Originally posted on facebook, Dec 2010
Hi Everyone.
Sorry I am a bit late with the list this week – lots of stuff on at the moment!
Lately its been raining a fair bit in Melbourne (well maybe it just seems that way since in recent years it hasn’t been raining all that much!), so it got me to think, what would be the top 20 rain songs? Of the lists I have made so far, this one has been by far the hardest, in terms of settling on a final twenty, but also in terms of what order the tracks should be in. Every time I have looked at the list, I have tinkered with the order.
So here is the list – I am sure if I looked at it again I would continue to tinker with the order. I know the excitement of this list will be getting to you now. Will Milli Vanilli make an appearance? Will we all need to get stoned? (the music geeks will understand this!) Will we be able to stand the rain, or will we be singing in the rain? Will we only understand her in the rain?
Hope you enjoy it though!!
20 - Waiting for the Rain to Fall - Chris Isaak.
Its probably fair to say that Chris Isaak has more of a female than male fan base, but nevertheless I still think he is a very talented individual. His voice almost has a haunting quality to it, that I really like. This track is from his self titled album, and in some ways is the stereotypical Issak song about a wounded romance, but its still a nice track.
19 - Summer Rain – U2.
No, its not the Belinda Carlisle track, although for a pop song I actually don’t mind that one. This is a largely acoustic based track that is from their B sides 1990-2000 compilation. It’s a nice enough song, but nothing like the stadium rock that you would expect from U2.
18 - I Wish It would Rain Down – Phil Collins.
Some late 80’s adult pop from the bald drummer himself, this one almost has a bit of gospel influence to it. Nice song.
17 - Raindrops keep falling on my head – BJ Thomas (or John Farnham, take your pick) .
I have both versions in my collection, and there is not really much to say about this song, it’s a simple, catchy little number.
16 - Rainy Night in Soho – The Pogues.
I am a Pogues fan, and this is an interesting track because its not the fast paced, dirty Irish folk that we are used to from this group, but rather its romantic, evocative. A quick google search has revealed that some believe it is a song about whisky (Pogues lead singer Shane MacGowan’s struggles with alcohol are well known) but I think I would prefer to think of it as a sweet little love song.
15 - Midnight Rain – Paul Kelly.
From the underrated album “Nothing But a Dream” this is a nice, moody, atmospheric type of song. Although there are other better tracks on this album, it fits quite nicely and is a good track.
14 - After the Rain – The Angels.
After those moody, romantic songs, I gotta include some Aussie pub rock in the list, and this track by the Angels is a good one!
13 - Rain on the Scarecrow – John Mellencamp.
Allmusic.com describes this song as one that captures the hopes and fears of Middle America. I probably haven’t searched for such a deep meaning, I just like it as a rock song. There are better Mellencamp songs than this, but it’s a good track nonetheless.
12 - No Rain – Blind Melon.
Its 90’s mainstream pop/rock, but its good pop/rock.
11 - Summer Rain – Paul Kelly.
The opening track from Paul’s excellent “Wanted Man” album, this is a beautiful song. Kelly sings quite plainly (if you don’t like his voice you might find this annoying) but is accompanied by some lovely piano and cello. In writing this list and looking on the internet for some information, I have been shocked to discover that this song is essentially about sex (“"She comes and goes like summer rain / I wait all day for summer rain / And when she comes I smile again". ) I am hoping that Paul’s book, where he sheds light on some of the meanings behind his songs, is going to be under the Christmas tree with my name on it, so that I can find out more about this, and other songs.
So there it is, part one of the Rain songs. Part two coming up soon, and plenty to look forward to, with some of the biggest names in music on the list, two artists featuring twice, and a massive question that was a hit in the late 90's!
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