Playlist fun

Since I obviously have nothing better to do with my time, I have decided to post twice this weekend on my blog. This post is really totally self-indulgent, though...it's completely preoccupied with my obsession with organizing iTunes.

As many of you know, constructing a good playlist is an artform. You need to know what mood you're looking for and then, among all the songs in your library (in my case, that's a lot of songs) pick just the right ones to foster that mood. You need a focal point which all the songs rotate around, adding variety but not moving too far from that center.

I had a barbeque at my house last weekend, and I decided to construct a new playlist for it. The original version was about 7 hours long, but after listening through it once I shortened it to about 5 hours...just the right length for a good party. I wanted something with an alternative rock flavor, leaning towards classic rock, especially focused on a certain style of guitars and a certain flavor of beat. There ended up being a ton of U2 with a lot of The Clash and Switchfoot, to give you an idea of what the sound was. I'm very pleased with the result, so I thought I'd share it here. Enjoy!

"Oh! Darling" --The Beatles
"Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey" --The Beatles
"You May Be Right" --Billy Joel
"Livin' On a Prayer" --Bon Jovi
"Keep the Faith" --Bon Jovi
"More Than a Feeling" --Boston
"Peace of Mind" --Boston
"You Got Your Man" --Brother Henry
"Beautiful" --Audio Adrenaline
"Born in the USA" --Bruce Springsteen
"California Bound" --Carolina Liar
"Magic" --The Cars
"Hateful" --The Clash
"Rudie Can't Fail" --The Clash
"Up Around the Bend" --Creedance Clearwater Revival
"Foreign Language" --Anberlin
"A Day Late" --Anberlin
"Shake Me Like a Monkey" --Dave Matthews Band
"The Nearness" --David Crowder*Band
"We Win!" --David Crowder*Band
"Open Skies" --David Crowder*Band
"Heartache Tonight" --The Eagles
"Go Your Own Way" --Fleetwood Mac
"Some Kind of Wonderful" --Grand Funk Railroad
"Sweet Child o' Mine" --Guns N' Roses
"I'm Confused" --Handsome Furs
"Disappear" --Jars of Clay
"Work" --Jars of Clay
"Collide" --Jars of Clay
"I'm Alright" --Jars of Clay
"Closer" --Jars of Clay
"Sweetness" --Jimmy Eat World
"Any Way You Want It" --Journey
"What's on My Mind" --Kansas
"Silhouettes in Disguise" --Kansas
"Power" --Kansas
"The Imposter" --Kevin Max
"Return of the Singer" --Kevin Max
"Angel With No Wings" --Kevin Max
"When You Were Young" --The Killers
"Use Somebody" --Kings of Leon
"Suddenly I See" --KT Tunstall
"Rock and Roll" --Led Zeppelin
"Sweet Home Alabama" --Lynyrd Skynyrd
"Gimme Three Steps" --Lynyrd Skynyrd
"Real World" --Matchbox Twenty
"Spotlight" --MuteMath
"Electrify" --MuteMath
"Typical" --MuteMath
"Cornelius" --Newsboys
"Beyond Belief" --Petra
"Message In a Bottle" --The Police
"Sunsets" --Powderfinger
"Dani California" --Red Hot Chili Peppers
"Come Right Out and Say It" --Relient K
"I Don't Need a Soul" --Relient K
"Roll With It" --Steve Winwood
"You Need Love" --Styx
"Redemption" --Switchfoot
"You Already Take Me There" --Switchfoot
"Stars" --Switchfoot
"American Dream" --Switchfoot
"Refugee" --Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
"She's On Fire" --Train
"Even Better Than the Real Thing" --U2
"Mysterious Ways" --U2
"Beautiful Day" --U2
"Elevation" --U2
"Vertigo" --U2
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" --U2
"In God's Country" --U2
"Desire" --U2
"Hawkmoon 269" --U2
"Pride (In the Name of Love)" --U2
"Seven Nation Army" --The White Stripes
"I Can See for Miles" --The Who
"Darling, You Were Beautiful Once" --William F. Gibbs
"Go Go Go" --The 88