Songbird

My poor little MacBook is nearly four years old and is not running as fast as it used to, which is horribly depressing. It has been my companion through the end of college, years of living away from home and now nearly two years of married life. Yes. I am very attached to this computer.

In an effort to improve my laptop's speed, I have been copying all my photos and music to our external hard drive in preparation for downloading the latest Mac software -- and I just discovered that I have 62 gigs of music. This should not be shocking, but somehow it is. So while my computer transfers thousands of songs over, I thought I'd use the time to share a few of my current favorite artists in case you're looking for some new tunes. Clearly, I don't need any more music, but maybe you do!

The Wailin' Jennys. I only have a few songs from this group (right now), but they have an amazing sound and I love their tight harmonies. If you're into folk, you will LOVE them. Think Alison Krauss and Emmylou Harris meet Kate Rusby (look her up -- she's got a beautiful Irish lilt to her voice) and sing a capella in a big concert hall. It's very peaceful and soothing, though, so don't go buy their albums and try to crank it at a neighborhood barbecue. It's the candlelight dinner sort of music.

Patty Griffin. I've had an obsession with Patty Griffin for years now, but her version of "Moon River" has only heightened my awe of her. Unfortunately, you have to buy the entire "Elizabethtown" album to get that track (which I have NO intention of doing), so just listen to it here on YouTube first. It gives me chills every time I hear it. So calming but so powerful. And it doesn't hurt that "Moon River" is one of my favorite songs anyway.

AC/DC (Iron Man 2 compilation). Yes, I realize that AC/DC is not exactly a happening band anymore (I'm really not sure when they last recorded music together), but our outing to The Avengers the other night made me crave some "Back in Black" and "TNT" again. I actually happened across the Iron Man 2 compilation at Walmart one night in the $5 bin, and it is fantastic. Seriously. This is one you can actually blast from your car while you're driving around or play at a barbecue when you want to be cool. It will make you smile and feel like you should be wearing a leather jacket and cool sunglasses (which I often feel like doing anyway).

Eva Cassidy. I probably talk about Eva Cassidy all the time, but she had the most beautiful tone and natural vibrato (she died of skin cancer in the '90s at age 33) and I absolutely love her covers of classic songs. If you're not familiar with her, I'd start with "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Autumn Leaves." I promise, you will be hooked. She's soulful and lovely.

Hopefully that'll give you some ideas for your summer playlist! I'm going to sit back and enjoy my newest Alison Krauss song, which I should have bought a long time ago, "Whiskey Lullaby."