As I sat down at my computer Friday morning to start work on the next episode of Murphy's Saloon, I found that not even the external "power ready" light was visible.

I called Apple tech support, fed a sizable number of dollar bills into the slot, was advised by the tech helper to push the internal "reset" button - and got nothing.

This week's playlist:

• I Got No Reason (Live) by Mitch Kashmar, from Live At Labatt (2008), available from Delta Groove Productions.com. Visit this page at Delta Groove Productions.com for more information.

• Pontiac Blues (Live) by Magic Dick, from Mark Hummel's Blues Harmonica Blowouts (2008), available from Electro-Fi.com. Visit MagicDick.com and MarkHummel.com for more information.

• Wouldn't Know Where to Start by Jo Jo Zep and the Falcons, from Ricochet (2008), available from HeadRecords.com and CDUniverse.com. Visit HeadRecords.com for more information.

• I Will Vanish, Every Temptation and Block Of Wood, all by Paul Reddick, and all from SugarBird (2008), available from NorthernBlues.com and the iTunes Music Store. Visit PaulReddick.ca for more information.

• Follow That Sound by Sharon Little, from Perfect Time For A Breakdown (2008); available from Amazon.com and the iTunes Music Store. Visit SharonLittle.com for more information.

• Deep in the Night by Lil' Dave Thompson, from Deep in the Night (2008), available from ElectroFi.com and the iTMS. Visit LilDaveThompson.com for more information.

• Cruisin' by Tommy Dardar, from Blues Fool (2008), available from TommyDardar.com. Visit TommyDardar.com for more information.

• Brown Angel by Nerak Roth Patterson, from the forthcoming album Brown Angel on the Blues Leaf Records label. Visit Nerak's MySpace page for more information.

Mentioned during this episode: Studs Terkel and his book Division Street: America; Roger Ebert's remembrance of Studs, To Studs: With love and memories and two other columns - Happy 95th, Studs! and How Studs helps me lead my life; and James T. Farrell and the Studs Lonigan Trilogy.

Excellent resources for more information about the blues: The Blues Foundation and the Delta Blues Museum; be sure to download and listen to the DBM's top-notch (and free) podcast, the Uncensored History of the Blues; BluesRevue.com, the online home of Blues Revue magazine; BigCityBluesMag.com, the online home of Big City Blues magazine; BluesCritic.com.

Be sure to read Today's Chicago Blues by Karen Hanson, an excellent guide to all things blues in present-day Chicago.

(Music on Murphy's Saloon #144 courtesy of the artists and IODA PROMONET, the Podsafe Music Network, Download.com or Garageband.com)

This week's playlist:

• Rain, Rain by The Detonators. Their site is here and their MySpace page is here.

• The Moon Is Full by Albert Collins, Johnny Copeland and Robert Cray, from Showdown! (1985) available from Alligator Records and the iTMS. Visit Collins' page, Copeland's page and Cray's page at the Alligator site for more information.

• Ain't Good Lookin' by Billy Jones, from tha' Blues, available from Black and Tan Records and the iTunes Music Store. Visit Billy-Jones.com for more information.

• Tell Me A Story by Chris Juergensen, from Big Bad Sun (2005), available from CD Baby and the iTMS. Visit ChrisJuergensen.com to buy Big Bad Sun and for more information.

• Amtrak by the Big George Jackson Blues Band, from Southern In My Soul, available from Black & Tan Records and the iTMS. Visit BigGeorgeJackson.com for more information.

• Foul Weather Blues by Harpdog Brown. To buy Harpdog's most recent CD, Once in a Howlin' Moon, visit HarpdogBrown.com. Visit Harpdog's Garageband page or his MySpace page for more information and to hear more killer tracks.

• Fool For You by The Mescal Sheiks, from This World Is Not My Home (2006), available from CD Baby and the iTunes Music Store. Visit MescalSheiks.com or their MySpace page for more information.

• Listen To The Wind by The Hitman Blues Band, from Angel in the Shadow (2003), available from CD Baby and the iTunes Music Store. Visit HitmanBluesBand.com and their MySpace page for more information.

• See Me In the Evening by Hound Dog Taylor, from Deluxe Edition (1999), available from Alligator Records and from the iTMS. Visit Hound Dog's bio page at the Alligator Records site for more information.

• Uh Uh Baby by EB Davis & The Superband, from Live at the A-Trane, Berlin (2005). EB sells his own CDs through his online store. Visit EB Davis.com and his MySpace page for more information.

• Angeline by George Fletcher's Bourbon Renewal, from Ain't The Worst That You Could Find (2000), available from CD Baby. Visit GeorgeFletcher.com for more information.

• In The Windy City by The Chicago Thieves, from In The Windy City (2007); available from CD Baby and the iTMS. Visit ChicagoThieves.co.uk for more information.

• Heartless by Michael Burks, from Make It Rain (2001), available from Alligator Records and the iTunes Music Store. Visit MichaelBurks.com for more information.

• Beehive Baby by Reverend Raven, featuring Madison Slim, from Live At Blues On Grand (2004); available from their site, CD Baby and the iTunes Music Store. Visit ReverendRaven.com for more information.

• Housecat Blues by Magic Slim & The Teardrops, from Midnight Blues (2008); available from Blind Pig Records and the iTMS. Visit this page at the Blind Pig Records site for more information.

Mentioned during this show: BarackObama.com/issues.

Excellent resources for more information about the blues: The Blues Foundation and the Delta Blues Museum; be sure to download and listen to the DBM's top-notch (and free) podcast, the Uncensored History of the Blues; BluesRevue.com, the online home of Blues Revue magazine; BigCityBluesMag.com, the online home of Big City Blues magazine; BluesCritic.com.

Be sure to read Today's Chicago Blues by Karen Hanson, an excellent guide to all things blues in present-day Chicago.

(Music on Murphy's Saloon #143 courtesy of the artists and the Podsafe Music Network, IODA PROMONET, Download.com or Garageband.com)