#26 The needle and the damage done - Neil Young

Many many years ago, when I was about 18, I decided to learn to play the guitar. After a couple of years of ****ing around learning a few chords and not really progressing, I took lessons with a guy called Rick Pronger. Although I never become that proficient, I did learn a lot over the next few years. Ricks musical taste was as varied as mine and it meant that I found out about a lot of new artists. At the very first lesson I was given two songs to learn, The needle and the damage done by Neil Young was one of them. On that day, I became a Neil Young convert.



http://www.neilyoung.com/

#25 Winners Song - Geraldine (Peter Kay)

A few weeks ago on Channel 4 (in the UK), comedian Peter Kay produced a truly classic TV programme that took the **** out of reality TV shows with "Britain's Got the Pop Factor and Possibly a New Celebrity Jesus Christ Soapstar Superstar Strictly on Ice". The winner was transvestite Geraldine from Northern Ireland....brilliant! Here is the "winning song" - so very tongue in cheek.

#24 No More Heroes - The Stranglers

The Stranglers are 'punk with melody' and this is a classic track from 1977. I once saw them play around 1990 in France and they rocked!



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Stranglers

#23 Across 110th Street - Bobby Womack

Across 110th Street is a stylish soul track from the film of the same name. It was used again in the film Jackie Brown by Quentin Tarantino, which is one of my favourites. Rather than see Bobby Womack in action, I decided on the opening credits of Jackie Brown.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bobby_Womack

#22 Stacy's Mom - Fountains of Wayne

This is such a fun song (in a true '80s style) and the video is also very witty.



http://www.fountainsofwayne.com/

#21 Hometime - Alison Moyet

The title track from Hometime, a great album that showed off her singing style and writing skills perfectly.



http://www.alisonmoyet.com/

#20 Si J'étais Elle - Julien Clerc

I have liked Julien Clerc for many years, since seeing a video on MTV Europe in 1987 not long after the channel had started. It's a shame that the UK has missed out on this brilliant singer-songwriter.



http://www.julienclerc.com/

#19 Nightmares By The Sea - Jeff Buckley

A dark song by the late Jeff Buckley. This is taken from the album Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk released after his death. I love the drums on this song. There is no video, so this is someone's homemade version.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Buckley

#18 Is It Any Wonder? - Keane

I am not a great fan of Keane - I cant quite put my finger on it, but I don't like much of their output. However this track is great! Although the start of Is It Any Wonder? sounds like a guitar, it's all keyboards. The track is from the album Under the Iron Sea.




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keane_(band)

#17 Over My Head - The Fray

I heard The Fray on the radio a while ago with their excellent track How To Save A Life and so I bought the CD on eBay. This is one of a few great songs and is called Over My Head.




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fray_(band)

#16 Cornflake Girl - Tori Amos

Tori Amos is a little crazy, but makes some interesting music. Cornflake Girl is an old track, but always worth a listen.




http://www.toriamos.com/

#15 Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol

Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol has been played to death on the radio, yet hasn't (and will unlikely) become annoying. It's just too good for that! They were the first band I saw play at the O2 in London.




http://www.snowpatrol.com/

#14 New York, New York - Ryan Adams

Call him Bryan and he will kill you - RYAN Adams is a far far superior artist in my opinion. He is well known for recording tons of songs and therefore releasing several albums in a year. His Gold Album is great from start to finish. Check out New York, New York...




http://www.ryan-adams.com/

#13 Hey Ya! - Outkast

This is such a good song and a great video - Hey Ya! by Outkast.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OutKast

#12 Rhiannon - Fleetwood Mac

Without doubt, Fleetwood Mac is my favourite band. I have everything they produced from 1975 onwards and everything that Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham have ever recorded as solo artists. I could have chosen many tracks, but today I have Rhiannon in my head. As the track was recorded in the time before videos, this is one of many live recordings.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fleetwood_Mac

#11 I'm The Only Gay Eskimo - Corky & The Juice Pigs

A bit of fun... Corky & The Juice Pigs singing I'm The Only Gay Eskimo. Makes me laugh every time.




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corky_and_the_Juice_Pigs