Obviously, music has always been an important part of my life. I've recently been thinking about the pieces/songs that had the biggest impact on me, are tied to very specific memories, or are simply my favorites. I can't imagine my life without them, nor do I want to.
These are in alphabetical order by artist (not importance) because I'm going down my iTunes list.
Oh man, this is gonna be long.
-"Bluish" by Animal Collective. This is the newest and most recently added song to my list.
-"Martha My Dear" by the Beatles. Just darn catchy and fun to sing in the car.
-Benjamin Britten's "Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings." Beautiful.
-"Jóga," "Pagan Poetry," and "The Dull Flame of Desire" by Björk. Also beautiful.
-"Setting Sun," "Life is Sweet," "Loops of Fury," and "The Boxer" by the Chemical Brothers because they remind me of driving in the car with my brother.
-"La Cathedrale Engloutie," "Arabesque No. 1," and "Prelude A L'Apres Midi D'Un Faune" by Debussy. I'm glad my favorite section of the last one is during a part in which 3rd horn doesn't play for a few measures; I was able to relax and listen.
-"Death is the Road to Awe" from the soundtrack to the movie "The Fountain." Well done, Clint Mansell.
-"Superfly" by Curtis Mayfield. Funkalicious.
-Second movement from Shostakovich's Symphony No. 10. Four of the most intense minutes I've ever heard.
-"Roadhouse Blues" by the Doors. This is always my first pick on a jukebox at a bar or restaurant.
-Duke Ellington's "River Suite," especially the "Giggling Rapids" movement.
-"Serpentine Fire" by Earth, Wind, and Fire. My favorite EWF tune.
-Schubert's Symphony No. 9 (I feel this one in my bones), and many of his lieder.
-"Les moutons de Panurge" by Frederic Rzewski. Really spiffy, hypnotic minimalist piece.
-"Dirty Harry" by the Gorillaz. I can't help but dance when this is on.
-"Saturn" from Holst's "The Planets," especially my recording since they beat the bejeezus out of the chimes. Overall, the last two-ish minutes are my favorite. A little piece of me hurts (in a good way) when the basses come in on that E for the repeat of the last cadence.
-Mahler's Symphony No. 1. It was the first Mahler piece I ever heard.
-"Hate to Say I Told You So" by the Hives. This is one of my favorite straight-up rock songs of all time.
-Stravinsky's "Symphony of Psalms." One of the most interesting pieces I have played.
-"Get Up Offa That Thing" by James Brown. Dance and you'll feel better.
-"Purple Haze," "Fire," "The Wind Cries Mary," "Manic Depression," "Foxy Lady," "Castles Made of Sand," "Angel," and "Voodoo Child" by Jimi Hendrix. Someday, I want to chop down a mountain with the edge of my hand.
-I know I'm a geek, but Johan de Meij's "Gandalf" from his "Lord of the Rings Suite" is one of the greatest things EVER. That was probably my favorite year of band (sophomore year of high school). We also played "Watchman, Tell Us of the Night" by Mark Camphouse that year.
-J. S. Bach's "Invention No. 8" and Brandenburg No. 2. Oh, and EVERYTHING else he ever wrote.
-"Wie melodien zhiet ist mir" by Brahms.
-"Sex on Fire" by Kings of Leon.
-"Black Dog" by Led Zeppelin. It was hard to pick just one Zepp song.
-The soundtracks to "West Side Story" and "On the Waterfront" by Leonard Bernstein. I find the latter especially powerful. I didn't watch the movie until a few months ago. Oh, I almost forgot "Prelude, Fugue, and Riffs!"
-Lots of Beethoven. I'm not even going to try to narrow it down.
-"Linee" from Dallapiccola's "Quaderno Musicale di Annalibera." It's under a minute long and I can listen to it over and over again.
-"The Bumble Bee Tuna Song" by the Mephiskapheles. Nothing else gets stuck in my head as often as this song.
-"The Good Times Are Killing Me" by Modest Mouse. Reminds me of driving around with the windows down during my final quarter at OU.
-Lots of Nine Inch Nails. No, really. LOTS.
-"Tristis est anima mea" by Orlando di Lasso. This is my favorite piece in the entire Norton anthology.
-Respighi's "Pines of Rome." This is tied with "Symphony of Psalms" for favorite piece I got to perform.
-Believe it or not, Paul Anka's swing cover of "True" by Spandau Ballet. It's rare a cover is far better than the original.
-"Marsch" from Hindemith's "Symphonic Metamorphosis." Mad scientist music at its best.
-Phil Kline's "Zippo Songs." Beyond powerful and creepy as hell.
-Lots of Primus, though "Tommy the Cat" and "My Name is Mud" might be my favorites.
-Lots of Queen, considering I grew up listening to them. I think I knew all the words to "Bicycle Race" by the time I was 8.
-Lots of Radiohead. I think I can narrow them down to "Pyramid Song," "Sit Down, Stand Up," "There, There," "15 Step," "Faust Arp," "Videotape," "How to Disappear Completely," Paranoid Android," and "Let Down." I'm thinking this isn't an honest list.
-Reel Big Fish's album "Turn the Radio Off." Again, it reminds me of driving in the car with my brother.
-"Life in Rain" and "Save Me" by Remy Zero. You may know the latter as the song that plays during the opening credits of "Smallville."
-"Beim Schlafengehen" from Strauss's "Vier Letzte Lieder." I heard this on the radio while I was driving home from work. Even though I arrived before the song was over, I stayed in the car so I could hear the title. It's super corny but beautiful. I'm also a sucker for D-flat major.
-The beginning of "Das Rheingold" by Wagner.
-"Rock DJ" by Robbie Williams. If you haven't seen the video, you need to.
-"Martyr" by Rusted Root.
-"Pattycake" by Self. One of my best friends, Scott, used to get this stuck in his head all the time. I will admit I used to torture him with it. "It's 1978 we're playing pattycake and baker's man!"
-Sigur Rós's album "Takk..." and the individual songs "Staralfur," "Olsen Olsen," "Hjlómalind," "Hafsól," "Gobbledigook," "Fljótavik," and tracks 1-4 on the untitled album "( )." Track one still breaks my heart.
-The Smashing Pumpkins's album "Machina/The Machines of God" and many, many individual songs.
-"Spoonman" and "Burden in My Hand" by Soundgarden. I wish Soundgarden were still around.
-"Hell," "Put a Lid on It," "Ghost of Stephen Foster," and "Fat Cat Keeps Getting Fatter" by the Squirrel Nut Zippers.
-"Superstition" by Stevie Wonder. If you don't like this song, there is something wrong with you.
-"Queen of Spades," "Blue Collar Man," and "Mr. Roboto" by Styx.
-"Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads. If I could loop the first 16 seconds indefinitely, I would.
-"Doctor Worm," "Birdhouse in Your Soul," "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)", "Particle Man," and "Dead" by They Might Be Giants.
-Alec Wilder's "Sonata No. 3 for Horn and Piano." This is the piece I played for my last jury.
-My Tito Puente Greatest Hits album.
-"What Is Hip?" by Tower of Power. Tell me, tell me, if you think you know.
-"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me," "Where the Streets Have No Name," and "Bullet the Blue Sky" by u2.
-"Concrete and Clay" and "Ooh La La" from the soundtrack to the movie "Rushmore." I can't remember who actually did these songs.
-"My Name is Jonas," "Buddy Holly," and "Say It Ain't So" by Weezer.
-Lots of White Stripes, but I think "Blue Orchid" might be my favorite.
-"Who Are You," "My Generation," "Magic Bus," and "Won't Get Fooled Again" by The Who.
-Lots of Mozart, but the second movement from the 23rd piano concerto is particularly pretty.
-"Dimension," "White Unicorn," "Woman," and "Joker and the Thief" by Wolfmother.
-Zwan's album "Mary Star of the Sea." Imagine the Smashing Pumpkins but happy and in D major.
