Washington, DC is paradise to me! 51 albums of DC history by 
EyeKanFly 
Washington DC is home to some of the most powerful institutions and people on the planet, yet this is in stark contrast to the 700,000+ people who live within the District's borders: utterly powerless to change all but the most basic tenets of their local government.
These 51 albums encapsulate the artists, producers, venues, labels, and genres most important to the history and legacy of the District of Columbia. Some are by local DC artists, some are by artists who grew up in DC never to return in adulthood. Some are by foreigners who have made this city home, or maybe just passed through on a tour. Some are by artists who experienced DC at its best, and some are by artists who have experienced DC at its worst.
In addition to the 51 albums, here are a handful of honorable mentions, mostly songs or other recordings which don't fit into the "album" format. All however are important to the past, present, and future of Washington, DC:
- "A 1000 Times" - Hamilton Leithauser
- "Crew" - GoldLink
- "Embassy Row" - Pavement
- "Ghost of Old D.C." - J. B. Beverley & The Wayward Drifters
- "God Bless America" - Kate Smith
- "One Mint Julep" - The Clovers
- "Reunited" - Peaches & Herb
- "Summertime" - Billy Stewart
- "Swanee" - Al Jolson
- "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight" - The Postal Service
- "The Hustle" - Van McCoy
- "Ugly Man" - Danny Gatton
- "Washington D.C." - The Magnetic Fields
- "Washington D.C. Hospital Center Blues" - Skip James
- Library of Congress recordings - Jelly Roll Morton; Woody Guthrie
- Native American music of the Eastern Woodlands - Piscataway Conoy Tribal Nation musicians
- Chart updated: 04/22/2021 14:15
- (Created: 04/21/2021 18:09).
- Chart size: 51 albums.
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Other than maybe Marvin Gaye and Duke Ellington, no one looms quite as large over the DC music scene as Ian MacKaye. This is one of MacKaye's first projects, and it set the stage for the DC punk scene. Unlike punk scenes in London or New York (perhaps the only cities with larger punk scenes than DC), DC punk rockers were known for promoting their "straight-edge" lifestyle: abstinence from drugs and alcohol. While this album is a great collection of punk songs, I do feel I need to mention "Guilty of Being White": on the surface it appears to be white supremacist in nature, but according to MacKaye the (admittedly hard to comprehend) lyrics actually relate to being white in a black-majority school, neighborhood, and city. While it appears to me to be misguided, the intent is that MacKaye sympathizes with the plight of minority Americans.
[First added to this chart: 04/22/2021]
2
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This is MacKaye's most famous project. Fugazi are THE DC punk band, credited with developing the post-hardcore genre. Their music is what put MacKaye's record label (Dischord, which he still runs) on the map.
[First added to this chart: 04/22/2021]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,522
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
8. (=)
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Before there was rock, before there was jazz, there were marches. I guess. As the Romantic era began trending towards the Modern era, Sousa helped bridge the gap with his mastery of the genre. He conducted the US Marine Band, the oldest professional musical organization in the United States. Sousa was very resistant to having his music recorded, nevertheless some recordings of his conducting finesse have survived, and they're collected in this compilation.
[First added to this chart: 04/22/2021]
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While Bikini Kill are from the "other" Washington (I wonder if that'll get confusing once DC is granted statehood), they recorded most of their music in DC under the leadership and production of Ian MacKaye.
[First added to this chart: 04/22/2021]
Total albums: 4. Page 1 of 1
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Washington, DC is paradise to me! 51 albums of DC history composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 1 | 2% | |
| 1960s | 5 | 10% | |
| 1970s | 9 | 18% | |
| 1980s | 10 | 20% | |
| 1990s | 7 | 14% | |
| 2000s | 7 | 14% | |
| 2010s | 12 | 24% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| The Seldom Scene | 2 | 4% | |
| Marvin Gaye | 1 | 2% | |
| Bikini Kill | 1 | 2% | |
| Sharam | 1 | 2% | |
| Beauty Pill | 1 | 2% | |
| The Walkmen | 1 | 2% | |
| Duke Ellington And His Orchestra | 1 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Washington, DC is paradise to me! 51 albums of DC history chart changes
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EyeKanFly (2024)Washington, DC is paradise to me! 51 albums of DC history ratings
89/100 (from 5 votes)
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N.B. The average rating for this chart will not be reliable as it has been rated very few times.
Showing all 5 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
75/100  | 06/30/2022 21:50 |  MadhattanJack | | 84/100 |
100/100 | 08/04/2021 19:51 |  travelful | | 99/100 |
100/100 | 05/27/2021 22:46 |  LedZep | | 84/100 |
100/100 | 05/06/2021 18:27 |  Hayden | | 100/100 |
100/100 | 04/23/2021 14:06 |  Patman360 | | 100/100 |
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From travelful 08/04/2021 19:52
travelful 08/04/2021 19:52
John Fahey Visits Washington DC...now that's something I need to hear!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From Hayden 05/06/2021 18:32
Hayden 05/06/2021 18:32
Appreciate it EyeKanFly. Was definitely a bit of fun to make. Always wanted to and never got around to it until this year. Not going to kid myself and say it's done, but I'll admit I've stopped digging around the twoonie bins for a sec.
Oddly, Canada just released a 'Canada-based playlist' for people to 'do our census to', and there's a lot of suspicious overlap. I'm assuming the government has stolen my idea (as usual).
(I kid of course, but just a coincidence).
Hoping people pluck a few records from the list, whether or not they like them. The 70s folk scene in particular was very strong, and I'd double down on the northern indigenous work.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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