Video: Sing Along With Mitch (1 of 4)

July 2010, the subject of our latest look at the year's biggest events in music, was full of new releases, high-profile concerts, and TV specials. New songs hitting radio playlists this month were Mike Posner's "Please Don't Go", Robert Plant & the Band of Joy's "Angel Dance", 30 Seconds to Mars' "Closer to the Edge", Hey Monday's "I Don't Wanna Dance", Usher feat. Pitbull's "DJ Got Us Falling in Love", Reba McEntire's "Turn on the Radio", Gwyneth Paltrow's "Country Strong", Kenny Chesney's "Hemmingway's Whiskey", Third Day's "Lift Up Your Face", the Plain White T's "Rhythm of Love", Drake feat. [...]

I'm reading Nixonland right now, and I'm particularly loving the reminders of how weird mainstream American popular culture was back in the sixties. One of my earliest exposures to music was through my parents' Sing Along With Mitch LPs, which were full of whimsical ditties and perfectly nice. The TV show from which they sprung, however, looks very strange today. The titular Mitch Miller directs a chorus of men singing "Has Anybody Seen My Gal?" while the lyrics scroll beneath them, encouraging folks at home to sing along; presumably [...]