This week's playlist:

• Block Of Wood (3:27) by Paul Reddick, from SugarBird (2008), available from NorthernBlues.com and the iTunes Music Store. Visit PaulReddick.ca for more information.

• Treat Me Right (2:19) by Robin Rogers, from Treat Me Right (2008); available from the store at Robin's site, Blind Pig Records and the iTMS. Visit RobinRogers.com for more information.

• Black Guitar (3:34) by Papa Don McMinn, from Southern Roots Rockers Vol. 1 (2008); available from LocoBop.com and the iTMS. Visit DonMcMinn.com for more information.

• Baby I'm Down (5:20) by Todd Wolfe, from Borrowed Time (2008); available from the store at Todd's site and Amazon.com. Visit ToddWolfe.com for more information.

• Blues For Howard (2:21) by Watermelon Slim and the Workers, from the compilation The Future of the Blues, Vol. 3 (2008); the track is from No Paid Holidays (2008). Both the compilation and No Paid Holidays are available from NorthernBlues.com and the iTMS. Visit WatermelonSlim.com for more information.

• Intro Boogie (0:31), Let's Boogie (4:27), Blues Train Express (4:46) and Blues Line Dance (5:01), all by Charles "Big Daddy" Stallings and all from Blues Evolution (2007); available from CDBaby and the iTMS. Visit BigDaddyStallings.com for more information.

• Going, Goin', Gone (2:52) by The Twisters, from The Future of the Blues, Vol. 3 (2008), available from NorthernBlues.com. Going, Goin', Gone is also on the Twisters' album After the Storm (2006), which is available from NorthernBlues.com and the iTMS. Visit both Twisters.ca and their MySpace page for more information.

• Backup Man by Kate Hart, from Alone Again With Friends (2008); available as individual tracks from Kate's MySpace page. Visit KateHart.com for more information.

• Waste My Days (4:12) by Ian Parker, from Official Bootleg (2008); available from the merchandise page at his Web site. Visit Ian's MySpace page and IanParkerMusic.com for more information.

• Luck Runs Out (3:42) by Blue Plate Special, from Can You Dig It (2006), available from CD Baby, DWM Music and the iTMS. Visit BPSBlues.com and their MySpace page for more information.

• Bad Year Blues (5:12) by Albert Castiglia, from These Are The Days (2008); available from Blues Leaf Records and the iTMS. Visit Blues Leaf Records and AlbertCastiglia.com for more information.

• High Maintenance Man (3:47) by Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps, from Oh Yeah (2003), available from the music page of her Web site, CD Baby and the iTMS. Visit TeresaJames.com for more information.

• Livin' N the Valley (5:15) by Guy Bergeron, from Last Of The Hip White Boys (2002); available from CD Baby and the iTMS. Visit this page at Download.com for more information.

Mentioned during this show: if you're a blues lover, or you love a blues lover, this is the book to be requested and/or given as a gift this Christmas: Delta Blues: The Life and Times of the Mississippi Masters Who Revolutionized American Music by Ted Gioia.

Excellent resources for more information about the blues: The Blues Foundation and the Delta Blues Museum; be sure to download and listen to the DBM's top-notch (and free) podcast, the Uncensored History of the Blues; BluesRevue.com, the online home of Blues Revue magazine; BigCityBluesMag.com, the online home of Big City Blues magazine; BluesCritic.com.

Be sure to read Today's Chicago Blues by Karen Hanson, an excellent guide to all things blues in present-day Chicago, and another great Christmas gift for the blues lovers on your gift list.

For up-to-the-minute news about things to do in Chicago: TheLocalTourist.com. Tell 'em Murphy sent you.

(Music on Murphy's Saloon #145 courtesy of the artists, IODA PROMONET, Download.com or Garageband.com and the Podsafe Music Network)