I scanned the General Music forum and couldn't even find a top ten favorite songs thread. Please correct me if I'm wrong. I realize this would be a tough one for most but...

Let's assume you are on the oft mentioned desert island and you forgot to bring your generator, CD/MP3 player, or any other luxury item most of us would definitely not leave home without. After 5 years on this island, you are presented with an opportunity to have one burned CD with any TEN songs on it and the means to listen to it. What would they be? Here's mine...

1. "The Final Cut" by Pink Floyd
2. "Black" by Pearl Jam
3. "Tin Cup Chalice" by Jimmy Buffett
4. "Silent Lucidity" by Queensryche
5. "Soma" by the Smashing Pumpkins
6. "Paranoid Android" by Radiohead
7. "Psychopomp" by the Tea Party
8. "Saturday Sun" by Nick Drake
9. "Lover, You Should Have Come Over" by Jeff Buckley
10. "Ágætis Byrjun" by Sigur Rós

Again, I realize this is not easy but, I will not personally hold you to your choices should you ever end up in this predicament. Have some fun with it.

You know, I had always wondered about this. I would name a song and think, "Well, wow, that is one of my top ten songs of all time." But I had never sat down and hand-picked them. This is a good topic. I do have a question though, a song is only really a song if it has lyrics--by definition--but can I include a Jazz or Classical selection if I please? I do have a few that would be up there. Let me know, P-Bo.

By the way, your Yankees comment in the baseball thread was not appreciated, I thought we were friends...

Ok, so this was very hard and I cheated in that I did eleven because I couldn't find one to cut. I would have wanted to take 30, but I will settle for eleven.

1. “God Only Knows” by The Beach Boys
2. “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday
3. Adagio for Strings by Samuel Barber
4. “Things Fall Apart (Live Version)” by The Roots and Jill Scott
5. “Street Spirit (Fade Out)” by Radiohead
6. “Donna Lee” by Charlie Parker
7. “Rocky Raccoon” by The Beatles
8. The Hounds of Spring by Alfred Reed
9. “Shore Leave” by Tom Waits
10. “Giant Steps” by John Coltrane
11. “Rocks Off” by The Rolling Stones

1. "When You Say Nothing At All" by Alison Krauss
2. "Coffee & TV" by Blur
3. "All Apologies" by Nirvana
4. "Wagon Wheel" by Old Crow Medicine Show
5. "Wish You Were Here" by Pink Floyd
6. "Bats in the Belfry" by Dispatch
7. "Condor Ave." by Elliott Smith
8. "Here's To Life" by Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution
9. "Morning Glory" by Oasis
10. "(Can't Get My) Head Around You" by The Offspring

...with more than a few I hate to leave out.

I can't believe there wasn't a thread for this already...hmh! Good one P-Bo.

So, if i think about this too long, I'll sit here in paralysis too scared to leave something off, so I'm just diving in off the top of me 'ead!!

'In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning'- Frank Sinatra
'Walking on the Water'- Creedence Clearwater Revival
'Can't Hardly Wait'- Replacements
'The Inch Worm'- John Coltrane
'Europe Endless'- Kraftwerk
'Kid Charlemagne'- Steely Dan
'Make your own kind of Music'- Mama's & Papa's
'Little Drummer Boy'- David Bowie & Bing Crosby
'All through the Night'- Ella Fitzgerald
'California Uber Alles'- Dead Kennedys

Impossible...no Gershwin, no Springsteen, no Joni, no Dylan, no Jamaican sounds, no Sly, Marvin, Smokey..fuck!!!....damn you P-Bo....

quote:

Originally posted by Ishmaels coffin:
Impossible...no Gershwin, no Springsteen, no Joni, no Dylan, no Jamaican sounds, no Sly, Marvin, Smokey..fuck!!!....damn you P-Bo....

Nobody said living on a desert island would be easy. Just ask Wilson.

Oooh, only ten? Gee-golly-gosh-darn, this is a dilly of a pickle. A real noodle scratcher. Well, I'll just divide it in half, 5 for R&B & 5 for Rap. No particular order.
1.'I Was Made to Love You'-Gerald Levert
2.'I Never Want to See You Again'-Uncle Sam
3.'Lifetime'-Maxwell
4.'Two Occasions'-Babyface
5.'Contagious'-The Isley Brothers
6.'Straight Killer'-C-Bo
7.'Streiht Up Menace'-MC Eiht
8.'I Seen a Man Die'-Scarface
9.'Friend or Foe'-Eightball & MJG
10.'One Day'-UGK

Ishmael's right, this isn't easy. Especially in the day of the MP3! I normally would've wanted to take The Temptations or Marvin Gaye or even Teddy Pendergrass, but I haven't listened to my Old School Songs in a while now, that's strange. So, I just went by songs I ALWAYS put on every CD I made before the invention of the MP3. I gotta few Sad Songs in there because I'm sure I'd be depressed for a few days. Then some Love Songs to give me the will to live. Then some Hardcore Raps to motivate me into getting off that flippin' island. Last, some Raps About Dyin', for when I'm in the middle of the ocean with nothing to eat or drink & a shark is circlin' my raft. They'd help motivate me to, at least, make this shark wish he'd gone for an easier meal!

We do have this, but OK, I'll bite, even if I may have to make several lists. In alphabetical order:

"Bachelorette" by Björk
"Havana Moon" by Chuck Berry
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" by Judy Garland
"How to Disappear Completely" by Radiohead
"I Stand Accused" by Elvis Costello and the Attractions
"I Was Made to Love Her" by Stevie Wonder
"Nothin' in the World Can Stop Me Worryin' 'Bout That Girl" by the Kinks
"Ol' Man River" by Paul Robeson
"With God on Our Side" by Bob Dylan
"You Never Give Me Your Money" by the Beatles

I wouldn't say these are my exact top ten songs, but they cover many bases for that dreaded desert island experience. Most of these songs have a deep personal history for me.

"A.M. 180" - Grandaddy: Some of the happiest music ever. An instant cure for depression.

"Bad" - U2: It's not bad. It's very, very good. My favorite tune on my favorite U2 album. Very moving. U2 was the real deal in the 80s.

"Creed" - Rich Mullins: I don't listen to much CCM, but this is the best song ever to come out of the genre, and worthy of a spot on this list. A musical adaptation of the Nicene Creed that would remind me to keep my faith on that lonely island.

"Dodo" - Genesis (Collins era): This tune has the wackiest keyboard hooks ever. The lyrics are hilarious as well. I promise this sounds nothing like "You'll Be In My Heart."

"Etheriel" - Lush: Probably not a top ten tune, but I noticed I don't have any other female-led songs on this list. Gorgeous vocals on top of an incredibly catchy shoegazer pop tune. I imagine I would greatly miss the fairer sex.

"Here" - Pavement: I don't really know what all the lyrics mean, but it doesn't really matter. Emotional resonance spoken through the music and delivery.

"Let Down" - Radiohead: Like "Bad," a very inappropriately-titled song. The most upbeat track on OK Computer, with a glorious climax. "One day, I am going to grow wings…"

"Mayonaise" - Smashing Pumpkins: Another song whose lyrics are beside the point. The perfect theme song for a lonely young guy who's misunderstood by the world around him.

"Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)" - Arcade Fire: Have I mentioned on these boards yet that I like Arcade Fire? This song is everything I love about them wrapped up in one piece. Nobody does "dramatic" better, and they've never done it better than here.

"Supper's Ready" - Genesis (Gabriel era): Genesis is kind of like two bands, and I love them both. So I couldn't have one and not the other. Besides, with this epic track, it's like five songs for the price of one. It clocks in at 22:52. Did I mention it's a great song? It is.

After 5 years on the island of no music, I'd probably take any song. But, early as it is this morning, here's my ten:

"Baja" The Blue Hawaiians
"No Agreement" Fela Kuti
"Bowling Green" Neko Case
"He Had You" Bevis Frond
"Until You Come Back to Me" Aretha Franklin
"Janet Greene" Sun Sawed In Half
"Crazy" Gnarls Barkley
"Panama Red" New Riders of the Purple Sage
"Karaoglan" Selda
"Shelter from the Storm" Bob Dylan

Iron & Wine - Trapeze Swinger
MC Solaar - Caroline
Led Zeppelin - Since I've Been Loving You
Frank Sinatra - Fly Me to the Moon
Nine Inch Nails - Closer
Jack Johnson - Cookie Jar
Bob Marley - Jamming
The Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter
John Butler Trio - Ocean (live à la Cigale 10/16/05)
Marvin Gaye - Let's Get It On

This message has been edited. Last edited by: brainofp,

I Heard it Through The Grapevine - Marvin Gaye
Amelia - Joni Mitchell
Good Times Bad Times - Led Zeppelin
Crosstown Traffic - Jimi Hendrix Experience
You Can't Always Get What You Want - Rolling Stones
No Particular Place To Go - Chuck Berry
Mother of Pearl - Roxy Music
Love Goes Where My Rosemary Goes - Edison Lighthouse
Stone Me Into The Groove - Atomic Swing
Wake Up Boo - The Boo Radleys

Interesting Topic... Well, here's mine as of now
The The- This is the Day
Kate Bush- Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)
Sigur Ros- Olsen Olsen
Neutral Milk Hotel- Two Headed Boy Pt. 2
Olivia Tremor Control- Green Typewriters (I'm cheating )
Manitoba/Caribou- Paul's Birthday
Aphex Twin- Xtal
The National- Mr. November
Can- Paperhouse
Brian Eno- St. Elmo's Fire

I suppose like anyone else, I could make ten of these and be happy with any one of them. Looking at my list right now I can think of ten I left off! Oh well, this is the one I came up with without too much thought at work. They're in no order.

"Where Will I Be" - Emmylou Harris
"Fight Test" - Flaming Lips
"A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" - Bob Dylan
"Hallelujah" - I haven't decided which version yet.
"The River" - Bruce Springsteen
"Gimme Shelter" - Rolling Stones
"I Love You" - Dizzee Rascal
"The Freshman" - Verve Pipe
"Am I Wrong" - Love Spit Love
"Please Please Me" - Beatles

This is a tough one, but I'll give it a shot.

1. "Idiot Wind" - Bob Dylan
2. "How Near, How Far" - Trail of Dead
3. "Wish You Were Here" - Pink Floyd
4. "Sometimes" - My Bloody Valentine
5. "Schizophrenia" - Sonic Youth
6. "Staring At The Sun" - TV on the Radio
7. "The Guns of Brixton" - The Clash
8. "One Big Holiday" - My Morning Jacket
9. "Unsatisfied" - The Replacements
And of course the obligatory...
10. "I Might Be Wrong" - Radiohead

Another 10, cos the first disc got scratched...sand gets into everything....

'Cattle & Cane'- Go-Betweens
'Into my Arms'- Nick Cave
'Shivers'- Boys Next Door
'Quasimodo's Dream'- The Reels
'Down among the Dead Men'- Flash & the Pan
'I Hope I Never'- Split Enz
'I'm Stranded'- The Saints
'Mirror Blues'- Died Pretty
'Jailbreak'- AC/DC
'US Forces'- Midnight Oil

Also serves as a primer for Antipodean rock!!

quote:

Originally posted by Ishmaels coffin:
Another 10, cos the first disc got scratched...sand gets into everything....

'Shivers'- Boys Next Door
'Quasimodo's Dream'- The Reels

In no particular order:
Heroin- The Velvet Underground
Julia-The Beatles
Cortez the Killer- Neil Young
Untitled 4-Sigur Ros
The Diamond Sea- Sonic Youth
Misunderstood- Wilco
Pink Moon-Nick Drake
How to Dissapear Completely-Radiohead
Girl/Boy Song-Aphex Twin
Tangled up in Blue- Bob Dylan

Here's mine, although I think we should start the "You only have an iPod nano" thread.

The Ronnettes, "Be My Baby"
The Kinks, "Waterloo Sunset"
The Beatles, "Rain"
Guided by Voices, "Echoes Myron"
Badfinger, "Baby Blue"
REM, "Pretty Persuasion"
Mission of Burma, "Academy Fight Song"
Nick Lowe, "Cruel To Be Kind"
Uncle Tupelo (w/ Doug Sahm), "Give Back the Keys to My Heart"
Zumpano, "Party Rages On"

"Waitin' For A Superman" - The Flaming Lips
"Subterranean Homesick Alien" - Radiohead
"Badge" - Cream
"Gold Soundz" - Pavement
"Jesus On The Radio" - Guster
"The Rain Song" - Led Zeppelin
"A Certain Romance" - Arctic Monkeys
"Walking In Memphis" - Marc Cohn
"Only The Good Die Young" - Billy Joel
"Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)" - The Beatles