Classics

There is something about a classic that is just delicious and comforting; something that makes you sit back, slow down and smile with a contented "mmmm." It is silky and smooth like Belgian chocolate, timeless like a fine wine (...and now I'm hungry).

I've been revisiting some pretty awesome artists as of late, and I thought that I'd share the wealth. Some of them may already be old friends, others new discoveries, but either way, I hope that you find a few to incorporate into your mix of current music.

Janis Joplin
There is something so refreshing about Joplin's mix of vulnerability and toughness. She didn't deny that she had pain in her songs, but conveyed it in such a tough chick kind of way. She also had some pretty cool philosophies on life that she expounded on in the live versions.

"Piece of My Heart" (clip)

Piece Of My Heart - Janis Joplin

"Me and Bobby McGee"

The Beatles
Here are a few that popped into my head, but I know I'm forgetting tons.

"Come Together"
"Let it Be"
"Eleanor Rigby"
"In My Life"

The Rolling Stones
A couple favorites are

"Paint It Black" (full song)

Paint_it_Black - Rolling Stones

"Mother's Little Helper"

Jim Croce
I enjoy Croce's ballads more than his satirical songs. "I'll Have to Say I Love You in a Song" is one of my favorites of all time. Also great are "Photographs and Memories" (though be warned, it is SAD) and "Time in a Bottle" (again).

"Photographs and Memories" (clip)

Photographs And Memories - Jim Croce

Billy Joel, "Piano Man"
I think what makes "Piano Man" so gorgeous aside from the breathtaking lyrics and sadly jovial (yes, it's possible) melody is that it is so real. It conveys the atmosphere of the bar, the regulars and the melancholy so articulately that it never seems contrived.

"Piano Man" (clip)

Piano Man - Billy Joel

Tom Petty, "Free Falling"
Though as a generally good girl I can muster only a little sympathy for the protagonist of the song, there is something really intriguing about the simultaneous freedom and loneliness, independence and self-destruction.

"Free Falling" (full song)

free falling - tom petty.

Led Zeppelin
"Stairway to Heaven" - A guitarist I know once said that he hates this song, which I guess is fair. It's probably the same kind of hatred that my inner violinist feels for Pachelbel's Canon, but I am not a guitarist and I quite like it.

"Kashmir" - Hoo boy, this just came on my Pandora and it kicks ass.