Jazz bop the hep hipsters, slick sunglasses to sharp dressed men, expressed in lyrics and sound, this week’s smooth operator is guest Loud Atlas, who picks some sublime and prime examples from last week’s coolness topic
Read morePlaylists: songs about the boring, dull, ordinary and mundane
Can boredom and banality become such an art form that they become exciting, or snorefest into the stimulating? Picking from last week’s topic, guest playlister Olive Butler presents a magnificent selection of mundanity
Read morePlaylists: songs about immaturity
Life’s SO unfair! NOBODY understands! After a huge outpouring of song suggestions on this angst-ridden subject, guest of the week Olive Butler picks out two wonderfully entertaining playlists that really reach for the inner child
Read morePlaylists: songs about gangs
Girl gangs, guy gangs, punk, rock, folk, pop and more, since this topic was launched last week it’s been a group effort, and leading us out with his pick of the nominations, guest ParaMhor makes songs about gangs great
Read morePlaylists: songs about crowds
Forming an orderly queue or going mob-handed in an unruly bunch, it’s time to join the throng in enjoying these fabulous selections by guest Loud Atlas, picked from an even bigger crowd of numbers from last week’s topic
Read morePlaylists: songs about stereotypes
Band member types to black racial stereotyping, standard gender attributes to cultural cliches, this week our guest writer Loud Atlas explores all the standard norms and from a huge choices picks playlists are outstandingly atypical
Read moreSong Bar Fifth Birthday Special: Playlists – songs about jukeboxes
Early blues juke joints to big band jazz, 1950s rock’n’ roll to disco, punk, pop and later experimental music, with the Landlord’s playlists picked from reader nominations, we celebrate five years of Song Bar with numbers about this mechanical mind palace
Read morePlaylists: songs with insults and sentiments that may offend
Men, women, babies, society, people of statue, stardom or otherwise, this week no one escapes this week’s scattergun of superbly insulting songs inspired by last week’s topic, chosen with expert evil hilarity by guest Olive Butler
Read morePlaylist: songs about maps
From a suggestive Welsh mount all the way to Texas, from India to getting lost on a London A to Z, guest playlister George Boyland takes us on a personal route, inspired by many more nominations on last week’s topic
Read moreCan you hear it? Songs with notable key changes
No technical knowledge required. Michael Jackson to the Beatles, they've all done it. From a single step up to lift or alter the mood, to more complex modulations, if you can feel or hear a significant change in the song, it could be a key one
Read morePlaylists: songs that sound like other songs
Is there an echo in here? Those with sharp ears will enjoy some remarkable and fun comparisons as this week’s playlister Olive Butler perfectly picks out some of the soundalikes from a double topic over the festive period
Read moreA magic number: songs and music by trios
Triangles and holy trinities, this week let’s explore the musical dynamic within groups in which three artists perform as a self-contained unit, not merely pop, jazz, classical, or folk, but across all all genres
Read morePlaylists: songs about brevity
It only takes a minute (or a second) to click on this link, but once you do, your brief encounter with these pithy, witty playlists by guest picker Severin will make you linger on lyrical gems about love’s fast passing and much more
Read morePlaylists: songs about caves and other subterranean places
A rocky entrance to cool, calm caverns, deadly and beautiful tales of coal miners to digging dwarves, guest playlister takeitawayGuru, inspired by hundred of nominations, takes us on a fantastic underground musical journey
Read moreGrand openings: great tracks to begin albums, mixtapes or radio shows
Songs or instrumentals, suggest music that sets a tone, a pace, a mood or is a statement of intent, and makes a great start to an album, at the top of a radio show or any other work or event
Read morePlaylists: Easter egg songs – hidden or ghost album tracks
Digging out treasures of all shapes and sizes from last week's topic, guest playlister Maki cracks open songs ranging from Gorillaz to The Jam, REM to Nick Drake
Read moreEaster egg songs? Find those hidden or ghost album tracks …
Hidden tracks between vinyl grooves to ghost tracks in pre-gaps or at the end of albums on CD, this week's Easter special is all about finding those secret treasures, jokey or serious, but always tasty
Read morePlaylists: ironic songs
Verbal, drama and perspective, Jam to Johnnie Taylor, Morrissey to Elvis Costello, this week's guest writer attwilightlarks picks a sharp, satirical and punchy playlist inspired by last week's ironic topic
Read morePlaylists: songs about the apocalypse
Star date 9/11/2016, and in his final log, the admirable Admiral EnglishOutlaw records the last available data about humanity on the eve of election doomsday, with songs from last week's catastrophic topic
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