As 2009 draws to a close and we face the new decade, it’s important to look back and celebrate all the great things that have happened. I tend do this through music.

A month or so Vegas gave me a gift certificate to Traxsource.com and I downloaded some of my favorite tracks from the past year. Then I mixed them into a high-energy hour of goodness.

Here’s the result.

1. Mousse T. & Suzie – All Nite Long (D.I.S.C.O.) [John Dahlback Remix]
2. Sultan & Ned Shepard – Together We Rise [Original Mix]
3. Carl Cox vs. Yousef – I Want You (Forever) [Deadmau5 Remix]
4. Your Call – Inland Knights
5. ATFC – I Called U (The Conversation) [ATFC's Heated Conversation]
6. Da Mongoloids – Spark Da Meth [ATFC's Wildstyle Remix]
7. Dennis Ferrer – Sinfonia Della Notte
8. Andrea Bertolini – 5 Stars [Original Mix]
9. Maetrik – Envy [Original Mix]
10. Sebastien Leger – The Rhythm [Format B Remix]
11. Wolfgang Gartner & Francis Preve – Yang [Original Club Mix]
12. Erick Morillo feat. Deborah Cooper – I Get Lifted [Michael Gray & Danism Remix]
13. The Heller & Farley Project – Ultra Flava [Martijn Ten Velden Remix]
14. Joris Voorn – Chase The Mouse [Original Mix]
15. Syke’N'Sugarstarr – I Don’t Know [Syke'n'Sugarstarr Main Mix]
16. Wolfgang Gartner – Latin Fever

Happy New Year!

- mike
elevatorclub.com

…:: step inside ::… listen…

Snowed in? I have the perfect solution for you: my soulful Christmas. It’s what I listen to when I’m trimming my tree. I recommend the same for you. A little bit of soul, a little bit of funk, and a whole lot of Christmas cheer! You can download the whole enchilada from iTunes here.

1. Zooey Deschanel & Leon Redbone – Baby, It’s Cold Outside
2. James Brown – Soulful Christmas
3. Ferrante & Teicher – Sleigh Ride
4. Ella Fitzgerald – Sleigh Ride
5. Elvis Presley – Santa Claus Is Back In Town (Duet With Wynonna Judd)
6. Eartha Kitt & Henri René – Santa Baby
7. Chuck Berry – Run Rudolph Run
8. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles – Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!
9. Jackson 5 – Rudolph the Red- Nosed Reindeer
10. The Whispers – Merry Christmas Baby
11. Solomon Burke – Presents for Christmas
12. Charles Brown – Please Come Home for Christmas
13. Otis Redding – Merry Christmas, Baby
14. Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters – Mele Kalikimaka (Merry Christmas)
15. The Enchanters – Mambo Santa Mambo
16. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles – I Believe in Christmas Eve
17. Lou Rawls – Good Time Christmas
18. Lena Horne – Jingle All the Way
19. The Temptations – Silent Night
20. Louis Armstrong & The Commanders – Cool Yule
21. Amos Milburn – Christmas (Comes But Once a Year)
22. The Marshall Brothers – Mr.  Santa Boogie
23. Darlene Love – Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
24. Mabel Scott – Boogie Woogie Santa Claus
25. Carla Thomas – Gee Whiz, It’s Christmas
26. Clarence Carter – Back Door Santa
27. The Whispers – Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Ummmm…yeah…this might be the best Christmas ever…it might be…maybe.

- mike
elevatorclub.com

…:: step inside ::… listen…

I am an AT&T wireless subscriber. Their service leaves a lot to be desired, but they consistently have the best phones (and who needs to actually make phone calls anyway, right?). I bought a Blackberry Bold last January and signed up for a two-year contract. It was a big improvement over the Curve, but the battery life sucked and the trackball started sticking. Fast forward almost twelve months.

Last week I was in a meeting and someone pulled out the new 9700. For me it was love at first sight.

So I called AT&T and asked them how much to upgrade. They said they’d give me $100 off and “only” charge me $230. I said no thanks. The next day I was walking past an AT&T store and decided to give it another try in person. This time they told me it would be $150 to upgrade and they would give me a $100 rebate.

“So in effect I will be paying $50 for it?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“Sign me up!”

So we go through the whole process and the guy rings up the transaction and says…

“Actually, we’re only going to charge you $100 plus $8 tax, and we’ll still give you the $100 rebate.”

So my brand new top-of-the-line Blackberry Bold 9700 cost me eight dollars. I love not having a track ball and the battery life is worlds better. From a business perspective I see how this is good for AT&T, but I’m still not sure how RIM (the manufacturer of the Blackberry) is making any money on this deal.

For you music lovers out there, the 9700 comes with a 2GB MicroSD card to hold extra MP3s.

- mike
elevatorclub.com

…:: step inside ::… listen…

I was at Cielo a few weeks ago and I was introduced to Erica Rhone. Who is Erica Rhone, you ask? She is a DJ, and you should check out her Web site — especially her downloads page. I’m particularly fond of her “Conundrum” mix.

She will slay you with her techno. I’m serious, check it out.

- mike
elevatorclub.com

…:: step inside ::… listen…