Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Mix CDs for the holidays!

Not too far back, I asked for your recommendations for some new tunes, and, indeed, you all delivered. My iTunes bill has been skyrocketing ever since, and I still haven't had the opportunity to listen to all the artists that have been selected! I have already found several new favourites, though, so thank you! I was also surprised at how many of you were right on track, as shown by the fact that you suggested other music that I already own.


And, as promised, I'm going to dole out the tunes to you...

I've made up two mix CDs that I want to give away. One is a collection of the tunes recommended by you-- blogger's choice, if you will. The second is more of a soundtrack to my life, with artists you may or may not have heard of. 

Though I wish I could bestow you all with a bombardment of new music, if I am to realistically get it to you before Christmas, I had to restrict myself a little. As such, I am going to give away four CDs in total, two of each mix, as a thank you and happy holidays to all my lovely readers. I appreciate you all a lot for making my little corner of the internet that much more warm and fuzzy!!

However, I still need to make you work for it, at least a little...

So here's the deal! If you are interested in winning one of these CDs, comment on this post with two piece of information:
#1- Tell me a story about a song that holds a special meaning to you.
#2- If we haven't been in touch before, or your email address isn't clearly posted on your blog, please include your email address!

You have until midnight (pacific time) on Saturday December 13th to enter. At that point, I will pick four commenters at random as winner, and will be touch to get your mailing address (I promise you I won't mail you a steady supply of tear soiled love poetry, just a single CD).

Lurkers, you should come out and play, too! There's some good tunes to be discovered!

I'll post the track listings and my own tales about meaningful songs with the winners.

(and I'm crossing my fingers I get more than four entrants so I don't have to start making up comments, like Pierre from Versailles who lost his virginity to Elton John)

39 comments:

Anonymous said...

"I've got you under my skin" as sung by Frank.

N and I had our first dance to it. In the garden. Me in my PJs.

TMC said...

Yay! I'll play! :)

My song choice is more than a little lame, I know, but it's cropped up twice for me (once when it was new and once recently) as one of those kinds of songs that you feel in your gut and just have to sing out loud. It's "Would" by Alice in Chains. The two periods in which it's touched me (that sounds goofy but I couldn't think of another way to explain it) had two totally different contexts but somehow the song described how I was feeling each time.

That's it, I guess. :)
(my email address is at my blog)

Crushed said...

Well, normally most people would say a love song, but...

It was the third year. I was writing an essay due in, in three hours. The walk up the hill was half hour. Time was of the essence.
The play in question was the Tempest, and I knew the point I was making, I just needed a supporting quote.
Way too much Base in the blood stream, too much frantic page turning, I wasn't finding one.

And then the track I was playing at the time, weetest Perfection, by Depeche Mode delivered...

I figured the verse sounded good, and I doubted anyone would go through the whole of Act Three to se if the verse actually was there, so all I needed to do was be vague. 'Forget' to quote the line number.

and so I reinforced a whole paragraph of theorising with 'As Prospero says in Scene Two of this Act:
'Sweetest perfection
An offer was made
An assorted collection
But I wouldn't trade'

The lecturer who marked it bought as Shakespeare.

Arielle said...

OH man, this is hard! It's sort of lame but the song Bootylicious by Destiny's Child remind me of awesome times in college. It was my pledge class's song for my sorority and it definitely represents some of the best times I've ever had.

Kristin said...

"Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve. That song reminds me of my ENTIRE trip to New Zealand with my family at age 13. I think our family friends must have played that song 40 times while I was there. Hehe.. Ah, the memories.

E-mail is on my blog! Thanks for the opportunity!

Anonymous said...

Come Out and Play (Keep 'Em Separated) -- The Offspring

This song pretty much embodies my entire life in high school. Every time I hear it I am instantly back in my friends car driving around getting into mischief!

e-mail on my blog.

PG said...

I recently uploaded almost all of my cds to my ipod (first-time owner). It has given me a chance to spend time listening to music from my early teens. I have a renewed liking for Moist and Live.

I'll go with "Believe Me" by Moist. It takes me back to being about 14-15, sitting in my parents' house wishing that my crush (at the time) would notice me.

Oh...a second more recent song association. Ever since using The Shin's Red Rabbits along with this video of my balcony, I've been associating the song with being surrounded by snow, to try to induce a feeling of being in a winter wonderland, rather than surrounded by shitloads of snow.

Sassy said...

I was just listening to some random stuff 2 nights ago and the song "For What it's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield came on. That song always reminds me of a friend of mine from college. Bill had a band and that was the only cover that the did. Bill was such an amazing person with such a zest for living and such an amazing outlook, he really touched my life. Bill was a hemophiliac and he died several years ago, but I still remember him whenever I hear that song.

And to lighten it up a bit, I SO need exposure to new music! I hope I win! (E-mail on blog) :-)

ablogofherown.wordpress.com said...

I listed to Ani Difranco's "Evolve" every time I competed in rifle my senior year. It was part of a very complicated routine that involved coloring and making sure I wasn't wearing my "lucky socks" (they were unlucky!). It must have worked because I a set a record!

The lines, "I walk like I'm on a mission/cuz that's the way I groove/ I've got more and more to do/ I've got less and less to prove/ it took me too long to realize/that i don't take good pictures/cuz i have the kind of beauty that/moves" still function as my anthem of sorts.

:-)

Fermi said...

I dated this guy in high school. He was a fan of Radiohead, Sonic Youth, and the Pixies. He was also the best guitar player in school.

He would call me every night "to talk" although we didn't have much to talk about so usually he just played his guitar aimlessly while we sat in silence - not wanting to hang up.

He always played the same thing -- I thought it was something he made up because I had never heard it before...

Eventually we broke up... and one day when I was feeling sentimental I went out and bought all of the Radiohead albums that I did not already own. (which was everything other than OK Computer.)

The Bends was on my CD player- and when the last track started I almost had a heart attack or cried or something. I was totally shocked. It was the song he had been playing on his guitar for our entire relationship of failed phone calls: StreetSpirit

-my email is on my blogger profile page.

Anonymous said...

Id have to say Birds by Kate Nash. When my boyfriend and I first started dating he used to send me you tube links to songs he thought id like because we are both big music nerds.

The first concert we ever went to together was also Kate Nash and while I'd like to say it was a great as when I first heard that song, It wasnt! The crowd was full of drunks on a wednesday (some of whom were arguing about who was the least drunk and was going to drive home!!) who all screamed the words at the top of their lungs, so you couldnt actually hear her singing at all.

but despite that, every single time I hear the song birds it reminds me of my boy and his first few shy emails to me

EF said...

Princess, call me old fashion, but isn't it a bit soon for us to be creating and swapping mixed tapes?
we've yet to hold hands! :-)

Jack said...

"Sweet Caroline"

We were playing this game where you have this electronic toy tells you the name of a song and you have to make the other people say the name without saying it yourself. This girl and I were sitting next to each other but hadn't exchanged a word all night until she got this song and she went "dahdahdahdah BOM BOM BOM" and everyone looked at her quizzically. I yelled out "Sweet Caroline!" and we started talking.

Eight happy months now and counting. :D

Caz said...

I hate to admit it because it is SO cheesy that it's embarassing.

Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69" because it immediately takes me back to driving up north in Ontario at 15 with my then boyfriend at the time. It was one of the defining moments of my teenage years. I remember at the time feeling like I was in a movie and so grown up. Hot summer day, windows open, school over, our own car, our own weekend, singing along to the song on the radio, headed nowhere in particular for a weekend of friends and camping.

Other songs come and go through my life but I always, always remember that moment when I hear SUmmer of 69.

Katelin said...

aw what a fun idea.

"atomic dog" not only did i finally get guts and dance in the middle to this song at prom i also got to dance on stage with the pfunk when they performed it at my college, oh good times, good times.

Dexter Colt said...

Son of a Preacher Man by Dusty Springfield. It was on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack. Man that song was money in college. Grab a girl and hit the dance floor while there was still space to move. Good times.

Michelle Fluttering Butterflies said...

I wanted to recommend some music when you asked for it, but you seem to listen to way cooler music than I do. So I didn't.

The song that came to mind first is Stop! in the Name of Love by Diana Ross. It was one of my mom's favourite songs. I remember when I was little, the song came on the radio and my mom and brother and I started dancing in the kitchen, singing along, all together. Good memories of my mom and I are very few and far between and most of my memories are tainted by other things that happened in my childhood, but I hold onto this one. I try not to overthink it too much and have just one happy thought about her.

eric1313 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
eric1313 said...

Yes, I'm sure you were frightened to death that there would only be 4 entrants to this lottery of art...

OK, I'll take myself out of the running for the CD's first off, but I will relate a story.

My ex girlfriend Jenni, way back in high school... that's what I'm thinking about... short, blond, just the tiniest thing, and boy was she tough as a battleship, watched her split a guy's lip open one morning over an insult... I was relieved that she jumped to it herself and didn't try to put me up to socking the guy!

Tough girl = Sexy as hells! (she was also a young writer, and passionate too... go figure! ;)

But the real story, her and I were skipping school together and came back by the school at about 3 to meet our friends... it was mid winter and freezing, snow falling so hard the security guard would not have even seen us standing there--if he hadn't been hiding inside the school from the elements himself.

She was getting really cold so I shared my leather trench coat with her, unbuttoned then wrapped us both up in it while we stood under the old tree across the street.

And as we shared our warmth and got probably too cozy (not anything bad, but we might as well have been), I started singing "Thank You" by Led Zeppelin and she picked it up at the first chorus and we both sang the whole thing out together as the snow drifted around us like clouds around a holy mountain.

Itune that song if you get the chance, though you probably know it... You have a good classic British rock sensibility and hippie parents to boot, so I'm probably wasting time and clicks.

Wow.

I miss her SO much! I heard she has 3 kids now...

Maybe one day her and I might be fated to meet again. I know I would like a chance to reprise our relationship... She was the first person to ever ask me to marry her. And the only one I said yes to.

Yes, I have a few poems about her at the site, including 'Breathless', back in August.

Inspiration is such a wonderful thing... I could just wax poetic and nostalgic now, all morning. Gotta stop now, maybe go back to bed since I don't have to be anywhere for several more hours.

I know you know what I'm talking about--you have the same kind of fire in your life right now. Better actually; you are both mature enough to cherish the wonder that you've found.

Peace out, Princess.

Crashdummie said...

Elton john? ehum... okie dokie.

Well there are many songs that are precious to me, all of them have great memories.

But I have to say right now, and for many times before, Depeche Modes "Enjoy the silence", cuz it always reminds me to seize the day, to stop and realize that most ofetn you've already got what u want.

And also, the fact that i ALWAYS kick everyones @ss in this song on SingStar isnt to bad either ;)

Mega said...

As cheesy as it may sound, "The Longest Time" by Billy Joel. I was younger, my mom was in better health, and she taught me to dance to that song.

alexa @clevelandsaplum said...

wow this is a hard question! i can listen to so many songs and have them flash back to memories from long ago.

but i will have to go with michael jackson's man in the mirror - my dad used to sing it to me. random i know but i still love it.

Eleni Zoe said...

The Little Mermaid: Part of Your World.

It is the song that reminds me of myself at my most innocent (before my life was turned upside down by losing my father) and it is the song I still sing when I want to feel better. :)

KA said...

my thing is anything by Pink is thoroughly acceptable. Just throwing this out there.

Melissa said...

Cuzco from E.S. Posthumus... No words, but very peaceful and good for background while writing.
email on blog. This is a fun idea.

Anonymous said...

LOVE this!!

"All Night Long" by Lionel Ritche. Totally cheesy but it has two stories. One was with one of my best friends during finals time at MSU. We were really stressed and decided a dance party was necessary. This song happened to come on and we danced like wild childs around the room with feather boas.

The second memory from this song is from 2 summers ago when I worked at the hotel. The guy who came to play live music there would play this song and everyone would sit around, the manager playing the beat on an ice bucket, while the rest of us sang and danced around to it. It was classic and gives me warm fuzzies just thinking about it.

Unknown said...

"Win in the End" - the theme song for Teen Wolf.

This is special to me because, duh, it's Teen Wolf!

Daisy said...

OMG I love competitions, please don't discout my entry because France is far- you can mail it to my friend in NYC I swear!!

OK, I choose Romeo and Juliet by Dire Straits. It was on the mix I was listening to on my mini-disc player(!) during the summer I first met the Colonel. It reminds me of the jittery butterflies feeling I had in my tummy that whole summer, whenever I was on my way to meet the Colonel, on the tube, or in the park, in the heatwave of 2003. It reminds me of smiling irrepressibly whenever I was walking away from his flat, with the excitement still tingling in my spine - good times.

S'Mat said...

oh man... no way am i playing this game by the rules as stated!

Love is a Stranger, the Eurhythmics: a summer spent waiting for my sweetheart to return.

It's Great When You're Straight (album), Black Grape: taught myself to smoke to it. Great album, didn't make any waves over here however. they're the reincarnation of the Happy Mondays

Graceland (album), Paul Simon - car rides spent listening to the windshield wiper from the backseat

Glassworks (album), Philip Glass - would read on the lounge floor in front of a fire while my dad smoked cigars and drank brandy (he did, not me)

Timeless (album), Goldie - first time mushrooms kicked in for me. wow. i lay in my boardingschool bedroom and cried it was that beautiful

Led Zepplin (the band): as fresh today as they were then.

Exit Planet Dust (album), Chemical Brothers: they introduced me to electronica, an affection i'll defend to the death before feeling any shame for it. these guys were so powerful back then.

and so on...

megabrooke said...

woo! contests!
i know we both have an affinity for music, so let's see...
hmmm. really ANY joshua radin song. one of my first faves was "everything will be alright"-- i was introduced to it during a tough time, and it's stuck with me.

Anonymous said...

"Time for Me to Fly" was playing the last time I slow danced with my high school boyfriend, knowing it really was (time for me to fly.)

Count me in!

@new.rr.com

Unknown said...

Obviously I've already won, so please send me my prizes.

No one can top Teen Wolf.

Mandy said...

Ohh fun! I want to play.

One of my favorite songs is by Barry Manilow (don't laugh) "I Made it Through the Rain" because there was a time in my life that I wasnt so sure that I was going to make it through a few tough situations. But I did and came out on the other side with a new appreciation and respect.

Anonymous said...

"infinity 2008" by guru josh project. OMG download it, i'm listening to it right now.

will always remind me of my trip in november...it was mine and my cousin's 'song'. SUCH a good pump up song. he'd call me from work to tell me it was on the radio!!

Kaci Johanna said...

P. Diddy's (because I'm pretty sure that's the name he was going by at the time) "I'll Be Missing You."

For some reason it's the one song that hits me hardest and reminds me of my dad. And because I still can't come right out and say it, this might clear that up.

Also, if somehow I do get chosen (which would be awesome, by the way! You seem to have great taste in music... yeah, I'm a lurker), I'll give you my email address then because I'm not comfortable posting it here.

Thanks for being so generous!

S'Mat said...

i just noticed the "Pierre from Versailles who lost his virginity to Elton John" and find that to be somewhat hilarious...

Abbey said...

Ok, I'll play. Mostly because I have no taste in new music and I would love to listen to some cool new music. But you know, no need to be biased.

My song is "Gotta get through this." by Daniel Bedingfield.

This song came out my first year of my doctoral program. It was the most horrible year of my life in the sense that stats nearly killed me and I was certain I wasn't smart enough to be in the program. When this song out, I began using it as a theme song every time I had to drive to class for a test or every time I had to an all-nighter to study for said test.

I so believed in my song that I shared it with my classmates, and ultimately, the song became the class's theme song.

Anonymous said...

I'm Shakin by Rooney.

One of the first concerts I went to in college, and the biggest reminder of what a spaz I am.

My friend and I had been waiting around after the show at a small venue in Columbia, SC to meet the band and have them sign our posters, mainly Robert Schwartzman who she had a crush on. We'd been having some trouble getting his attention, because we weren't exactly the most outgoing girls ever, and followed him around for a majority of the 10 minutes following the show.

I walked up to Robert S, bopped him in the back of the head with my rolled up poster, and asked him if he had a pen. He hesitantly said, "yes" and I said, "Great! Now you can sign my poster with it!"

I am the winner of personal conversations with "famous" people, let me just make that clear right now.

But I do have his signature on my poster, and life is complete ;)

Anonymous said...

Oh, and I left such an impression on him that he invited my friend and I to the afterparty immediately following.

At this point, our courage was spent, so we declined and went to bed at 1230.

I have, at this point, gotten over it (thankyouverymuch).