I've always wanted to do something like this. I've always wanted to start making a list of songs that I think are about as perfect as you can get. I DO think that perfection exists in art. Especially in music. I think that these songs come about as close to (if not outright achieving of) perfection as possible.

1) Where It's At - Beck

What I like about this song:

'Odelay' as an album is about as close to perfection as you can get. 'Where It's At' is probably the best representation of what 'Odelay' is as an album as it combines as many different musical genres as possible into one song.

'Where It's At' also combines Beck's sensibilities of B-Boy type rhymes with his kind of wacko-bizarre stream of conscious type of lyric.

And what's not to like about the robot voice that makes a brief entrance halfway through the song. I think that the all too brief 'robot voice' adds SOO much playfulness to the song, that I can't imagine the song without it.

Favorite lyric:

"Pick yourself up off the side of the road/With your elevator bones and your whip-flash tones/Members only, hyponotizers move through the room like ambulance drivers"

2) Goodbye Yellow Brick Road - Elton John

What I like about the song:

During the early to late seventies, Elton John and Bernie Taupin wrote some of the greatest songs of all time together. They really fused some great poetic lyrics to a really catchy poprock sound. There were many gems of the early Elton years, but my favorite is 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.' I really love the melody. I think that the lyrics are pretty strong, but it's the melody that really grabs me everytime I listen to this song. I also think that as a song, it's very fundamentally sound. It doesn't drag on, and doesn't cut itself short. It's just the perfect length.

Favorite lyric:

again, it's the melody that sold this song to me, but...

"Back to the howling old owl in the woods/Hunting the horny back toad/Oh I've finally decided my future lies/Beyond the yellow brick road"

3) Paper Bag - Fiona Apple

What I like about the song:

I love Fiona Apple as a songwriter and Jon Brion as her producer. They're a perfect match for each other. I think that although it's not as popular as some of her more well known songs, 'Paper Bag' may just be my favorite Fiona Apple song. Like 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,' the strength of this song lies in the melody and in the arrangement of the strings and horns. I think that this may be one of the most beautiful arrangements to ever accompany a pop song. It's no wonder why people call Jon Brion the modern day George Martin.

Favorite Lyric:

I really like the melody the most, but...

"I got to fold 'cause these hands are too shaky to hold/Hunger hurts, but starving works, when it costs too much to love"

4) Here We Go - Jon Brion

What i like about this song:

As I mentioned in 'Paper Bag' Jon Brion is one helluva producer. He is also one kick ass songwriter. So far, 'Here We Go' (from the Punch Drunk Love soundtrack) is my favorite Jon Brion composition. I really love both the melody and the lyrical content. The song is mostly about someone who has just gotten out of a long term relationship, and how they are worried to see if there's anyone out there who will someday love that person no matter how "strange" they may or may not be. It's kind of a bittersweet song I guess. As is the case with any Jon Brion song, it's immaculately produced. The string arrangement on this song is pretty awesome.

Favorite lyric:

"These things that you're wrapping all around you/Never know what they will amount to/If you're life is just going on without you/It's the end of the things you know/Here we go"


5) Imagine - John Lennon

What I like about the song:

Is there a better written song out there? This song is pretty perfect in every single way. The melody is really quite terrific. The strings are subtle enough to not get in the way. And of course, the sound of the piano is really memorable as well.

But the strength of this song lies in both the singing of John Lennon and the lyrical content of the song. There has never been a song that so perfectly sums my worldview on how things could and should be. It's one of the few songs that can give me instant goosebumps no matter how many times I hear it.

Favorite lyric:

I really like the following lyric because it's the lyric that openly engages the listener more than the other words do. It's almost like a subtle "call to arms" of sorts. I also think that it's the lyric that hits the heart the hardest.

"Imagine no possessions/I wonder if you can/No need for greed or hunger/A brotherhood of man/Imagine all the people/Sharing all the world"


6) America - Simon and Garfunkel

What I like about this song:

I really love how this song combines poetic lyrics with a nice little melody. I always have a fondness for songwriters who are able to write engaging lyrics without having to resort to using a lot of cliches. I've always thought that this song showed why Paul Simon is one of the great singer/songwriter/storytellers around.

Favorite Lyric:

"Let us be lovers, we'll marry our fortunes together/I've got some real estate here in my bag/So we bought a pack of cigarettes and Mrs. Wagner pies/And walked off to look for America"


7) A Day in the Life - The Beatles

What I like about this song:

'Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band' is a masterpiece as a whole. 'A Day in the Life' is THE masterpiece of that masterpiece. No song that the Beatles ever put out so clearly shows just how great the Lennon/McCartney songwriting duo was. I can't imagine hearing either part of this song on it's own. Yet they're so different in everything from lyrics to melody, that they somehow fit together JUST right.

The production quality is top notch too. The orchestration is quite perfect actually. George Martin was smart enough to know when to let it all hang out, and when to bring it back in. And of course, who can forget about the brilliant orchestration that brings Lennon's work and McCartney's work together. That great orgasm of sound, with the ascending orchestra arriving at one note right one cue, is really just plain terrific.

This may be the greatest composition from my all-time favorite band.

Favorite lyric:

"I'd love to turn you on"

8) Down Rodeo - Rage Against the Machine

What I like about this song:

'Rage Against the Machine' were great at mixing heavy guitar riffs with some of the finest political poetry ever written. I like songs that sometimes have a little bit of a dangerous edge to them. This song definitely fits that bill to a T. This is the type of song that gets big wig government types into a hissy. And it's so unapologetic too. It's basically a song where Zack and crew are saying, this is our politics and this is our message, if you don't like, no skin off our backs.

Favorite lyric:

"Can't waste the day when the night brings a hearse/So make a move and plead the fifth 'cuz you can't plead the first."


9) Dancing Queen - Abba

What I like about this song:

This is kind of the wild card here. I don't know what it is about this song. 26 years after it's release, it still sounds fresh and completely brand new. If there had never been a band named "Abba" and someone else released this song today, I have no doubt that this song would be just as popular now as it was back then. It's EXTREMELY catchy. Like a bad cold.

Favorite Lyric:

"You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life/See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen"


10) Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen

What I like about this song:

I'll go ahead and say it right now, this is the greatest pop song ever written. It has everything that I look for in a song. It has great lyrics, good riffs, catchy melodies, great production values, and great song structure. This song is structured more like a great piece of classical music than a great piece of pop rock. This song is more operatic that kickin rock and roll. It has definite movements that take the song into places that you didn't think it could go.

The lyrics are of course very poignant. Freddie Mercury really let his heart out with this song. I can always admire songwriters who put so much of themself into a song.

Favorite Lyric:

"Galileo figaro-Magnifico/But I'm just a poor boy and nobody loves me/He's just a poor boy from a poor family/Spare him his life from this monstrosity/Easy come easy go,will you let me go/Bismillah! No, we will not let you go, let him go"

matt out