"HURT" JOHNNY CASH (2002)

All due respect to Nine Inch Nails. Because Trent Reznor has certainly accomplished his fair share and did it his way. But Cash elevated “Hurt” into the stratosphere. So powerful. So gripping. So haunting. Recorded the year before he died, this was like Cash’s swan song. He did something I’ve never heard before in a cover. He took “Hurt” and gave it new meaning without changing the lyrics. Hats off to Cash for recording one of his crowning achievements toward the end of his life.

“What have I become, my sweetest friend? Everyone I know goes away in the end.”

"TIMES" NOMADIC MASSIVE (2019)

Both George Floyd’s death and the ensuing violent protests show us that there’s too much “us vs them” and not enough unity. Not enough understanding. Not enough love. We can all benefit from looking at systems and structures that bring people together, rather than cause more division. Sometimes it happens in the simple act of making music. That’s the one thing I admire most about Nomadic Massive. Its intentionality in bringing together different races and cultures, because music gets richer when we’re more inclusive. “Times” is a sharp commentary on the now—not from one, but from many voices.

“Brains wired to liars. Dreams to be hired. Now their past is now expired hashtag TPS. And wanna rest to avoid this madness. Cuz this world seems to be lost without a GPS. Which road to follow. Times we do borrow. And spit like arrows and change what’s tomorrow.”

"ATMOSPHERE" JOY DIVISION (1980)

It’s the short-lived years of Joy Division that has given me a long-lasting infatuation with “Atmosphere”. With the majority of the band’s catalog firmly bathed in raw sound and emotion, the delicate departure of “Atmosphere” felt like the beginnings of a Joy Division that never had a chance to blossom. Instead, we’re left with one of the band’s most brilliantly produced tracks. It somehow sounds like Ian Curtis’ suicide note and a posthumous imparting of wisdom, all in the same breath.

“Abandoned too soon. Set down with due care. Don't walk away in silence. Don't walk away.”

"ROMA FADE" ANDREW BIRD (2016)

One of the smartest, most talented and prolific songwriters in the business is still cranking it out. A few years ago, I heard Are You Serious and was totally taken aback by Track 2. “Roma Fade” has a faster, more intense tempo than what we’re typically used to with Andrew Bird. The pairing of ingenious songwriting creativity and go-to Bird instrumentation like strings and whistling is ridiculously infectious. But it gets even better live. I’ve had the opportunity to hear Bird perform “Roma Fade” twice, and can say that the live elements are even more impressive than the studio recording.

“And if she sees you, it changes you. Rearranges your molecules. And if you see her, it changes her. She’ll be seeing you after school. Here’s where gentlemen avert their eyes. Maybe she’s a gentlemen in disguise.”

"SHOPLIFTERS OF THE WORLD UNITE" THE SMITHS (1987)

Searing riffs from Marr. Searing vocals from Morrissey. It’s a formula that served The Smiths well. It’s a formula that might not be more obvious than on this single. From the first day I heard “Shoplifters”, I remember loving two things: the song title and Johnny Marr’s guitar brilliance from beginning to end. It’s still the same two things that grab me listening to it 30 years later.

“Learn to love me and assemble the ways. Now, today, tomorrow, and always. My only weakness is a listed crime. But last night the plans of a future war was all I saw on Channel Four.”

"HUNGER" FLORENCE + THE MACHINE (2018)

Still rocking. Still doing it her way. But “Hunger” feels like a milestone. A checkpoint in Florence’s evolution as an artist. This is still distinctly Florence. Symbolic lyrics leave you deciding to interpret the song literally or figuratively. And you wouldn’t be wrong either way. But now here’s a Florence that pits downward despair with upbeat musicality. Reminds me of that little trick Morrissey has made a career out of.

“Oh, you and all your vibrant youth. How could anything bad ever happen to you? You make a fool of death with your beauty, and for a moment I forget to worry.”

"BRAVADO" RUSH (1991)

You either love them or hate them. Either way, you have to respect them. Outsiders appreciate what each member of the trio brought to the musicality that is Rush. They were all masters in their own right. But the diehard fans appreciated the bond that these three men shared for 50 years. They were the anti-rock heroes. Unpretentious, slightly awkward, yet laid back guys who never mailed it in. I picked “Bravado” because, to me, it represents the mentality of Rush. When Neil Peart died unexpectedly, this was the first song i thought of. Not “YYZ”. Not “Spirit of Radio”. "Not “Closer to the Heart”. “Bravado” is like Rush’s manifesto for how to approach music and life.

“If we burn our wings, flying too close to the sun. If the moment of glory is over before it's begun. If the dream is won, though everything is lost. We will pay the price. But we will not count the cost.”

"FORGIVE THEM FATHER" LAURYN HILL (1998)

What did you feel when you first heard this album? What did it make you think? How did it confirm or change what you believe? Chances are, it did something for you. I think Miseducation is one of the best concept albums ever recorded from beginning to end. It’s hard to pick just one song for my jukebox, but “Forgive Them Father” always struck me as going a level deeper. It’s Lauryn Hill trying to reconcile faith through her imperfections. It’s a peek behind the curtain of her soul. It’s the kind of song that leaves us wanting more solo stuff from Ms. Lauryn Hill. But we simply wait.

“Forgive us our trespasses. As we forgive those that trespass against us. Although them again we will never never never trust.”

"SO FLUTE" ST. GERMAIN (2000)

Outside of the orchestra woodwind section, you have to go way back to find anything that uses the flute as memorably as “So Flute”. Like Jethro Tull / Genesis / Peter Gabriel-way back. Hearing this track 20 years after it was recorded, I’m amazed at how well it holds up.

The best compliment I can give “So Flute” is that it feels like it could’ve been recorded this year. That’s how timeless it is. Back in 2000, St. Germain made people who have no business liking flutes actually like flutes. Myself included.

"A NIGHT LIKE THIS" THE CURE (1985)

Today I’ve got the 80’s in my head. There are saxophone solos floating in there, just so I’m absolutely clear. I’ll put a quarter in for “A Night Like This”. Now, a sax solo isn’t the kind of instrumentation that the band is known for. But this is still vintage Cure. A Head on the Door had bigger hits and bigger anthems than “A Night Like This”. But for me, this is the one track that captured the times while also serving as a foreshadowing to Disintegration, the most important era for the band.

“Say goodbye on a night like this. If it's the last thing we ever do. You never looked as lost as this. Sometimes it doesn't even look like you. It goes dark. It goes darker still. Please stay, but I watch you like I'm made of stone as you walk away.”

"AFRAID OF EVERYONE" THE NATIONAL (2010)

It’s not like I see a ton of live shows. But the quarantine has definitely made me miss live music immensely. I miss seeing bands like The National where you get lost in the music that you love. From Terminal 5 to the Beacon to Barclays, I’ve seen those guys bring it with every new album release. But I’ll still always like the older, underrated stuff the most. “Looking for Astronauts”. “Conversation 16”. “Squalor Victoria”. “England”. And “Afraid of Everyone”.

“With my kid on my shoulders I try, not to hurt anybody I like. But I don't have the drugs to sort. I don't have the drugs to sort it out.”

"SIR DUKE" STEVIE WONDER (1976)

Hands down, “Sir Duke” is one of the most memorable musical tributes. Basie. Glenn Miller. Louis Armstrong. Ella. And, of course, Duke Ellington. Few songs celebrate music so admirably and unpretentiously. It’s pure love for the music. Pure love for the sounds that have shaped us. In many ways, it’s the same thing that drove me to start Mental Jukebox. In quarantine, we look for new indoor diversions. Some of us are learning new skills. New hobbies. For me, I’m just taking two things I already love and smashing them together. Music and words.

“Music is a world within itself.
With a language we all understand.”

"ROAD HOLES" MOGLI (2017)

I first discovered Mogli a few years ago when I saw “Expedition Happiness", a documentary about Mogli and her boyfriend traveling across North America in a refurbished school bus. The movie was ok, but the soundtrack was stellar. I probably played this one 4 or 5 times today. Just enough tempo to keep me from falling asleep, but not too much to distract me from getting my work done.

“You cover the road holes before I stumble. Lead me through those fields of traps. The road ahead it starts to crumble. You build bridges over gaps.”

"CRAZY" GNARLS BARKLEY (2006)

Time to put my first quarter into my mental jukebox. Maybe this is too obvious of a pick in the thick of this pandemic. But who isn’t going a little insane right about now. I’m trying to hold it all together, but I’m also slowly realizing it’s okay to not exactly have it all together these days. The flaws remind us that we’re only human. And there’s liberation in that.

“I remember when I lost my mind. There was something so pleasant about that place. Even your emotions have an echo in so much space.”