Songs I Love, and Why I Love Them

I love music. I love words. The two put together send me into an arena of bliss that’s completely indescribable. I’ve been singing since I was able to speak, and, I’ve always had a taste in music that surprised most. I say that because my taste spans many genres and many decades, and most of my favorite music comes from the years before those in which I grew up, which is when most people develop their musical preferences. To give an example, during the nineties, when most kids my age were listening to grunge rock, I was listening to ABBA, Dan Fogelberg, and Bette Midler. I didn’t start to love grunge until I was in my late twenties.

So, without further ado, I shall introduce you to me – through the sharing of some of my favorite songs of all time. If I was going to share them all, we would fast run out of internet space, so I’m going to limit my list to just a few (and they will be in no particular order).

• Walking on Sunshine – Katrina and the Waves

I love this song just because it’s happy. It makes me smile, and makes me bob my head and dance as I sing along. It’s not a deep song with a profound message, but it is a song that makes me feel good and makes me want to smile and be kind to everyone I meet throughout the day.

• I Am the City – ABBA

ABBA was a prolific pop group from the seventies, and I listened to them in the late eighties and early nineties as a teenager. I honestly can’t think of a single song by ABBA that I don’t enjoy, but this one has to me my hands-down favorite. Why? It’s a brilliant personification of the modern city, and I absolutely adore the modern city. I like the noise, the crowds, the energy – and this song by ABBA tells us how the city feels. It’s a brilliant and energetic song that always leaves me wishing it wouldn’t end.

• Roll to Me – Del Amitri

This is one of the shortest songs I’ve ever heard, and again, it’s one that I wish wouldn’t end. It’s a simple song about the right guy showing up at the right time. All of us have looked around our world at some point and realized that it isn’t all we hoped it would be. Then, when we least expect it, someone shows up in our life who makes us certain that we have a champion. Roll to Me is just a fun song that makes me hopeful.

• In My Life – Bette Midler (cover - originally by the Beatles)

This song is a beautiful tune of reminiscence that has always given me pause to look back over my life and the wonderful people who have been a part of it. My late mom also loved this song (the original, she never cared much for the Bette Midler cover), and I listen to it often when I’m missing her. It raises my spirits and brings back many good memories of our life together.

• Make Love Stay – Dan Fogelberg

I love everything by Dan, but this song is more brilliantly poetic than almost anything I’ve ever seen. It’s the story of a love affair that seems empty at times, and an out loud musing about how to make love stay after the lust and excitement have maybe gone away. This song is beautiful, and dare I say it – striking in its simplicity.

• 1, 2, 3, 4 – Plain White T’s

I heard this song for the first time just after meeting my husband, and it just seemed a really fun way of describing how I felt about him. It’s one that I would call a happy-boppy, feel good song. In addition to all that, the video has great scenes shot in downtown Chicago. Hope you enjoy it!

To continue to list songs that I love would possibly cause a world wide crash of the internet. I can say that I’m always drawn to singers who write their own stuff, and some of my favorites are Dan Fogelberg, Billy Joel, Rich Mullins, and Chris Cornell (of Soundgarden fame). I believe that songwriters have been granted a divine gift that few of us can understand – the gift of taking mere words and simple tunes and turning out something magnificent that moves the heart, soul, and spirit.

Watch (and listen to) the videos and enjoy!