Desert Island Songs

by Vodes

A few years ago, there was a local radio station that had a nightly feature called ‘The Desert Island’. The idea behind this segment of the show was this: if you were trapped on a desert island and you could only bring five songs with you; what songs would you bring? I always enjoyed this segment of the show and listened to it often. I even sent in my five songs, but unfortunately, my entry was never chosen. But I enjoyed listening to it nonetheless. With this thought in mind, I have proposed the following five songs as my choices of music to be marooned with.

Life by the Drop by Stevie Ray Vaughan. This song is from the album entitled ‘The Sky is Crying’. It is the last track on the album. It’s a very simple song, seemingly sung from the heart. It is just Stevie Ray and a twelve string acoustic guitar. I have to guess that it’s a song that reflects his struggle with substance abuse and how he finally overcame all the addictions and realized what was really important in life. Put this song on, turn it up, close your eyes and lean back and enjoy. I get goose bumps every time I hear this song…no lie.

Black Dog by Led Zeppelin. This song is from the album lovingly referred to as the Zoso album. You know the one where the dude on the front is carrying a big bundle of sticks on his back? I vividly remember the first time I heard this song. I was walking through a parking lot and I walked by a clunker of car that was cranking out this Zeppelin tune. The stereo system in this car was easily worth more than the car itself. Robert Plant wailing through those speakers, followed by Jimmy Page’s furious onslaught of guitar riffs was glorious. The song embodied everything rock and roll had to offer…at least to my impressionable young ears. When I finally scraped together enough to buy the album, I listened to this song a hundred times in a row and I never got tired of listening to it.

Three Strange Days by School of Fish. This song is from the debut album from these guys. I don’t think they were tremendously successful in the music industry, but this one song still sticks in my head. The guitar riff totally hooks you right from the first note and the lyrics have some great imagery. From “floating on my back” to the “simulated wood grain” that ‘Johnny Clueless’ brought; this song is a great tune for relaxing and singing along to. If you can find it, listen to the version that contains the extended introduction. They are doing some weird stuff in that version before the song starts…but it’s very cool.

Been Caught Stealing by Jane’s Addiction. This song is from the album called ‘Ritual de lo Habitual’ which was Jane’s second studio album. The entire album is excellent, I just freakin’ love this song! Perry Farrell on vocals is sublime. The song is just so complete; from the frantic beat of the bass through the fast tempo to the searing guitar work of Dave Navarro, it is just one solid tune. It took some time for this song to grow on me, but when it finally clicked, it’s definitely one I could listen to a million times. This song also has an extended version…check that out if you can find it.

Voodoo Chile by Jimi Hendrix. This song comes from Hendrix’s last studio album entitled ‘Electric Ladyland’. From the first few strikes of the guitar pick against the guitar strings, this song is amazing. It’s also probably one of the most recognizable riffs in guitar history. You don’t believe me? Here is a quote from Joe Satriani: “It’s just the greatest piece of electric guitar work ever recorded. In fact, the whole song could be considered the holy grail of guitar expression and technique”. Okay, so now that I have Joe Satriani on my side, how could you disagree? I challenge you to dig it out of your record collection and give it a fresh listen! That’s good stuff!

Okay, so there you have it; my desert island selections. Fortunately, you and I don’t have to be marooned on an island to enjoy listening to these kick-ass tunes. Considering the sheer number of great songs out there and the multitude of great artists, it is very hard to pick just five songs. I may have to revisit the desert island line-up and make some amendments in the future.