Playlist Commentary

OK - y'all have had a while to listen to my playlist, so I figured it's high time I explained why I picked each song. These are not arranged in any particular order. I do plan to add more as Last.fm makes them available. I might take some away too.

1. The Zombies – Walking in the Sun
The Zombies are perhaps more well-known for their song Time of the Season, but that one is SO overplayed. So, I picked this one. The lyrics are just a shallow love song, and I'm considering taking this one off my list, for lack of any truly outstanding qualities other than "I never heard it on the radio before." Yet, perhaps I could claim that it encapsulated Adrian's feelings about PDA (certainly not mine), though I'm sure he would never be so verbose as to explain it like this. Anyway, cool music and nice voices.

2. Aerosmith – Crazy
Adrian showed me this song. I like it because it just seems so sincere. It's not a pure love song, people are imperfect and they hurt you (sometimes they even do it on purpose), and they make you mad! Yet, you can keep loving them anyway. Sometimes, you can't keep from loving them anyway. I love the parts of the song where the guitar seems to be a bit off beat, maybe even off key? It reminds me of the 1st Back to the Future, when Marty is trying to play guitar while fading out of existence. If you imagine that all the music in the song comes from a single source, it lends even more veracity to the claim that the author is being driven out of his mind. Most Aerosmith stuff I find a bit too stylistically homogeneous (though I also like Sing for the Years), and given that I haven't fallen in love with their style, I don't see a need to repeat it endlessly (but it really fits this song). I also like the mandolin or whatever it is in the background that gives a slight feeling of an Italian serenade.

3. Guns N' Roses – Don't Cry
Though the band has certainly gained some notoriety, I had never knowingly heard them on the radio. Adrian introduced me to this song. There's alot to like here, but mostly I go for the voice and lyrics in this one. I suppose it's a good example of the way I'd want to be talked to if I felt like crying. "Talk to me softly/there's something in your eyes" (gentle, and no actual accusation of crying, allowing the hearer to keep up a front)... "Give me a whisper (hissing inhale)/and give me a sigh (exhale)"... "Don't you take it so hard now/and please don't take it so bad"... "you'll feel better tomorrow/on the morning light"

4. David Bowie – As the World Falls Down
This is really the theme song from the movie Labyrinth. I saw that movie once at a friend's house when I was about ten years old, and never saw it again for probably at least a decade. Nevertheless, the ballroom scene in which this song is played (along with Jareth's character) became lodged somewhere in my unconscious along with an odd fascination. In the beginning, I didn't even know the lyrics - but now that I do, I like them, particularly "Deep in your eyes, a kind of pale jewel" and "Every thrill has gone/Wasnt too much fun at all/But Ill be there for you"

5. Kim Hill – Secret Place
In many ways, this song should probably be too simple for my taste. However, it's simplicity really accentuates the attractions, mainly, HER VOICE! So low and smooth - yet not as unreachably low as Toni Braxton ;) Lyrics are a bit awkward at times (for instance "your words a peace impart to me" - sounds like Yoda grammar), but the subject matter is not too simple. I also really like the guitar bridge. There is another Kim Hill song that I heard on Christian radio once, maybe 15 years ago, and have never been able to forget. If Last.fm uploads this one, and it's as great as I remember, that one will be added to my playlist.

6. Barbra Streisand – Papa, Can You Hear Me?
Like almost all BS stuff (heehee - how would you like to have her initials??), this tends more towards a musical theater style. I just like the piercing quality of her voice in this melody, which matches the lyrics. This song is from a weird movie called Yentl.

7. Vanessa Paradis – Be My Baby
This is really just a catchy pop song - but you never hear it on American radio because the singer is French. As a matter of fact, she is Johnny Depp's significant other (common law wife?). I suppose I like this song mainly because of her, rather than the song itself (though she has other songs that I don't enjoy as much as this one). Growing up, I have always had a fairly large space between my two front teeth. In childhood, that is cute, acceptable, and normal. In adulthood, I'd always thought it a bit weird. However, from a dental point of view, it's actually an advantage: always better to have more space for your chompers than less. Nevertheless, several dentists, while doing routine check-ups, offered to "fix" my little irregularity. I declined, on the grounds that I was content in my natural state. However, each time a new dentist offered "the change," I grew less content. Besides, I have many spending priorities that come higher than cosmetic dentistry. After I met Adrian, he once commented that he thought the space between my teeth was "sexy." I was very surprised! Eventually he got around to showing me a video of Vanessa Paradis - lo and behold, she has the same space, perhaps even a bit wider! So, what I had come to think of as a detraction was actually a prominent feature of a sexy French actress/singer! So, VP is to thank for this small part of my self-esteem. I can't help but like at least one of her songs ;) Dentists are jerks!

8. Eurythmics – I Saved the World Today
In the music section at Mardels in Tulsa, they used to have a big binder that would equate the musical styles of various Christian artists and secular artists. The idea was that if you were new to Christian music, you could find what you liked. Well, I grew up on Christian music, and knew practically nothing of secular music (part of that was self-inflicted; my parents did expose me to a variety of classic rock, jazz, and classical pieces), so I had a more reverse (perhaps some would say perverse?) curiosity. I saw that Margaret Becker was equated with Annie Lennox. I had never heard the name before, but I certainly never forgot it after that. I have since come to doubt the complete accuracy of that assessment (though the song Would I Lie to You REALLY does sound like MaggieB), but once I found out who Annie Lennox was, I listened a bit more intently than I would've had I not had her recommended to me in this way. Anyhow, the sometimes overplayed Eurythmics hits are not bad, but when I heard this particular track, I really fell for it! Her voice, of course, is lovely and I very much enjoy duplicating it. The melody is pleasing, and the lyrics are enigmatically cynical and fatalistic.On a lighter note, I can't help but think of the Arthur Dent character from Adventures in Odyssey (which they stole from Hitchikker's Guide to the Galaxy) "I saved the tower! I blew up the world!"

9. Cher – The Way of Love
Again, more musical theater style, but unlike Streisand, that is not what Cher usually does. The words, melody, etc are pretty simple, and the song itself is really short, basically just two repetitions of one verse! It's so simple, and Cher is not generally high on my listening list, I've considered taking it off this list. But, you also NEVER hear it on the radio (well, ok, I heard it a couple times on the radio, that's actually how I discovered this song ), and it doesn't sound like most Cher (every time Adrian hears this song he's like "I can't believe that's Cher!"), so for now it stays. Plus, it is very pretty, and Cher does have a good voice.

10. Modern Talking – You're My Heart, You're My Soul
There are basically two things that I love about 80's music. One: layered synth instrumentation, Two: something I call "That Eighties Voice." Modern Talking is more an example of the former than the later. Perhaps that makes sense, given that most 80's New Wave and New Romantic stuff was just a continuation of the British invasion - and this band is German! Still I do enjoy the way I do the vocals for this song (I think they miss alot of opportunities for impact with annunciation and tonal control). I also like to imagine performing this one, perhaps in a music video with facial close-ups. When I would sing as a kid I HATED the idea of stage presence, I thought sound should be all that mattered about singing; plus, most of the stage presence I'd seen up 'til then was pretty lame (mostly just insincere arm movements). Now I've begun to see that good stage presence is really a form of acting, and the sounds made by your voice should just be an extension of the emotions of the music, likewise for your whole body, particularly the face. True STAGE presence is about the body, but in any more intimate setting, particularly with the modern advent of video, facial expressions are a crucial part of a good performance. Most Modern Talking stuff is way too homogeneous, so I don't see any sense in overloading, one track is plenty. As a side note, I often thought that Modern Talking is kinda what the BeeGees coulda been if they had ever moved on from the 70s. I guess it's just the falsetto stuff that makes me say that. The lyrics are kinda shallow... unless you have enough imagination to weave your own storyline with them, as I have begun to do ;)

11. Vera Lynn – We'll Meet Again
I think this song was popular during WWII, and would've been forgotten had it not been for it's inclusion in the movie Dr. Strangelove. I think there's also a short scene with it in Hellboy. It's also mentioned in a Pink Floyd song. I guess people back then were used to it, but I find the vibrato style a bit annoying. Still, the modulation of organ and voice actually mesh together quite well, and it stands out among the styles of today. What I really love about this song is her voice (tone and pitch) on the "we'll meet again" strains. I also like some of her "accent," sort of folksy and childish in a womanly kind of way, but not too much.

12. The Lightning Seeds – You Showed Me
Cool music, cool voice - not super outstanding, but just... cool? Maybe I should take this one off too.

13. Kansas – The Devil Game
Wow! I know full-blown Kansas can be overpowering for those who are not used to it, or even for those who are, but are not in an energized enough mood. Kansas is a combination of manic energy and extreme instrumentation - how come all they ever play on the radio is Dust in the Wind and Carry On Wayward Son? From Dust in the Wind you might never even know they were a rock band. All Kansas lyrics are powerful - these sound like they are straight out of some 1800's fire and brimstone sermon! ...and all this from a secular classic rock band? It's just so unexpected, and that's why I love it! Or, maybe I just love the way it reminds me of my Dad going to town on his set... or the image of me hair down long (before I cut it) in a long black skirt and blouse with red fedora and leather gloves, belting this out at the amphitheater in Acacia Park! Yes; I did that. Too bad more people didn't show up. I think I was somewhere between a witch and a cowgirl and a street preacher... Rachel said my costume was over the top. With Kansas, how can you be anything other than over the top? I think over the top suits my stage personality... who says Christian music has to be boring? ;)

14. The Yardbirds – For Your Love
Maybe I'll delete this one too. It's just that the Yardbirds is a fairly unknown band (today) that represents an early coalition of some of the greatest guitar talents known to man: : Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page. But, it is a live recording, and whoever is singing at the end is horribly off key, like fingernails on a chalkboard! Yup, definitely gonna have to get rid of this one...just a few more listens first though ;) Anyway, lots of good Kansas songs are worth adding.

15. Elton John – Someone Saved My Life Tonight
I don't generally like Elton John a whole lot, but this song is just too sincere to pass up. It's supposedly about how he almost got married, and someone stopped him. Now, obviously, I'm not anti-marriage, but if you don't think the person you are going to marry is the right one, then maybe this could be called saving someone's life.

16. Sarah Brightman – Figlio Perduto
Rachel told me this was a dirge for an elven prince. I don't know elven, so I can't confirm that, but it's a very pretty in a foreboding sort of way. I've got a few more Brightman numbers that I want to add to this list, once Last.fm brings them online. I'm especially looking forward to getting Gloomy Sunday back (they had it, and then they lost it :P )

17. Charlie Peacock – The Way Of Love
Very interesting melody/instrumentation, unique vocals, not to mention great Christian lyrics - basically 1 Corinthians 13. Incredible background vocals by the late Vince Ebo (suicide). One of the few background vocals that I actually listen to - interesting to note that as a kid, I never realized there were two singers. There are some other Peacock songs that I will probably add later: The Secret of Time, and Dear Friend. The Secret of Time album was the first CD that I ever owned, and I bought it for the song Almost Threw it All Away.

18. Heart – Dog & Butterfly
Great vocals, complex melody, simple instrumentation. What I really love about this song are the lyrics - I didn't understand them for a long time. As I understand this song now, it is using the simple analogy of a dog chasing a butterfly to represent that in life, there are some things that we want, yet simply cannot have. But we try anyway. It's not sensible. We laugh at our own foolishness in pursuing these things. We cry in bitter disappointment at not being able to have them... and we try anyway. We HAVE to. Maybe after a certain point we stop trying, we become sensible. And yet, there's a dullness in that sensibility. Something about being human requires that if you have a dream, you HAVE to try.

19. Toto Cutugno – L'italiano
Here's another one that I know of thanks to Adrian. I LOVE his voice. I think I like the lyrics too, something about singing my song with a piano and a guitar in my hand, something about spaghetti and the president, being a true Italian. I just try to vaguely sound like him, singing syllables that I don't understand, in as scratchy a voice as I can muster. Again, this is another one of those where it's fun to imagine facial expressions to go with everything (you know, I think that's really what made the Numa Numa song such a hit: Gary's expressions!).

20. Margaret Becker – O Come, O Come Emmanuel
I think this is the coolest version of a Christmas song that will ever be made (with the exception of TSO)! Or, maybe I just like this song because I remember awing an audience with it at age 12 ;) The timing and range are the most challenging things about this song. Of course, I pretty much love ANY Margaret Becker song. I also put Find Me on here (I love the baseline, her voice, and the lyrics, particularly the lines : "let my hair grow wild and free," "sit out on the edge of the fire escape/feel a little destitute," "give away my TV"), and I may add some others (especially when they get more of her stuff uploaded). I'm particularly looking forward to getting Pico Boulevard, and might go ahead and put up Soul Tattoo even now.

21. Sixpence None the Richer – self-titled album and Divine Discontent
Most people know Sixpence because of their radio hits Kiss Me, There She Goes, and Don't Dream It's Over (originally by Crowded House - and, as usual, I prefer the original). Most people don't even realize that they are a crossover band (they are Christian, but managed to get some secular airtime). One thing I love about their albums is how fluid the tracks are - like a some soundtrack albums, or Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. Sometimes it seems that the tracks just flow together into a single masterpiece (with the exception of the overplayed hits I mentioned above). So, that's one thing I haven't figured out how to convey with this playlist. You will get some of my favorite songs played as individual tracks, but that's not the whole effect. Anyway, complex fluidity is the best way I can think of to describe their stuff: whether describing an album, the instrumentation, the tone of her voice, the lyrics, etc. Gorgeous!

22. Fiona Apple – Across the Universe
For more info about this song, see my previous blog posting my karaoke version of it. Recording Bug. Anyway, mainly I just love her voice and style, very unique.

23. Lisa Bevill – Never Could
This song is so... bluesy? I'm not extremely good with classifying things in the right genre. Anyway, it's like blues, and soul, and jazz - plus a great voice (not that soul is possible without a great voice)! I fell in love with this song at a time in my life when I was feeling very lonely (living at Purdue for a summer internship that wasn't teaching me anything). It just hit home "never could make it/never could make it alone/and if I could make it/I wouldn't wanna make it on my own."

24. Goldfrapp - Utopia
I discovered this one through Last.fm! The lyrics and music are both so cold and ethereal - a perfect match. The music video fort this on YouTube is really short of what I expected. I've got all my own facial expressions worked out. I so need to get a camera. Oh, yeah Mainly just keep an almost blank expression, except for a sort of curiosity, slowly shifting eyes. Then on "Fascist Baby," the beginning of a flirty, almost predatory grin. Then, as the "utopia" refrains begin, a bit of an obsessive glow in the eyes, fixed far in the distance.

25. Petra - Graverobber, Not of this World
Petra is some of the best classic Christian rock out there. Great lyrics, great music, good voices, and alot of passion. As with Sixpence, it would be really nice to link up the instrumental Doxology as an intro to Not of this World, just like it is on the album. That's the way I grew up hearing it, and I was surprised when I realized they were separate tracks - what is up with that? But, can't do that yet. Graverobber is also awesome, for the words as much as anything "Where is the sting tell me where is the bite/when the graverobber comes like a thief in the night/where is the victory, where is the prize/when the graverobber comes and death finally dies" - that's basic Christianity for you right there. I don't know why church praise songs can't do something like that. I'll probably add some more Petra at some point, at least Whole World and Shakin' the House.

26. Toto - Can You Hear What I'm Saying
I mainly love the percussive instrumentation and general nature of this song. I used to be afraid of being associated with the liberalism of the lyrics - but there's nothing in there that I really disagree with (it's just a matter of degree and detail, there are more important problems than what they think, or better solutions than what they propose, or different sources to blame, etc...), so that's a lame reason to not include this song. I used to always think of it at a more personal level, just a misunderstood person asking Can You Hear What I'm Saying.