Of course, no Smiths compilation is perfect. But, if you're building your own best of, what absolutely must be included, and what absolutely must be omitted? I'll get things rolling: "Cemetery Gates" must appear; "Meat is Murder" must not.

Sarah Palin was the first name on TED NUGENT’s list to receive an advance copy of TED, WHITE & BLUE: THE NUGENT MANIFESTO, comprised of 16 chapters on how to fix America. This week, the multi-platinum guitar icon, best-selling author and outspoken activist sent the book—due October 6 via Regnery Publishing—to Palin with a note in praise of the vice presidential nominee’s “bold spirit.”

Dear Governor Palin, Please accept this copy of my new book, "TED WHITE & BLUE-The Nugent Manifesto" for you and your family. As a proud fellow American hunter, fisherman and lover of Alaska's soul cleansing magnificent Spirit of the Wild, we who live our American Dream by God, truth, logic, goodwill and decency, thank you for bringing such defiant common sense and self evident truth back to the GOP and politics. We wish you Godspeed for the best hunting and fishing season of your life and pray to God almighty that you bring your bold spirit to the White House. Godbless, American BloodBrothers, Ted Nugent and family

What I wanna know is, what's the most you've ever paid for a record, and what record was it? (The amount of money you would pay for a specific record, should you ever find it, is also an acceptable answer.)

I can't answer, as I'm not really one to spend much money on records since I don't own a record player (well, I do, but it's been collecting dust here at work since I bought it over a year ago). But I once spent all my allowance on a New Kids on the Block VHS tape for $20, if that counts for something. I was about 10-years old. It took me forever to save that $20 and about half of it was in change.

Paul Mawhinney was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA. Over the years he has amassed what has become the world’s largest record collection. Due to advancing age, financial issues, health issues and a struggling record industry Paul has been forced to sell his collection…. AGAIN.

Read the complete story at www.NoiseAddicts.com.

I would LOVE to get my hands on his Christmas music collection... I'm a sucker for good Christmas songs.

The Zune designs remain largely the same, but they're getting more capacity.

Microsoft is replacing the 80-gigabyte Zune with a 120-gig hard-drive player for $250. (The biggest iPod can store 160 gigs and is priced at $350.)

It is introducing a 16-gigabyte flash-drive player for $199. It will be in the same design as the current 8-gig player. The 4-gigabyte player is being discontinued.

In addition to new hardware, Microsoft on Sept. 16 is rolling out an update to the Zune software, on the device and the PC.

Listeners will be able to flag a song on the radio for purchase later and to stream or download songs over a Wi-Fi connection directly from the device.

Meanwhile, Forbes.com had this to say about the future of Steve Jobs and the market-dominating Apple I-Pod:

BURLINGAME, CALIF.-Apple has summoned the press for an announcement Tuesday morning, and, as usual, it's keeping the details secret. But Chief Executive Steve Jobs will almost certainly introduce a fresh lineup of iPods.

A few years ago, this would have been a big deal. But something funny has happened as the Cupertino, Calif.-based company's iconic music players--first introduced in 2001--have transformed the music business. Sales of digital content is remaking Apple...even though iPod sales have cooled.

In fact, many are betting the changes to Apple's iPod lineup will be rather humdrum. In a note to investors Monday, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster predicted Apple will introduce redesigned editions of its widescreen iPod touch and iPod nano, and tweak the pricing and capacity for its iPod Shuffle and Classic.

The real news Tuesday will be the appearance of Jobs, who had surgery to remove pancreatic cancer in 2004 and startled many with his gaunt appearance at a developers' conference in June. The New York Times later reported that Jobs had surgery earlier this year to address "a problem that was contributing to a loss of weight." In other words, investors have more riding on the survival of the man behind the iPod than on the product itself.

Meanwhile, Apple's thriving digital content business gives Steve Jobs & Co. plenty of room to slash the price of the iPod to keep digital music and movie sales growing, and to use the company's increasingly powerful digital content business as a way to segue into sales of tablet computers and other gizmos, as it has with the iPhone.

"With iPod price cuts, Apple is choosing revenue over unit cannibalization," Credit Suisse analyst Bill Shope wrote in a research note Monday.

To be sure, Apple's lineup of digital music players could use a boost. IPod sales are up just 7% from the year-ago period. In part, that's just the law of large numbers at work. However, fresh designs, coupled with a price cut, could reignite demand for the stylish gadgets and keep customers rolling into Apple's increasingly lucrative iTunes store.

Does anyone even own a Zune, and, if so, do you like it?

Our apologies for the slump on Line Out this morning. We've all been a bit busy here getting shit together for a little thing called Bumbershoot (start relearning the lines to "Plush" now!). So, yes, this is yesterday's news, and yes, other media outlets have mentioned it already, but how fucking stoked are you for the new Of Montreal album?! Minus the few stubbornly contrarian trolls out there (shorter version: "cheap beer sucks! sunglasses suck! anything popular sucks!"), you should all be very, very excited—trust. If not for the further trans-gendered/racial lyrical advenutres of Georgie Fruit, than for the bevy of merch formats in which Skeletal Lamping will be available, pictured above, which include: cd, vinyl, paper lantern, tote bag and t-shirt, buttons, and wall decals, with all the non-musical media coming with download codes for the mp3s of the album. Everything comes out Oct 7, 2008 on Polyvinyl (who might want to change their name to Polyvinyltotesshirtsdecalsbuttonsandpaperlanterns).

See more photos at www.highsnobiety.com.

(ht to Punknews.org)

It appears the recently rumored Jimi Hendrix Sex Tape is actually going to see the light of consumerism. Hendrix's estate has not denied nor confirmed the validity of the tape, so Vivid Entertainment will be putting the silent, 40 year old film on shelves for $39.99. Watch the NSFW trailer on the tape's website to decide for yourself if it really is Jimi quenching his "Burning Desire."

(ht and title props to Idolator and one of their witty commenters)

I once saw a man get Satanic with the hard sell. It wasn’t so much a sell as it was a threatening. He was in a metalish funk band and after his show, he said this to a merch browser:

If you don’t buy our CD, I’m going to get 666 on your ass.

The merch browser was dismayed and quickly walked away. It was a joke. A joke that didn’t fly. They guy in the band wasn’t really going to get 666 on anyone, but his negative and ugly tone lost the sale for him. He tried to stop the browser and laugh off his evil fumbling, but she kept walking.

Well, it's done.

Today Microsoft Corp. announced that a limited-edition Zune digital media player designed by Peter Saville will be made available to commemorate the DVD release of “Joy Division,” the critically acclaimed documentary. The film will come pre-loaded on a custom black Zune 80 player that is etched with an adaptation of Saville’s iconic artwork from Joy Division’s “Unknown Pleasures” album. Five hundred limited-edition players will be available for purchase June 17 for $399.99. In addition, Zune Marketplace will feature exclusive outtakes from the DVD.

Kurt Cobain-themed Converse sneakers, illustrated with snippets of his journals.

Last week, because I got sick of hitting 'skip' when my iPod was set to shuffle, I erased every last Nirvana song from my iTunes. I was a big fan, back in the day, and I knew every note of every song. That's why I can't listen to it anymore; it's not entertaining, it's not enlightening. There's nothing new that I can scavenge from it. Less than a week later, here are these shoes. This seems like a sign that I did the right thing.

What gave you the idea to do these activity coloring books?
Aye Jay: My inspiration was coloring with my son Cohen, who was two at the time. I had a thought like, "Why is there no coloring book that reflects the interests of the people in my age group?" I've been a fan of gangsta rap from the first time I heard it, in maybe 1988(?). It seemed like it would be a funny idea folks would like. I then spent the next couple of weeks making lists of inclusions and doing the drawings, went to the local copy shop and had one hundred copies made. I remember thinking there was no way I was going to be able to get rid of all one hundred. I was wrong.

After the book did well as a zine, it was published as an expanded version. I got to thinking about other types of music I like that I could make books out of. From there, I crafted a long term plan of several books in my head. I made Indie Rock Connect the Dots as the low key follow up, and a couple of years later linked up with ECW Press to make the Heavy Metal Fun Time Activity Book.

There's been tons of positive response to the books. There's been some negative feedback as well. Can you talk about that?
Getting positvie feedback from the people in the books I look up to is so rewarding. I’ve been surprised. The other side of that is the negative response due to people thinking the Gangsta book is socially irresponsible. That’s a huge bummer, as it was intended to be silly. I was never thinking about the political ramifications. Several chain stores have dropped the Gangsta book due to pressure from family based groups. Topshop in the UK dropped it and Urban Outfitters here in the states did too.

What are some of your favorite pages from the books?
Ice Cube and Suge Knight from the Gangsta book for the drawings, the Spinal Tap maze in the Metal book for the concepts, and Steve Albini's foreword from the Indie book, cause it's so well written and took over a year to get! Working with Andrew W.K. was cool too.

What's next? Will there be any new activity books coming out in the future?
Yes. I just signed on with ECW for two more activity books. They are genres you know and love. But I gotta keep them a surprise for now. Get your crayons ready though.

"On this day, all of these stores will simultaneously link and act as one with the purpose of celebrating the culture and unique place that they occupy both in their local communities and nationally," says RecordStoreDay.com.

Record stores throughout Seattle are celebrating the new holiday with live music, DJs, popcorn, cupcakes, sales on everything in the store, sidewalk sales, free shit, limited edition merchandise, Björk 3-D glasses, and more!

Here's a rundown of who's hosting what:

Easy Street: In-store performances by Mark Pickerel and Jesse Sykes & the Sweet Hereafter at the Queen Anne location. 5 pm, free. Also, everything in both stores not already on sale will be 20% off all day long.

Everyday Music: Enter to win an autographed copy of the Tom Waits box set People Take Warning! Murder Ballads & Disaster Songs 1913-1938. There will also be free CD samplers, a storewide sale, and other goodies.

Silver Platters: All four locations (Queen Anne, Bellevue, Southcenter, and Northgate) are offering 20% off on all vinyl, box sets, CD singles, and Billboard Collections CDs, and one day only DVD specials (starting at $3.99). Each location has it's own in-store specials and they also have tons of live music through the day.

Queen Anne:
1:00 The Mary McPage Band
2:00 Matt Jorgensen + 451
3:00 Pat Monahan
4:00 Kim Archer Band
5:00 Bee Simonds
6:00 Speaker Speaker
7:00 Low-Fi
8:00 The Pharmacy
9:00 How and Lightning

Bellevue Crossroads:
1:00 Interlake High School Jazz Band
2:30 Tribaljazz
3:30 Amateur Radio Operator
5:00 Hadley Caliman

Southcenter:
1:00 DJ ECM/Slantooth

Sonic Boom: Both locations (Capitol Hill and Ballard) will be selling Cupcake Royale cupcakes and new Sonic Boom slip mats, with all the proceeds going to the Vera project. They'll also have exclusive vinyl including a Stephen Malkmus 10" and 7"s from Built to Spill, Death Cab, Black Keys, REM, and more. There will be other free surprises included with every purchase, and a sidewalk sale with CDs, rock books, posters, and more starting at $1. 10% of Saturday's sales will be donated to Music4life. Topping it off, they have live music and DJs all day.

Capitol Hill:
1:00 Vinnie Blackshadow
3:00 John Roderick (Long Winters) DJ Set
5:00 The Dutchess and The Duke

Ballard:
3:00 Vinnie Blackshadow
4:00 Aqueduct
5:30 Mono in VCF
7:00 The Moondoggies

And here are a few others that we should not forget--Jive Time, Bop Street, Wall of Sound, and Singles Going Steady.

For more information about Record Store Day, visit www.recordstoreday.com.

And if you're lookin' for those limited edition Björk glasses, click here to see where you can find 'em.

According to a report from Wired, Microsoft is gearing up to release a limited edition Joy Division-themed version of their less-than-ubiquitous MP3 player, The Zune.

The Joy Division Zune will feature an adaptation of the cover art from the band's 1979 debut, Unknown Pleasures, which artist Peter Saville created using a graph of one hundred pulses from pulsar CP 1919 (apparently the first radio pulsar ever discovered).

Read the Wired report here.