If you saw my post for this week’s Song Lyric Sunday you’ll know that I shared my all-time favourite song for it. This was an easy choice for me to make, as that song has been my favourite for more than 54 years now, and I doubt it will ever be overtaken in my musical heart. But writing that post got me thinking: over the years I have been largely concentrating on music for my blog I have played you countless songs, and I have often referred to a song, a singer or a band as a ‘favourite’ – just not the top favourite! So I sat down to compile a list of my other favourites, the others that I have loved over the 60+ years that I have been interested in music. It didn’t take me long to come up with a massive list – it currently stands at 65 songs, and I keep thinking of others to add! So instead of going for a theme in the way I usually do, I thought I would play you some of those favourites. Some you will know from my having played them before, others are making their first appearance here. For a change, I’m guessing that most of you will know most of these songs, so apologies to anyone looking for new music! If this goes well I may repeat it with some of the other songs on my list – after all, this week’s eight tunes are barely scratching the surface.

As usual, I’m getting us off to a rousing start to shake off the cobwebs:

That should have done the trick! If you think you’ve seen it here before, well remembered: I first played Black Sabbath’s Paranoid a couple of years ago. It may not come as a surprise to you that after I bought the album from which that was the title track, I only managed to play it in the lounge once, before a maternal decree decided that any future listening was to be undertaken by removing the record player to my bedroom until the horror was over! Still, Mum liked Jim Reeves so I guess this shouldn’t have come as any shock to me. As a single, that was released in August 1970, and reached #4 here and #61 in the US. The album followed the next month, and was a UK #1, peaking at #12 in the US. Black Sabbath – and this album in particular – are often cited as being influential in initiating the heavy metal genre of music. Hardly surprising, really.

This week’s second tune is also from a band who knew how to rock, but this is them in a (mostly) gentler mood:

That one has had a whole post to itself, nearly eight years ago now, as befits my other long time favourite: alongside Sunday’s tune it is the other one in my top two. This was the original Fleetwood Mac at their best: an understated, uncomplicated piece of music, beautifully played, with mature, heartfelt lyrics. And Peter Green was only 22 when he wrote this. The search for love and meaning in life has long been a recurring theme for writers – not just songwriters – and for me this song describes it perfectly. Man Of The World was released as a single in April 1969, and reached #2 in the UK. It wasn’t a hit in the US, though: in fact Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, as they were back then, only had one minor US hit – they had to go through their reincarnation from blues-rock to AOR before they hit the big time over there.

Probably the third song on my all time list is up next, quite possibly from a band you wouldn’t be expecting me to say that about:

Showing my softer side there, I think. From Paranoid to this one, in two easy steps! Words was a single by the Bee Gees, released in January 1968, but not featuring on a studio album at that time – it had to await inclusion on a ‘Best Of’ collection before the record company even made a stereo version of it! Following on from Massachusetts and World it was the band’s third top ten hit in the UK, where it reached #8, and it made #15 in the US. The song was a hit in many countries around the world, and topped the charts in Canada, the Netherlands, Switzerland and in what was then West Germany.

Back into territory that might be more like you’d expect from me for my next one. Of all of the great songs Tom Petty made, this is my favourite:

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released The Waiting as a single in March 1981 and on their fourth album, Hard Promises, the following month. I absolutely love this one, even forty or so years since I first heard it as the lead single from the album. Mike Campbell’s soaring guitar gets me every time. The album reached #5 in the US and #32 in the UK, while the single peaked at #19 in the US but didn’t chart in the UK. I guess I was ahead of my time in my love of their music, as far as this country goes! It’s still right up there among my favourites, though – by anyone, not just by TP.

You don’t have to have seen many of my posts to know that I’m a huge fan of Jackson Browne. In keeping his entry in this set to just one song, I’ve gone for this one:

This is a typical Jackson Browne song, following the thread of a strong social conscience which has always run through his music, and this is such a fantastic live performance of a wonderful tune. Before The Deluge was a track on Jackson’s third album, Late For The Sky, which was released in September 1974 and reached #14 in the US, but didn’t chart in the UK. It was also the B-side of the single version of Walking Slow, from the same album, but the single didn’t make the charts anywhere. The message of this song is just as valid now as it was almost fifty years ago – perhaps even more so as we continue to destroy our planet. My only regret about this song is that when I saw Jackson live in concert in 2010 he didn’t play it, but there is a video on YouTube of him playing it three days before I saw him. Do I feel short-changed? No, it was still one of the best live shows I’ve ever seen, so I’ll forgive him!

Another artist of whom I am a big fan is the English folk singer-songwriter Kate Rusby, who has appeared here on a number of occasions – often around Christmas time, as you will be seeing again this year! This is my favourite of all of her beautiful songs, which I played for you in this version two years ago, during the first lockdown, and it is still magical for me now. This also gives you a feel for Kate’s lovely personality – she is always like this:

Throughout the early stages of lockdown Kate shared a video from home each week in what she called her ‘Singy Songy Sessions,’ SSS for short: this was SSS#20. Underneath The Stars was the title track from her 4th studio album (5th if you count her retrospective album, 10), and was released in August 2003, reaching #78 in the UK. I have no idea why, but when the horn section makes its entrance into the song I always shed a tear – I’ve even done it when seeing her play the song live in concert. I thought I’d at least manage to get through it alright this time, as she couldn’t fit the horn players into her home studio. What could possibly go wrong? Yes, you’ll have seen: it happened again, but this time I wasn’t alone! That is such a beautiful song, and I hope you like it too: the effect it has on me is testament to the power of music to move us.

Another quiet, reflective one for this week’s penultimate tune:

It was something of a surprise to me to find that I hadn’t ever played this one before, or any others by John Martyn, come to that. I’ve played covers of his songs, but not the man himself, so this is long overdue. May You Never was a track on Solid Air, John’s sixth album (though two of the previous ones were joint efforts with his then wife, Beverley). The album came out in February 1973, though an earlier version of this song had been released as a single in November 1971. Neither the single or the album made the charts, but this song became a firm favourite among John’s fans and he always played it in concerts: I can vouch for that, having seen him at our uni folk club not long after this album was released. Eric Clapton recorded a cover version for his Slowhand album, released in November 1977, peaking at #3 in the UK and #2 in the US. I still prefer the original, though.

Having given you several songs of a gentler nature, I’m closing today’s selection how I began it – loud:

I would rate AC/DC as one of my favourite harder rock bands: I love them and have all of their records. There are other videos available for You Shook Me All Night Long but I think this one is great, as it captures all of the excitement from one of their live shows. AC/DC released the Back In Black album, which features this track, in July 1980. As I played another track from it last week I won’t go through all of the details with you again. Just suffice it to say that at over 50m copies sold it was one of the most successful albums of all time. This song did have the ultimate accolade, though: it was for many years my ringtone, which always made life in the office interesting if my mobile rang while I was away from my desk – no one knew whether to answer it or start head banging! This version is a later live performance, which is from their Live At River Plate DVD, released in 2012: I have that DVD and it is a great performance – it must be a wonderful feeling being on stage with that sea of seething humanity rocking out with you. The DVD comprises extracts from three live shows the band played in December 2009 (spot some continuity errors!); the stadium is listed as having a 60,000 capacity but local estimates at the time put the combined attendance at nearer 200,000. As a little bonus, if you’d like to hear more, follow this link for Hells Bells, the album’s opening track, also from the River Plate DVD.

That’s all for this week. I hope you’ve enjoyed them – if you did, and your comments tell me that, I still have another 57 favourites I could share with you, and that number will probably go up as I realise I’ve left others off! Enjoy your week, and I’ll see you again soon. 😊🎶