nothing to see
When sorting by artist, everything was blank at the song level. Hmmm, disk utility reports:
Verify and Repair disk “Swanksalot Jr.”
Checking HFS Plus volume.
Checking Extents Overflow file.
Checking Catalog file.
Checking Catalog hierarchy.
Checking volume bitmap.
Checking volume information.
Invalid volume free block count
(It should be 64123 instead of 64258)
Repairing volume.
Rechecking volume.
Checking HFS Plus volume.
Checking Extents Overflow file.
Checking Catalog file.
Checking Catalog hierarchy.
Checking volume bitmap.
Checking volume information.
The volume Swanksalot Jr. was repaired successfully.
Mounting Disk1 HFS volume checked
Repair attempted on 1 volume
1 HFS volume repaired
The ipod hard drive is responsible for many errors, but in many instances, the problem is not actually with the hard drive, but with the hard drive cable. Corrosion develops on the silver part of the hard drive cable and must be cleaned periodically to keep the iPod functioning correctly. This isn't always the case, but many times it is.