If finding good music ranks higher on your list than listening to your boss or paying your electric bill, then make your search easier by adding these compilation-by-style songs to your iPod or that birthday mix CD you’ve been working on for your best friend. Pick and choose from old school beats that may transport you back to your middle school years, or keep it progressive with the latest releases. Whatever you do, be creative, step outside your musical borders and most importantly: enjoy the music.
You just can’t go wrong when you have Michael Jackson, Al Green, and Marvin Gaye on the same rotation. Jamiroquai and Brand New Heavies add that acid-funk flavor to the great pioneers of that old school groove wave. These selections are sure to make any dance-floor phobic become a hip-swaying believer.
.Groove it out.
michael jackson: rock with you
hot chocolate: sexy thing
al green: let’s stay together
prince: musicology
jamiroquai: alright
nikka costa: everybody got their something
marvin gaye: your precious love
herbie hancock: chameleon
stevie wonder: hey love
brand new heavies: put the funk back in it
It’s that music you crave on that long drive home while the sun makes its grand exit for the moon. The marvelous talent of these artists’ voices is altogether exciting and unexpectedly soothing. They’re a sweet escape from the pace of a chaotic day, a channel of unwinding lyrics and wistful hooks.
.Chill it out.
over the rhine: fool
andy zipf: where you were not
elbow: scattered black and white
deathcab for a cutie: all is full of love
keane: sunshine
sleeping at last: trees (hallways of leaves)
athlete: le casio
the cure: anniversary
elliott smith: i better be quiet now
trashcan sinatras: earlies
Something for everyone: punk, euro-rock, classic alternative, indie-beats; it’s the rock edge you dream about when you’re awake. This compilation will motivate you to tackle those things you thought were left undone forever. With classics like Jeff Buckley and Radiohead blended with the new Franz Ferdinand and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, it’s the old and new smartly fused for the devoted rocker.
.Rock it out.
franz ferdinand: come on home
jeff buckley: eternal life
the killers: change your mind
yeah yeah yeahs: y control
anathallo: a song for christine
foo fighters: all my life
taking back sunday: set phasers to stun
phantom planet: by the bed
radiohead: myxomatosis
the shins: gone for good
You may be surprised of who you find here, maybe not the staple artists you’re used to spotting under the hip-hop genre. Nonetheless, following veteran rap group Outkast, are these groups of talented artists who offer fresh original rhymes, some spiritual, some romantic, and altogether worthy of landing a spot in your CD collection.
.Hip/hop it out.
kanye west: jesus walks
mase: keep it on
black-eyed peas: request line
outkast: take off your cool
erykah badu & bustah rhymes: one
grits: ooh aah
k-os: follow me
cross movement: cry no more
jamie cullum: frontin’
sean paul: like glue
They’ll one day be considered the grandfathers of music, or maybe they already are. These are the songs you’ve heard (or not heard) and learned to love or at least appreciate. Set the mood for “nostalgic,” warm up your throat and sing along.
.Replay it out.
u2: the unforgettable fire
billy joel: new york state of mind
bob dylan: shelter from the storm
ray charles: it’s alright
elton john: somebody saved my life tonight
bruce hornsby: the way it is
hank williams: lovesick blues
van morrisson: sweet thing
simon & garfunkel: only living boy in new york
tribe called quest: can i kick it?
They’ve defined jazz, blues and rock with their blend of sound incorporating elements like electric, percussion, and vocal. They are some of the greatest voices to ever grace our ears, true classics in the history of music. This compilation is not just a heartwarming fix for the jazz/blues-lovers, but it’s an unthreatening outlet for those lingering on the fringes of this genre. A brief but fulfilling lesson on some of the heroes of music.
.Blues it out.
b.b. king: don’t answer the door
billie holliday: god bless the child
eva cassidy: stormy monday
dizzy gillepsie: bang bang
miles davis: so what
norah jones: the nearness of you
aretha franklin: bridge over troubled water
otis redding: i’ve got dreams to remember
ray charles & van morrison: crazy love
count basie: paradise squat