In 2005 (a.k.a. the Golden Age of music sales), Starbucks’ then cutting-edge Hear Music label poured millions and millions of marketing dollars into thinking up a fantastic name for their first Valentine’s Day compilation CD of Indie LITE artists covering classic love songs… then they looked down at some of those candy hearts or something and decided to just call the damn thing Sweetheart instead… then they realized that they had no business trying to sell their own new music in their stores and kinda stopped doing a lot of that… then last year, they released a sequel to the series anyway… and now, with the economy doing better than it ever has in history, Starbucks has dropped yet another Sweetheart album.
This time around, they’re really hoping that your lady is totally INTO covers of songs she’s never heard before unless she’s a music person and owns the songs already. Killer strategy, right? The Shins’ James Mercer collaborates with his brother Robert on a version of Bob Dylan’s “Spanish Harlem Incident,” Spoon take on The Damned’s “Love Song,” Yo La Tengo try out The Zombies’ “You Make Me Feel Good,” (okay, that actually sounds awesome) and José González contributes his version of Kylie Minogue’s “Hand on Your Heart” (yeah, man, digging deep here). Elvis Perkins, Grand Archives, Mates of State, The Long Winters, and The Avett Brothers also make some Starbuxianly (I just made that up) non-offensive appearances.
But the best part? Dude, the comp’s for sale on iTunes RIGHT THE HELL NOW. Valentine’s Day shopping = all done, man. Now we can hit up the In-N-Out Burger, get some burgers, some beers, have a few laughs or whatever…. Your former troubles are over, dude.
Sweetheart 2010:
01. José González: “Hand on Your Heart” (Kylie Minogue)
02. Grand Archives: “Cupid” (Sam Cooke)
03. James Mercer & Robert Mercer: “Spanish Harlem Incident” (Bob Dylan)
04. Spoon: “Love Song” (The Damned)
05. Elvis Perkins: “Teneme en Tu Corazon (Keep Me in Your Heart)” (traditional)
06. The Long Winters: “Give Me All Your Lovin’” (ZZ Top)
07. Yo La Tengo: “You Make Me Feel Good” (The Zombies)
08. Céu: “Eu Amo Você (I Love You)” (Tim Maia)
09. Diane Birch: “I Go Crazy” (Paul Davis)
10. Jason Collett and Zeus: “Every Night” (Paul McCartney)
11. The Avett Brothers: “I Love” (Tom T. Hall)
12. Mates of State: “Long Way Home” (Tom Waits)
13. Angelique Kidjo: “Ne Me Quitte Pas (If You Go Away)” (Jacques Brel)
14. Hey Marseilles: “True Love Will Find You in the End” (Daniel Johnston)
