Playlist : November 29th - December 3rd, 2010

Well, what a week it’s been in the world of tunes.

I got a crush on Wilco all over again last week. I also confirmed my love for Best Coast. Both bands helped bring something to the plate this week. With Wilco, it was twang and lyrical songs with real emotion and complex narrative. Best Coast made a little bit of noise a good thing. What came out of that jumbled mix looks like this:

• The National - Alligator : The official full length third album from The National was released in 2005. They had a solid following before that with their debut self-titled, but it wasn't until 2007s Boxer that they 'blew up'. I'm a big fan of the debut, but Alligator is a quality set including the superb Daughters of the Soho Riots and Mr November - the latter used as an informal Barack Obama theme song.

• The Bob Dylan - Bootleg Series Vol. 1 : With the recent release of the Witmark Demos (Bootleg Series Vol. 9), Dylan's bootlegs are becoming like the Police Academy franchise - except awesome. This the first disc in a three disc set and contains mostly early finger-picked folk songs written when Robert Zimmerman first came to New York City. Disc 2 next week.

• Cold Chisel - Breakfast at Sweethearts : Chisel! amirite? Growing up with a love of all things 'bogan', I was exposed to Chisel very early on. However, for the most part, everybody got their Chisel fix from Radio Songs, the Best Of compilation (and later Gold). It was the only Chisel CD I owned until recently. The title track of this LP is one of their best.

• The Slits - Cut : The Slits were a punk band out of the UK who formed in the genre's heyday of 1976 (before it officially broke). Their sound is like a perfect segue between the raw distortion of Punk, the yet to be popular Ska pop and the much later New Wave. The lead singer of The Slits, Ari Up, died last month. Cancer. Fuck Cancer.

• Indigo Girls - Despite Our Differences : When I decided to put this on my list, I tweeted that I was going to sing a song from Cougar Town - Comfortable With My Sexuality. Yes the Indigo Girls are best known as lesbian singer songwriters, but something they really do well is lyrics and acoustic guitar. I like both of those. With songs on this disc like Dirt and Dead Ends about a neighbor with an illicit methamphetamine lab and the road trip themed Three County Highway, I enjoy the stories these ladies tell. So there.

• Prince - Dirty Mind : A recent formspring.me question I got asked who the most underrated musician was. My answer was unequivocally Prince. People tend to see the Purple one as just this guy who changed his name to a squiggle and wears feminine clothes (or had a rib removed in order to perform autofellatio, if you're into urban myths). Most of them have no idea that he is a multi-instrumentalist who carves pure gold out of guitar strings and quite possibly channels the ghost of the late great Jimi Hendrix. Plus, he is a funky mutha-ucka.

• The Muffs - The Muffs : The Muffs are an all girl alterna-grunge type band formed in 1991 in SoCal. This is their 1993 self-titled debut. Probably their most famous track is their cover of Kids In America which appears on the Clueless soundtrack. This LP is just a collection of noisy indie pop bubbles.

• Run DMC - Raising Hell : My friends are probably sick of this story, but back in 1985, between Primary School and High School, my then best friend came home from Bali with a tape for me. He told me it was 'Breakdance' music (we had been b-boys in 1984). Breakdance was already played out, so I scoffed. When he went home, I threw that tape on. It was Raising Hell. And within months, Walk This Way and by association, Rap was the biggest thing on the planet. This album watered my Hip Hop seed; planted with breakdance in 1983.

• VA - Thunder Road - Songs Inspired by the Boss : I'm hoping to get hold of The Promise for next week, Springsteen's outtakes from the acclaimed Darkness On The Edge Of Town. In the meantime, this is another great Uncut magazine compilation, this time full of Springsteen covers by a variety of artists from country to art rock. Stand outs are my favourites the Cowboy Junkies and Mary Lou Lord's subdued rendition of Thunder Road.

• The New Pornographers - Together : It wasn't until my mate Sunky went to The New Pornographers gig recently that I knew the always brilliant Neko Case was fronting the band. This is their latest release and is a nice showcase of Neko's voice and Carl Newman's songwriting. Also interesting is an appearance by the horn section of Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings.

About the wisest thing I’ve heard this week was from Miss 4, who said (and is fond of saying) ‘Can’t we all just get up with each other?’ which is her take on getting along. So, answer that, Koreas? Can’t we all just get up with each other? Of course we can.

Ya’ll come back now, ya hear?

What is your least favourite chord?

What is your least favourite chord?

Answer here

Playlist : November 22nd - 26th, 2010

Hello and welcome to Work Tunes.

This week's list has a little bit of an Australian flavour with Bob Evans and You Am I, as well as some 90s classics from The Breeders and Pearl Jam. Check it out.

• The Breeders - Last Splash : The first Breeders song I ever heard was Cannonball, which made it onto the first JJJ Hottest 100 compilation. That great song plus Divine Hammer and Driving on 9 all appear on this LP. A little bit of early 90s alternapop never hurt anyone.

• Pearl Jam - Vs : Okay, a lot of early 90s alternapop never hurt anyone. It has been a long time between listens for me and Vs. I lined up in the High Street mall in Fremantle, at 7am, having gotten up at 6am just to get there on time from Kwinana and buy this CD on it's world-wide simultaneous release. Never managed to get stinking concert tickets though.

• Wilco - Summerteeth : Another of my most loved albums that has been criminally neglected of late simply because I haven't gotten around to putting it on my iPod again. The very brilliant Via Chicago and the warmly moody How To Fight Loneliness are standouts along with the chaotic jamming of Shot In The Arm.

• Bob Evans - Suburban Kid : I think it's a great idea for a front man or anyone in a band with their own ideas about music to break off and do something on the side without splitting up the group. As Bob Evans, Kevin from Jebediah gives us something a lot more country twang and a little more lyrical than the usual Jebs fare.

• VA - Uncut - We All Shine On : Just another great free CD from UNCUT magazine out of the UK. This one features new music (at the time) from Teenage Fanclub, The Gaslight Anthem, Deer Tick, Los Lobos and others.

• VA - Return of the Grievous Angel : A fitting tribute to the late country rock pioneer Gram Parsons. Cowboy Junkies, Elvis Costello, Evan Dando, Beck, Whiskeytown and a heap of alt-country acts who owe much of their art to Gram's influence cover Parsons' songs from Hickory Wind to $1000 Wedding.

• Camera Obscura - Underachievers, Please Try Harder : A few choice tweets from the very funny Sarah Silverman introduced me to this dreamy acoustic pop duo with Scottish accents. Their simple melodies and layered guitars make for good listening.

• You Am I - Sound As Ever : The last time I took a You Am I album to work it was the Best Of compilation, Cream and the Crock. Along with Hifi Way, Sound As Ever was the very first You Am I LP I got right into. Since then I've become a big fan of Tim Rogers' solo and side stuff (with the Temperance Union) but these old YAIs still rock.

• Main Source - Breaking Atoms : This is the 1991 debut LP from Main Source. The track Live at the Barbeque features the very first released recording of rap superstar Nas. This album sits somewhere between the conscious and funky rap of the golden age and the hardcore yrics of gangsta rap that came soon after.

• Nas & Common - Uncommonly Nasty : This 2006 release features tracks from both Nas & Common who are known (more so Common) for a little bit of jazz in their sway and a message to preach. Tracks on this album contain several of the barbs that Nas shot at Jay-Z which fuelled their infamous beef.

That's the week's soundtrack. I hope you find something new. No words of wisdom this week, except possibly... nope. Wait... no.

Playlist : November 15th - 19th, 2010

Hey, what's happening cats? Been a good week in your world? Mine has been kind of same old, same old. But, you know what they say - no news is good news.

A lot of what I'll be listening to this week is fairly laid back. Apart from some grooves from Cee Lo Green and Jamiroquai, and a little bit of obligatory Skip Hop from Pegz, everything else is easy like Year 8 maths. Check it out:

• Elvis Costello - The Best of Elvis Costello : It has been a good while since I tucked into my favourite EC album, Spike. Much of his more recent fare is a little on the middle of the road lounge jazz side - although his late night talk show features some great performances. Early on in his career, Costello was known as Punk and then among the vanguard of the Post Punk and New Wave movements. These are all still great songs.

• Melissa Etheridge - Brave And Crazy : With much less of the vitriole and psychotic obsession of her debut self-titled album, ME's second release is still very raw, if somewhat more subtle and subdued. The romantic road trip of Sleep While I Drive and the deep remorse of You Used To Love To Dance are placed easily beside the incensed outrage of No Souvenirs. This is a decent album prior to Etheridge's peak, Your Little Secret.

• Pegz - Capricorn Cat : I put a bid on Pegz vinyl recently. It was signed and online to raise money in the Heat for Huntz appeal. It wasn't this album, it was the brilliant Axis. The auction isn't over, but I'm not prepared to pay $150+ for it. I'm going to sulk and play Capricorn Cat instead. I like Pegz.

• Concrete Blonde - Free : At the request of one of my Song of the Week buddies, Sunky, I recently made a Concrete Blonde mixtape for him as he only knew Joey. I haven't listened to a lot of Blonde since the late 90s when I saw Johnette Napolitano play live, acoustic and solo. Free is my personal favourite Blonde LP, and the title track that never made the album is brilliant. It's on my mixtape though. If you drop me an email, I'll hook you up with it.

• The Lightning Seeds - Cloudcuckooland : I didn't know The Lightning Seeds when one day I saw a cassette in a hock shop for $1. Being it was the early 90s and everything that looked a little indie was of instant interest, I grabbed the tape and happily enough I dug it. Which is lucky, because I wasn't expecting such synth based pop. It's not bad though, check it out.

• Cee Lo Green - The Ladykiller : It seems like everywhere I go I'm hearing F$#^ You! That's Cee Lo's song, that's not random people screaming out in the street. Although, this one time... Anyway, I like that the Soul just keeps growing and growing. It seems to me like everyone is getting their groove on at the minute. Long may true Soul rule the airwaves.

• Jamiroquai - Rock Dust Light Star : Speaking of getting your groove on, this is the latest release from Jamiroquai, the UK funk pop outfit fronted by the often be-hatted Jay Kay. An ex-boss and friend of mine (hello Chris) introduced me to Jamiroquai and it's good music just to have on. Not really musical wallpaper, but not really deep and meaningful music either - although it quite often has a 'message' (given the 'iroquai' bit of their name comes from the Iroquois Native American tribe). Good stuff for a Friday, that's for sure.

• Ryan Adams & The Cardinals - Live at Metropolis Fremantle : I was at this gig in the front row and I've only this week been handed the link to the archive. I have downloaded the files and listened to a few snippets for quality - it's good. It was a great gig too. You can download the whole thing from the link in this title. Coming up soon, the Cardinals are releasing a double album of music created around the time of the epic 2LP Cold Roses album, further illustrating how prolific Grizzly once was.I will most likely play this recording more than once this week.

• Kathleen Edwards - Back To Me : Spinning Failer a couple of weeks ago was a good decision. I had forgotten how much I liked Edwards' writing and melody and I was so surprised, I tweeted it. This week I've decided on Back To Me rather than Ask For Flowers because the latter is a little sadder and quieter and as Flav would say 'I ain't tryin' to hear that' right now. As mentioned when I blogged about Failer, the track Old Time Sake from this set is in my 'Hottest 100'.

• VA - Uncut - Love Above All: 11 Songs Compiled By Devendra Banhart : I hadn't heard much of Devendra Banhart's music before I saw a tour documentary about him (The Family Jams). He definitely has a distinctive style. This isn't his music though, it's eleven songs he chose for an Uncut magazine compilation. Uncut compilations very rarely disappoint me, so I thought I'd check this one out.

That's it for another week of tunes at work. I'm hoping my Soul Train DVDs will come soon, and if they do, expect lots of funk next week.

This week's free advice: Be all that you can be bothered being. Ciao for niao cats.

Playlist : November 8th - 12th, 2010

Welcome to another working week of Work Tunes. Maybe the changing weather and a little bit of rain is to blame, but things seem a little twangy and chilled on this week's playlist.

See what I mean:

• R.E.M. - Accelerate : I'm a longtime R.E.M. fan, so this release in 2008 was a big deal. It was a little punchier than they'd been putting out since New Adventures In Hifi, and I was initially in two minds about it. Strangely, I think the first listen was the last one, so I'm dusting it off for a spin.

• The Patty Duke Syndrome - The Patty Duke Syndrome : Ryan Adams' pre-Whiskeytown grungey rock punk band. The band split in 1994 and Whiskeytown formed shortly after. The music on this cobbled together bootleg holds up fairly well. Though he wasn't a founding member, you can hear Adams' influence on the songs and some sound as if they could have made Rock n Roll.

• Paul Kelly - Deeper Water : I'm not yet through with the Paul Kelly kick I've been on of late. This 1995 release was on massive rotation on my stereo when it was new - even cluttered with much louder albums such as In Utero still on constant standby. The raw emotion of I'll Forgive But I Won't Forget and the suburban salt of Anastasia Changes Her Mind are standout tracks for me.

• Bright Eyes - Oh, Holy Fools : I've always been a fan of Bright Eyes' I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning album and other offerings like Noise Floor. This album is a little more subdued and a bit morose, but it's a decent listen none-the-less.

• Josh Rouse - Nashville : After getting hold of a copy of 1972, purely because that was the year I was born, I have since gone and got everything Josh Rouse ever did - including collaboration project She's Spanish, I'm American. I regard Nashville as among the best of all those offerings. Bouncy pop folk like It's The Nightime and mellow soul like Saturday are offset with the sweet, quiet Sad Eyes and Life to make a near perfect set.

• Son Volt - American Central Dust : The band that formed, along with Wilco, when Uncle Tupelo split, Son Volt released this album in 2009. This is their most recent release and features the quite catchy (by their standards) Dynamite and the dirge-like Cocaine and Ashes.

• The Himalayans - She Likes The Weather : Before he gave us the monsterously successful Mr. Jones, Adam Duritz of Counting Crows was in The Himalayans with Mr Jones - Marty Jones, bass player for the band. This album was engineered from demos, studio recordings and radio interviews. The music is a little less radio friendly than Counting Crows and worth checking out whether you're a Crows fan or not.

• Quinine - Regrets Only : Heard about these guys from another blog I frequent. Quinine sound like an edgier Soul Asylum jamming with Toad The Wet Sprocket. Very 90s, a little grimey and not bad at all. This is a 1995 release and I can't seem to find anything else they put out. Bonus points for obscurity, Quinine. If you like 90s music, be sure to check out I Hate The 90s despite its name.

• Front Porch Poets - Off The Record : An always tasty Jazz Hop blog that I follow had a link to this album where the artist was giving away free downloads in a stack of formats. You can grab it yourself from the link on the title here. I've only given it a scan through, but it sounds okay.

• 2Pac - 2Pacalypse Now : I'll confess, I never really got into 2Pac. For one, I was pretty much away from Hip Hop when he came up and secondly, when I did hear him, I was very unfond of gangsta rap. Being a dedicated head though, I want to keep my knowledge of Rap complete, so I'm going to give Pac a go and start at the beginning. One thing I already know is anyone who claims he is the best rapper ever doesn't know their history.

If you've never heard any Josh Rouse, and you like a bit of country tinged pop folk, grab a copy of Nashville, it is well worth checking out.

Until next time, remember : The true revolutionary knows how to wait.