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2002-02-11 | 11:42 a.m.

Last time I wrote about music, and now Jax wants to know what I actually listen to. The short answer is: I listen to pop music because that's what I have access to. I think I've mentioned here somewhere that when I was starting college, I realized I could only afford to buy books OR music, not both, so I ended up sticking with books, since I didn't know anything about music back then, either. And where in years past I had friends turning me on to new things and making me mixes, now I'm on my own. So if there's anything really good going on in the margins, I definitely don't know about it. Nor do I have rarefied tastes, as you can see from the following list, which is a partial selection of titles that I've noted as favorites in the past, with the impossible goal in mind of making an all-time favorites CD. Actually, I'm going to limit the list to 20 titles.

P.S.: This is impossible. Consider it merely representative.

1. "Poverty," Bobby Bland
2. "Down in Hollywood," Ry Cooder
3. "Lady Marmalade," Patti LaBelle
4. "I'll Take You There," Staple Singers
5. "What's Up," 4 Non Blondes
6. "Navigator," Pogues
7. "Lust for Life," Iggy Pop
8. "True Love," X
9. "Losing My Religion," REM
10. "End of the World as We Know It," REM
11. "Camel Walk," SCOTS (Southern Culture on the Skids)
12. "I Want You," Elvis Costello
13. "Let's Go Crazy," Prince
14. "Violet," Hole
15. "Anything, Anything," Dramarama
16. "Orgasm Addict," Buzzcocks
17. "Son of a Preacher Man," Dusty Springfield
18. "Dirty Old Town," Pogues
19. "Blister in the Sun," Violent Femmes
20. "Watching the Detectives," Elvis Costello

"Man of Constant Sorrow," Soggy Bottom Boys
"Joey," Concrete Blonde
"Little Red Corvette," Prince
"Monkey Gone to Heaven," Pixies
"20th Century Boy," T-Rex
"Androgynous," Replacements
"Waitress in the Sky," Replacements
"Veronica," Elvis Costello
"My Funny Valentine," Elvis Costello
"Radio, Radio" Elvis Costello
"What I Am," Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
"88 Lines about 44 Women," Nails
"Doll Parts," Hole
"Vallejo," Ween
"Connection," Elastica
"The Great Atomic Power," (SCOTS)
"Put Your Teeth Up on the Windowsill," SCOTS
"My House Has Wheels," SCOTS
(Okay, pretty much anything by SCOTS)
"Lolita," Red Meat
"One Glass at a Time," Red Meat
"The Girl with the Biggest Hair," Red Meat
(Okay, pretty much anything by Red Meat)
"Superfreak," Rick James
"Groove Me," King Floyd
"Green Onions," Booker T and the MGs
"Nutbush City Limits," Ike and Tina Turner
"I Smell Trouble," Ike and Tina Turner
"Proud Mary," Ike and Tina Turner
"Let's Stay Together," Al Green
"Better Off Without a Wife," Tom Waits
"Short Skirt Long Jacket," Cake
"Hit Em Up Style," Blu Cantrell

I'd better stop because I'm getting into things I like tons but may not merit inclusion on my all-time faves list. Please be aware that I loved "I'll Take You There" and "Lust for Life" for many years before they were used in TV commercials. However, recently I've been enjoying T-Rex, and if you think it's only because of Billy Elliott and that Mitsubishi Montero commercial, you're absolutely right.

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