Totally Obscure — Absolute Favorites (2)
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:
- “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!
- “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.
- “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!
- “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”.
- “Fragile” by Sting. I love Sting’s voice and songs. This has been a long time favorite!
- “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.
- “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!
- “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!
- “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!
- “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