THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND STARTS HERE... with FAVES 2010!  I occasionally hear from folks who want to know what music -- from among all of the posts I do here -- I recommend.  To some degree, I recommend all of it, unless I expressly write otherwise (e.g., it's not my thing, but it might be yours).  With the holiday shopping season upon us, I have tried to make a list of reasonable size.  It's an unordered list. I likely will have overlooked something that I really dig.  And some of these are grouped together, because that's the way they occurred to me at the moment.  And note these are my faves; I'm not purporting to list the "Best" albums of the year.

BEST COAST: Regular Pate visitors -- and anyone who has known me since high school -- knows I'm a sucker for the reverb-laden 60s pop produced by Phil Spector and Brian Wilson.  Best Coast's Crazy for you is not nearly so orchestrated as either of those two, but grafts the insular mood of Spector onto the early surf idiom pioneered by Wilson, with indie fuzz added for spice.  Of course, the songs have to pop also -- and these do, esp. the wistful "Boyfriend."  FRANKIE ROSE & THE OUTS are also working this space well, with a dash more of garage rock on tracks like "Candy."

THE LOVE LANGUAGE: The Libraries album taps into the more orchestrated, more romantic sides of the Spector/Wilson vein, but Stuart McLamb will also let the guitar squawk when it needs to (as on "Heart To Tell"). A charming little gem overlooked by many critics.

WAVVES: King of the Beach finds Nathan Williams (like Stuart McLamb) moving away from the lo-fi aesthetic, but the twist on the Cali vibe here is more modern than the bands I've already mentioned.  It's as much or more about the skateboard as the surfboard.

ARCADE FIRE and THE NATIONAL both saw their careers continue to ascend this year, even if the Billboard chart ain't what it used to be.  I've gotten too old to hold a modicum of success against an indie abnd -- whatever that is these days.  Although Arcade Fire's The Suburbs seems more extroverted musically than The National's High Violet, I cannot help but think both bands were exploring the same emotional landscape to a degree and tapped into a zeitgeist, if not the zeitgeist.

TITUS ANDRONICUS was the band that probably impressed me most at this year's Pitchfork Music Festival, and not just for doing an energetic set in stifling heat and humidity.  The Monitor is certainly not the first semi-conceptual LP put out by a hardcore-ish band (Husker Du's Zen Arcade obviously springs to mind).  But there aren't many such LPs, and the historicism, romanticism, and musical ambition evident on The Monitor suggest that Patrick Stickles & Co not only listened to, but also learned from, their share of Springsteen while germinating in Jersey.

LOCAL NATIVES, otoh, is the band I miss having missed at Pitchfest.  They marry the harmonies of the classic Laurel Canyon folk-rockers with world beat influences that put a nifty twist on songs like Talking Heads' "Warning Sign." A warm, West Coast compliment to bands like Grizzly Bear (East Coast) and Fleet Foxes (whom I consider more Pacific Northwest).

DAWES: This is on the verge of cheating, as their North Hills LP actually came out in August or September of 2009 -- but it didn't fully sink its claws into me until this year.  These guys really are from Laurel Canyon and also have great harmonies (and strong songwriting, e.g., "When My Time Comes").  However, what gets me about Dawes is that I think I would have to classify them as Americana, even though they rarely resort to the obvious artisitic flourishes that would go with that genre.

MORNING BENDERS: Do I like West Coast bands with albums full of catchy, harmony-laden tunes?  It appears I do, as Morning Benders is another of them (though they've moved from Berkeley to Brooklyn).  Big Echo is no sophomore slump.  The Everlys-at-the-Ocean sound of "Excuses" is a highlight in my book, though the more modern-sounding tracks are also a treat.

SHE & HIM: I'm on a roll in this sub-genre, so why not?  Vol. 2 was just as charming as Vol 1.  She's still a talented songwriter, has untapped-on-record potential as a singer and is still indies "It" girl.  He's still a great arranger, whose understated guitar work supports her beautifully.  SONNY & THE SUNSETS don't have the same star power, but much of the same vintage charm on songs like "Too Young to Burn."

TALLEST MAN ON EARTH: Swedish Kristian Matsson gets his share of Bob Dylan comparisons, which are always an unfair burden to carry.  But this year's LP, The Wild Hunt, and EP, Sometimes the Blues Is Just a Passing Bird, suggest he's good enough to move past them eventually.

BLACK KEYS never fully grabbed me until this year (they likely suffered from an unfair, involuntary association with the White Stripes).  Brothers broadens the band's sonic pallette and veers a bit from the pure rootsy blues influences of their past stuff into vintage R & B -- including a cover of Jerry Butler's "Never Gonna Give You Up" -- which may have been what turned the bulb on over my head this time.

BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE re-collectivized after a semi-hiatus with Forgiveness Rock Record, and it was worth the wait.  "Forced to Love" is a monster and may be one of my Top 5 songs of the year.

MUMFORD & SONS: Brit-folk rock was "hot" this year, led by this quartet (though Noah & the Whale has been around a bit longer, iirc).  Their Sigh No More came out in late 2009 in the UK, but dropped here in 2010. LAURA MARLING, a truly talented 20-year-old who was once part of Noah's lineup, is wise beyond her years on I Speak Because I Can. STORNOWAY doesn't wear trad folk influences as heavily, but deserve mention here, too.

ARIEL PINK'S HAUNTED GRAFFITI: Pink, like Wavves above, moves beyond the lo-fi home recordings on Before Today and makes the most of it.  Ostensibly influenced by bands like The Cure, Sisters of Mercy and Bauhaus, I hear a fair amount of more mainstream 80s Brit-rock in the mix, with enough psychedelic and near-proggy accents to keep it from sounding derivative of anything.

DALE EARNHARDT, JR.,JR. may be a duo from Detroit with only an EP (Horse Power) and some remixes to its name, but if they keep cranking out McCartney-eque gens like "Simple Girl," this won't be their last appearance on my Faves list.

KINGS GO FORTH: It really wouldn't be my Faves list without some classic R & B revivalism, and this year it comes from... Milwaukee.  However, SHARON JONES & THE DAP-KINGS get an honorable mention for another solid effort on I Learned the Hard Way.

THE MYNABIRDS: Laura Burhenn, formerly of Georgie James, long imagined a band that sounded like Neil Young playing Motown.  What We Lose in the Fire We Gain in the Flood doesn't truly sound like that, but has enough of a Dusty (Springfield) vibe on songs like "Number's Don't Lie" to land right in my wheelhouse.

A CHARLIE BROWN THANKSGIVING:  It's always somewhere on the net.

NOW SHOWING: The long weekend's wide releases include Tangled, which is currently scoring 89 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; Burlesque, which is currently scoring 31 percent; Love and Other Drugs, which is scoring 42 percent; and Faster, scoring 43 percent.

THANKSGIVING has a lot of myths, both traditional and the new "Pilgrims were evil" o­nes taught in some public schools. Not to mention the fights over kindergarteners dressing as Native Americans.  However, if you read the journal of William Bradford -- who served some 35 years as governor of the Pilgims' colony -- you quickly discover that the Pilgrims' relationship with the natives was complex.  Ultimately, Bradford quieted internal discontent by doing away with the collectivism of a company town and granting property rights.

CUTOUT BIN: From Ray Davies to the Jesus & Mary Chain, from Big Star to Billy Joel, from Sly & the Family Stone to King Crimson, plus Cheap Trick, the Feelies, the Ides of March, ELO, the Plimsouls and more -- this weekend's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

SUFJAN STEVENS may have been "Too Much" for Fallon in his network TV debut.

CLINIC stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

HOLLERADO stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

JOE STRUMMER's RADIO CLASH: Stream all 20 episodes of his BBC show.

ROBERT RANDOLPH & THE FAMILY BAND did three free songs for Daytrotter.

BILLIE HOLIDAY is one of NPR's 50 Great Voices. How could she not be?

ATLAS SOUND:  Bradford Cox releases a second free album this week.

DESTROYER drops "Chinatown" as an advance track to their upcoming Kaputt LP.

CUT COPY drops a new single, "Take Me Over."

CAT POWER: "New York, New York."

PATTERSON HOOD talks about Darkness on the Edge of Town.

SOMEONE STILL LOVES YOU BORIS YELTSIN lead guitarist and co-songwriter Will Knauer took the time to chat with The Oklahoma Daily about Chris Walla, buzz bands and going with the flow. (Thx, LHB.)

RAY DAVIES canceled his US tour to care for an undisclosed medical condition.

JOAN BAEZ was injured falling twenty-feet out of a treehouse on her California land.

THE BEATLES ended up selling another two million songs and 450K albums in their iTunes launch. Not bad, given that most fans of the Fab Four probably ripped their CDs to their iPods years ago.

CHARLIE SHEEN: TMZ has obtained a series of text messages between Charlie and Capri Anderson, sent just hours after The Plaza Hotel incident - in which he is still flirting with her in a big way as he offers her 20 grand. Might make it tougher to prove extortion. Anderson isn't suing Sheen... yet.

PRINCE WILLIAM & KATE MIDDLETON have chosen a wedding date -- on Friday, April 29, 2011.

EVA LONGORIA & TONY PARKER: Her friends say her biggest regret is that she didn't leave him sooner.

MICHAEL L. BREA, who has had roles on the TV series "Ugly Betty" and movie "Step-Up 3-D," allegedly held his mother hostage and then murdered her with a samurai sword while screaming Bible passages.

LINDSAY LOHAN is back behind the wheel.

JENNIFER JASON LEIGH filed for divorce from director Noah Baumbach, just seven months after the birth of their son.

MILEY CYRUS who turned 18 yesterday, was caught in a heavy makeout session at her birthday bash in L.A. Sunday night.

TAYLOR MOMSEN will begin an "indefinite hiatus" from Gossip Girl following next Monday's episode.

OLIVIA WILDE of Tron: Legacy is briefly profiled in Details.

THE 25 BEST BIOPICS, according to Moviefone.

COOKIE MONSTER auditions for SNL.

NORTH KOREA fired dozens of artillery shells onto a South Korean island on Tuesday, killing one person, setting homes ablaze and triggering an exchange of fire as the South's military went on top alert. Meanwhile, North Korea probably needed external assistance to build a uranium enrichment site, which could offer it a second source of weapons-grade nuclear material, but from whom and where remains shrouded in mystery.

IRAN's parliament revealed it planned to impeach Ahmadinejad but refrained under orders from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, exposing a deepening division within the regime.

AFGHANISTAN: The secret talks unfolding between Taliban and Afghan leaders seemed promising, except that the most promising Taliban leader was an imposter.

FLYING SNAKES: They don't even need a plane. Let's go to the video.

1000 RESCUED RATS are up for adoption in San Jose.

TIZZY the CAT plays fire alarm, saves owner.

ROVER, a German Pointer, survived a 400ft plunge off a cliff.

COYOTES in CHICAGO: Catching rats, or covert science experiment?

THE MYNABIRDS drop a new video for "What We Gained in the Fire."

NEW RELEASES from Smashing Pumpkins, Orange Juice, Sister Sparrow, the French Horn Rebellion and more are streaming via Spinner. It's the calm before the holiday storm.

STARS stopped by the World Cafe for a chat and mini-set.

FAMILY BANDS: A mix of Jacksons, Ramones, Carters, Kinks and more, courtesy of NPR.

DOSH did the four free songs thing for Daytrotter. Jazzy.

ATLAS SOUND: Bradford Cox (Deerhunter) has posted a free EP including covers of Kurt Vile and Dylan/The Band.

ARCADE FIRE played "Ready To Start," "Month Of May," "The Suburbs" and "Modern Man" for Jools Holland, which by my count is Fourfer Tuesday.

THE HOLD STEADY: Craig Finn talks about tour playlists, hip-hop and the World Series with Prefix.

BRYAN FERRY talks to The Quietus about the past and present, art, controversy, Keats, Kate Moss, and being stuck in a lift with Charlton Heston.

OLD SKULL singer J.P. Toulon has died at 30 of as-yet unknown causes.

WILCO: The Coffee.

CHARLIE SHEEN and adult film actress Capri Anderson are trading nasty public barbs about his hotel meltdown. And he's apparently suing her for extortion.

EVA LONGORIA & TONY PARKER: The inevitable stories about her from his frends.

JESSICA SIMPSON is not pregnant, just engaged.

KATE WINSLET and her model boyfriend of four months, Louis Dowler, are dunzo.

KOURTNEY KARDASHIAN and her baby boy Mason were rushed to a Los Angeles hospital by ambulance this past Friday night after the 11-month-old suffered an allergic reaction to peanut butter.

THE AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS had record low ratings. Thanks, Bieber!

MILEY CYRUS pulled the plug on singing "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" on the AMAs after rumors surfaced that Bret Michaels - the man who famously wrote and sang it - had an affair with Miley's mother.

LEO DiCAPRIO recently avoided disaster after one of his plane's engines shut down en route to Moscow.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER is getting a reboot without Joss Whedon, who comments.

ISLAMISM in the UK: The government says it will not tolerate anti-Semitic and homophobic lessons being taught to Muslim children in the UK.

IRAN's nuclear program has suffered a recent setback, with major technical problems forcing the temporary shutdown of thousands of centrifuges enriching uranium. Suspicions focused on the Stuxnet worm. Meanwhile, Tehran launched air defense missiles as part of recently completed war games.

AFGHANISTAN: Security forces killed and captured scores of Taliban and Haqqani Network commanders and fighters in Kandahar, Helmand, Khost, Paktia, and Logar. (Thx, LWJ.)  Old hands debate the introduction of US tanks into the theater.

CAT vs GATOR: Let's go to the video.

COUGAR CUBS: Aw.

WILD TIGERS could become extinct in 12 years if countries where they still roam fail to take quick action to protect their habitats and step up the fight against poaching, global wildlife experts told a "tiger summit" Sunday.

AN OUTBREAK OF MILLIPEDES on a local train line between Goryo and Ishikaki stations in Japan on the morning of Nov. 21 caused delays and the cancellation of two trains.

DOGS ARE SMARTER THAN CATS: You realize, of course, this means war.

THE DECEMBERISTS brought Gillian Welch along for "Down by the Water" on Conan.

THE FELICE BROTHERS played a short set on the Mountain Stage.

CLOUD CULT performed for a live audience of Current listeners and friends in the UBS Forum.

PETE YORN stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

SONNY & THE SANDWICHES: Sonny Smith (Sonny & the Sunsets) joins The Sanwiches for an EP, leading with "Throw My Ashes From This Pier When I Die."

U2: "Sunday, Bloody Sunday." Yesterday was the 90th anniversary of one such Sunday.

CARIBOU: Dan Snaith talks to The Guardian about changes both musical and lyrical.

GIRLS: Christopher Owens talks to The Fader about the new EP, old songs, the Internet buzz rollercoaster and more... (Thx, LHB.)

THE JESUS & MARY CHAIN: Jim Reid talks to The Arts Desk about the band, his earliest memories and more... (Thx again, LHB.)

THE WORST BEATLES COMPILATION, according to Neil McCormick at the Telegraph.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE:  Harry Potter dominated the receipts with 125.1 million -- a figure suprisingly large, even for the Potter franchise.  It is the 6th biggest opening ever (and the others were summer flicks, except Twilight: New Moon).  It easily beat Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire's 102 million opening, the prior record for the franchise.  The young wizards will likely make 2 billion before Christmas.  When Part 2 opens in 3-D, with the premium ticket price, it will have a shot at beating The Dark Knight for the all-time record.  Megamind dropped an expected 44 percent versus Potter, taking in 16.2 million and crossing the 100 million mark, which ensures a decent profit for DreamWorks (though not How to Train Yor Dragon-size success).  Unstoppable dropped a decent 42 percent to the third slot with 13.1 million, and will likely finish at the high end of the 60-70 million range for Denzel Washington-Tony Scott pics.  Overseas receipts will likely put it at 150 million on its 100 million budget.  The debut of The Next three Days rounds out the Top Five with 6.7 million, perhaps the biggest victim of He Who Must Not Be Named.

HARRY POTTER and the DEATHLY HALLOWS (Part 1), despite its massive opening, got some of the lowest Tomatometer ratings of the franchise (though still quite solid).  It's fairly easy to see why, as its strengths and weaknesses both flow from the decision (which likely involved both art and commerce) to split the supposed finale of the series into two movies.  As such, the tone of Part 1 is perhaps overly dark, and its ending a bit of an anti-climax.  On the other hand, the plot and character development needn't be overly condensed for time, which even I, a non-reader of the books, can appreciate -- and may appreciate more by the end of Part 2.  Having re-watched some of the earlier films in the weeks leading up to this one, I note that Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint can all take pride in how they have honed their craft from childhood to adulthood.  They have gotten a working education at the feet of some of Britain's finest actors, and it now shows in their work.  Well done, kids.

EVA LONGORIA & TONY PARKER: The NBA star has filed his own divorce petition against Longoria in Texas, setting up a legal battle.

LINDSAY LOHAN got the boot from that Linda Lovelace biopic, replaced by Malin Ackerman.  But you can't fire Lohan, she quit.

WESLEY SNIPES was ordered to start serving a three-year jail sentence on tax-related offences after a Florida Judge rejected the actor's appeal for a new trial.

TERI HATCHER quitting Desperate Housewives?

CHARLIE SHEEN's hotel companion headed to Good Morning America this morning?

THE AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS went to these folks.

TERROR in GERMANY: According to information obtained by German security authorities, al-Qaeda and associated groups are believed to be planning an attack on the Reichstag building in Berlin, the headquarters of Germany's parliament and also an attraction visited by thousands of tourists every day. As part of the attack, terrorists would seek to take hostages and perpetrate a bloodbath using firearms.

ISLAMISM in the USA: A federal judge's long-secret ruling that federal prosecutors violated the rights of three major American Islamic organizations and others named as unindicted co-conspirators in a Texas terrorism support case finally became public on Friday.  However, US District Court Judge Jorge Solis found that the government presented "ample evidence to establish the association" of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Islamic Society of North America, and the North American Islamic Trust with Hamas, a Palestinian group that the US has labeled as a terrorist organization and with a defunct charity convicted in the terrorism support case, the Holy Land Foundation.

NORTH KOREA showed a visiting American nuclear scientist earlier this month a vast new facility it secretly and rapidly built to enrich uranium, confronting the Obama admin. with the prospect that the country is preparing to expand its nuclear arsenal or build a far more powerful type of atomic bomb.

IRAN has been experiencing years of problems with equipment used in its uranium enrichment program and the Stuxnet computer virus may be one of the factors, a former top UN nuclear inspections official said.

PARROT vs CAT: Let's go to the video.

FROG bites off more than it can chew.

RADIOACTIVE MOUSE hunted near the Hanford nuclear reservation site.

HOMER the BLIND KITTEN finds a home.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with OTIS REDDING!  Otis and the Bar-Kays crank up the energy to 11 for a Ready Steady Go special, crashing through "Satisfaction,"  "My Girl" and "Respect," then "Hold On, I'm Coming," sung by Eric Burdon. Chis Farlowe sings "It's A Man's World," then Otis with "Pain In My Heart" and "I Can't Turn You Loose", followed by "Shake" morphing into "Land of a Thousand Dances" performed by Otis, Burdon and Farlowe.

BILLY BRAGG stopped by Oregon Public Broadcasting for a chat and mini-set in audio and video.

ADELE stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

GANG OF FOUR have a three-track EP to stream or download (if you don't mind parting with an email address).

NICOLE ATKINS is streaming two new tracks -- "Vultures" and a cover of Can's "Vitamin C' -- via Spinner.

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS: John Darnielle flags a video of "You Were Cool" -- an unreleased song he says will not be on the next MG's LP.

BEATLES vs STONES, courtesy of Sound Opinions. BONUS: The 100 Best Beatles Covers, courtesy of Paste.

EASYBEATS: The fish, the barrel, the smoking gun!

AMANDA PALMER talks to the Riverfront Times about the Dresden Dolls reunion.

LOCAL NATIVES: Taylor Rice talks to FasterLouder about going global. (Thx, LHB.)

WARPAINT is blurbed by BlackBook.

THE CONCRETES e-mailed Prefix about Rubix Cubes, loneliness, and recording their first album in three years.

WILD FLAG: The indie supergroup is profiled at The Atlantic.

CUTOUT BIN: Duos? We got 'em! Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoofs, She & Him, Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazlewood, and Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell are all there, plus Iggy Pop, the Replacements, Bobby Womack, Moby Grape, Mott the Hoople and more -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases are Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, which is currently scoring 77 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; and The Next Three Days, scoring 47 percent.

EVA LONGORIA & TONY PARKER: One report claims that Longoria initially denied that the couple was divorcing because she wanted to blindside him with the filing, as revenge for his sexting relationship with another woman.  Another report claims that Parker knew she would be filing for divorce in Los Angeles.  Parker apparently had a "sexting relationship" with Erin Barry, the estranged wife of former San Antonio Spur Brent Barry, but it ended months ago.

MAD MEL UPDATE: Oksana Grigorieva told Larry King that Gibson hit her, choked her and waved a gun at her during a violent encounter in January. Meanwhile, Gibson moved to strip Grigorieva of custody of their daughter.

LINDSAY LOHAN's stage mom Dina is spitting mad at "Glee" after last night's show featured a scene in which Gwyneth Paltrow, playing a substitute Spanish teacher, instructed her students in the language by asking them questions related to the troubled actress.

KATY PERRY: Her cups runneth over...and her reps don't like it!

KATE GOSSELIN made a small fortune from her reality show and ‘Dancing With The Stars,' but insiders say most of that money is now gone, leaving Kate worried about her financial future.

HARRY POTTER's young wizards try to speak American.

10 CLASSIC MOVIE OPENING SEQUENCES, according to Den of Geek.

IRAN tested its home-made version of the Russian-made S-300 air defense missile.  Experts dissecting the Stuxnet computer worm suspected of being aimed at Iran's nuclear program have determined that it was precisely calibrated in a way that could send nuclear centrifuges wildly out of control.

AFGHANISTAN: A top NATO official's warning that the alliance may miss a 2014 deadline for handing over control of Afghan security exposed a gulf between political timelines and complex military reality just before a major summit on the war.

IRAQ: President Jalal Talabani said Christians would be safe from sectarian attack if they move to Kurdistan in the country's north. He said the stay would be temporary until Iraqi special forces could guarantee their security.

MARCH of the DUCKS: Let's go to the video.

HEY, IS THAT A TURKEY IN YOUR PANTS, or... oh.

MAYBE THE DOG ate your passport.

WILD HORSES battle for domination and mating rights.