I've found that there are artists whose music I love very much that I can't pick one song that would fit into my top 100. I could listen to Harry Chapin all day, but I don't have one particular song that I would put in the top 100. I'm still trying to fit a few songs in from outside regular pop music.
So let's see how it goes as we count down from 50-26.
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50. "GOIN' HOME," Anton Dvorak, from "NEW WORLD SYMPHONY" -- Many people think that "Goin' Home" is a Negro spiritual, but while the melody was based on spirituals, it is actually from Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 with lyrics added by a pupil of his, William Arms Fisher, in 1922. It was President Franklin D. Roosevelt's favorite song and it was played up and down the line when a train carried his body from Georgia to Washington, D.C. to Hyde Park, New York in 1945.
49. "SWEET SOUL MUSIC," Arthur Conley -- Before I ever heard songs by Lou Rawls, Wilson Pickett or Otis Redding, I heard Conley's homage to them in the spring of 1967. I'm not sure if there was ever another song that evokes a place and time the way this one does. After pit band practices for the senior class play, we always stopped by Cleve's Pizza at Fairfax Circle. I remember two songs that were always getting played on the jukebox -- this one and "I Think We're Alone Now" by Tommy James and the Shondells.
48. "THESE ARE THE DAYS," Van Morrison -- Is there a white guy in the world who sings more soulfully than Morrison. It's hard to imagine anyone's first two albums being better than "Astral Weeks" and "Moondance," and he had some great songs as lead singer for Them when I was in high school. "Here Comes the Night" and "Gloria" were both great, and by the time he wrote "These Are the Days" in 1989, he was in full stride. "These are the days of the endless summer, These are the days, the time is now, There is no past, there's only future, There's only here, there's only now." That said, there's another Morrison song yet to come that I'll save for tomorrow.
47. "I CAN SEE FOR MILES," The Who -- A truly great band, with "Tommy" and "Quadrophenia" to their credit, but The Who did some wonderful singles as well. Two stand out, and this one gets the edge because it tells its story in three minutes instead of seven. "I can see for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles ..." One of the best songs of 1967. Also: "Who's Next" was a phenomenal album with at least three or four great singles, but "Won't Get Fooled Again" was the standout. "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss ..."
46. "WATCHING THE RIVER RUN," Loggins and Messina -- It wasn't their most famous song, but it was my favorite. "You are the river and I am the shore ..." The instrumental version was one of the songs played in the church before my first wedding. Also: "Your Mama Don't Dance" was also a pretty wonderful song by L&M.
45. "CHANGES IN LATITUDES, CHANGES IN ATTITUDES," Jimmy Buffett -- Not many hit records, but an amazing number of great songs have come out of Key West. among them "Cheeseburger in Paradise" and "Margaritaville." But this one is his best in my opinion. "I think about Paris when I'm high on red wine, I wish I could jump on a plane ..."
44. "FORTUNATE SON," Creedence Clearwater Revival -- Great single after great single, most of them written by John Fogerty. This one was just a little above the rest, asking the question of why it was the guys who "weren't no fortunate sons" were the ones fighting and dying in Vietnam. Also: "Proud Mary," "Bad Moon Rising," "Green River," "Down on the Corner" and others.
43. "WHERE OR WHEN," Various Artists -- A great song from the 1937 Rodgers & Hart musical "Babes in Arms," this song has been covered by more than a hundred artists from Ella Fitzgerald to the Supremes, from Frank Sinatra to Dion and the Belmonts. Carly Simon did a great job with it and HBO used it in its Tommy Lee Jones/Virginia Madsen ghost story "Gotham."
42. "GREEN FIELDS OF FRANCE," Various Artists -- One of the best antiwar songs ever written, Eric Bogle's story of a young man, Private Willie McBride, who died in France in World War I has been covered by numerous artists. My personal favorite is John McDermott's version, but the Pogues' cover of it is harsher and grittier. Also: McDermott had another wonderful WWI song, "Christmas in the Trenches," and the Pogues had a strange yet wonderful Christmas song of their own, "Fairytale of New York."
41. "BOYS OF SUMMER," Don Henley -- This was one of the tougher calls. There are three Henley songs I love, and the decision was which to put at No. 41 and which two to list as also-rans. "Boys of Summer" was Henley's first big solo hit, and the pounding beat does as much to make the song as the lyrics do. Also: "The End of the Innocence" looks at the late Reagan years ("We're beating plowshares into swords for that tired old man that we elected king.") and "The Heart of the Matter" speaks of forgiveness in "such a graceless age."
40. "BAND ON THE RUN," Paul McCartney -- He may only have been the second or third most talented of the Beatles, but he's still punching away more than 40 years after the group broke up for good. This was one of his greatest albums and the title song -- telling how McCartney and his band ran off to Kenya to make an album -- was one of his best singles. Also: McCartney won an Academy Award for the title song he did for the James Bond movie "Live and Let Die."
39. "SAIL AWAY," Randy Newman -- Probably the best song ever written -- maybe the only one -- about the joys of going from Africa to America to be a slave. "Climb aboard little wog and sail away with me." Another wonderful version was Linda Ronstadt's.
38. "DAWN (GO AWAY)," The Four Seasons -- They had 15 top 10 hits -- five No. 1s -- over a 32-year period. Not counting a Christmas song, their first three singles topped the charts. "Dawn" was my favorite, reaching No. 3 just before the Beatles came to America. This story of a poor boy telling the rich girl who loves him to "go away, I'm no good for you." There weren't many voices more distinctive than Frankie Valli's falsetto. Also: "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Rag Doll," "Girl Come Running," "Working My Way Back to You" and half a dozen other great songs.
37. "DANNY BOY," Various Artists -- The classic Irish ballad, recorded by more than a hundred artists from Bing Crosby to Elvis Presley, from Jerry Lee Lewis to Jackie Evancho. It's the story of a father singing to his son who is going off to war. One of the most beautiful, haunting melodies ever.
36. "DOWN AT THE TWIST AND SHOUT," Mary-Chapin Carpenter -- She has never had a song on the pop charts, but she has had great song after great song for more than 25 years. This one was a breakthrough for her, winning a Grammy award. She even performed it during the Super Bowl XXXI pregame show in New Orleans. Also: Lots of terrific songs. Another one of my favorites is "When Halley Came to Jackson," about the rare sightings of Halley's Comet.
35. "WEREWOLVES OF LONDON," Warren Zevon -- One of the more unique, offbeat songs ever, you're got to love it when you hear, "Owwoooooo! Werewolves of London." Zevon was a great songwriter who also had numerous albums of him signing them himself. His last album, "The Wind," was completed just before he died of cancer at age 56. Also: "Excitable Boy," "Johnny Strikes Up the Band," "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner" and others made Zevon the Clown Prince of rock 'n' roll, and his haunting "Hasten Down the Wind," also performed by Linda Ronstadt, is a sad song of vanishing love.
34. "ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG," Billy Joel -- One of the greatest songs from "The Stranger," the album that boosted Joel into the stratosphere of stardom. It wasn't the most famous song on the album, but its combination of rock and humor made it something special and set him on a nearly 40-year run of great songs. Also: Joel's haunting ballad "And So it Goes" is one of my favorite love songs ever.
33. "ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH," John Denver -- This was the song that made a generation of East Coast Americans fall in love with Colorado, and I was one of them. So many other great songs, songs like "Take Me Home, Country Roads," "Annie's Song," "Back Home Again," "Sunshine on My Shoulders" and "Thank God I'm a Country Boy." Also: It never made the charts, but "Perhaps Love," Denver's duet with Placido Domingo, is a truly lovely song.
32. "FIRE AND RAIN," James Taylor -- A friend of mine once said Taylor looked so laid back they were afraid he might fall asleep on stage. This was his first big hit in the summer of 1970, all about how he survived time in a mental hospital after a breakdown. He has had plenty of great songs and albums over the last 40 years. American music just wouldn't have been the same without him.
31. "REMEMBER WHEN," Alan Jackson -- A lovely ballad from the country music star about a long-married man singing to the woman he loves about the beauty of the life they have lived together. "Remember when thirty seemed so old ..."
30. "AMERICAN TUNE," Paul Simon -- After Simon & Garfunkel, when the nation stumbling through Watergate, one of America's greatest songwriters sang about the feeling many people had that the country was slipping away. "For it's all right, it's all right, you can't be forever blessed ..." A song that was perfect for its time.
29. "JOHNNY B GOODE," Chuck Berry -- One of the all-time great early rock songs by one of the giants of early rock 'n' roll. It's no coincidence that when Robert Zemeckis wanted a song for Marty McFly to play in "Back to the Future," he chose this one. Chuck Berry has been performing for more than half a century and will be 88 this month. One of my greatest disappointments was having tickets for an oldies show at the Kennedy Center in 1971. Berry was headlining but had to cancel. At least we got a decent substitute -- Little Richard.
28. "A CHANGE IS GONNA COME," Sam Cooke -- Another great singer who died young, Sam Cooke was one of the greatest singers of the '50s into the early '60s. This was one of his last songs before he was killed, and it became something of an anthem for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights movement. Also: "You Send Me" and "Bring it On Home to Me" were other wonderful Cooke songs.
27. "LONG LONG TIME," Linda Ronstadt -- Between 1971 and 1974, I saw Linda Ronstadt in concert three times. I'm not sure there was a better female singer in the '70s and '80s. There wasn't song she couldn't sing the hell out of, whether it was "Heat Wave," "Love Has No Pride," "Sail Away" or "Adios," she was a great singer. Learning that because of Parkinson's Disease she won't be singing anymore was very sad.
26. "SOUL MAN," Sam and Dave -- The first half of the Sixties belonged to Motown, but it was later in the decade that we started hearing the rawer sound out of Memphis. Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett were the kings, but Sam and Dave might have had the single song with the most lasting power in "Soul Man."
42. "GREEN FIELDS OF FRANCE," Various Artists -- One of the best antiwar songs ever written, Eric Bogle's story of a young man, Private Willie McBride, who died in France in World War I has been covered by numerous artists. My personal favorite is John McDermott's version, but the Pogues' cover of it is harsher and grittier. Also: McDermott had another wonderful WWI song, "Christmas in the Trenches," and the Pogues had a strange yet wonderful Christmas song of their own, "Fairytale of New York."
41. "BOYS OF SUMMER," Don Henley -- This was one of the tougher calls. There are three Henley songs I love, and the decision was which to put at No. 41 and which two to list as also-rans. "Boys of Summer" was Henley's first big solo hit, and the pounding beat does as much to make the song as the lyrics do. Also: "The End of the Innocence" looks at the late Reagan years ("We're beating plowshares into swords for that tired old man that we elected king.") and "The Heart of the Matter" speaks of forgiveness in "such a graceless age."
39. "SAIL AWAY," Randy Newman -- Probably the best song ever written -- maybe the only one -- about the joys of going from Africa to America to be a slave. "Climb aboard little wog and sail away with me." Another wonderful version was Linda Ronstadt's.
38. "DAWN (GO AWAY)," The Four Seasons -- They had 15 top 10 hits -- five No. 1s -- over a 32-year period. Not counting a Christmas song, their first three singles topped the charts. "Dawn" was my favorite, reaching No. 3 just before the Beatles came to America. This story of a poor boy telling the rich girl who loves him to "go away, I'm no good for you." There weren't many voices more distinctive than Frankie Valli's falsetto. Also: "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Rag Doll," "Girl Come Running," "Working My Way Back to You" and half a dozen other great songs.
37. "DANNY BOY," Various Artists -- The classic Irish ballad, recorded by more than a hundred artists from Bing Crosby to Elvis Presley, from Jerry Lee Lewis to Jackie Evancho. It's the story of a father singing to his son who is going off to war. One of the most beautiful, haunting melodies ever.
36. "DOWN AT THE TWIST AND SHOUT," Mary-Chapin Carpenter -- She has never had a song on the pop charts, but she has had great song after great song for more than 25 years. This one was a breakthrough for her, winning a Grammy award. She even performed it during the Super Bowl XXXI pregame show in New Orleans. Also: Lots of terrific songs. Another one of my favorites is "When Halley Came to Jackson," about the rare sightings of Halley's Comet.35. "WEREWOLVES OF LONDON," Warren Zevon -- One of the more unique, offbeat songs ever, you're got to love it when you hear, "Owwoooooo! Werewolves of London." Zevon was a great songwriter who also had numerous albums of him signing them himself. His last album, "The Wind," was completed just before he died of cancer at age 56. Also: "Excitable Boy," "Johnny Strikes Up the Band," "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner" and others made Zevon the Clown Prince of rock 'n' roll, and his haunting "Hasten Down the Wind," also performed by Linda Ronstadt, is a sad song of vanishing love.
34. "ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG," Billy Joel -- One of the greatest songs from "The Stranger," the album that boosted Joel into the stratosphere of stardom. It wasn't the most famous song on the album, but its combination of rock and humor made it something special and set him on a nearly 40-year run of great songs. Also: Joel's haunting ballad "And So it Goes" is one of my favorite love songs ever.
33. "ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH," John Denver -- This was the song that made a generation of East Coast Americans fall in love with Colorado, and I was one of them. So many other great songs, songs like "Take Me Home, Country Roads," "Annie's Song," "Back Home Again," "Sunshine on My Shoulders" and "Thank God I'm a Country Boy." Also: It never made the charts, but "Perhaps Love," Denver's duet with Placido Domingo, is a truly lovely song.
32. "FIRE AND RAIN," James Taylor -- A friend of mine once said Taylor looked so laid back they were afraid he might fall asleep on stage. This was his first big hit in the summer of 1970, all about how he survived time in a mental hospital after a breakdown. He has had plenty of great songs and albums over the last 40 years. American music just wouldn't have been the same without him.
31. "REMEMBER WHEN," Alan Jackson -- A lovely ballad from the country music star about a long-married man singing to the woman he loves about the beauty of the life they have lived together. "Remember when thirty seemed so old ..."
30. "AMERICAN TUNE," Paul Simon -- After Simon & Garfunkel, when the nation stumbling through Watergate, one of America's greatest songwriters sang about the feeling many people had that the country was slipping away. "For it's all right, it's all right, you can't be forever blessed ..." A song that was perfect for its time.
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| Johnny B Goode |
28. "A CHANGE IS GONNA COME," Sam Cooke -- Another great singer who died young, Sam Cooke was one of the greatest singers of the '50s into the early '60s. This was one of his last songs before he was killed, and it became something of an anthem for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights movement. Also: "You Send Me" and "Bring it On Home to Me" were other wonderful Cooke songs.
27. "LONG LONG TIME," Linda Ronstadt -- Between 1971 and 1974, I saw Linda Ronstadt in concert three times. I'm not sure there was a better female singer in the '70s and '80s. There wasn't song she couldn't sing the hell out of, whether it was "Heat Wave," "Love Has No Pride," "Sail Away" or "Adios," she was a great singer. Learning that because of Parkinson's Disease she won't be singing anymore was very sad.
26. "SOUL MAN," Sam and Dave -- The first half of the Sixties belonged to Motown, but it was later in the decade that we started hearing the rawer sound out of Memphis. Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett were the kings, but Sam and Dave might have had the single song with the most lasting power in "Soul Man."
NEXT: The top 25
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