Brazil’s World Cup Secret – Plenty of sex – So that’s the secret I’ve been missing all these years.

It’s a brutiful day in the neighborhood! Today appears to be shaping up to be a wonderful spring day. Wish they’d let us work outside on days like this. This morning’s mix was darn near perfect. It matched my mood step for step from more mellow reflective material as I woke up and started shaking out the cobwebs to a rousing conclusion as I pulled into the parking lot at work. Let’s get to it shall we?

Playlist: Big D Radio – Morning Mix

• Have You Got It In You – Imogen Heap – Speak For Yourself

• Take Me Away (Into the Night) - 4 Strings – Believe
• What You Are – Dave Matthews Band – Everyday
• Be My Friend (Michael Gray Remix) – Scape ft. D’Empress
• Fallin’ - Alicia Keys – Unplugged
• Over My Head (Cable Car) – The Fray – How to Save a Life
  I don’t listen to the radio much any more (thanks to my ipod) and I don’t watch as much music television (MTV, VH-1, etc.) as I used to so I’m kind of late on The Fray. I just happened to catch a clip of this song at the tail end of some show I channel surfed to on VH-1 a while back. It sounded familiar but I couldn’t pinpoint where I’d heard it before. Probably over the PA/Muzak system at a store or something. Anyway I just knew that I liked it. It’s pretty catchy. So I did a little research on the web. Came across folks comparing these dudes to Coldplay and stuff. Um…. not so much. Other than a lead singer with a kind of higher pitched tenor voice and some piano sprinkled in here and there I just don’t see the Coldplay references. Maybe that’s just me. I’m obviously biased in the Coldplay area. Anyway I bought the album off of iTunes and am very happy with it for what it is. It’s just nice music. I wasn’t blown away or overly impressed or whatever. It’s just nice.
• Velvet Morning (Beach Vibe Mix) - Kyau vs. Albert – Here We Are Now
  This is a fairly mellow dance track. It’s almost chillout but not quite. I guess laid back would best describe it. Beach Vibe Mix is a great label as this song definitely takes me back my days on the Rock (Okinawa). As a brotha I’m was never really into the whole beach thing but I’m definitely feeling the island vibe. Things can’t help but take a more mellow, relaxed feel when you’re surrounded by beautiful beaches, palm trees, and island breezes even in a hustly, bustly place like Japan. I guess that’s why all the mainlanders (folks from mainland Japan) came(come) down there to get away.
• AddictionKanye West – Late Registration
  I personally feel that this is one of the strongest tracks (production/sample wise) on this entire album. I like the sample ‘Ye used and the surrounding instrumentation. I’m also feeling what he’s talking about. The first couple of lines of the chorus: Why everything that’s supposed to be bad make me feel so good? Everything they told me not to is exactly what I would. Man I tried to stop man, I tried the best I could… brings to mind Romans 7:14-25. Paul talks about being a slave to sin and “For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” I don’t know if that’s where Kanye was coming from when he made this song but that’s the vibe I get from it.
• Gotta Get Through This - Daniel Bedingfield – Gotta Get Thru This
  Yeah this is a repeat from yesterday. At first glance you would think that this would put a dent in my new, highly touted, smart playlist scheme but in the ipod’s defense this song is a duplicate in my iTunes library. I’ve got Daniel’s last name spelled wrong in the ID3 tag and ended up putting the song in multiple times. Chalk that one up to user error. I always tell people computers, software, etc. only do what we tell/program them to do. Garbage in, garbage out. That’s easily corrected though. It’s never bad to hear one of your theme songs repeated though.
• Simple Things - Zero 7 – Simple Things
• Dare (Soulwax Remix) - Gorillaz – Dare (Single)
• I’m Just A Bill – School House Rock –
  We’ve already covered my love of School House Rock and this segment in particular. Favorite part of the song is at the very end where Bill says “Oh Yes!”. Classic. I’ve always thought he said Oh Yeah at the end but it’s actually Oh Yes. Learn something new every day.
• What Up Gangsta – 50 Cent – Get Rich or Die Tryin’
  This is 50 at his best I feel. Catchy hook/chorus. Great beat. It’s a real head nodder (as the folks in the lane next to me at the stop light discovered). It’s the 50 Cent formula. He had it working in spades on Get Rich but seemed to let it slip a bit on The Massacre. I haven’t really sat down and dissected The Massacre but that’s my observation from the periphery. Seems like his hunger is waning a bit now that he’s reached the top.
• Numb Encore (Seven Radio Cut) – Jay-Z & Linkin Park – Numb Encore CDM
  Folks have been going a bit overboard with the whole mashup thing the last couple of years since Dangermouse’s The Grey Album percolated up from the underground to the mainstream. This particular project/mashup (Collision Course) was a match made in heaven though in my eyes. One of my favorite bands combined with an MC I truly respect (a rarity these days). This track is actually a dance mix. Never thought I’d hear Jay-Z sped up on dance tune. He’s not on this specific cut but there are other versions on this CD where Jigga is actually flowing over a dance beat. Hillarious. My personal favorite off the Collision Course album is Izzo/In The End. It’s just too short. Jay-Z and Linkin Park should do a full length album of original material someday. Seriously. That would be bananas!
• Petrified (Doors Remix) – Fort Minor – Fort Minor: We Major
  Take Petrified (Fort Minor’s first single) mix it over a Doors sample loop and you’ve got this track. Very nice. Being a Linkin Park fan and a recently rekindled hip-hop enthusiast I was destined to like Mike Shinoda’s Fort Minor project I guess. If you haven’t already check out The Rising Tied. It’s really good and has received some fairly high praise from major hip-hop heads in the know. Of course having the Jigga-man Executive Produce for you doesn’t hurt. He basically co-signed on this joint signifying that this is some hot sh*t. Now if you really want to get into something check out Fort Minor: We Major the mix tape Mike and Styles of Beyond put out a couple months before Rising Tied came out to help generate buzz. To be honest from a track for track standpoint I think We Major is hotter than Rising Tied. You can cop that over at MixTapekings.com.

I’ve been a little gun shy about doing these since last Tuesday turned into the day from hell shortly after I started typing that one up. But here we go. The ipod and I have been vibing pretty well the last couple days after a fairly rocky end of last week. For a couple of days I just wasn’t feeling what it was choosing to play. This morning started off much as last Tuesday. It looked like the ipod was going for a “love” theme. I thought oh crap. Another Tuesday from hell. That has thankfully not been the case so far.

Playlist: Big D Radio – Morning Mix

• More Than Words (English Version) – Frankie J
  I like this update of the classic Extreme tune. Back in the day I dedicated that song to a girl on the radio. The military radio station on the island sucked for the most part but there weren’t a lot of options as far as music on island back then especially when you had no money. I remember being nervous and scared. The DJ picked up and answered in a much more brisk and abrupt manner than his on air personality would have dictated. I asked for the song and dedicated it to Jennifer. No message or greeting just from Daryl to Jennifer. That was my first and last time calling a radio station to dedicate a song. Maybe I’ll call up a local station here and dedicate this new version to Jennifer just for old time sake. I wonder what ever happened to her and if she was actually listening that day when I requested that song.

• SI-N+R-JE (Original Funaki Mix) – Woody Van Eyden – The Lost World (George Acosta)
• Lonely Heart – Boyz II Men – Cooleyhighharmony
• I Wanna Be Where You Are – Michael Jackson – 20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of Jackson 5
  This song is credited to just Michael which has me wondering why it’s on a Jackson 5 compilation but who cares. I like it. It’s been stuck in my head all day. Michael’s singing I wanna be where you are in my head when I’m feeling anything but that towards some of the callers I’ve talked to today.
• Munich – Editors – The Back Room
• Here We Go, Let’s Rock & Roll – C + C Music Factory – Gonna Make You Sweat
  This song really takes you back to the Early 90’s.
• Smooth Criminal – Michael Jackson – Bad –
  All time favorite MJ tune. Best MJ video of all time as well IMHO.
• Run It! (Remix) (Featuring Bow Wow & Jermaine Dupri) – Chris Brown – Chris Brown
  Folks are tired of this track because it’s been played so much but I like it. Chris Brown has got talent. The new Usher? Not so fast my friend. Sure he can dance and has a great voice but let’s let him get a couple more records under his belt before giving him that title. Time will tell whether brown is the next Usher or the new Tevin Campbell. Remember that dude?
• Clothes Off (Pressure Club Mix) – Digital Dog – Ministry of Sound: The Annual 2006
  Updated dance version of the original. The clip on this compilation is way too short which is typical for dance mixes like this.
• Gotta Get Thru This – Daniel Bedingfield – Gotta Get Thru This
• Tonight, Tonight – Smashing Pumpkins – Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
  I used to love this entire album (both CDs) but over time I’ve found that most of the songs haven’t held up in my mind. Maybe it’s because I’m just not into the Pumpkins that much any more. A couple songs still stick out as gems in the rough though. This one more for it’s cool video than the actual song itself and 1979 because I just really dug it at the time.
• Papa Don’t Take No Mess – James Brown – Star Time (Disk 4)
  This song always brings a smile to my face. Most James Brown songs do simply because of all the James Brownisms they contain. This one is no different in that respect. My favorite verse though goes as follows: Papa didn`t cuss, He didn`t raise a whole lotta fuss, But when we did wrong, Papa beat the hell out of us. I love that because that was so my Dad when we were little. To be honest though my brother and I were more afraid of Momma than Daddy when it came to punishment. JB needs to release a remix, Momma Don’t Take No Mess, fresh for the ’06. Ya heard?

* Bonus Track *

Only In Dreams - Weezer – Weezer
With the exception of Buddy Holly there is not a song on this album that I don’t love.

Slanket blanket with sleeves – This idea came into my head a year or two ago. It’s sad when you find out that things you come up with have already been done. The book of Ecclesiastes talks about there’s nothing new under the sun. I think the author is right. There is hope though. My vision for this type of product doesn’t quite match their final execution so maybe there’s room for improvement or tweaking. For one thing they need to cut costs. Who want’s to pay $65 bucks for that when, while not nearly as functional, the blanket my momma gave me is free. Improve the design while cutting manufacturing costs and pass the savings on to the customer while still enjoying a tidy profit. Isn’t that the way of business?

How Digg.com is democratizing the news – Seeing as I’m a geek (and proud of it) I obviously enjoy keeping up on the latest in technology. Part of that is to stay current from a professional standpoint but I also enjoy it from a purely personal standpoint. In that respect Digg.com is great. It’s the brainchild of Kevin Rose, über geek and former Tech TV personality. Kevin is the man (the good the man as opposed to the bad The Man). He’s my age, 29, which is cool. He’s technical but seems to understand the other side of technology which is the humans who interact with the darn stuff. Kevin is basically doing the damn thing. I’m basically green with envy but until my hot idea that will revolutionize the technology world hits the market I guess I’ll have to bow at the throne of greatness that is the Kevin Rose empire.

Memphis lost tonight. I’m sort of depressed. I guess that means I’m officially a Memphis Tigers fan now. I was screaming, hollering, extoling, encouraging and just about any other ing you can think of in front of the TV tonight. Props to UCLA. They gutted out another one. It wasn’t pretty but they got it done. Their senior, Hollins, showed up. Our senior, Carney, pretty much disappeared. Memphis picked the wrong time to have their worst game of the year. The numbers don’t lie. 3pts. made 2-17 (.118). Carney 2 for 12 with only 5pts scored. Shawne Williams finally looked like a freshman. 2 for 9. 8 pts. scored. D. Wash had okay point production but wasn’t really the floor general that they needed tonight. Memphis started off tight and stayed that way the whole game. It was sad. Tonight made the difference between a really good season and a magical one. Good luck to UCLA. Unlike Digger Phelps I’m not gonna hate on a team that’s done nothing but win and win and win.

Great games tonight. Gotta head to bed soon. Full day tomorrow but… there’s some business to handle. The lack of love continues. All 5 personalities on College Gameday Scoreboard (the 4 “analysts” + the host Reese Davis) picked UCLA for the game tomorrow night. In the sports world I believe they call that bulletin board material. I can’t wait. Will crow be served? Or will the haters triumph? Bring it on baby. Peace.

mem-logo,
originally uploaded by Okiboy14.

The city of Memphis is buzzing with Tigers mania. You can literally feel the excitement permeating throughout the city. It’s a very exciting time.

Our Tigers face a tough test tomorrow night against UCLA. Some of the experts (ahem Digger Phelps ahem) feel that we’re weak and have little chance. Haters like Digger seem to forget that the Tigers beat UCLA earlier in the season at Madison Square Garden of all places. That’s a top notch opponent on a neutral court much like tomorrow’s match-up will be. The Tigers have proven time and again this year that they can beat quality competition. Just look at their out of conference schedule. They took on all comers and with the exception of a heartbreaking loss to Duke beat everyone that was put in front of them. They can’t help that their conference sucks thanks to the departure of Louisville and Cincinnati. I’m sure Memphis will be bolting as well once the right opportunity presents itself.

I’m pulling for the Tigers. This run Calipari has them on reminds me of what he did with UMass back when I was a kid. The guy can flat out coach. It took a few years to put all of the pieces together but it looks like Memphis basketball is back on the map.

Beating UCLA tomorrow night won’t shut up the haters. As we all know haters have an endless supply of haterade at the ready. It would be nice to make them eat some crow with their drink of choice though. Let’s run through a brief synopsis of the hate one Digger Phelps has thrown our way in the run up to and now during the tourney. This is paraphrasing some of the foolinshness that dude has spit recently (thanks to my friend Greg who keeps track of such silly things).

1. Memphis will be the first # 1 seed to lose because of their youth.
2. Memphis will be the first # 1 seed to lose to a # 16 seed.
3. Memphis should be very afraid of Bucknell.
4. Bradley will beat Memphis because they have already knocked out two high name teams.
5. Memphis has not been tested yet because they have played all these low seeds. (WHAT??? You just stated before each game that we would lose and now you say we are not tested????)
6. We still do not know what type of team Memphis is. It will be interesting to see how they match up against UCLA and I don’t think Memphis can hang with them. (WHAT???? Is he just ignoring the fact we have pasted UCLA once already?)

Regardless of what side of the fence you fall on, tomorrow night should prove to be very interesting and exciting. Let’s see if Digger shows us any love come Saturday night. I doubt it. If we win it’s well they’re a #1 seed. They’re supposed to win. If we lose it’s I told you so. If we (Digger’s heaven forbid) win it all then the answer will be well look at the road they took to get there. They didn’t play anybody. Screw you Digger!

Props to Dickey V for showing some love. I have a love/hate relationship with Dick Vitale as many sports fans do because of some of his antics but nobody can say that he’s not honest or sincere. He gives credit where it’s do and tries to be fair. That’s all you can really ask for.

Go Tigers!!!

Since a Monday in Tuesday clothing decided to interrupt my ability to complete this morning’s random mix I thought I’d do one to close the day. The day improved greatly the second I left work. Today is my brother’s birthday so I took him out to eat. We had a good time. Having a cute waitress to admire didn’t hurt either. She was easy on the eyes. Then after dropping Kenneth off I went and worked out (in my work clothes no less). That was the best decision I made all day. An hour and 15 minutes of hitting the weights helped melt all the pent up frustration and anger from today away. I squatted my body weight (roughly 255) for the first time in a very long time. I guess I need to pomp frustrated more often. Of course I used to squat double my body weight back in high school. I only weighed a buck fifty back then. I feel cleansed. Came home took a long, hot shower, fixed my lunch for tomorrow and am getting ready to get a good night’s sleep. All’s well that ends well. On with the mix.

Playlist: Big D Radio – Morning Mix (I’ve come to the conclusion that a name change is in order. This is turning into my go to list for everything except when I’m just sitting at my desk at work during the day. May change the name to go to list and develop a new, more focused and precise Morning Mix.

• Jesus Freak – dc Talk – Welcome to The Freak Show
• Fix You (Live) – Coldplay – Fix You Ep
• A Man and A Woman – U2 – How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb
• Inner Freak Style – Frankie Bones – Army of One
• In The Light – dc Talk – Jesus Freak
• Here Without You – 3 Doors Down – Away From The Sun
  Mid-South boys represent!
• Standing Outside A Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand – Primitive Radio Gods – Rocket
  To this song I have to say “I love you long time” because I have loved this song for a long time. Never knew the name of the darn thing or who sang it until I found it on iTunes by sheer coincidence. I was just flipping through looking for new music and BAM! there it was. The light went on and my mind thought “That’s that song!”. Now that it’s in the collection I’m always happy when the primitive iPod god chooses to play it.
• Beautiful Struggle – Talib Kweli – The Beautiful Struggle
• Imaginary – Evanescence – Fallen
• Big Pimpin’ (Featuring UGK) – Jay-Z – Vol 3.: Life and Times of S. Carter
• I Will Come To You – Hanson – The Best of Hanson

Good night!

(8:30 am) Spring is here. Apparently that means that love is in the air because the iPod was on a love kick this morning. You’ll notice that a lot of the songs in the mix touch upon love. If it starts playing Lou Rawls I’m out of here.

(10:30 am) We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for this special announcement.

Today has officially sucked. Walked in the door this (what did I do that for?) morning feeling great. Just like yesterday. It’s been all downhill since then. Everything went in the crapper. (6:25 pm) Yesterday didn’t feel like a Monday so I guess today was just a kick in the pants to say we didn’t forget about you. Maybe Monday was just on a 3 day weekend or something. Today was definitely Monday. I don’t care what the calendar says.

I’m going home.