Friday Five : ‘frī-(,)dā,-dē ‘fīv : On the sixth day of every week, I hit the shuffle button on my iTunes, then share the first five tracks and thought for each track. Sometimes there is a playlist involved, occasionally we’ll have a guest, but most of the time it’s just me. The rest is up to you, our friends and readers! Fire up your media player of choice and share the first five random track of your shuffle in the comments.

The Five:

“Wings and Feathers” by The Guggenheim Grotto (from The Universe Is Laughing, 2010)

A bit ironic that this week’s Friday Five would begin with my favorite Irish singer/songwriter duo, as I’m headed to NYC to see them later this evening. While not my favorite track from their most recent release, it’s one I could see coming to love, in the live setting.

“Hot for Teacher” by Van Halen (from The Best of Both Worlds, 2004)

As Jeff Giles’ (y’all) has pointed out, there simply is no better Friday record than Van Halen’s seminal, 1984. For me, “Hot for Teacher” was every bit the hit single as “Jump” or “Panama.” I mean, come on … that intro? I remember spending hours upon hours trying—in vain—to master the two-hand tapped figure.

“Babylon” by David Gray (from Draw the Line, 2009)

This is a live version of Gray’s big hit single. It’s a xerox performance, save for the crowd’s insistence to sing the tune themselves. As much as I love the original, I can’t sit through 6 and a half minutes of it.

“The Way Young Lovers Do” by Van Morrison (from Astral Weeks, 1968)

Sorry Mr. Gray … I’d much rather listen to the real deal.

“Airplanes, Part 2 (feat. Hayley Williams & Eminem)” by B.o.B. (from B.o.B Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray, 2010)

I can honestly say that I haven’t cared for much of Eminem’s output of the last few years, save for a verse here and there. His appearance on “Airplanes” is one of those exceptions.

What’s on your shuffle today?