Doin' the Friday Shuffle

1. "Salon at the Claridge #1" - Stephen Sondheim - Stavisky (Film Score)
Melancholy French-sounding piece from one of Sondheim's two film scores.

2. "'Casey' (Medley): Marie" - Mandy Patinkin - Mandy Patinkin
Gorgeous melody, tender and slow and happy.

3. "Taken" - Tracy Chapman - Where You Live
A slow, clomping shuffle from Chapman's very good new album.

4. "Desafinado" - Antonio Carlos Jobim - Antonio Carlos Jobim's Finest Hour
I like Jobim, but his songs do tend to blend into each other.

5. "The Duke" - Dave Brubeck - Ken Burns' Jazz Collection: Dave Brubeck
Piano, bass, and drum, the way God intended it. This is a sweetly pretty, gently swinging ballad.

6. "When the World Ends" - Dave Matthews Band - Everyday
A decent song; it has a quiet confidence that I like.

7. "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead" - XTC - Nonsuch
A brilliant song that imagines what might happen if Jesus Christ returned today (and if his name was Peter Pumpkinhead). "Showed the Vatican what gold's for." Indeed.

8. "The Happy Medley: My Mammy" - Mandy Patinkin - Mandy Patinkin
Mandy glories in an unabashed homage/imitation of Al Jolsen in his signature song.

9. "Belvedere, Ohio" - Howard Shore - The Silence of the Lambs (Film Score)
Stately, gray music--quite pretty, in an austere way.

10. "The Sun Is Burning (Alternate Take)" - Simon & Garfunkel - Wednesday Morning, 3 AM
S&G in gentle folky mode. Pretty, but kind of inconsequential.

Until Whenever