100 favorite songs of all time (Part 1)

Not long ago, someone asked me about my favorite music. I drew a blank. To me, that seemed like a strange reaction to the question. I listen to music fairly religiously. So why, when spontaneously prodded, did a struggle to name a single band I like?

Nerves maybe, but I think it might also be attributed to the fact that I don’t tend to think in terms of hierarchy. I like some bands, I love some bands and I hate some bands. But if you put a gun to my head and asked me who I loved more – The Velvet Underground or The Zombies – my brains would probably end up splattered all over the hacienda. I love ‘em both. I feel like it’s slightly arbitrary for me to place one above the other. There’s no need to choose.

All well and good, but let’s be real. That’s a boring attitude. So I decided to make a list of my 100 favorite songs of all time. The list will be posted periodically over this month in five-song intervals.

So let’s go.

100. Gang of Four – Damaged Goods

I almost put a song by some English band from the last decade in this spot. But then I realized I might as well just put a Gang of Four song here instead. Same difference, but better riffs. I’ve never been the overtly political type, but I’m insufferable enough to enjoy a subtle dig against the bourgeoisie now and again, so I can appreciate Gang of Four. As an added bonus, you can describe them with phrases like “angular guitars” and “dance punk,” which are hilarious phrases. I like this band so much that I bought a copy of their fourth album, “Hard.” Now there’s a steaming pile of awful.

99. Chantal Goya – Comment le revoir

This song gets a boost for two reasons. One, the film that spawned it, “Masculin Feminin,” is one of my favorites. Two, I’m an absolutely sucker for girl pop. In France, the style was dubbed “yé-yé” and emphasized the more twee aspects of American girl pop. Chantal Goya is hardly the best of the yé-yé bunch, but I’ve always had a sweet spot for her lack of vocal range. And this tune has a catchy little beat. It’s probably too saccharine for most folks, but the absolutely lack of guile in Goya’s delivery is pretty damn charming to me.

98. The Nerves – When You Find Out

I think this is the shortest song on this list. The Nerves are probably better known for “Hanging on the Telephone,” which was a big hit for Blondie, but this tune is the perfect distillation of their sound. Like pretty much every song The Nerves recorded, this is pristine power pop. Not a riff wasted, not a snare hit to spare. The fact that it clocks in at just less than two minutes means that I can put it on repeat and not get sick of it. In a bizarre way, it makes me think of The Resident’s “Commercial Album.”

97. Gong – Love Is How You Make It

I first heard this song on Kieran Hebdan’s DJ-Kicks mix compilation. I really like that mix. As much as I love the hippy classics, I’ve never investigated Gong too closely. That just doesn’t make much sense. I think the biggest thing that keeps me away from other Gong stuff is the cornball album art and titles. It all reeks of patchouli. As for this song, I forgive the lovey-dovey lyrics because it features the best use of marimba in a psychedelic pop tune.

96. Charles Mingus – II B.S.

Sometimes Jazz gets too cerebral for me. Despite the fact that I like to write about music, I tend to react to music without much thought. Some jazz – say Eric Dolphy for example – requires the expenditure of a lot of brain juice. That’s not a value judgment, but rather an admission of the cognitive toll required to appreciate something like “Gazzelloni.” I like “Gazzelloni,” but Christ, it’s a song named after a classically-trained Italian flautist. Besides, this isn’t the top 100 songs I most appreciate. This is a list of songs that nail me in the gut and leave me writhing like a stuck pig. Mingus is the only jazz musician who does this to me consistently. This particular song goes by a few different names: “II BS,” “Haitian Fight Song” and “Hog Callin’ Blues.” Call this tune whatever you want, it’s a punch to the face.

This post is part of a series counting down my favorite songs of all time. Follow the links below to read related posts.

1-5 | 6-10 | 11-15 | 16-20 | 21-25 | 26-30 | 31-35 | 36-40 | 41-45 | 46-50 | 51-55 | 56-60 | 61-65 | 66-70 | 71-75 | 76-80 | 81-85 | 86-90 | 91-95 | 96-100 |