Mel's Weekly Top 20 & Top 10 Oldies

Just the charts this week for May 24, 2009. The current songs are what I am playing the most on my iTunes and iPod. The oldies are my favorites for this week as reported to Plannine's Classic Top 30 site.

Green Day, originally uploaded by GreendayRocks!!.

Green Day takes the number one spot with their first single from their new album 21st Century Breakdown. "Know Your Enemy" did a slow but steady climb in the past few weeks and tops the chart today. I've been listening to them on and off since the early 1990s when their songs used to get airplay on alt rock stations like Radio Free Hawaii. Some of my favorite Green Day songs from the past include "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", "Minority", "When I Come Around" and "Good Riddance - Time of Your Life." They came out with a killer version of John Lennon's "Working Class Hero" in 2007. From their current album, my favorite tracks are "Peacemaker", "21 Guns" and "21st Century Breakdown".

Here are the rest of the tracks.

MEL'S WEEKLY TOP 20 - May 24, 2009

This Week - Song Title - Artist - Last Week

1. Know Your Enemy - Green Day - 2
2. Major Tom - Shiny Toy Guns - 4
3. California - Shannon Hurley - 1
4. I'm Not Over - Carolina Liar - 3
5. Poker Face - Lady GaGa - 5
6. Halo - Beyonce - 7
7. Show Me What I'm Looking for - Carolina Liar - 8
8. 1, 2, 3, 4 - Plain White T's - 9
9. 99 Times - Kate Voegele - 11
10. People Got a Lotta Nerve - Neko Case - 6
11. I'm Just Here for the Music - Paula Abdul - 17
12. Focus - Cyndi Harvell - 13
13. What's So Bad (About Feeling Good)? - Ben Lee - 14
14. Lucky - Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat - 15
15. Two Hands - Jars of Clay - 16
16. No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand - 10
17. Please Believe Me - Darrin Kohavi - 12
18. The Great Defector - Bell X1 - 20
19. Free To Be Me - Francesca Battistelli - new
20. Failure - Operation Aloha - new

MEL'S TOP 10 OLDIES

1. Revolution - The Beatles
2. Jennifer Eccles - The Hollies
3. Arms of Mary - Sutherland Brothers & Quiver
4. Sad Sweet Dreamer - Sweet Sensation
5. The Story in Your Eyes - The Moody Blues
6. Pretty Lady - Lighthouse
7. Don't Ever Leave Me - Connie Francis
8. Tiny Bubbles - Don Ho
9. My Hawaii - The Rascals
10. Too Much Time on My Hands - Styx

Some of the Coolest Songs...

Some of the coolest songs can come from advertising. The most recent example is the 30 second spot for the Lincoln MKS sports luxury car. Ford/Lincoln Mercury is using Shiny Toy Guns remake of the old Peter Schilling track "Major Tom". I think it is a great ad and if I had the cash, I'd buy the car too. However I am satisfied with owning the song and watching this short video clip.

Lincoln-Mercury is also using a remake of the old David Bowie song "Space Oddity" done this time by singer Cat Power for another Lincoln MKS ad. It seems like the auto maker's current ad campaign revolves around a spacey theme. I like the originals and remakes of both songs and have added them to my vast iTunes library of music.

And of course Shiny Toy Guns' "Major Tom" is making some major moves on Mel's Weekly Top 20 chart as posted below:

MEL'S WEEKLY TOP 20 | Week of May 17, 2009.

This Week - Song Title - Artist - Last Week

1. California - Shannon Hurley - 1
2. Know Your Enemy - Green Day - 4
3. I'm Not Over - Carolina Liar - 2
4. Major Tom - Shiny Toy Guns - 19
5. Poker Face - Lady GaGa - 5
6. People Got a Lotta Nerve - Neko Case - 3
7. Halo - Beyoncé - 8
8. Show Me What I'm Looking for - Carolina Liar - 10
9. 1, 2, 3, 4 - Plain White T's - 9
10. No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand - 6
11. 99 Times - Kate Voegele - 13
12. Please Believe Me - Darrin Kohavi - 7
13. Focus - Cyndi Harvell - 14
14. What's So Bad (About Feeling Good)? - Ben Lee - 16
15. Lucky - Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat - 15
16. Two Hands - Jars of Clay - 17
17. I'm Just Here for the Music - Paula Abdul - 20
18. Is Anybody Out There? - The Downtown Fiction - 11
19. Natalie - The NuRu - 12
20. The Great Defector - Bell X1 - new

MEL'S TOP 10 0LDIES OF THE WEEK
As submitted to Plannine's Classic Top 30 site.

1. Revolution - The Beatles
2. Jennifer Eccles - The Hollies
3. My Hawaii - The Rascals
4. Arms of Mary - Sutherland Brothers & Quiver
5. Sad Sweet Dreamer - Sweet Sensation
6. The Story in Your Eyes - The Moody Blues
7. Pretty Lady - Lighthouse
8. Don't Ever Leave Me - Connie Francis
9. Tiny Bubbles - Don Ho
10. Fresh Air - Quicksilver Messenger Service

LIGHTHOUSE! Pretty Lady

From Music Mike's YouTube channel comes this wonderful "new" video of the Lighthouse song "Pretty Lady." Lighthouse was a Canadian music band known for its brassy rock n roll, similar in style to Blood Sweat & Tears or Chicago. They were louder than both. They had a handful of hits, the most recognizable one being "One Fine Morning" form 1971.

"Pretty Lady" was a single track released in 1973 that only went to the mid 50's on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. The song however topped the local radio charts in Hawaii and to this day remains one of my favorites. Give "Pretty Lady" a listen by clicking on the video link above. It's a song you'll remember or wished you heard long ago.

MEL'S TOP 10 OLDIES FOR THE WEEK
As submitted to Plannine's Classic Top 30 site.

1. My Hawaii - The Rascals
2. Jennifer Eccles - The Hollies
3. Don't Ever Leave Me - Connie Francis
4. Arms of Mary - Sutherland Brothers & Quiver
5. Revolution - The Beatles
6. Sad Sweet Dreamer - Sweet Sensation
7. Nights are Forever Without You - England Dan & John Ford Coley
8. The Story in Your Eyes - The Moody Blues
9. Poor Poor Pitiful Me - Linda Ronstadt
10. Pretty Lady - Lighthouse

Mel's Weekly Top 20 - 5/10/2009

Shannon Hurley hits the #1 spot on Mel's Weekly Top 20 after spending several weeks climbing the chart. The track is a staple at The SixtyOne music website and elsewhere online should be getting national airplay on modern rock, pop and AC radio formats. The track is that good. Listen to "California" by selecting it from the player below:



Here's a little more information about Shannon Hurley from her SixtyOne web page.

"Handpicked as one of Rolling Stone’s top 25 best bands on MySpace, Shannon Hurley has released her highly anticipated debut full length album. “Ready to Wake Up” is already receiving airplay on Indie 103.1FM and XM Radio. “I put my heart and soul into this record. The reason it took so long to release a full length, quite honestly, is because I wanted to wait until I had a good enough collection of songs to make it worth the listener’s while. I think I accomplished that”, she says. Her alternative pop style has often been compared to Aimee Mann and Sarah McLachlan, but her songwriting and singing have lifted her to a place that is completely her own."

Here are Mel's Weekly Top 20 song charts from the past 2 weeks:

THE TOP 20 HITS Week of May 10, 2009

This Week - Song Title - Artist - Last Week

1. California - Shannon Hurley - 2
2. I'm Not Over - Carolina Liar - 1
3. People Got a Lotta Nerve - Neko Case - 3
4. Know Your Enemy - Green Day - 10
5. Poker Face - Lady GaGa - 4
6. No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand - 6
7. Please Believe Me - Darrin Kohavi - 8
8. Halo - Beyonce - 9
9. 1, 2, 3, 4 - Plain White T's - 11
10. Show Me What I'm Looking for - Carolina Liar - 17
11. Is Anybody Out There? - The Downtown Fiction - 5
12. Natalie - The NuRu - 7
13. 99 Times - Kate Voegele - 15
14. Focus - Cyndi Harvell - 16
15. Lucky - Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat - 12
16. What's So Bad (About Feeling Good)? - Ben Lee - 19
17. Two Hands - Jars of Clay - 20
18. The Show - Lenka - 13
19. Major Tom - Shiny Toy Guns - new
20. I'm Just Here for the Music - Paula Abdul - new

THE TOP 20 HITS Week of May 3, 2009

This Week - Song Title - Artist - Last Week
1. I'm Not Over (3rd week @ #1!) - Carolina Liar - 1
2. California - Shannon Hurley - 2
3. People Got a Lotta Nerve - Neko Case - 4
4. Poker Face - Lady GaGa - 3
5. Is Anybody Out There? - The Downtown Fiction - 6
6. No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand - 5
7. Natalie - The NuRu - 7
8. Please Believe Me - Darrin Kohavi - 9
9. Halo - Beyonce - 10
10. Know Your Enemy - Green Day - 14
11. 1, 2, 3, 4 - Plain White T's - 12
12. Lucky - Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat - 13
13. The Show - Lenka - 15
14. Magnificent - U2 - 8
15. 99 Times - Kate Voegele - 18
16. Focus - Cyndi Harvell - 16
17. Show Me What I'm Looking for - Carolina Liar - 20
18. Time Lapse Lifeline - Maria Taylor - 11
19. What's So Bad (About Feeling Good)? - Ben Lee - new
20. Two Hands - Jars of Clay - new

More songs by Shannon Hurley:

Mel's Weekly Top 20 & Oldies Chart

Carolina Liar sings an acoustic version of their #1 hit "I'm Not Over." Below is the list of the Top 20 songs of the week for April 26 to May 2, 2009. These are my 20 favorite current songs that are in high rotation on my iPods and iTunes.

This Week Song Title Artist Last Week

1. I'm Not Over (2nd week @ #1!) - Carolina Liar - 1
2. California - Shannon Hurley - 2
3. Poker Face - Lady GaGa - 3
4. People Got a Lotta Nerve - Neko Case - 5
5. No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand - 4
6. Is Anybody Out There? - The Downtown Fiction - 7
7. Natalie - The NuRu - 8
8. Magnificent - U2 - 6
9. Please Believe Me - Darrin Kohavi - 10
10. Halo - Beyonce - 11
11. Time Lapse Lifeline - Maria Taylor - 9
12. 1, 2, 3, 4 - Plain White T's - 12
13. Lucky - Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat - 14
14. Know Your Enemy - Green Day - 19
15. The Show - Lenka - 15
16. Focus - Cyndi Harvell - 17
17. Working On A Dream - Bruce Springsteen - 13
18. 99 Times - Kate Voegele - 20
19. Gives You Hell - The All-American Rejects - 16
20. Show Me What I'm Looking for - Carolina Liar - new

TOP 10 OLDIES OF THE WEEK
As submitted to Plannine's Classic Top 30 site.

1. My Hawaii - The Rascals
2. Jennifer Eccles - The Hollies
3. Nights Are Forever Without You - England Dan & John Ford Coley
4. Oh Boy! - Buddy Holly
5. Revolution - The Beatles
6. New Year's Day - U2
7. Mirror Star - Fabulous Poodles
8. Arms of Mary - Sutherland Brothers & Quiver
9. Don't Ever Leave Me - Connie Francis
10. Sad Sweet Dreamer - Sweet Sensation