After reading Bob Dylan’s and Jeff Tweedy’s top 50 song lists, I decided to indulge myself by coming up with my own. Enjoy! I’m a “Lyrics” person, as you’ll quickly discern. Music has always meant a lot to me, and you\u2019ll see it referenced in my novel on a number of occasions<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My Top 50 Songs List: Rich Hanson – Alphabetically by artist. No more than two by any artist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. \u201cHighway to Hell\u201d AC\/DC I could have chosen a number of their songs, but THIS one I want played at the end of my funeral.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. \u201cWith God on Our Side\u201d Joan Baez. A sneaky way to include another Dylan song<\/p>\n\n\n\n
3. \u201cA Day in the Life\u201d The Beatles. The most impressive of all their songs in my opinion, at least.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. \u201cEleanor Rigby\u201d The Beatles. A superbly written paean to loneliness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
5. \u201cWar Pigs\u201d Black Sabbath. It was either this one or \u201cParanoid.\u201d Figured this was more appropriate given all the political saber-rattling (wish it was JUST sabers) in the World.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
6. \u201cThe Legend of the Sinking of the U. S. S. Titanic\u201d Jamie Brockett. Leadbelly\u2019s \u201cTitanic\u201d song meets the drug culture. \u201cYou\u2019ve gotta let it out, Captain!\u201d (Nancy HATES this song).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
7. \u201cBy the Time I get to Phoenix\u201d Glen Campbell. I love Jimmy Webb\u2019s songwriting. This is one of two songs that he wrote that I\u2019ve chosen. A story told in 4 stanzas. Songwriting perfection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
8. \u201cA Better Place to Be\u201d Harry Chapin. My favorite song of his. With a nod to \u201cTaxi\u201d and \u201cCat\u2019s in the Cradle.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
9. \u201cColor My World\u201d Chicago. I\u2019d better include this one. It was Nancy\u2019s choice to have sung at our wedding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
10. \u201cBoth Sides Now\u201d Judy Collins. A sneaky way to work in another Joni Mitchell song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
11. \u201cDance Me to the End of Love\u201d Leonard Cohen. Nancy and I agreed that this is our favorite of his.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
12 \u201cTales of Brave Ulysses\u201d The Cream. I had this on 8-track. Better than even \u201cWhite Room.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
13 \u201cThe End\u201d The Doors. Who can forget this song if you saw the movie \u201cApocalypse Now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
14. \u201cLight My Fire\u201d The Doors. No group has yet to duplicate the Door\u2019s sound. Of course how many lead singers are there like Jim Morrison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
15. \u201cLike a Rolling Stone\u201d Bob Dylan. From Al Kooper\u2019s opening chords to the masterfully bitter lyrics. This song grabbed my attention when I first heard it, and has never let go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
16. \u201cTangled Up in Blue\u201d Bob Dylan. A lyrical and musical triumph. Nods to \u201cHighway 61 revisited,\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSubterranean Homesick Blues\u201d and of course \u201cDesolation Row.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
17. \u201cBurn Down the Mission,\u201d Elton John. With a nod to his \u201cYour Song\u201d or \u201cSomeone Saved My Life tonight.\u201d His early work is his best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
18. \u201cDreams\u201d Fleetwood Mac. You have to love Stevie Nick\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
19.\u201d \u201cWhat\u2019s Going On?\u201d Marvin Gaye. This is the title song of one of the greatest albums of all time, which should be listened to in its entirety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
20. \u201cAll Along the Watchtower.\u201d Jimi Hendrix. Jimi took this Dylan song and made it his own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
21. \u201cDirty Laundry\u201d Don Henley. Love these cynical lyrics. With nods to \u201cSunset Grill\u201d and \u201cAll She<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wants to do is Dance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
22. \u201cWhite Bird\u201d It\u2019s a Beautiful Day. It\u2019s a hauntingly beautiful song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
23. \u201cWhite Rabbit\u201d Jefferson Airplane. Grace Slick not only wrote the song, but gives a great rendition of it as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
24. \u201cEpitaph\u201d King Crimson. My pick for my favorite song on an album, \u201cIn the Court of the Crimson<\/p>\n\n\n\n
King,\u201d that like \u201cWhat\u2019s Going on?\u201d deserves to be considered in its entirety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
25. \u201cTo Beat the Devil\u201d Kris Kristofferson. A great songwriter. So many to chose from. This is my<\/strong> favorite song of his.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 26. \u201cImagine” John Lennon. How I overlooked this song at first is beyond my understanding. Sorry Gord. Had to cut you down to one song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 27. \u201cThe Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald\u201d Gordon Lightfoot. If you\u2019ve lived on Lake Superior, as I have, this song will burrow deep into your soul.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 28. \u201cWe Can\u2019t Make it here Anymore,\u201d James McMurtry. Simply one of the most effective and bitter protest songs ever written. Dylan would have been proud to call this one his own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 29. \u201cThe Last Time I saw Richard\u201d Joni Mitchell. \u201cAll romantics meet the same fate someday\/ Cynical and drunk in some dark cafe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n 30. \u201cA Song for Sharon\u201d Joni Mitchell. A long and seldom played poem\/song of hers in which she compares her life to her good friend, and more conventional seeker, \u201cSharon.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n 31. \u201cNights in White Satin\u201d The Moody blues. One of my pet peeves is a disc jockey (I like Earl Bailey\u2019s term \u201cMusic Presenter\u2019 better) who cuts the moving spoken word ending from the end of the song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 32. \u201cAll Apologies\u201d Nirvana. I have been told that I have been hearing the refrain wrong, but \u201call alone is all we are\u201d seemed both poignant and universal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 33. \u201cJeremy\u201d Pearl Jam. \u201cJeremy\u201d reminds me of what I felt like in grade school and junior high. I still harbor a resentful hatred for some teachers that I waged an unwinnable war against.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 34. \u201cBlowin in the Wind\u201d Peter Paul and Mary. Saw them do this song a LONG time ago in a concert in Duluth. A great performance. You\u2019ll notice I\u2019ve smuggled more Dylan in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 35. \u201cThe Wall\u201d Pink Floyd. \u201cAll we are just another brick in the Wall.\u201d (see \u201cJeremy\u201d above)<\/p>\n\n\n\n 36. \u201cComfortably Numb\u201d Pink Floyd. A sad look back at the childhood wonder and innocence that we lost,<\/p>\n\n\n\n and what too many of us have become.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 37. \u201cWhen Doves Cry\u201d Prince. One of many of his that I had trouble choosing from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 38. \u201cWhat About Me\u201d Quicksilver Messenger Service. One of my favorites by one of the great psychedelic groups of the late 60s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 39. \u201cSympathy for the Devil\u201d I can\u2019t imagine anyone but Jagger performing this song. The perfect song to fit his image. I doubt if any of the Beatles could have pulled this one off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 40. \u201cTurn the Page\u201d Bob Seger. An eloquent expression of the loneliness that artists on tour experience. A nod goes to \u201cNight Moves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n 42. \u201cThe Dangling Conversation\u201d Simon and Garfunkel. I love the lyrics of this song, and feel that it has been unjustly neglected in favor of other songs of theirs. Nods to \u201cSounds of Silence,\u201d and \u201cAmerica.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n 43. \u201cBorn to Run\u201d Bruce Springsteen. The Boss\u2019s best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 44. \u201cThe River\u201d Bruce Springsteen can spin a ballad with the best of them. A sad, poignant song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 44. \u201cDeacon Blues\u201d Steely Dan. So many Steely Dan song\u2019s to pick from. This is my favorite of theirs. They do not do a bad song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 45 \u201cRoad to Moscow,\u201d Al Stewart. The GOOD Stewart. Not the preening and prancing Stewart. Al has a beautiful voice, mellow melodies ad well-crafted lyrics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 46. \u201cOne Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer\u201d George Thorogood. I\u2019d love to have the liquor concession at a Thorogood concert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 47. \u201cJohn Barleycorn Must Die\u201d Traffic. I\u2019m not a big Traffic fan, but will make an exception for this ballad that seems to come from an earlier time. One of my favorites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 48. \u201cAqualung\u201d Jethro Tull. The title song of one of my most listened to Albums, a concept album that deserves to be listened to in its entirety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 49 \u201cThe Highwayman\u201d Jimmy Webb. I know Willie Nelson made this Webb song his own, but I have a CD of Jimmy performing his own work, and prefer this version. Great songwriting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 50. \u201cAfter the Gold Rush\u2019 Neil Young. So many of Neil\u2019s songs to choose from. This is my persoal favorite. With nods to \u201cSugar Mountain,\u201d \u201cOld Man\u201d and \u201cThe Needle and the Damage Done.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After reading Bob Dylan’s and Jeff Tweedy’s top 50 song lists, I decided to indulge myself by coming up with my own. Enjoy! I’m a “Lyrics” person, as you’ll quickly discern. Music has always meant a lot to me, and you\u2019ll see it referenced in my novel on a number of occasions My Top 50 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1311","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1311","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1311"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1311\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1313,"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1311\/revisions\/1313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1311"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1311"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/richardhanson.clients-demo-website.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1311"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}