I've got $2.50 in quarters, so it must be time to listen to 10 songs on my desert island jukebox.

1. Rise - Public Image Ltd. - Far more palatable and radio-friendly than Johnny Lydon's prior work with the Sex Pistols, this song displays musicians that can actually play their instruments, a nice Celtic undercurrent, and Lydon singing almost in pitch. Top it off with Lydon's repetitive mantra "Anger is an energy," it's not hard to see how my PiL cassette was worn through before I ever graduated from High School.

2. The Crane Wife 3 - The Decemberists
How do I love thee, Oh Third part of The Crane Wife trilogy of songs? Let me count the ways. A) the structure of verse - how line 1 and line 4 of each stanza are the same. B) It's basically a 1-4-5 chord structure, but the way that the song builds, with different instruments coming in as the song progresses. C) On a similar note, the chorus builds, so that the harmony soon becomes the melody. D) Interesting drumming keeps the song from falling into monotony. E) Lyrics so evocative that even I noticed them.

3. The Goodman - Kate Rusby
Great little Rusby folk song here. Some wonderful guitar strumming here. A great hook in the melody - you'll be singing along, even if you've never heard it before. The lyrics are signature Rusby, showing off her brand of humor. What I found so amusing about this song is that my wife interpreted the song as being about "a delusional husband"

4. I can't play a bunch of desert island tracks without having a cover tune in there. This time, I'm gonna stick my neck out and offer my all-time favorite cover tune of all time: We Can Work It Out - Stevie Wonder. For some reason, it's very hard to have a decent cover of a Beatles song (which makes me question the songwriting abilities of Lennon/McCartney, but that's another journal entry). Joe Cocker, Stevie Wonder, and Earth, Wind & Fire have all done admirable jobs, but after them, the list of really good Beatles covers is mighty small indeed. I think what makes this version of "We Can Work It Out" my favorite is the rhythm and beat. Wonder really makes the song rock, even ignoring the 3/4 meter change of the original, so that the song can continue to rock out. Now, EW&F's Got to Get You into My Life would also be in my desert island jukebox, but not this week. This week, I'm offering Stevie Wonder's, one of the holiest of holies in the canon of Rob's favorite songs ever.

5. Wouldn't Mama Be Proud - Elliott Smith (Speaking of Beatles covers, Elliott did a pretty decent job with Because at one point)
Honestly, I could have picked a half-dozen other Elliott Smith songs to be represented in this list, but this one will do nicely. Elliott had an ear for melody that was hard to equal. He had this knack for writing a song that you felt you'd heard before. Many times before. Yet, they weren't simple, and the melody would veer off in pleasant yet unexpected places from time to time - so right when you felt comfortable enough to sing along on your first listen, he screws up your confidence. This track shows that Elliott could write a song for a full band, and that he could play electric guitar as well as his acoustic.

6. (Nothing But) Flowers - Talking Heads
While I had owned several Talking Heads records prior to Naked, this song was my gateway drug - the song that made me a true fan of the band. Their ironic apocalyptic environmental song, which feels like it could have been the inspiration for Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six, was one of those rare songs that made me want to hear it again even before the song had finished. Having been schooled in the 80s on the world-beat grooves of Peter Gabriel, as well as Paul Simon's Graceland, it was fun to hear these art school punks take on the genre. And it's hard not to sing along with the "You got it, you got it" part. On a side note, Naked was the first CD I purchased. I was slow to give up on vinyl, but this album made my transition to CD pretty complete and instantaneous.

7. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Paul Simon
Speaking of Graceland, it's hard to pick a favorite Paul Simon song, since he's written so many beautiful ones. So this pick is based more on the performance than on the song itself. This version comes from Tom Petty's post 9/11 fundraiser America: A Tribute To Heroes. The "concert" was pretty much a failure - the paranoia in the weeks that followed after 9/11 meant that the performers did their songs from undisclosed locations without an audience present. This lack of audience interaction meant that most songs fell flat, and for a good long while, I thought that Paul Simon's song did as well. But, over the last few years, I've grown to really love this version. It embodies the emotion that followed 9/11. His singing is so fragile, weak, and revealed Simon's age; A surprising turn for a song that sings about comfort and strength. Simon reveals that he's the reluctant civil engineer of that Bridge, and the emotional effect is quite striking. The arrangement of the underlying music is looser and more ambient than I'd ever heard, sounding more like a Bill Frisell or Marc Ribot album than your typical Paul Simon live arrangement.

8. I Love You Goodbye - Thomas Dolby
While I question the validity of the story - for some reason, I have a tough time believing that Thomas Dolby's trip to Louisiana involved stealing cars and going bowling in electrical storms - the song evokes a mood unlike most anything else that Mr. Dolby's ever done. This is one of those tracks from the canon of my all-time favorites, but the reasons are a bit elusive to me. All I know is that I find this song beautiful.

9. I Think It Was December - Wendy & Lisa
Okay, I'm a sucker for the occasional rock track that borrows heavily from gospel music. This song could easily be replaced by Elvis Costello's Deep Dark Truthful Mirror, Lyle Lovett's Church, Peter Gabriel's Don't Give Up, or dozens of others. But I chose this one, because it was the song that made me recognize that inner-Pandora: that I find songs with a gospel feel, 6/8 time signature, heavy harmonies, and a strong piano part appealing. But interestingly, I'm not a fan of gospel music in general. But the occasional track on an otherwise gospel-free album does tend to lift the song over the others, as well as lift my emotions.

10. Lysistrata - Utopia
While my Todd Rundgren fandom has waned over the last 10 years or so, he was among my Most Favorite growing up. I think it was the point where I realized he was just ripping off Carol King on his most successful songs that I started to fall out of love with his stuff. Lysistrata, however, still rocks. A great political statement, a fun take on a classic, and laden full of those awesome Todd Rundgren hooks. To me, this feels like the quintessential pop rock song. I don't know why it barely charted. Perhaps if them Utopia boys had made a video.....


So there you have it. 10 songs from my desert island jukebox. My MAS friends can now offer up their own, and we can start weening down this list to nothing. :)