About Me
Charles Olney, Associate Professor of Constitutional Law and Judicial Politics at the University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley (academic website). This is a blog about music, politics, and the law. I also write about women’s soccer at Backline Soccer and Stars and Stripes FC.
Bluesky: olneyce
Soundcloud: olneyce
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Recent Posts
Greatest Hits
- Beatles from worst to first
- Top 25 albums of the decade
- Top 50 songs of the decade
- Top 10 Bruce Springsteen songs
- Top 10 Modest Mouse songs
- Top 10 Tom Petty songs
- Top 10 Carissa's Wierd songs
- Top 10 Paul Simon songs
- Top 10 Bob Dylan songs
- Top 10 breakup songs
- Top 20 albums of 2005
- Top 30 albums of 2006
- Top 40 songs of 2006
- Top 25 albums of 2007
- Top 40 songs of 2007
- Top 25 albums of 2008
- Top 40 songs of 2008
- Top 30 albums of 2009
- Top 40 songs of 2009
- Top 25 albums of 2010
- Top 40 songs of 2010
- Top 15 albums of 2011
- Top 40 songs of 2011
- Top 20 albums of 2012
- Top 40 songs of 2012
- Top 30 albums of 2013
- Top 50 songs of 2013
- Top 25 albums of 2014
- Top 50 songs of 2014
- Top 30 albums of 2015
- Top 50 songs of 2015
- Top 15 albums of 2016
- Top 40 songs of 2016
- Top 25 albums of 2017
- Top 50 songs of 2017
- Top 30 albums of 2018
- Top 50 songs of 2018
Music links
- Hype Machine
- elbo.ws
- Music for Kids Who Can't Read Good
- Can you see the sunset from the southside?
- Hits in the Car
- A Certain Romance
- Herohill
- Speed of Dark
- Lost in your Inbox
- Vague Space
- Skatterbrain
- I Guess I'm Floating
- Largehearted Boy
- Neon Gold
- Another Form of Relief
- Cover Lay Down
- The Monsters Under the Bed Are Not Real
- Yellow Stereo
- Quick Before It Melts
- Knox Road
- Sand is Overrated
- Shake Your Fist
Recent Comments
- R on The songs everyone should hear
- Heather on The Beatles from worst to first
- Eize Basa on Top 40 Songs of 2021
- George Patterson on By the grace of God go I into the great unknown
- link alternatif usernesia on With four worn out limbs and not one love song
Archives
Meta
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Category Archives: Uncategorized
Electricity runs down your spine
I Wasn’t Only Thinking About You… by Oh Pep! “What’s the Deal With David” is a glorious slice of indie pop, ready to warm your soul and soothe your fraying heart. The engine of the song is a rollicking little … Continue reading
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50 songs for 50 states: New Mexico
Plenty of decent options for New Mexico, but no standouts. I gave serious thought to two old titans–Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings–but neither of their treatments really struck to the core of the state. To me, New Mexico is defined … Continue reading
50 songs for 50 states: New Jersey
More than any other state, New Jersey poses a challenge of identifying what exactly determines whether a song is ‘about’ a state. Is Thunder Road about Jersey? Nothing explicitly marks it that way, but we all know that’s where it’s … Continue reading
50 songs for 50 states: New Hampshire
The only real question for New Hampshire was which song to pick from Okkervil River’s Silver Gymnasium. In the end, I chose Black Nemo. It isn’t really a song ‘about New Hampshire’ in some general sense. But it is a song … Continue reading
Tell me again how there just aren’t that many girls in the music scene
It’s been a rough year. From politics to the personal, there’s a lot of pain to go around. But there’s also a lot of beauty and wonder. This is a mix of the songs that have been helping to get … Continue reading
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50 songs for 50 states: Nevada
There is an obvious pick I’m leaving on the board here. And I adore Elvis as much as the next fellow. But come on, I’m not picking Viva Las Vegas. I’m not even going to pick the (very good) Dead Kennedys … Continue reading
50 songs for 50 states: Nebraska
Nebraska – Bruce Springsteen The whole album is a classic, of course, but this song is arguably the hardest-hitting of the bunch. It’s not my favorite track on Nebraska, by any means, but it’s the one that defines the entire enterprise. Springsteen … Continue reading
50 songs for 50 states: Montana
What I learned from looking through my options for Montana is that there are a truly disproportionate number of songs about Montana which explore the following theme: “I’m lonely because my baby left me, but at least Montana is beautiful.” … Continue reading
50 songs for 50 states: Missouri
Tear-Stained Eye – Son Volt Missouri is one of the few states where the official state song is competitive, thanks to a nice Johnny Cash version of “Missouri Waltz.” Still, it was never going to beat out one of my … Continue reading
50 songs for 50 states: Mississippi
Here’s to the State of Mississippi – Phil Ochs If one wanted to develop a typology of states, there are plenty of features they could use to establish key lines of differentiation. Geography, climate, demographics, wealth, etc. But in many … Continue reading