The two hundred and thirtieth TV show: #34 Il Musichiere
The Italian edition of Name That Tune is fairly similar in its gameshow concept, although with the downside, as a modern viewer, that I don't really recognise any of the songs because of age and Italianness. The presentation feels oddly filler-like as well at times - our host is charismatic, but it feels like he takes his time more than needed. It's fine, but hard to get into in the modern era.
The six hundred and fortieth album: #640 Madonna - Like A Prayer
While the Queen of Pop has some proper 80s pop songs on this album - Cherish for one - there are also a lot deeper songs in there. The titular Like A Prayer has a lot of subtext that give it a few different readings, while Promise To Try feels like a really sensitive and raw ballad. A lot of them still work these days, and the bigger tracks are probably more timeless than what happened to most pop of the era.
That's all of the first edition's songs done, just before the end of 2025! I'm going to follow up with the second and third edition additions in the new year, but it's close!
The nine hundred and ninety-second song: Dog Days Are Over - Florence & The Machine
The combination of Florence Welch's vocals and the band's strong backing music works to create a lovely combination here. While her voice can easily carry being almost the only sound during the quieter parts of the music, it melds perfectly with the abundant and loud music that celebrates the rest of the song. There's a relief behind it that works well, and the whole abundant sound stays gorgeous.
The nine hundred and ninety-third song: The Fear - Lily Allen
The loud electropop of The Fear never drowns out Lily Allen's more sensitive vocals, the lyrics staying clear throughout the song, providing a lot of meaning and direction to your listening. It's an interesting commentary, while staying accessible and a good song.
The nine hundred and ninety-fourth song: Summertime Clothes - Animal Collective
Some songs really have that power of sticking with you even if you couldn't tell you where you would have heard it. Summertime Clothes has a great flow to its electronic sound, while its lyrics flow through all of that really nicely. It's increasingly memorable as it feels like it ambles along in a simple happy song.
The nine hundred and ninety-fifth song: Rain Dance - The Very Best feat. M.I.A.
The Afro-western beat that underlies rain dance feels modern and in tune that M.I.A.s rap doesn't feel out of place in any of this track. It blends together well, anything traditional slotting in with anything more modern, and the effects surrounding it add to that same atmosphere in an incredibly enjoyable mix.
The nine hundred and ninety-sixth song: Empire State of Mind - Jay-Z & Alicia Keys
Written as an anthem for New York, there's an affection towards the city that fits that of a big city - a lot of love for it while staying a bit low on it, rather than idealizing it. It's a simple setup, Alicia Keys' chorus perfect for the song and as a contrast to Jay-Z's rap.
The nine hundred and ninety-seventh song: Tenalle chegret - Tinariwen
The Saharan sound of this song stands out in this era, a traditional sound that stands out in a louder world. It features a simple, gorgeous build of music, with lovely vocals and a nice backing.
The nine hundred and ninety-eighth song: Harry Patch (In Memory of) - Radiohead
In quite a contrast of what I'd otherwise associate with Radiohead's music, this track is sombre, a lament based on the experiences of a WWI veteran. It's lovely, rich in its sounds and never getting extravagant, staying sombre but not overly aggressive with it. It's just gorgeous and the emotion will reach you.
The nine hundred and ninety-ninth song: Go Do - Jonsi
I'm not entirely sure what it is, but there's still something gorgeous about Icelandic music and its instincts. Go Do is a wonderfully flowing track with the touches other bands from there have, with some lovely vocals in this and a lovely playfulness to the entire thing.
The one thousandth song: Me and the Devil - Gil Scott Heron
From the early days where his music presaged rap music, this becomes a slow blues lament, which feels like it fits the downward path of his life. There's no fight left and the spirit is gone, and the song exudes that really well in all its facets.
The one thousand and first song: Stylo - Gorillaz
The style and set up of Gorillaz' collaborative approach gives them a lot of flexibility on the sounds they want to go with and while the electronic rock is in there, Bobby Womack's chorus pulls the full track in a funky direction that it feels like the band is perfectly happy to follow along on. It's set up to give everything a chance to shine and the collaboration is one that - as is so ofthe the case with Gorillaz - works to create something beautiful.
The six hundred and thirty-ninth album: #639 New Order - Technique
The heavy electronic undercurrent of New Order's fifth album, inspired by the dance and house music that was on the rise and clearly big in Ibiza, where the album was recorded. The style differs from almost pure rock sounds to almost purely electronic and in fact Fine Time, the track that kicks off the album, feels more like a house music track with distorted vocals than any sort of rock. The style varies deeply through the album, in a way that is satisfying and that feels like it'll give you something regardless of your musical leanings.
The two hundred and thirty-sixth classical recording: #56 Alessandro Scarlatti - Cantatas
Early on, I talked about how the vocals of early choral work didn't appeal. Clearly, by this point it had been worked out, as the songs Scarlatti composed sound amazing, here with a beautiful soprano performance, and the underlying music supporting it so well.
The two hundred and twenty-ninth TV show: #30 The Nat King Cole Show
It's undoubtably an accomplishment to be the first succesful African American (variety) TV host, and he does well at it. He's charming, striking the right balance, and especially in a segregated country walks the line quite well in what he can do. The bits of skits are okay, but barely feature, and it's really a half hour of songs from various guests as well as Nat King Cole. It's also a program that gives you songs from the fifties - just not something that connects as much with a modern audience.
The six hundred and thirty-eighth album: #638 John Lee Hooker - The Healer
This whole album is a blues throwback, down to lyrics that feel like they belong more in the fifties than the eighties (how many in the American audience would have connected to anything related to train travel?). The production values show it's a newer album, and the instruments that accompany John Lee Hooker, as well as the duets, have an upbeat that make it sound more modern, but it still feels out of time.
The nine hundred and eighty-second song: Mercy - Duffy
While Amy Winehouse might have been the most notable female vocalist of the era, there are a number of others who rose up at tthe same time. Duff is one of them, and the swinging Mercy is memorable enough to remember. It's a track that lets itself stick with you.
The nine hundred and eighty-third song: Sabali - Amadou & Mariam
There's often a treat to get a world music track like this, one that gives you something different you couldn't have expected. There is a contemporary dance beat in this, but the way the sounds are formed and the track is formed stands out in how different - and full - it feels.
The nine hundred and eighty-fourth song: Divine - Sebastien Tellier
Divine is a pleasantly welcome throwback to the pop of yore, with acapella backings and a smooth synth backing track. It's simple enough, with the requisite Eurovision break, but it's just a joy at the same time.
The nine hundred and eighty-fifth song: Mykonos - Fleet Foxes
There's something slightly experimental that's starting to peek through in music, as if we're experimenting what the next decade will bring musically. Mykonos' chorus are simple harmonies in a way that works strongly, creating a spiritual feeling while the track remains as quite straightforward rock otherwise. It's a strong, welcome sound.
The nine hundred and eighty-sixth song: Time To Pretend - MGMT
The electronic rock of MGMT creates a party feeling that also feels unsettling, the depression of loneliness inside a celebration of a fictional rockstar life. The lyrics are exquisite and the combination here works in creating and enhancing that edge.
The nine hundred and eighty-seventh song: Sweet Disposition - The Temper Trap
This is a fairly simple, fun and accessible indie rock song, Not overly complex, but accessible and simple enough to stay fun. Perhaps it's not spectacular, but it works.
The nine hundred and eighty-eighth song: L.E.S. Artistes - Santogold
In the strengthening of pop, this is another track that just feels good, at a point where it feels electronic music is getting even better integrated.
The nine hundred and eighty-ninth song: Sex on Fire - Kings of Leon
Going back and forth between pop and rock, Kings of Leon's sound feels quite a modern rock sound, present without overwhelming you, giving some good lyrics with a memorable hook, while the music works in that solid alt rock way.
The nine hundred and ninetieth song: One Day Like This - Elbow
The classical opening, using a string section that keeps going through the entirety of the track while the traditional rock instruments stay in the back. As the "Throw those curtains wide" chant starts, it feels like it's holding back, never quite giving a release I'm looking for.
The nine hundred and ninety-first song: Viva la Vida - Coldplay
For a band that divides opinions, listening and focusing on the lyrics shows an interesting depth of references - it starts early on with what could be sung from the perspective of the last emperor of China. The music is stadium filling, a clear anthem that some might feel over the top, but it stands as a song that tells a vivid story in both lyrics and music.
The six hundred and thirty-seventh album: #637 Lenny Kravitz - Let Love Rule
Lenny Kravitz' soul-inspired rock hits some of the notes I'm looking to find, the funk inspiration elevating a lot of the songs sound interesting, while the rock sounds creates an undertone that keeps the songs moving along well. With the different emotions it touches and the different points it makes, it becomes a gorgeous and worthwhile album.
The two hundred and thirty-fifth classical recording: #408 Johannes Brahms - Symphony no. 2
There's something really pleasant about this symphony. It puts you in the rustic countryside mindset, there's energy from a number of things going on, but there's also a calmness in the world, a reference to nature in the way that's cultivated by man. There's a real beauty in it in that feels properly manicured.