I made a mix as a wedding gift for my friends Jane & Hamak. (Don’t worry, I got them a real gift too.) Here is the letter I wrote to go with it:

A tape…um, a disc, a flash drive, a disk in any case…full of luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuv sawngs in honor of you. You two. I don’t want to get overly sappy…I’ve tried to lean toward just straight happy, celebratory songs…but some of these tunes do reflect my feelings on the subject.

01.    Yeh Yeh – Georgie Fame & the Blue Flames

Was introduced to this song by They Might Be Giants’ cover (Mink Car 2001) but this version (1965) kind of blows it away. Fame has a great voice and a great vocal technique, and his tone blends so nicely with the sax.

02.    This Time It’s Real – Tower Of Power

One of the happiest songs ever. From Tower Of Power (1973).

03.    Groove Me – King Floyd

Sookie sookie now. From King Floyd (1970).

04.    Kiss – Prince

I defy U 2 name a better pop record than this. …I’m a little self-conscious about the last 2 choices. They’re a little obvious—they’re wedding DJ songs. But I’m not going use Kool & the Gang Celebration, okay? 1 tries not 2 B 2 obvious or 2 obscure. I was 1ce accused (by my 3rd-oldest friend!) of being willfully obscure. (It was over one of my spring tapes. The one with “Ain’t That Nice” and “The Real World” and the French version of “Chick Habit” and the Banana Splits and all that.) I’m not trying 2 B obscure, like just 2 show how cool I am, but I don’t want to give U just stuff U’ve heard a million times. As Cee-lo sed at a Gnarls sho just B4 singing “Crazy”—“I want 2 please U but I don’t want 2 bore U.” But these last 2 joints R so God damn good, who cares. …By the way, I stole this cut from a mix CD a certain bride & groom made as a party favor 4 their wedding, so it contains extra good karma for yall Bcause over 7 years later they remain 1 of the happiest couples I know (Bsides me & Jen of course!).

* Prince spellings in honor of Prince.

05.    This Must Be The Place – Talking Heads

Stop Making Sense version. (1984.) To get sappy for a second…this song is to me the most perfect description I’ve heard of what love is. It makes me cry. I imagine having a big, like, 50th anniversary bash like my grandparents did and singing this song to my dear wife. (I’d need to recruit a couple accompanists…a piano and a flute maybe.)

06.    Jeepster – T. Rex

From Electric Warrior (1971). Great record, “Jeepster”, great record….

07.    You’ll Be Mine – Howlin’ Wolf

Where Marc Bolan stole the opening lyrics (“You so sweet, you so fine/ How I wish you were mine”) and the bump-bump-bump rhythm from. This has always been one of my favorite Wolf tunes. From 1961, this is the classic Chicago Howlin’ Wolf band: Willie Dixon on bass, Sam Lay drums, Hubert Sumlin with that searing guitar of his.

08.    Wig Wam Bam – The Sweet

Self-explanatory. Side 1, cut 3 on the 1973 debut The Sweet.

09.    If It’s True – Yo La Tengo

Doing our best. Muddling thru. Together. I like that. Nicer really than some overblown epic True Love thing. Is it right, is it perfect, is it true? Doesnt really matter. From Popular Songs (2009).

10.    Love And Happiness - Al Green.

Let Al Green explain to you what love is and what happiness is. Another obvious choice? At least it’s not “Let’s Stay Together”. From I’m Still In Love With You (1972).

11.    If I Ever Needed Someone – Van Morrison

Is this here love song directed to God? From His Band And The Street Choir (1970)…which is a killer album.

12.    Some Say – Nina Simone

Such a wonderful, happy song. I luv it when Nina Somone gets all are-&-bea and shit. From my faverit by far of her albums, Silk And Soul. Like “Kiss” this was one of the high points I was trying to build up to. A mix has to have peaks & troughs and in-betweens.

13.    Eye Know – De La Soul

From 3 Feet High And Rising (1989). Nother good choice by De La wld’ve been “Talkin’ Bout Hey Love” from De La Soul Is Dead, but I couldn’t resist the sample. Did you catch it? [One of the records sampled in “Eye Know” holds a particular significance for Jane.]

14.    You Make It Easy – Air

That is what I want. Becuz everything is so damn hard. From Moon Safari (1998).

15.    Lint Of Love – Cibo Mato [my edit]

From Stereo Type A. (1999) Took out the shitty rap and the shitty guitar solo.

16.    Nobody But You – John Paul Hammond

I’ve always liked this song. From Nobody But You (1988). Sweet, simple sentiment. “Put the lid on the pot, put the salt in the bread.” There’s another song, by Ray Charles, which sadly didn’t make this tape (I’ma need to do a “bonus disc” of outtakes), which not only shares the same name but has a similar lyric: “Who is the salt in my bread? Nobody but you. I do mean you.” To be the salt in someone’s bread. Wow.

17.    My Babe – Little Walter Jacobs

Always loved this one too. 1955. So smooth.

18.    Rose Darling – Steely Dan

From Katy Lied (1975)…the first side of which really kicks ass.

19.    Here To Fall – Yo La Tengo

A similar theme to the other Yo La track; sort of a darker flipside. Also from Popular Songs.

20.    Don’t Worry Baby – The Beach Boys

By explicitly saying “Don’t worry,” this song goes further than the last one (“I know you’re worried, I’m worried too”). From their masterpiece, Pet Sounds (1966).

21.    I Love How You Love Me – Jeff Magnum

Such a pretty melody. Sung by such a haunting voice. This old standard, here misattributed to Phil Spector (who produced the Paris Sisters version), is a Barry Mann/Larry Kolber composition. This version comes from a live bootleg and may or may not be identical to the Live at Jittery Joe’s version.

22.    Asleep And Dreaming – The Magnetic Fields

I almost wanted this to be our wedding march, but Jen objected to the “I don’t know if you’re beautiful” part. From 69 Love Songs (1999).

23.    Little Star – Cub

What a nice thing to say about someone. From Betti-Cola (1993).


Welp. I wish much happiness to both of you. Congratulations to Hamak. He definitely got the best of this deal.

Subject: i am bringing home

a shit load of pizza.

This is a letter I wrote to my brother last fall after an extended email exchange about the Stones. (I eagerly anticipate another beatdown from dlwiebe.)

allow me to sketch out the 5 phases of the Stones' 
recording career: first is the pre-1965 testosterone 
overdrive--barely competent, ferocious rock and fuckin 
roll.  in short order they learn to write a song and 
enter phase 2 in which they produce Crafted albums like 
Aftermath and Between The Buttons.  (there is also a 2nd 
and a halfth phase called, oh shit the beatles changed 
the game up again!)  then comes the post-Brian Jones, pre-
disco era (3), roughly 68 to 73.  the sweet spot.  that's 
the stuff most of us like best.  then disco (4).  
"sucking in the seventies."  i have a soft spot for all 
that, and i know you do too.  some girls.  the fifth and 
final phase is evrything past Tatoo You, the 80s 90s and 
today, irrelevant at best, embarrassing at worst.

phase three, 68 to 73, is when they made their best 
albums.  i am madly in love with the early, early 
singles; but when it comes to Albums, you'll find the 
really good ones here, as most sensible rock lovers will 
agree.  there are some dissenters who might claim Out Of 
Our Heads as the best album; there are even those who 
claim Some Girls. i "respect" their opinions.

of the albums from this third and best phase, Sticky 
Fingers & Exile are the top 2.  even Let It Bleed can't 
sway me, tho when it gets to Live With Me and Monkey Man, 
i am tempted.  some incredible noise, there.  You Got The 
Silver is one of their best ballads, and like most of 
their ballads it's a little too sentimental.  granted, 
Wild Horses, the great ballad from Sticky Fingers, is 
even more so.  the guitar on Wild Horses is **really** 
nice tho.  set pieces like Midnight Rambler and You Can't 
Always Get What You Want never quite did it for me.  the 
choir is just over-the-top...but overthetopness is part 
of the band's charm.  (the better version of Midnight 
Rambler is on Get Yer Ya Yas Out, but i'm sticking to 
studio recordings here.)  Love In Vain is unfortunate, 
but i give it a pass.  you can do bad covers of your 
heroes, it's cool, you get to do that.

Beggar's Banquet has a lot of cool stuff, but it also has 
some filler.  the album's two major hits, Sympathy For 
The Devil and Street Fighting Man are good tunes, but 
they're very much of their time.  i would go so far as to 
say (were i qualified to say so) they were an eloquent 
response to the events of 1968, but that don't 
necessarily make them all that meaningful in the year 
20-whatever.  i've always kinda liked Street Fighting Man 
but it was never one of my favorites.  i thought Sympathy 
For The Devil was awesome when i was 13...didnt we all.  
No Expectations...well, you know how i feel about the 
ballads.  it's pretty.  Stray Cat Blues is the high 
point, and it's a motherfucker.  It definitly goes on my 
personal greatest hits album.  Salt Of The Earth is kinda 
silly.  The Rolling Stones (and several lady singers in 
their employ) Salute The Working Man.

with Goat's Head Soup they were heading downhill.  if i 
wernt in the mood to be nice i might call it the 
beginning of the end.  it's a *good* album by any 
standard, but there's nothing classic there, except maybe 
Angie.  Angie is the type of song you imagine a bunch of 
drunk college kids singing along to even they have no 
idea what it means.  smells of cheap sentiment to me.  
i've always liked Dancing With Mr D.  good riff.  100 
Years Ago's wacka-wacka guitar is far from keef's finest 
moment.  Doo Doo Heartbreaker comes on the radio, i'm 
happy.  Silver Train is a mere echo of the awesome 
country rock they had done a few years before.  it sounds 
like an imitation of the rolling stones really.  in fact, 
a lot of stones imitations are way better than this.  
same with Starfucker which is only famous for its 
vulgarity.  if evry copy of this album suddenly 
disappeared from the earth, it would take me a while to 
notice.

Only Rock 'N Roll has one foot in disco.  i've always 
liked Fingerprint File.  Short And Curlies is a good tune 
too.  i should note that, as with many parts of my 
musical education, i have [P.S.] to thank for 
innerducing me to the good stones material.  if i 
remember it right he gave or sold me his cassettes of 
Only Rock 'N Roll, Sticky Fingers, Let It Bleed, and 
Exile when he switcht over to ceedees.  you probly 
suggested me as someone who could take them off his 
hands.  man, that was lucky for me.

anyway.  having eliminated all other contenders it comes 
down to Sticky Fingers and Exile.  what Sticky Fingers 
has going for it is songwriting.  songs like Dead Flowers 
or Moonlight Mile, you can't beat um.  Brown Sugar/Bitch 
is maybe th stones' best 45 of all, despite the intense 
racial whatthefuckness of Brown Sugar's lyrics.  Can't 
You Hear Me Knocking is righteous noise.  I Got The Blues 
is nice, but mick is not otis.  did you hear that, mick?  
you are not otis redding.  write it down if you have to.  
truthfully, jagger is not the worst soul singer in the 
world.  i'd prefer he stuck to rock tho and left songs 
like this to guys who can really sing them.  Sister 
Morphine and Dead Flowers are Crafted songs, but maybe a 
bit too clever for their own good...and the fake twang 
mick uses on Dead Flowers is embarrassing.  (boy, most of 
my complaints come down to mick, don't they?)  these 2 
songs get to the heart of what is the real difference 
between Sticky Fingers and Exile On Main Street: Sticky 
Fingers has it all over Exile when it comes to 
songwriting, but i hear more real emotion in Exile.  
Sister Morphine deals with human pain on the level of a 
pulp novel.  Exile is more truthful in its treatment of 
pain, misery, regret.  just a bunch of guys working it 
out in a french mansion.

the legend of Exile's creation must be addressed...the 
heroin, debauchery, general mayhem.  some people are 
fascinated by that stuff, but i don't care too much about 
it.  i would like to think i love the album because of 
the music, not becuz all the crazy stories lend it extra 
depth, an air of wickedness.  still, i like the idea of 
this music being created amid chaos and without a plan, 
recording all night with whoever happened to show up.  my 
idea of that environment is summed up perfectly by the 
photo of mick and keef at the microphone clutching a 
liquor bottle and a tall can of beer respectively.  who 
doesnt like the masterpiece that somehow falls together 
despite everything falling apart.  bottom line: Exile 
feels raw and it feels real.  i value emotion more than 
technique.  ultimately i'll take Exile's murk over Sticky 
Fingers's polish.

here is the personal greatest hits album i mentiond, in 
roughly chronological order:

come on                      1:48
i want to be your man        1:58
not fade away                1:48
off the hook                 2:33
satisfaction                 3:44
stupid girl                  2:55
stray cat blues              4:38
honky tonk woman             3:02
country honk                 3:07
monkey man                   4:11
brown sugar                  3:48
sway                         3:50
can't you hear me knocking   7:14
bitch                        3:38
moonlight mile               5:56
sweet virginia               4:25
loving cup                   4:25
happy                        3:04
ventilator blues             3:24
i just want to see his face  2:52
waiting on a friend          4:34
                          -------
                          1:12:29

it should fit comfortably on one side of a ceedee.  both 
Honky Tonk Woman and Country Honk are on there; i don't 
want to choose.  the single version is one of Afrika 
Bambaataa's top ten breakbeats.  Shine A Light is not 
there, sorry.  i wanted to keep it below 74min.  (my self-
imposed cut-off for mix ceedees: these days almost evry 
ceedee holds 80min, but i like the idea that my mixes 
could fit on an old-school "Ninth Symphony" 74-minute 
ceedee if they had to.)  i like the chorus but not so 
much th verse.  i almost left off Satisfaction, but that 
would be too perverse.  i almost can't believe Waiting On 
A Friend made the cut.  i needed slow songs, and if 
there's one ballad i can tolerate it's that one.  it's 
way easier for me to get behind "i need someone i can cry 
to" than to get behind "wild, wild horses/ we'll ride 
them someday"--ugh.  plus, Sonny Rollins.

PS: P.S.

A friend askt me for my recipe for fried tofu.  Here’s what I sent her:

i can’t tell you the exact amount of any of the ingredients i use.  i probably make it different every time.  so, how much soy sauce should you use?  it depends on how much soy sauce you like.  (i like a lot.  i also enjoy high blood pressure.)  take a block or 2 of the firmest tofu you can find and press it to get some of the water out.  i put it on a cutting board, put a smaller cutting board on top, and then put a book on top of that.  you have to choose the right book though—one that’s not so heavy that it crushes the tofu.  let it sit while you’re doing all the prep, or even longer.  then dab it off with a dish towel. take some short-grain white rice, like sushi rice, about half a cup to one cup per person, wash it well, soak for for 15-20 minutes, then cook.  or do it in a rice cooker if you have one.  shit, you know how to cook rice.  chop up, finely, a whole bunch of garlic, about an equal amount of ginger, and a few green onions.  select a vegetable to have on the side, stir fried.  celery is surprisingly good.  i like asparagus.  bok choy is good too, and i’m told that cabbagey vegetables counteract tofu’s estrogenic properties.  whip 1-2 eggs in a broad, shallow bowl. put some white all-purpose flour into a similar bowl.  cut the block of tofu, the short way, into roughly half inch thick slices.  dip the slices first in the flour then in the egg.  pan fry the slices lightly in any flavorless cooking oil (peanut, corn, soybean, sunflower—you understand what I mean).  place the fried slices on a paper towel to soak up the excess oil.  after they’ve rested a second, stab each slice a bunch of times with a chop stick.  into your pan put some combination of the following, proportioned according to your taste :
   chicken broth
   soy sauce
   sherry
   rice vinegar
   about half of your ginger & garlic
   CHILI PASTE WITH GARLIC
put a medium-sized fire under that and cook the tofu in it until the pan is dry.  flip the slices over halfway thru.  put them on on a platter.  scrape the crusties off the bottom of the pan—they are the best part of the whole meal.  drizzle sesame oil and sprinkle green onions over the whole thing.  cover the platter somehow and put it in the oven to stay warm.  stir fry your vegetable with the rest of the ginger & garlic, a little soy sauce, and a little sherry.  eat. 

Hey, R.,

I would like to correct some discouraging things I said to you a while back, when I was almost drunk.  You were concerned about your stepson who is making the horrifying transformation into a teenage boy.  Seeing your and his charming selves on Saturday made me realize this correction was overdue.  I’m sure the situation has evolved somewhat since we talked half a year ago, but I hope this will nonetheless be of some use to you.

I may have overdramatized the whole thing.  Of course I was only describing my own experience, and while that stage of life is no doubt painful for everyone it’s also different for evryone.  It’s worth mentioning, at the risk of more overdramatizing, I had and have a psychiatric condition that surely exacerbated it all.

You asked me what the parents can do, and I didn’t have much of an answer.  But it’s really quite simple:
Pretend you don’t know he’s whacking off,
stay out of his room,
and try not to take shit personally.

Love, Matt

Subject: u hrd a ths guy?
From: A.H. <*********@*****.com>
To: Matt Hiebert <************@*******.net>
Date: Thu Jul 08 2010 21:05:50 GMT-0600 (MDT)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LOHMxD_EAw

Subject: Re: u hrd a ths guy?
Date: Sun, 11 Jul 2010 16:12:51 -0600
From: M. Elias Hiebert <************@*******.net>
To: A.H. <*********@*****.com>

I am aware of the Skatalites of course, but I’d never heard his solo stuff.  My knowledge of ska is elementary at best.  Mucho thanks for making me hip to Totally…ToGETHer.  I’ve listned to it 3 times already.  Mello track, sweet like blackberry.  You have to love that organ.  Th toon reminds me of Santana’s “Evil Ways”.

I know I’ve seen this album cover before, but I don’t know where.  Probably in Waxpoetics, which is a great magazine if ye’r innerested in obscure (or at least somewhat-off-the-main-road) rekids.  I shld go thru my old issues and see if they ever did a feature on Mitoo.  He seems like just their type.  Waxpoetics turnd me on to Joe Bataan, whose “Chili Beans” populates many uv my mixtapes.  It’s right up there with “Mr. Tough” as one of my favorite powerjams.

I’m frustrated today on account of this new SD card I bought is being very unreliable in Jen’s camera.  I have a digital walkman that uses “Micro” SD cards so I thought I’d be very clever (yes, you and I know that’s always a bad idea) and get a Micro SD card with an adapter so’s we cld use it in th walkman and camera both.  I don’t know if the camera can’t handle that or if the card is the wrong speed or what the heck th problem is.  SD cards have different speed ratings but I find the manufacturer seldom tells you what it is, so you don’t know if yr card is fast enuf fr yer device.  Capacity shouldnt be the issue.  It’s 2GB, and we have a 2GB card that we’ve been using in the camera for years with no trouble.  My new card works fine in th walkman tho, so it’s not a total loss.  I’ve lookt all thru th manuals & stuff to try and find out what cards are and arnt compatible with th camera, but guess what, no information, and the internet is no help either.  Bawlshit.

ey, mom, you should read cul de sac, the best newspaper daily since calvin & hobbes. thompson really understands the rhythm of a daily strip and the way repitition pays off for regular readers. (peanuts probably the best example of the value of that repitition—probably the best example of a daily strip, period. krazy kat = repitition taken to an extreme zip-pow-♡, zip-pow-♡, zip-pow-♡.[that box or question mark is a heart by the way.]) the characterization is what makes it brilliant, tho. clearly thompson is observing his own children to capture authentic elements of childhood. and it is the rare family strip in which both the children and the adults are real people. (it’s really about the kids tho.) check out monday’s. sure, it falls back on a kid-strip chesnut, how stupid adults are in the eyes of their much-more-savvy children; but lines like, “i’m four! i’m fully aware the doggy goes woof woof woof woof!” are priceless. worth following! (yes, i only follow comic strips on the web now. i can’t bring myself to look at the funny pages in the paper anymore—too depressing.)

Mom wrote, asking all of us what we were doing for Christmas.  My reply, composed 9am, December 23d:

Sad that Grandma may spend Christmas in the hospital.  Hoping for no infection and that she gets better soon.

Our Christmas plans…  Jen is working from home for the next 4 hours.  Then she’s done til Monday.  Tonight, trim the tree.  Soundtrack: Phil Spector’s Christmas Album.  Tomorrow night, leek & potato soup w/ very good sourdough bread from local bakery.  Light 3 candles?  Reading from the book of John perhaps?  Remove big bottle of “Life And Limb” from fridge before going to work.  Christmas morning—unwrap each other’s presents; feast upon (1) Jennifer’s famous challah bread pudding (with cranberries in it!) w/ rum sauce (2) sopressata, 2-year-old white cheddar, & crackers (3) pistachios.  Soundtrack: Handel’s Messiah (the good parts), then maybe Live at the Apollo.  Sleep.  Go work for 2.5x my usual wage, plus a sandwich.  (Work on any of 3 major holidays, partake of deli tray.  Yeah, we get some pretty sweet perks.)

We got cookied-out too early in the season, so not many sweets for us.  Only problem with not making Christmas cookies is what do you leave for the mail carrier?  (Santa will probably be satisfied with a couple Celebration Ales—and the ever-popular carrot for Rudolph or Blitzen or Olive or whomever.)  Perhaps there’s a bottle of wine in the “cellar”…could throw a ribbon around it.  Might freeze.  Pot of jam?  Orthodics?  Neighbors have already had our cookies, and we theirs—hence the premature cookied-out condition.

December 26…  Take down Christmas tree, put up Boxing Day tree….  Address Boxing Day cards….

Days following, give increasingly elaborate, noisy, and impractical gifts to “true love”.  (Have you ever see Churchy & Albert’s take on the Twelve Days Of Christmas?  It’s one of the funniest things ever.)

Wait for the days to get longer.  If you can make it thru January, you’re gold.

Oh, and after that I’ll probably mail the presents.