Top Ten Countdown: Music Blogfest!

Happy Monday! To kick-start the week - as if we didn't have enough to talk about with the SCBWI Winter Conference in NEW YORK coming up (yes, you can still register!) - I'm participating in Alex Cavanaugh's blogfest today! In which you learn about ten of my most favorite songs EVER. (And in honor of the SCBWI conference, I'm going to be posting EVERY DAY between now and Friday - so buckle up and get your pencils ready, because we're going to be talking about some great writerly stuff like pitches and revision and critique. It's going to be awesome.)

Incidentally, some of these songs you might never have heard of, so please follow the links and check them out. And now, without further ado and in no particular order, I give you...

My TOP TEN SONGS*:

1) Praying for Time, by the gorgeous and talented George Michael. This song was so prescient, and is so timeless and true. He is so right on with this song, it makes me cry. And, it's a beautiful song.

2) Short Trip Home, by Edgar Meyer, played by the violin virtuoso Joshua Bell. This song lifts me up.

3) Under Pressure, by the amazing David Bowie and the immortal Queen. This song captures the essence of its title with its words, but keeps me moving with its beat.

4) Tears in Heaven, by Eric Clapton. I have two sons, and this song makes me cry every time.

5) Fanfare for the Common Man, by Aaron Copland. This song inspires me to carry on, and captures the majesty that is our world. Also by Copland is my next choice,

6) Appalachian Spring. This song is America to me.

7) We Are the World, by Michael Jackson, performed by him and a bunch of other incredible performers. Because when this song came out and people all over my city gathered in a long chain to sing it along the streets to raise awareness of poverty in Africa, I was one of them. All the kids and all the families of my elementary school participated, and I will never, ever forget that day.

8) Slip Slidin' Away, by Paul Simon. Of all the songs I love by this guy - and I love them ALL - I love this one the most. It's heartbreaking in its honesty, and its lyrics are perfect. He's a beautiful storyteller, and an incredible truthteller. Wherever I hear Paul Simon's music, I am home.

9) Atomic garden, by Bad Religion. I love them for their honesty.

10) Movin' Out, by Billy Joel, another great musical storyteller. This song reminds me that a lot of the time, bucking the norm is a good thing.

And that's (almost) it! Be sure to check out all the other bloggers talking about their top ten songs today.

*It is impossible for me to just pick ten songs and say that they are the best ten ever. In making this list, I had to leave out songs that regularly make my day's playlist: songs by John Lennon, Huey Lewis and the News, Ray Charles, Nat King Cole, John Denver, Harry Belafonte, Tina Turner, WHAM, Adrian Legg, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, Billy Idol, The Eurythmics, Willie Nelson... Tons and tons of songs that make the soundtrack to my life. I just couldn't let this post go by without mentioning some of them.