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The first album: #1 In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning - Frank SInatra

Starting at the beginning for this list. I want to broaden my musical knowledge, and this is one step in this process. On my lunch break!

Frank Sinatra has appeared in the songs list, and indeed this album's title track has been covered before.Just as much a crooner, the song and album feel a bit slower than his later work, something that feels like a notable development in his music. It sounds good, the tragic sounds working well to set the mood.

Sadly the recording quality isn't the best on all of these, which did make a bunch of these somewhat distracting to listen too - the fuzz was a bit overpowering at times and the echoes distracting.

The jazz/big band style of performing doesn't appeal to me as much, partially perhaps because I haven't been exposed to it as much. The whole album feels a bit slow to me and, while it's performed well (both vocals and music), it doesn't quite have the emotional power that I was expecting from it.

The twelfth book: #12 The Lusiad

The Lusiad didn't work for me - ticking several boxes there. Set up as a poem, the story went lyrical and allegorical - rarely describing much and getting lost on tangents. And not in a good way. The focus is less on telling the story, and more on rhymes, and in this case that just bored me.

Then it got set up as a series of monologues. I've mentioned before why that doesn't work for me - see La Celestina - and the 'arguments' (as they're called) may expound on feelings a lot, but they are terrible at actually telling a story (something plays do by being visual instead). It works if it's about a discussion, but not as much when you're talking about something more adventurous like exploring and discovering new countries.

Probably the most interesting part for me were the footnotes including in my edition, explaining the historical facts and such behind the story. At least there was something I could get out of it.

The sixteenth TV show: #801 Childrens Hospital

Oh, I'm going to miss this show.

Childrens Hospital originally started as five minute long shorts created during the 2008 writer's strike, then was picked up on Adult Swim as fifteen minute shorts. It started off as a hospital show parody, set in a children's hospital (founded by Arthur Children, located in Brazil... it's a long story). It has evolved into a show that is set in a hospital, but can tell any sort of story with it - spoofs of movies, takes on genres and just following weird ideas. Not only do we see Childrens Hospital, but also the supposed behind the scenes aspects invovled in creating it (which is distinct from the actual actors).

It all works brilliantly - there's some lesser moments, but the shows are always packed with jokes and references and seems willing to try everything. I struggle to find a favourite, especially once (in the second season) they really find their feet and go beyond Grey's Anatomy's spoofs. There's just too much.

I'll miss it (and will need to rewatch it).

The fifteenth TV show: #323 Knight Rider

When I was young, we watched a lot of Knight Rider. I sort of remembered what to expect from that - although I suppose anyone with the description of the show could. Somewhat trashy, an action show focused on a lot of car chases and other action sequences. For most episodes, this is the case. It's well done, everyone is clearly having fun creating the show, and we get some good moments in there. There are, however, also a few episodes that play with the concept, occasionally try a slightly different concept, and present a series that does something interesting with it. Those episodes are usually the best too.

It is made bearable mostly by the performances. David Hasselhoff does fine as Michael Knight (and is clearly in his element as stunt driver - until an accident happened he did some of the car stunt work himself) and the supporting cast really adds to the show, but the clear star is, and remains, KITT (something that, compared to other series, doesn't seem to have caused much friction). Although he gets a number of the good lines, it's the personality as well. The wit, lack of compassion in places (though, as you'd expect, not always) and upstaging works well. Him being the most powerful car works well for it, but he's more than just that, and making it this AI is what probably made the show. Sure, it's an idea that's used more often (at least now), and the technology looks dated at times (as you'd expect), it all works well together.

The ninetieth song: It's Only Make Believe - Conway Titty

Although Conway Twitty started his career in part through Elvis Presley, he sticks (in this song at least) to slower country tunes. Not as swinging, more barbershop, the song sounds good but won't get you going wild. Of course, the lyrics aren't conductive to this either, the story of a man in a relationship with a girlfriend who doesn't love him, seeming as painful as it sounds.

The ninety-first song: Johnny B. Goode - Chuck Berry

So this song went into space, an indication of how much it got into the USA's concious. This song has the standard rock sound, the guitars and vocals are all there. It sounds good and engaging. Even outside teh socail implications, this song about a boy becoming a famous guitar player feels right.

The ninety-second song: Move It! - Cliff Richard & The Drifters

I suppose this shows how much more difficult it was for music to travel at the time. In isolation, this song does start off sounding as if we have an Elvis Presley rip-off - and indeed, part of the success in Great Britain came from Cliff Richard being British. It also takes from the musical elements as well, basically being a song saying it's going to introduce rock & roll to you (as derived from country).

The ninety-third song; La Bamba - Ritchie Valens

Here's an example of how rock & roll started to influence other genres. Sitting somewhere between rock and flamenco (and other Latin-American music styles). It sounds good and works well as a mix of the two, adding a welcome note of upbeatness to what can be a darker sounding genre.

The ninety-fourth song: Yakety Yak - The Coasters

Back to doo wop - a bit less rock now. This is mostly a comedy song of sorts - a parent admonishing their kids to do the chores, and the teen's dislike of it and passive defiance. It's basic, but fun to listen to, and the music is put together well to create the effect.

The ninety-fifth song: At the Hop - Danny & The Juniors

The piano here grabs you immediately. By now, this oddly feels like a slight step back again, with doo wop influences creeping back in and slightly less focus on instruments and (most notably) no noticeable guitar. It's also clearly part of a song aimed at a younger demographic and their dancing - singing about going to the record hop, basically a dance place. It's fair enough at that, and creates a cheerful refrain, but doesn't have a lot of substance to it, either musically or in its vocals.

The ninety-sixth song: Stagger Lee - Lloyd Price

A bit of a turn - not only no more rock, but also a story about a murder rather than going to a dance party. It sounds good, with a great arrangement behind it and finding something aggresively loud in it. It's dark, but simultaneously sounds a bit exuberant, an interesting contrast in the song.

The ninety-seventh song: Summertime Blues - Eddie Cochran

So we've had the sexual rock & roll from Elvis Presley and the party atmosphere of, say, Danny & the Juniors, but one other part of it that influenced a lot of people was the rebellious attitude. Eddie Cochran shows that, and it comes through in the song. It's happy on some level, but also has a more annoyed sound, at one time commenting about being too young to vote. It sounds good, raw as it should be, and I was annoyed there wasn't another verse at the end.

The ninety-eighth song: Dans mon ile - Henry Salvador

Moving on from rock for a while to some other genres. The chanson tradition is not one to be ignored (and we have some Sinatra to link to that later). It's slow, soft and relaxing. The music puts you in a mood (the word 'tranquile' popping up a few times, describing the feeling well). Sure, a lot fo the time this would be backgorund music, but it's good background music here. It's lovely.

The ninety-ninth song: Lonesome Town - Ricky Nelson

While there's an element of Elvis wannabeness in Ricky Nelson's vocals, this is the first song where he went for a more mournful sound. The more I listen to it, the more it's there (and looking at the album cover, it seems like you could have gotten lost in his eyes listening to this). The story of a town where broken hearts go, he sweeps you along in the gentle trek there.

The one hundredth song: Fever - Peggy Lee

There's a simple arrangement to this song, mostly relying on Peggy Lee's amazing vocals instead. As a love song, it creates a slightly sultry, slightly attractive atmosphere whose comparisons work well to create a wonderful atmosphere. It's a lounge song, but one that works incredibly well here. The drums add to the arrangement - and effectively so - but it's an exercise in enchanting minimalism.

The one hundred and first song: One for My Baby (and One More for the Road) - Frank Sinatra

Setting Frank Sinatra down as the master of ballads, the sad song isn't just executed well on a musical level. Sinatra puts in a performance here, going quiet as the 'story' demands it, speaking up occasionally to put emphasis on sections of the song. Getting drunk to forget a former love is a well known and well worn theme, and one that Sinatra inhabitats (and, I guess, experienced). An amazing feat.

The one hundred and second song: Le poinconneur des Lilas - Serge Gainsbourg

Again somewhat different - closest to linking back to Yakety Yak, but a lot darker as Serge Gainsbourg talks of the boredom of a train conductor clipping tickets, to the point where it has him consider suicide. That doesn't sound like it would lead to an upbeat song, but it does. There's a certain edge to French that makes it work better here than it would do in other languages, creating an urgency that makes you push past all of it. It's moving, and sounds well as it does. Really good fun.

The one hundred and third song: Nel blu dipinto di blu - Domenico Modugno

Probably our first Eurovision song, this song is better known as Volare. It's a happy chanson, Modugno being the first Italian chansonnier and making an impact here. It's nicely catchy, but doesn't quite hit the right things for me, sounding a bit plain. Well done on a technical sense, with some nice touches, but feeling a bit dated now.

The one hundred and fourth song: All I Have to Do Is Dream - The Everly Brothers

"So that's what that song is called!". Although apparently the Everly Brothers were more rock & roll focused, this is a bit slower than the standard rock song - setting the stage for these genres to almost be created. It sounds lovely, the harmonies working really well. It's sweet, but somehow the composition works well enough to make sure it doesn't go too far (although the "gee whiz" feels out of date now). A nice smooth song, early pop, that stands on its own quite well.

The one hundred and fifth song: To Know Him Is to Love Him - The Teddy Bears

A sweet and soft song, somewhat sad, sounds like a fairly straight forward love song. It doesn't do anything complicated, but is executed really well and sounds quite enjoyable. A nice, well crafted piece of music.

The eleventh book: #11 Gargantua and Pantagruel

I'm not sure what to say here. The books, describing the life of two giants (mostly Pantagruel, in four of the five books, and his father Gargantua) has several satirical elements, a bunch of fun areas, loads of lists, but also parts that just dragged for me, with monologues that I could never quite get into. It alternated between good parts and bits I couldn't get into. The first book worked best - having to describe Gargantua's life in one book gave it more focus than the later works, which ambled moer. There's a bunch of social satire in there that I'm not sure applies anymore. It's odd, basically, and never quite grabbed me as it should have.

The fourteenth TV show: #1000 Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

When Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt was released on Netflix a year ago, we binged it in one weekend - we were going to take it more slowly, but it was that good. This week, the second season was released, and one Saturday later, we've watched all of that. From the people behind 30 Rock, Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, it also has the same odd tangent, pop culture references and weirdness. At the same time, it trades more on the friendships and relationships between the characters, especially that between Kimmy Schmidt and her gay roommate Titus.

It's funny, but there's a darkness to Ellie Kemper's character and environments that work for a good season throughline. Although a lot of humour comes from her lack of awareness of how the world has changed, and the difference between living in a small town and living in New York, they are just as often reacting to other people's weirdness, and vice versa. The journeys of these characters are often as interesting.

And man, the tunes on the show are catchy.

The twentieth comic: #798 Nodame Cantabile

It's been a little while, hasn't it? Nodame Cantabile has been a bit tricky to get through. The Japanese romance mangas can be fun, but slow to get through due to serialization and how it needs to be drawn out to cover all the volumes.

The other side of the coin then, the musical side, doesn't connect with me that much either. I'm not a great musical person, not knowing much about it, and while I enjoy listening, I'm not a performer, have never played an instrument, and can't connect with that life. Sure, I know education, but the practice required, and the way you have to be into music, isn't quite the same thing.

When it moves away from the school, and the characters become more important, the manga becomes more interesting to read. While well done - the way it portrays music in how it looks, through expressions, panels and style is very noteworthy - the story and what it explores doesn't feel as interesting to me. Worth having tried, but that's where it leaves me.

The thirteenth TV show: #705 My Lovely Sam-Soon

This show is listed as a drama - comedy/drama would be more accurate. The love story between the titular Sam Soon and Hyun Jin-Heon slowly develops and while there's a real emotional core, one that really pays off in the last few episodes, there are plenty of funny scenes in there as well (the lead actress originally made her name acting in comedies). Some of these moments come with their own whimsical music, with (I'm told) a horse neighing included. The music used, in fact, is apt at times, giving a good impression of what's going on... although there are also some oddly loud choices.

It's oddly telling, by the way, how we can tell Jin-Heon's attitude by his hairstyle. It seems magical at times.

All in all, we went through all 16 episodes in two weeks. Although it was tiring at times - the episodes are long, and all subtitled - it was a great experience that drew us in. The comedy didn't distract, it actually made us empathise with Sam Soon more. Some characters were a bit archetypal, but that, too, worked well enough in the end.