HOWEVER, there are a few songs that have withstood the test of time and have remained on my internal list of favorite things for a long enough amount of time that I can officially deem them favorites. Essentially, this is my list of songs that I (so far) have not grown tired of, and do not anticipate to anytime in the foreseeable future. So, without further adieu, these are the 15 songs I'd choose if I could only listen to 15 songs for the rest of my life:
"Moondance"
from the album Moondance
"All the nights magic seems to whisper and hush"
This is a constant in my life. Whatever mood I'm in, I can turn this song on and instantly feel at least 10x better. It's not about the lyrics so much as the instrumental elements complimenting Morrison's captivating voice. He could be singing in gibberish, or just humming, and I would still consider this to be my favorite song of all time. If it weren't called Moondance, I'd say it makes me want to dance on the moon, but now it just sounds corny and predictable. The music captures the essence of what it feels like to dance under the light of the moon. It makes me feel beautiful.
"The Con"
from the album The Con
from the album The Con
I don't know what they're talking about. I know that pain, though. The kind of pain where everything going on inside your head - your emotions - really only make sense to you. You try to get it out, but nobody gets it. It's one of the loneliest feelings I can think of.
"What I Got"
from the album Sublime
"Life is too short, so love the one you've got; cause you might get run over or you might get shot"
I have this distinct memory of hearing this song in my Jeep (back when it was my mom's) with my big sister. I was singing along to some other song - probably something gangsta, cause my sister told me to stop singing it - and she turned this one on, and taught me the lyrics. I was probably around 8 years old. It was the same day my sister put her foot out the window and a motorcyclist drove by and pinched her toe, scaring the shit out of her. If not for that golden memory right there, I love this song because it helps keep me grounded.
from the album Escape
This song follows me everywhere. It all started about three years ago when my friend started playing it over and over and over in my car. From then on, I'd go into a grocery store and hear it. I'd go into a clothing store and hear it. It started playing on tons of TV shows I was watching. I'd hear a kid sing it on the street. I started watching Glee, and it was the first song they sang. I started going to Giants games last year, and it became their theme song...
I decided it was all in my head. It was probably playing everywhere before I ever noticed it, since it is a damn popular song. Then I saw this in my Spanish class today:
from the album Naturally
"If I were the King of the world, tell you what I'd do: I'd throw away all the cars and the bars and the war, and make sweet love to you"
"Loud Pipes"
"That's All"
"Just as I thought it was goin alright, I found out I'm wrong when I thought I was right."
I used to sing this in Tennis practice. It got to the point where I got tons of others to sing along with me because I sang it every day. It kept up morale. When I feel like singing, I sing this song. This, or either of the Oscar Mayer commercial songs ("My bologna has a first name" and "I wish I was an Oscar Mayer wiener").
from the album Classics
"Dada dada dadadada. Dadadada da dadada. Dadadada da dadadada"
This song gives me goosebumps and heart palpitations. Ratatat gave the second best show I've ever seen (nothing will beat RATM for me). This song is pretty self explanatory. It's awesome.
"That's All"
from the album Genesis
"Just as I thought it was goin alright, I found out I'm wrong when I thought I was right."
"I could say day, and you'd say night. Tell me it's black, when I know that it's white."
"I could leave, but I won't go, though my heart might tell me so. I can't feel a thing from my head down to my toes."
"Turning me on, turning me off; making me feel like I want too much."
"Running around, staying out all night. Taking it all instead of taking one bite."
"The Freshmen"
"Road to Nowhere"
"Would you like to come along? You could help me sing this song"
"Unwell"
"Under the Bridge"
"Iris"
"The Girl"
"Boston"
"I could leave, but I won't go, though my heart might tell me so. I can't feel a thing from my head down to my toes."
"Turning me on, turning me off; making me feel like I want too much."
"Running around, staying out all night. Taking it all instead of taking one bite."
This is how all of my relationships, if any could legitimately use the word, end up. I get tired of people quickly, and they usually get tired of me even faster. We end up arguing about nothing, and obviously I'm always right (even though I know I'm wrong). I keep with it, optimistic that my head is just trying to push this person away and I'll get over it, but I end up completely numb. I don't like or dislike this person, now that they're a constant. So I abuse myself physically and emotionally, just trying to feel something again. This is why I don't do relationships.
from the album I've Suffered a Head Injury
"When I was young I knew everything"
"I won't be held responsible, she fell in love in the first place"
"My best friend took a week vacation to forget her, his girl took a weeks worth of Valium and slept"
"For the life if me, I cannot remember what made us think that we were wise and we'd never compromise. For the life of me, I cannot believe we'd ever die for these sins; we were merely freshmen"
"We've tried to wash our hands of all of this. We never talk of our lack in relationships"
"Road to Nowhere"
from the album Little Creatures
"Would you like to come along? You could help me sing this song"
Yes. Yes, I would like to come along. I grew up on this song. I grew up on the whole Little Creatures album. My mom had a very select few cassette tapes for the Jeep, and this was one of them. This, some Bob Marley, Joe Walsh, "Soul Sisters", Portishead, Aerosmith, and Shawn Colvin. That was it. All those, over and over and over and over again for years. I still listen to all of them. I still have no idea what the dude in Talking Heads is saying in half of his songs.
from the album More Than You Think You Are
I can relate to the whole lyric, so I shall paste it in a scrolley box
All day
staring at the ceiling making friends with shadows on my wall.
All night
Hearing voices telling me that I should get some sleep, because tomorrow might be good for something.
Hold on
I'm feeling like I'm headed for a breakdown, and I don't know why.
But I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell
I know, right now you can't tell
But stay awhile and maybe then you'll see
A different side of me
I'm not crazy, I'm just a little impaired
I know, right now you don't care
But soon enough you're gonna think of me
And how I used to be
Me
I'm talking to myself in public, dodging glances on the train.
I know
I know they've all been talking 'bout me, I can hear them whisper, and it makes me think there must be something wrong with me
Out of all the hours thinking somehow I've lost my mind.
I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell
I know, right now you can't tell
But stay awhile and maybe then you'll see
A different side of me
I'm not crazy, I'm just a little impaired
I know right now you don't care
But soon enough you're gonna think of me
And how I used to be
I been talking in my sleep
Pretty soon they'll come to get me
Yeah, they're taking me away
I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell
I know, right now you can't tell
But stay awhile and maybe then you'll see
A different side of me
I'm not crazy I'm just a little impaired
I know, right now you don't care
But soon enough you're gonna think of me
And how I used to be
This song vocalizes my neuroses. Pretty much all their songs are relatable, especially those in Yourself or Someone Like You: Real World, Long Day, 3 AM, Push, Back to Good, Argue... I'm not ashamed to say I really enjoy Matchbox Twenty. I think Rob Thomas is a good singer, and [most of] their songs are golden.
from the album Blood Sugar Sex Magik
"Sometimes I feel like my only friend is the city I live in"
Ok, I realize this song is supposed to be about drugs or some shiiiiiiit like that, but for me it represents a connection to the environment you're in. Where ever I am, I find some sort of connection to keep me grounded there. In Auburn it was the train tracks. San Francisco had the hills over-looking the city through the fog. Austin, I have yet to find my connection. I think it might be the lake (river). I could sit for hours staring at the water. All of these elements are unique to the cities in which they lay. They may not be unique features in regards to the existence of hills, train tracks, and lakes in other areas, but train tracks don't have the same effect in Austin as they do in Auburn; there are no other hills with the same views as those in San Francisco; no other lake is like Lady Bird. I get a natural high from these features. I find bliss, contentment, and relaxation from them. I realize I'm a dirty hippy.
from the album City of Angels
"And all I can taste is this moment, and all I can breathe is your life. Sooner or later it's over, I just don't want to miss you tonight"
We've already talked about what happens in my relationships, but I find this song vocalizes how I feel. I find that when I'm in a relationship, I already have the mindset that it's over. It's a blessing and a curse. It allows me to enjoy it for what it is, and let myself flow freely; but also keeps me from allowing myself to make a real connection. I give my whole self to a person, without ever opening up. It leaves me feeling lonely, but stronger all in the same.
from the album Bring Me Your Love
On a completely opposite note, this song makes me want to fall in love. Dallas makes it sound so simple, being in love. I love all of the songs on this album. Constant Knot almost replaced this song in my list, but I felt I needed something more optimistic. Wating... and Sleeping Sickness are both also beautiful songs. Go download the whole album. Do it now.
from the album Midwest Skies and Sleepless Mondays
"I think I'll start a new life; I think I'll start it over, where no one knows my name. I'll get out of California, I'm tired of the weather."
Whenever I was feeling down, I'd listen to this song to remind myself how easy it is to just leave. Then, it was easiest to relate to this song because Boston is so easily changed for Austin (except for that line about the snow), but I find it still has the same stigma for me. I'm not planning on leaving, but it's comforting to know that I have the option. I need to be able to feel free.
And there you have it. My favorite songs.
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