Capable of Frivolity

I’m probably unbearable in any number of ways, but let it not be said that I’m only grim and sobersided. Susie and Beth have an iTunes meme going, and I can enjoy taking part in almost anything music-related.
So:

How many total songs?
8905 songs, 40.58 GB

Sort by Song Title – first and last songs?
First: ¡ Que !, by Phil Manzanera (followed by ‘Antmusic’ by Adam and the Ants)
Last: “Zydeco Gris Gris,” by Beausoleil

Sort by Time – first and last songs?
First: (0:4) Brad Pitt saying “Kuasehfgaiurgh” from the Snatch soundtrack
Last: (56:31) “Music for 18 Musicians,” by Steve Reich

Top Ten Played Songs
1. “Wilder Than Her,” by Dar Williams
2. “She’s Losing It,” by Belle & Sebastian
3. “Bread And Circuses,” by Billy Bragg and Natalie Merchant
4. “Walking Down Madison,” by Kirsty MacColl
5. “Days,” by Kirsty MacColl (this one comes as a surprise to me)
6. “Nao Esperando,” by Kirsty MacColl
7. “Anchorage,” by Michelle Shocked
8. “Dreaming Of Violets,” by Shannon Campbell
9. “You’re No Rock’n’Roll Fun,” by Sleater-Kinney
10. “As Is,” by Ani DiFranco

Okay, I should own up to some ideological manipulation of data here; I have a playlist of songs by women musicians that I play frequently, to balance out my otherwise male-dominant listening patterns, and that shows up here. To get a different take on my most-listened to songs, you could look at my Audioscrobbler page.

Last Ten Played

1. “Didn’t Leave Nobody but the Baby,” by Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss and Gillian Welch
2. “Blister In The Sun,” by the Violent Femmes
3. “Dear Mr. Fantasy,” by Traffic
4. “Deeper Than Beauty,” by Sloan
5. “Flower,” by Moby
6. “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me,” by Culture Club
7. “Buddy Holly,” by Weezer
8. “Go Down, Moses,” by Mavis Staples & Lucky Peterson
9. “Jerusalem,” by Steve Earle
10. “When I Was Young (Shake It Baby),” by Sunnyland Slim

Find ‘sex.’ How many songs show up?
59, counting Ron Sexsmith and the Sex Pistols. Oddest inclusion: “Missa L’Homme Arme Sexti Toni – Agnus Dei,” performed by the Tallis Scholars

Find ‘death.’ How many songs show up?
72, including a lot of Death Cab for Cutie and several variations on the “O Death” theme made popular by Ralph Stanley’s version from O Brother Where Art Thou

Find ‘love.’ How many songs show up?
581, including big representations by Dorothy Love Coates, Lyle Lovett, and Magnetic Fields (69 Love Songs)

I’d be interested to consider other categories too, such as “Most Recently Added” (and its opposite), total of “Greatest” and “Best,” or “Number with Play count = 0,” but then I could do this kind of thing all night. That reminds me to get back to my “Years in Review” posting. . . .

4 thoughts on “Capable of Frivolity

  1. Steve Reich, Dar Williams, Kirsty MacColl, Traffic, Lyle Lovett, Magnetic Fields — were our ipods mysteriously swapped, we might survive comfortably on each others’ music collections, at least for a while. 🙂

  2. Maybe we should take over the wedding reception, to make sure that some really good music gets played. Joey, of course, is always welcome to accompany my iPod on his accordion.

  3. C’mon, Raisin, give yourself credit – I know you own at least one song by one or two other artists on there…

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