Anyone can put together a music list.  In fact, the proliferation of mid-year Best Of’s that have become so popular all across the web show just how ponderous these lists can be.  I mean, c’mon, we can’t wait until the end of the year to put together a list of the “best albums of the year”?  What’s next?  Best of the month?  Of the week?  It’s enough already.

But major points for creativity and comprehensiveness go to the staff of A.V. Club for this week’s compilation of a list that they are calling “23 pop songs that lived twice (or more)”.

Be sure to click that link for a reminder of some great songs (and maybe a few not-so-great ones) that found new life well after their original “expiration” date.  It’s a powerful reminder of the ability of music to evoke an emotion so strong as to make grown men weep (to say nothing of the women and children).

Of course, this made the list (@ #5)

In all seriousness, each of these 23 songs has a fascinating backstory that makes their ultimate revival all the more interesting.  Some were hits that found additional success years later.  Some were overlooked nuggets that found their way to a mass audience with a combination of luck and strategy.

And all are worth checking out, with the fine synopses provided by The Onion’s insightful staff to go along with the requisite YouTube clips.

It’s fun to imagine an underappreciated song or classic cut making a revival.  We can all think of a few that deserve the hands of fate to shine on them.  This list proves that you never can tell when or how it just might happen.

So the 20th anniversary of Merge Records is definitely cause for celebration. 

Check out the great feature today on NPR’s All Things Considered telling the story of the record label’s beginnings and the ability of Merge’s co-founders (Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance of the band Superchunk) to maintain their integrity and thrive in an industry where survival alone is nearly impossible these days.

Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan of Superchunk, co-founders of Merge Records

An ear for talent certainly doesn’t hurt, and with a roster that includes great bands like Spoon and Arcade Fire, Merge has proven to independent radio programmers and music critics that it’s always worth making the effort to scope out a Merge band when sorting through the vast array of new releases vying for airplay and attention.

With such a wide cross-section of artists on their roster, it is self-evident that not every Merge band is for everyone, but it’s definitely worth your time to check out Merge Radio or the Merge Records YouTube channel to sample some of the artists represented on their stellar roster.

Good music is still out there, folks.  Sometimes you’ve just gotta know where to find it.  Merge is one of those places. 

As McCaughan says, “We’ve always run the label like music fans. And our customer base is music fans. We started a label, and we run a label counting on there being people like us.”

According to Spike Lee, when he first met Barack Obama at a fundraiser during Obama’s run for the Senate, Obama let him know that his first date with wife Michelle was to see a showing of “Do The Right Thing”.  And why not?  The summer of 1989 was the perfect time to take in Lee’s release of one of the most honest and telling looks at race relations in this country.

The movie’s simmering plot and violent ending on the hottest day of summer in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn was met with fears by some that its screening would lead to riots in the streets.  Those fears never realized, the movie instead inspired a great deal of candid discussion and is still seen as a classic 20 years later.

The American Film Institute named “Do The Right Thing” as the #96 American movie of all-time in its list of the 100 greatest American movies.  And now comes the requisite 20th Anniversary Edition of the DVD on June 30th, marking exactly 20 years to the date of its theatrical release.

In commemoration of the anniversary, the Los Angeles Times has compiled interviews with key members of the cast and crew to provide a great perspective on the making of the movie and the impressions of those involved on its continued relevance today.

With the gripping and memorable storylines of the movie, it’s easy to forget the impressive cast that brought it to life.  From all-timers like Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, & Samuel L. Jackson to great character actors like Danny Aiello, John Turturro, & Bill Nunn (Radio Raheem) to comedians like Martin Lawrence and the late Robin Harris, the screen is packed with greatness in every scene.  Spike Lee himself as Mookie and Rosie Perez as his girlfriend Tina work perfectly as well.

There are so many clips floating around YouTube (all NSFW) that I’ll let you find them yourself.  But for a little inspiration, check out the (curse-free) original trailer. 

Anniversaries are good when they remind us of the original attraction.  I can’t wait for the extras on the 20th anniversary edition, but it’s heartening to know that the original still stands the test of time.  And then some.

It was 50 years ago today that Frederick Heath, using the stage name Johnny Kidd, found himself at the world-famous Abbey Road Studios. 

Johnny Kidd & The Pirates cut their first record during that session on April 18, 1959, yielding the outstanding single “Please Don’t Touch”.

Johnny Kidd & The Pirates

Allmusic’s Bruce Eder offers a fantastic biography of the band, providing a timeline that includes their history as one of the biggest British rock & roll acts in the pre-Beatles era, their biggest hit song “Shakin’ All Over” (later covered notably by The Who), their record label’s inability to properly manage their career, and (sadly) Heath’s untimely death in a car crash in 1966.

While the legacy of Johnny Kidd & The Pirates is preserved by a few ardent followers, most significantly the incredibly detailed work of Adrian Barrett in maintaining “the Kidd’s homepage”, the music has largely been forgotten.

But on this 50th anniversary of the recording of “Please Don’t Touch”, I have the pleasure of sharing with you one of the greatest covers known to man, woman, or child. 

Thanks to CBT77 on YouTube, you can enjoy this unbelievable version featuring Motorhead & Girlschool together from 1981.  Words cannot do justice to how great this is.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I do (along with the previous 800,000 viewers and counting).

Thanks for indulging me in that slice of ridiculousness.  If the original versions of Johnny Kidd’s material is more your speed, you are in luck with last year’s release of the comprehensive (and 5-star reviewed) compilation The Best Of Johnny Kidd & The Pirates.

Enjoy that.  And I’ll keep digging for more musical gems to share in the days ahead.

“Keep Calm and Carry On.”  That sounds just about perfect.

The Chicago Tribune provides insight into this great story of how the poster commissioned by the British Ministry of Information in 1939 has become the must-have motto for shoppers looking for inspiration in these trying times.

I dig it.  Seriously.  Even despite the fact that David Beckham reportedly has the T-shirt.

And, just because I can – here is a completely gratuitous clip of Kansas performing “Carry On Wayward Son” from 1976.  Truly amazing on so many levels.  What did we ever do without YouTube?

That’s it for now.  Keep calm and carry on.

Some of these, such as the aforementioned, are such well-known mainstream performers that their legends are hard to escape.  A movie star or rock star never dies, so to speak.

But then there are the “cult” figures, admired by a select few who champion the cause whenever possible. 

A musician like Nick Drake comes to mind.  A fantastic talent who passed away at age 26 over 30 years ago, his star has risen in the last few years in no small part to dedicated fans’ work in providing exposure to the music in key spots such as Volkswagen ads or the Garden State soundtrack.

And then there are the Buckleys, a father-and-son duo who, in their own unique way, define the cult mystique. 

Tim Buckley, a musician with a career defined by a meteoric rise and fall and whose sound can only be properly described as avant-garde, passes away in 1975 at age 28 after a heroin overdose.

Tim Buckley

And his biological son, Jeff Buckley, working on a follow-up to his brilliant debut album, wades into the Wolf River Harbor in Memphis, TN and drowns at age 30 in 1997.

Jeff Buckley

Both father and son maintain their avid fans to this day.

Therefore, it is hardly a surprise that a rock journalist like David Browne would craft a biography (the excellent Dream Brother: The Lives & Music of Jeff and Tim Buckley) to capture the Buckley story.  And not a surprise that Mary Guibert, mother of Jeff, would entertain notions of a Hollywood biopic.

What can get lost in the mystique, however, is the music. 

I beg you to check out Jeff Buckley’s Grace, if you do not own it already.  There is not a dud in the bunch.  One of the reasons that this stands as his only official studio release is due to the meticulous nature of his recording and the ridiculously high standards to which he held his career.

Jeff Buckley's "Grace"

What ultimately became his second (posthumous) release, Sketches For My Sweetheart The Drunk, is far superior to the mixed feelings that Buckley had regarding this project.

And, Live At Sin-é, an early EP later re-issued in deluxe format, captures Buckley at a formative time in his career and highlights his live stage presence as well as his ability to transform and interpret selections from his musical influences.

As for Tim Buckley, more prodigious in musical output than his son, the compilation The Best of Tim Buckley provides the best overview of his unique swirl of folk, jazz, rock, and pyschedelia.

It will be fascinating to see if the Buckley story makes it to the big screen.  Guibert is insisting on executive control, which should ensure that it will either be of the highest quality or shelved forever. 

In the meantime, I’ll be checking out the new book A Pure Drop: The Life Of Jeff Buckley, delivered by Australian rock biographer Jeff Apter.  You can get a sneak peek at the book by reading the entire first chapter here.

And, in the end, it’s all about the music.  Leave it to YouTube to offer the best options for a glimpse at the definitive of version of Hallelujah or the epic sound of So Real. 

Check these out along with the rest of the Buckley catalogues to better understand what all the fuss is about.

You may recall that I always prefer a good Sprecher root beer when imbibing the carbonated stuff, and I acknowledge that Pepsi’s probably not worried about marketing to me with their Pepsi Fantasy Racing site or their YouTube channel.  Wait, a Pepsi YouTube channel?  Really?

But regardless of my personal tastes in beverages, I do have to agree with Dan Neil of the Los Angeles Times who asks, “What were they thinking?“

Late night was, and continues to be, one of the few places to find actual live musical performances on television.  But there has always been very little emphasis on providing information on when bands are actually scheduled to appear.  I remedied that by stumbling upon the fantastic Late Night TV Page and still reference it to this day. 

Updated daily, and with no advertising, it is worth checking regularly to see which bands are hitting the talk show circuit.  Along with your favorite actors/actresses, comedians, and any other personalities that might get booked on the 15 or so shows tracked on the site.  Set your Tivo, DVR, VCR, or just call your friends and have them do it for you.

And if you are looking for more live music on television, I highly recommend keeping tabs on the upcoming performances on Austin City Limits.  ACL has actually been on public television for 34 years and offers up an eclectic mix of mini-concerts, as opposed to the single songs slotted by most late night shows.

Lastly, I will leave you with an unbelievable cameo from the man who changed late night television forever.  Personally, I could watch David Letterman in his movie acting debut alongside the definitely-not-for-everyone Chris Elliott in “Cabin Boy” over and over.  You, on the other hand, may not be surprised to learn that Letterman has not left his day job (night job?) for any movie roles since.