01. The Kinks "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" (Face to Face, 15)
02. Lush "Scarlet" (Gala, 10)
03. Pet Shop Boys "West End Girls" (Please, 02)
04. Cream "SWLABR" (Disraeli Gears, 07)
05. Neil Young "Revolution Blues" (On the Beach, 03)
06. Unrest "Winona Ryder (xy version)" (B.P.M., 06)
07. Nena "99 Luftballons" (99 Luftballons, 11) [mp3]
08. Gold Chains "I Come from San Francisco" (Gold Chains, 01)
09. Pixies "Alec Eiffel" (Trompe le Monde, 03)
10. Deerhoof "Milking" (Milk Man, 07)
11. Sonic Youth "Green Light" (EVOL, 05)
12. Yo La Tengo "Moby Octopad" (I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One, 02)
13. The Hollies "Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress)" (Epic Anthology, 13)
14. Paul McCartney "Spies Like Us" (Press to Play, 14) [mp3]
15. Flying Saucer Attack "The Drowners" (Flying Saucer Attack, 07)
16. Tears for Fears "Shout" (Songs from the Big Chair, 01)
17. Fairport Convention "Come All Ye" (Liege & Lief, 01)
18. Elton John "Bennie and the Jets" (Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, 03) [mp3]
19. Captain Beefheart "Pena" (Trout Mask Replica, 15)
20. No Doubt "Hella Good" (Rock Steady, 02) [mp3]
The CD must be in the following order:
01) If you were making a soundtrack for your life so far, this song would have to be on it.
The Kinks "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" (Face to Face, 15) - Self-explanatory.
02) A song from one of the CDs currently in your 1) car stereo 2) portable CD player 3) stereo (No MP3 or iPod players, just cause).
Lush "Scarlet" (Gala, 10) - Every now and then I get serious shoegazer nostalgia, and this album always does the trick.
03) A song from the first album, cassette, or CD (whichever was first or the oldest that you still have access to) that you purchased for yourself.
Pet Shop Boys "West End Girls" (Please, 02) - It's possible I bought Peter Gabriel's "Big Time" on 45 before this, I'm not sure. I always thought they were saying something about denim walls, but apparently the lyrics are actually "a dead end world".
04) A song without a word in its title (i.e. numbers or acronyms).
Cream "SWLABR" (Disraeli Gears, 07) - Luckily it wasn't until years later that I found out this stands for "She Was Like a Bearded Rainbow". No wonder they felt compelled to acronymize.
05) A song from the year you were born (we'll take written, recorded, or released).
Neil Young "Revolution Blues" (On the Beach, 03) - You gotta love Neil. His 1974 masterpiece "On the Beach" was only recently reissued on CD.
06) A song with the name of someone in this music swap in it (doesn't have to be in the title) [or a celebrity].
Unrest "Winona Ryder (xy version)" (B.P.M., 06) - Immortalized in song before her fall from grace. There's also a version with Mark singing.
07) A song in a language other than English.
Nena "99 Luftballons" (99 Luftballons, 11) [mp3] - One of my radio favorites in 1984, although I thought the ending was a cop-out.
08) A song with a city or state/province name (countries don't count).
Gold Chains "I Come from San Francisco" (Gold Chains, 01) - The video for this, directed by Ruben Fleischer, is even more amazing, if you can believe it.
09) Say you're planning a multi-day road trip, this song could go on every mix you make for the trip.
Pixies "Alec Eiffel" (Trompe le Monde, 03) - Does a song more propulsive than this exist?
10) A song by a local artist.
Deerhoof "Milking" (Milk Man, 07) - The Bay Area's finest.
11) A song with a color in the title (bonus points for pink, negative points for raspberry beret).
Sonic Youth "Green Light" (EVOL, 05) - Just beautiful.
12) It's 5 am, your alarm is going off, this song would still make you smile.
Yo La Tengo "Moby Octopad" (I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One, 02) - I used to listen to this every day before going to work, to maintain the will to go on.
13) Either a cover you thought was an original or an original you thought was a cover.
The Hollies "Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress)" (Epic Anthology, 13) - I'm still in shock that this isn't CCR.
14) A song that is about a specific movie or book or at least mentions a specific movie or book.
Paul McCartney "Spies Like Us" (Press to Play, 14) [mp3] - I think this was only in the very very ending credits, but I remember thinking it sounded awesome, and was confused that it wasn't a big hit.
15) Wildcard.
Flying Saucer Attack "The Drowners" (Flying Saucer Attack, 07) - I felt the need to leaven the mix with a little noise. No, your speakers aren't broken, and if you listen closely, you may be able to tell that they're covering a Suede song. I also included the outro, "Still".
16) A song that has reached number one on a Billboard chart.
Tears for Fears "Shout" (Songs from the Big Chair, 01) - I had trouble actually finding Billboard chart data anywhere. I probably should've put some U2 here, oh well. I do dig this song, though. Hall and Oates were also in the running.
17) It's a little bit country/it's a little bit rock and roll: this song doesn't fit a category as far as you're concerned.
Fairport Convention "Come All Ye" (Liege & Lief, 01) - Well, it's a little bit folk, it's a little bit rock. I'm just going to pretend that "folk-rock" isn't a category.
18) I hate the artist, but I love the song.
Elton John "Bennie and the Jets" (Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, 03) [mp3] - I guess there are a couple other Sir Elton songs I can deal with, but this is the main one.
19) Wha? If anyone can tell me what this song is about, give me a call.
Captain Beefheart "Pena" (Trout Mask Replica, 15) - Fast and bulbous. That's right, the mascara snake! Fast and bulbous. Also, a tin teardrop. Bulbous, also tapered.
20) Guilty Pleasure or I am embarrassed that I like this song.
No Doubt "Hella Good" (Rock Steady, 02) [mp3] - I had always dismissed No Doubt as one of those interchangeable crappy major label L.A. bands, before I saw them perform this on SNL.