One of my good friends has a nephew who’s interested in music turning 16 in a little bit and she has come up with a brilliant birthday present: she has commissioned an esteemed high court of her friends (including myself) to come up with a mixtape for her nephew composed of songs for someone turning 16, or songs that someone turning 16 should know about.
I’ve been going through some stuff the last few days, and let me tell you, it’s been a long time since I thought about being 16–it’s something I avoid at all costs, actually–but it turns out that it’s a whole new way of looking at your music collection. (A whole new AWESOME way of looking at your music collection.)
In a few weeks, I’ll post what I came up with for my mixtape, but in the meantime, I’d be curious to hear what you think are essential songs for surviving their 16th year. This is your chance to play the role of the corrupting big brother or sister, if you haven’t had the pleasure already. Go for it in the comments field…
"little 16" by Depeche Mode.Also, you may want to make a search for songs with "sweet 16" in the lyrics. You'll find several.
I went with "Nutrition." Not all of the songs on my mixtape are particularly deep, to say the least…
For The Dead Milkmen, I'd have to go for "Take Me Apart" off of Eat Your Piasley. Such a great song…
sonofthesun: I think we're on the same page. I have that Jam song on the longlist, and can't believe I slept on Jawbreaker, Minor Threat (!!!) and 7 Seconds (!!!!!). I'm currently having a serious dilemma over which song from Big Lizard in my Backyard will make the cut.
This Year by The Mountain Goats
Out Of Step- Minor ThreatMy War- Black FlagExpectations- Youth Of TodayYoung Till I Die- 7 SecondsWhat We Do Is Secret- GermsWHatever- Husker DuLust For Life- Iggy PopWhen Your Young- The JamWant- JawbreakerEveryone Knows This Is Nowhere- Neil YoungJust To Get Away- Poison IdeaFuck School- The ReplacementsDrink Deep- Rites Of SpringCan't Seem To Make You Mine- The Seeds.If The Kids Are United- Sham 69Teenage Kicks- UndertonesThese songs seemed like they struck a chord with me as a teenager…
Black Flag- Rise AboveThe Proclaimers- Over and Done WithODB- Shimmy Shimmy YaThe Shangri-Las- Leader of the PackJoe Jackson- Is She Really Going Out With Him?and literally any song by The Clash
right If I wanted a 16 year old to like indie music i would include the following songs on a mixtapeIn no particular orderThe Breeders – CannonballPixies – Alec EiffelSonic Youth – Teenage Daydreamblur – Anything off ParklifePulp – Anything off different classBelle and Sebastian – funny little frogThe Arcade Fire – RebellionThe Strokes – Anything off is this itFleet Foxes – White winter HymnalThe Smiths – Bigmouth Strikes AgainJoy Division – transmissionThe Horrors – The Sea by the Sea (as a final track)
Descendents "Parents"
"Sixteen Blue," by the Replacements.
Well, every 16-year-old ought to hear Like A Rolling Stone … and the 33 1/3 Highway 61 Revisited book gives plenty of reasons why