Totally Obscure — Absolute Favorites (2)

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It has been a blast to share many of my favorite artists (who are are somewhat or totally obscure) in past blogs. I felt it was time to share a wide array of my absolute favorite songs (from 2 personal playlists called Absolute Faves 1 & 2).

There are a total of 118 songs on these playlists, but I won’t try to share them all, rather a more select list with notes about the artist, and why I love these songs so much!

So, let’s get started with the 2nd in this series of my favorite songs:

1. “The Breaks” by Rich Mullins. I recently did a blog about Rich Mullins who was a great Christian artist, and a real favorite for me. Rich is well known for writing the worship song “Awesome God” and many other notable songs. Look him up!
2. “Guilty” by Randy Newman. Great song from Randy about being alcoholic that has been covered by Joe Cocker and Bonnie Raitt. Randy has a huge catalog of great songs, and is always worth a listen.
3. “House of Blues” by Beyond Reach. Beyond Reach is a vehicle for 2 former Ozark Daredevils (Randle Chowning & Larry Lee) to share new music. I have been a big fan for years and have had the privilege of seeing them play locally twice. Big fan of both artists!
4. “Too Much Between Us” by Procul Harum. This great band, who was known for their big hit “Whiter Shade of Pale”, have put out many albums, and are always worth a listen. This song is from their album, “A Salty Dog”.
5. “Fragile” by Sting. I love Sting’s voice and songs. This has been a long time favorite!
6. “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man” by The Commitments. From the movie about forming a soul band in war-torn Northern Ireland, came this version of a great Aretha song. Sung by Niamh Kavanagh, well known in Ireland as a singer and actress. Niamh also appeared in a great movie called “The Matchmaker” filmed in Ireland.
7. “The Shield” by Deep Purple. I am one of those people who loved the pre”In Rock” Deep Purple, who had hits with coves of “Hush”, Kentucky Woman”, and “River Deep-Mountain High”. Out of this era, came the original song, “The Shield” which has been a long time favorite of mine!
8. “Just So Much” by Jesse Winchester. Another LONG time favorite, Jesse has been writing for many years, and there are many that I love, but this one holds a special place. It appeared on the last album he recorded a couple of years before he passed away, and a bit searching and melancholy. Great song nonetheless!
9. “Traveling Alone” by Jason Isbell. A great songwriter, and artist who has exploded onto the Americana platform in recent years. As someone who has spent much of my career traveling, this song strikes a special chord!
10. “Black Honey” by Graham Parker & Rumour. Graham is another longtime favorite and made quite an impact upon arrival, but was overshadowed a bit by Elvis Costello. Graham has an excellent catalog to check out!

That’s it for the second installment of the Totally Obscure — Absolute Favorites playlist, but you can be sure there is more to come! Hope you enjoy the music!

Steve Whitfield/Master of Tunes