But

I understand that a great deal of what we think of as "Christmas" in the popular imagination comes directly from 'A Christmas Carol' and that, in a sense, Dickens invented Christmas as a secular holiday. Not that it wasn't celebrated before that, but it was always a mainly religious festival, and for example,…

Actually, it's getting into Callier that got me to try Buckley again most recently—but still nothing.

Pittsburgh is where my family lived when I first encountered them. Them and real bagels from Bagel Land. Yay for Pittsburgh!

I'm just now getting into Erik Satie. He's this year's Dvorak!

You never forget your first time.

I'm going to look into that ASAP. I love the old Bo Diddley—and by a strange coincidence just happened upon a song called 'Hit or Miss' on a Funk singles compilation just last night that I had never heard before. A lot of those early Blues and R&B guitar pioneers did not Funk so gracefully into the 70's (Albert King…

I made the 'Kick out the Jams' mistake in college and therefore didn't "get" the MC5 until years later. But seriously, don't sleep on Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels—it's like this Ur Detroit text from which that whole scene of spit and swagger emerged. And that includes some of the Funkadelic sound as well—It's as…

And another thing about music one used to like and then is embarrassed about. Sometimes that's a circle you're on, and eventually you will find yourself liking it again for different, harder to explain reasons.

Ask and ye shall receive, Avatar:

Now it's time to look into the MC5 and ultimately Mitch Ryder (who I first got into this year) for the whole raw midwest Proto-Punk thing.

More truth about RHCP:

Tears for Fears' first two albums are excellent, and I'll be damned if 'Everybody Wants to Rule the World' isn't the greatest single of the 80's—It's certainly a contender.

Bronski Beat's 'Age of Consent' used to be my go-to record for turning uppity Punks onto Techno-Pop. As catchy, danceable and well, Gay, as the genre ever got, yet somehow also angrily political and uncompromising at the same time. "Life…and bits of egg!"

Pierogi are very American in practice though—fried onions, cheese, potato AND pasta? It's like the very concept of Comfort Food incarnate.

I tried to make Tim Buckley one of my discoveries again this year—he's one of a certain class of well-respected artists I keep coming back to and giving a chance—but you know what? I still don't get it. What's the deal?

The Monochrome Set is one of those great old LP bands I have a thing for that nobody ever seems to know what I'm talking about. Like It's Immaterial or The Yachts.

Would have been even funnier if they'd owned up and called it 'Tag Team's Greatest Hit'.

Well, that there "yoohoo" player didn't do what I was hoping it would, and the youtubes don't favor any of the Jackie Moore songs I would feature. But you can get a taste here:

I could list a lot of things
Most recently it would be Terry Callier—who married an acoustic early 70's singer/songwriter sensibility with the kind of intelligent soul you get from Marvin Gaye, Roberta Flack or Shuggie Otis (great for rainy, regretful hungover Sunday mornings):