Music

Music was/is/continues to be one of the most important aspects of my lived experience. It's funny how music can be so powerful and broad as to be able to express so many aspects of what we call human experience. Love, anger, laughter and sadness, belonging, isolation, euphoria and madness. Think of any situation in life and you'll probably be able to find some little ditty to express and capture it. My musical tastes were shaped early in life largely in part by my brother, whose eclectic music collection I would raid voraciously much to his chagrin. In any case, in homage to music and out of frustration at the currently broken state of my stereo's CD player, I herein present some of my favorite songs and/or albums, grouped by arbitrary genres that I think best categorize this music for your perusal. This is all I can do for now. I'll try to fill out some of the skinny sections later.

60's/70's Rock/Funk:
Animals "House of the Rising Sun"
Eric Clapton "Tears in Heaven"
David Bowie "Heroes" and "Space Oddity"
The Doors "Alabama Song (Whiskey Bar)", "Love Street", and "Spanish Caravan"
Bryan Ferry/Roxy Music "Dance Away" and "Avalon"
Looking Glass "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)"
Jimi Hendrix "Castles Made of Sand" and "Little Wing"
Hugh Masekela "Grazing in the Grass"
Don McLean "American Pie"
Van Morrison "Brown Eyed Girl"
Queen "Don't Stop Me Now" and "Somebody to Love"
Santana "Everything's Coming Our Way"
Santo & Johnny "Sleepwalk"
Sly and the Family Stone "You Can Make it if You Try"
Buffalo Springfield "For What It's Worth"
Cat Stevens "Peace Train"
War "Slippin' Into Darkness", "The Cisco Kid", and "Don't Let No One Get You Down"
Zapp and Roger "Doo Wa Ditty (Blow That Thing)"

80's/90's Alternative:
Altered Images "Don't Talk to Me About Love" and "I Could Be Happy"
Tracy Chapman "Talkin' 'Bout a Revolution" and "Fast Car", from her eponymous album
The Church "Under the Milky Way", from the album Starfish
The Clash "Spanish Bombs" and "Lost in the Supermarket", from the album London Calling
The Cult "She Sells Sanctuary"
INXS "This Time" and "Same Direction", from the album Listen Like Thieves
The Jam "Going Underground"
Janes Addiction "Jane Says" and "Been Caught Stealing"
John Cougar Mellencamp "Jack & Dianne"
Nena "99 Luftballoons"
New Order "Elegia" and "1963"
Sinead O' Conner "Mandinka" and "Nothing Compares 2 You"
The Police "Bring on the Night", from the album Reggata De Blanc
The Ramones "I Wanna Be Sedated"
Smashing Pumpkins "1979"
Sonic Youth "Titanium Expose", from the album Goo
Sting "We Work the Black Seam" and "They Dance Alone"
Sugarcubes "Birthday"
U2 "Sunday Bloody Sunday", from the album War

10,000 Maniacs, In My Tribe
Concrete Blonde any album (especially their eponymous album and Bloodletting)
The Cowboy Junkies, any album
Love and Rockets, Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven
The Pixies, any album
The Smiths, any album
The Sundays, any album
U2, The Unforgettable Fire

Big Band/Jazz:
John Coltrane "My Favorite Things"
Duke Ellington "Pyramid"

Classical/Opera/Broadway:
Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman "Time to Say Goodbye (Con Te Partiro)
Music from Les Miserables "A Little Fall of Rain"
Johann Pachelbel, "Kanon"
Giacomo Puccini, "O Mio Babbino Caro", from Gianni Schicchi

Orff, Carmina Burana

Electronic:
Asian Dub Foundation "Assassin" and "Naxalite"
Darude "Sandstorm"
Faithless "Insomnia"
Photek "Ni Ten Ichi Ryu"

Alice Deejay, Who Needs Guitars Anyway?
ATB, Movin' Melodies
The Best of Trance, Vols. 1 and 2
Deep Into Jungle Territory: A Jungle-Bhangra Fusion
Jungle Massive, Vol. 1

Gothic:
Bauhaus "She's In Parties"
Joy Division "Love Will Tear Us Apart" and "She's Lost Control"
Siouxsie and the Banshees "Cities in Dust", "Dear Prudence", and "The Last Beat of My Heart"

Cocteau Twins, any album
The Cure, Standing on a Beach
Dead Can Dance, any album
Lonely is an Eyesore
This Mortal Coil, any album

Hawaiian:
Israel Kamakawaiwo'ole "Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World"

The Sunday Manoa, Guava Jam
Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Masters Collection, Vols. 1 and 2

Hip-Hop
Black Sheep "The Choice is Yours", from the album A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
Ice Cube "Wicked" and "Today Was a Good Day"
Cypress Hill "How I Could Just Kill a Man", from their eponymous album
Digable Planets "Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)", from the album Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space)
Dove Shack "Summertime in the LBC"
Dr. Dre "187"
Rakim "Paid In Full"
Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth "The Creator"
Johnny Rotten and Afrika Bambataa "World Destruction"
Tribe Called Quest "Scenario"
XClan "Xodus", from the album Xodus

Black Moon, Enta Da Stage
Cannibal Ox, The Cold Vein
The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, Hypocrisy is the Greatest Luxury
Ghostface Killer, Ironman
The GZA, Liquid Swords
Mobb Deep, The Infamous
Nas, Illmatic
The Soul Assassins, Chapter 1
Wu-Tang Clan, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

Japanese Music:
Dreams Come True "Snow Dance"

DJ Krush, any album
King Giddra, Sora Kara No Chikara
Rhymester, __ Ni Iwaserya
Soul Scream, The Deep

Motown:
Al Green "Tired of Being Alone"
The Originals "Baby I'm For Real" and "The Bells"
Smokey Robinson and the Miracles "More Love" and "Baby Baby Don't Cry"
Diana Ross and the Supremes "Love Child" and "Reflections"
Edwin Starr "War"
The Supremes "Stoned Love"
The Undisputed Truth "Smiling Faces Sometimes"
Bill Withers "Lean On Me"
Stevie Wonder "For Once In My Life"
Brenton Wood, "Best Thing I Ever Had"

Music en Espanol:
Mikel Erentxun "Esta Luz Nunca Se Apagara", from the album Naufragios
Malo "Suavecito"
Sergio Mendes and Brasil 66 "Mais Que Nada" (okay so this one's in Portuguese)
Ollin "La Bruja" and "Caracol", from the album Sociedad = Suciedad
Quetzal "Chicana Skies", from their eponymous album
Selena "Como La Flor"

Control Machete, Mucho Barato. . .
Diamantes, Lo Mejor de Diamantes
Shakira, any album

Okinawan Music:
Shoukichi Kina, Asia Classics 2
Music of Japanese People, Music of Okinawa
Nenes, Akemodoro Unai
The Rough Guide to the Music of Okinawa

Punk:
Adolescents "Amoeba"
Dead Kennedys "California Uber Alles" and "Holiday in Cambodia", from the album Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death
Fishbone "Party at Ground Zero", from their eponymous album
Killing Joke "Eighties"
Suicidal Tendencies "Institutionalized"
X "Los Angeles" from the album Los Angeles

Fear, The Record
The Repo Man soundtrack

Random:
Basia "Promises" and "Time and Tide"
Matt Bianco "Sneaking Out the Back Door", from the album Whose Side Are You On?
Groove Armada "Superstylin'"
The Style Council "My Ever Changing Moods", "Have You Ever Had It Blue"

Fiona Apple, Tidal
Bjork, any album (especially Post)
Cranes, any album
Enya, any album (especially Watermark)
Fairground Attraction, The First of a Million Kisses
Everything But the Girl, any album
Sarah McLachlan, Surfacing
Portishead, any album (especially the eponymous album)

Reggae:
Bob Marley "War" and "No Woman No Cry"
Max Romeo "Iron Shirt"

Bob Marley, any album
Steel Pulse

Rockabilly/Western:
Johnny Cash "One" and "Ring of Fire"

The Blasters, any album
John Doe, Meet John Doe
Los Lobos, How Will the Wolf Survive?
Stray Cats, any album