Tag: mix cd

It’s that time of the year again. Here are the songs that have made my 2022 mix tape, err mix CD, err… I mean playlist.

This year’s set is heavily influenced by what was going on in my life and the world at large. I was truly heartbroken at the passing of Betty White (thanks for being a friend, Betty). Daniel and I had our wedding ceremony and walked down the aisle to the DS9 main title. We bought a car from a friend and named her Sally after our favorite space lesbian Sally Ride. Pink captured a lot of my feels on the Roe v Wade reversal. All just to name a few.

1. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Main Title – Dennis McCarthy
2. The Golden Girls Theme Song
3. The Bones – Maren Morris
4. Mustang Sally – Glee Cast
5. Brandy – Looking Glass
6. Wake Up Romeo – Caro Emerald
7. Irrelevant – Pink
8. 1-800-273-8255 – Logic (the music video is amazing)
9. Dance Off – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
10. Most Girls – Hailee Steinfeld
11. Anywhere – Beth Orton
12. Say Something – Justin Timberlake
13. Both Sides Now – Emilia Jones (CODA is amazing, see it!)
14. Marble Machine – Wintergatan (another great music video)

You can listen to the songs on Spotify. As always, the order of the songs has been carefully curated. You may not be able to listen to them in order with the Spotify free account.

You can find prior year playlists under the mix cd tag (yes, they’ve been going on that long — 11 years now!).

Time dilation during the pandemic has been a very real thing for me. 2021 feels like it’s lasted both 4.3 days and 43 thousand years. And somehow this year’s playlist was crafted during that window and yet is only 43 minutes long.

1. To Live – Norah Jones
2. Perfect to Me – Anne-Marie
3. Good as Hell – Lizzo
4. I’ll Be There – Jess Glynne
5. Juice – Lizzo
6. Walk Me Home – Pink
7. Cups – Anna Kendrick
8. Farther We Go (A Capella) – Walk off the Earth
9. Happy Now – Pentatonix
10. Better Days – Ant Clemons feat. Justin Timberlake
11. Epiphany – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (from the Soul Soundtrack)
12. Just Us – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (from the Soul Soundtrack)
13. Fate – Rui Fujishiro
14. Happiness Does Not Wait (2021 Version) – Ólafur Arnalds

Every year’s playlist ends with an instrumental track, but this year features 4 of them. Sometimes when I get really stressed out — which has happened a lot during the pandemic — I’ll go into a dark room, sit on the floor, play those 4 tracks, close my eyes, and just breathe.

You can listen to the songs on Spotify. As always, the order of the songs has been carefully curated. You may not be able to listen to them in order with the Spotify free account.

You can find prior year playlists under the mix cd tag (yes, they’ve been going on that long).

It’s December, which means it’s time to reveal this year’s playlist (aka: mix cd). Like every year, this playlist is a year in review.

Woman Up, Wannabe, and This Is Me is a shout-out to all the amazing women in my life. Thank you for being awesome just the way you are.

My friend Sam introduced me to Cowboy Bebop and the intro credits won me over. Sadly, the original Tank! by The Seatbelts isn’t available for digital purchase so I had to buy a CD and rip it. (The version on the Spotify list is a cover.)

At the beginning of the year I got to see Steve Grand in concert down in Puerto Vallarta, so he had to be on the list for sure. Pink and Norah Jones released new albums so they got a lot (and I mean a lot) of airtime. Yes, there are 4 Pink songs on the list this year — she’s just that amazing. And while Michael Buble’s new album was released in 2018, I didn’t discover it until the beginning of 2019.

From Pink’s 90 Days, which tears me up every time I hear it, I discovered Wrabel’s music. If you’re up for an emotional roller coaster about trans acceptance, watch his music video of The Village. Then feel a little better by telling all the conservatives assholes You Need To Calm Down. Finally, pay homage to the leader of the queer mafia himself: Elton John. His biopic Rocketman reminded me that yes, sometimes that’s really why they call it the blues.

And most importantly: I got married this year! Up’s Married Life seemed like the most perfect way to end the set.

1. Tank! – The Seatbelts
2. Woman Up – Meghan Trainor
3. Wannabe – Spice Girls
4. (Hey Why) Miss You Sometimes – Pink
5. Hustle – Pink
6. This Is Me – Keala Settle
7. Wintertime – Norah Jones
8. Help Me Make It Through The Night – Michael Buble
9. You Need To Calm Down – Taylor Swift
10. Walk Me Home – Pink
11. 90 Days – Pink & Wrabel
12. Stay – Steve Grand
13. Walking – Steve Grand
14. 11 Blocks – Wrabel
15. The Village – Wrabel
16. Easy Like Sunday Morning – Lionel Richie
17. That’s Why They Call It The Blues – Elton John
18. Your Song (instrumental) – Moulin Rouge Soundtrack, disc 2
19. Married Life – Up! Soundtrack

You can listen to the songs on Spotify too (except for track 1 where you get a cover of Tank! and track 16 because Lionel Richie isn’t on Spotify). As always, the order of the songs have been carefully curated. You may not be able to listen to them in order with the Spotify free account.

In 2011 I started creating mix CDs¹, one a year, of songs that resonated with me to share with friends. In January I create an empty playlist and add to it over the course of a year. Then in November I tweak, tune, and adjust it before sharing it with friends.

This year saw new music by Caro Emerald & P!nk (two of my favorite artists), new-to-me music by Meghan Trainor (who quickly became a favorite, although I think it makes me a bad gay to have just now found her), and a slew of oldies that just hit the spot.

Speaking of spot, this year you can listen to the playlist on Spotify. Long live mix tapes mix CDs digital playlists!

1. Exotic Flu – Caro Emerald
2. Brave – Sara Bareilles (this is a repeat from last year for good reason)
3. Big Yellow Taxi – Amy Grant
4. If I had $1,000,000 – Barenaked Ladies
5. Curious Thing – Amy Grant
6. I Just Called To Say I Love You – Stevie Wonder
7. Perfect Picture – Carlos Bertonatti
8. Rather Be – Glee Cast (for Daniel)
9. Whatchugot – Caro Emerald
10. 455 Rocket – Kathy Mattea (for Mr. Moore)
11. Me Too – Meghan Trainor
12. What About Us – P!nk (for all of us being shafted since the election)
13. I Won’t Let You Down – Meghan Trainor
14. I Am Here – P!nk
15. Champagne Problems – Meghan Trainor
16. Once Upon A December – David Newman
17. The Dark – Caro Emerald

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¹ Anyone remember mix tapes? No? Just me? Damn I feel old.

This year saw the end of my 9-month sabbatical, changing jobs to a new company, and then the disaster that was the election. It was also a great year for music with new albums from Norah Jones and Michael Buble.

Throughout the year I throw music, both new and old, into a playlist as the mood strikes me. In November I take a week paring the set down and carefully crafting the order. This year the end of the CD crafted itself.

Thanks to the power of Google, if you subscribe to Google Music service you can listen to it directly.

1. Not Upset – Dario Marianelli
2. One Day I’ll Fly Away – Nicole Kidman
3. Lost – Michael Buble
4. Everything – Michael Buble
5. You Can’t Always Get What You Want – Glee Cast
6. Satellite – Dave Matthews Band
7. Shiftwork – Kenny Chesney
8. I Love A Rainy Night – Eddie Rabbitt
9. Hold On – Wilson Phillips
10. Can’t Stop the Feeling – Justin Timberlake
11. Someday – Michael Buble & Meghan Trainor
12. I Believe in You – Michael Buble
13. Hello – Adele
14. Day Breaks – Norah Jones
15. Jean Arrives – Dario Marianelli
16. My Dear Country – Norah Jones
17. Over My Dead Body – Dario Marianelli
18. Brave – Sara Bareilles

Daniel and I have decided that Brave will be our theme song for 2016:

Innocence, your history of silence
Won’t do you any good
Did you think it would?
Let your words be anything but empty
Why don’t you tell them the truth?

Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave
― Sara Bareilles, Brave

Once again, it’s time for my anachronistic tradition of making a mix CD (which is just one step away from the 80s mix tapes of old). This marks the my 5th year of doing it (see the mix cd tag for the others). Thanks to the power of Google, if you subscribe to Google Music service you can listen to it directly.

This year’s songs are a mix of both newly discovered and rediscovered. The stress leading up to my sabbatical played a role in this year’s selection, as did the relaxation of being on it.

1. Your Song (instrumental) – Craig Armstrong
2. I Just Want To Dance With You – George Straight
3. Girl In A Country Song – Maddie & Tae
4. A Night Like This – Caro Emerald
5. Stickshifts and Safetybelts – Cake
6. The Motown Song – Rod Stewart
7. Morning Train – Sheena Easton
8. My Give A Damn’s Busted – Jo Dee Messina
9. Take This Job and Shove It – Johnny Paycheck
10. Tears Dry On Their Own – Amy Winehouse
11. Rhythm of My Heart – Rod Stewart
12. Miniature Disasters – KT Tunstall
13. Georgia on My Mind – Michael Buble
14. Quando, Quando, Quando – Michael Buble
15. If You Go Away (Ne Me Quitte Pas) – Caro Emerald
16. Silent Sea – KT Tunstall
17. Touch Me With Your Love (instrumental) – Beth Orton

Just like 2013, 2012, and 2011, I made a mix CD this year. It didn’t come together near as easily has the past couple of years. And yes, I really do dance to All About That Bass every time it comes on…

1. Ariel Julia – Larry Unger
2. Crusin’ – Gwyneth Paltrow
3. Royals – Walk Off The Earth
4. I’m Your Man – Michael Buble
5. Talk To Me – Keri Noble
6. Better Than One – Wide Awake
7. Tell Me How Long – Caro Emerald
8. All About That Bass – Meghan Trainor
9. One Day – Caro Emerald
10. Little Numbers – BOY
11. Brighter Than the Sun – Colbie Caillat
12. Happy – Pharrell Williams
13. I’m Your Man – Wham!
14. Extraordinary Thing – k.d. lang
15. Turning Tables – Adele
16. Soir De Fete – Yann Tiersen

I participated in the annual Holiday CD Exchange Party again this year, just like in 2012 and 2011. Unlike before, I had been adding songs to my in-progress playlist all year long instead of throwing them together at the last minute. Oddly, having to whittle down and order a year’s worth of songs into 80 minutes was harder. Without further ado, here is my 2013 mix CD:

1. Fatima’s Waltz – Justin Roth
2. It’s Another Sunny Day in Minnesota – Marty Winkler
3. Runaround – Coyote Grace
4. Cups – Anna Kendrick
5. xote das meninas – trio la strada
6. Thinking About Tomorrow – Beth Orton
7. One of Those Days – Joshua Radin
8. At Last – Etta James
9. Cowboy – Cross-Eyed Rosie
10. I Want to Hold Your Hand – Glee Cast
11. Coolin’ in the Streets – Andra Day
12. Love Song – Sara Bareilles
13. Riviera Life – Caro Emerald
14. Back It Up – Caro Emerald
15. Red Hands – Walk Off the Earth
16. Emily – Mika
17. Falling – Keri Noble
18. Leona Tuttle – Larry Unger
19. La Valse D’Amelie – Yann Tiersen

If you recognize a song you introduced me to, or that we shared together, it was put there for you.