DiscWasher No. 26 / (Some) Advice on a MixTape
A Story to Listen to / March 29, 2025
One of the greatest pieces of advice that Socrates ever shared with his fellow Athenians was, “The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing.” Oscar Wilde once said, “Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken.” When Agatha Christie wasn’t writing mysteries, she was overheard doling out, “Good advice is always certain to be ignored, but that’s no reason to not give it.” And lest we forget what the incomparable Shawn Mendes once said, “My advice to anyone with a dream is to never stop pursuing it.” The greatest advice I ever gave was to my nephew Milo (you may want to write this down): “When you go on a date, there are 5 bands you should never talk about: Styx, Foreigner, Journey, Boston, and the Steve Miller Band.” Milo was 9.
First off, I would like to sincerely apologize to Steve Miller. Rooted in the blues (he played with Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf), he and his band deserve much better than being lumped in with those other “super groups” (I should have said R.E.O. Speedwagon (right!?), or Rush, if the date happened to be Canadian). A little context about my nephew Milo - when he was a kid growing up in the mid-2000s, he was sort of a throwback. He didn’t listen to a lot of contemporary music. He loved The Beatles and The Beach Boys, The Zombies, Peter Green (early Fleetwood Mac), John Mayall – he ate it all up. He had this beautiful relationship with his father (still does), who taught him about music, the history and fundamentals, which made his musical upbringing and tutelage more genuine than those just learning how to play guitar. Now 26 and a big “Dead” fan, I’m sure Milo has had some dates that haven’t worked out, but I know he never forgot the advice I gave him.
The most famous advice given through the lyrics of a song comes from The Rolling Stones 1969 hit You Can’t Always Get What You Want. A year later, Jimmy Cliff offered up the same advice on You Can Get It If You Really Want. Songs are filled with advice – advice that we don’t always take. We know the lyrics to every song, but most of us don’t listen to the words. Radiohead’s Kid A features a song called Optimistic, one where Thom Yorke sings, “If you try the best you can, the best you can is good enough.” Why isn’t that good enough? The Smiths’ single Ask reached No. 14 on the UK Pop Charts in 1986. I wonder how many British fans came out of their shells when Morrissey preached, “Shyness can stop you from doing all the things you’d like to.”
Advice only works if you take it. The most helpful advice in a song comes from The Cramps’ 1981 classic Don’t Eat Stuff Off the Sidewalk:
“Let me give you some advice, Don't eat stuff off the sidewalk, Don't eat stuff off the sidewalk, You don't need it, so don't eat it"
But sometimes the advice isn’t always great:
“Don't be angry, don't be sad And don't sit crying over good times you had There's a girl right next to you And she's just waiting for something to do Well, there's a rose in a fisted glove And the eagle flies with the dove And if you can't be with the one you love, honey Love the one you're with”
I know what “1970” Stephen Stills was trying to say with Love the One You’re With, but this only works if you’re going cross-country on a bus while on a teen tour and you’re under 16. Doo-wopper Jimmy Soul offered up this “guidance” in a song called If You Wanna Be Happy, a song that reached No. 1 on both the U.S. Pop and R&B charts in 1963 (apologies in advance):
“If you want to be happy for the rest of your life Never make a pretty woman your wife So, for my personal point of view Get an ugly girl to marry you”
We go through life searching for good advice. We gravitate towards those who tend to say the right things, knowing we don’t always have all the answers. We’ve all gotten bad advice – we have a friend or two that, let’s just say, advice is not their strong suit. My advice here, and it’s definitely not as good as the one I gave my nephew – If you really want to hear something, you have to be willing to listen. Oh, and, uhm, one last thing - try not to shuffle.
This is for Tony, who always gave good advice.
DISCWASHER NO. 26 / (Some) Advice on a MixTape
Side A
1. We All Try / RAFFY BUSHMAN
2. Don’t Mind Me / NOSAJ THING feat. WHOAREI
3. Stand Strong (Revolutionaries Position) / REGINALD OMAS MAMODE IV
4. Make Me Believe in You / CURTIS MAYFIELD
5. Quitters Never Quit / DR. JOHN
6. You Better Know It / MARGIE JOSEPH
7. Believe in Me / FLAMINGOSIS
8. Respect Yourself / THE STAPLE SINGERS
9. Laugh to Keep From Crying / NAT TURNER REBELLION
10. Don’t Tell a Lie About Me & I Won’t Tell the Truth on You / JAMES BROWN
11. Don’t Give Up / GIL SCOTT-HERON
12. Better Get That Crop in Soon / LONNIE HOLLY
13. The Past is Not Only Behind Us, But Ahead of Us / SARATHY KORWAR feat. PHOTAY
14. Today is Right Here / HORACE ANDY
15. Money Don’t Grow on Trees / SNEAKS
16. There is No There / THE BOOKS
Side B
1. Breathe / ALEXI MURDOCH
2. Hit the Ground Running / SMOG
3. Do Your Thing / ISAAC HAYES
4. See and Don’t See / DOJO CUTS feat. ROXIE RAY
5. Capture Your Mind / JAZZ LIBERATORZ
6. The Choice is Yours / BLACK SHEEP
7. Don’t Count Me Out / DAMU THE FUDGEMUNK
8. Be Less / JSPHYNX
9. Clap Hands / TOM WAITS
10. Make Way / BEN MARC
11. Isolation / DIRTY PROJECTORS
12. Cover Up the Cover Up / GRUFF RHYS
13. Don’t Let it Bring You Down / NEIL YOUNG
14. Save the People / PLUSHPress PLAY for Spotify and THIS for Apple Music
Press RED SONG TITLES in story for more music.
so well written! great flow, great advice, great music
Loving this so very much!!