@jmcgnn.bsky.social
I dig the rock. And my friends and family, who also rock. And playing hockey. DJ at @wxpn guitar @TheNoGoodCrowd and @ThePeopleBetween
The Isle of Misfit Toys is where itβs at! Thx for voting and listening!
12.12.2025 14:04 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Starting a white board in the programming office! Send your ideas my way - jmcgnn@xpn.org - we prob ran thru 20ish concepts this spring/summer before locking in on Covers after seeing reaction to covers on a #TbT
12.12.2025 14:01 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Long as you need!
12.12.2025 13:58 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0We went back and forth and decided it felt like a cover, a cultural event, and many voted for it. We tried to keep songs that got a large number of votes in, not out. Another that stayed was Gloria by Patti, but we cut Because the Night. All 3 could be argued either way. Hope u enjoyed 885!
12.12.2025 03:50 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0That is a good point. We overruled our own rules on that one :)
12.12.2025 01:06 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0We discussed about 40 songs that were voted into Top 885, about 25 got cut. We kept a few that were def debatable (Run-DMC, maybe 2-3 others), but I donβt think any of songs above were close enough to get into 885. Other songs had MORE versions (Hallelujah 26! Creep 30!) and some made 885.
11.12.2025 23:12 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0The Zutons!
11.12.2025 22:59 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Thank you!!
11.12.2025 22:54 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
One of my jobs the past week was trying to βland the planeβ and time out the #XPNCountdown to end around 6p-ish today - this is my worksheet as I was scheduling (and rescheduling) each day, adding hours as needed, artist interviews, and trying to have it all time out. Who needs a computer?
11.12.2025 22:24 β π 27 π 0 π¬ 4 π 0SO true!! (Says the guy who voted for John Caleβs Hallelujah!)
11.12.2025 22:14 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Check this out friends of @wxpnfm.bsky.social
11.12.2025 22:13 β π 6 π 1 π¬ 0 π 0Thatβs a really good question! Besides the obvious 2023 Greatest by Women year, if I had to guess I think this might be most, though last yearβs 21st Century might be comparable. Generally, the more βclassic rock,β the more male leaning. I can research this later and find out. Thx for asking!!
11.12.2025 22:10 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0
You know whatβs wild that I can share now with yβall? 16 different covers of Love Will Tear Us Apart got votes, none made #xpncountdown - same with 15 versions of Iβm on Fire, 14 God Only Knows, 12 Wicked Games, 11 Purple Rains, 10 Enter Sandmansβ¦ lot of great songs, no definitive cover!
xpn.org
You can always see the ones we play on the playlist page :)
11.12.2025 21:52 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0The Phish and Dead were dominant in mid-countdown, which threw the average song length up by :11 seconds over 2024. But the last day (with a few exceptions) actually had shorter song lengths!
11.12.2025 19:33 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0Ding ding ding - keep listening!
11.12.2025 19:31 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0#xpncountdown Spoiler alert (maybe): Wicked Game was one of a handful on songs that had at least 10 versions that got at least one vote, yet NO version made the 885!
11.12.2025 19:30 β π 8 π 1 π¬ 2 π 0
As we hurtle towards the Top 100 on this last day of the #XPNCountdown, I can verify that Mike V is going to talk to 2 artists who have songs in the Top 100 and Dan Reed will hear from an artist in the Top 10. But who? And when? And about what songs? Keep listening!
xpn.org
One of the greatest interpreters of alltime! Always picking choice tunes, recorded with a crack band, and her voice is so perfect!
11.12.2025 12:47 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Thereβs always the archived audioβ¦
11.12.2025 12:46 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0You can use a slider to FF / RW if listening on a browser. On my phone I figured out that by closing the phone then opening, a player comes up that also allows sliding timing. I made a vid of browser version -
11.12.2025 12:45 β π 3 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0Yes - when we stretched to 10-7 the pieces got too long so had to chop it up differently. But the team of XPN Digital Scientists are working to fix it - and post it!
11.12.2025 12:41 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0We will post the audio on the 885 pageβ¦ not as fun as hearing it live, but you CAN go back!
11.12.2025 12:40 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0My correction was a mistake - I thought we played a version by Beck with Wonder. The version voted in was SRVβs. The BBA version is quite cool though. :)
11.12.2025 12:30 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0
I think the last time @wxpnfm.bsky.social played @metallica.com twice in an hour was when @somevelvetblog.bsky.social took us Metal on April Fools Day 2023. @kristenkurtis.bsky.social is ROCKING this #XPNCountdown morning!
10.12.2025 14:20 β π 20 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0My bad. Shoulda been BBA version. That was on us.
07.12.2025 21:36 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0Tim - we you are the Original Original Oracle!
05.12.2025 01:29 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0The Natural History - cool NY indie rock band early β00s. My old band Cordalene played a show with them at The Fire in Philly around 2002, a couple years BEFORE Spoon covered them.
05.12.2025 01:22 β π 3 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0All the old jokes about Deadhead hippies being too stoned to voteβ¦ not true, least not for the #xpncountdown this year! Plus, The Dead and Jerry (and Phish too) have always made some pretty good choices in songs to cover, so buckle up!
04.12.2025 20:12 β π 6 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
This is the ultimate slow build jam. I remember having my mind blow first time hearing Prince cover Radiohead. Wonder what Thom Yorkeβs reaction was to hearing it? From Coachella 2008 to #838 on the 885 Greatest Covers #XPNCountdown youtu.be/NFXZNt4oLkE?...
04.12.2025 16:37 β π 15 π 3 π¬ 1 π 0
