Friday Five–December 4, 2009

1. What song do you play the most?
According to iTunes, Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody (23 plays)
According to Last.fm, Rob Pattinson – I’ll Be Your Lover Too (98 plays [oh geez.])

2. What song do you play the least? 30 Seconds to Mars – A Modern Myth (0 plays)

3. What’s the last song you added? Lady GaGa & Beyonce – Telephone

4. What’s your favorite playlist? I haven’t made a playlist in a really long time. I lost all my playlists when my iTunes 7 went wonky, so I haven’t really made any since then, even though I’ve since upgraded iTunes and it’s working properly again.

5. What kind of iPod (or MP3 player) do you have? I have an iPhone 3GS and an iPod Touch. Lately I’ve been using the iPhone pretty exclusively, but I need to transfer my new music purchases onto the iPod.

Friday Five for 26 June 2009:

1. If you could only hear one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
This is a tough question. Sometimes I get into phases where I’ll only listen to one artist or band for days at a time. After consulting my iTunes library and looking at my play counts, I’ll say Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen. That song is perfect in every way.

2. What one song would you like to be played at your funeral?
For a while, it’s been Closing Time by Semisonic. If you listen to the lyrics, it seems funnily appropriate. And I wouldn’t want my funeral to be a weep-fest anyway. No Sarah McLachlan songs at my wake, either!

3. What one song is best to describe your feelings right now?
Considering I’m kind of stressed, maybe…Under Pressure?

4. What one song would you like to hear when you’re sad and depressed?
When I want to feel better (sillier), I put on Cupid’s Chokehold. That song cracks me up.

5. What’s one song that you wish you’d written?
Can’t narrow it down, but anything by Tori Amos or Jewel. Love them.

What songs … either specific songs, or songs in general by a specific group or writer … have words that you love? Why? And … do the tunes that go with the fantastic lyrics live up to them?

This week’s question is…not about books, but songs! I could probably go on forever, so to answer this, I consulted my iTunes library and we have:

Rise Against – The Good Left Undone

In fields where nothing grew but weeds,
I found a flower at my feet,
bending there in my direction.
I wrapped a hand around its stem
and pulled until the roots gave in,
finding there what I’ve been missing.

The lyrics to this are poetic and rather beautiful, and part of me wishes that it had been done as a ballad instead.

Radiohead – High and Dry

Two jumps in a week,
I bet you think that’s pretty clever don’t you boy?
Flying on your motorcycle,
watching all the ground beneath you drop
You’d kill yourself for recognition,
kill yourself to never, ever stop
You broke another mirror,
you’re turning into something you are not

I’ve been listening to Radiohead more, and this is one of my favorites.

Modest Mouse – Float On

Bad news comes, don’t you worry even when it lands.
Good news will work its way to all them plans.
We both got fired on exactly the same day.
Well we’ll float on, good news is on the way.

If I’m having a bad day, this always makes me feel a little less crummy. It’s upbeat without being too cheesy.

I would like to share this bit of musical perfection with you:

Iron & Wine – Flightless Bird, American Mouth

It’s going to be on the Twilight soundtrack (and presumably, in the film; I am hoping for the prom scene, that would be so sweet), so now I am obsessed with the song, naturally.

Here’s an acoustic version that nearly brought me to tears the other night at 4 AM:

Saw this music meme over at knitv:

The rules:
A.) Go to musicoutfitters.com

B.) Enter the year you graduated from high school in the search function and get the list of 100 most popular songs of that year

C.) Bold the songs you like, strike through the ones you hate

I graduated in 1997. Also, to make the list easier to read I’m just leaving the ones I don’t like in non-bold text.

The list:

Top 100 Hits of 1997/Top 100 Songs of 1997

1. Candle In The Wind 1997, Elton John
2. Foolish Games/You Were Meant For Me, Jewel
3. I’ll Be Missing You, Puff Daddy and Faith Evans
4. Un-Break My Heart, Toni Braxton
5. Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down, Puff Daddy
6. I Believe I Can Fly, R. Kelly
7. Don’t Let Go (Love), En Vogue
8. Return Of The Mack, Mark Morrison
9. How Do I Live, LeAnn Rimes
10. Wannabe, Spice Girls
11. Quit Playing Games (With My Heart), Backstreet Boys
12. MMMBop, Hanson
13. For You I Will, Monica
14. You Make Me Wanna…, Usher
15. Bitch, Meredith Brooks
16. Nobody, Keith Sweat
17. Semi-Charmed Life, Third Eye Blind
18. Barely Breathing, Duncan Sheik
19. Hard To Say I’m Sorry, Az Yet Featuring Peter Cetera
20. Mo Money Mo Problems, Notorious B.I.G.
21. The Freshmen, Verve Pipe
22. I Want You, Savage Garden
23. No Diggity, BLACKstreet Featuring Dr. Dre
24. I Belong To You (Every Time I See Your Face), Rome
25. Hypnotize, Notorious B.I.G.
26. Every Time I Close My Eyes, Babyface
27. In My Bed, Dru Hill
28. Say You’ll Be There, Spice Girls
29. Do You Know (What It Takes), Robyn
30. 4 Seasons Of Loneliness, Boyz II Men
31. G.H.E.T.T.O.U.T., Changing Faces
32. Honey, Mariah Carey
33. I Believe In You And Me, Whitney Houston
34. Da’ Dip, Freaknasty
35. 2 Become 1, Spice Girls
36. All For You, Sister Hazel
37. Cupid, 112
38. Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?, Paula Cole
39. Sunny Came Home, Shawn Colvin
40. It’s Your Love, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill
41. Ooh Aah… Just A Little Bit, Gina G
42. Mouth, Merril Bainbridge
43. All Cried Out, Allure Featuring 112
44. I’m Still In Love With You, New Edition
45. Invisible Man, 98 Degrees
46. Not Tonight, Lil’ Kim
47. Look Into My Eyes, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
48. Get It Together, 702
49. All By Myself, Celine Dion
50. It’s All Coming Back To Me Now, Celine Dion
51. My Love Is The Shhh!, Somethin’ For The People
52. Where Do You Go, No Mercy
53. I Finally Found Someone, Barbra Streisand and Bryan Adams
54. I’ll Be, Foxy Brown Featuring Jay-Z
55. If It Makes You Happy, Sheryl Crow
56. Never Make A Promise, Dru Hill
57. When You Love A Woman, Journey
58. Up Jumps Da Boogie, Magoo And Timbaland
59. I Don’t Want To/I Love Me Some Him, Toni Braxton
60. Everyday Is A Winding Road, Sheryl Crow
61. Cold Rock A Party, Mc Lyte
62. Pony, Ginuwine
63. Building A Mystery, Sarah McLachlan
64. I Love You Always Forever, Donna Lewis
65. Your Woman, White Town
66. C U When U Get There, Coolio
67. Change The World, Eric Clapton
68. My Baby Daddy, B-Rock and The Bizz
69. Tubthumping, Chumbawamba
70. Gotham City, R. Kelly
71. Last Night, Az Yet
72. ESPN Presents The Jock Jam, Various Artists
73. Big Daddy, Heavy D
74. What About Us, Total
75. Smile, Scarface
76. What’s On Tonight, Montell Jordan
77. Secret Garden, Bruce Springsteen
78. The One I Gave My Heart, Aaliyah
79. Fly Like An Eagle, Seal
80. No Time, Lil’ Kim
81. Naked Eye, Luscious Jackson
82. Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix), Los Del Rio
83. On and On, Erykah Badu
84. Don’t Wanna Be A Player, Joe
85. I Shot The Sheriff, Warren G
86. You Should Be Mine (Don’t Waste Your Time), Brian McKnight Featuring Mase
87. Don’t Cry For Me Argentina, Madonna
88. Someone, SWV
89. Go The Distance, Michael Bolton
90. One More Time, Real McCoy
91. Butta Love, Next
92. Coco Jamboo, Mr. President

93. Twisted, Keith Sweat
94. Barbie Girl, Aqua
95. When You’re Gone/Free To Decide, Cranberries
96. Let Me Clear My Throat, DJ Kool
97. I Like It, Blackout Allstars
98. You’re Makin’ Me High/Let It Flow, Toni Braxton
99. You Must Love Me, Madonna
100. Let It Go, Ray J

Wow, I hardly like anything from that year, haha!

With all the blue I’ve felt lately, I need some happy little songs to pick me up, or at least make me smile for 3 minutes at a time. Here, I’ll share a mini-playlist with you!

1. Gym Class Heroes – Cupid’s Chokehold
I know this song is soooo cheesy, but that’s why I love it. If I had to choose her or the sun, I’d be one nocturnal son of a gun. hahaha

2. Elvis Presley – Burning Love
Some commercial on TV lately uses this song, and it gets stuck in my head. I’m just a hunk a hunk of burning love. How can you not love that??

3. Mika – Grace Kelly
If this doesn’t make you smile, your face is broken.

4. Justin Timberlake – Love Stoned
You know I had to throw JT in there. Hot DAMN! haha

5. The Temptations – I Can’t Get Next To You
A little bit of old school for ya!

Download it here: happylittlesongs.zip Enjoy!

I made a “leaving” music mix. Here’s the playlist, everything from Marilyn Manson (I’m not kidding) to Jeff Buckley.

1. Marilyn Manson – Tainted Love
2. The Killers – For Reasons Unknown
3. Damien Rice – Rootless Tree
4. Soul Asylum – Misery
5. Annie Lennox – Why
6. Elton John – I Want Love
7. Modest Mouse – The World At Large
8. Counting Crows – A Long December
9. Beth Hart – L.A. Song
10. Shelby Lynne – Leavin’
11. Patty Griffin – Let Him Fly
12. Tori Amos – Landslide
13. Jeff Buckley – Hallelujah

And so you know, some of the songs do contain explicit lyrics (track 9 and especially track 3), so don’t listen to those if your ears are sensitive to that kind of thing.

songsforleaving.zip