Favorites of 2008, Pt. 2

This one is timely, given the recent death of the original singer of this song: I Want to Be Evil done by Chiwetel Ejiofor in the movie Kinky Boots. It's as good as Eartha's, I promise!

Another fun cover of a classic old song that I found this year is Bjork's version of Dean Martin's Sway. The music and her voice are old-movie-star-glamorous, and that she's not singing in English is irrelevant. After all, you know the words already ... "Other dancers may pee on the floor/dear, but my eyes will see only you"

I am embarrassed to admit that I did not know until this summer that Swing Out Sister's version of Am I the Same Girl was not the original. I have one of the blogs in my links (I wish I could remember which one) to thank for cluing me in to Miss Dusty's being the original.

From the movie High Society, the duet "Well, Did You Evah" between Frank and Bing was probably my favorite discovery of the year. I've listened to it over and over and over and enjoy it every time. Karen - Miss Sparkleneely? - I think if you don't already love it wholeheartedly, then you certainly will.

Autumn

Paul, the gentleman who runs Ain't Superstitous, But These Things I've Seen, put together a summer mix that included a song by Bobby Darin I'd never heard called Lovin' You and I was a goner. My player says I've played it only 298 times, but that can't be right. Also, it doesn't include how many times I played it in the car.

At Fong Songs I found a Dixieland cover of a Bond theme - Kenny Ball and His Jazzmen - From Russia With Love and it was love at first listen. That one got a minimum of 337 plays, evidently.

And as long as I'm talking about music blogs I love, I might as well throw this out now: Locust St. This is the best, most eloquently, most thoughtfully, most knowledgably written music blog out there. The music posted is eclectic and spans the last century or more. Lately, there's been a series of very early (starting in 1900!) 20th century music; ragtimes, cakewalks, country, jazz, etc. I am in love with the blog in general and the series in particular. If you read Shorpy, this would be the musical equivalent. Shorpy + Locust St. = All Eyes And Ears - 100 years. Anyway, here are the three most beloved tunes I got from Locust St.

Duke Ellington - Three Suites: Overture
Nora Bayes - You Can't Get Away From It (1914)
Scott Joplin & Arthur Marshall - Swipesy Cakewalk (1900)

And finally, I think I'll wrap this up with one new, excellent Christmas song: from "What a Night," Harry Connick, Jr.'s Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies.

The first photo was taken in August on a beautiful summer day in Marietta, Ohio, the second and third in Columbus.

Thanks for coming by and reading and commenting this year, everyone. It's awfully nice of you.

Favorites of 2008, Pt. 1

It's time once again for the annual rundown of my favorite music of 2008. If you're not used to this feature, it's not "my favorite cds of the year," or anything of the sort. I listen to so little new music, that would be pointless.

This is instead, "songs I overplayed this year, no matter how old." And some are really, really old. So, here we go, month to month (roughly, as my memory is slipping a little).

And let's all cross our fingers that these posts stay up - with all these links, I'm probably pushing my luck.

Winter:
Leonard Cohen - Famous Blue Raincoat
I just discovered him in a major way early this year.

Pink Martini - Lilly
It took me a couple of listens more than it probably should have to feel sure that they really were talking about a dog.

Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra - Hey Ya
Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra - Rehab
New group, old sound. Their Hits the Hits cd includes covers like the above, done in a '60s jazz style.

Stan Kenton - Black Coffee
Thanks to my friend Ellie from Flickr for this one.

Jonathan Coulton - Famous Blue Raincoat
Not a month or much more after I heard the original for the first time, I heard Coulton's version. I prefer it.

Sondre Lerche & Regina Spektor - Hell No
My friend Andrea sent me this one on a mix cd and I got hooked.

Spring:
The Coasters - Down In Mexico
Most recently from the Grindhouse Death Proof soundtrack. Also possibly the earwormiest song I heard this year.

KT Tunstall - I Want You Back
Jackson 5 cover. I don't think I've ever heard a version of this song I didn't love.

The Wild Wild West Theme
I've been Netflixing the entire series this year. I watched reruns of it on Sunday afternoons with Dad when I was a kid and loved the show then, and I'm loving it much more now. A Western, mildly spy-themed, proto-steampunk show with a definite '60s aesthetic and great sets, costuming and music.

Also, my childhood adoration of Artemus Gordon has come raging back.

Summer:

I spent a lot of time this summer driving around listening to a double mix cd I made of '70s am summer music, so there wasn't much time for lots of other music. From that mix cd, here is

Jay Ferguson - Thunder Island
and
King Harvest - Dancing In the Moonlight

Besides that, there was also Dean Martin's theme to the Matt Helm movies, Not the Marrying Kind, and The Carpenters' Superstar. (I finally got to see Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story and this got stuck in my head.)

The second half of the year is for tomorrow.

The first photo is from January's Columbus Flickrmeet tour of the Southern Theatre, the second from an April trip to Logan, Ohio with my friend Angie and the third from a trip to Sidney with my friend Susan.