Wednesday, January 14, 2009

playlist 2: in today's New York Times

The New York Times has lately taken to asking the occasional novelist to write up a playlist, usually on a theme, which they then post on the Times' Book Review site. Today was my lucky day. They asked me to write a list and comment on some of the people I opened for back in the 1990s when I was still walking around with an acoustic guitar in my hand.
Oh boy, the stories to tell. You'll find it all here.
http://papercuts.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/14/living-with-music-christian-bauman/

Monday, January 5, 2009

playlist 1: "in hoboken"

When we did the book release party for "In Hoboken" at Maxwells, my ol' pal Gregg put together a CD of good drinking music to be played before the live music started in the back room. Clever guy that he is, it was all songs that are in one way or another mentioned in the novel. Either actually quoted from, or refered to, or hinted at in passing, or...you get the idea.

So here it is...the official "In Hoboken" soundtrack singles (presented in no particular order).

Across the Universe - The Beatles
Change Partners - Stephen Stills
Damn Everything but the Circus - The Story
Blue Chalk - John Gorka
Do-Re-Me - Woody Guthrie
Eleven Small Roaches - Michael Hedges
Gone - Don Brody/Gregg Cagno/Rich Grula
Nathan (The City) - Linda Sharar
The Grind - Gregg Cagno
The Motorcycle Song - Arlo Guthrie
Renegade - Styx
Suite: Judy Blue Eyes - Crosby, Stills & Nash
99 Years: Don Brody
Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key - Woody Guthrie
Paradise - John Prine (it's The Dorkestra version that gets mentioned, though)
Mingus Died in Mexico - Gregg Cagno/Christian Bauman
Welcome to the Jungle - Guns n Roses
Deportees - Woody Guthrie
Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair - Stephen Foster
Let It Be - The Beatles
Burning For You - Blue Oyster Cult
All Things Being the Same - Ellis Paul
Slip Sliding Away - Paul Simon
Bob Luciano's House - Linda Sharar
Talkin' Alien Abduction Blues - Dan Bern
Participate - Linda Sharar
Ringing In My Ears - The Marys
From Here - Gregg Cagno

It's not every day you get Blue Oyster Cult and Stephen Foster on the same playlist. We do what we do.

And Gregg clearly had time on his hands that week, because he even made up some nifty album art for your iTunes playlist.


With apologies to Melville House. At the very least.