To match the comfort reading thread, I figured that we could have a comfort CD thread. Those albums that you just gravitate to when you're not specifically listening to anything else.

When I was in high school, it was Doris Day's greatest hits. I still dig that out to make me feel better, but mostly since I'm a pathetic specimin these days, it's all about Horse (a compilation of) or Mirrorball (Sarah Mclaughlin) just while I'm passing the time at work.

Though I must admit to having a bunch of music from a certain TV show playing constantly. Explaining that one is harder than Horse or Sarah though, so that tends to be when I'm on my own.

Live (Sarah McLachlan, afaik out of print), Graceland (Paul Simon), or Sails of Silver (Steeleye Span).  Dar Williams is also in heavy rotation these days, but no particular album preference.

The Young Americans Soundtrack I made.  Dude, it brings me back to a happy place.  :)  It's got good shit man.

Narrowing it down is tough...
But I'd have to say, "If I Should Fall From Grace With God" by the Pogues.

Or... "Tales From the Acoustic Planet" by Bela Fleck.

Or... "Live at Luther College" by Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds.

Those three. I can't narrow it down to one, evidently.

Pink Floyd's The Wall, Metallica's Black album or the S&M concert, and Rent:  The Original Cast Recording.

I'm not sure you could ever call these "comfort music," but they're my favs and I always play them LOUD.

Edited because I remembered Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits.  That's definitely comfort music.

(Edited by SNeaker at 1:00 pm on Oct. 22, 2001)

The Cranberries "No Need to Argue" calms and soothes me, as well as Ani Difranco's "Dilate" - neither of which is a particularly happy cd, but the time in my life when I was listening to them a lot was.

OK, I'm opening myelf for mocking, but screw you guys.  I'm a pop fan and I love it.

"Many Moore" by Mandy Moore.  It encompasses so many different styles of music, and the placing of the songs kind of tells a story.  It's really easy to listen to.

"So Blu" by Blu Cantrell.  She has such a classic fortie's voice.  It's so cool.

Wicked Game, Chris Isaak.
The Kick Inside, Kate Bush.
Grace, Jeff Buckley.
Greatest Hits, The Shangri-Las.  Hey, there's nothing wrong with pop.

I'm there with you guys on Simon & Garfunkel. Anything of theirs tends to stay in the CD player for months.

Also Heather Nova, "Oyster."

But probably top of the list, the "Cruel Intentions" soundtrack.

I ditto Nalian's post and add Tori Amos Boys to Pele.

Gee I wonder what the same music could be reminding us both of. :P  

I'm such a schmoopy sap.

Ewwwww.  Can't you just turn your chairs to face each other instead of grossing me out over here? ;)

Willow the Cat and I share a love for the "Meow Mix" theme song.  It reminds us of when she jumped on my face in the middle of the night.

Hi.  I'll take "Sentences I Never Thought I'd Type" for 躔, Alex.

OK, I was going to type something really mean and funny, but there were too many jokes to make, so I'll just nod and smile.

Definitely Grace-Jeff Buckley, or Not a Pretty Girl-Ani Difranco, when I'm bummed out.

The Hedwig soundtrack and the Dandy Warhols have been popular lately when I just need to dance around my apartment.  

Anything by Morphine, for any occasion whatsoever.  

Prodigy or Viva La Woman-Cibo Matto when I need to blast dat shit.

And Doolittle-Pixies, because, dude.

Wow, you like the Dandy Warhols? Is their stuff any good? Because that "Undeclared" theme song makes me want to claw at my ears with rakes.

No, eej.  All of their stuff is very, very bad.  That's why I put it on my list!  Seriously, though, it's good, groovy, fun stuff.  Maybe not for everyone, I don't know.  I'm pretty sure there's a Dandy Warhols song in Triangle, or maybe Family, I can't remember.  Some Bronze scene from a bad episode.

Oh wait... I should've put "Queen 2" on there. It's got no hits, and no songs anyone outside of a Queen fanatic would know, but I think it's they're best. And one of my favorites.

Yeah, yeah... So I'm old.

Ananda, Pixies...word. Doolittle rules, but I've got my own little personal tape I made of all the existing B sides when I was at the college radio station. It's got some live stuff, and a ton of stuff that's just not on any albums. It's always in my car.

Like Mr. G...I've got too many to choose from:

Aimee Mann's "Whatever"
Tori Amos's "Little Earthquakes"
Bob Mould's "Workbook"
Sonic Youth's "Goo"
Tom Waits "Rain Dogs"
U2 "Achtung Baby"
Fleetwood Mac's "The Dance"

(Edited by Goalie at 4:46 pm on Oct. 23, 2001)

FLEETWOOD MAC???
Bleah!! Bleah! (cough, hack, choke) Bleah! Yuck!

You sleep on couch!

My comfort music's all Australian, so no point in mentioning it, except that Single Gun Theory's song 'Cruise Control' has been the first thing I listen to on my birthday for the past six years - except this year because I forgot to bring the album with me!

Hey, I've got a whole birthday tape someone made for me long ago that I play every year!  It starts with 'Birthday' by The Beatles, then goes on to (for some reason) 'Little Willy' by The Sweet, 'Who Are You' by the Boomtown Rats, 'Hello Hello/Leader Of The Gang' by Gary Glitter (ahem, it was made pre-paedophilia scandal), 'Rock and Roll Party Queen' from the Grease soundtrack, and so on.  I have a special birthday dance (vaguely Snoopy-dance, actually) that goes with it.  I'd never feel it was properly my birthday without it.

How cute are you?

Old, maybe, but I'm a Queen fan, too.  I remember I dated a guy who was thrilled I knew who Brian May was.  My reaction was like "Doesn't everyone know who Brian May is?"  I was genuinely perplexed by that.

Okay, so my turn!

"Surfer Rosa" - The Pixies
"John Henry", "They Might Be Giants", and "Apollo 18" - They Might Be Giants
"The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner" - Ben Folds Five
"X/O" - Elliot Smith
"Keep It Like A Secret" - Built to Spill
"Magical Mystery Tour" and "Rubber Soul" - The Beatles
"Pet Sounds" - The Beach Boys
"Brighten the Corners" - Pavement
"Stephen Malkmus" - Stephen Malkmus
"69 Love Songs" - The Magnetic Fields
Soundtracks - Ghost World, Rent, Moulin Rouge, The Who's Tommy (Broadway Cast Recording), Les Mis

I like me some music, I do.

I'm with you on Pet Sounds. But for The Beatles, it's Help! for me. Nothing better. "Hide Your Love Away."

My *NSYNC CDs; Britney Spears, Stronger; Garbage, #1 Crush; The Moulin Rouge soundtrack; Marilyn Monroe; Judy Garland

Are you secretly a gay man?

Bwa!  For a second, I thought BiM's posting was by Brooding.  I was gonna say, "Secretly?"

Aw, you know what I forgot?  Liz Phair-Exile in Guyville. To be reminded of these things by Dawson's Creek.  So humiliating.

Marilyn Monroe sung? Other than at presidential birthdays?

She was in the musical "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes", so I assume so.  You know, "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" and all...

Ah, I see. But did she actually have an album out?

It's a 'best of' collection. It's good.

Don't mock the taste. I also enjoy The Marshall Mathers LP and folk music but that's not comfort listening.

Can be. Dar Williams and Indigo Girls are comfort linstening for me.  Clancy Brothers Live at Carnegie Hall used to be, cuz I grew up listening to it so it's got decades of familiarity going for it.

How in the #### did I forget to mention The Girls? 4.5 - the compilation CD available in the UK - BEST. ALBUM. EVER.

####. I liked them when I was straight, too.

edited to say:you know, not including the real Best. Album. Evers

(Edited by Ginni at 11:00 pm on Oct. 25, 2001)

I'm not really mocking, Butterfly.  And Marilyn's version of River of No Return is quite lovely.

Excuse me?  Like I would listen to Garbage.

Yeah - it was the taste that caused her to re-check the poster.

Don't knock garbage, or you and I will throw down.

*giggles*  I'm not knocking garbage.  I like one of their songs.  It's just not a styl eof music I listen to often.  I was not slamming them in any way, oh Great Ginni.

Not to go on a tirade or anything, but why don't people like certain pop styles?  Is it just the style of music?  Because if you strip the music away, and just listen to the voices, you might be surprised.  I know that some of the voices are nasally, and some are shrill, but some are truly beautiful, like Mandy Moore.  Granted, she is stereotyped as performing 'bubblegum pop,' (which is so not true, anymore, her latest album is *so* not bubblegum), but she has an amazing voice that she actually had to work for.

Also, please don't mock me for what I just said.  This is how I feel and I don't like having my opinions or feelings mocked.

End rant.

*raises hand*

Possessor of "No Strings Attached" right here. I get mocked for my taste, which is all well and good. I am mostly all about the voice though, since, well, I am a singer, I guess. I dig Leann Rymes's voice, but yet don't own anything of hers, since I think it's crap. It has to be a combination of both for me, but the voice has the upper hand.

Yay!  Ginni has an NSync CD!

I'm sorry if I came off as pissed and brazen, guys.  It's been a long day that will hopefully have a long end.

I, too, own "No Strings Attached".  It's in my glove compartment.  Shhh.

Ginni's a singer? Why do I not know this? Oh, right, because she has never sung around any of us... Hmm. Methinks a command performance is in order.

And I personally hate boybands for their boundless inanity and for ruining the reputation of a lovely and traditional art form: a capella.

Hey, I was in an a capella group in grad school!  Though not a terribly serious one.  Also, I had to be a tenor, because we only had one guy.

Topic topic topic... well, _Graceland_ used to be my official housecleaning CD, though I haven't been using it as much for that lately.  On the subject of CDs I love that no one else has ever heard of, Beth Nielsen Chapman's Sand and Water.

I've taken 6 years worth of vocal training. ;)  See the things you learn here?

kmm, I love Sand & Water!  Especially the title song.  *sigh*

Eej, NSync actually does a cappella pretty well.

Woo, the singers unite!

I never took voice lessons, but *counts up* 16 years of choral and small ensemble singing with the occasional solo or musical role (the highlight was Bloody Mary from South Pacific in high school... when I was skinny, ha).  I guess I'm a mezzo, but I identify as an alto because that's what I sang all through school and it's more macho.  ;-)  I sang a tenor bit part in a concert performance of the Secret Garden at MIT a year or so ago.

(Edited by Claudia at 5:59 pm on Oct. 26, 2001)

I'm a singer too, but most of you probably knew that.  I've had at least 12 years of choir and piano.

What part of the "I used to bleed playing drums" conversation did you miss? The part where I said that "I had to learn 4 different instruments, because voice was MY instrument"???

I'm guessing most of it. To explain, partially classically trained, sung in choirs since 7 years old, head chorister of my choir at age 11 until 16. Music at school till junior year, professional chorister till 18. Joined the choir at university, but quickly discovered that Sunday mornings weren't of the good. I have a good voice (when I am practised), but since I mostly sing choral, or classical, don't ask me to sing anything top 40 - it sounds fucking awful. Singing lessons for *years*, I used to be Sop, but probably am now Mezzo, if not Alto. But I've not sung Alto before, so I'll squeak if I have to. I refuse, dammit. Singing's easy. Alto ain't easy.

(Edited by Ginni at 11:23 pm on Oct. 26, 2001)

Brooding, my point was that what NSync does is not a capella.

And, Gin, I must have nodded off during portions of that conversation. I caught the drums, violin, cello, and flugelhorn portions of your music training, but damned if you said anything about singing. Or maybe you said it in Scottish, so I didn't understand.

With so many singers here, I think I smell a VegasCon glee club performance in the making.

They do do a capella. Listen to their Bee Gees Medley. That's just their voices.

And on No Strings Attached, the last song, I Thought She Knew is sung a capella.

I actually would adore it if they put out an a capella CD. Might make people take them more seriously.

Ginni: Garbage does indeed rock. I have such a crush on Shirley, too. I don't have Beautiful Garbage yet, but that's only 'cause my *NSYNC obsession comes first and I had to buy the On the Line soundtrack.