The Muppets' "The Muppet Show"

Artist: The Muppets
Album: The Muppet Show
Year: 1977
Genre: Soundtrack
Where I Got This Record: Somewhere in Dublin, Ireland

OK, so I didn't get off to a good start by blasting the soundtrack to The Muppet Movie, I admit. But you want a good Muppets album? Here it is.

This record is probably one of few records in my collection that made my laugh out loud. The part where The Great Gonzo is eating a rubber tire to "Flight of the Bumblebee," which is essentially the sound of chewing to "Flight of the Bumblebee," is brilliant. Fozzie Bear does a series of hat tricks. As a matter of fact, I'm apparently a sucker for physical comedy that doesn't translate very well to a record.

They do the theme song, which is unbeatable. There's the fantastic "Mr. Bassman," which is a definite throw to The Coasters. And, of course, how can we forget "Mahna Mahna?" Amazing.

The record gets so many things right. Transitions? Timing? It's all here. And what a better way to transition than to have Statler and Waldorf heckle every other song?

And come on, you've got a beautiful duet between Rowlf the Dog and Sam the Eagle singing "Willow Tit Willow." It's definitely full proof that Sam the Eagle is the Seymour Skinner of the Muppets.

It's just such a lovely and genuinely funny listen. Unlike that Muppet Movie soundtrack.

The Muppets' "The Muppet Movie"

Artist: The Muppets
Album: The Muppet Movie
Year: 1979
Genre: Soundtrack
Where I Got This Record: Goodwill somewhere

I love The Muppet Movie and I love all of the Muppets, but there is no reason for anyone to ever listen to this soundtrack independent of the film. It's actually extremely grating and overproduced. This was not worth the dollar.

Wish List: N

After months of being busy, I've finally made it through N. And we're nearing the one year anniversary, folks. "M" is going to be a fun and crazy letter, so let's move on. But first, some things I'd like to own by the "N" artists of lore.

WHAT I WANT:

Laura Nyro - Gonna Take a Miracle
Jack Nitzsche - St. Giles Cripplegate
Jack Nitzsche - One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Jack Nitzsche - Chopin '66
The Nitty Gritty Dirty Band - Will the Circle Be Unbroken
Leonard Nimoy - Mr. Spock's Music From Outer Space
Harry Nilsson - The Point
Harry Nilsson - Nilsson Sings Newman
Harry Nilsson - Aerial Ballet
Nico - The Marble Index
Nico - Desertshore
Nico - Chelsea Girl
New York Dolls - New York Dolls
New Order - Technique
New Order - Power, Corruption & Lies
New Order - Low-Life
Randy Newman - Sail Away
Randy Newman - Good Old Boys
The Neville Brothers - Treacherous: A History of The Neville Brothers
Neu! - Neu! '75
Neu! - Neu! 2
Neu! - Neu!
Willie Nelson - Shotgun Willie
Willie Nelson - Phases and Stages
Sandy Nelson - anything I can get my hands on
Nazz - Nazz
Johnny Nash - I Can See Clearly Now
Graham Nash - Songs for Beginners

And that's it! On to "M."

Sandy Nelson's "Beat That Drum"

Artist: Sandy Nelson
Album: Beat That Drum
Year: 1963
Genre: Surf, rockabilly
Where I Got This Record: My mom's boss

I don't remember much about getting this record. I just remember it being in a pile that was mostly junk, but then I saw Sandy Nelson. I didn't particularly want to listen to it, but I set it aside anyway, just so I could hear it later.

Well the time has come, friends, to dive into the grooves of a legendary surf and rockabilly drummer (who's still kickin', by the way).

It's kind of funny, actually, that Sandy Nelson has top billing here. He's a great session drummer and everything, but there are actually more guitar solos than drum solos throughout the album. As a matter of fact, the song fades out as Sandy starts really going to town. Only occasionally does he have a moment where he can really shine.

But I'm keeping this album forever. This is perhaps the best (or worst) party music I've ever owned. I mean, this stuff would be perfect for an early '50s beach party. Can anyone say "themed hipster party?"

There's not a lot of differentiation between songs, but it's hard to be bugged by it when every song is so danceable and catchy. Awesome stuff.

Willie and Family's "Live"

Artist: Willie Nelson (Willie and Family)
Album: Live
Year: 1978
Genre: Country, southern rock
Where I Got This Record: I think I got it at a book sale at the Huntington Public Library in Huntington, WV

Seeing Willie Nelson in concert is an experience. The fans are nuts, the atmosphere is laced with marijuana smoke and Willie spends his time singing and very sweetly waving to the audience. It's an oddly wonderful experience.

Unfortunately, it just doesn't translate on vinyl. I loved Willie's live show. He opened for Bob Dylan and put Dylan's apathy to shame.

Here's the thing: I love almost every song on the record. "Take This Job and Shove It," "Crazy," "Georgia," and "Whiskey River," they're all great. But Willie's voice really seems to work best in the studio, in an environment where that beautiful quality can really shine.

When you separate Willie's voice from his stage presence during a live show, it just doesn't quite work out.

That said, I love "Me and Paul." Wonderful song. And, as usual, Willie's band is extremely tight. The album includes an abridged medley of Red Headed Stranger, which is cool, and there are a couple of great spirituals on there (peppered between the outlaw songs).

But this thing is four sides long. By the end of it, I had a headache. I love Willie, but not quite that much. So until I pick up a copy of Shotgun Willie, that's going to be it for him for a while now.

Back Up: Cat Stevens' "Teaser and the Firecat"

Artist: Cat Stevens
Album: Teaser and the Firecat
Year: 1971
Genre: Singer/songwriter
Where I Got This Record: CHIRP Record Fair 2009

There's not much to say about Teaser and the Firecat. It's one of those albums that had a lot of commercial success, so it's easy to find in the dollar bin (which is where I found my copy).

In many ways, it's a travesty to see this album mingle with Streisand and Manilow in the cheapo bin. It's a beautiful little album about peace and love and imagination - the evidence doesn't go much farther than "The Wind," "Peace Train" and "Moonshadow."

Unless you have a vendetta against sweet little tunes and singer/songwriters, this album is an absolute must. There's no excuse not to pick it up for cheap.

Back Up: Tom Waits' "Nighthawks at the Diner"

Artist: Tom Waits
Album: Nighthawks at the Diner
Genre: Jazz, lounge, Tom Waits
Year: 1975
Where I Got This Record: CHIRP Record Fair 2009

This semester, I've been taking a class at Columbia College called "Topics: Rock and Soul on the Radio - Contemporary," which is taught by WXRT's Terri Hemmert. It's the best class I've ever taken. We talk about influential music recorded from 1970 on.

For half of the class, Terri teaches us about the music (peppering it with stories from her personal experiences meeting the artists, which is always fun). For the other half, the students all have to give a presentation on an artist from 1970 onward. I don't know why, but I chose Tom Waits.

In a lot of ways, Nighthawks at the Diner is an impeccable representation of Tom Waits as a performer. Sure, it doesn't dance with as many genres as Orphans or Rain Dogs and it isn't extremely diverse, but it showcases his talents as a raconteur.

Nighthawks is double LP of Waits and a group of jazz artists playing in an intimate club setting. The album can be a bit repetitive, but it's really broken up by Waits' stories and raps.

The highlights, in my opinion, are "Eggs and Sausage" and "Spare Parts I."

What I love about Waits' music is that although it doesn't stick to one definitive sound from album to album, he always manages to paint a portrait of nightlife - whether it's on the streets or in the bar or at home. The genius of it is that he doesn't make it dark or dismal like in a Darren Aronofsky movie. Instead, he creates a romantic portrait of street life.

Nighthawks is certainly a great listen, but it really falls flat when it comes to repetition. After listening to it once, it's going to take another couple of months before you'll want to hear it again. Listening to it from the beginning of side one to the end of side four is definitely a task.

It isn't an essential buy in Waits' catalog, but it's certainly an essential listen.

Willie Nelson's "Red Headed Stranger"

Artist: Willie Nelson
Album: Red Headed Stranger
Year: 1975
Genre: Country
Where I Got This Record: Shangri-La Records in Memphis, TN

Although I always seemed to be aware of his work, I was first introduced to Willie Nelson as the singer and songwriter of "Beer for My Horses," "Whiskey River" and "Me and Paul."

I guess that's why it's hard to remember sometimes that he was the man who wrote "Crazy," which was made immortal by Patsy Cline.

In the mid-'70s, Willie released Red Headed Stranger, an unlikely return to two things: the theme and tone of the old West and the songwriting sensibility of his work of the early '60s.

Red Headed Stranger is one of Willie's masterworks. Although it's a concept album about an outlaw on the run, it's a world away from his songs about drinking and smoking.

The album begins with Willie singing about a preacher, the red-headed stranger, who finds his wife in the arms of another man. Of course, he shoots them both and they died with smiles on their faces.

It's amazing that it's the same theme that you could hear in hundreds of country albums, but Willie's writing, arrangement and execution is absolutely amazing.

To keep up the tone of the old West, Willie isn't afraid to use hymns, old standards and a hint of ragtime bar music.

Although it goes without saying, his vocals are perfect.

One of the reasons why this is such an impeccable album is because Willie had complete creative control. He produced and arranged the entire album.

Red Headed Stranger can break your heart with songs like "Can I Sleep in Your Arms." Willie's vocals, arrangements and guitar playing are humbling in their simplistic beauty.

If you don't own a Willie album yet, own this one.

Willie Nelson's "Stardust"

Artist: Willie Nelson
Album: Stardust
Year: 1978
Genre: Vocal
Where I Got This Record: Harvest Records in Asheville, NC

I bought this record because I had been tempted to buy it at six different record stores I'd visited on one road trip. On the last record store I visited, Harvest Records in Asheville, I broke down and bought it.

I had recently seen Willie in concert and loved the simplistic album cover. Also, I think I read that it was in The RS 500, so I picked it up blindly as a teenager.

Stardust is the sweetest, simplest album by Willie. It's not even a country record. It's just an album to show off his beautiful and one-of-a-kind dusty vibrato with some pop favorites.

It's important to note that the album was produced and arranged by the incredible living legend, Booker T. Jones.

It's a lazy, rainy day album. Tender songs like ""Blue Skies" and "Moonlight in Vermont" let's the audience know why Willie is such an amazing vocalist.

Sure, he can't hit "Unchained Melody" or "Georgia on My Mind" with the same power as The Righteous Brothers or Ray Charles, but he treats the songs with a reverence and tenderness that are hard to find in cover versions of the classics.

The album is also appropriately titled. The most resonant, incredible moment on the album is in the first three seconds of the title track. I've never forgotten the way Willie picks the opening guitar riff of "Stardust."

Before you reach for any of the Cole Porter Songbook albums or any of those awful Rod Stewart albums, give Stardust a spin. It's simple and sweet, but it also makes for a lovely round of easy listening.

Randy Newman's "Little Criminals"

Artist: Randy Newman
Album: Little Criminals
Year: 1977
Genre: Singer/songwriter
Where I Got This Record: Borderline Records in Dublin, Ireland

Ireland was a strange and bittersweet place to buy records. When I went into Borderline, it was full of people and it seemed like every person in the store had already grabbed up the good LPs. I found Little Criminals and a compilation by CAN on sale, so I picked them up.

It was just interesting to me that a Randy Newman album was one of the few I found on sale.

Say what you will about the prince of rom-com and Pixar soundtracks, Randy Newman is an excellent songwriter. He may not be introspective in his lyrics like James Taylor, but he sure isn't afraid to offend huge demographics of people. In this one he gets short people, fat men and junkies all in the first three tracks. That's ambition.

"Short People," of course, is one of the most offensive songs to be censored from mainstream radio. In the song, short people have no reason to live, nobody to love, they're liars and have dirty minds. Hilarious, yes. Horrible, yes. The only downfall comes with the cutesy Glen Frey vocals on the bridge.

Little Criminals also has a couple of soft numbers. "Texas Girl at the Funeral of Her Father" and "In Germany Before the War" are both oddly sad for the album's otherwise biting nature.

"Jolly Coppers on Parade" sounds tender, but don't be fooled. It's the story of a little boy who sees police on a parade and decides that's what he wants to be when he grows up (you can hear the tongue in his cheek when he describes police as "angels from paradise").

Helping Newman on the album are The Eagles, Ry Cooder and, like the Nilsson album I just reviewed, Klaus Voorman.

Since Newman is a California singer-songwriter who was brought up with the likes of Jackson Browne and Warren Zevon, the album is a mixed bag when The Eagles back him up. It's oddly charming on "Baltimore" and a bit overdone on "Short People." I'm not sure if I think it's contrived or pleasant on "Rider in the Rain." The Eagles are talented guys, sure, but their work is only as good as Joe Walsh is willing to be. Still, it's nice to know that Newman got some extra sales from their presence on the record.

The record ends with a gorgeous, solitary "Old Man on the Farm," a sullen portrait of an old farmer. It's a terrific ending.

I'm curious to hear more of Randy Newman's discography. The production on this can be hit or miss in its California sheen, but the writing is really sharp.