Friday Playlist: The whistle knows my name.

By Lesley | August 13, 2010

Helpful commenter Cyn suggested I check out Grooveshark as a playlist-building alternative, and I’ve started dabbling over there for future posts. Alas, the learning curve was too steep for me to master in the three or four free minutes I’ve had to devote to it, so this week we are sticking with playlist.com one more time.

1. “I’m Good, I’m Gone” // Lykke Li. Lykke Li is a quirky Swede who leans way further into twee-town than I can generally stand, but she has moments I quite enjoy, and this is one of them. “If you say there ain’t no way that I could know / If you say I aim too high from down below / Well say it now ’cause when I’m gone / You’ll be calling but I won’t be at the phone.”
2. “Wonderlust King” // Gogol Bordello. I actually lack words to describe how this song affects me. And y’all, I do not lack words for anything. It makes me want to pack a bag and stow away on a freight train, bound for unknown possibilities. If you listen to nothing else on this playlist, listen to this song — it will improve your day, I promise. “And presidents / And billionaires / And generals / They’ll never know / They’ll never know / What I have owned / What I have owned.”
3. “We Walk” // The Ting Tings. The beat on this one may cause dancing at one’s desk. You were warned. The entire album from which this track is taken — We Started Nothing — is brilliant and addictive from beginning to end, if you’re not familiar with it.
4. “Postcards from Italy” // Florence and The Machine. This is a cover of a song by Beirut, and the original — which features a gorgeous horn section — is already an amazing track, but I adore Florence’s spare interpretation just as much. Girlfriend has a craaazy voice.
5. “Born on a Train” // Magnetic Fields. This may well be my favorite Magnetic Fields song, and that’s pretty high praise, as they have a whole lot of great songs. “I have to go when the whistle blows / The whistle knows my name / Baby, I was born on a train.”