Ask Erik Episode Sixty-One

I haven't really done an Ask Erik that was a bit personal, but fortunately today a question dropped into my lap that I'm happy to answer.

To Erik: What do you like for music, like your top twenty?


I'm not really a fan of a specific genre of music.  I tend to be more a fan of a particular artist who does a particular genre in their own distinct style, but if I listen to too much of the same "type" of music too long I get bored.

My car radio contains NPR, a station playing the hits of today, two classic rock stations, a pop station, an oldies station, an alternative station, and a station that plays the hits of the first six decades of the twentieth century.

If you look at my iPod, you'll see a rather eclectic mix of music.  Here, let me list the first five songs that come up when you hit "shuffle."

I swear these are the songs that come up, I'm not changing anything or hiding any songs.

1) Bruce Springsteen - Youngstown
2) Diana Krall - All Or Nothing At All
3) DJ Shyboy - You Spin Me Upside Down (Diana Ross vs. Dead Or Alive) 
4) Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix - Mayonaka No Doraibu
5) US3 - Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)

I as just as likely to have Steve Tyrell or Miami Sound Machine come up.  It could be the Sanford and Son theme song or a Weird Al Yankovic classic.  Brahms, Bach, The Beatles, and Jimmy Buffet are all represented, and I could listen to Nina Simone and have it suddenly jump to Cascada.

So, in mostly an order of "how I remembered the songs" I'll now present my top twenty, and just to keep it interesting I won't repeat any albums or artists because otherwise I'd just be mean and play the track list from Golden Throats.

#20) 10,000 Maniacs - Because The Night

I'm a sucker for instruments in songs that I don't expect, and this was one of the first times I heard a full string section perform a Bruce Springsteen classic.  Plus, Natalie Merchant puts enough emotion into it that I really do get the impression she's singing to someone important.

#19) Blue Man Group - Drumbone

I saw the group perform live in Boston, and maybe it's because I learned to play the trombone and just really like instruments with a slide, but this easily became my favorite song from an amazing show.

#18) Florence And The Machine - Dog Days Are Over

This was almost Shake It Out but I went with the first one of her songs I ever heard.  I think she was one of the most unique, distinctive, and powerful voices in music these days, and I wish she got a lot more airtime than some artists who always seem to be on the radio.

#17) Kerli - Walking On Air

I can't really explain why I love this song so much.  I was hooked from the opening notes, mostly because of that strange clap/snap sound.  However, I think Kerli has a pretty distinctive sound, and I've heard her sing on live performances on television, and she seems to have a lot more range than her first album showed.

#16) Taku Iwasaki - R.O.D. Theme

Personally, I think this song rivals some of the best songs for action sequences in spy movies or any intense car chase.

#15) Shimokawa Mikuni - Kimi ni Fuku Kaze

The ending song from the series Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu is just another one of those songs I love for no particular reason.  I mean, besides the fact that it sounds like they found the Japanese Carlos Santana to play guitar on it.  I almost chose the opening song Sore Ga Ai Deshou instead, but while the latter is a lighter song, I just love those guitar licks (did I use that term correctly?).

#14) Limousines - Internet Killed The Video Star

I just really love this song because it's catchy and the music video has the most adorable post-apocalypse ever as well as the world's most awkward jiggle by a woman in a bikini.

#13) Billy Joel - We Didn't Start The Fire

I'll admit, this is purely a nostalgic song for me.  It was a song that fascinated me to the point where I memorized all of the lyrics and then spent time looking them up when I was young.  It came in handy in high school when my history teacher played it for us and asked us to write down as many things that we recognized and knew about, and I was able to write the whole song down.

Random trivia fact:  In the music video for You're Only Human, you might recognize a young Adam Savage from Mythbusters.

#12) Shakira - Illegal

I know some people don't like Shakira, but I've really grown to enjoy her music.  I picked this one only because it doesn't have a lot of percussion and music and gives her a chance to show off her range, plus it has Carlos Santana.

#11) Gloria Trevi - La Noche

This one is just a guilty pleasure.  I don't know whether the song came first or the music video came first, but any Spanish artist willing to incorporate Adam West's Batman and the Superfriends into their song gets a thumbs up from me.

But seriously.  Watch the video.  It's pure madness.

#10) Lana Del Ray - Video Games

This is once again one of those "wow, I really don't hear anybody else with a voice like hers these days" moments, and she seems to have every word she sings be coated with emotion like sauce on a piece of General Tso's chicken.  That is, thick and palpable.

Plus, I even like the semi-official remix.

#9) David Arkenstone & Kostia - Savannah Runner

If you asked me "Hey, Erik, if you could have the ability to play any song with any instrument on one album, what album would you want to be able to play any of the music from?  But you'd only be able to play those songs with the instrument."  I'd reply with "that's an oddly specific question, you weird person, but sure.  It'd be David Arkenstone and Kostia's The Spirit of Olympia.  I specifically picked this song because the idea of having a flute in a high energy song like that as one of the key instruments blew my mind when I first heard it, but I recommend listening to every song.  It's a great album without a single bad song on it.

#8) Johnny Rivers - Secret Agent Man

This was one of my favorite songs growing up.

Actually, no.  This was my favorite song growing up.  Get Smart was my favorite show before I discovered MacGyver, but even then this was still the song I always wanted turned up on the radio.

#7)  Alizee - J'ai Pas Vingt Ans

Yes, I like a French pop star.  No, I'm not going to apologize for it.  I don't know whether it's that I just don't know what she's singing, but there's something about how clear her voice is that I really like.  It reminds me of when you run your finger perfectly over the rim of a crystal glass and get that perfect note from it.

#6) Jefferson Starship - We Built This City

I know a lot of people don't like this song, but I really do love it.  I mean, how can you go wrong with a song sung by the Muppets?

#5) Earth, Wind, & Fire - September

Anybody who says they don't like this song has no soul.  Literally or figuratively.  No matter what mood I'm in, this song lifts me out of it.

#4) Origa - Rise

My favorite song off of my favorite anime soundtrack of all time (sorry, Cowboy Bebop, but you're a close second), every song from this album gets an honorable mention, but this one I particularly love as the opening to the second season of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex.  Seriously, if you haven't watched this series, tell me, and I'll show up at your door with both seasons on DVD and I will watch it with you.  Each one of you.

#3) John Williams - Raiders Of The Lost Ark Theme

Picking your favorite John Williams song is like picking your favorite happy memory from childhood.  They're all wonderful, but I picked the Raiders theme because I think it so perfectly captures adventure, slow moments, tension, and everything else that makes his songs great.  But still, between Star Wars, Harry Potter, Jaws, Superman, or even Hook, the man has proven he's one of the best.

#2) Bond - Explosive (Remix)

I think I've gone on the record about this group before (oh yeah, it was in my first Ask Erik) and I don't want to repeat myself, so just go reread that article and then come back.  I'll wait.  That's a song I could just listen to all day.

#1) The Corrs - When The Stars Go Blue

I could've listed any one of a bunch of songs by The Corrs on this list or even put any in this spot.  I love Forgiven, Not Forgotten.  I love Breathless.  I love how Andrea Corr pronounces the words in Give Me A Reason.  Maybe it's because I heard the group all the time when I visited Ireland, but every time I put on one of their albums (yes, I have more than one) I just start smiling and humming along.

Besides, this one takes what makes them great and adds Bono.  You can't go wrong adding Bono to something.

Oh, and then there's my honorable mention:

Trust me, you'll know it when you hear it.