Vince's Journey

I wasn't sure what I was going to blog about today until I got in the car and attempted to drive home from work. Since the start of the new year, my commutes have been taking about an hour each way. It's 21 miles door to door from our house to Xavier and many days the traffic is backed from Fields Ertel Drive all the way to the Norwood lateral - that's about 10 miles of riding the brakes. And if it rains or snows, forget about it; last week it took an hour and 45 minutes and the forecast simply called for snow. Very frustrating. I've gotten to the point where if it snows, I simply take Reading Road all the way home - that's 21+ miles of stop lights every block but at least I'm moving and not parked on the interstate. Whenever I'm asked what my pet peeve is, the answer is always traffic. I realize that people in cities like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago deal with much worse but when it takes an hour to do something that should take less than 30 minutes to do, it gets a little old.

I saw that Faye Dunaway and Carl Weathers are both celebrating birtdays today. Interestingly, Faye and Carl were in two of the top movies of 1976 - Dunaway won Best Actress for her role in 'Network' while Weathers played Apollo Creed opposite Sylvester Stallone's boxing hero, 'Rocky'. Who do you think is older? I'll tell you at the end of this post.

Now it's time for the next 10 songs in my Top 100 countdown. My brother has turned this into a boxing match as my son, Judd, is also posting his top 100 songs in the comments section - so far I'm leading 2 rounds to 1; I guess we'll see if Judd ties things up tomorrow...

#70. Dream On - Aerosmith. One of the early hits from the Boston band that has been churning them out for close to 40 years. I wonder if Steven Tyler was ever able to hit the high 'Dream On' notes that he screams toward the end of the song - I hope not, it's part of what makes this such a great song.

#69. Every Season - Nichole Nordeman. For those not familiar, Nordeman is a contemporary Christan artist who wrote this song as a tribute to a friend who had passed away. When my mom was in the final days of her battle with lung cancer, I listened to 'Every Season' practically non-stop and it helped get me through that time of tremendous loss; we even played it during her funeral service. I can't listen to this song without thinking about my mom and it offers a most profound message of the hope that only death can offer. If you haven't heard 'Every Season' give it a listen, it's a beautiful song.

#68. The Cross - Prince. Prince has the ability to write music from all genres on all topics. This song is one of the most spiritual recordings I've ever heard from a pop star. It starts hauntingly slow and mellow and midway through Prince kicks it into high gear till the end of track. But the message is evident throughout - 'Don't die without knowing The Cross.'

#67. Somebody to Love - Queen. In the first 'episode' of my countdown I failed to mention that Queen is also among my favorite bands of all time. In fact, from 1975 till 1980 (basically my entire college career) to me Queen was the only band that existed. I saw them in concert numerous times, had all there albums and knew the lyrics to every song. If anyone ever doubted that Queen could come up with another song as original and clever as 'Bohemian Rhapsody', 'Somebody to Love' was the slamdunk answer. The first time I heard this song, I drove immediately to the record store, purchased the album and went home and memorized every word. 'Somebody to Love' displays Freddie Mercury's amazing voice in all its glory and there have been few entertainers who could mesmerize a crowd like he could.

#66. She Loves You - The Beatles. In their early days, The Beatles had a wonderful formula of churning out simple, yet classic, tunes and their fans couldn't get enough of them. You would think they couldn't top their previous hit but they were able to do it almost every time. 'She Loves You' was one of the early standards that all the others had to be measured against.

#65. Rainy Days and Mondays - The Carpenters. I'm not embarrassed to admit that I loved The Carpenters and to me, Karen Carpenter had one of the most amazing voices of any woman from her era - she sang effortlessly, had tremendous control and never over sang the song like you see so much of today. Her voice was an instrument and she nailed it every time she sang a song, especially on 'Rainy Days and Mondays'.

#64. Over The Rainbow - Judy Garland. While Karen Carpenter had one of the great voices of her era, Judy Garland's voice ranks among the best of all time. Find me another 17 year old girl who could belt out 'Over The Rainbow' as beautifully as Judy did in the classic move, 'Wizard of Oz'. This song belongs in the Smithsonian Institute along with Dorothy's ruby slippers.

#63. You Shook Me All Night Long - AC/DC. Quite a segue, from Judy Garland to AC/DC. As my brother, Rich, recently said; a classic song will stand the test of time. I guarantee the next time you go to a wedding and the reception has a DJ, 'You Shook Me All Night Long' will be played at some point during the evening and the dance floor will be packed. Keep in mind that the bride and groom were probably not even born when this song came out in 1980.

#62. Norweigian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) - The Beatles. Rubber Soul marked a huge change in The Beatles song writing. They were no longer touring, spending more time in the studio and expermenting far more with their musical arrangements. In essence, they were breaking away from the formula that had made them universally popular and reinventing themselves. Norweigian Wood introduced a completely different side of The Beatles and ushered in the second phase of their amazing career together.

#61. Just My Imagination - The Temptation. This section of my list has featured several amazing voices and Eddie Kendrick of The Temptations definitely qualifies as an amazing voice. Couple his soft and amazing falsetto with the background harmonies of the other members of the group and 'Just My Imagination' showcases a talented collection of singers at the top of their game.

Tomorrow I'll post #60 - #51 - there are a couple more surprises and yes, a few more tracks from The Beatles. As for my question about the ages of Faye Dunaway and Carl Weathers; Faye is 69, Apollo Creed is 64.

#