Favorite Songs: #21 to #19

#21 Not Enough Time by INXS (from Welcome to Whenever You Are, 1992)

The first INXS song I heard was The One Thing in late 1982. I instantly liked it a lot. This Australian group, a six-man band centered around three brothers and front man, (the late) singer Michael Hutchence, came out with a succession of quality songs in the 1980's. Their biggest commercial successes were the albums Kick (1987) and X (1990), which produced a string of hit singles. The following album, Welcome to Whenever You Are, was not as commercially successful, but did include my favorite song of theirs, Not Enough Time. Hutchence's deep and emotional voice always dominated their music, but even more so in this song. It's one of INXS's slower pieces and conveys a strong sense of mystery and longing to me. I can't figure out why it wasn't a bigger hit than it was. This song also reminds me of an earlier "time" song, Jim Croce's 1973 Time in a Bottle. Both deal with the fact that there "never seems to be enough time", quite opposite from the sense of another "time" song, the excellent Too Much Time on My Hands by Styx in 1981.

#20 The Good's Gone by The Who (from The Who Sings My Generation, 1966)

The first time I heard a Who song, it was I Can't Explain in 1965. At first, I thought they had released a new Beatles song, but, no, it was a new British band. I think that song was the first time I ever played air guitar! But, for some reason, the Who didn't catch on during the 1960's in America, although they did release a moderately successful string of singles. It wasn't until about eleven years ago that I was able to fully appreciate the range and quality of their music. I was rummaging through the used albums at Hyde and Zeke's record store across from the University of Florida campus when I made an incredible find. They had the four album set of the Who's first four studio albums, and at a steal of a price! The songs were superb, and made me scratch my head again, wondering why they weren't bigger in the U.S. back then. The first album contained the title track My Generation, as well as the The Kids Are All Right and A Legal Matter. But my favorite of all was a deep track, The Good's Gone, a relentless, driving tune with Roger Daltrey singing at just about his deepest and roughest and songwriting genius Pete Townshend pitching in with his typically impeccable harmonizing. The guitar work at the beginning and in the middle break is what made this song one of my favorites. Later on, the Who would catch on in America and be recognized for the great act that it was. My favorite albums from them are Quadrophenia and The Who Sell Out.

#19 12:51 by The Strokes (from Room on Fire, 2003)

12:51 is the first of only two songs from the 2000's on my favorites list, and is the most recent. The Strokes are currently my favorite band, reminding me (without sounding like them) of the Beatles in their early years when they played so tightly together as a band. I've heard several Strokes songs over the past three years and have yet to hear one that I don't like. If you want to see them in action, watch their video for the song Reptilia. Their front man/singer Julian Casablancas is usually out there belting out the songs loudly and powerfully, but in 12:51, he actually sings within the background of the instruments, producing an interesting effect. I also like the time 12:51 (AM), because that's when I am usually sitting at home in my recliner after a day's work, relaxing with my dinner and trying to find something on TV worth watching (or else placing entries on my blog).

Next favorite songs: #18 to #16.