Each year for the last three years, Nate picks his personal favorite. Here’s 2018. See you in 2019.

Nate's Episode of the Year for 2018

History

Society & Culture

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Momento Ritmico and Papete aru by Piero Umiliani
Opus 13 from Sven Libaek's score to The Set
French Doll by Larry Ashmore and David Francis
The wonderful Sewentuwa by Hailu Meriga
Wave I by Elor Saxl
Green by Hiroshi Yoshimura
NotesI originally learned about the Elephantine Colossus years ago in David McCullough's Brooklyn... and How it Got That Way, which still holds up.

Episode 215: An Eighth Wonder

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Un geant dans la mer and Triste soiree III from the score to Marie et les naufrages by the genius, Sebastian Tellier. 
Love is Blue by Jackie Mittoo and the Soul Vendors.
Rocky Passage by Jeremiah Chiu and Marta Sofia Honer
Morris Visits Dr. Pratt from John Barry's score to The Wrong Box
Adios Muchachos from Andre Popp
Moonlight in Vermont from the great Dorothy Ashby. 
Midnight Moon by The Portland Cello Project
Dance PM by Hiroshi Yoshimura
And we hear Blind Andy Jenkins' "Floyd Collins in Sand Cave" followed by Vernon Dalhart doing the same song under the name, "The Death of Floyd Collins." We also hear Jimmy Osbourne do Andy's, "The Death of Little Kathy Fiscus."
Notes
I have a note in my years-long running list of possible story ideas that says, "event songs," but I could never remember why. Then I was reading Charles Hirschberg and Mark Zwonitzer's, Will You Miss me When I'm Gone?: The Carter Family & Their Legacy in American Music and was reminded of Andy's story (that book is great).
I also recommend the always-useful, Country Music USA, by Bill C. Malone for more on Andy and his era as well as Creating Country Music: Fabricating Authenticity by Richard A. Peterson.
If you want more about poor Floyd Collins, you could turn to Robert K. Murray and Roger W. Bruckner's, Trapped!: The Story of Floyd Collins.

Episode 214: Newsboy

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Abisme by Shida Shahadi
Ellen’s Image from Lalo Schiffiren’s genius score to The Fox
Circulation by H. Takahasi
Liquid Spear Waltz from Michael Andrews’ score to Donnie Darko
A8 from a terrific record called NuNu by Clever Austin
NotesI found a lot of insight in a terrific book called Extraordinary Beliefs by Peter Lamont. In it, there’s a smart historical, psychological exploration of why spiritualism was able to flourish despite all sorts of evidence opposing it.

Episode 213: The Light and the Spirits

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Music


Una Bravata from Carlo Rustichelli’s score to Amici Miei.
Sunshine on Fish Skin by Girls in Airports.
The Vienna Glass Armonica Duo performs Mozart’s Adagio for Glass Harmonium.
The Fellowship by John Shabason


Notes


The best read on Mills is a 2022 article by Nate Hopper in The New Yorker about the challenges of keeping time on the internet.

Episode 212: David Mills

The Memory Palace is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Music


Je ne pas si c’est tout le monde - Theme Comedie from Vincent Delerm’s score to the film of the same, long name.
Forbin’s Hi Fi from Michel Colombier’s score to Colossus: The Forbin Project
Boo’s Lullaby by Maria Chiara Agriro and Jamie Leeming
Helle (Ballade) from the great Phillipe Sarde score to that picture.
L’Espagne pour memoire from Michel Portal’s score to Un et a la garoupe
The Rain Never Stops on Venus by Michael Wollney
Je t’ai meme pas dit by Vincent Delerm.
From a Dream by Oregon
A version of Narcisus for Clarinet and Electronics as played by Thea Musgrave.


Notes


Good sources if you want to know more are Peter Manseau’s book about spirit photography and the spiritualist age (Cutting intersects interestingly with that crea), The Apparitionists, as well as this article by Jerry Ryan about the history of aquariums in Boston.

Nate's Episode of the Year for 2018

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