The Top Songs of 2009: TMD Volunteer Edition

Volunteers make an incredible contribution to WTMD throughout the year. They help out around the office, represent the station at area events, and keep us sane during pledge drives.

Volunteers also share some of their favorite music with TMD staffers. (We're looking at you, Fletcher.) A few of our favorite volunteers weigh in on the Top Songs of 2009 below.

Check out the lists, vote for your own top songs by 12 p.m. Monday, December 21st, and then sign up to volunteer in 2010. We'd love to see you at the station.

Laura Beavers, Volunteer for 5 Years

• Wilco, "You and I"
• Bob Dylan, "Here Comes Santa Claus"
• Rosanne Cash and Jeff Tweedy, "Long Black Veil"
• Neko Case, "People Got A Lotta Nerve"
• Tom Petty, "Breakdown" (Live)

Musical Memory of 2009
The Beltways playing "Ring of Fire" at my wedding.


Pam Cohee, Volunteer for 3 Years

• U2, "Moment of Surrender"
  
• Matisyahu, "For You"
  
• Assembly of Dust, "Second Song"
  
• Trevor Hall, "Where's the Love"
  
• Eric Lindell, "Turnin' It Out"
  

Musical Memory of 2009
Seeing Trevor Hall at the Sound Garden music store with my kids. Trevor played a free show, for about an hour for maybe 30 people!!
The sound that these 3 musicians produced was unbelievable and Trevor's voice and message are just beautiful. Thanks, WTMD for introducing us to Trevor Hall!


Bridget Cooper, Volunteer for 3 Years

• Passion Pit, "Sleepyhead"
• Devendra Banhart, "Baby"
• The Avett Brothers, "January Wedding"
• J.J. Grey and Mofro, "Orange Blossoms"
• Blitzen Trapper, "Black River Killer"

Musical Memory of 2009
Seeing Ghostland Oberservatory--as well as many other fabulous bands--at the Austin City Limits Festival.


Beth Lacey Gill, Volunteer for 1 Year

• Animal Collective, "Summertime Clothes"
• St. Vincent, "Actor Out of Work"
• Regina Spektor, "Laughing With"
• Phoenix, "Listzomania"
• Tyrone Wells, "More"

Musical Memory of 2009
Actually, one of my favorite moments was volunteering with WTMD for one of their fund drives. It's so easy to find common ground when you look around a room, and see everyone singing along to the lyrics of "Lisztomania." Plus, I left with more than just a good feeling from volunteering. I also made some new good friends and got a few live pointers on some killer music before it was ready for the air. So, so cool.


Cindi Jansohn, Volunteer for 6 Years

• Creed, "Time"
• Enter the Haggis, "DNA"
• Davy Knowles & Back Door Slam, "Tear Down the Walls"
• Cheryl Wheeler, "Underbrush"
• Will Hoge, "Even If It Breaks Your Heart"

Musical Memory of 2009
Seeing Victor Wooten up close and personal at Rams Head Tavern and seeing him perform with his kids. They were awesome!!!!


Chris Killam, Volunteer for 1 Year

• Snow Patrol, "Just Say Yes"
• Ingrid Michaelson, "Maybe"
• Imogen Heap, "First Train Home"
• Vampire Weekend, "Horchata"
• Lisa Hannigan, "I Don't Know"

Musical Memory of 2009
Going to see Ingrid Michaelson at the Recher.


Fletcher McNeill, Volunteer for 7 Years

• Portugal. The Man, "The Home"
• Wye Oak, "For Prayer"
• Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, "I'm Broke"
• Heartless Bastards, "The Mountain"
• The Bowerbirds, "Ghost Life"

Musical Memory of 2009
Hearing Wye Oak play new songs that would become "The Knot". It was amazing to hear these songs and know that they had really matured in both production and songwriting.


Elizabeth O'Shea

• Levon Helm, "When I Go Away"
• The Avett Brothers, "I and Love and You"
• Levon Helm, "Stuff You Gotta Watch"
• Cage the Elephant, "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked"
• Neko Case, "This Tornado Loves You"

Jen Raffensperger, Volunteer for 1 Year

• Gomez, "Little Pieces"
• Spoon, "Got Nuffin'"
• Caleb Stine, "Eyes So Strong and Clean"
• Will Hoge, "Even If It Breaks Your Heart"
• Mike Doughty, "(I Keep On) Rising Up"

Musical Memory of 2009
From the Young Dubliners in the TMD studio in February to the simply spectacular weather--and show--for Guggenheim Grotto at First Thursday in July.

2009 was a year of real ups and downs for me, but music was a constant comfort.


Randy Schreffler, Volunteer for 1 Year

• Ingrid Michaelson, "Maybe"
• Langhorne Slim, "Say Yes"
• Vandaveer, "Divide and Conquer"
• Guggenheim Grotto, "Fee Da Da Dee"
• One Eskimo, "Kandi"

Musical Memory of 2009
Ingrid Michaelson concert at the Recher. Walking in, I was not sure what to expect. Ingrid put on one heck of a show. The band came out after the show to say hello to fans and stuck around to take pictures, sign CD's and just get to know their fans. Very cool band and one that I will remember for a long, long time.


Mary Zajac, Volunteer for 4 Years

• Passion Pit, "The Reeling"
• Phoenix, "1901"
• Roman Candle, "Why Modern Radio is A-OK"
• Vetiver, "Everyday"
• The Duke & The King, "If You Ever Get Famous"

Musical Memory of 2009
I was fortunate enough to attend some fabulous shows this year: Butch Walker at the 930 Club, Elvis Perkins and Blitzen Trapper both at the Ottobar, the Hold Steady at the Recher, the Duke and the King performing at a house concet (my first). A great year for music.

Mix Tape Thursday, 9/3/09

WTMD listeners--and featured artists from this year's Virgin Mobile Freefest--take over the airwaves with three-to-five song sets on Thursday.

9 a.m. Krystal Boeren

First of all, I am thankful to a station that is as passionate as local music as its patrons. I've chosen to dedicate my mix tape to local artists that are inspired by our city, and captivate us accordingly.

I am a third generation Baltimorean and Paul Masson's "My Girl Baltimore," is a beautiful testimony to a city that keeps calling me back. Paul's soulful voice and Tom Hnatow's beautiful petal steel blend together in a hauntingly honest portrait of a man coming home to the city he loves.

Being a fan of Hnatow's petal steel work, I've chosen These United States "Everything Touches Everything," the single from their new highly anticipated release. Jesse's voice is vibrant and strong yet playful, giving us a taste of what's to come.

Lastly, I've chosen Caleb Stine's "Comes From the West." Caleb is an extraordinary storyteller with insight beyond his years. This track exemplifies Caleb's born nature to roam, but never stray. And simply put, the melody of the song is infectious.

* " My Girl Baltimore," by Paul Masson
* " Everything Touches Everything " by These United States
* " Comes From the West," by Caleb Stine


11 a.m. Jet’s Cameron Muncey & Mark Wilson from Freefest

* " This is Radio Clash," by The Clash
* " No You Girls," by Franz Ferdinand
* " Cross-eyed and Painless," by The Talking Heads
* " I Wanna Make It Witchu," by Queens of the Stone Age
* " Wanderlust King," by Gogol Bordello

1 p.m. Franz Ferdinand’s Nick McCarthy and Bob Hardy

* " Randy Describes Eternity," by Built to Spill
* "Califonia Shake," by Margot Guryan
* "My Shadow," by Jay Reatard
* "Radio Ladio," by Metronomy
* "Xmas Steps," by Mogwai

5 p.m. Rennie Twigg

It's all about the name....

* "Number with No Name," by Ben Harper
* "Different Names for the Same Thing," by Death Cab for Cutie
* "You Can Call Me Al," by Paul Simon

7 p.m. Jeremy Stark

* "Via Chicago," by Wilco

Our generation's Bob Dylan is Jeff Tweedy. "Via Chicago" is what would happen if the Beatles "A Day in the Life" were to feature Dylan.

* "Take Me to the River," by Talking Heads

David Byrne is originally from the area and his music isn’t played enough around here! Classic cover!

* " Where R U?," by 3Fifths

One of Baltimore's best if not the best. The emotion of singer/songwriter Tim Nodar is unmatched here in one track off of their first studio album Did You? This band blends funk and amazing musicality with really well written songs.

* "Cemetery Walk," by Umphrey’s McGee

What a great song for summer from one of the premier bands jammin’ these days.

Mix Tape Thursday, 7/1/09

WTMD listeners take over the airwaves with three-to-five song sets on Thursday.

6 a.m. David Ziffer

In honor of Weezer, one of this year's Freefest performers, and their debut album, "The Blue Album", I've included a song from that album, a track from 311's self-titled debut, also known as "The Blue Album," and The Beatles' "Blue Album, 1967-1970."

* "My Name is Jonas," by Weezer
* "All Mixed Up," by 311
* "Across the Universe," by The Beatles


8 a.m. Kathy Marr

There are artists I heard for the first time on WTMD and songs that moved me deeply.

* "Forever My Friend," by Ray Lamontagne
* "Be Here Now," by Mason Jennings
* "Pride," by Daniella Cotton
* "You Dance," by East Mountain South
* "Gravity," by Bob Sima


10 a.m. Mary Zajac
A while ago, David Dye had Moby choose a Top 5 on the World Cafe. Moby's theme was "5 Songs That Would Sound Good in a Desolate Parking Lot of an Abandoned Factory at 4 AM." This is my take on that theme.

* "Over the Hillside," by The Blue Nile
* "All I Need," by Radiohead
* "Love Letter," by Nick Cave
* "For the Turnstiles," by Neil Young
* "Famous Blue Raincoat," by Leonard Cohen


12 p.m. Susan Atwell-Keister

Songs of freedom and America for the 4th of July

* "Freedom," by Melissa Ferrick
* "America," from West Side Story
* "This Land Is Your Land," by Woody Guthrie
* "Free Fallin'," by Tom Petty


4 p.m. Melissa Artnak

This is a, hopefully, not too sappy, but still pretty endearing mix tape that is a modern variant on the "I Like You" mix tapes we are all guilty of making as teens.

All of the songs have a summery feel, so the title written on the label of this cassette could be "Grown-up Summer Camp Love Songs," if that's not too cheesy.

* "Rave On," by M. Ward
* "Slow Show," by The National
* "French Navy," by Camera Obscura
* "All My Mistakes," by The Avett Brothers

Remembering Jay Bennett

By now you've probably heard that Wilco's former multi-instrumentalist Jay Bennett died over the weekend in his sleep in Illinois. He was just 45 and had no health insurance despite his desperate need for a hip surgery.

When we had Jay in for a session in 2006, he was affable and excited about his new album, The Magnificent Defeat. But, as one who follows Wilco and who has seen the pivotal scene (in the documentary I am Trying to Break Your Heart) with Jeff Tweedy that led to Jay's departure from the band a million times, I took away from our conversation that he never really got over the experience.

I recalled our conversation when I heard that Jay was planning on suing Wilco for unpaid royalties. I think the move spoke more to the state of uninsured musicians than holding on to a grudge, really.

Jay Bennett's talents are showcased on many records, including Blues Travelers's Bastardos, but to really tap into what this literal math genius and studio whiz contributed to rock and roll, pop in the dreamy, piano-soaked circus of "Pieholden Suite" on Wilco's Summerteeth.


RIP Jay. Thanks for being a driving force in the creation of one of my favorite records, Being There.

Mix Tape Thursday, 5/21/09

WTMD listeners take over the airwaves with three-to-five song sets on Thursday.

7 a.m. Kathleen Milbourne

I call these "Morrissey Songs Not Sung By Morrissey." Basically, songs that capture the trademark awesome lyricism and delivery of the great man, and are fabulous songs in and of themselves, as well.

Cilla Black is actually one of Moz's childhood favorites, and I think you can see her influence on him, as well.

* "The Prayer," by Bloc Party
* "Lost in the Plot," by The Dears
* "Barricade," by Stars
* "I've Been Wrong Before," by Cilla Black


9 a.m. Alyssa Stokes

These songs have a great mix of humor, emotion and energy.
Truly original and all around fun listening!

* "Trashcan," by Delta Spirit
* "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots," by Flaming Lips
* "Sipping on Sweet Nectar," by Jens Lekman
* "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa," by Vampire Weekend


11 a.m. Amanda Torbit

These are songs that WTMD has turned me onto.

I would have never found without listening to this radio station and now I can't imagine my life without them. Well, besides Patty Griffin--she's just my favorite and I love her so every list must have a Patty song.

* "In My Life," by Warren Haynes
* "Taste of Danger," by Jonatha Brooke and Davy Knowles
* "Gavin's Song," by Marc Broussard
* "You Don't See It," by The Duhks
* "Forgiveness," by Patty Griffin


1 p.m. Ryan Gardiner

I can never make it through these songs' respective albums without repeating these tracks.

* "We're the Same," by Matthew Sweet
* "You Are My Face," by Wilco
* "Smile," by The Jayhawks
* "Cannonball," by Damien Rice


5 p.m. Drew Walker

With no ticket to All Good yet, I decided to pick the top five songs I want to hear at Bonnaroo this year.

* "Hockey," by 3 a.m. Spanish
* "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked," by Cage the Elephant
* "100 Yard Dash," by Raphael Saadiq
* "Out at Sea," by Heartless Bastards
* "Wilson," by Phish


7 p.m. Jay Somers

Hey man, what can I say? I got a fever and the only cure is some Bens!

* "Catch My Disease," by Ben Lee
* "Landed," by Ben Folds
* "Wasted and Ready," by Ben Kweller
* "Bruised," by The Bens
* "Steal My Kisses," by Ben Harper

Mix Tape Thursday, 4/9/09

WTMD listeners take over the airwaves with three-to-five song sets on Thursday.

Submit your own mixtape and enter a drawing to win a pair of VIP tickets to the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, TN!

7 a.m. Joe Grice

These are all songs that I beleive have amazing female vocalists.

• "My Love," by The Bird and The Bee
  
• "The Fear," by Lily Allen
  
• "Boom," by Anjulie

9 a.m. Erik Dudziak

I'm not sure if Back Door Slam has ever played at Bonnaroo, but they should. I saw them at Artscape and have been a fan ever since. Both Ben Harper and Band of Horses are rocking out at Bonnaroo this year, and although I have never seen either live I really want to.

• "Come Home," by Back Door Slam
  
• "Shimmer and Shine," by Ben Harper & The Relentless 7
  
• "Marry Song," by Band of Horses
  

11 a.m. Trish Smith

• "Ooh, La, La," by The Faces
  This is my favorite song ever because it's not only from my favorite movie (Rushmore), but because it also reveals life lessons.

• "El Scorcho," by Weezer
  This was the first Weezer song I ever listened to, and since I'm half Korean (not half Japanese), I feel a connection to it.

• "Coffee & TV," by Blur
  This is a great song with an even better music video. Who doesn't like coffee or tv?!

• "In Between Days," by The Cure
  My favorite Cure song. It's beautiful.

• "Bittersweet Symphony," by The Verve
  "You're a slave to money then you die." What sums up life better than this?
  
  

1 p.m. David Paremske

All of these songs are groovy.

• "Helicopters," by Disco Biscuits
  
• "Maze," by Phish
  
• "Toe Jam," by BPA
  
• "Sabotage," by Beastie Boys
  

5 p.m. Dan Anderson

I think song #1 is great and it just shows how awesome WTMD is - where else would you hear a song like this? Thanks for introducing it to me! I think his voice sounds a little like Dracula's voice and that makes me think of the Dracula song in Forgetting Sarah Marshall (song #2). It's a short funny song, but it's actually pretty good. Then that song makes me think of the line "Send me all your vampires" in song #3. And of course that then makes me think of Vampire Weekend. Did you follow all of that?

• "Epilepsy is Dancing," by Antony and the Johnsons
  I think this song is great and it just shows how awesome WTMD is—where else would you hear a song like this? Thanks for introducing it to me!
  
  I think his voice sounds a little like Dracula's voice and that makes me think of the Dracula song in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. It's a short funny song, but it's actually pretty good. Then that song makes me think of the line "Send me all your vampires" in the Third Eye Blind track. And, of course, that makes me think of Vampire Weekend. Did you follow all of that?
  

• "Dracula's Lament," by Jason Segal
  
  

• "I Want You," by Third Eye Blind
  
  
• "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa," by Vampire Weekend
  

6 p.m. Maria Shaivitz

I picked these because they are songs that I never get tired of hearing. Thanks WTMD for all the great music you play!

• "Electric Feel," by MGMT
  

• "Stop the Bus," by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
  

• "Valerie Plame," by The Decemberists
  

• "Theologians," by Wilco

• "Heretics," by Andrew Bird
  

"This Song is Dedicated to Everybody . . . Especially You."

A late-afternoon Ravens game--and a strict "no drinks in the auditorium" policy--limited the number of people who ventured beyond the Lyric Opera House's lobby before Wilco headlined a 2 1/2 hour, double-encore show on Sunday night.

But everyone who took their seats early enough to catch D.C.-based Benjy Ferree was treated to a tight set of rockabilly songs infused with a punk sensibility.

Backed by a quartet that included a cellist and Benjy's fiancee on drums, Ferree and company tore through a solid setlist that was prefaced with a few whistling introductions and some rapid-fire stage patter. (Between declarations of "peace and love," Ferree asked a woman near the front if he once served her a drink in D.C., and later declared, "This song is dedicated to everybody . . . especially you.")

It all made for a fun, raucous start to the night.
Unfortunately, if you were there, you probably missed it...

Benjy Ferree hosts a record release party at the Black Cat on February 28, 2009.

Vote Wilco

As Wilco prepares for a tour with Neil Young--as well as a sold-out, headlining show at the Lyric Opera House on December 14th--Jeff Tweedy and company are hitting the polls and handing out free downloads to promote everyone's civic duty.

Stop by Wilco's voting page to pick up a free download of the Wilco and Fleet Foxes' cover of Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released." And then send them photos of your polling place for an upcoming web feature.

The Autumn Defense- A Great Band Within a Great Band

I'm starting to count the days till the Wilco show at Merriweather Post (6/21). I cannot wait to hear Jeff and the boys play the new songs from SKY BLUE SKY- Jeff has said how absolutely happy he is with the finished product and that this album has been more of a band effort, a collaborative process, than previous Wilco records. And its no wonder. With the avant garde edginess of Nels Cline on guitar, the subtle thunder of Glenn Kotche's drumming and heavy contributions from multi-instrumentalist Pat Sansone and longtime bassist John Stirratt...Jeff has surrounded himself with the most talented players since he worked with Jay Farrar in Uncle Tupelo. Pat and John recently put out their third album as the THE AUTUMN DEFENSE- a project that pays homage to sunny and meditative 60's and 70's rock. It's California sunset music and it's one of my favorite albums this year, so far (alongside Wilco, Vietnam, Tim Finn and ALO). Check out this acoustic performance of WINTERLIGHT. That's Pat Sansone on the left and John Stirratt on the right.