A year to the day from when DNTO brought up the subject of a Pop Culture Blind Spot, recent conversation has indirectly reminded me of the subject again. I have many, but one that bugs me is pop music. When somebody asks me what my favourite band or singer is, I always draw a blank. I can’t even articulate what my taste is.

Part of the problem is that I’m never up to date on current music. I don’t have MTV or Much Music and the only radio I listen to is CBC Radio One (thus the DNTO reference). If CBC plays it and I happen to both hear and remember the name of the artist or song I like by the time I get to my computer I’ll make a note of it. Otherwise, even if it’s at the top of the charts, there’s a good chance I haven’t heard of it, or if I have, that it doesn’t appeal to me.

I have no particular loyalties to genres or artists. And while I tend not to like Pop or R&B, there are still a few songs that catch my ear. But even if I love a song there’s a good chance I won’t know who sings it or be able to identify anything else of theirs. My taste change so much that there’s no point in even trying to say what they are. I have a few favourite Top 40 type songs when I’m in the mood for them, but I’m just as likely to put on some Disney songs or a Dvorak Symphony.

I did try, though. I went through my playlist of about 2650 songs and, although I like all of them from time to time, I picked out the top 5% or so that really are my favourites, or that I at least have a reason for enjoying. They come with a disclaimer: I reserve the right to not like any of these songs at any time, and there may also be many that I love but just didn’t feel like tolerating today when I made the cut. So, for the record:

Anastasia - Reminiscing With Grandma
Anastasia - Finale
Cats - Mr. Mistoffelees
Evita - You Must Love Me
Jesus Christ Superstar - Heaven on Their Minds
Jesus Christ Superstar - Pilates Dream
Jesus Christ Superstar - King Herod’s Song
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat - Joseph Megamix
Julian Lloyd Webber - Variations 1-4
Marti Webb - Tell Me On a Sunday
The Phantom of the Opera - Think of Me
The Phantom of the Opera - Angel of Music
The Phantom of the Opera - Masquerade / Why So Silent
Arrogant Worms - I Am Cow
Avenue Q - It Sucks To Be Me
Avenue Q - Everyone’s A Little Bit Racist
Avril Lavigne - I’m With You
Avril Lavigne - Why
Julie Delpy - An Ocean Apart
Julie Delpy - A Waltz for a Night
Ben Folds - Fred Jones, Part 2
Ben Folds - The Luckiest
Ben Folds Five - Brick
Ben Folds Five - Evaporated
Ben Folds Five - Kate
Ben Folds Five - Magic
Ben Folds Five - Steven’s Last Night in Town
Blink 182 - Adam’s Song
Blink 182 - I Miss You
Bob & Doug McKenzie - Take Off
Christmas In The Country - Good King Wenceslas
John Denver & the Muppets - The Christmas Wish
John Denver & the Muppets - The Peace Carol
John Denver & the Muppets - When the River Meets the Sea
The Muppet Christmas Carol - It Feels Like Christmas
Cirque du Soleil - Alegria
Cirque du Soleil - Rain One
Anton Dvorak - I. Adagio
Anton Dvorak - II. Largo
Anton Dvorak - III. Scherzo
Anton Dvorak - IV. Allegro con fuoco
Beethoven - Sonata Pathetique - 2nd Movement
Beethoven - Symphony No. 7 - 2nd Movement
Debussy - Clair de lune
Edvard Grieg - Hall of the Mountain King
Eric Satie - Gymnopedie I and II
Gustav Holst - I. Mars, The Bringer Of War
Gustav Holst - IV. Jupiter, The Bringer Of Jollity
Johann Pachelbel - Canon in D
Rachmaninov - C Sharp Minor Concerto
The Magic Flute - Queen of the Night Aria
Aladdin - Friend Like Me
Aladdin - Prince Ali
Beauty and the Beast - Belle
Hercules - Go the Distance
Hercules - Zero to Hero
Hercules - I Won’t Say I’m in Love
Hercules - The Gospel Truth
Lilo & Stitch - He Mele No Lilo
Mulan - Be a Man
Newsies - The World Will Know
Pocahontas - Steady As The Beating Drum
Pocahontas - Just Around The Riverbend
Pocahontas - Savages (Part 1)
Pocahontas - Savages (Part 2)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame - The Bells Of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre Dame - Out There
The Hunchback of Notre Dame - Heaven’s Lights Hellfire
The Lion King - Circle of Life
The Little Mermaid - Poor Unfortunate Souls
Dragon Ash - Grateful Days
Dragon Ash - See You In A Flash
Dragonheart - Finale
Enya - Flora’s Secret
Fraggle Rock - Let Me Be Your Song
Fraggle Rock - Our Melody
Fraggle Rock - Goodbye
Fraggle Rock - Sunlight And Shadow
Fraggle Rock - Why
Fraggle Rock - Bring Back the Wonder
Fraggle Rock - Friendship Song
Fraggle Rock - Follow Me
Fraggle Rock - Here to There
Glay - WE ALL FEEL HIS STRENGTH OF TENDER
Goldfinger - January
Goldfinger - Tell Me
Great Big Sea - Boston and St. John’s
Great Big Sea - The Mermaid
Great Big Sea - Wave Over Wave
Green Day - Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)
HUSKING BEE - The steady-state theory
High School Musical - What I’ve Been Looking For
Jimmy Eat World - hear you me
Jimmy Eat World - if you don’t, don’t
Josh Groban - Remember When It Rained
Les Miserables - At The End Of The Day
Les Miserables - Who Am I
Les Miserables - On My Own
Liz Rigney - If You Were Mine
Liz Rigney - Kerry Dancing
Liz Rigney - MacPherson’s Lament
Liz Rigney - Red Petticoat
Lord of the Dance - The Lord Of The Dance
The Fellowship of the Rings - Concerning Hobbits
Donald Swann - Bilbo’s Last Song
Donald Swann - I Sit Beside the Fire
Man of La Mancha - I Don Quixot
Man of La Mancha - It’s All the Same
The Mikado - I am so Proud, If I allowed
The Mikado - On a tree by a river a little tom tit
Moulin Rouge - Closing Credits Bolero
Moulin Rouge - Come What May
Moulin Rouge - Elephant Love Medley
Moulin Rouge - The Show Must Go On
Moulin Rouge - Your Song
Julian Lennon - Cole’s Song
The London Metropolitan Orchestra - An American Symphony
The Prince of Egypt - Deliver Us
The Prince of Egypt - The Plagues
Regina Spector - Apres Moi
Rent - Seasons Of Love
Rip Slyme - 135BPM
The Rocky Horror Picture Show - Science Fiction Double Feature
Savage Garden - Two Beds and a Coffee Machine
Dana Glover - It Is You (I Have Loved)
Jason Wade - You Belong To Me
Shrek - True Love’s First Kiss
Sowelu - Rainbow (original mix)
StudentRick - Meet You Halfway There
The Corpse Bride - Tears To Shed
The Corpse Bride - The Piano Duet
Titanic - Hymn To The Sea
Treble Charger - Just What They Told Me
Yann Tiersen - Le moulin
Yann Tiersen - Sur le fil
Yanni - Aria
Yanni - Reflections Of Passion
the flaming lips - yoshimi vs. the pink robots
HY - AM1100
Jon Brion - Over Our Heads
Of Montreal - Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games
Andrea Boccelli - Conte Partiro
Audrey Hepburn - Moon River
Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, Diane Keaton - You Don’t Own Me
Bill Withers - Lovely Day
Britney Spears - Toxic
CBC - Hockey Night in Canada (2000)
CBC Television - Olympic Theme
Cat Stevens - Morning has Broken
Charm - Diamond Song
Douglas Adams - Titania’s Theme
George Westerholm - Trevor
Hawksley Workman - A Moth is not a Butterfly
Hot Hot Heat - Talk to Me, Dance With Me
Incubus - I Miss You (Acoustic)
Irish Decendants - Barretts Privateers
James Blunt - Goodbye My Lover
Jeremy Fisher - High School
Kermit The Frog - The Rainbow Connection
N.E.R.D - She Wants To Move
Nelly Furtado - Powerless (Say What You Want)
Original Cast - Open the Window
PDQ Bach - Beethoven’s 5th Symphony
SHS Concert Choir - In Flanders Fields
Sarah Mclachlan - When She Loved Me (Toy Story 2)
Sufjan Stevens - Chicago
The Go! Team - Ladyflash
Wuthering Heights - Main Theme (Piano Version)

21:30 | This entry was posted on Sunday, February 25th, 2007 at 21:30 and is filed under Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.