Phil Maq

This will be a personal weekly Top Ten list of what I consider to be the best songs that I listened to the previous week. Most songs will be current, but there are no boundaries. I’ve already stated on this web site that I am obsessed with music. I am constantly hunting it down whether it’s online, on CD, from my personal collection, from a library (Yes, I think the library is a great source of music–especially for music that you aren’t sure about.), TV, or radio. Since most of these sources mostly emphasize new music, the odds are pretty good that most of the songs on this list will be new. But in my search, I don’t use any boundaries for the other sources. I am just looking for good music that I haven’t heard, or happened to forget about. Everyone, including myself, has forgotten way more great music than they can ever remember-even if they are also music fanatics.
Also, there will be no rules concerning songs on this list. A song can show up or drop off a number of times. This will be the most volatile of my lists. It all depends on how much music I am exposed to during the week and what I find interesting. On really obscure stuff, I will try to include the source, if I know it.

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Fourteen weeks and counting for Jessica Dayle! I guess global warming really is happening since “Summertime” refuses to release its hold on the number one spot……………
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Top Ten Songs for the Week of November 4, 2012

1. Summertime—Jessica Dayle
2. The Leaves Are Changing—Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys
3. Little Misunderstood—Barbara Lynn Doran
4. 4th of July (Sandy)—Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
5. I’m Mitt—Elliot Astur
6. Dance in the Graveyards—Delta Rae
7. It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City—Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
8. Day of the Dreamer–Renaissance
9. Sweet Cider—Gathering Time
10. Political Science—Randy Newman

1) “Summertime”—When will the run end for this Jessica Dayle gem? I certainly wish it would stay “Summertime” forever, but I feel winds of change starting to blow…………
2) “The Leaves Are Changing”—It appears that there are conflicting weather patterns at the top. Heading into winter, one would think that fall will win. Lindsay Lou & The Flatbellys will provide the music!
3) “Little Misunderstood”—Barbara Lynn Doran sticks around with her impressive semi—autobiographical music gem!
4) “4th of July (Sandy)”—I hunted this song down as Hurricane Sandy wreaked devastation on the East Coast—including the same areas that Bruce Springsteen sang about in this song! It is a beautiful but unpolished slice-of-life about the Jersey boardwalk. My favorite part of the song is Bruce’s noncommital “I promise I’ll love you…forever?” And then the confidence comes back strong with “Oh, I mean it Sandy girl!” The late Danny Federici’s strolling accordion gives the song just the right touch of ambience, too!
5) “I’m Mitt”—Elliot Astur, a singer/songwriter who balances political songs as well as “secular” songs, sums up the person known as Mitt Romney with biting lyrical precision.
And it’s so darn catchy!
6) “Dance in the Graveyards”—Delta Rae take a creepy sounding title and turn it into a funky groove of resurrection. The song is extremely catchy with a “wicked” hypnotic drumbeat!
7) “It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City”—One of my favorite Springsteen songs—and that’s saying a lot. Starting with acoustic guitar chords and then Dave Sancious’ funky piano riffs, Bruce slithers through street scenes where the beggars cry out, “Nickels for your pity” and the downtown girls “sure do talk gritty.” It’s like the best Tom Waits song he never wrote. The song is really more jazz than rock and but it flows amorphously from section to section. You can hear the rain and sweat on the bell of Vinny Lopez’ cymbals and you can feel and smell the heat that Bruce mostly raps about —not sing, as the street poet character he used to be. It’s incredible to think that he and the band would even get better after this song!
8) “Day of the Dreamer”—One of the greatest songs ever recorded! (GSER) Renaissance had already done their classic best work when they nailed this one, but that doesn’t mean that there wasn’t anything left in the tank. The album featuring this song, “A Song for All Seasons,” was overproduced and way too busy with the orchestral/pops arrangements. “Day of the Dreamer”–even with everything that was thrown into the mix, is the pinnacle of the album! I have been hooked on it from time to time, and man, I am hooked on it now!
9) “Sweet Cider”—A gloriously happy folk throwback that shows a heavy Peter, Paul, & Mary influence! It recalls wistful memories of cider mills and donuts. If you’re drinking cider while listening to the song, the experience is even more intense! The rest of their album, “Red Apples and Gold” continues the apple theme!
10) “Political Science”—A wickedly acerbic tongue-in-cheek take on the stereotypical way that Americans view the rest of the world that is now out of date since the song was written over 40 years ago. Or is it? Very few musicians can get away describing militarily attacking other countries in the world by singing, “Boom! goes London/And Boom! Paris/More room for you/And more room for me.” Gee, and he wonders why everyone hates “us.” Brilliant satire!
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