1. Daughters – Nas – Written for his 17 year old kid, I dismissed this song as nothing special but it is at least somewhat special: as he writes about "his precious little girl", Nas seems to invade her privacy and the song isn't good enough to withstand the inappropriateness. On the plus side, the chorus is catchy and there is something so charming in an old time rapper being such a strong parent figure. In the end, the latter is more important than most anything else. grade: A
2. This Guy's In Love With You – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass Band – Bacharah, of course – Grade: A+
3. Weekend In New England – Barry Manilow – As full as a MOR ballad can ever be – Grade: B+
4. Arena -feat Chris Brown and T.I. – BoB – this one belongs to Chris, who nails the chorus dead – Grade: B+
5. That Old Black Nagic – Frank Sinatra – Still on A Johnny Mercer kick. It goes like this: Ira, Cole, Berlin, Mercer… Grade: A+
6. She's 22 – Norah Jones – But she sounds like she's 44 – Grade: B
7. Murderers Are Getting Period – Marilyn Monroe – Stodgy beats but play it loud and it'll get your attention – Grade: B+
8. Valliento En Karoake (Merrengue Version) – Elvis Crespo -Like a Mariachi band meets a Merengue ensemble – Grade – B+
9. Doom 84 – Screaming Females – A Goth disquiet meets one of the best great guitarists -and it is the same person – Grade: A
10. Top Cat – London Music Works – Men of good faith might disagree, but this take on the Phil Silvers show had the best theme – Grade: A