12 Songs that Made Me Happy in 2008

In no particular order. 12 songs that made me happy in 2008!

(In cases where an official video isn't available, I linked the artist's name to their MySpace page - most of the songs can be heard there.)

1. "I Want to Have Your Babies," Natasha Bedingfield

2. "Say It Again," Marie Digby


3. "Imaginary Girl," The Silver Seas

4. "Say," John Mayer


5. "Ordinary Day," Emilie Mover

6. "Doin' It All For My Baby," Huey Lewis and the News


7. "Got It Good," Jem

8. "I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time," Mariah Carey


9. "To Be Surprised," Sondre Lerche

10. "Nothing At All," Madi Diaz

11. "Be OK," Ingrid Michaelson

12. "Why Can't It Be Christmastime All Year," Rosie Thomas

LTF Playlist: The OC Soundtrack

Over the past few months, I have spent many of my free moments visiting Orange County, Calif., via the magic of DVD boxed set. I realize I'm a couple of years late on the obsession with Seth, Summer, Ryan and Marissa, but that's okay, because the very best part of the show - the music - has held up extremely well.

From an indie lover's standpoint, the OC might be the best television soundtrack ever conceived, and I don't just mean the several volumes issued as "official" soundtracks on CD. I mean that every song chosen to run in the series was great and deserves its own spotlight. There are classics that have been woefully overlooked and mainstream music that was largely misunderstood. There are cutting-edge bands that ran on the series 2 years ago or 4 years ago that are just now beginning to get the airplay they deserve. There is Journey.

So in the interest of paying homage to this most seminal TV music lineup, I have compiled a new LTF Playlist: The OC Soundtrack.

It's such an extensive catalog that I'm still adding to the playlist, but I have enough to get you started, including songs by the Eels, Jem, Mazzy Star, Thicke, Fountains of Wayne, Guster, Iron and Wine, and Seth's absolute favorite band - Death Cab for Cutie, among many others.

Just click the player at right and give it a spin! (And check back as I continue to update the playlist!)

Oh, and...: For more music from the OC, visit www.musicfromtheoc.com and listen to 6 different mixes, including mix 6, which features indie bands covering the songs of other indie bands.

LTF approved: Jem

I have to admit I wasn't one of the people who thought Welsh singer Jem's debut album, Finally Woken, was the greatest album of the year, come down from the mountain to redeem us all with its gentle shoegazing sound. (I'm looking at you, Nic Harcourt!) Yes, the song "Just a Ride" was pretty great, but it instantly got played out in soundtrack-ville and the rest of the album failed to charm me the way it charmed everyone else.

In spite of this, or possibly because of this, I like Jem's latest outing better than everyone else, or so it seems. Down to Earth has a certain bi-polar quality, yes, swinging wildly from mellow light indie to clubby trip-hop but there's a certain appeal in the general quality of the sound that keeps me coming back for more. It's may be the undercurrent of Baroque classical music that runs throughout the whole bi-polar affair that binds it all together for me. (For instance, on "Got It Good," you can actually hear the influence of Pachelbel's Canon in D Major. How many indie albums can you say that about?)

There's a little too much stereotypical "ethnic" sound going on in some of the songs - "Crazy" tries way too hard to be Latin-influenced, for instance - but when Jem just relaxes and lets her natural classical inclinations shine through, the result is excellent. (See songs "It's Amazing," "Got it Good," and "And So I Pray.")

Definitely worth a listen. To get you started, check out Jem's MySpace page and listen to "It's Amazing" (or for nostalgia's sake, "Just a Ride.") Then listen to "Got It Good" via the miracles of YouTube:

The best way to wake up to Sunday morning

Radio station Cities 97 (KTCZ 97.1) out of Minneapolis has a great Sunday morning feature called Acoustic Sunrise. From 7 a.m. to noon (Central Time), they play all stripped down, acoustic, and live music from their cavernous vault of great, great music. The best part? You can listen to it all online.

Last week, I heard a live version of Bruce Cockburn's "Wondering Where the Lions Are," followed by a live version of Jackson Browne's "The Pretender," followed by an acoustic version of Jem's "Flying High." And that's just a representative 15 minutes - this goes on for five hours!

So grab a cup of coffee and the periodical of your choice and enjoy your Sunday morning!

(If you're not a morning a person and getting up before noon sounds like torture, you'll be glad to know that Cities 97 also closes their Sunday sets with Acoustic Sunset from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. (Central Time).)