Skeptics Mix Tape 2009
Think the best skepticism is the kind you can rock to? We’re pleased to offer you this selection of songs of science and skepticism — completely free! Download these MP3 files for non-commercial use at home or in your classroom. (Many of these songs are also available commercially from iTunes.)
Free for use on your podcast or radio show are a selection of Public Service Announcements in support of critical thinking, science, and the Skeptics Society. We’ll be expanding the selection in the coming months, so check back again soon.
Please do tell your friends about the whole set here at www.skeptic.com/mixtape09 or, share this page on Facebook.
Songs in this collection
Jonathan Coulton
Influential geek-rock superstar Jonathan Coulton explains why you might want to “stay on the good side of the guy who’s got the secret handshake down.” For conspiracy lovers everywhere. Parental Advisory: suitable for all ages
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Dr. SETI
Folk singer Dr. SETI (sometimes known as Dr. Paul Shuch, the man credited with designing the world’s first commercial home satellite TV receiver) leads a live audience in a fond shout-out to the late, great astronomer Dr. Carl Sagan. Parental Advisory: suitable for all ages
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Bandleader Timothy Sellers
The snappiest ditty from Artichoke’s acclaimed alt-rock concept album 26 Scientists, Vol. 1 (A–M), “Mary Anning” tells the story of the self-taught woman who discovered the first fossil plesiosaur — and paved the way for Darwin to rewrite the history of life. Parental Advisory: suitable for all ages
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VISIT the artist’s website >
Overman
A retro-styled educational tune that harkens back to Saturday morning cartoons, this is a quick survey of Charles Darwin’s life, insight, and impact on our understanding of biological change through geologic time. Parental Advisory: mild criticism of Darwin’s contemporary opponents, including religious thinkers
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Being 747
A snapshot of evolutionary time, this song comes from the educational multimedia show Amoeba To Zebra, which offers a musical exploration of natural history in 55 minutes. This show can be booked for schools in the UK. Parental Advisory: suitable for all ages
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Chris Hardwick (left)
& Mike Phirman
Mike Phirman and Wired magazine science correspondent Chris Hardwick (a former MTV host) are a comedy music duo with a heart of pure science. Here they offer a jaunty, straight-faced reflection on our ephemeral place in the biosphere’s carbon cycling. Parental Advisory: Clean radio edit (with bleeps)
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Coco Love Alcorn
In a brand new song recorded especially for the Skeptics Mix Tape 2009 project, Canadian indie darling Alcorn conjures up a distinctive blend of jazz, soul, folk — and critical thinking. Parental Advisory: suitable for all ages
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VISIT the artist’s website >
Tales from the Birdbath
A punk rock veteran’s affectionate description of the grueling research lifestyle led by his wife (hardworking endocrinologist, science writer, and rock drummer Rebecca Hernandez). Parental Advisory: suitable for all ages
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VISIT the artist’s website >
Celia Chavez
With lyrics like “accepting deception as part of the show,” former P!nk backup singer Celia Chavez builds a haunting, off-kilter love song on the memory of 19th century showman, skeptic, and huckster P. T. Barnum. Co-written with Hilary Gardner. Parental Advisory: suitable for all ages
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band member Paul Tozer
An energetic, tongue in cheek, rockabilly sales pitch for traditional snake oil medicine (“It’s good for what ails you…It clears phlegm, cures gout — and drives demons out”) this song makes note of the true medicinal ingredient in many such patent potions: booze. Parental Advisory: Very mild innuendo. Refers to alcohol.
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VISIT the artist’s website >
George Hrab
If skepticism had an anthem, this might well be it! Echoing with the chorus “You can’t believe what a skeptic I am,” this is rock artist George Hrab’s stinging (yet compassionate) indictment of promoters of lucrative alternative medicine schemes. Parental Advisory: mild bad language
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VISIT the artist’s website >
Suggest your own song for the next mix tape
Do you have an awesome skeptical song of your own that you’d like to submit for a possible sequel to this project? Email Junior Skeptic Editor Daniel Loxton and tell him about it. If it’s a good fit, your song could end up on the next Skeptics Mix Tape.
SUGGEST one of your own songs
Public Service Announcements
Michael Shermer
Skeptic Publisher Michael Shermer reflects on the soaring power of science to uplift us, inspire us — and humble us before the majesty of the cosmos. ”Anything that generates a sense of awe may be a source of spirituality,” Shermer says, “and science does this in spades.”
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CONTENT: “Hungry for more skepticism? Want to learn the truth about the scientific controversies of our time? Then subscribe to Skeptic, the quarterly magazine Stephen Jay Gould called ‘the best journal in the field.’ To subscribe, visit Skeptic.com today.”
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CONTENT: “Want to stay abreast of the latest from Skeptic magazine and the Skeptics Society? Want cutting-edge skeptical articles delivered straight to your inbox every week? Then subscribe to eSkeptic, the free electronic newsletter of the Skeptics Society. Visit Skeptic.com to sign up.”
DOWNLOAD this PSA (160 KB MP3) >