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Merry, merry, dear readers!

By now, everyone who had been mailed this comp should have received it. For those who have not, and for those who would rather have it as a digital download, here it is.

Hi folks! Here before you is the third Christmas Compilation. Again I figured that this would be a bit more appreciated than a Christmas Card. Maybe not, but here it is anyway.

This year, as you may have guessed, is all about cover songs. The cover song is a multi-faceted art form in and of itself. Some covers pay homage, some make fun and some are just ironic (some of those in both good and bad ways).

The songs I’ve picked for this comp probably run the gambit as to why they were chosen to be covered. But there is only one reason I chose them to be here.

All of these songs were in my collection. I like these songs. All of them. And I guess that means that I like a lot of music.

Two-ish discs. The first is a bit softer than the last, which is a bit harder and maybe not for everybody.

I’ll do this again next year, I’m sure, but you should do it too!

It would be great to get mix CDs from friends and family. You can really learn something about a person who gives you a mix.

I hope you listen and I hope you like it. And I hope you and yours have a great winter.

See ya next year!
-Eric

Since this is a covers comp, I am listing the original artists in parenthesis. Nifty, eh?

Disc 1
1) REM – Dark Globe (Syd Barrett)
2) Duran Duran – Fame (David Bowie)
3) Bruce Springsteen – Mountain of Love (Johnny Rivers, etc)
4) Handsome Family – Faraway Eyes (Rolling Stones)
5) Grateful Dead – Mama Tried (Merle Haggard)
6) B-52s – Downtown (Petula Clark)
7) Sonic Youth – Superstar (The Carpenters)
8) David Bowie – Amsterdam (Jacques Brel)
9) The English Beat – Tears of a Clown (Smokey Robinson)
10) Peter Gabriel – Summertime (from Porgy and Bess)
11) Devo – Working in a Coal Mine (Lee Dorsey)
12) Bjork – It’s Oh So Quiet (Betty Hutton)
13) Luther Wright & the Wrongs – Good-bye Blue Sky (Pink Floyd)
14) Nirvana – Plateau (Meat Puppets)
15) Nouvelle Vague – Sweet & Tender Hooligan (The Smiths)
16) The Breeders – Drivin’ On (Ed’s Redeeming Qualities)
17) Scott Walker – Mathilde (Jacques Brel)
18) Johnny Cash – The Mercy Seat (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds)
19) Pet Shop Boys – Always on My Mind (Willie Nelson)
20) Clem Snide – Beautiful (Christiana Aguilera)
21) The Proclaimers – (I’m Gonna) Burn Your Playhouse Down (George Jones)
22) TV Personalities – Apples and Oranges (Pink Floyd)
23) Michael Nesmith – I Fall to Pieces (Patsy Cline)
24) Simon & Garfunkel – Red Rubber Ball (The Circle)
Bonus – Eef Barzelay – Battle Hymn of the Republic

Disc 2
1) Down by Law – 500 Miles (The Proclaimers)
2) Primus – Making Plans for Nigel (XTC)
3) Lemonheads – Mrs. Robinson (Simon & Garfunkel)
4) Miracle Legion – Ziggy Stardust (David Bowie)
5) Agent Orange – Secret Agent Man (Johnny Rivers)
6) They Might Be Giants – New York City (Cub)
7) Crucial Youth – American Band (Grand Funk Railroad)
8) Life… But How To Live It – Norwegian Wood (The Beatles)
9) Anthrax – Pipeline (The Chantays)
10) Ms. Fits – Skulls (The Misfits)
11) Skankin’ Pickle – Start Today (Gorilla Biscuits)
12) Dinosaur Jr. – Just Like Heaven (The Cure)
13) The Pogues – Sunny Side of the Street (Louis Armstrong)
14) One Reason – No Surrender (Bruce Springsteen)
15) Shelter – After Forever (Black Sabbath)
16) Metallica – The Prince (Diamond Head)
17) Depeche Mode – Route 66 (Bobby Troup)
18) Henry Rollins – Ghost Rider (Suicide)
19) The Cure – Hello I Love You (The Doors)
20) 108 – The Bars (Black Flag)
21) The Wrens – The Seventh Stranger (Duran Duran)
22) Camper Van Beethoven – Pictures of Matchstick Men (Status Quo)
23) The Raincoats – Lola (The Kinks)
24) Less Than Jake – We Go Together (from Grease)
Bonus – Born Against – Movin’ On Up (theme to The Jeffersons)
Bonus on CD only – Man or Astroman – MST3K Theme

Bonus CD3 #1
1) Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys – Hawaiian War Chant (many)
2) Mrs. Miller – A Hard Day’s Night (The Beatles)
3) Altered Images – Song Sung Blue (Neil Diamond)
4) John Zorn – Batman (theme to Batman)
5) Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives – Head Like a Hole (NIN)
6) XTC – Fireball XL5 (theme to Fireball XL5)
7) Adam Ant – Catch a Falling Star (Perry Como)
8) Crispen Glover – These Boots Are Made for Walking (Nancy Sinatra)

Bonus CD3 #2
1) The Bad Plus – Iron Man (Black Sabbath)
2) Frank Zappa – Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash)
3) Elmer – Rocky Top (Osborne Brothers)
4) Lord Sitar – Daydream Believer (The Monkees)
5) Ten Masked Men – I Get Around (Beach Boys)
6) Iron Horse – Crazy Train (Ozzy Osborne)
7) Richard Cheese – Holiday in Cambodia (Dead Kennedys)

Click here to download the whole thing. (341MB)

I’m using a file hosting service called Megaupload (new to me, I mean). If you have any problems with it, just let me know. It’s easy! Just click the link, put in the little “captcha code,” hit enter and then choose “regular download,” ignore the ads (sorry) and download it to your desktop.

It’s a zip file, so everyone in the universe should be able to open it.