Friday, October 16, 2009

music, music, music

I finally retrieved the following CDs from my car after approximately five years. They began their car life in the green mazda, and when the white toyota arrived two years ago, I didn't bother cleaning out the glove box. I simply transferred its contents to the new one.
Nirvana - From the muddy banks of the wishkah
Billy Bragg and Wilco - Mermaid Avenue
The Beatles - Abbey Road
REM - best of REM 1998-2003. I was also surprised to find in this melted CD case The best of REM pre 1998. Somewhere in my house there is obviously an empty case for this one.
Billy Bragg - Talking with Taxman about Poetry
They Might Be Giants - Flood (case only...Where is the CD?)

Then I decided I would see what had actually made it from home to work. Here's what's in my red CD box on my desk.

An Equal Music Vikram Seth - music from the book. Yes, an odd idea for a CD but it has some stunning music on it, including Vaughan Williams' The Lark Ascending. Plus it's one of my favourite books. Infinitely more readable than The Suitable Boy. The fact that it's about music and musicians is attractive.
Paul Kelly - Songs from the South
Belle Epoque - A Portrait of Gabriel Faure. This was a present from a student.
The Pixies - Death to the Pixies - caseless. I don't know where the case is - perhaps at home.
Australasian World Music Expo - a freebie from a colleague. I haven't listened to it. Maybe I should.
Sweet Sounds of a Sugar Town - Dane Costigan. I haven't listened to this either. Another freebie, locally made and produced.
The classic 100 Piano top 10.
Ben Lee - Awake is the New Sleep - a copy from a friend. That young man can write a pop song alright.
Augadhau Nawal (Songs of our Lord) - Christian Hymns from the Torres Strait. Another freebie that I haven't listened to.
Pete Murray - Summer at Eureka - an illegal preview copy. I listened to this last year during a couple of weeks of marking. Haven't touched it since
Ben Harper and the Blind Boys of Alabama - A copy. I love this album.
Spellbound - A spellbinding collection of classical music. Well that's what it says on the cover anyway. This was 5 dollars on the throwout table somewhere. I bought it because of The Ashokan Farewell which was the theme for Ken Burns' epic documentary on the Civil War.
Nigel Kennedy - The Four Seasons. Vivaldi bad punk boy style. It's fabulous.
Australian Chamber Orchestra - Musical Renegades. I bought this for Richard Tognetti (even though he is a bit of a prat sometimes, he can sure run that orchestra) and for the Piazzolla that's on there.
Seaman Dan - Island Way. Another freebie. Seaman Dan was a discovery of one of the academics who works here. Seaman Dan is now in his late 70s and from Thursday Island. He won an ARIA award a few years ago and just this week has been nominated for another - his last recording.
Wilco - Sky Blue Sky. I haven't listened to this much. Because quite frankly I think nothing will ever surpass Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.
Oh and there's also a burned copy of Simon and Garfunkel's greatest hits, Elvis Costello's Momofuku, a playlist of Classical slow movements, a playlist called Songs from the Car, and two cds called Work Songs. I haven't written down the tracks so goodness only knows what's on those. One gives me a hint with "the Vanishing Spies" but that's it.

A strange collection now I come to look at it properly.

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