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1970’s

Listmania

Have you notice the blogs and social networking sites are just loaded with lists. Lists everywhere; the best, the worst, the do’s and dont’s, 10 places I’d like to go, 25 random things about me, favorite movie lists, bucket lists, and on and on.

I don’t listen to music very often these days, but I went out for a short run today with my MP3 player, which has many of my favorite songs on it. So, of course I thought of making a list. A favorite song list could be very long… should it be my top 10 favorites, top 20? I decided to cut my growing list down to a Big 30 list.

Those of you who grew up in the Boston area in the late 60’s / early 70’s will remember radio station WRKO’s “Big 30” song lists. WRKO and DJ Dale Dorman were very popular at that time. I remember looking forward to walking down to the local music store to pick up a new Big 30 lists, which came out once a week. And if I was lucky enough to save some baby-sitting money, I could buy a new 45 record. 45’s actually out-sold albums at that time.

So, here is my Big 30 favorite songs list, in alphabetical order. These are songs that I’ve listened to over and over without getting tired of them. Feel free to comment with your favorites. I might have to update this list if I think of a song or two that I’ve forgotten, which could bump one of these songs off my list.

1. American Dream – Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
2. American Pie – Don McLean
3. Angie – Rolling Stones
4. Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes – Jimmy Buffet
5. Eclipse – John Denver
6. Eighties Ladies – K.T. Oslin
7. Forever And Ever Amen – Randy Travis
8. Free Bird – Lynyrd Skynyrd
9. From A Distance – Bette Midler
10. Greatest Love of All – Whitney Houston
11. Hallelujah – Rufus Wainwright
12. Harvest – Neil Young
13. Hey Jude – Beatles
14. Hotel California – Eagles
15. Imagine – John Lennon
16. In the Year 2525 – Zager and Evans
17. Kokomo – Beach Boys
18. Landslide – Stevie Nicks
19. Love Can Build a Bridge – The Judds
20. Lyin’ Eyes – Eagles
21. Me and Bobby McGee – Janis Joplin
22. Middle Ground – Mary Chapin Carpenter
23. Same Old Lang Syne – Dan Fogelberg
24. Spilled Perfume – Pam Tillis
25. Stairway to Heaven – Led Zeppelin
26. Stay – Jackson Browne
27. Teach Your Children Well – Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
28. That’s What Friends Are For – Dionne Warwick
29. Total Eclipse Of The Heart – Bonnie Tyler
30. Turn The Page – Bob Segar
31. Wonder – Natalie Merchant
32. It’s Gonna Be Okay – Theresa Andersson

Stay – Jackson Browne added 04/30/09; It’s Gonna Be Okay – Theresa Andersson added 05/24/09, now need to remove two song…which ones, which ones?

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