My Favorite Songs

Welcome to another one of my musical passion blogs! Up to this point, all of my blogs have been in depth analyses and ratings of some of my favorite albums, featuring Linkin Park, Green Day, and more. However, just to change it up a little bit, I figured I would write a blog post detailing my favoring songs (in order of course), explaining why I love them so much and what makes them special. Naturally, many of these songs are found on the albums I already discussed, so I will not spend as much time on those tracks. In addition, these are my favorite songs – not necessarily the greatest songs of all time. If you want my pick for the greatest song of all time: check out this link. Without further adieu, here are Billy’s favorite songs:

1.”Waiting For the End” – Linkin Park

Not surprisingly, my favorite song of all time (currently) belongs to Linkin Park. This song, on the album A Thousand Suns, is a truly unique track, blending Mike Shinoda’s signature rapping and Chester Bennington’s soaring vocals. Unlike the more widely known Linkin Park music, this song actually has many elements of a power ballad rather than a hard rock groove. As you will quickly find out, I am a huge sucker for ballads and great vocals. This song, in particular, features incredible vocals from Bennington. The highlight of the song is when Shinoda’s rapping and Bennington’s chorus finally merge at the end, creating an incredibly powerful conclusion.

2. “Name” – The Goo Goo Dolls

Another more recent band, the Goo Goo Dolls are an alternative rock/soft rock group known for their song “Iris” (look it up, you probably know it). The lead vocalist of the Goo Goo Dolls, John Rzeznik, has one of my all-time favorite voices. I cannot exactly explain why, but something about his voice just hits different. In this particular song, another ballad, of course, Rzeznik’s voice is on full display, ranging from slow verses to more impactful, wailing choruses. In addition, this song has a great acoustic guitar instrumentation, where the guitar is tuned in a ridiculous way. In fact, I tried playing this song on guitar before, but my guitar couldn’t handle the bizarre tuning, and would consistently detune itself within minutes…

3. “Summer Highland Falls” – Billy Joel

With so many hits, such as “Piano Man,” “My Life,” and “Uptown Girl,” it is a surprise that this is my favorite Billy Joel song. Of all of the artists I listen to, Billy Joel is the first one I started listening too. I can now name every Billy Joel song within like 2 notes, and I own every one of his thirteen studio albums on vinyl (even his horrible first record Cold Spring Harbour and River of Dreams which was only pressed in like Canada or something). My favorite deep cut of all time, “Summer Highland Falls” has an addictive piano rhythm, featuring juxtaposing tempos between the vocals and piano. It’s unfortunate that this song is so obscure, but it truly goes to show that not ever song needs to be popular to be special to at least one individual. To elaborate, this song reminds me of my mom, who also loves this song.

4. “Kathy’s Song” – Simon & Garfunkel

This song is actually quite similar to “Summer Highland Falls” in that it has a faster instrumental tempo contrasting to smoothe, slow vocals. This song, unlike the previously mentioned song, has an acoustic guitar backing rather than a piano backing. Even though I generally prefer Art Garfunkel’s voice to Paul Simon’s, this song is a different story. Everything about this song is truly beautiful, and not much else needs to be said.

5. “September” – Daughtry

Arguably my favorite vocalist of all time (in terms of individual voice), Daughtry are the kings of the loud chorus – something that I am also a huge fan of. If it weren’t self explanatory enough, many of Daughtry’s songs feature quiet verses that build up to a loud, bellowing chorus. “September” is no different, and features another beautiful guitar backing that rivals “Name.” Many Daughtry songs are on my long list of favorite songs, but this one takes the cake for its combination of incredible vocals and driving guitar hooks. The song itself was written about Chris Daughtry’s childhood, and was performed on season nine of American Idol (Chris ultimately finished fourth on American Idol many years prior).

6. “Raining in Baltimore” – Counting Crows

Elaborately discussed in my passion blog for the album August and Everything After, this song is special to me because it always reminds me of my mom. When she drove me through Shenandoah National Park to get to Charlottesville, VA, we played the album that this song is on, right before we went hiking near Hawksbill Mountain. Impulsive as we are, we decided to start hiking the mountain without looking at the length of the trail and without bringing water. Needless to say, about an hour in, we had to bail, especially considering my mom was wearing flip flops… Now this song reminds me of that day.

7. “Throwing It All Away” – Genesis

Wow, surprise! Another ballad! (insert eyeroll emoji here). Although I prefer Phil Collins’s solo work than his work in the band Genesis, I cannot deny the fact that this song is one of my favorites. The song is relatively simple all things considered, but it is a standout on one of my favorite albums, Invisible Touch. The song is often said to sound like many of Phil Collins’ solo work, which probably explains why I like it so much… I don’t have much else to say on this one…

8. “In the Ghetto” – Elvis Presley

What music list would this be without the King? Perhaps Presley’s most mature song, “In the Ghetto,” not surprisingly, tells of the hardships of an impoverished family living in the slums of Chicago. The song takes a sour turn, as the mother’s son becomes a criminal, eventually getting shot in the street by the authorities. The song is pretty powerful, ending the tragedy of the “young man” by saying that another young man is born, insinuating that this will likely happen again due to the conditions of the city. Oh, and it’s a ballad if you couldn’t have guessed.

9. “Home” – Daughtry

The first artist to get two songs on my list, Daughtry once again proves that their powerful vocals ensnare me. “Home,” perhaps Daughtry’s best known song, tells of the struggles of a musician, often going on tour and being away from their family for long periods of time. Hilariously, American Idol had Daughtry, who finished fourth in his season of the show, perform this song in their sixth season, proving that he probably should have won…

10. “Father and Son” – Cat Stevens

This song is just cool. Ok, more specifically, this song is very, very unique. In this song, the verses are intended to be sung by a boy’s father, telling his son life advice. The choruses, on the other hand, are intended to be the son’s response to his father, telling his dad that he “has to go away.” Verse two and chorus two of the song repeats the same thing, except the son’s voice is overlaid between the father’s lines. If you somehow recognize this song, it’s probably because it is the song that Peter Quill listens to after Yondu Udonta dies in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2.