Day 12: Livin’ on a Prayer (Bon Jovi)

I was in 6th-7th grade in 1986. I loved Bon Jovi. I never really got over it. Deal with it. 😉

Day 13: (Jesus Christ) Superstar (Murray Head)

I really struggled with this one. It turns out I like a lot of songs from the 70s. 🙂 I decided to go with this song, from one of my favorite musicals. Here’s “Superstar,” as performed by Murray Head (and the Trinidad Singers, apparently).

Day 14: Easy Silence (Dixie Chicks)

So, I posted about this one a while back, choosing “Follow You, Follow Me” by Genesis. but looking over my list, I see that it’s really male-dominated, so I decided to pick a different song from our actual wedding playlist (which was also rather male-dominated. Hm.)

So today’s choice is “Easy Silence” by the Dixie Chicks, from their fantastic album Taking the Long Way.

Day 15: Red Right Hand (Vixy & Tony)

So, there are a number of artists that I appreciate WAY more when they are covered by someone else. Tom Waits. Lou Reed. Even, to some extent, Bob Dylan.

I fell in love with this song when I first heard Vixy & Tony perform it…I was previously unfamiliar with it. And since I knew it was a cover, one day I thought I’d check out the original.

And oh. Oh yes. Go ahead and put Nick Cave in that category.

(This post was nearly a tie between Every Little Thing (He) Does is Magic by Shawn Colvin and Jolene by Miley Cyrus. Maybe someday I’ll make a whole list of cool covers I like.)

Day 16: Alone (Heart)

So, I pondered a bit about what “classic” means. Since it’s not really defined, I figured it could mean whatever I wanted it to. I also figured that 1987 is long enough ago to be “classic,” much as it pains me to admit it. 😉

Anyway, I’ve posted about this song before. I’ve joked before about Heart’s cheesy 80s power ballad material, but every time I hear this song, I’m struck by how good it is. It is so. good.

(we shall not speak of their 1990 #2 hit. *shudder*)

Day 17: Friends And Lovers (Carl Anderson & Gloria Loring)

Truth be told, I don’t have the pipes for this, but I can dream a little…so, as you may know, back in my preteen and teenage years, I was an avid viewer of Days of Our Lives. Gloria Loring played lounge singer Liz Chandler, and she performed this song with Carl Anderson in…1985, I think? The song charted in 1986.

You may also know Gloria Loring as the vocalist for the theme from “The Facts of Life.” (She was, at the time, married to Alan Thicke, who composed the theme.)

My runner-up response for this one was “Islands in the Stream.”

Day 18: Waterloo (ABBA)

I love ABBA. I love this song. I don’t know what else to say about this one. 🙂

Day 19: Under the Carlaw Bridge (Lowest of the Low)

The Canadian band Lowest of the Low–in particular, their album Shakespeare, My Butt–got me through my 20s.

Here’s the last section of the song:

Day 20: Nasty (Janet Jackson)

I was about to publish this post without an entry for day 20–I just couldn’t come up with anything. And then this came to mind at literally the last second.