The Neptunes: a Retrospective

The Neptunes are perhaps the hottest and most sought-after record producers working today. At the tender age of 30, Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo have already produced a long string of hook-happy, ass-shaking songs for artists from Justin, Britney, and Beyonce to Snoop, Nelly, and Gwen, in addition to their work on their own band, N.E.R.D.

The Neptunes are so prolific that I couldn't fit this 51-song retrospective on a single playlist, so I've broken it up into two. Enjoy the music.

The Neptunes: a Retrospective, Volume One
The Neptunes: a Retrospective, Volume Two

Thumbs up: best of 2004?

Rocking it 2004 style!

Here's a playlist of my favorite songs of 2004 (so far, anyway), featuring 43 songs from a wide range of artists from Stereolab and Thievery Corporation to Moving Units, Communique and Bloc Party. Enjoy the music of the Class of 2004.

Shel Talmy: the kid is alright

I don't know about you, but my favorite songs by The Who and The Kinks were from the mid-sixties, ones with in-your-face crunchy guitars and killer harmonies. Think "The Kids are Alright" and "You Really Got Me." The man behind the controls for those classic recordings was Shel Talmy, an American who made his way to London in the early 1960s. Talmy cut his teeth on early recordings by The Kinks, The Who, and The Creation, among others, later working with British folksters The Pentangle and their guitarist Bert Jansch.

This playlist offers a sampling of just some of the classic recordings Talmy produced, including my favorite find of the past month, Manfred Mann's amazing song "Semi-Detached Suburban Mr. James," which sounds to me like the theme song for a lost Wes Anderson film. Enjoy!

Beatles #1's Covers

The Beatles are without a doubt, the most influencial band in Rock and Roll history. This playlist features Beatles songs that have hit number one, but covered by other artists. Such as: Flaco Jimenez, Bobby McFerrin, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, The Crarpenters, 10cc, Jimi Hendrix, Michael Jackson, Tony Bennett, Aretha Franklin and more.
(via: Rhapsody Radish)

Rolling Stone 500: top 50

On Friday, Rolling Stone magazine issued its list of the 500 greatest rock n' roll songs of all time. While there are some obvious omissions and some head-scratching inclusions, it's an interesting list nonetheless.

This playlist includes 39 songs from the top 50 that are available through Rhapsody (sorry kids, no Beatles yet).

Terry Melcher, R.I.P.

Musician and producer Terry Melcher passed away this weekend. Melcher had a major impact on the sound of popular music --and more specifically the "California sound"-- in the 1960s, producing classic records by the Byrds and others, including Paul Revere & the Raiders, Wayne Newton, The Rising Sons (featuring a young Roy Cooder and Taj Mahal), and The Rip Chords (featuring Melcher and future Beach Boy Bruce Johnston).

This playlist provides a musical snapshot of Melcher's work. Enjoy.