Lissie – In Sleep

(Watch another version here)

Both versions are ‘live’ and slightly different than the studio recording.  If you like either version, you’ll like the album version of this song, but I honestly can’t tell you which I prefer.  Either way, this song is seductive.  It sounds like Lucinda Williams if she hadn’t buckled under the pressure of being Lucinda Williams.  Strong, sensual, female alt-country singers are a rare breed, so relish it.

Patrick Watson – Big Bird in a Small Cage

I don’t know if I can sell this song.  Listen to it, and you’ll either love it or it’ll just float right past you.  I had this song on my computer for nearly a year before it struck me one day.  And now, I can’t pass it up.  Gorgeous, delicate and melancholy in a perfect combination.  I have days where all I want to do is listen to upbeat, dance-y music, and yet, if this song comes on, I can’t turn it off.  Give it a chance, I think you’ll fall in love.

The National – Think You Can Wait

It’s the National.  You either love them by this point or you’re irreconcilably daft.  This song comes from the soundtrack for a movie I haven’t seen (it stars Paul Giamatti, so odds are it’s worth checking out).  All you really need to know is, it sounds like the National.  If that means nothing to you, you’re either about to find the band to soundtrack your life, or you’re younger than 24.  Seriously, though, it’s easy to dismiss this band as morose but the music cannot be denied.

Peter Bjorn and John – Nothing To Worry About

“Young Folks.”  That’s all you need to say.  After that ubiquitous, contagious ditty came out, PB&J had no chance of matching that sort of mass hysteria.  Their next album was screwed from the outset.  And this single would seem to pail in comparison.  But, it doesn’t.  Catchy, infectious, dark and yet poppy, “Nothing To Worry About” is exactly the kind of song to follow up Whistle-Fest.  The fact that a lot of people who might have heard this song playing over store speakers or in some club might not have realized it was the same band is really only a compliment to the band.  Blast it.

Jackson 5 – I Want You Back

It’s a classic.  Perfect pop, nothing has ever really touched it.  When this song comes on the Ipod, instant good mood.  It’s not likely I need to sell this song to anyone.  I can’t imagine there is anyone out there that doesn’t love this song.  If such a person exists, I would not want to meet them.  Too sad.