Some things just naturally go together. Chocolate and peanut butter. Ebony and ivory. Laurel and Hardy. Other stuff, well, it needs a little more explanation. Like, I’ve always been a little confused by the Nobel Peace Prize Concert. It’s not that I think the winners of the Peace Prize don't deserve a good show. Quite the contrary. But I’ve been somewhat intrigued by the lineups in the past. What, exactly, do pop megasuperstars have to do with world peace?

Since it began in 1994, some of the hottest international performers have played the concert to honor the winners of one most respected international awards. This year the lineup includes Melissa Etheridge, Kylie Minogue, Alicia Keys, Annie Lennox and KT Tunstall. The show was hosted by Uma Thurman and Kevin Spacey. Great lineup. Cool hosts. But I’m still perplexed. Should we now change it to "all we are saying is give Uma a chance"? … continue reading

Ever since Malinda told us about SpotDJ over the summer, I've been spending far too much time making mix tapes. I think part of the appeal is that when I was of mix-tape age, the technology was not friendly to such an endeavor. Making any kind of compilation required finding a stereo that had both a turntable and cassette recorder, then painstakingly finding songs on records and recording them to cassette. You young'uns have it so easy. And yes, I did have to walk to school in the snow.

Anyway, what better reason to make a mix tape than Halloween? I started with the intention of doing an all-female mix. For reasons I don't care to explore, the first song I thought of was "The End" by Nico. And Pat Benatar's "Hell Is for Children." When did Benatar start looking like this?

Bjork is always kind of scary, and "Ancestors" is a great Halloween song. And nothing says horror like "Rawhead and Bloody Bones" by Siouxsie & the Banshees.

But when I went to make the mix, I hit a snag. Most of the songs I wanted weren't available via SpotDJ. And honestly, could you imagine a Halloween mix without "Thriller?" So, I decided to fill in with songs loved by a woman, namely me. … continue reading

Some songs have the power to stop conversation. When such a song starts to play, each person in the room has a moment of recognition, pauses, and starts singing along. The Indigo Girls’ “Closer to Fine” is one for my group of friends. So is Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” And just about anything by Melissa Etheridge. I once was at party that ended with everyone singing with the entire Yes I Am album.

I predict that “Sing,” a track from the new Annie Lennox release, Songs of Mass Destruction, will become one of those songs. Or at least its chorus will.

As bad machine told us a few months ago, Lennox enlisted 23 female singers to join her on this anthem devoted to the treatment of pregnant women with AIDS to prevent the spread of HIV to their babies. When I read about the song, I pictured a “We Are the World” moment with the women crammed into a studio, rocking back and forth while they sang. Instead, each vocalist recorded the song in a nearby studio and sent the track to Lennox for mixing. Parts of the song are a little inaccessible at first listen, but by the end I was right there with them, hand over my ear, singing my little heart out. (Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about.) Listen to it a couple of times and let me know what you think. Then go to Annie’s site and download “Sing” — proceeds go to Treatment Action Campaign. … continue reading

Pop diva Annie Lennox announced recently that her fourth solo album, Songs of Mass Destruction, which drops October 2, will include one track featuring vocal contributions from 23 other female singers. Perhaps you've heard of some of them: Melissa Etheridge, Madonna, Sarah McLachlan, Celine Dion, Stacy Ferguson, Faith Hill, Pink, Dido, Gladys Knight, kd lang, Bonnie Raitt, Shakira, Joss Stone and KT Tunstall.

It's Lilith Fair compressed into four minutes and without the messy sunscreen.

With 23 other stars, the song, a feminist anthem entitled, "Sing," could possibly be a truncated version of the title, "Sing, or Just Mouth the Words — No One's Gonna Know the Difference."

Although it remains to be heard whether any one artist gets a line or two of her own, the cause is definitely worthwhile. "Sing" will benefit Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), a movement fighting for human rights, education and health care for those affected by and living with AIDS/HIV.

There's another album already called Songs of Mass Destruction — a 1993 release by a Swedish duo called Devoid. But with songs like "Drug Womb" and "Go to Hell" on the Devoid album, I doubt there will be much confusion as to which one is Annie's. … continue reading