1. "I Won't Share You" - The Smiths -- My friend Jessie sent me the Morning Benders cover of this song and I wanted to look up the original. Both are really good.
2. "Let's Stay Together" - Al Green -- I don't think I could love anything as much as Al Green's music. This including all future significant others. Good lord this is the stuff.
3. "The Deep End (Holy Ghost Remix)" - Curses!" -- I really like the bass guitar in this. Plus I had to add a little pizazz to the playlist.
4. "Unknown Legend" - Neil Young -- I cried when I heard this song the other day... and I wasn't even on my period. Let that be a testament to the beauty of this song.
5. "A Man Without Love" - Engelbert Humperdinck -- I love how it slowly builds and then leaves you begging for more once the climax has been reached. Oh wait, are we talking about music? Besides having the best name ever, Engelbert can carry a tune. This song is sad but in a good way. It slowly builds and then POW! "Every day I wake up and then I start to break up..." This song is so so good.
6. "No, No, No" - Dawn Penn -- Thought I would throw some raggae into the mix. This song is like, damn sexy.
7. "Scenic World" - Beirut -- Really cool song by Beirut. I feel like I heard it somewhere like a Visa commercial or a car commercial. The horns are my favorite part. I could see this being in the soundtrack to a movie towards the end.
8. "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" - The Shirelles -- I remember I had this on a compilation CD when I was 8. I was riding in the car with my parents somewhere. I had on my headphones and was singing aloud to this song. My parents looked at each other, smiled, and reached for the other's hand. Awwww.
9. "Change of Heart" - El Perro Del Mar -- This is a really sexual song also. I like the vocals as well as the bass and drums. The first 30 seconds of this song was my ringtone. Why? It's fucking awesome, that's why. Check out the music video to this song, it's really cool and the two men in it are incredibly strong.
10. "Regret" - New Order -- "You used to be a stranger now you are mine."
11. "The Dark End of Street" - James Carr -- Best song ever about cheating. There is so much emotion in this song it's unreal. I like the following lyrics a lot:
"I know time is gonna take its toll. We have to pay for the love we stole. It's a sin and we know it's wrong. Oh, but our love keeps coming on strong."
12. "I Don't Love You Anymore" - Teddy Pendergrass -- The antithesis of a love song. It doesn't hurt that you can jam out with your clam out on this one.
13. "Spanish Harlem" - Ben E. King and the Drifters -- Really really sweet song. The rhythm is really nice and Ben E. King's voice is really rich.
14. "I Just Called to Say I Love You" - Stevie Wonder -- Dear Stevie: How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. One one-thousand. Two one-thousand. Three one-thousand. Four one-thousand. Five one-thousand. I sang this song for karaoke at a Sandals resort in St. Lucia in front of 150 strangers while there for my sister's wedding. In addition to that, I sang "Fat Bottomed Girls" by Queen and "Milkshake" by Ciara. To dedicate the song, I slurred, "Let's hear it for all the singles!!!" Sandals are resorts specifically catering to couples. A lot of Piton beer was involved in the making of that legend.
15. "Islands in the Stream" - The Constantines and Feist -- The original with Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers is great, but I love the slower pace of this version and I love Leslie Feist's voice. I always want to sing a duet to this for karaoke, but nobody ever "knows the lyrics." Which, personally, I think is a bullshit excuse because that is why they have a screen with the words on it right in front of you.
In case you haven't noticed, Karaoke is something I do. It's how I show my love for the lord, actually. Some people whip themselves with cat-o-nines or wear barbed-wire garter belts. But those are things that are done in private. I prefer to humiliate myself for Jesus in front of large groups of people, after I have had a multitude of beers (what I lovingly refer to as the "Barley of Christ"). It's my form of penance -- a sort of lyrical self-flagellation (not to be confused with flatulation), if you will. Once my life is over, they will make me a Saint: Saint Rebeka, the patron Saint of Karaoke.
