Just some quick hits today before the holiday lay-off.

It was surprising and saddening to learn of Chris Whitley's death yesterday. Never a huge fan, I still seem to have acquired about half of his catalog, and like his music when I take the time to listen. He was a restless soul who bordered at times on genius, which meant he was consigned to a life on the fringes. Still, his debut, Living with the Law, and the stripped-down gem Dirt Floor are well worth seeking out, and the rest of his work, while challenging to the point of being off-putting at times, will likely offer rewards for years to come. There is plenty of opportunity to catch up. There's a link to a downloadable live set from July on his web site, and there are tracks from his albums to sample as well. His record label, Messenger Records, has a nice tribute as its homepage now.

It's odd timing to release an expansive box set by a cult artist more than a month after Christmas, but fans of Richard Thompson will be willing to wait for the five-CD box set RT - The Life and Music of Richard Thompson. It's a staggering set that features unreleased tracks, alternate and live versions of his best songs, a set of live "workouts," covers and rarities. A separate sixth disc of still more rare tracks goes to the first 5,000 people who return a voucher in the box. It even includes a 172-page book about Thompson that sounds interesting in its own right. A look at the track list for the discs whets the appetite and makes February seem a long way off.

Ron Hogan at MediaBistro's GalleyCat reports that the paperback edition of Jeffrey Eugenides' Middlesex has sold 1 million copies. That's mighty impressive. It was a great read, but getting 1 million people to pony up $12 to read about a Greek hermaphrodite? That's some successful marketing. The Pulitzer and the National Book Critics Circle awards didn't hurt, but as Hogan points out, there was no Oprah boost to put this one over the top.