music in me

Once a year I torture myself. Ok, I probably torture myself on many ways throughout the year, but considering this particular issue it's only once a year. I don't know why I do it every year, but there's something that somehow forces me to do it again, and again, and again.

You guessed it, it is time to vote for the Top 2000 again.

For those not in the know; the Top 2000 is a yearly thing a Dutch radiostation does to me. The idea is the following; from boxing day to New Years eve this radiostation plays the favourite 2000 songs of the people who voted. You vote by picking your 10 favorite songs from a list they provide.

So far so good. Only problem?

How am I supposed to pick 10 songs out of over 2500 options? There's 5 Zucchero songs alone on the list! 16 Springsteen songs! One Ryan Adams song! 13 Creedence Clearwater Revival songs! God knows how many Acda en de Munnik songs! And I'm not even talking about Elton John, Fleetwood Mac, B.B. King, George Harrison, Johnny Cash, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Otis Redding, R.E.M., Randy Newman, The Rolling Stones, Stevie Wonder, Sting, The Band, U2 and Van Morrison.

Now, it might not quite be in the same category as world hunger, mass murder or Michael Bolton. But it is annoying to me and it's also a good reason why someone should smarten up and give me my own radiostation (come on folks! it's almost Christmas time!).

Anyway, every year again I end up with a list I'm not quite happy with. And every year I tell myself I'm not going to do it again next year. And, well, here we are again. The list below is in random order, and it lacks almost all my favourite songs;

Bruce Springsteen - Born to run

(one of those few songs that you can listen to a million times and it never loses it's power)

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Who'll stop the rain?

(John Fogerty is one of the best song writers in the history of best song writers. I could only pick one CCR track and this is my favorite)

Derek & the Dominoes - Layla

(Plugged. OF COURSE! Eric Clapton wrotethis song when he was madly in love with his best friend George Harrison's wife, you can feel that absolutely horrible 'wanting-to-tear-out-your-heart' feeling of being in love with the wrong person in this song)

Otis Redding - The dock of the bay

(I would have gone for a Solomon Burke song, but King Solomon wasn't on the list (BASTARDS!). This, however, is one of the most beautiful soul songs ever made)

Rufus Wainwright - Beauty Mark

(Great song, interesting guy. Elton John thinks he's the new Elton John)

Ryan Adams - La cienega just smiled

(I fell deeply in love with Ryan Adams because of Gold and it's single New York New York. Since then I've been trying to get my posse (or my bitches if you will) to appreciate him too, sometimes with success. This was the only Ryan song on the list but it's also really beautiful)

Zucchero & B.B. King - Hey Man (Sing a Song)

(Hey Man was on Zucchero's 1988 Blue's album, in 1999 he performed it live with blues legend B.B. King and last year a studio adaption of that performance was released. It's a song about friendship, don't think I need to say more)

Zucchero - Diamante

(Always one of my favorite Zucchero tracks, for more recent emotional reasons read the "Fai piano i bimbi grandi non piangono" post)

Zucchero - Il Volo

(This song is from my favorite Zucchero album, Spirito DiVino, and it was also a big hit in The Netherlands. Which made me hate the song, but then I stopped hating it and now I think it's one of his best songs. If they play the duet version with Ronan Keating however I will personally come down to the radio station and castrate them)

Zucchero - Cosi Celeste

(I love this song. My Italian sucks but from what I get out of it, the song's about how someone can be a complete asshole at times but can do it so beautifully you still love that person. If it's not about that.... please don't tell me).

So, there you have it. Next year I'm so not doing it again.