mysql select dates without tables

Question

I simply need to return a list of all days within a month. I'm not accessing a specific table. So I need a sql select statement if given the month of February, return the following:

Day
----
2011-02-01
2011-02-02
2011-02-03
... etc, etc. 
2011-02-27
2011-02-28

This should be fairly simple, i would think, if I knew the sql select statement I need to make. The month should be selectable, I'll pass that in from a webpage select box which lets the user select the month and year. This is going to be the basis of a report. I already have a select statement that will take each of the days and give counts on records related to those dates, but I need this table as a basis of my reports.

Answer 1

I agree with the comments, that something like this shouldn't be done in the database, but technically its possible. If you give the start and end date, adding additional numbers to the subquery if necessary:

SELECT '2011-02-01' + INTERVAL a + b DAY dte
FROM
 (SELECT 0 a UNION SELECT 1 a UNION SELECT 2 UNION SELECT 3
    UNION SELECT 4 UNION SELECT 5 UNION SELECT 6 UNION SELECT 7
    UNION SELECT 8 UNION SELECT 9 ) d,
 (SELECT 0 b UNION SELECT 10 UNION SELECT 20 
    UNION SELECT 30 UNION SELECT 40) m
WHERE '2011-02-01' + INTERVAL a + b DAY  <  '2011-03-01'
ORDER BY a + b

Results:

"2011-02-01"
"2011-02-02"
"2011-02-03"
....
"2011-02-28"