A few years back, I was stood up on Valentine’s Day. He was a flaky musician, I was a fool. As I sat all alone on my sofa, in my new red dress, I thought to myself, “Gee, Valentine’s Day sucks if you don’t have a way to celebrate it.” Luckily, that night, I had a full bottle of vodka in the freezer. After I mixed myself a few too many drinks — and told him where he could go via voice mail) — I decided that I would start a new ritual of mix making for Valentine’s Day. What began as a drunken search through my music collection for a song that would perfectly sum up how sad/pissed I was about getting ditched on V-day (after three months of dating no less), grew into a holiday tradition of telling my love life via pop songs. This particular mix, entitled “You Can’t Screw The Hole In My Heart Too†was inspired by a bad break-up in which I didn’t get to keep the dog, but I luckily got to keep my pride… whatever’s left of it. The mix charts the arc of a heartbreaking split, all the emotions: confusion, anger, denial, loneliness, jealousy, desperation, and then the eventual sigh of defeat. So, if you’re feeling it this Valentine’s Day, breakup with me. Misery loves company and a soundtrack.Magnetic Fields – “I Don’t Want To Get Over You”
Iggy Pop – “96 Tears”
Marilyn Monroe – “After You Get What You Want, You Don’t Want It”
Dire Straits – “Romeo and Juliet”
The Walkmen – “What’s In It For Me”
Concrete Blonde – “Joey”
Nazareth – “Love Hurts”
Harry Nilson – “Without You”
The Secret Machines – “Alone, Jealous, and Stoned”
Beck – “Lost Cause”
Neil Young – “Only Love Can Break Your Heart”
Wilco – “I Am Trying to Break Your Heart”
Jimmy Ruffin – “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted-”
Melissa Etheridge – “I Want to Come Over”
The Dambuilders – “Break Up With Your Boyfriend”
Nancy Sinatra – “These Boots Are Made For Walkin’”
The Cure – “Boys Don’t Cry”
David Bowie – “It Ain’t Easy”
Dolly Parton – “I Will Always Love You”
Johnny Cash – “I Still Miss Someone”
