While I am not alone concretely speaking–I have a devoted long-term partner as well as supportive friends and family members, near and far–I often feel pretty isolated. Some of that is the nature of being a writer, as well as someone who has always prized his solitude. That kind of aloneness I am used to and honestly don’t mind. The more troubling sense of isolation that gnaws at my psyche is cultural, and rooted, I’m pretty sure, in the technological “advances” that have been thrust upon us for the last 25 years or so. I feel so deeply removed from social media realities that I cannot comprehend the mindset that would have a person endlessly scrolling an Instagram feed (which–conveniently–has no end), hungry for whatever one goes there for. Neither can I fathom a daily consciousness that would priortize staring at a smartphone screen while, for instance, simultaneously walking down a sidewalk (or–I’ve seen this plenty of times–riding a bicycle). The seemingly simple solution is not to keep your phone quite so nearby at all time, but the device was purposefully designed to be grabbed and held and attended to, the physical world be damned.
As social media addiction has become the norm, with users mired in their own feeds, following an ever-striving, algorithmically-directed raft of micro-celebrities, my personal removal from social media’s trappings and machinations leaves me wondering what kind of overlooked and isolated world I am inhabiting. I understand that there are positive aspects to online activity but to me they don’t justify the widespread psychological and emotional devastation wreaked by unregulated tech companies sociopathically intent on maximizing user engagement. I don’t want to be a part of a world that has so widely abandoned thoughtfulness and nuance, not to mention kindness, compassion, and interpersonal bonhomie. But it’s kind of our world now so where does that leave me?
If you’re here perhaps you’re at least sometimes wondering the same thing. In any case, thanks for stopping by for another taste of this idiosyncratic world of mine, which is occasionally cute and always harmless.
Which this month sounds like this:
1. “Red Light Spells Danger” – Billy Ocean (single, 1977)
2. “Why Don’t You” – Squeeze (Trixies, 2026)
3. “Basement Apartment” – Sarah Harmer (You Were Here, 2000)
4. “Strait Old Line” – Split Enz (Conflicting Emotions, 1983)
5. “Come Tomorrow” – Patti Scialfa (Rumble Doll, 1993)
6. “Beggin'” – The Four Seasons (single, 1967)
7. “Joy” – Dry Cleaning (Secret Love, 2026)
8. “Echo” – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (Wrong Creatures, 2018)
9. “It Makes No Difference” – The Darling Buds (Crawdaddy, 1990)
10. “The Windjammer” – Grant Green (Green is Beautiful, 1970)
11. “Golden Lights” – The Smiths (b-side, 1986; Louder Than Bombs compilation, 1987)
12. “You Don’t Know Me” – Ben Folds (feat. Regina Spektor) (Way to Normal, 2008)
13. “All Cried Out” – Dusty Springfield (Dusty, 1964)
14. “Think About the People” – Osibisa (Osibisa, 1971)
15. “Flood” – Stella Donnelly (Flood, 2022)
16. “Walking in the Sun” – The Zombies (unreleased single, 1965)
17. “Cleopatra” – The Lumineers (Cleopatra, 2016)
18. “It’s Love” – Jill Scott (Who is Jill Scott? – Words and Sounds, Vol. 1, 2000)
19. “Chain Letter” – Todd Rundgren (Runt: The Ballad of Todd Rundgren, 1971)
20. “Roam” – The B-52’s (Cosmic Thing, 1989)
Random notes:
* The semi-legendary British band Squeeze had their heyday from the late ’70s to the mid-’80s, even as their releases into the ’90s remained pretty darn good. After laying low for a couple of decades, the band’s songwriting core of Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford have cranked things up again over the last 10 years or so, releasing albums in 2015 and 2017 that largely flew under the radar. They return this year with a full concept album, about a fictional night club called Trixies, with an intriguing twist: Tilbrook and Difford wrote the entire thing when they were teenagers. They never recorded it in part because they didn’t think they were good enough musicians at the time to play what they had written. The whole album is a fun listen; “Why Don’t You” in particular has the sort of irresistible hook characteristic of their best creations.
* Osibisa was founded in London in the late ’60s by four musicians from West Africa and three from the Caribbean. “Think About the People” was the closing track on the 1971 self-titled debut album, which went to #11 on the UK chart. The album was produced by Tony Visconti and engineered by Roy Thomas Baker. Although many of the original members have died, the band lives on; its most recent album is 2021’s New Dawn. According to Wikipedia, “osibisa” means “criss-cross rhythms that explode with happiness,” and who am I to argue. (Thanks to James from “James Writes Stuff” for leading me to this one.)
* The lovely backing vocals heard on “Golden Lights” came from none other than the late great Kirsty MacColl. Kirsty also sang backup on “Ask,” and recorded a cover of “You Just Haven’t Earned It Yet Baby” on her 1989 album Kite. Interrelatedly, Johnny Marr co-wrote two songs with Kirsty on Kite, and later created the signature riff on her acclaimed single “Walking on Madison,” on 1991’s Electric Landlady.
* Flood (2022) is the second album from Australia’s Stella Donnelly, following her 2019 debut Beware of the Dogs. A third album, Love and Fortune, was released in November 2025.
* The Four Seasons’ “Beggin'” has had an extensive second life over the years, most likely propelled, initially, by the song’s inclusion in the popular Broadway jukebox musical Jersey Boys, in 2004. Next came a remix by a French DJ named Pilooski, which appeared on a Four Seasons compilation CD in 2007 and itself hit the charts in the UK. Later that same year, the Norwegian duo Madcon did their own version of the song, which became popular throughout Europe. Most recently, the Italian band Måneskin covered the song in 2017; when the band won the Eurovision contest in 2021, the song ended up going viral on TikTok and subsequently reached number one in nine countries and the top 10 in 15 others. The song has, furthermore, been covered in a variety of different languages. For all its permutations, I think there’s no topping the original, written by Four Seasons keyboardist Bob Gaudio and singer/songwriter Peggy Santiglia (under the pseudonym Peggy Farina).
* The Darling Buds released three albums during their original incarnation, dating from 1986 to 1993. Crawdaddy was the second. Their early history was that of yet another buzzy band that gained quick critical traction, signed to a major label, only to flame out due to commercial indifference. With a re-vamped lineup, but still featuring lead singer Andrea Lewis Jarvis, the band reactivated in the 2010s, and released an EP of new material in 2017. They appear to be actively playing gigs to this day.
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