I love beautiful singing, obviously, because I’m a choral director, but it doesn’t stop there. A song has to say something to me in order to be meaningful, or else it’s just so many wasted measures. I love it when a student or friend tells me that a certain song makes him or her cry or feel empowered or angry or whatever. That’s what music is supposed to do: make us feel love, sadness, joy and peace — four of the most extraordinary emotions in the human experience.

I have to find an ethereal combination of lyrics, melody and harmonic structure in order to love a song. [There are exceptions for dance music, however, which I often love simply for the groove.] In other words, music has to talk to me. I cannot have music playing “in the background,” because it’s always in the foreground for me. Strange to say because I’m a musician, but I rarely have music playing in my house when I’m trying to accomplish things (which is often, unfortunately). The music always takes precedence and I can’t get my work done as efficiently.

So what songs “speak” to me? The list is so long and varied that it’s hard to even start it, but I will gi’ it a go.

For this particular little exercise, I will focus on individual singers only, not bands in general.

Bien. Vamos.

A Few of Fink’s Faves, in No Particular Order

  1. James Taylor – “Only One”
  2. Annie Lennox – “Walking on Broken Glass”
  3. Stephen Bishop – “Same Old Tears on a New Background”
  4. John Lennon – “Girl”
  5. Frank Sinatra – “Only the Lonely”
  6. Diana Krall – “Charmed Life”
  7. Stevie Ray Vaughan – “Pride and Joy”
  8. Bonnie Raitt – “Nobody’s Girl”
  9. Bobby Darin – “Beyond the Sea”
  10. Ella Fitzgerald – “Miss Otis Regrets”
  11. Jimmy Witherspoon – “Time’s Gettin’ Tougher Than Tough”
  12. Sting – “Roxanne” (although every time I hear it, I can’t help but think of Eddie Murphy in 48 Hours)
  13. Luciano Pavarotti – “Nessun dorma” from Turandot – quite possibly the most perfect aria in the history of opera. Click the link and watch it.
  14. Anita Baker – “Giving You the Best That I Got”
  15. B. B. King – “Payin’ the Cost to Be the Boss”
  16. Paul McCartney – “Maybe I’m Amazed”
  17. Dean Martin – “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head”
  18. Bryan Adams – “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman”
  19. Billy Joel – “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant”
  20. Tony Bennett – “Isn’t it Romantic”
  21. Sade – “Smooth Operator”
  22. Don Henley – “Desperado”
  23. Michael Jackson – “Remember the Time”
  24. Glenn Frey – “Heartache Tonight”
  25. Timothy B. Schmit – “Love Will Keep Us Alive”
  26. Harry Connick, Jr. – “Come By Me”
  27. Tom Petty – “Won’t Back Down”
  28. George Harrison – “Something”
  29. Paul Simon – “Still Crazy After All These Years”
  30. Elvis Presley – “Such a Night”
  31. Jamie Cullum – “These Are the Days”
  32. Alanis Morissette – “Uninvited”
  33. Etta James – “A Sunday Kind of Love”
  34. Michael McDonald – “Minute By Minute”
  35. Mel Tormé – “My Foolish Heart”
  36. Johnny Depp – “Epiphany” from Sweeney Todd

Yikes. This was a bad idea. I’m out of time and only about a third of the way done. What does this say about me? I’d rather not know. I might be mental, after all.

If you have a chance, list some of your fave songs and the people who sing them.

Now go and recognize you some beauty today.

Fink out.