more interesting than you'd expect.

Stripping

01 Joe Cocker - You Can Leave Your Hat On

02 Adina Howard - Freak Like Me

03 2Pac featuring K-Ci & Jojo - How Do U Want It

04 George Michael - I Want Your Sex (Parts 1 And 2)

05 Samantha Fox - Touch Me (I Want Your Body)

06 Aretha Franklin - (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman

07 Bell Biv Devoe - Poison

08 Michael Buble - Feeling Good

09 Waze & Odyssey vs R. Kelly - Bump & Grind (2014 Radio edit)

10 Shandi - He's a Dream

11 Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)

12 Frank Ocean - Thinkin Bout You

13 Sir Mix-A-Lot - Put 'Em On the Glass

14 R. Kelly - Bump And Grind

15 Silk - Freak Me

16 Ciara - Body Party

17 Ginuwine - Pony

18 Beyonce - Fever

19 Billy Idol - Cradle of Love

20 Miley Cyrus - We Can't Stop

Stripper Songs 2

First, it's Pi day, so I have to acknowledge that — Happy Pi Day! And then this second volume of what I was spinning during my time as a strip club DJ and MC, and this one gets a little more eclectic — rock, R&B, pop, and a couple of genuine deep cuts that somehow all made sense at 11pm on a Saturday. This pick reflects how wide the range actually was; the girls picked their own songs and you learned a lot about a person from what they chose to perform to. The job had its own ecosystem — you got tipped by the dancers, you got to know people, and like any workplace there were the hardworking ones, the ones putting themselves through school, the drama queens, and everyone in between. Tomorrow I'll post the one that's a little more... personal.

Stripper Songs 2

20 Lil Wayne and T-Pain - Got Money

21 Gary Clark Jr - Bright Lights

22 Whitesnake - Here I Go Again

23 Alannah Myles - Black Velvet

24 Poison - Unskinny Bop

25 Rob Zombie - Living Dead Girl

26 Destiny's Child - Bootylicious

27 Usher - Yeah (Pop Edit)

28 Britney Spears - I'm a Slave 4 U

29 Kelis - Milkshake

30 Muse - Supermassive Black Hole

31 Van Halen - Hot For Teacher

32 50 Cent with Olivia - Candyshop

33 Katy Perry - I Kissed A Girl

34 Rihanna - Pour It Up

35 Theory Of A Dead Man - Bad Girlfriend

36 Snoop Dogg - Wet

37 Traci Lords - Control

38 Nickelback - Shakin' Hands

Stripper Songs 1

I spent a few years behind the decks at a strip club and it was one of the more interesting gigs I've ever had — hard work, loud, competitive, and honestly a lot of fun once you figured out the rhythm of the room. This pick leans into the harder, rock-heavy side of what the girls actually performed to, and the range runs from classic rock warhorses to early 2000s hip hop and a few genuinely dark choices that you might not expect. Some of those dancers had serious taste. Stripping to the right song is its own art form, and these were the ones that tended to make the room pay attention. I had this awhile and hadn't posted it here, but Butterboy on his amazing site posted some burlesque strip songs and it reminded me of my own.

Strippers 1

01 Lenny Kravitz - American Woman

02 Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar On Me

03 Warrant - Cherry Pie

04 Nine Inch Nails - Closer

05 Buckcherry - Crazy Bitch

06 Christina Aguilera - Dirrty

07 Type O Negative - Black no. 1

08 Guns N' Roses - Paradise City

09 Pussycat Dolls featuring Snoop Dogg - Buttons

10 Nelly - Hot In Herre

11 Kid Rock - So Hott

12 Busta Rhymes, The Pussycat Dolls - Don't Cha

13 Kix - Girl Money

14 David Guetta & Taio Cruz - Little Bad Girl

15 Flo Rida featuring T-Pain - Low

16 AC-DC - You Shook Me All Night Long

17 Motley Crue - Girls, Girls, Girls

18 Marilyn Manson - The Beautiful People

19 My Darkest Days - Porn Star Dancing

World Domination 4

Another World Domination pick. The only rule has always been the same one — would it work on the dancefloor? This time I went looking at Western bands who heard African rhythms, Caribbean beats and Asian music and just couldn't help themselves. The result fits right alongside the previous World Domination picks. I have little idea what half of it means and I still don't care, as long as it moves your feet it's in. I still think this would make a great radio station (or maybe a club night). Tell me what you would add or leave off.

World Domination 4

61 Sonido Gallo Negro - Bocanegra

62 RDB with Snoop Dogg - Singh Is Kinng

63 Altin Gun - Goca Dunya

64 Achar On The Side - Desi At Heart (Tandoor 12 inch Drop Mix)

65 Shantel - Bucovina

66 Cheb Sabr - On Danse Quand Même (1996 Rai Version)

67 Mansa Agba Gamba Ase - Fox In The Henhouse (Save the Vote)

68 Tiki Tokkers - After Dark Aloha

69 Systema Solar - Yo Voy Ganao

70 KOKOKO! - Tokoliana

71 Acid Arab - Stil

72 Candido - Jingo (Original Shep Pettibone 12 inch Remix)

73 Don Armando's Second Avenue Rhumba Band - Deputy Of Love

74 Pigbag - Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag (Original 1982 12 inch Single Mix)

What's The Connection? Brothers 2

Not going to write mush, since it was just a few days ago when I did Brothers 1. This continues where I left off, so now you get more of the songs with Brother in the title. My brother is gone and maybe I should have waited until his birthday came around again, but I am impatient, so here is the next part. That's all you get until next year, though. And these aren't just leftovers, there are some killer tracks here!

What's The Connection? Brothers 2

19 The Winstons - Amen, Brother

20 Carole King - Brother, Brother

21 Louis Armstrong - Hello Brother

22 The Spinners - Brother To Brother

23 Herbie Hancock - Lil' Brother

24 Avicii - Hey Brother

25 The Solicitors - Music for the Brothers

26 Autry Inman - Ballad Of Two Brothers

27 Todd Rundgren - Soul Brother

28 Cymande - Brothers On The Slide

29 Ohio Players - Hard To Love Your Brother

30 The Andrews Sisters - Bounce Me Brothers With A Solid Four

31 Oh-Ok - Brother

32 Tabla Beat Science - Big Brother

34 Santana - Song for My Brother

34 The Fatback Band with Johnny King - Keep On Brother Keep On

35 The White Stripes - Baby Brother

36 Blessid Union Of Souls - Brother My Brother

37 REM - 7 Chinese Brothers

38 D.A.F. - Brothers (Gabi's Mix)

39 Kinks - Brother

Soca 4

More straight-from-the-islands energy to keep things moving. Soca’s that perfect mix of calypso’s storytelling soul + Trinidad’s unbeatable rhythm section + a splash of everything the Caribbean throws in — it’s born right there in the heart of the islands, and you can feel the sun, the jump-up crowds, and the pure joy in every beat. Soca is born to make you smile and sweat at the same time. Give the whole run a listen; you’ll feel why it’s still the soundtrack to good times. This pick captures that magic: big hooks, wine commands, road march drive, and grooves that make you move without thinking twice. 

Soca 4

52 Alison Hinds - Roll It Gal

53 Super Blue - Get Something and Wave

54 Lyrikal - Cloud 9

55 Marzville - Give It to Ya

56 Nadia Batson - Fattt

57 King Bubba - Calling in Sick

58 Krosfyah - Oil Pumping

59 Erphaan Alves - Intentions (Wine & Touch)

60 Island Strategy - Put Your Peppers On

61 Motto - Uber Everywhere

62 Shal Marshall - Splinters

63 Freezy - Split in De Middle

64 Fimba - Funky Business

65 Viking Ding Dong - Leave It Alone

66 Zoelah - Wine Up On Me

67 Speady - Hold Ya Bam Bam

68 United Sisters - Whoa Donkey

69 Linky First - Rock and Come In

70 Square One featuring Andy Armstrong - Turn It Around

71 Mac Fingal - Big Belly Man