New tunes out this week as the temperature in Kentucky shifts from summer towards fall. This is an eclectic batch of songs that I’ve had hanging around for a minute. Some are leftovers from previous mixes, others, like Portland, Oregon by Loretta Lynn and Jack White, are selections that I’m cherry-picking off CDs so I can hear them more often, and the rest are favorites that glue some different genres together.

Mostly these are drinking songs. Something I would crank up in the car while hanging out with friends. Several have a hootenanny feel, informal, like the artists picked up their instruments at a party and just started playing.

It’s a fun listen, and marks the first time I’ve delved into popular country music. I’m OK with outlaw country, like Waylon, Willie, Johnny Cash and Townes Van Zandt, but Taylor Swift and that kind of noise has never sat well with me.

It’s only a few songs, but I have to say it was amusing trying to string together a functional mix that contains alternative, country and rap. That’s not an easy task. I utilized some indie tracks and older deep cuts to provide humor and smooth out the transitions.

With that in mind I paraphrased a line from The Blues Brothers to use as the title:

We Got Both Kinds of Music…Country and Western

Track Listings:

The Avett Brothers-Paranoia in Bb Major; Billy Squier-My Kinda Lover; The Black Keys-Psychotic Girl; The Civil Wars-Barton Hollow; David Gray-Sail Away; Deer Tick-Easy; Zac Brown Band-Chicken Fried; Arcade Fire-Sprawl II; Foo Fighters-Walk; The Kinks-Add It Up; Loretta Lynn & Jack White-Portland, Oregon; Todd Snider-In Between Jobs; The Velvet Underground-Lonesome Cowboy Bill; Luke Bryan-Country Girl (Shake It For Me); Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band-Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man; Kenny Chesney-No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problems; Queens Of The Stone Age-Outlaw Blues; Bucky Covington and Shooter Jennings-Drinking Side of Country; Killer Mike-Ric Flair; Three Dog Night-An Old Fashioned Love Song.

Highlights:

Give Deer Tick a listen if you haven’t heard these Rhode Island party rockers; Zac Brown Band is more country than rock, but they’ve crossed over into the jam band realm – the tune Chicken Fried puts a smile on my face; I’ve been mesmerized by the Arcade Fire’s Sprawl II since I saw them perform it at the 2011 Jazz Fest; Walk by the Foo Fighters has been a huge song for me considering everything I’ve gone through lately, and it’s a fitting tribute to Dave Grohl’s journey since Kurt Cobain’s death; also the cover of Dylan’s Outlaw Blues by Queens Of The Stone Age was a welcomed find.

This is a great disc to play loud with the windows down on a crisp afternoon. Cheers!