Coffee, Conversation, and a Mixtape

Another semester of conversation.  We talked and talked and talked – it was joyous.  We talked about what was current – race, Afghanistan, fear, politics, Iraq, and music.  We talked to each other.

We’re concerned about thousands of American troops heading around the world to build up other nations and to chase criminals.  We were both hopeful and dismayed about America’s political and social life – contradictions over campaign promises and actions in elected office; the current role of race in our lives and decision-making; trust of young people’s voices in the future and American life; prisons in Cuba; abuses of human liberties; and, corrupting influences in government.   We struggled to create rules for when to allow a person to drink a beer or enjoy a glass of wine. We argued about the proper role of sport in colleges and our collective lives, and had no idea how to stop violence and killings in America, Afghanistan, or Iraq.  We discussed love. And, we came to blows talking about music and whether Hip-Hop is dead (again).

Discussions about music always get us hyped.  What’s the tune – that jam, sweet piece of music – that you heard this year that made a difference; that you have to share with someone else; that everyone must hear? Here’s our answer:

Anonanimal by Andrew Bird

Ingrid Michaelson’s Sort Of

Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas

Ksenia Lanin is all about I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight performed by U2

Cold Shoulder performed by Adele

Kid Cudi’s In My Dreams

Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On

Sleepyhead performed by Passion Pit

When Love Takes Over by David Guetta

Walk with the Devil performed by Immortal Technique

Al Green’s performance of Let’s Stay Together

Teitur’s All My Mistakes

Carol of the Bells

Milow’s performance of Out of My Hands

Lupe Fiasco’s American Terrorist

A Change is Gonna Come performed by Sam Cooke

American Skin (41 Shots) by Bruce Springsteen

Sam Moore’s Soul Man

Happiness by The Fray

Dashboard Confessional’s performance of Alter the Ending

Green River Ordinance’s On Your Own

Beyoncé’s If I was a Boy

New York by Jay-Z

Mika’s performance of We are Golden

Empire of the Sun’s Walking on a Dream

Fragile by Chrisette Michele

The Aeroplane Remix of Grace Jones’ Williams’ Blood

Amos Lee’s Keep it Loose, Keep it Tight

The Old Forever New Things by The Most Serene Republic

Edo G’s Wishing (featuring Masta Ace)

What Goes Around by Nas

Amadou & Mariam’s Africa(featuring K’naan)

Stuff: Live at Montreaux 1976

Charlene by Anthony Hamilton

India Arie’s The Truth

Love Rain performed by Jill Scott

The Original Cast of Rent performing 525,600

Erykah Badu’s Next Lifetime

Death Around the Corner by Tupac

The Fugees’ How Many Mics

Nature of the Threat by Ras Kas

Immortal Technique’s The 4th Branch

UMI Says by Mos Def

C.L. Smooth & Pete Rock’s They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)

Ebonics by Big L

Obie Trice’s performance of Lay Down

Changes by Tupac

Ded Prez’s Hell Yeah

Us performed by Brother Ali

Joe Metro’s Blue Scholars

Animal in Man performed by Dead Prez

Adele’s Chasing Pavements (also an amazing music video)

The Way I am performed by Ingrid Michaelson

Sara Bareilles’ performance of Many the Miles

I’m Yours and Wordplay by Jason Mraz

Live performance by the Forest City Lovers of Orphans

Sweet Summer’s Night on Hammer Hill by Jens Lekman

Phoenix’s Lisztomania

Get Dancinin’ by Disco Tex & The Sex-O-Lettes

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony’s Listen and I Tried

You’re a Jerk performed by New Boyz

The Lonely Island’s I’m on a Boat

Good Morning by Chamillionaire

Maroon 5’s Won’t Go Home Without You

Say Hey (I Love You) by Michael Franti & Spearhead

Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros’ Home

Le vent nous portera by Noir Désir

Regina Spektor’s On the Radio

The Dynamo of Volition by Jason Mraz

Playing for Change’s Don’t Worry

Mississippi performed by Bob Dylan

Something You Forget by Lil Wayne

Grizzly Bear’s Two Weeks

The People performed by Wale

Bobby Womack’s Across 110th Street

Beyoncé’s performance of Ave Maria

Spaceman performed by our own Dear Abbeys

The New Radicals’ You Get What You Give

Hometown by Adele

Mos Def’s Mathematics

Snowfall performed by Vienna Teng

Sara Bareilles’ Love on the Rocks

Now We are Free by Hans Zimmer & Lisa Gerrard

The Rolling Stones’ Gimme Shelter

Nothing Else Matters by Metallica

Creed’s One

A rendition of Prayer of the Children

Rabbit Heart (Raise it Up) performed by Florence + the Machine

Hats off to the unsung — the folk who write the words; those who put the music they dream onto paper; and, those who hear the sounds, snippets, and beats that make it on tape — who make it possible for the songs we like to have meaning.  Finally, big ups to the people who influenced most, if not all, of the grooves listed on this page:

All the best in 2010. Peace forever — forever, ever.