We're celebrating 2021 by sharing the Patreon-only Single of the same number! Back in October of 2018, we talked about and ranked the #1 videos from Total Request Live's first year, 1998 -- "the first year the show was on the air. This means we are professionally obligated to describe *NSYNC's Christmas video to you in exacting detail." Enjoy our thoughts on JT, Carson, and geometric facial hair...and for more exclusive content, join us at patreon.com/mastas!

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Thanks to a listener request, we're talking about "Enter Sandman," Metallica's hard rock hall-of-famer. And because it's RIGHT THERE in the song, we're also talking about Snow White, Tori Amos, and the wendigo.

Our intro is by Laura Barger and Jack Baldelli, and our outro is by Queens of the Stone Age. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com. To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas.

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Mark has finally selected a song from a musical -- "Ring of Keys" from Fun Home -- and it's got us talking about child actors, the adults we want to become, and the reason Sarah's books are color-coded.

Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by Booker T. To contact us or buy our pop music books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com. To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas.

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We're confronting the fact that Leonard Nimoy covered "Proud Mary," and it's got us talking about blithe confidence, celebrity side projects, and the profound confusion caused by terrible art.

Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking. To contact us or buy our pop music books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com. To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas.

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In this MASTAS Single, we’re riffing on the K chapter of our Madonna book and picking the artists we think should cover Madonna’s hits, misses, and overlooked gems. We draft Alison Krauss, of course, and we also make room for Beyoncé, Dolly, and Harry Styles!

For more Madge, you can read our new book, Madonna: A to Z. It’s available at MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com.

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Because we wrote a Madonna book (available now!), we're talking about Madonna's first single ("Everybody") and one of her most recent ("Medellin"). Get ready for a wild ride through almost 40 years of dance music!

Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Madonna. To contact us or buy our pop music books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com. To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas.

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We're thrilled 4 the opportunity 2 rank the songs on Purple Rain. As we choose our favorites from the album, we talk about everything from instrumental breaks to terrible movies we love to the best way to pleasure oneself with a magazine.

Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne (with an assist from The Purple One), and our outro is by Luscious Jackson. You can email us at [email protected], tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To access bonus content (and vote in ranking episodes), become a patron at patreon.com/mastas.

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Those high notes and those cheekbones clearly mean we're discussing "Take On Me," the swoon-inducer by a-ha. We're also talking about perfect riffs, the value of just doing your job, and the songs that Sarah thought were by Simple Minds.

Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by Simple Minds (we double-checked). Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at [email protected], tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To get access to bonus content (and vote in ranking episodes), become a patron at patreon.com/mastas.

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Christina Aguilera's "Ain't No Other Man" gets us to consider the right time to holler, the best time to have a musical personality, and the perfect time to reference Project Runway.

Our intro is by Laura Barger and Jack Baldelli, and our outro is by Etta James. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at [email protected], tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To get access to bonus content (and vote in ranking episodes), become a patron at patreon.com/mastas

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Special guest Clinton Sparks joins us to talk about "Breakin'... There's No Stopping Us," an all-time breakdance classic. We also get around to stories about Michael Jackson, VHS tapes, and things that should be more dope.

Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Clinton (the band, not our guest!) Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at [email protected], tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To get access to bonus content (and vote in ranking episodes), become a patron at patreon.com/mastas.

SHOW NOTES

Get Familiar with Clinton Sparks at ClintonSparks.com!

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