Songs Of The Week: A Tournament Of Music

The surprisingly divisive Swedish group Marching Band makes a song for lovers in springtime. courtesy of the artist hide caption

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courtesy of the artist

March is the month of tournaments, but why should college basketball have all the fun? Every weekday at NPR Music brings a new Song of the Day, so Jacki Lyden and Song of the Day editor Stephen Thompson recently sat down to debate this past week's selections.

Though Lyden expresses fondness for Ra Ra Riot's string-infused, E.E. Cummings-inspired "Dying Is Fine," she ultimately casts her lot with Tracy Chapman's folk-pop ballad "Sing for You," which Thompson praises for its warmth, as well as the way it sums up Chapman's 20-year career. Lyden expressed outright hostility toward Friday's selection, Hospital Ships' "Oh, Ramona."

Given his role as the series' curator, Thompson mounts a vigorous defense of "Oh, Ramona," but chooses as his favorite a sunny pop song called "Make No Plans" by the Swedish group Marching Band. He calls it a sweet soundtrack to the kind of love that blooms in springtime; an MP3 is available for download here.