Blog Posts by Robert of the Radish

I'm not what you would call a big iPod fan. Sure, Apple makes great products with fantastic interfaces, but their proprietary approach and buisness model is far from being ideal.  For me the subscription model rules. I can take anything with me for an insignificant monthly fee, and when I discover a truly worthy album, I buy the CD. This way I can rip non-protected MP3 files at the quality I desire, get the cover art, liner notes, and keep the original CD as a back up.

However, I do not fall into the iPod-hater camp either. Apple has found their market, and it's a huge one. And their continued dominance in the space demonstrates this fact. Another thing I give Apple credit for is the music they've selected to promote iPod and iTunes since their first commercial aired back in October of 2001.

Many of us have been mesmerized by at least one song featured in iPod commercial at some point in time. And I have asked on many occasions, "Who sings that?" when a new iPod ad appears on my

While you wait for Sufjan Stevens to complete his 50 albums for 50 states, why not try this playlist out? 

Some states have inspired thousands of songs. California and Texas probably top the list, while Idaho, Connecticut and Utah are probably somewhere near the bottom when it comes to appearances in popular music.

A song does exist for the state you live in, I just can't promise it'll be a good one.

This playlist is my attempt to select the best song available for most of our 50 great states.

The Playlist:

1. Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd

2. North To Alaska - Johnny Horton

3. Arizona - Pedro The Lion

4. Mary Queen Of Arkansas - Bruce Springsteen

5. California - Joni Mitchell

6. Colorado - The Flying Burrito Brothers

7. Delaware Slide - George Thorogood

8. Connecticut - Michael Feinstein

9. Delaware Slide - George Thorogood

10. Deep Down In Florida - Muddy Waters

11. Georgia On My Mind - Willie Nelson

12. Hawaii - The Beach Boys

13. Private Idaho - The B-52's

14. Illinois -

This playlist features an album's worth of weightless music. Meaning, it's composed of songs both titled "weightless" and that have an overall feeling of weightlessness.

It's an interesting study in songs where the title has a direct correlation to the mood. If you were to meditate on what the word "weightless" might sound like in song, you would likely imagine music exactly like that found in this playlist.

Airy and mellow ambient tracks highlight the list, and offer a glimpse of what it would feel like to be floating in space. You've probably heard of artists like Brian Eno, Mike Oldfield, Thomas Dolby and Enigma who contribute fine weightless tracks to the playlist, but the other six tracks are by artists who you've probably never heard of.

However, all the artists contained here share the same general idea when it came to penning their own interpretations of what "weightless" sounds like.

So get your anti-gravity suit out and float on.

The Playlist:

1. Weightless - Brian Eno

2.

alaska.jpgAs some of you may know, my brother Joe and his family have moved to Alaska while my brother works on a medical airlift team. A seriously cool job, the kind you only hear about on Discovery Channel documentaries.

I was trying to determine when and how to get out there for a visit. Alaska has been a place I've always wanted to see for it's natural beauty. But unfortunately, I couldn't make it happen this summer due to work and other travel commitments.

As I live vicariously through my brother's blog, it hit me that I have yet to create a playlist for our largest and most pristine state. So I started searching through our never ending library of tracks for songs about Alaska. There were a few no-brainers like Johnny Horton's "North To Alaska" and the excellent "Talkin' Goin' To Alaska Blues", which appears on Shawn Mullins latest effort 9th Ward Pickin' Parlor.

The playlist contains other well-done songs inspired by Alaska, but I was soon to discover that songs about Alaska are not

The wedding reception tradition of tossing the bride's garter to a crowd of bachelors was actually started in the 14th century. And over time it has become a very popular event at wedding receptions.

The idea is that once the groom removes the garter he can throw it blindly to a collected group single guys from the wedding party. The lucky man to catch it will be the next in line to marry. It's always fun to watch the bachelors move from the garter's path as if it were a severed head, but we all know the real reason for this ritual is to embarrass the hell out of the bride.

It usually never fails to be a crowd pleaser.

The sexual undertones, bridal embarrassment, and superstitious back-story creates a lot of opportunity for a wedding DJ to add to the fun. Usually the DJ will play a song during the removal of the garter, and one during the actual garter toss.

This playlist contains some of the most popular songs a DJ can play during this wedding reception event. If you have a wedding

Nine years after John Lennon was brutally murdered by Mark David Chapman the famous auction house Christie's auctioned off a jukebox owned by Lennon. The auction was won by music promoter John Midwinter for £2,500.

The jukebox was a Swiss made KB Discomatic and in 1965 John Lennon filled it with 40 vinyl singles and took it on tour.

In 2004 the South Bank Show, which is produced in the UK, presented a documentary on the Jukebox. And the songs contained on it have been presented on XM satellite radio channel 6.

It's a fascinating insight into John Lennon the music fan and his influences all well before the digital celebrity playlist came into being.

This playlist includes tracks that were on Lennon's jukebox. The full song listing, including B-sides can be found at Wikipedia.

The Playlist:

1. Bring It On Home To Me - The Animals

2. 1-2-3 - Len Barry

3. Rescue Me - Fontella Bass

4. No Particular Place To Go - Chuck Berry

5. Boot-Leg - Booker T. & The MG's

6. Turquoise - Donovan

7.

This playlist was inspired by my serious coffee addiction. I drink it everyday, sometimes to the tune of 6 cups between the time I wake up and dinner. I love everything about this magic libation -- the color, the smell, the taste, the caffeine, and the culture. And I'm not the only one under the power of this seductive beverage. In fact, in North America and Europe people drink one third as much coffee as they do tap water! And the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations predicts that by 2010 the world will produce 7 million metric tons of coffee each year.

Coffee has been an acceptable and "lightweight" drug in many cultures from as early as the 9th century. In our daily work coffee helps us wake up, focuses our minds, and keeps us productive. This is why business has no issue with providing free coffee to their employees. And if you happen to be a musician, coffee can help you stay up just a few more hours to finish that song you've been working on.

This

The old saying, about the grass always being greener on the other side is so very true.

When you're in school, all you can think about is getting out! But once you're out and in the workforce, your school day memories are some of the best you have.

The theme of school has been a successful one for the songwriter. After all, the school-age demographic accounts for a large majority of album sales (digital or otherwise). Many great school songs have been penned by artists who were in school, or barely out, while others have been written by graduates looking to recapture their youth. Either way, the catalogue of school-centric songs is vast and deep.

For this playlist I've selected 36 of my favorite school-related songs to help welcome the new school year. By now the opening day bells have rung across the nations, and if you're one of the lucky ones still walking the hallways of learning, enjoy. It won't last long.

If you're a working stiff like me, give this playlist a spin. It'll take