Music

The increasing litigation over lyrics and sound files, as well as the time required, have made it impossible for me to maintain this page in its original form. Apologies to those who enjoyed it. The list of songs remains (as do the lyrics to Louie Louie). As before, there is due attention paid to the writers. Please remember them when you choose your music.

In honor of the many song writers whose music does wonderful things for my state of mind, I offer two very subjective listings of songs that have meant a lot to me. Links to two other venues for special songs are also given.

Classic Songs

My definition of a classic song is that it helps to define "the culture," meaning my culture. Classic songs are important in some sense. Here's how a song gets on my Classics list: it must

A classic song does not have to be a good song in the technical sense. That's a separate list. I'm sure your list of classics will be different from mine -- start making it. And remember that songs come from writers.

Great Songs

My definition of a great song is simple. It has one characteristic:

A great song, though written by a song writer, and possibly representing much time and effort, appears as if it were plucked whole from the cosmic ether. Once heard, the parts of the song seem obvious, like it could be no other way; the human effort is invisible. You may not recognize all of my best songs; look 'em up. Most are in the folk/country genre. Face it: that's where the poets are.

The Grammy Hall of Fame

From the web site:

"The GRAMMY Hall Of Fame Award was established by the Recording Academy's National Trustees in 1973 to honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old. Winners are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of the recording arts."
This list, fun to read through, suffers only from a failure to give credit to the song writers.

The NPR 100

In 2000, National Public Radio celebrated the turn of the century by spotlighting 100 muscial pieces that its panel has judged the most influential in American music during the last 100 years. These songs cover a wide range of genres, including classical, jazz, rock'n'roll, country, R&B, musical theatre, and film scores. To quote NPR's web site on what makes an important musical work,

"By virtue of its achievement, beauty, or excellence, the work is an important milestone of American music in the 20th century. It significantly changed the musical landscape, opened new horizons, or in itself had a major effect on American culture and civilization."
Hear the songs and the stories behind them on your local NPR station, or listen via their web site while it's up.

The follwing sites and databases were helpful to me in composing these lists:
ASCAP
BMI
Ultimate Band List (now Artist Direct)
Marybeth's Memorable Melodies (rockinwoman.com, discontinued)
The Wanderer
Annie's Place (no longer a music site)
Lost in the Fifties

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