Mix Tape Friday: Pound the Ground

No special theme today. This was one of those weeks that demanded tunes for banging away the stress. You know the ones: those songs that make your body dance and your feet pound the ground as hard as you can, until the stress begins to leave your neck and shoulders. Here are some of my favorite ground-pounders.

R.E.M.: Begin the Begin

Beck: Black Tambourine

David Bowie: Queen Bitch

The Replacements: Left of the Dial

Burning Brides: Artic Snow

The Raveonettes: Attack of the Ghost Riders

Jane's Addiction: Superhero

Joe Jackson: I'm the Man

The Stooges: I Wanna Be Your Dog

U2: Elevation (Tomb Raider Mix)

Big Audio Dynamite: Rush

New York Dolls: Personality Crisis

Sleater-Kinney: I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone

The Pixies: Debaser

Sonic Youth: Incinerate

Red Hot Chili Peppers: Give It Away

Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians: Freeze

Elvis Costello: Tear off Your Own Head (It's a Doll Revolution)

Pearl Jam: Glorified G

The Pretenders: Middle of the Road

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: Spread Your Love

XTC: Living Through Another Cuba

The Clash: White Riot

Wire: Eardrum Buzz

Television: See No Evil

The Smiths: How Soon Is Now

R.E.M.: Lotus

While you download and listen, here’s a music-obsessive trivia question to ponder: One musician shows up on this mix tape more than any other. Who is it, and on which tracks is he playing?

UPDATE: We have a winner! The mysterious M knew that the busiest musician on this mix tape was none other than our beloved Peter Buck of R.E.M. In addition to the R.E.M. songs that open and close this playlist, he also plays lead guitar on Robyn Hitchcock's "Freeze."

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Mix Tape Friday: POP! Goes the Alt Bands

God, I love cover tunes. It’s interesting to hear the songs a band covers — you get a hint about what they're listening to. And it's fun to hear them play a song for a goof (see: Richard Thompson's cover of "Oops, I Did It Again" a few weeks back). As with most music-obsessed folks, I have a huge collection of cover tunes — more than a hundred by R.E.M. alone — so this will be a fun recurring theme on Mix Tape Fridays.

This week: pop tunes covered by alternative and punk bands. Can you name the original artists?

1. R.E.M.: Dragging the Line (Tommy James & The Shondells)

2. Foo Fighters: Baker Street (Gerry Rafferty)

3. Lemonheads: Mrs. Robinson (Simon & Garfunkel)

4. Grant Lee Buffalo: In My Room (Beach Boys)

5. Sonic Youth: Superstar (The Carpenters)

6. Wilco: Thirteen (Big Star)

7. Cracker: Rainy Days and Mondays (The Carpenters)

8. Twilight Singers: Kites Are Fun (The Free Design)

9. The Beautiful South: Dream a Little Dream of Me (The Mamas & The Papas)

10. Hüsker Dü: Love Is All Around (Theme to "The Mary Tyler Moore Show")

11. Decemberists: Think About Me (Fleetwood Mac)

12. Ultrahorse: Stuck in the Middle With You (Stealers Wheel)

13. Johnny Thunders: These Boots Are Made for Walking (Nancy Sinatra)

14. Fine Young Cannibals: Suspicious Minds (Elvis Presley)

15. Stranglers: 96 Tears (? and The Mysterians)

16. Everclear: Our Lips Are Sealed (Fun Boy Three/The Go-Go's)

17. Alex Chilton: Volare (Dean Martin/Al Martino)

18. Coolies: Having My Baby (Paul Anka)

19. Ramones: Needles and Pins (The Searchers)

20. English Beat: Can't Get Used to Losing You (Andy Williams/Chad & Jeremy)

21. R.E.M.: Out in the Country (Three Dog Night)

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