Want to improve the mix CDs you’ve got in your car? Want to throw a new twist into your tunes at the party?
Here’s a bunch of recommendations, including a bunch of songs that are going to get more detail here as time goes on.
- “The Day Brings” by Brad; mix with: pop rock, especially with pianos (like Coldplay); also works on many smooth jazz mixes
- “Ashes” by Embrace; mix with: soaring Britpop tunes, like Oasis, James, Paul Weller/Jam/Style Council, also works with Maroon 5 or Matchbox 20
- “Change” by John Waite; mix with: 80s pop tunes, was a minor hit, but people will still know it
- “Moments with You” by Gran Torino; mix with: Sugar Ray, Smash Mouth, or other similar pop bands, has a very clappable/singable chorus
- “Give” by Dishwalla; mix with: slower rock, this one will add a bit of groove to otherwise mellow mood music, like “Black” or “Indifference” from Pearl Jam or anything from Dido, or the airy piano stuff from Sarah McLachlan
- “Movin’ on Up” by Primal Scream; mix with: blues rock like Black Crowes, classic heartland tunes like Tom Petty, or even Coldplay
- “Mekong” by The Refreshments; mix with: hummable guitar rock like Counting Crows, Hootie, or Train
- “Big Dog” by Seven Nations; mix with: harder rock like Paramore or Daughtry
- “I Want You” by Gato Barbieri; mix with: big soul tunes like Marvin Gaye, or 70s disco
- “Not Even the Trees” by Hootie and the Blowfish; mix with: the song you never heard of has a very catchy bass riff and goes good with Mellencamp, Petty, Seger, or even Springsteen
- “In the Shadows” by The Rasmus; mix with: Techno-ish rock, like NIN or Ministry or even Elastica
- “I’m in Heaven When You Smile” by Van Morrison; mix with: oldies. You can’t help but sing along. You’ll know it in 10 seconds.
- “The Little Girl” by Gary US Bonds; mix with: oldies. Another easily-singable tune that people don’t know they know
- “Party’s Over” by Journey; mix with: Classic rock. Another one you didn’t know you knew. Great intro guitar riff gets lost with low mix volume
- “Thinking of You” by Paul Weller; mix with: acoustic folk, like Jack Johnson or David Gray; cover tune translates well to mellow treatment
- “Tears Don’t Lie” or “Midtown” by Little Caesar; mix with: 80s hard rock. Forgotten 80s hair band had great songwriting, cover of “Chain of Fools” also good
- “The People’s Drug” by John Wesley Harding; mix with: REM, Mighty Lemon Drops, or other 80s folk-rock
- “Move on Up” by Curtis Mayfield; mix with: Soul. Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, even Puffy could do with an upgrade of Curtis. But find the radio edit; the full one is over 8 minutes
- “Inner Smile” by Texas; mix with: dance pop. You’ll be singing the “Yeah, yeah, yeah” line all night.
- “International Bright Young Thing” by Jesus Jones; mix with: more dance pop… great job of mixing the drums so they flow from speaker to speaker