The mix project continues... today's theme was Cover Songs. Here is the tracklist and liner notes for the mix I made for Tommy:

1. Hazy Shade of Winter – The Bangles (Simon & Garfunkel): As always, I like to start these mixes off with solid guitar riffs, which this song has. Sounds great on a good stereo (or headphones), where the riff bounces between the left and right speakers.
2. Rock & Roll - Jane's Addiction (Velvet Underground): I’m not a big fan of either Jane’s Addiction or Velvet Underground, but for some reason I really like how JA sounds doing this song.
3. Wild Horses - The Sundays (Rolling Stones): Hard to believe one of my favorite Stones songs could be improved upon, especially in a version prominently used by a WB TV show, but this version is haunting… it’s more of a stalker song than a love song here.
4. The Ocean - Melissa Quade (Led Zepplin): I wish I could cut out the end, because it almost ruins the song, but I think she’s a great singer and does a terrific job stripping down this song.
5. Try Some, Buy Some - David Bowie (George Harrison): It’s sad that the best song on Bowie’s new album is a cover, but not really since this is really great.
6. Working in a Coal Mine - Devo (Lee Dorsey): Devo makes it seem like it could be a whole lotta fun to work in a coal mine.
7. Mona (I Need You Baby) - Rolling Stones (Bo Diddley): Yeah, so much of the early Stones material is covers, and those songs don’t show off the band’s skills, but out of all their early stuff I think this is there best cover.
8. The Passenger - Siouxsie & the Banshees (Iggy Pop): This song is probably the most faithful to the source material, but Siouxsie sounds great singing this.
9. Always Something There to Remind Me - Naked Eyes (Lou Johnson): As far as improving upon source material, I don’t think you can do much better than this.
10. White Lines - Duran Duran (Grandmaster Flash): DD started the encore with this song during their Webster Hall show and almost blew the roof off the place. Sure, it’s borderline laughable when Grandmaster Flash trades rhymes with Simon LeBon, but it’s a song I could crank all they way up while driving.
11. Girl U Want - Soundgarden (Devo): Simple song that Soundgarden didn’t alter too much; they simply made it their own, and it works.
12. Ben - Crispin Glover (Michael Jackson): Michael Jackson singing about a rat = creepy. Crispin Glover singing about a rat = creepier. Although Crispin Glover makes just about anything creepier.
13. Thirteen - Garbage (Big Star): I wish some girl had made these offers to me when I was thirteen. Shirley Manson’s voice is just too damn sexy. This is probably my favorite song on the mix.
14. Handbags & Gladrags - Stereophonics (Michael D'abo): Being such a huge fan of “The Office,” I tried to find the version that plays in the credits. It’s never been released, but this version is almost identical. It’s also the only Stereophonics song I can stomach.
15. Save It For Later - Harvey Danger (English Beat): “Flagpole Sitta” is such an annoying song, it’s a marvel I even gave this a chance… but I’m glad I did, because I think they did a great job with it.
16. Ball of Confusion - Love & Rockets (The Temptations): Not only a cover, but also a lyrical update.
17. Rent - Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine (Pet Shop Boys): When I was in Scotland, I had a friend who loved Pop Will Eat Itself, Carter the USM, and Pet Shop Boys’ “Rent.” Every conversation concerning music would eventually lead to one (or more) of these three topics. This song nails 2 of the 3. I don’t particularly like Carter, which is an opinion shared by most people (that is, of people who know of him, which in this country is virtually nobody), and I’m not wild about this version of the song, so more than anything I put it on here in honor of my friend, Laurie.
18. Rock & Roll All Nite - Toad the Wet Sprocket (Kiss): One of the things that most attracts me to a cover is when they alter the mood of the song. This one does that in spades. I just wish I could’ve found a version that cuts out the lame intro.
19. The Girl Is Mine – Penn-6 (Michael Jackson / Paul McCartney): If the a-capella groups at Penn were organized like the Greek system, Pennsylvania 6-5000 would be the Animal House: lots of drinking, drugs, crazy parties, date-rape, etc. At performances, they’d get so trashed they could barely sing. So it boggles the mind that they could arrange and sing songs that sound as good as this.
20. Timeless Melody - Pearl Jam (The La's): PJ has so many covers to choose from… I tried to pick one I was pretty sure you’ve never heard. The original of this is great, and it’s a shame the La’s broke up so early in their career, although I hear a reunion is in the works. This is just a great little pop song; nothing more, nothing less.

Tommy Sticking Point took the very creative step of commenting on my Oscar diary instead of writing his own, and he did a bang-up job. Not to turn this into a never-ending cycle, but here's a few comments I have on his notes:

8:51
Brian writes: Tim Robbins ... seems to have found a surefire way to avoid the orchestra cue: discuss sexual abuse. Future winners, take note.
Tommy's Second Opinion: But to make it more interesting, name names. Start with "Michael Jackson."
Brian's Third Opinion: Name names, but make shit up... maybe use a director who rejected you for a part. Hey, you just won an Oscar... see how far you can push things before your career instantly implodes.

9:24
Brian writes: Tom Hanks’ entire face is sagging… it’s as if a bowling ball is dangling from his chin.
TSO: Man, I have had it with this guy. How many GREAT movies has he made? Two? IMDB's got 37 films to his credit. That's a really crappy ratio.
BTO: Yes, but he's hosted SNL like three thousand times... that should count for something, methinks.

10:05
Brian writes: I loved The Days of Wine & Ro and Victor / Victo; long live ake Edwards!
TSO: akes me wish I had a widescreen TV. What a load of shi
BTO: Damn, Tommy just nailed the punchline that I totally fucked up. That's why he makes the big bucks.

11:03
Brian writes: Jamie Lee Curtis’ breasts have varicose veins. Nasty.
TSO: ...and they go all the way down to her penis. Gross.
BTO: That JLC-was-born-a-man is one of the most bizarre Hollywood urban legends of all time. Although it would explain how she and Christopher Guest are a couple.

Thank you for cleaning up my spills, Tommy.

I should also note that I came in second place in my Oscar pool, losing by 1. Damn LOTR sweep...

The Oscars finally ended about half an hour ago, and damn, were they boring! Regardless, here's my show diary...

8:00: Apparently the pre-show starts now, not the actual show… already this fucks up my Oscar pool, since our tiebreaker question is “What time will the show end?” I put 11:28… I should’ve put 11:58. Thankfully it’s the 76th annual show, which isn’t a multiple of 5, so we won’t have to put up with stupid retrospectives… or will we?

8:29: I’ve watched about 5 minutes of pre-show, and this Billy guy inside the auditorium has made the following people terribly uncomfortable: Alec Baldwin, Sandra Bullock, Ben Kingsley, Renee Zellweger, Nicole Kidman, Johnny Depp,and Keisha Castle-Hughes. Where did they find this chump? The Ryan Seacrest Reject Factory?

8:30: Sean Connery opens the show saying “for more than 100 years, people have been fascinated by movies.” And for 40 years, people have been fascinated by his eyebrows… they move seemingly without purpose!

8:36: The Magic of Movie montage – decent; Billy’s impression of Jack – awful.

8:39: That joke about the differences from 13 years ago was fresh about 13 comedians ago.

8:46: Is Peter Weir married to Cheryl Hines?

8:47: Cut to Marc Shaiman blowing kisses to the camera. Wait, he’s gay?

8:51: Tim Robbins wins; I’m 1-for-1 in my pool. And he seems to have found a surefire way to avoid the orchestra cue: discuss sexual abuse. Future winners, take note.

8:53: 23 minutes in, only 1 award. At this rate I should’ve guessed 5:18am.

9:01: LOTR wins its first, Art Direction… gonna be a long night for them. And is the gray-haired guy Peter Jackson in disguise? Calm down, I’m sure you’ll be up there later in the night.

9:02: Peter Jackson is so fat, he can’t button the top button of his shirt or tighten his tie. Kinda sad.

9:05: Robin Williams playfully butchers the names of the Best Animated Film nominees by using a playful lisp. Way to destroy their one moment of glory.

9:06: Triplets was robbed. Take that, France… that’s for not sending troops to the Middle East!

9:07: Sounds of Oscar = Instant Replay. Who are they trying to kid?

9:11: It’s official: I’m evil… all I can think right now is “Please, Renee, trip and fall down the stairs.”

9:19: Aghdashloo looks just like Catherine Zeta-Jones. Eerie resemblance.

9:21: Renee wins, and it looks like she’s still looking for a place to store those nuts for winter. Better get a move on… it’s March already.

9:24: Tom Hanks’ entire face is sagging… it’s as if a bowling ball is dangling from his chin.

9:25: Why are they playing the Forrest Gump theme for the Bob Hope tribute? Are they implying he was a retard?

9:33: Damn, Billy Zabka didn’t win… they didn’t even show his face. Guess there will be no “Sweep the leg” jokes tonight.

9:35: The other winner looks PISSED he didn’t get to talk. That’s it… their friendship is over.

9:37: Random Baldwin (non-Alec) sighting. Was it Billy or Daniel? Does anyone really care?

9:38: Liv Tyler is going with the Lisa Loeb look, and she pulled it off BIG TIME.

9:44: The back-up singers for “Scarlet Tide” look like they could be Senators.

9:56: Yawn. This isn’t my first yawn, but it’s the first one I’ve written down. This may be the most boring Oscar ceremony I’ve ever seen.

10:01: Jennifer Garner deserves an Oscar for acting interested throughout the entire tech awards.

10:02: Crap, Jim Carrey has leukemia again.

10:05: I loved The Days of Wine & Ro and Victor / Victo; long live ake Edwards!

10:15: It’s official: Bill Murray has the best line of the night for “We were refused.”

10:20: Was the first make-up winner in the poster for Meet the Deedles?

10:21: Sandra Bullock says “You were early.” Good one.

10:28: Sean Penn is not amused by Julia Roberts. But then again, is he ever?

10:33: The guy who played the crazy vet who works at Peterman in an episode of Seinfeld is a seatfiller… he’s sitting next to Zeta-Jones. I swear (thanks to DVR for rewind & pause so I could verify that). Well, that’s one way to go to the Oscars.

10:37: Oprah: “I love a great movie.” You know, for years I’ve been telling people just how much alike Oprah and I are… then she has to go and ruin it with a crazy statement like that.

10:45: Billy Crystal just gave a great follow-up with his “tax audit” joke. He does still have some life left in him.

10:47: The President of the Academy just said “Attixus,” then said “Attixus” again. Do all Presidents have problems talking?

10:50: Holy shit, Stan Brakhage died! Oh wait, I have no idea who that is. Nevermind.

11:00: I’m glad Julianne Moore was amused by Pierce Brosnan’s editing joke… she was the only one.

11:01: How did LOTR win Best Editing? It never ended! Damn bandwagoners…

11:03: Jamie Lee Curtis’ breasts have varicose veins. Nasty.

11:16: Jack Black’s jump-and-land-in-a-kneel would’ve been much cooler had he been wearing a cape. I’m just saying…

11:18: Would a song like “Flashdance” ever get a nomination these days, let alone win?

11:22: Canada wins Best Foreign Language Film. They should’ve named the movie The Barbarian Inv-eh-sion. Get it? (There you have it, my worst joke of the night)

11:31: LOTR won Adapted Screenplay? That’s it, it’s gonna be a clean sweep. Has that ever happened before?

11:33: Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon: Academy Award-winning couple. That’s awesome.

11:42: Time for Best Director. Please let City of God win something…

11:43: Crap.

11:44: The woman who escorts the winners offstage is HOT! And she towers over Tom Cruise.

11:46: Can we safely admit that Adrian Brody’s career is over already? And he has a weird walk… it’s like the way a Ken doll would move.

11:48: Yeah Charlize… my dad and I have been expecting this since October 1996, when we saw 2 Days in the Valley.

11:59: Best Actor this year is the TOUGHEST CATEGORY EVER!!!

12:01: Wow, Penn got a HUGE ovation. Then he says it’s pretentious to write a speech. Way to slap any winner who has ever done that. He’ll never win again.

12:05: LOTR officially sweeps everything. Yawn.

That’s the end of the most boring Oscar ceremony ever (and the most boring Oscar diary ever).

Oscars start in 2 hours... here are my predictions for the major categories, and what I want to win (bear in mind that I'm really bad at this):

Best Picture:
Want – City of God (but since it’s not nominated, Lost in Translation)
Predict – LOTR
Best Director:
Want – City of God
Predict – LOTR
Best Actor:
Want – Either Penn, Murray, or Depp
Predict – Penn
Best Actress:
Want – Theron
Predict – Theron
Best Supporting Actor:
Want – Del Toro or Watanabe
Predict – Robbins
Best Supporting Actress:
Want – Hunter
Predict – Agdashloo
Best Original Screenplay:
Want – Lost in Translation
Predict – Lost in Translation
Best Adapted Screenplay:
Want – City of God
Predict – Mystic River

I'm visiting my parents in Florida this weekend, which always leads to many memorable quotes... here are some favorites:
1) "Raise your hand if you want to go to Florida! (after 2 people raise their hands) If you don't raise your hand, you can just stay in New York... (2 more people raise their hand)" - Song Airline attendant.
2) "We board our passengers by zone, so check your seat assignment; your zone will be listed directly beneath your seat number. You ticket should say Zone 1-6. If it says 'end zone' or 'twilight zone,' you're on the wrong flight." - same Song attendant.
3) "Don't open the window... you'll freeze to death!" - my mother, to my sister during the car ride to dinner our first night; according to the car thermometer, the outside temperature was 78 degrees.
4) "Why do they itch?" - my mother, asking me about the members of G-Unit's affinity for grabbing their balls in their videos.
5) "Do you want to eat at my place? The last week of each month they serve the worst lunches... there's nothing there you would eat." - my grandmother, referring to the dining room at her assisted living complex when my sister and I asked her if she'd like to have lunch the following day.
6) "They don't know their ear from their A." - my grandmother, referring to the waiters at aforementioned dining room.
7) "What? His name is Chet Whosin?" - my mother, after I informed her that the subject of a photo in her Annie Leibovitz book was Trent Reznor.
8) "You know what you are? A pisser... when you go, do you make sure you get rid of it all? Do you know how to do it right? Do you need someone to teach you?" - my grandmother, grilling my sister on the proper urination methods due to my sister's habit of peeing approximately every 80 minutes.
Good times...

Apparently the Kids of Widney High have just released a new CD, Act Your Age. What an odd coincidence, since on Monday I named my fantasy baseball league Kids of Widney High. Eerie, that is... but I can't wait to hear the new album.

Some interesting stuff in the new issue of Rolling Stone:
1) After Ryan Adams fell offstage and broke his wrist, "the injury may take up to two months to heal, and he could lose twenty percent mobility in the wrist. But the singer is in good spirits... 'Maybe I can learn to play guitar with my feet.'" Yeah, or maybe you should give up performing altogether... that's obviously what God had in mind when he caused you to take a nosedive...
2) Avril Levigne, when asked what is her favorite board game: "I like Scrabble. I'm actually pretty good at it, I think, because when I'm writing, I'm thinking of words." There is no joke I could possibly make that is a better punchline that her quote on its own...
3) Quote from Beyonce Knowles: "I work really hard. I'm a perfectionist. If my video is wrong, I'm-a-fix it." Guess that perfectionism doesn't carry over into her grammar...

Last year I signed up to be part of the Compact Disc Minimum Advertised Price Antitrust Litigation. Yesterday I finally got my settlement check in the amount of $13.86. So basically, after years of having CD companies rip me off, I've been awarded enough money to almost go to a store and buy a new album. Maybe if I put the money into a high-yield bond, I'll be able to afford Smile when it comes out in the fall...

I came to work today to have this piece of news waiting for me... how great! Two positive Beach Boys news stories in one week... who would've thunk it? I can't wait for the album to come out, but he simply MUST bring the tour to the US... why should Europe get all the love? Look at these reviews:
#1
#2
#3
I'm salivating...

I was on the subway yesterday and ran into KFC Homeless Man again (see Feb. 14)... still had a bag full of KFC, although his supply seemed to have dwindled a bit. I wish I could get free KFC the same way this guy does... I wonder what his secret is. Would it be worth it to pretend to be homeless in order to get free KFC? Eh, probably not.

Let's make this happen... the Beach Boys have been historically screwed in terms of recognition, and while this won't rectify that, it's a start...

Lil' GnR is returning to CBGB's on Sunday... this audition footage of them is kinda funny and so, SO sad all at once.

It has been decided... the next mix topic is Cover Songs. Gonna be very interesting, since most covers suck... but I'm sure Tommy will come up with winners. Tentative due date is March 1, so check back for track listings and liner notes. In the meantime, this is by no means a definitive collection, but still a pretty cool resource.

The commercial for Time-Life's Best of Beavis & Butt-head proclaim that "the best duos in history come in pairs." Thanks, Einsteins.

Well it looks like eBay removed the posting I linked to a couple days ago for the person selling the phone number 212-867-5309... last I checked it was at 65 grand... I wonder how much I can get for my phone number that so closely resembled a Chinese restaurant that I get at least a dozen wrong number calls a week... anyone interested?

Happy Half-Birthday to me...

In commercials for Gatorade, why does the ad read Is It In You? when the voice-over specifically says Is It In You? Doesn't make sense...

The press conference introducing A-rod as a Yankee was very exciting, but they're always too diplomatic. When asked if he had anything to say to the Red Sox, why couldn't he say, "Screw you, Boston... you're going down"? You know that's what he was thinking...

Of all I have read so far regarding the A-rod trade (and it's been a lot), this is by far the best item:
The Rangers will wind up paying $140 million for three seasons with Rodriguez, an average of $46.7 million annually for three last-place finishes in the AL West. The Yankees will owe him $112 million over seven years.
Awesome!

You have got to be kidding me with this... wouldn't having that number be more of a bother than anything else, with the number of crank calls the winner would surely get? People with that much money to spend on such a stupid thing SUCK!!!

It's President's Day, and I'm at work... the TRL staff seems to be the only people in the building (or at least on the floor)... bah.

When my clock radio went off this morning, "Walking on the Moon" was just finishing, and the DJ came on and said "That was the Police, and right before that we heard the new one from Tesla," and I suddenly got scared that I had woken up in 1989...

1:45am, Friday night / Saturday morning, Times Square subway station, uptown 1/2/3/9 platform. A homeless man is digging eagerly into a garbage can, presumably in search of food. A couple minutes later, a second homeless man wanders by, carrying a large Adidas sports bag with several stuffed animals protruding. He puts the bag down and unzips it, revealing that the majority of the bag is filled with KFC: boxes of chicken, sealed side items, the works. Noticing the garbage scavenger, he takes out two individual sides (both mashed potatoes and gravy, if I'm not mistaken) and says "Hey man, don't be digging through no garbage. Take this." The first man refuses to even acknowledge the second man, let alone accept the offering. The second man puts the food back in the bag, then wanders around the platform screaming, "Crazy man don't want no KFC! Crazy man don't want no KFC!"
As the Post's Liz Smith says, "Only in New York, kids, only in New York."