Back in the day I used to make the most amazing mix tapes. Well, they were amazing to me because they were just a collection of my favorite music. Over the years I learned to respect and appreciate the idea of an album as an artistic entity and my usage of mix tapes changed accordingly. What was once an opportunity to cut away unnecessary baggage musicians foolishly put on an album was now more of an opportunity to introduce people to a musician I considered valuable by giving them an idea of their typical sound.
Although cassette tapes have gone the way of the dinosaur and it now no longer takes 60 to 90 minutes to sit there and make a mix for someone I am still amazed by how many folks just don't - most people still just copy full albums and they are putting no thought into the creation of the mix. This is something I just do not understand; then again, I don't understand a lot of things in life...
I made a mix "tape" the other night and I'm going to give it a little review here. All of the musicians on it are terrific in their own right but the order is also important. I would encourage you to go and download all of these songs, give it a few listens and then get the albums of whatever people on it specifically moved you - which, if you ask me, could be potentially all of them if you go into listening to it with an open mind.
Starting off with "Jumping Off at the Jump Off" by C-Rayz Walz and Sharkey gave the album a very upbeat and fun-loving beginning. Although C-Rayz appears on the mix quite a few times, this is the most upbeat of his contributions. Alabama sidles up to second with "Song of the South". Quite possibly the polar opposite of the first track, Alabama always had music that I thought could easily have been used as samples in rap, especially this song, but never was.
Back in track three is C-Rayz with "Paradise", the most alliteration filled rap song I have ever heard. "The Ride", by Chris LeDoux is next and is one of the nicest country songs I have ever heard. For a man who was notorious for his rowdiness - LeDoux's real talent lay in writing lyrics which really got to you and this is a perfect example of that.
In order to ensure that it doesn't get too serious or sullen track five is "Herb" by 7L and Esoteric. 85% humorous, 55% truth (in my opinion), you won't like it you are trying real hard to be something you are not because chances are they'll be giving you some hell for it. And knowing that country has roots in humor too and it certainly has the capability to be bar music, Cory Morrow follows up with "Drink One More Round".
Track seven signals the return of C-Rayz (yes, I am currently a little enamored with his work). "Firstwordsworse" epitomizes what makes him (and other independent rappers) so different from mainstream radio nonsense. To slow it back down Garth Brooks follows up with "The Cowboy Song". It's Garth Brooks - what else can I say?
Although I broke a cardinal rule of mixes on here twice by putting more than one song from an album on, there were good reasons. At this point I put on a second C-Rayz and Sharkey song to pick the tempo back up. "Forgotten" is clever and quite upbeat. Underground country superstar Pat Green (well at least in the Northeast he's underground) follows with the impossible-to-not-sing-along-with "Songs About Texas".
In his last appearance on the album, C-Rayz is there with the song that made me fall in love with his lyrics and music: "Battle Me". One of the more intelligent and clever songs lyrically from him (or anyone else for that matter), "Battle Me" is just pure fun, all smiles. Garth got a second entry on the mix, different album though. "Wild Horses" is, again, such a polar opposite of the song before it that it really changes the mood drastically. The fact that music can change a mood like that just speaks to its power and speaks volumes about why I love it so much.
The next two are more entertaining than anything else. Atmosphere's "National Disgrace" is clever and fun, background whistle track and all. Cage's "Perfect World" may not be lyrically the most intelligent song Cage has to offer but it certainly is indicative of how catchy his music can be.
Josh Turner's "Would You Go With Me" is one of the most pleasant country love songs ever written and might be the only example of having chosen a song from an album which is specifically better than the rest of the songs from said album, thereby giving an unrealistic view of the album as an entity. I just couldn't help it, it is such a great song. The last rap song on the album comes from my favorite artist, Aesop Rock. By default hearing just about any song of his would have made me go out and buy his stuff but "Fast Cars" is a great example of his sense of humor, his fantastic word play, and his catchy music.
The last song on the album was meant to bring it back to a fun, light place with Hayes Carll's "Live Free or Die". This song is clever no matter where you are but being as that I'm in New Hampshire and making a mix for someone who lives there it is just a clever way to end a mix (and although he gets a little more love from the national press than I think he should - Carll is a great songwriter).
Although mix tapes are a thing of the past, mix CD's do not just have to be the quickest possible slapping together of songs from your computer. Thought can still be put into what makes it onto it. It is also integral that packaging and CD space all be used to their fullest extent. Overall, as the person who created it, I am mostly pleased with the final product although there certainly are some songs that I might replace with others now if I were to make the mix again. That's the thing though, I won't make this mix again. It was made for a specific reason and for a specific person. Just like a musician who is recording a new album, next time around when I need to make a mix I'm going to have to start all over at the beginning. Chances are I'll be at a different point in my life and the mix will be different as a result. Who knows, maybe I'll no longer be insistent on pairing country with rap...I doubt it though.