PSoTD

I felt I needed a country/western album in my top ten album list for XPN. There were only two possible choices - Dwight Yoakam's Just Lookin' for a Hit, and the one I selected.

Roger Miller's Dang Me. Basically a best of album. But Roger Miller is so damn... fun to listen to, I had to include him. Plus, Roger Miller was one of the records my singers played when I was a little kid that I really liked.

And how can you ignore the wisdom of his songs:

You can't rollerskate in a buffalo herd,
You can't rollerskate in a buffalo herd,
You can't rollerskate in a buffalo herd,
But you can be happy if you've a mind to.

...

All you've got to do is put your mind to it,
Knuckle down, buckle down,
Do it, Do it, Do it.

Here's another one of my XPN "Top Ten Album" picks:

George Winston's December

First of all, it's one of the three greatest "Christmastime albums" in my opinion, along with Vince Guaraldi's Charlie Brown soundtrack and Ole' Blue Eyes himself, Frank Sinatra, crooning the Carol Classics.

Secondly, it's by far the most eloquent piano album I've heard. Music can bring the sense of family holiday to the fore - the warming fireplace, the smell of pine in the house, cookies baking in the kitchen, happy voices murmuring. George Winston somehow bottled that magic in this album.

I thought I'd highlight a few of the ten albums I selected for XPN's Top 885 Albums of All Time presentation. Graham Parker has had a couple show up so far, but in my opinion, this is his best work to date. And that's saying a lot.