This is a tough one for me, because I've always had difficulty choosing one song. In fact, my wife claims I have about a thousand favorite songs.
It does seem that about every third song that comes on the radio, I crank it up and tell her it's a favorite.
Basically, I sort music by age. Mine, that is. So I have faves from childhood, faves from middle school, faves from high school. Well, you get the idea. Taken together, these songs form the soundtrack of my life.
Take my mp3 player, for instance. I have songs on it that date back to the 1960s (Beatles, Stones, The Who) through the 70s, 80s, 90s, and up to right now. And they are shuffled, so I can listen to the Beatles doing "Ticket to Ride," followed by Lady Gaga singing "Paparazzi," followed by The Clash, Springsteen, The Jam, Matt and Kim, and ELO. Oh, with a little Lily Allen and the Doors thrown in.
But favorite song? Sheesh. You might as well ask me which of my three sons is my favorite (hint: It changes daily).
So I'm going to sort them into three basic age groupings and then come up with my absolute favorite (which will have likely changed by the time you read this).
Younger years favorite: "Thank You" by Led Zeppelin. It's a gorgeous, lush ballad by one of the most kick-ass rock bands ever. And it reminds me of a girl I loved in eighth grade. So, shoot me.
Middle years favorite: Tie between "Streets of Fire" by Springsteen and "That's Entertainment" by the Jam. OK, and maybe "Man Out of Time" by Elvis Costello. See?
Latter years favorite: Hmmm. So many to choose from, believe it or not. I really like today's music. I'd have to say "The Suburbs" by Arcade Fire, followed closely by "Rebellion (Lies)" also by Arcade Fire.
And now for my favorite song of all time (which really hasn't changed since I was a kid). It's ... "Baby Blue" by Badfinger. Best. Damned. Song. Ever.
What's yours?
My music is very much charted by songs that changed me and how old I was. It's a weird sort of carbon dating.
ReplyDeleteBTW: 'Thank You' is my all time fav Zeppelin song.
My current song I can't stop listening to is this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYEDA3JcQqw&ob=av2em
My kids think it's totally not me, but they weren't around for my Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin, Tracy Chapman era.
But, of all time, the list is thus (and hell no, not in order)
Pink Floyd - Keep Talking
The Police - Every Breath You Take
Sting - Fields of Gold
Blue October - The 21st
Seether - The Gift
The Hollies - Long Cool Woman
Tommy James - Crimson and Clover
Godley and Creme - Cry
Disturbed - Deify
Breaking Benjamin - Forget It
Metallica - Hero of the Day
Matchbox 20 - Push
Peter Gabriel - In Your Eyes
Joan Jett - Do You Wanna Touch Me There
Springsteen - Streets of Philadelphia
Rick Springfield - Jesse's Girl
Cyndi Lauper - I'm Gonna Be Strong
Tina Turner - River Deep Mountain High
Tracy Chapman - Fast Car
CCR - Long As I Can See the Light
Death Cab For Cutie - Where Soul Meets Body
Chevelle - Vitamin R
Papa Roach - Last Resort
And of course the albums which totally date me:
Def Leppard: Hysteria
Guns n Roses: Appetite for Destruction
Bon Jovi: Slippery When Wet
Metallica: And Justice for All
Eclectic, me. Imma stop before this gets really long.
I have a rather narrow selection to choose from and my husband HATES my music. But I can actually pick a favourite and stand by it (despite the rotten fruit that will be tossed my way). My fav is:
ReplyDeleteWe've Got Tonight - and to make myself look even more alone I will stipulate that I mean the Kenny Rogers version. What can I say? I'm a little bit Country.
I suppose I can answer this question and the last about my favorite band with one response: I'm not sure what my favorite song is, but it's probably a Pink Floyd song.
ReplyDeleteLike you Terry, my tastes change daily - hourly. I'm totally into Godsmack, Linkin Park, Nickel Back, Rob Zombie, Kid Rock .. gee so many good rock bands of today. I'm always happy to head some old favs that my kids enjoy; Black Sabbath (yes, anything Ozzy), Metallica, Guns N Roses; Ghads, I can't remember them all.
But I'm a country music fan - don't think there's a Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings or George Jones/Straight song I don't know by heart. Toby Keith, Tim McGraw, Martina McBride, Reba, Taylor Swift, the list goes on. Not to mention I'm seduced by classical. I'm a fan of elevator music; especially when it's piano.
It too impossible to pick a single song or band when there's so much awesome to choose from.
Must be how an agent feels sometimes . .
.........dhole
I could list zillions, so instead I'll just put the one that currently tops my Most Played list in iTunes. It is my edited version of Enya's 'Council of Elrond', which is the most hauntingly beautiful song I have ever heard. I have it fade out after the last vocal.
ReplyDeleteI spent a lot of time pondering this. It's a pretty damn tough choice with so many awesome songs, but I think I have to go with Sarah Brightman's Phantom of the Opera.
ReplyDeleteParticularly this performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnVg0S4PjaI
I tend to go for classical and usually cello. Yo Yo Ma makes me cry sometimes...I have contemporary songs that I write to, but they're staying power is minimal. I'm always replacing my favorites.
ReplyDeleteEdge of Your Seat Romance
I have no favorite songs. I like everything. I do have types I listen to at different times according to what I've writing and what my characters are like.
ReplyDeleteMy American Revolution ms calls for folk songs of the era and classical for the piano. My country restaurant mystery ms calls for country music with a little rock. My wealthy romance MC calls for classical and musical soundtracks. You get the picture.
For my vintage mystery I'm working on now, I'm listening to 1950's and 60's pop hits.
Never done any hip-hop or rap. Not yet.