high fidelity

if you know me well, you know that i love the movie high fidelity (mainly for the jack black - john cusack interactions). one of the continual conversations is to name your "top 5 ______". ever since i've seen that movie, i've kept a running tally of top 5 lists, but usually i can't fill the whole top 5. it's a commitment to say things are your "top 5 favorite ever" (which is how i read the "top 5 lists").

that said, i have completed one of my lists! here it is:
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TOP 5 ALBUMS OF ALL TIME

Counting Crows: August and Everything After
I met this album in college, thanks to my brother. Mr. Jones is the main hit on this album, and I love it every time, but it's not my favorite song on the album. I prefer the more melancholy anthems Anna Begins and Raining in Baltimore. I also love Sullivan Street and Rain King (the latter becoming much more beloved for me after seeing Adam Duritz play a long version on the piano when I saw them in concert at The Gorge).

Lisa Loeb: Tails
I WANT TO BE LISA LOEB. Seriously. I dressed as her for a Rock Star party once (the one where Scott dressed as Britney, Brad dressed as Madonna, Jillian, Kimmy, and Crystal dressed as Wilson Phillips, and Philip demonstrated his Britney dance skillz). So, Lisa Loeb is, to me, an amazing singer. I fell in love with her when Stay was on the RB soundtrack (see top 5 #3 below). I belt that song out whenever I hear it. But she's no one-hit wonder. Songs I listen to over and over: When All the Stars Were Falling, Sandalwood, and Alone. This album came to me when I was studying art, and I loved that I knew what she meant when she said "...and we think about The Garden of Delights..." Also, did I mention, I WANT TO BE LISA LOEB.

Reality Bites Soundtrack
In 1994, I was itching to experience more of the world than Sioux Falls, South Dakota allowed. I watched The Real World and watched MTV. I loved seeing stories of people with different backgrounds, beliefs, and values than me. I dyed my hair with Rit dye. I got funky Malcom X glasses. I had a kick-ass Green Day t-shirt that I thought was totally rebellious to wear on my conservative Christian campus. I realize now: I was a budding hipster in an age when I didn't even know what a hipster was. When the movie Reality Bites came out, a few friends and I fell in love with the story line and the characters. But my favorite thing in the movie (besides the character Troy Dire and the witty dialogue): Jeanine Garafolo's bedroom decor and wardrobe. The soundtrack, to me, is a musical representation of her fabulous style. And BTW, if I ever find a Charlie's Angels lunchbox, I will carry it like a purse in an attempt to channel Vicky Minor. Favorite songs on the album: My Sharona (especially now that it makes me think of dancing HARD with Danyelle at USF dances) and Tempted (which makes me think of Amy Heck doing "The Sprinkler" dance).

REM: August and Everything After
I don't have words. This is classic music, to me. I love Man on the Moon, the hit, but my favorite song is Night Swimming. There is something about that piano that draws me in every time - maybe it's just my love for ballads, or maybe it reminds me of all the boys I crushed on who played piano. All I know: I love the song enough that it was my ringtone from 2003-2005 until I broke my phone. I also have a new found love for "Find the River". There's something peaceful to me about that song. Sidenote: REM was the band that helped me discover that I giggle whenever songsters drop the F-bomb. Michael Stipe, I *heart* you ALMOST as much as I *heart* Adam Duritz. ALMOST.

dcTalk: Jesus Freak
Ok, you can mock me for including a dcTalk album here, but this album came out when I was in college, a time when I listened primarily to Christian music with the exception of the above albums, Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, and a few others here-and-there. Jesus Freak was cutting edge in the Christian music world...it paved the way for that music genre to be much more hip and less sappy and terrible sounding. It had an edge. They were influenced by Nirvana on this album (just check out Toby Mac's cardigan in the pics). Jesus Freak, of course, was a hit that I loved (college friends will probably remember dancing HARD with me when we could get Jon Michaels the deejay to play it). But my favorite song on this album has always been Colored People, from the first several notes to the very end. This album represents the days I was "livin' in the hood" (to quote my good friend Tammy) yet still loving Jesus. And I still have my Freak shirt that we made for their Jesus Freak tour concert.
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So the funny thing about these albums: I came across all of them when I was in college. I'm sure loving these albums has to do with me "becoming myself" in that phase of life. I am sure I love these albums because the songs bring me back to being carefree, playing with great friends, and living life creatively. Whatever the reason, I "love you so bad", Top 5 Albums of All Time! :)