Tag / Boiler Up!

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Top 200 Albums: #61 – 69

We last counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library four years ago. Since that time, the world has literally changed, and my commute has decreased from 1+ hours each way to 25 steps. So, despite the decrease in potential listening time, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through the morning of January 1, 2022.

Today, we continue our countdown with the next batch of ten albums that I have listened to the most over the last 15 years with three compilations, two comedy albums, and a heavy dose of 90s alternative favorites.

#69: Various Artists – The TransFormers: The Movie
iTunes stats: 149 plays
Previous Ranking: 60

A 46% increase in plays for the six tunes, from the likes of Stan Bush and Weird Al Yankovic, from this soundtrack from the animated TransFormers film from the mid-80s.

#69: George Carlin – Life is Worth Losing
iTunes stats: 149 plays
Previous Ranking: 85

The comedian’s 18th album, and 13th HBO special, added 70 new listens while rising 16 spots in the rankings.

#68: Various Artists – ’90s Style
iTunes stats: 155 plays
Previous Ranking: 64

A 56% increase in plays over the past four years for the nine tracks from exciting 90s artists, like Jill Sobule, Green Jelly, and MC Hammer, from this compilation album.

#67: Various Artists – Millennium Hip-Hop Party Vol. 2
iTunes stats: 158 plays
Previous Ranking: 66

This turn-of-the-century compilation added 60 new listens to seven tracks, from artists like Coolio, Naughty By Nature, and Paperboy.

#65: Poison – Swallow This Live
iTunes stats: 160 plays
Previous Ranking: 58

A 52% increase for the eight tracks from this double album, the first CD I ever owned after receiving it for Christmas in 1991.

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Spring Fever

As we kick off Michael’s birthday month, we look back at a collage of him sleeping in cars during the previous year.  After contracting COVID late in 2020, his energy levels have been a bit off, and he has had a tendency to sleep way too many hours in the day.  Including on our way to the Museum of Science and Industry, a tilt between the White Sox and the Red Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field, and Purdue/Northwestern football game at Wrigley Field.

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Top 200 Albums: #91 – 100

We last counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library four years ago. Since that time, the world has literally changed, and my commute has decreased from 1+ hours each way to 25 steps. So, despite the decrease in potential listening time, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through the morning of January 1, 2022.

Today, we kick off the second half of our countdown with the next batch of ten albums that I have listened to the most over the last 15 years, breaking the triple digit total play plateau with four compilations, and music from the 60s, 80s, 90s, and beyond.

#100: The Beatles – Help!
iTunes stats: 115 plays
Previous Ranking: 94

A 55% increase in plays for the five of the fourteen tracks from this 1965 album, the band’s fifth, and the soundtrack to their same-named film.

#99: Various Artists – Saturday Morning Cartoons’ Greatest Hits
iTunes stats: 117 plays
Previous Ranking: 165

This collection of cartoon theme songs from the 60s and 70s covered by some of the bigger alternative acts of the 90s, including Liz Phair, Material Issue, and Sponge, amongst others, saw an increase of 69 listens to jump 66 spots in the rankings.

#97: Various Artists – Rock N’ Roll Era: 1964
iTunes stats: 119 plays
Previous Ranking: 109

An 83% increase in plays over the past four years for this edition of the Time Life series, featuring songs by Chuck Berry, The Drifters, and Roy Orbison, among others.

#97: The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
iTunes stats: 119 plays
Previous Ranking: 127

The remastered version of this Beatles’ eighth studio album adds 40 new listens across the five songs out of thirteen in my collection.

#94: The Lonely Island – Turtleneck & Chain
iTunes stats: 120 plays
Previous Ranking: 79

A 48% increase for the four tracks from this second album from the SNL digital short maestros.

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Down To Sixteen And Still Dancing

The Sweet 16 kicks off today following an opening weekend with upsets galore, but, thankfully, with my champion pick still alive.  Unfortunately, half of my Final Four was wiped out, but, hey, that’s the fun part.

Only a couple of Xs in this region, though one of them I had going to the regional final.  Michigan State allowed Coach K’s last go-around to continue and helped contribute to the Big 10’s supposed flameout during the first weekend.

Well, this side of the bracket is where my Final Four picks have flamed out, so nothing here really matters.  Continue reading →

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It’s Dancing Time

The NCAA tournament returns in full force after a year break in 2020 and a bubble tournament centered in Indianapolis in 2021 due to the pandemic.  I’m not in any pools this year, so these selections have no ultimate bearing on my life, aside from personal pride.  So, without further ado, let’s take a look at this year’s selections.

Gonzaga is the overall #1 and my pick to come out of this region and moving on to the Final Four.  I did throw the occasional upset in the earlier rounds, so we’ll see how those pay off.

A bit of an upset here, as I have #3 Tennessee advancing. Continue reading →

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FB8 – Week 6

Another slightly better week, as I managed my highest non-Hawaii total since September.  The week got off to a decent enough start on Sunday, as a trip to Purdue to watch Danny toot his horn for the women’s basketball game led me 4 steps shy of 5100.  On Monday, decent weather helped me get to 5700 steps.  Tuesday saw a slight decline, falling to 4600 steps.  Wednesday fell down again, coming 34 steps short of 4500.  Thursday finished 2 steps ahead of the previous day, coming 32 steps shy of 4500.  Friday saw a nice increase, needing just an additional 3 steps to get to 4800.  Saturday’s total fell once again, down to 4400 thanks to a painful right foot.

Total steps: 33,643

Daily average: 4806.1

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Ready For Some Madness

After a year stuck at home thanks to corona virus, my first sporting event of 2021 was a trip to Indianapolis to see Purdue play in the NCAA tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium.  This month’s picture is from that trip, with Danny posing in front of the inflatable March Madness sign, before we were both disappointed by the outcome of that evening’s contest.

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Top 200 Albums: #141 – 150

itunes_imageWe last counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library four years ago. Since that time, the world has literally changed, and my commute has decreased from 1+ hours each way to 25 steps. So, despite the decrease in potential listening time, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through the morning of January 1, 2022.

We begin the second quarter of our chart with the next batch of ten albums that I have listened to the most over the last 15 years, including two compilations, two albums from bands I’ve seen live in concert, and one movie soundtrack.

#150: Various Artists – Billboard Top Hits 1988
iTunes stats: 83 plays
Previous Ranking: 190

Five tracks from this compilation of the biggest hits of 1988, from artists like Billy Ocean, The Escape Club, and Bobby McFerrin, amongst others, nearly doubled its plays over the past four years to rise 40 slots on the chart.

#149: Guns N’ Roses – Use Your Illusion I
iTunes stats: 84 plays
Previous Ranking: 151

The third studio album from the band, released the same day as its companion album Use Your Illusion II and which I bought during finals week after my first semester in college, increased its listens by nearly 65%.

#148: Various Artists – Austin Powers
iTunes stats: 86 plays
Previous Ranking: 117

The soundtrack to the original Austin Powers film, released in 1997 and featuring the work of artists like Strawberry Alarm Clock and Divinyls, uses four songs to increase its plays by 23.

#147: Nirvana – In Utero
iTunes stats: 87 plays
Previous Ranking: 125

The final studio album from Nirvana, released in 1993 just six months before Kurt Cobain’s death, added 27 new listens to the four tracks out of twelve that I’ve listened to.

#145: The Beatles – With The Beatles
iTunes stats: 88 plays
Previous Ranking: 147

This 1963 album, like all of the Beatles studio albums, would be much higher, but I lost all of the old counts for their albums when I upgraded to the remastered versions in 2009.

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Top 200 Albums: #150 – 158

itunes_imageWe last counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library four years ago. Since that time, the world has literally changed, and my commute has decreased from 1+ hours each way to 25 steps. So, despite the decrease in potential listening time, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through the morning of January 1, 2022.

We wrap up the first quarter of our chart with the next batch of ten albums that I have listened to the most over the last 15 years, including 2 compilations, 1 greatest hits package, and two albums from one of the greatest bands of all time.

#158: The Beatles – Revolver
iTunes stats: 79 plays
Previous Ranking: 143

Three of the fourteen tracks from this 1966 release, the bands seventh studio album, added 25 new listens over the past four years.

#158: Guns N’ Roses – Use Your Illusion II
iTunes stats: 79 plays
Previous Ranking: 182

The fourth studio album from the band, released the same day as its companion album Use Your Illusion I, is the third of the six CDs I left for college with in the fall of 1992 to appear on this chart.

#158: Various Artists – Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (More Music From The Motion Picture)
iTunes stats: 79 plays
Previous Ranking: NR

The second soundtrack to the 1999 Mike Myers film, featuring songs by Steppenwolf, Lenny Kravitz, and the Bangles, among others, makes its debut after increasing its plays by over 125%.

#156: Metallica – …And Justice For All
iTunes stats: 80 plays
Previous Ranking: 104

A 52-spot drop for the 1988 mainstream breakthrough album from the metal denizens, caused by the retirement of White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko, who had used one the songs as his walkup song.

#156: Various Artists – Reality Bites
iTunes stats: 80 plays
Previous Ranking: 136

The soundtrack to the 1994 hit film starring Winona Ryder had three tracks, from The Knack, Lisa Loeb, and The Julianna Hatfield Three, contribute its 43% increase.

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Top 200 Albums: #161 – 170

itunes_imageWe last counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library four years ago. Since that time, the world has literally changed, and my commute has decreased from 1+ hours each way to 25 steps. So, despite the decrease in potential listening time, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through the morning of January 1, 2022.

We continue today with the next batch of ten albums that I have listened to the most over the last 15 years, including two live DVD rips, one movie soundtrack, and an appearance by my alma mater’s marching band.

#170: Alanis Morissette – VH1 Storytellers
iTunes stats: 75 plays
Previous Ranking: 192

Ripped from the DVD, six tracks from the live performance first aired in 1999 as the fifth episode of season six of VH1 Storytellers bumped up nearly 83% while jumping 12 spots on the chart.

#165: R.E.M. – Monster
iTunes stats: 76 plays
Previous Ranking: 171

The ninth studio album from R.E.M., released in 1994, takes contributions from five of the twelve tracks to add 29 new listens over the past 4 years.

#165: Purdue “All-American” Marching Band – Back Home in Indiana
iTunes stats: 76 plays
Previous Ranking: 120

A huge 45 spot drop thanks to a small 15 listen increase to this newer version (Boiler Up included) of my alma mater’s fight song.

#165: Boyz II Men – Cooleyhighharmony
iTunes stats: 76 plays
Previous Ranking: 171

Another one of the six CDs that I owned when I left for college, this 1991 debut from Boyz II Men uses 29 new listens to jump up 6 spots on the chart.

#165: Various Artists – Grease (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture)
iTunes stats: 76 plays
Previous Ranking: 165

The soundtrack to the 1978 hit film had five tracks, from film stars John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, and Stockard Channing, among others, contribute its 58% increase.

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