The Personal Website of Mark W. Dawson

Now That’s Music

You are all probably aware that I am a lover of Classical Music. What you may not be aware of is that I also love other genres of music, particularly Rock N’ Roll. I have not commented on these genres because I believe that I have nothing to contribute to this discussion that other, more knowledgeable, and qualified persons have said. However, I have decided to create lists of my favorite music in these genres.

As a child of the 60’s Rock N’ Roll was a big part of my musical life. The following Rock N’ Roll list are not all great Rock N’ Roll songs but I enjoy all of them. These songs, when I hear them, automatically have the volume increase, I start to rock out, and I listen to them through the end. To keep this list manageable, I have limited an artist to one song, even though many of them are deserving of more than one song. Here is my list of songs that rock me out:

1. Beatles - A Day in The Life
2. Billy Joel - Only The Good Die Young
3. Blue Oyster Cult - Don’t Fear the Reaper
4. Bruce Springsteen – Rosalita
5. Cat Stevens - Another Saturday Night
6. Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode
7. Cream – Sunshine of Your Love
8. Deep Purple - Smoke on The Water
9. Derek and The Dominos - Layla
10. Doors - Light My Fire
11. Elton John - Crocodile Rock
12. Guess Who - No Sugar Tonight - New Mother Nature
13. Janis Joplin - Piece of My Heart
14. Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven
15. Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels - Devil With A Blue Dress On & Good Golly Miss Molly
16. Naked Eyes - Always Something There to Remind Me
17. Nick Lowe - Cruel to be kind
18. Oyster Cult - Don’t Fear the Reaper
19. Paul Revere & the Raiders - Kicks
20. Pink Floyd - Another Brick in the Wall
21. Pretenders - Brass in Pocket
22. Procol Harum - Conquistador
23. Question Mark & The Mysterians - 96 Tears
24. Rolling Stones - (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
25. Soft Cell - Tainted Love - Where Did Our Love Go
26. Squeeze - Tempted by the Fruit of Another
27. Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl
28. Yes - I've Seen All Good People

Some Rock N’ Roll rocks me but doesn’t rock me out. These are songs that make me stop and listen for their meaning. I still crank up the volume, but I sit and listen attentively to these songs.

1. Beatles – Yesterday
2. Ben E. King - Stand by Me
3. Cosby, Stills, Nash and Young – Suite Judy Blue Eyes
4. Eagles - Hotel California
5. George Benson - This Masquerade
6. Gladys Knight & the Pips - The Way We Were-Try to Remember
7. Johnny Rivers - Baby I Need Your Lovin'
8. Percy Sledge - When A Man Loves a Woman
9. Righteous Brothers - Unchained Melody
10. Simon & Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water
11. The Commitments - Try a Little Tenderness
12. Who - See Me, Feel Me

In looking over this list you may have noticed that there are no Motown songs. The reason being is that I am such a huge Motown fan that I could not choose just a few songs. For my Motown list I have limited an artist to four songs, even though many of them are deserving of more than four songs.  So, therefore, the following are my top 44 Motown songs:

1. Diana Ross & The Supremes - Heaven Must Have Sent You
2. Diana Ross & The Supremes - Someday We'll Be Together
3. Diana Ross & The Supremes - Stoned Love
4. Diana Ross & The Supremes - Where Did Our Love Go
5. Diana Ross, Supremes, Temptations - I'm Gonna Make You Love Me
6. Gladys Knight & the Pips - I Heard It Through the Grapevine
7. Gladys Knight & the Pips - If I Were Your Woman
8. Gladys Knight & the Pips - I've Got To Use My Imagination
9. Gladys Knight & the Pips - You're the best thing that ever happened to me
10. Little Anthony & The Imperials - Going Out Of My Head
11. Little Anthony & The Imperials - Hurt So Bad
12. Little Anthony & The Imperials - Tears On My Pillow
13. Martha & The Vandellas - (Love Is Like A) Heat Wave
14. Martha & the Vandellas - Dancing in the Streets
15. Martha & the Vandellas - My Guy
16. Marvin Gaye - How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)
17. Marvin Gaye - Too Busy Thinking About My Baby
18. Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell - Ain't No Mountain High E
19. Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell - Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing
20. Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell - Your Precious Love
21. Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell - You're All I Need To Get By
22. Smokey Robinson - I Second That Emotion
23. Smokey Robinson - Tears Of A Clown
24. Smokey Robinson - The Tracks Of My Tears
25. Smokey Robinson and the Miracles - More Love
26. Stevie Wonder - For Once In My Life
27. Stevie Wonder - I Was Made To Love Her
28. Stevie Wonder - Ma Cherie Amour
29. Stevie Wonder - Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday
30. The Four Tops - Ain't No Woman (Like the One I've Got)
31. The Four Tops - Baby I Need Your Loving
32. The Four Tops - I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)
33. The Four Tops - Reach Out (I'll Be There)
34. The Miracles - Shop Around
35. The Miracles - The Tracks Of My Tears
36. The Miracles - You're Really Got A Hold On Me
37. The Spinners - Could It Be I'm Falling In Love
38. The Spinners - Cupid - I've Loved You For A Lone Time
39. The Spinners - One Of A Kind (Love Affair)
40. The Spinners - They Just Can't Stop It (The Games People Play)
41. The Temptations - Ain't Too Proud To Beg
42. The Temptations - Just My Imagination
43. The Temptations - My Girl
44. The Temptations - The Way You Do the Things You Do

For now, this is all I have to say on Rock N’ Roll. I may add to this list in the future but considering the sheer quantity and quality of the songs I probably will not get around to doing so.

Thanks to my departed father-in-law I learned to appreciate Big Band and Vocalist music. So, I have added a list of my favorite Big Band tunes as follows:

1. Artie Shaw & His Orchestra - Back Bay Shuffle
2. Artie Shaw & His Orchestra - Begin The Beguine
3. Artie Shaw & His Orchestra - Non-Stop Flight
4. Artie Shaw & His Orchestra - Oh, Lady Be Good
5. Benny Carter & His Orchestra _ Lionel Hampton - I'm In The Mood For Swing
6. Benny Goodman & His Orchestra - And The Angels Sing
7. Benny Goodman & His Orchestra - Don't Be That Way
8. Benny Goodman & His Orchestra - Sing, Sing, Sing
9. Benny Goodman & His Orchestra - Sing, Sing, Sing (With A Swing), Pt. 1 & 2
10. Bradley, Ruth _ Bunny Berigan & His Orchestra - All God's Chillun Got Rhythm
11. Cab Calloway - Minnie The Moocher
12. Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Charleston Alley
13. Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Cherokee
14. Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - Flying Home
15. Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra - The Right Idea
16. Count Basie Orchestra - Just A Minute
17. Count Basie Orchestra - One O'Clock Boogie
18. Count Basie Orchestra - One O'Clock Jump
19. Count Basie Orchestra - Sophisticated Swing
20. Doris Day _ Les Brown & His Orchestra - Sentimental Journey
21. Duke Ellington & His Orchestra - Cotton Tail
22. Duke Ellington & His Orchestra - I'm Beginning To See The Light
23. Duke Ellington & His Orchestra - It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
24. Duke Ellington & His Orchestra - Take The _A_ Train
25. Erskine Hawkins & His Orchestra - Tippin' In
26. Fletcher Henderson & His Orchestra - Mary Had A Little Lamb
27. Glenn Miller & His Orchestra - A String Of Pearls
28. Glenn Miller & His Orchestra - American Patrol
29. Glenn Miller & His Orchestra - In The Mood
30. Glenn Miller & His Orchestra - Pennsylvania 6-5000
31. Gray, Glen & His Orchestra (The Casa Loma Orchestra) - Casa Loma Stomp
32. Jack Leonard _ Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra - Marie
33. Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra - Swingin' Uptown
34. Lionel Hampton & His Orchestra - Jivin' The Vibes
35. Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra - Boogie Woogie
36. Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra - Opus One
37. Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra - Swingin' On Nothin'
38. Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra - This Love Of Mine
39. Woody Herman & His Orchestra - Apple Honey
40. Woody Herman & His Orchestra - Four Brothers

As for my list of Vocalist music I have limited an artist to three songs, even though many of them are deserving of more than three songs. The list of my favorite Vocalist music is as follows:

1. Billie Holiday - The Very Thought Of You
2. Billie Holiday - The Way You Look Tonight
3. Billie Holiday - They Can't Take That Away From Me
4. Dean Martin - That's Amore
5. Dean Martin - Volare
6. Dean Martin - You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Loves You
7. Doris Day - I Only Have Eyes for You
8. Doris Day - Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)
9. Doris Day - Sentimental Journey
10. Ella Fitzgerald - Bewitched, Bothered, And Bewildered
11. Ella Fitzgerald - The Lady Is A Tramp
12. Ella Fitzgerald - They Can't Take That Away From Me
13. Etta James - A Sunday Kind Of Love
14. Etta James - At Last
15. Etta James - Try A Little Tenderness
16. Frank Sinatra - Fly Me To The Moon
17. Frank Sinatra - I Get A Kick Out Of You
18. Frank Sinatra - Love And Marriage
19. Fred Astaire - Cheek To Cheek
20. Fred Astaire - The Way You Look Tonight
21. Fred Astaire - They All Laughed
22. Lena Horne - I Got Rhythm
23. Lena Horne - Someone to Watch Over Me
24. Lena Horne - Stormy Weather
25. Mel Tormé - Ellington Medley- Cotton Tail-I Didn't Know About You-Don't Get Around
26. Mel Tormé - New York, New York Medley- for Me and My Gal-Mack the Knife-Birth of T
27. Mel Tormé - Pennies from Heaven
28. Nat King Cole - (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons
29. Nat King Cole - (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons
30. Nat King Cole - Autumn Leaves
31. Nat King Cole - Mona Lisa
32. Nat King Cole - Unforgettable
33. Nat King Cole - Unforgettable
34. Perry Como - Some Enchanted Evening
35. Perry Como - What Kind of Fool Am I-
36. Perry Como - You'll Never Walk Alone
37. Rosemary Clooney - I Only Have Eyes for You
38. Tony Bennett - A Foggy Day
39. Tony Bennett - Call Me Irresponsible
40. Tony Bennett - Night and Day