"Heartbeat" by Annie

This song is perfect. I just wanted that to be the first thing you read. I heard "Heartbeat" in 2004 and it has been a mix cd favorite ever since. It sounds as fresh as it did 6(!) years ago and holds up well as a forbearer to the British Pop movement going on across the pond right now.

Written by Annie and Rὅykskopp, this is one of those effortless pop songs that dances on a standard beat and classic song structure; It gets in your head and stays there. You could take this song apart and change the the production and it could be a hit in just about any genre or any country... and that is what a perfectly written pop song should be. Universal.

"Live To Tell" & "Against All Odds"

Today you get a twofer. "Live To Tell" by Madonna & "Against All Odds" by Phil Collins are two records that I played to death as a kid. They are both from that era of the 80's where movie soundtracks had that big over-the-top ballad on the soundtrack. Both of these songs belie their failings of their film counterparts and went on to become #1 hits on the Billboard Chart and perennial radio favorites.

Both songs gave chills as a kid. "Live To Tell" always struck me with a certain resonance of emptiness. I think it is the sparse production and one Madonna's most understated vocals that make this song so haunting.

On the other hand "Against All Odds" was one the first melodies and piano parts I became obsessed with as a kid. The production is also quite striking in retrospect. The piano and vocals are pretty much left all alone in the mix... no real production tricks other than a little reverb. But the the drums have all kinds of effects all over them. They sound somewhat claustrophobic compared to everything else... almost at "odds",if you will. Plus the song is just damn sad and sometimes there is nothing for comforting than shared sadness.

"Sally Cinnamon" by The Stone Roses

It would make no sense not to start off this hopefully ongoing dispenser of my favorite songs than with this blog's very namesake. When Ian Brown sings, "I pop pop pop blow blow bubble gum/You taste of cherryade"; it should sound silly, but instead sounds like the culmination of everything I love about pop music. He is singing about a girl, but could very well be singing about pop music itself. The line: "Sent to me from heaven...you are my world" is totally how I feel when I am obsessing over a new song or artist I love.

In the end maybe this is why as a songwriter and music fan I find myself going back to this song time and time agin for inspiration. Sometimes I am amazed by how good it is and I dissect it. Other times I just listen and get a little nostalgic for the summer of 8th grade, the first time I heard it. And still other times I am secretly grateful that this song didn't scare away a generation British bands from writing songs because I gotta be honest with you... this song is so good I'm not sure I would've kept writing songs if I had been in a band across the pond in 1990. But sometimes the best things inspire us to try and top them. This is why I like I love pop music.