NELSON RIDDLE ORCHESTRA . . . . . Route 66 Theme (opening theme) . . . . . Route 66 and Other Great TV Themes/More Hit TV Themes
ELVIS PRESLEY . . . . . Don’t Be Cruel . . . . . The Number One Hits
EL VEZ . . . . . Immigration Time . . . . . Son of a Lad From Spain?
BIG MAMA THORNTON . . . . . Hound Dog . . . . . Hound Dog: The Peacock Recordings
JOHN CALE . . . . . Heartbreak Hotel . . . . . Slow Dazzle
THE BONZO DOG BAND . . . . . Canyons Of Your Mind . . . . . Cornology [3CD Set]
JESSE PEARSON . . . . . Honestly Sincere . . . . . Bye Bye Birdie (1963 Film Soundtrack)
TERRY STAFFORD . . . . . Suspicion . . . . . The Best of Terry Stafford
FRANK SINATRA & ELVIS PRESLEY . . . . . Witchcraft/Love Me Tender . . . . . Classic Duets
MOJO NIXON & SKID ROPER . . . . . Elvis Is Everywhere . . . . . Bo-Day-Shus

FINDLAY BROWN . . . . . Everybody Needs Love . . . . . Love Will Find You
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND . . . . . Backstreets . . . . .
MARY WEISS . . . . . Dangerous Game . . . . . Dangerous Game
GIRLS . . . . . Laura . . . . . Album
THE FREE DESIGN . . . . . Kites Are Fun . . . . . The Best of Free Design
THE WANNADIES . . . . . Disko . . . . . Before and After
THE HOLLIES . . . . . Carrie-Anne . . . . . Hollies - Hollies Greatest Hits
THE PERNICE BROTHERS . . . . . Dumb It Down . . . . . Discover a Lovelier You
THE BEATLES . . . . . And Your Bird Can Sing . . . . . Revolver (Remastered)

RANDY NEWMAN . . . . . I Think It’s Going To Rain Today . . . . . The Randy Newman Songbook, Vol. 1
EELS . . . . . Lone Wolf . . . . . Shootenanny!
CHARLOTTE GAINSBOURG . . . . . Looking Glass Blues . . . . . Irm
THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE . . . . . Manic Depression . . . . . Are You Experienced
FINIAN MCKEAN . . . . . Every Day That Passes . . . . . Shades Are Drawn
THE NATIONAL . . . . . So Far Around The Bend . . . . . Dark Was the Night
THE MINUS 5 . . . . . Dark Hand Of Contagion . . . . . Killingsworth
JOHN DOE & AIMEE MANN . . . . . Unforgiven . . . . . A Year in the Wilderness
TOM WAITS . . . . . Falling Down . . . . . Glitter and Doom Live
WILCO . . . . . Wilco (The Song) . . . . . Wilco (The Album)

NEIL YOUNG & CRAZY HORSE . . . . . Roll Another Number . . . . . Weld (2 disc set)
JOHN PRINE . . . . . Illegal Smile . . . . . John Prine Live
IKE REILLY . . . . . Jack And Haley . . . . . Ballad Of Jack And Haley
THE FACES . . . . . Memphis . . . . . A Nod is As Good As a Wink to a Blind Horse
CAT POWER . . . . . Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again . . . . . I'm Not There
GEORGE HARRISON . . . . . Horse To The Water . . . . . Jools Holland's Big Band Rhythm & Blues

Friday was Elvis Presley's birthday—he would have been 75, and there were a bunch of events to commemorate that fact, and still more to come throughout the year. I can't say I was surprised to learn of all that was happening, but it did catch me somewhat unawares; even though Elvis continues to be among the leading dead celebrities when it comes to continued earning power, I guess I thought interest in him and his life had started to wane. Apparently, I was wrong. So going with the flow, we heard a bunch of tunes to help the King celebrate his 75th, wherever he may be. Among those included were El Vez, using the music from "Suspicious Minds" to make some valid points about immigration back in the early '90s that are still valid today; Big Mama Thornton with the original of one of Elvis's earliest hits; John Cale's terrifying version of another early Elvis tune; the Bonzo Dog Band having some fun with the "Elvis sound"; Jesse Pearson from the film soundtrack to Bye Bye Birdie; Terry Stafford sounding an awful lot like Elvis on his one hit from 1964; Frank Sinatra and Elvis sharing a stage together on TV in 1960; and Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper telling it like it was, c. 1987.

Findlay Brown has just released a new disc that looks back to the early-to-mid '60s for much of its inspiration; the subject of the tune we heard seemed to flow nicely into one from Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band that followed. From there the mood was maintained by Mary Weiss, which led to one from Girls that began a shift to the more poppy side of pop music from the late '60s. A classic example were the Free Design, a band that seems to have been a large influence on the Wannadies, a contemporary band from Sweden who clearly have a love for that kind of sound. The Hollies offered up one of their big hits (with the great steel drums break), and then we heard from the Pernice Brothers and a guitars-driven track that reminds me of the Beatles tune that finished up.

I had a hankering to hear the early Randy Newman track that opened this next section, and the bleak lyrics on that one were echoed in every tune that followed—until the final song. So we heard Eels determined to go it alone; Charlotte Gainsbourg not liking what she sees in the mirror; the Jimi Hendrix Experience feeling particulary stymied; Finian McKean spiraling downward; the National observing someone else doing the same; the Minus 5 finding everything they do to be infected; John Doe along with Aimee Mann stuck in a bad place; and Tom Waits seeming to be literally toppling over with despair. Ultimately, however, everything will be OK, because no matter how bad the situation, we can always be sure that Wilco will be there with a shoulder to lean on.

The final section kicked off with Neil Young & Crazy Horse helping us achieve a good buzz, which John Prine did his part to maintain. Both those came to mind because of the Ike Reilly track about a pot-farming dad whose daughter gets taken away after his crop is discovered and he's thrown in the clink. The Faces covering Chuck Berry's tune about a dad seperated from his daughter followed, which led to another cover involving Memphis with Cat Power taking on Bob Dylan's tune, and the horns on that one conjured up George Harrison along with Jools Holland's Big Band, which was recorded a few months prior to his death in November 2001.

In case you missed, here's Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper's valentine to the King