A New Leaf

Podwogging.com is...not dead, exactly, just full. I've got hundreds of walking and jogging lists on there, and I think to put up any more would require an unjustified retooling of the site and, quite rankly, I've got better things to do. However, I will continue to create woglists, and commencing today will begin posting them here directly on this blog. How this will shake out is a mystery to me, as I experiment with different ways of doing this.

The Pöet
(47 minutes, Vigorous)
Überwog Mix

Pace Breakdown

Slow Walk: 12:04

Mod Walk: 7:12

Brisk Walk: 2:56

Slow Jog: 11:59

Mod Jog: 9:53

Brisk Jog

Run: 2:46

Total : 46:50

Distance: 2.2 to 3.2 miles

Speed: 2.8 to 4.1 MPH

Ave BPM: 121 (slower 117)

Jog Beats: 67% (slower 62%)

Pace Variability: High

Back in the day—like, WAY back in the day—all poems were sung. Poetry has since evolved into a number of different word beasts, but many of the best songs still reflect their poetic roots. Here’s a dozen songs with evocative lyrics to match their musical arrangements. You won’t find any rockers here, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any good jogging numbers in this list. So why not transport yourself why burning off a bit of flab?

Title	Artist	BPM	Time	PC	Comment	Genre	Album/Source
Steve’s Song	The Blues Project	109	4:58	3	Project at its flutey progiest	Psychedelic Rock	Projections
Secret Journey	The Police	131	3:34	4	Spiritual and spooky.	80s Rock	Ghost in the Machine
					Very long intro
Staring at the Sun	U2	141	4:37	5	Bono goes blind	90s Rock	Pop
Jersey Thursday	Donovan	103	2:14	4	Short but quite lovely	Singer-Songwriter	Fairytale
Sixty Years On	Elton John	132	4:35	3	Gorgeous strings.	Singer-Songwriter	Elton John
					Long intro
Because	The Beatles	161	2:46	5	Psychedeliclassical.	British Pop	Abbey Road
					Two-Timer
Suzanne	Leonard Cohen	135	3:50	4	Perhaps most poetic song like, ever	Singer-Songwriter	The Best of Leonard Cohen
Late for the Sky	Jackson Browne	83	5:38	5	Rarely has angst been this expressive	Singer-Songwriter	Late for the Sky
Carpet Crawlers	Genesis	145	5:16	4	Quirky rockers at most intriguing	Prog Rock	The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Parasite	Fields	121	2:56	5	Quite poetic, considering the subject matter.	Alternative Rock	Everything Last Winter
					3/4 time, short outro
Summer’s Cauldron	XTC	99	3:20	5	Dreamy, organic and magical.	Alternative Rock	Skylarking
					Long intro, segues into Grass
Grass	XTC	99	3:06	5	Wink, wink.	Alternative Rock	Skylarking
					Long outro

Nightmare on Grammar Street

Hope you had a great Halloween and a greater World Series (sorry ‘bout that, Ranger fans). Now it’s back to school with a wog’s worth of wicked tunes that contain (gasp!) grammatical errors. So if your English teacher looks like he or she is having a Bad Word Day, better refrain from singing one of these songs—or you might be doing the Dunce Cap Dance in the corner. You can find the songs in my Monthly Wog over at Podwogging.com. And that ain’t no lie!

Waltz Wogging

There’s a good reason why most my songs on iTunes that employ 3/4 time do not make satisfactory walking or jogging songs: they’re either too slow or too fast. If a waltz-time number clocks in at 65 bars per minute, your only options are to crawl at 65 beats per minute or run like a maniac at 195 beats per minute. Thus a waltz has to have either fewer than 60 bars per minutes or more than 79 bars per minute to qualify as walkable, joggable, or runable.

Nonetheless, some waltzes do qualify. Here’s a few 3/4-timers that haven’t made into a set list on Podwogging.com. First some fast numbers:

1. Red Hot Chili Peppers—Breaking the Girl, 180 BPM
2. Donovan—Catch the Wind, 177 BPM
3. Traffic—Rainmaker, 166 BPM
4. Tori Amos—Barons of Suburbia, 163 BPM
5. John Lennon—Working Class Hero, 154 BPM

Now for a few slower ones:

6. Leonard Cohen—Sisters of Mercy, 138 BPM
7. Cat Stevens—Morning Has Broken, 131 BPM
8. Fields—School books, 128 BPM
9. Neil Young—Round and Round (It Won’t Be Long), 123 BPM
10. Dionne Warwick—What the World Needs Now Is Love, 108 BPM

Don’t be skeptical, be skiptical

There’s a reason why kids skip. Like climbing trees, doing cartwheels, or laughing hysterically, it’s just plain fun. It’s also good exercise. There’s lots of songs that are a bit slow as a walk, or if double-timed are a bit fast for jog. But they have an irresistible beat that makes you want to do that loosey-bouncy step, and suddenly there you are. Skipping.

SKBL (my code in iTunes for SKIPPABLE) songs generally run from 85 to 100 BPM, though some are in the 160 to 170 range, and I occasionally find songs up to 110 BPM that have that skipping quality. Virtually any song that ISN’T 3/4 time can be skipped to within these pace ranges. On Podwogging.com I have a few lists posted that are exclusively for skipping along to, but there are tons more SKBL songs that haven’t made it into any of my wogging playlists. Here’s just a few of my favorites:

1. At The Zoo, by Simon and Garfunkel. The zookeeper may be fond of rum; we’re just fond of skipping.

2. Mr. Blue Sky, by Electric Light Orchestra. Skipping to this makes me feel like I’m in a Hollywood movie.

3. Rock Lobster, by The B-52’s. Absolutely manic zaniness compels one to get that skip on.

4. Dreaming, by Blondie. You can run, walk, or skip to this upbeat number by the fabulous Debbie Harry.

5. Month of May, by Arcade Fire. Indie rockers put out their best head-banger for our skipping pleasure, from their newest album The Suburbs.

Podwogging posts will now be monthly

I have well over a hundred playlists posted on my Podwogging.com site now, so I’ve decided to decrease the rate at which I post new lists from once a week to once a month. The next scheduled list, English Teacher’s Bane, will thus be posted this Nov. 1st.

But peoples, the Podwogblog will continue weekly, with my fabulous insights into rock and pop music, wogging issues, and the like. So tune out not, and keep stepping spritely.

Jim

New Gold Walk

Like The Fixx, these Brit rockers came out with some of the best moody rock of the 80s, with far more humility than U2’s Bono. Lead singer Jim Kerr has that deep, throaty voice, similar to that of Billy Idol, that melds beautifully with the band’s artistic blend of heavy beats and synth riffs, resulting in mysterious, resonating music—check out New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84), quite simply one of the best rock songs ever, for a great example. While they have a dedicated following worldwide, they never reached the sort of pinnacle reserved for U2. (I don’t mean to diss U2, BTW. They rock.) Anyway this week’s wog is really a walk—turns out their best songs are all moderately paced; only Sanctify Yourself approaches jog. Who cares. Check it out at Podwogging.com.

SynchroniciWog #7: Broken Toy

On August 2 I posted SynchroniciWog #1; since then I’ve created nine more, and this week’s wog is number 7 (hey, nobody said I had to do them in synchronilogical order!). This one is based on Keane’s moody ballad from Under the Iron Sea, Broken Toy. This set is for moderate and brisk walking only, though all the songs are from the current millennium, and all are melody-oriented and echo darkly around the edges. Highlights, IMHO, including powerwalking to Coldplay’s White Shadows and gliding across Snow Patrol’s The Golden Floor. Strap on your skis at Podwogging.com.

Grungie Chords

That the 90s was an anxious, rage-filled decade can be shown by popular music. Besides Rap, Rock embraced a stunningly raw singer named Curt Cobain and his band Nirvana, with a dark, sometimes depressing spirit that dared look inner pain in the face and not blink. Nirvana was just the start of a whole slew of Seattle groups, including Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, and Stone Temple Pilots, who brought Grunge into the national musical consciousness. Cobain’s suicide put a damper on the movement, but there’s no denying his influence on the decade, especially on groups like Radiohead. This week’s wog features 37 minutes of Grunge. If at all possible, enjoy. Find the list, pace times, etc. at Podwogging.com.

Neil Young: Wog of Gold

All the best folk-rockers morph more times than a Saturday morning cartoon, and venerable Neil Young is no exception. This Canadian always had his roots in country, way back to his days with Buffalo Springfield and CSN&Y, but it was as a solo performer that he has truly fulfilled his artistic vision. Controversial, unafraid of political or personal repercussions, he has doggedly pursued his craft for five decades, and we are all better for it. I can’t think of another North American singer-songwriter other than Bob Dylan who’s had his persistence, style, and musical dedication. This wog’s for you, Neil, at Podwogging.com.

Let’s Give ‘Em a Five

In addition to possessing a large cranium, the human animal is blessed with clever fingers and clever hands. Since musicians rely on these body parts as much as their sense of rhythm, it’s only natural that references to them would work their way into songs, either metaphorically or literally. This week’s wog features all songs in which fingers and hands play a part, either in the band name or song title. Among other offerings you’ll find Crazy Fingers by the Dead (ironically, Captain Jerry was missing one) and Too Many Hands by the Eagles, as well as songs by Powderfinger and Badfinger. This is also a very light walk...unless, of course, you choose to walk on your hands. Get the skinny at Podwogging.com.

Affirmative, Captain

Few bands have reinvented themselves so successfully as the Yes, the architects of some of the most complex (some say most bombastic) British Progressive Rock from the 1970s. Not even Pink Floyd could match them for obscure, mystical lyrics or the eclectic mashing of baroque, hard rock, and cosmic noodling. But by the 80s, with disco, funk and New Wave having taken over, Yes changed their tune with the critically-acclaimed album 90125, and followed that up with a similar offering with Big Generator. Though they remained solidly progressive, they added catchy melodies and more consistent rhythms.

But Yes rose to fame on the strength of 1972’s Fragile, and this week’s wog includes three songs from that spectacular album as well as the epic Siberian Khatru from their mind-blowing album Close to the Edge. Sometimes the beat gets lost in the musical epiphanies, but for the most part these songs provide enough rhythm for a wog through a river running right over your head. Dive in at Podwogging.com.

Get It Together And Wog, Man.

Farm out, right arm, out of space! Here’s a trip back to the days when everyone was sick of the Pigs and the Oppressive War and just wanted to hang out and get back to the land and make the scene. Some say the ill-starred Altamont Concert was the death knell of the hippies, but the desire to pursue a simpler life according to youthful ideals continued well into the 70s…even to today, in fact. So this week’s wog features songs steeped in that ethos, by such groups as Canned Heat, the Youngbloods, the Rascals, and the inimitable Thunderclap Newman. And hey, say hi to your old lady, okay? From Podwogging.com.

LA Harmonic Convergence

The Mamas and the Papas were one of the first groups to drag 60s folk music kicking and screaming into pop stardom. Their hummable (and woggable) melodies bopped along with great harmonies, and while their sound dated rather quickly, they’re still an enjoyable listen if you’re burned out on metal or rap. This week’s wog is rather lightweight and only 33 minutes, but if you want to relax you could do worse. Find the list at Podwogging.com.

This week I’ll be taking a break from wogging and the next post will be in two weeks.

A Little Help From My Friends

I now have hundreds of wogging playlists in iTunes, and creating new ones is sometimes a challenge. To the rescue comes a growing trend in computerized music listening: functions that suggest which songs might go together to make a synchronistic playlist. iTunes itself has the Genius function, which compares the songs in one’s computer to its database of other users’ computers, which is what I used to create this week’s wog: SynchroniciWog #1. It uses a Genius-created list based on the song Things She Said, by Toy Matinee. I have other SynchroniciWogs that also use websites such as Pandora and last.fm that employ their own proprietary methods of suggesting songs that match each other in tone, musical composition, or user preferences. Things She Said is a great pop song from the 80s, but not all songs on the list are from the 80s, such as Nature’s Way by Spirit. Bottom line, my cyber friends helped me put together a Very Vigorous 38-minute wogging list, which can be seen along with hundreds of other lists at Podwogging.com.

The Dawn of Kraut Rock

This week’s wog features the robotically blissful music of Kraftwerk, best known for their long paean to the German Überhighway, the Autobahn—which isn’t in this set, BTW. That the ‘werkers were fascinated by the confluence of computers and music—in an outrageous yet endearing way—can be illustrated by their song Pocket Calculator, which of course was back in the day when the PC was just a blip on the horizon—and is in this set, BTW. Also you will find Trans-Europe Express (a great train song), Computer Love (kisskiss), The Model (ooo!), Tour de France, and finally, The Robots. So sync up with Kraftwerk, find the list at Podwogging.com.

80-Minute Mix-Up

This week’s Wog has bas actually been sitting on my iPod for over a year. The Magic Blender is one of the first Wog-a-Thons I put together, but because it lacked a specific theme or genre I put off putting it online. But make no mistake: this Brisk collection of songs is one of my favorites, kicking off with Bring On the Night by the Police, concluding with Mark Knopfler’s Boom Like That, and including such classics as Stevie Nicks’ Talk To Me, My Sharona by The Knack, and REO Speedwagon’s Don’t Let Him Go. So go to Podwogging.com and stick this wog in your blender!

Year of the Wog

Best-of albums, especially for artists who aren’t in the current generation of pop stars, can definitely offer a great bang for your musical buck. Al Stewart’s Best Of is one of my favorites, and delivers a solid 38 wogging minutes. Stewart’s halcyon days were the 70s, when his biggest hit, Year of the Cat, lilted its way onto the airwaves. But his songs, a kind of Scottish storytelling pop, full of wistful notions and historical references, can’t be so easily attached to one place or time. This week’s wog is definitely on the softer side though, easy on the bones, and can be found at Podwogging.com. Of course.

Get Juiced!

For my money, the best pure pop act to come out of Britain during the New Wave 80s was Squeeze, who deserved far more acclaim than they received. Whether crafting catchy tunes like If I Didn’t Love You or bopping you with their Brit accents in Cool for Cats, Squeeze delivers the goods in this week’s wog, 39 minutes of Vigorous pop. If you’re never heard them, and you like funny, sassy, and sardonic—think Kinks with a dash of Split Enz—by all means, check ‘em out. My woglist resides at Podwogging.com.

Altering Dreams on the Path

Each day now brings a little less light, so even as we shine in summer’s glory we are reminded, day by day, of delicious darkness creeping in. Let the hunter be hunted, and rejoice while we yet gaze on the heavens! This week’s wog, Älterdream, is...different. You may not recognize many of the artists, because I deliberately sought out those willing to plunge into the psychic depths: Dead Can Dance, Conjure One, Nijole Sparkis and eight more artists...all delve into ancient joys and fears, echoing ritual and surrender to the inevitable twin victories of love and death. It makes for a truly reverent Überwog; get the complete playlist at Podwogging.com.

Hey! It’s Officially Summer!

Summertime, and the wogging is easy, even if it’s 53 minutes long and Very Vigorous. But this week’s wog is guaranteed to give you happy feet as we explore the joyous side of pop music. Who can resist Simon & Garfunkel’s Feeling Groovy, Three Dog Night’s Joy to the World, or Stevie Wonder’s You Are the Sunshine of My Life? Not me! (Okay, I confess there are a couple songs in the set that explore Happiness from the other side of the street.) Get the list at Podwogging.com.

Tweet, Tweet

This week’s wog celebrates the life aviary with 16 songs—almost one hour’s worth—about birds. The Beatles’ Blackbird kicks things off, and before Steve Miller finally flies you off like an eagle, you’ll wing your way down the path with such sweet songs as Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds, Jerry Garcia’s Bird Song, Laurie Anderson’s Excellent Birds, and Simon & Garfunkel’s El Condor Pasa. When your flight is done, stick a feather in your cap! Get the playlist at Podwogging.com.

Holy Jazz, Batman!

Way back before Miami Vice (ask your mom & dad, kids), a band named Steely Dan ruled the coolness waves. Straight out of LA, they wrote the book on hip, jazz-inflected rock with clever lyrics, catchy beats, and outrageous snark. This week’s wog, Walk Lightning, is an infectious stew of some of their best tunes, from their top 40 smash Reelin’ In The Years to the fabulously slinky, in-your-face Show Biz Kids. Believe me, these guys rule! Get the holy list at Podwogging.com.

The Real Power Walk

Many slow- or medium-paced walk songs can be pumped up by skipping to them. This week’s wog features 46 minutes of songs with this endearing quality, ranging in pace from Mungo Jerry’s good-time In The Summertime, at 83 BPM, to the supercharged Bodhisattva, by Steely Dan, at 110 BPM. Of course you can always dial it down and actually walk a skipper; often I save the skipping for the chorus and walking for the verse, or vice-versa. Whichever you do it, skipping is fun, good exercise, and guaranteed to make you look like a five-year-old. So don’t skip—er, miss this opportunity, and check it out a Podwogging.com.

A Sonic Wash

There’s water showers, and there’s music showers. Don’t believe me, listen to the songs in this week’s wog, A Sonic Wash. Whether it’s Ronan Hardiman’s lush choral instrumental plunging you into a relaxed mood, Brian Eno’s dripping piano notes wrapped in mind-refreshing lyrics, or Cocteau Twins’ swooping waves of vocal strangeness cleaning out your skull, you’ll emerge from this moderate wog mentally clean, even if you’re sweaty and your clothes are dirty. And at 34 minutes, you can linger in this wash without worrying about wasting water! Get the list and more at Podwogging.com.

Jog, Where is Thy Sting?

Before he went on to a solo career, British singer Sting fronted the Police, a New Wave band that blended catchy reggae rhythms with a little progressive rock, interesting lyrics, and an edgy delivery that always kept its balance. This week’s wog features 8 songs from them, including the pop-reggae standard Don’t Stand So Close to Me and the irresistible, progressive Synchronicity II. It’s 34-minute, Very Vigorous set, the details of which can be found at Podwogging.com.

The Decade Dance

Here it is, my serious collection of wogging tunes from the 00s. Since some of my favorites are on other playlists, with certain artists I’ve included another song by them: The Lovemakers, The New Pornographers, The Shins, The Arcade Fire, Engineers, Dark Captain Light Captain, John Fogerty, Cake, Dead 60s, Belle & Sebastian, Gnarls Barkley, Gorillaz, Engineers, Corinne Bailey Rae, and Fields all have songs on at least one other wogging list on my computer. Making their debuts for Podwogging are Beyoncé, Finn Brothers, Sufjan Stevens, Outkast, and Duffy. I’m not exaggerating when I say that the 00s saw an explosion of creative music that stretched the boundaries of world, folk, hip-hop, and in Steven’s case, ambient minimalism (!). Coming up this decade: more “freaky folk,” Animal Collective, the Decembrists, Dead Can Dance, and scads of off-center concertinas and flutes! Until then, check out this week’s ode to the Double Aughts at Podwogging.com.

Fresh Woggage

Long before the word “indie” appeared on the scene, back in the groovy sixties there were certain groups who refused to compromise themselves, who played what they liked and to hell with the record companies. Such a group was the legendary Love, and right with them was Spirit, another LA group who blended jazz, pop, rock, and quirky lyrics for a distinctive sound and attitude that still resonates today. How could one not love a fuzz-guitarist named Randy California, or a drummer who was completely bald? Like Love they didn’t last long, only putting out a few albums before their disdain for the gods of commerce ended their careers as rock gods. This week’s wog is a brisk 39 minutes full of Spirit, featuring hits (I Got a Line on You, Nature’s Way) and non-hits (Mr. Skin, Uncle Jack) alike. Seriously, if rock that’s fun without being nauseating, check out Spirit, at Podwogging.com.

59 Minutes of Tribal Jogging

I first heard of Afro Celt Sound System from the single they did with Peter Gariel, When You’re Falling. Intrigued by the possibilities inherent in combining African rhythms with Celtic melodies and instruments, I decided to check them out further—and I discovered that, and more. The whole thing has a party/rave atmosphere, and many of the songs have African lyrics as well. This makes for great dancing as well as jogging—though of course I’ve found more moderately-paced songs to let you catch your breath. This Pulse-Pounder ÜberWog is guaranteed to take you to another head and body space. At Podwogging.com.

Brit Folk Magic

The British Isles have a rich tradition of folk music that has profoundly influenced popular music in America as well. Starting with a rousing war song from Ireland’s Planxty (Follow Me Up To Carlow), this week’s wog is a whopping 85 minutes of some of my favorite songs performed by contemporary British artists. These include Fairport Convention, Pentangle, and Strawbs from England; Planxty, Enya, Karan Casey, and Clannad from Ireland; Steeleye Span from Scotland; Loreena McKennit, Canadian though she sounds English; and finally, Donovan, who hails from either a British fairy castle or Trans-Love Airlines. All told, a fabulous of collection of magical tunes just waiting to transport you on a long walk through tors, fens, the heath, or London’s Underground. Find out about it at Podwogging.com.

Stairmaster to Heaven

Just kidding, folks: Stairway to Heaven, despite its iconic status in the annals of arena rock, is a song only good for swooning at Robert Plant, not engaging in healthy exercise. That’s not to say that this seminal rock band, for whom many Bics were flicked back in the day, hasn’t put together enough material for a great wog.

I must admit, though, that early Zep was a tough listen for me: for every cool Tolkien-inspired number like Ramble On, there was a Whole Lotta Love that made me squirm. As the band matured, though, their musical chops expanded, leading to such mystical rockers as Kashmir and Immigrant Song, both of which make their way onto this week’s wog—37 minutes of Very Vigorous Wogging. So pick up your pod and start wogging before the levee breaks! The playlist, with pace numbers and other info can be found, of course, at Podwogging.com.

Sci Fi for the Spry

Science fiction and techno music have been married ever since those cheesy flying saucer flicks from the Fifties employed nerds to create the first spacey sound effects. As the technology improved, those spacey sounds found their way into mainstream pop music, and when the first synthesizers burst on the scene, a new musical idiom was borne. Soon, the music became more than just a movie soundtrack—they were an end in themselves. This week’s wog celebrates sci fi songs from a variety of performers: Jefferson Starship, Kraftwerk, Blue Öyster Cult, Alan Parsons, and others provide the “serious” side of sci fi, while Zager & Evans, Styx, The Bonzo Dog Band, and Electric Light Orchestra poke campy fun at it. Robots, Time Travel, Spacejacking, Dystopias...it’s 52 minutes of über good wogging fun! Beam over to Podwogging.com now, Number One!

Fools Wog In

Hey, you just won a free iPod! And an invitation to participate in the IPWC (International Podwogging Championships) to be held in Sydney, Australia, this Thursday, April...uh...first. Oh well. Maybe I’m a fool for thing king I could fool you. But I have a nice little wog to celebrate April Fools, which you can find at (natch) Podwogging.com. In this week’s wog you’ll find all kinds of songs about fools, from Ricky Nelson’s Fools Rush In, to completely different two songs with the name Ship of Fools by The Doors and Elvis Costello (and it could have been three with the one by the Dead) to Martha’s Foolish Ginger by Tori Amos. Also with tunes by Bonnie Raitt, the Stone Roses, Robin Trower, and Steely Dan, It’ll give you 39 minutes of motley fun on the wogging trail.

Spring Forward with Donovan

I couldn’t wait for a reflection day in Summer, so the first wog of the Spring is by Donovan, that Groovy Bard from England. It’s just that Donovan’s breezy ‘n’ sassy folk rock songs feel more springlike than anything else I can think of. If you’re like me, you’ll wear your love beads like heaven, get your fat angel off the couch, and feel like a sunshine superman once you finish this more mellow than yellow walk. And may your beach at sunset never end...at Podwogging.com.

Wog ö’ the Irish

I tell ya lad, there’s nothin’ like a breakfast boiled early and a couple of fiddles to get me blood goin’ fer a very vigorous podwog out in the country now. So do as I say and hie over ta Podwogging.com so you can get your fill o’ the latest ÜberWog that my lad James here has cooked up fer ya. Faith, besides the Chieftains and the Pogues and Planxty, fine Irish lads all, bless ‘em, you’ll also discover a few Irish lasses, like The Corrs, the Cranberries, and Enya. Oh, and just to show you he’s not so old as all that, he’s included some special contemporary artists like Snow Patrol, Ronan Hardiman, and Damien Rice. Nearly an hour of Irish music of all stripes—it’s a perfect way to celebrate St. Patty’s Day, so what are ya waitin’ for?

Streetwise, Beatwise

If you’re like me, sometimes you don’t have time head out to a running track or a nice soft trail in the woods. So you learn to survive on the urban pathways. This week’s wog celebrates the streets in pop songhood, from the Dead’s Shakedown Street to Bob Seger’s Mainstreet to Donovan’s Sunny Goodge Street. The streets can be mean or they can be liberating, it all depends on how you handle yourself, which for woggers means keeping your eyes open for cars, bikes, and road hazards. And while it may not be fun to jog in place at a traffic light, your life may depend on it. Get your streets and beats at Podwogging.com.

Brownie Points

Whether contemplating his girlfriend’s pregnancy or fantasizing about escaping on the road, Jackson Browne pretty much embodied the zeitgeist of the 70s: wanting to find spiritual fulfillment, yet not willing to quite give up the creature comforts brought about by America’s economic perch sustained by global military domination. Ah, life as the guilty conscience of America can be tough. Good thing he knew how to rock out, as this week’s wog surely demonstrates: to balance the agony of The Fuse or Rock Me on the Water we have the kick-out-the-jams Redneck Friend and The Road and the Sky. You don’t have to walk on water, just get your sneakers out on the roadside and wog. The roadmap is at Pogwogging.com.

Bet you can’t wog to it just once...

All too often, exercise music ignores melody for rhythm: thumpa-thumpa-thumpa-step-step-step-step-ho-hum. Why not let your heart sing to the song while your feet jog along? That’s why this week’s wog, Hooked On Melodics—and it’s a Wog-a-Thon at that—features some of my favorite pure melodies in pop music, without sacrificing a steady beat. The Beatles, Guster, Collective Soul, Sarah McLachlan, Til Tuesday, UB40—these are just a few of the artists who will stroke your eardrums while you walk and jog. It’s 63 minutes of brisk exercise bliss, and you’ll only find it at Podwogging.com.

Post-Valentine Get Down

Now that you’re addicted, face it—you gotta keep wogging! Let Robert Palmer, who rocked the 80s with dance pop R&B, give you the sickness AND the cure. This week’s wog features 39 minutes of delightful dance—er, walk and jog—music guaranteed to be simply irresistable. So get what’s coming, stop sneaking through the alley, and get a bad case of wogging. If Mr. Palmer were still with us, he’d tell you get over to Podwogging.com to check out his playlist. Do-lang!

Let’s hope it all works out

Love is a crazy thing, and what better way to celebrate the week leading up to Valentine’s Day than to hit the trail with a pod full of songs about the agony (Ted Nugent’s 8-minute jogging opus Stranglehold) and the ecstacy (the Drfter’s Magic Moment) of it all? If you can get through the Slings and Eros (this week’s wog), the Bard Himself may smile upon you. Plus Fine Young Cannibals, Bo Diddley, Wilson Pickett and others...it’s all part of a 36-minute workout “with benefits.” After the heavy breathing, check out my other playlists at Podwogging.com.

Just give me a little bit more...

Time, of course. So this week’s wog is another collection of songs about that elusive thing we never seem to have enough of. Weighing in on the topic are The Verve, INXS, the Stones, the Byrds, and others—even Glass Bottle! Not that a glass bottle will save you any. Time, that is. Thank the Muses that all songs have it, though. Go to Podwogging.com for more—it’ll take you just a few seconds!

Home, Home and Deranged

“Who are those guys?” said Butch Cassidy to the Sundance Kid, and the 70s’ Hollywood romance with the Western was reborn. The record industry followed suit, and soon rock stars were crooning tunes steeped in the romance of gunfights and flights across the wide open range. Taking this trend to the limit were the Eagles, who based an entire album on the Dalton Gang with their concept album, Desperado. This week’s wog features nine songs from that album, from the opening strains of Doolin-Dalton to the peyote-infused Bitter Creek. Despite their swagger, most of the cuts are lightweight, pace-wise; only Out of Control cranks it up into high gear. So this set will most likely leave you with a peaceful, easy feeling, especially if you leave the six guns at home. Saddle up at Pogwogging.com.

Prayer-Optional Wogging

Take some Byrds-inspired ringing guitar work, add a hip-sounding collegiate lead singer from Australia, and finish with an almost U2-like big rock sound. That’s The Church, best known for their lush, alt-rock hit Under the Milky Way, way back in the 80s. But if you think they didn’t rock, check out Reptile—my fave—or When You Were Mine, both from The Blurred Crusade. And they played uptempo, too—even Milky Way is a light jog. This 40-minute set will delight your senses and pound your pulse, friends. Check it out at Podwogging.com.

Over A Thousand Woggable Songs

With the publication of this week’s wog (The Boho Wog), I’ve now posted info on over one thousand songs on Podwogging.com. That means over a thousand popular songs, from six decades, have been sussed out for their walking and jogging suitability by Yours Truly. But Podwogging.com has far more than just the Beats Per Minute for each song. Each song is in a specially crafted playlist, either based on a theme or a single artist, arranged in an for maximum walking or jogging enjoyment. Whether you want a pleasant stroll or really want to feel the burn, just a short break or an hour-long Wog-a-Thon, you’ll find song lists of every sort there. Each song has info on artist, BPM, time, pace consistency, and source, along with a comment about the song: does it have a long intro or outro? Is it in 3/4 time? Can you skip to it, or can you run to it at double-time?

On the other hand, if you’d rather construct your own exercise lists using Podwogging.com, check out the Song Index, where all the songs currently posted are in three long lists, sorted by title, artist, or pace.

So check it out—explore your inner Boho and beyond at Podwogging.com.

A Wog for All Seasons

Happy New Year!

Since I did the Dead a couple of weeks ago, I thought it only proper that I fête their psychedelic comrades from the glory days of free concerts in Golden Gate Park, barefoot incense-sellers on the streets, and other manifestations of the love revolution that failed only in the narrow minds of unimaginative people: the Jefferson Airplane. And if it’s one thing these former folk-rockers had, it was imagination. So now, on the first week of the new year, put the Airplane on, let your freak lights shine, and wog to one of the finest bands that wasn’t Jefferson Starship. It’s waiting for you at Podwogging.com.