The Freelance Writers’ Salon 2010 Mix-Up

It’s not as if there hasn’t been anything to do around here lately, but in the name of Christmas and the spirit of giving Andrew and I decided to make a mix-tape of the tunes we listened to over and over and over again this year (although most of them are not strictly from this year) and send it to our favourite editors and various other folks with whom we’ve worked. The plan was to design a really cool cover with notes on the inside, so that it looked incredibly professional (a little like the image we'd generally like to project). Of course, we left it till the last minute. The liner notes were printed out, folded up and shoved into the jewel case, along with our business cards, and the whole shebang was posted off yesterday. It officially ranks as the most lo-fi, home-baked ‘corporate’ gift of all time. But we loved these songs for various reasons this year, so maybe you will too.

(The initials after the listing indicate who picked that song, if that wasn’t already completely obvious.)

1. Gentle Hour by Yo La Tengo from the compilation Dark Was the Night It’s actually a gentle five and a half minutes but so relaxing it could be hours, time being relative and all. I like compilations that start and build, thank you Yo La. Do not operate heavy machinery after this tune. (AM)

2. Meet Me at Midnight from With All Due Respect by Incarnations Totally unknown band called Incarnations that a friend picked up from a Podcast. They’re brilliant, cruisy funk-folk like Fat Freddy’s Drop with a spritzy latin twist. (AM)

3. Name Calling from Come and Get It by Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed You’d never guess this was released this year and not in the ’60s. A rollicking bit of sweet soul music. (CH)

4. Ooh Las Vegas from Grievous Angel by Gram Parsons No typo. The first Ooo is just three ‘o’s and this one is two with an ‘h’. Grammar aside, Vegas is probably how I’ll remember the year, it was a blurry week. Gram Parson’s line of ‘Ain’t no place for a poor boy like me’ was my anthem every day. (AM)

5. Old Fitzroy from Get Out While You Can by Dan Sultan Everyone who knows me knows that I have a deep and abiding love for Dan Sultan. And that he is stalking me. C’mon, everywhere I go he’s there! There is no other explanation. Even if he wasn’t a love god, this song would still be a cracker. (CH)

6. Bloodbuzz Ohio from High Violet by The National First listen of the new National record was underwhelming, but over time the mist clears and you’re left with some beautiful and grand architecture indeed. This one fires me up. And all freelancers can relate to the line: “I still owe money to the money to the money I owe.” (AM)

7. Head of the Hawk from Head of the Hawk by Bluejuice In March, I went to Alice Springs for the weekend to interview/stalk Bluejuice while they were playing at the Triple J One Night Stand (that's Stav and Jake sound-checking in the pic at the top of the blog). Had a totes awesome time, and have been listening to the CD ever since. (CH)

8. 15 to 20 from The Phenomenal Handclap Band by The Phenomenal Handclap Band Yeah, I know, it was an iPod ad. Doesn’t stop it from being totally addictive. (CH)

9. My Fear #2 from Bliss Release by Cloud Control Cloud Control at the Corner Hotel was the sleeper gig of the year. The singer dude was like a latterday David Byrne in a buttoned-up opshop shirt and the girl keyboardist statuesque in an LA Law Shoulderpad Power Suit. Brilliant album, brilliant song. (AM)

10. Ooo Baby Baby by Smokey Robinson A little tribute to the boy band that loves me the most, Human Nature. A cracking, dramatic song by Smokey Robinson that could be in a Tarantino film. Human Nature actually do it very well. Hi boys. (AM)

11. The Whole Damn Thing from Those Darlins by Those Darlins Quite simply, it’s about getting drunk and eating chicken. I could have written this song. Except I can’t write songs. (CH)

12. Beg Steal or Borrow from God Willin’ & the Creek Don’t Rise by Ray LaMontagne & the Pariah Dogs Ray weighed in this year with another cartload of hay-rolling rustic charm and I can’t git enough of it. So many good songs to get you of the city into the country. Should come with a bit of straw to chew on! (AM)

13. The Good News from Hope Is For Hopers by Philadelphia Grand Jury Had an attack of Phillys love after seeing them at Splendour (hey, how can you not love a band that prerecords its between-song banter?). And it’s just so damn upbeat you can’t help but want to jump around the office. (CH)

14. January Wedding from I And Love And You by The Avett Brothers While strolling JB Hi Fi (one of my favourite procrastinating pastimes), I noticed that the legendary Rick Rubin had produced this CD, and just decided to buy it on a whim. Probably one of the better purchasing decisions I made this year. Full of gems, but this is just beautiful. If someone sang it to me, I’d definitely marry him. (CH)

15. Come Talk to Me by Bon Iver I like Peter Gabriel and Bon Iver so this re-imagining was a total bonanza; dig the banjos and the multi-layered vocals. Pete’s version of Bon’s Flume is also worth tracking down. It’s emotional. (AM)

16. Pirate Song from Your Anniversary by Elana Stone Long story: as I mentioned I went to the red centre to do the Bluejuice thing. Jake Stone told me about his talented sister, she happened to be playing at the Opera House when I was in Sydney a few months later, and it turns out he wasn’t just being a doting brother – she’s pretty incredible. (CH)

17. Ten Cent Pistol from Brothers by The Black Keys Brothers could definitely be the album of the year. This track is smoky and sexy and a bit of a grower. It made no sense to me at all until I found out that a ten cent pistol is heroin laced with lethal amounts of poison.* (CH)

18. Nobody Loves Me & Neither Do I from Them Crooked Vultures by Them Crooked Vultures Word of warning: if you don’t turn this song down to about 2, your face will melt. This year got off to an absolute cracker when we saw Them Crooked Vultures at the oven that is Festival Hall, Melbourne, in January. (CH)

19. Hey Ya! from Potato Hole by Booker T Jones There are various versions of this dance-floor filler doing the rounds but for my money this is the best one: Booker T teaming up with the Drive-By Truckers and Neil Young. (CH)

* The Freelance Writers Salon in no way condones the use of drugs, particularly when laced with arsenic.