Hello Summer

So.  Finally. It's summer time.  We have had an extended winter and spring barely existed in the first place here.  All of this summer sun that we're getting makes me feel nostalgic.  I am reliving all of the days where I drove to the beach with my favorite album of the moment playing as loudly as possible.  Then I thought of all the albums that have been important to me and realized that I wanted to go through my collection and pin down the music that means the most to me.

So.  If you are finally having summer sun and want some new/ old music to listen to, here are my top ten favorite albums of all time.  My friend Anna gave me a phrase the other day that has totally stuck with me and that I am using a lot: "I am quite promiscuous with my music."  Taking time to figure out which are my truly favorite albums out of my entire music collection has made me giggle.  I seem to have "quite promiscuous" taste.  This could be good though because that way there is something for everyone.

Anyway here goes:

1. Portishead/ Portishead Live from Roseland NYC
Portishead is that magical band for me.  All of their music comes from this amazing,creative, blow your mind place and I adore them.  This album is sheer genius.  They mix big band with orchestra, goth with hip hop.

2. The Beatles/ The White Album
What can I say about the Beatles that hasn't already been said?  They practically are their own genre.  The White Album changed my life.  Simple as that.  Whenever I hear While My Guitar Gently Weeps, I am transcended to another place.

3. Tori Amos/ Boys For Pele
If you've read my blog, you know that Tori Amos is my Obi Wan Kenobi.  Boys For Pele is art in motion.  It is also the album that I identify most with in the entire world.

4. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers/ Greatest Hits
My sister and I.  Driving in the car.  Hollering Last Dance With Mary Jane at the top of our lungs.  Her picking out the guitar riff to Breakdown while I sing the words.  Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers made this sensational compilation of all their best work and we have paid tribute to it time and time again.

5. Neko Case/ Fox Confessor Brings The Flood
Please see my prior blog.  This album is perfect from start to finish.  I have never met another like it.

6. Nickel Creek/ Why Should the Fire Die?
Who said that bluegrass can't be sensational, sexy and tear you to bits?  Not only are Nickel Creek incredibly talented but Why Should the Fire DIe? is also emotional, provocative and haunting.  Such depth from bluegrass is really moving.

7. Marilyn Manson/ Mechanical Animals
I love Marilyn Manson.  I am a huge fan of Manson and always will be.  I wrote about Mechanical Animals briefly last week.  I will just say that he is a truly great lyricist with a hardcore sound that is unrivaled by most artists in the same genre as he.

8. Cake/ Fashion Nugget
Fashion Nugget is Cake at their best.  Quirky and fun with a very serious message at the core (listen to Going The Distance), this album is timeless.  Put it on and it will surprise you just which people in the room start singing along.

9. Lady Gaga/ The Fame Monster
Lady Gaga really came close to perfection with The Fame Monster.  Lyrically it is filled with twists, turns and puzzles.  Musically it is hyper and pop production at it's best.  I know that Lady Gaga annoys people very easily, but don't take for granted that her music will necessarily be the same way.

10. Fiona Apple/ When the Pawn...
I will never tire of Fiona Apple.  I will always want more music from her and who knows if she will ever write another album?  It might break my heart forever.  When The Pawn... was her second album and still moves me to this day.  If you want to understand the raw, female psyche.  Download this album and listen to it with your mind, body and soul.

11. Counting Crows/ August and Everything After
I snuck a number eleven in there.  Sorry.  Well, I wish I was sorry.  I had to add the Counting Crows album because it has always been monumental in my life.  What can I say about Counting Crows?  I wish that they hadn't run out of creative ideas.  I listened to this album for the first time when I was eighteen years old and never got over it.  Moody and vital are the adjectives that come to mind when I try to describe this record.

Check out something new that you don't have yet.  Not all of this is summer music.  Portishead and Fiona Apple are great autumn/ winter albums... as in they could last you an entire season.  So think about these selections very carefully and how they can fit into your life.

I hope this list is complete.  I pondered these for a long time, agonizing over every detail.  I had to move things around over and over because each record is in a very specific spot.  Believe it or not, the top five were the easiest, it was the bottom five that gave me the most trouble.

I will leave you now with something for the road.  wink wink.

This is one of my all time favorite songs.  It seemed appropriate to post with the theme of the blog as well as the tie in to my "best of" list... 

Now, make your way to the pool and pick up some BBQ while you are at it!