1. “Simple Twist of Fate” by Bob Dylan:
Listeners, even self-proclaimed fans of Dylan, must acknowledge that the man has some annoying traits. The greatest among them is his habit of not leaving well enough alone; pursuing a rhyme scheme for too long, or just generally over saturating his songs with endless verses. This one, though, clocks in at a modest 4:16, and with its first note, has already made a tacit announcement that the song will not overstay its welcome. In fact, it leaves you feeling like it has ended too soon. Part of that is the narrative of the characters Dylan creates. Another part of it is that you know you will not hear another song like it from him. It’s lyrically unambitious by Bob’s standards, but that decision to not force wordplay or poetry lends it a greater beauty than much of his other work.
Greatest Lyric: Song’s altogether story.
2. “Carolina In My Mind” by James Taylor:
This is one of those songs that rings in your ears long after you listen to it. It isn’t so much that it’s catchy, but it just has an energy of unrivaled mellowdom that can actually change your mood. A great song for lying on an Elon lawn and sky gazing, but really just a great song for lying anywhere, closing your eyes, and collecting your thoughts.
Greatest Lyric:“In my mind I'm going to Carolina/Can't you see the sunshine/Can't you just feel the moonshine?”
3. “The Heart of Saturday Night” by Tom Waits:
Really any song off of this album of the same name is good for some head-clearing nighttime solo travel. This one, though, stands on its own. You have your Monday songs (“Manic Monday”, “Monday, Monday”) and enumerable Friday songs. Many of them are even good, but they carry no depth beyond the same conventional wisdom of “Mondays Suck” and “T.G.I.F.” “The Heart of Saturday Night” is almost frightening in how close it gets to describing the spiritual condition of your average person on a Saturday night. It outs us all as becoming those self-conscious, unfalteringly, naively optimistic beings, at least one night out the week.
Greatest Lyric: “You comb your hair/Shave your face/Trying to wipe out every trace/All the other days of the week/You know that this’ll be the Saturday you’re reachin’ your peak."
4. “The Concept” by Teenage Fanclub:
This song somehow marries the lazily-voiced, garage band sensibilities of 90’s alt rock and the melodic jangle of seventies power pop groups like Badfinger and Big Star. Its simplicity is entrancing, but also deceiving. The first few minutes, it seems no more than an apologetic love song with a healthy repetition of "Oh yeahs." The last few minutes, a guitar wails over a much gloomier chorus of "Ah's." Its emotional composition has changed, collapsing dolefully into a requiem for lost love. Somehow, though, it retains a sort of bittersweet joy and innocence throughout.
Greatest Lyric: "Says she, likes my hair cuz it's down my back/Says she likes the group cuz we pull in the slack."
