Hey Mr DJ . . .

I firmly believe that God and the universe work to send us what we need when we need it. My iPod’s shuffle feature works this way, too. Now, I think this has extended to include random, self-made CDs. I keep tons of CDs in the car, the bulk of which are blanks I’ve burned myself and hastily scribbled a date onto with a black Sharpie marker. How I am to remember that “July 2005” will have a specific set of songs that “May 2004” does not I don’t know, but I do it anyway. Occasionally though, a CD will make it to the car without being labeled at all. Those are ones I view with a mixture of suspicion and excitement. I shouldn’t be suspicious, given that I was the author of the CD combo, but some mixes turn out better than others.

Today, as I was driving around alone (a rare and welcome event in and of itself!), I put in one of those unmarked CDs. Imagine my surprise to be greeted with songs that I’d not heard in (I’m not exaggerating) years. I’ve been on a bit of a Roxy Music kick lately, so hearing “Love is the Drug” was a treat, and so was “Do Wot You Do,” one of INXS' most infectious dance tunes ever. Here’s what the CD gods bestowed on me, and thus made my day with:

Uptown Girl – Westlife (live from the Brit awards, 2001)
Do Wot You Do – INXS
All Along the Watchtower – Lenny Kravitz
Dancing Barefoot – U2
Love is the Drug – Roxy Music
Breathless – The Corrs
Invisible Sun – Sting and U2
Praying for Time – George Michael
King of the Mountain – Midnight Oil
Spring Hill Mining Disaster – U2
Win/Lose – Ollie Olsen (from the "Dogs in Space" soundtrack)
Subterranean Homesick Blues – John Lennon
Sunday Bloody Sunday/Bad (from Live Aid) – U2
True Love – The Marching Girls (also from the "DIS" soundtrack)
Message in a Bottle/Fragile (live from Central Park) – Sting

Now, anyone who’s ever ridden any distance with me in a car can expect that U2, INXS, and Sting stuff, but the George Michael tunes are not what most people play anymore. I think this is sad. George, in spite of all his personal problems of late, remains one of the finest pop songwriters of his generation, I think. Sure, he has an over-exaggerated view of his prominence in the US, and bad taste in hook-ups, but I can forgive all that. I wish everyone else could. Me, I still listen to something by the man at some point nearly every day. At least he’s not gone the Boy George route and ended up organizing his own drug bust! ;-) That being said, if I was in Lower Manhattan on 14 Aug, I might well show up to see if Dalton Ross’ proposal bears fruit.

This is random, but does anyone know if the guy in the "Uptown Girl" video is the same actor who played David on Cold Feet?