In Nick Hornby's book High Fidelity (arguably the Rock Geek Bible) his lovesick protagonist Rob Fleming randomly made top-five lists while toiling about his North London second hand record store. Hornby takes his list-making obsession to new heights in Songbook, a collection of essays about his most cherished and personally dissected songs ever. The book also known as 31 Songs in Britain, is a wonderful reminder of the power of a simple ditty or textured arrangement to enhance our daily existence. Bruce Springsteen once claimed in song of course that "I learned more from a 3 minute record than I ever did in school" and I'm sure many of us can relate. So in that spirit I've asked many musical minds, local and otherwise, to compile their own lists of 31 favorite songs. As in Hornby's book the criteria was not picking what you believe was the artist's greatest work, just what you hold as a personal favorite. I sincerely don't believe Hornby would cite Bob Dylan"s "Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window" as Dylan's best work ever, just that it's the one that has a track listing on the soundtrack of his life. People who wouldn't normally make lists have expressed concern about making such a list but have conceded to the fact that a list of personal 31 songs chosen in the moment is not written in stone.

This new entry comes from a co-worker whose smart funny quips about current calamities made me suspect that her song list would be a work of pure beauty or at least better than my lame introduction. Here's :

Monica Yungeberg's 31 Songs

1. “Mr. Blue Sky” – E.L.O.
2. “Gulf Coast Highway” – Nanci Griffith
3. “Leaving London” – Doc Watson
4. “On the Nickel” – Tom Waits. I had a sublime experience with this song at about age 15… changed my whole perspective on music.
5. “Leaving Train” – Gillian Welch
6. “(Want Some) Seafood, Mama” – The Andrews Sisters
7. “I Fall to Pieces” – Patsy Cline
8. “Man in the Long Black Coat” – Joan Osborne, (Wr. by Bob Dylan) Yes, this is the Joan Osborne know for the dumb speculations about God being one of us. But her bluesy voice and Dylan’s lyrics equal a big *mwah* from me.
9. “Snowing on Raton” – Townes Van Zandt
10. “I Get Carried Away” – George Strait
11. “Dream River” – The Mavericks
12. “Mystery” – The Indigo Girls
13. “Daydream Believer” – The Monkees. If you want to know how I spent my childhood, watch hours upon hours of re-runs of The Monkees. And I always thought Davy was the dreamiest- mostly because he was closest to my height- but thus this song.
14. “L.A. Freeway” – Guy Clark
15. “Only Living Boy in New York” – Simon and Garfunkel
16. “Comin’ Down in the Rain” – Nanci Griffith (Wr. by Buddy Mondlock) “Burning himself out on a limb, like a leaf in the fall / Blazed for a while, now he’s feeling all dried up and small / Color’s all gone, disappeared near as quick as it came / He says he can stay up. But he’ll only come down in the rain.”
17. “Jesus on the Radio” – Guster
18. “Uncle John’s Band” – Jimmy Buffet (Wr. by Jerry Garcia) Apologies if you’re a Dead fan- but I like Jimmy Buffet, and (gasp) his version, complete with steel drums, really captures the essence of the song for me.
19. “It’s Alright” - Curtis Mayfield
20. “Peaceful, Easy Feeling” – The Eagles. Sorry, Dude.
21. “Feel Like a Number” – Bob Segar and the Silver Bullet Band
22. “Funky Dixieland” – The Doobie Brothers
23. “Let’s Stay Together” – Al Greene
24. “King of the Road” – Roger Miller. I grew up on Roger Miller, and would love to have picked a more esoteric Miller choice, but I just love this song. The syncopated rhythmic hook is pure genius.
25. “Free to Decide” – The Cranberries
26. “Like Everyone She Knows” – James Taylor. Fabulous guitar intro.
27. “The ‘Emperor’ Piano Concerto op. 73” L. Van Beethoven- pretension, what? I honestly just love it. Especially the Adagio un Poco Moto…
28. “Long Time Gone”- Darrell Scott w/ Tim O’Brien
29. “Me and the Eagle” – Steve Earle
30. “Morning Song for Sally” – Jerry Jeff Walker. Possibly the best, most honest love song I’ve ever heard.
31. “Moonlight Serenade” – Glenn Miller Band. There is no better slow dance.