The Playlist: Michael Pettis, owner of D-22

“Body and Soul” by Coleman Hawkins (1939 version). Bebop is about to be born. Hawkins plays with the melody for two bars and races off without ever looking back. This piece never fails to astonish.

“Frankie Teardrop” by Suicide’s Red Star. When I first saw them in New York in 1978, my sense of music was wrenched apart. How can something so ugly have morphed into something so moving?

“Ballad of a Thin Man” by Bob Dylan (1965 version). Dylan nails both the sense of dread and the sense of excitement
that comes with change.

“Record of Evaluation” by Xiao He. What current performer has anything like Xiao He’s out-of-control creativity? It’s impossible to pick one piece, so why not choose this one?

“Zhongnanhai” by Carsick Cars. Twenty years from now, everyone will whine about how cool Beijing used to be back in the day. This song will be known as the beginning of it all, and you are probably going to tell your kids that you saw them perform it live.

Michael Pettis is a partner at Maybe Mars Records and the owner of D-22.

Photos: Michael Pettis