HAZARDS OF MIX-MAKING

I've learned recently that if you're going to make a mix CD for someone, you should definitely set yourbadself a deadline. I've been working on a mix CD (two actually, because for this one, for some reason, I found it impossible to narrow it to one disc) for a friend o' mine for going on three months now.

Part of that delay, yes indeedy, is pure laziness. Sure, I could work on the CD, but that usually absorbs most of an afternoon or evening, and sometimes I'd just rather park my butt on the couch and watch whatever celebrity catfight countdown is on VH1 at the time instead. But the bigger roadblock has been letting too much time go by -- just when I think I'm pretty much done, I discover some friggin' awesome new band or get an old favorite's new CD and have to go back to the drawing board.

For instance, I got to the "almost done" point about a month ago, but then Ryan Adams released "Cold Roses." Well shit, "Magnolia Mountain" must go on this mix CD. Sounds like an easy enough fix, but I had crammed so much on the playlists that something had to be discarded. Eeesh. And Ryan wasn't the only one wrecking my mix CD playlist draft. There was new Beck, for one, and material from the massive CD haul I amassed at Merlefest and the accompanying trip home to the States. Then, of course, there's new(ish) Lucinda Williams (the live one) and the Son Volt compilation -- which I haven't even gotten yet but I know there will be crucial material on each.

Of course, I already have all Lucinda and all Son Volt, so really the new issues are just an excuse, but dammit, man, stop pressuring me! YOU try making a mix for someone who tells you "I really want to learn more about Americana music, please make me kinda an overview." You'll go bananas, I guarantee. It's just too much responsibility. And there's too dang much to choose from. Not that I'm complaining. I'm just starting to crack a bit under such awesome responsibility.