My colleague Ryan Beckwith is taking suggestions over at the N&O's political blog about what should be North Carolina's official rock song. A few states do have them, and a dust-up erupted in Oklahoma recently after the Flaming Lips' "Do You Realize??" proved to be a controversial state-song selection with more conservative members of the state legislature.

If they put this to any sort of vote, it's a lead-pipe cinch that James Taylor's "Carolina in My Mind" would win. And that's a lovely song, sure, but way too obvious. I'd put in a vote for something more left-field -- Squirrel Nut Zippers' "Put a Lid on It," say, or the Connells' "Stone Cold Yesterday"; perhaps Let's Active's "Every Word Means No." Or, in honor of the state's growing Latino population, Rey Norteno's "Raleigh."

Over to you, what should it be? Weigh in here, or at Under the Dome.

Continuing our theme of premature Christmas music, I'm still not ready to start hearing it on the radio or in the air -- but I do think I'm ready to hear some Christmas music played live. Fortuitously, the release party for the third volume of "Have a Holly Raleigh Christmas" is Thursday night at Tir Na Nog. The album is wonderful, the best yet in the series, with 14 diverse tracks ranging from the conjunto of Rey Norteno's "De La Mano De Dios" to the mournful pop of Day Action Band's "Your Last Childhood Christmas Eve" and Don Dixon's majestic "Winter's on the Run." It also has a handful of sharp instrumentals, including Triangle Tuba Quartet's "Jolly Old St. Nicholas" and Tracy Thornton's steel-drum delight "Jingle Bells."

Proceeds from the album benefit the Community Music School. And here's the lineup for Thursday night's show, which will also feature Dan Bryk (an alumus of the first "Holly Raleigh" album, from 2006) appearing as Santa Claus:

7:00 Joe Newberry
7:15 Nathan Oliver
7:35 Day Action Band
7:55 Regina Hexaphone
8:15 Gray Young
8:35 Terry Anderson/OAK Team
8:55 Port Huron Statement
9:15 Killer Filler