I was encouraged by a friend to publish here the contents of my iTunes “Gems” playlist. This playlist is a project always in a state of progress. Some of the songs on the list will remain there permanently while I may find later that others do not work or otherwise belong.
It should be noted that every man has his own preferences and opinions, and what you read here may very well be incompatible with your taste.
I tried to select songs that had a pleasant and engaging melody, good musical flow, an artistic flair, and excellent production value. Some songs are here simply to elevate the mood, while most of them are among my absolute favorite works of popular music currently in my collection.
If I owned every song ever written and performed, this list might be completely different.
Here is the playlist as it currently exists:
| Song | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| Never Been Any Reason | Head East | The Millennium Collection: The Best of Head East |
| Old Days | Chicago | The Heart Of Chicago 1967 - 1998 |
| Lucky Man | Emerson, Lake & Palmer | The Best of Emerson, Lake & Palmer |
| Are You Sitting Comfortably? | The Moody Blues | Lovely To See You (Live) |
| If You Could Read My Mind | Gordon Lightfoot | Songbook |
| Once In A Very Blue Moon | Nanci Griffith | From A Distance: The Best of Nanci Griffith |
| Way To Mandalay | Blackmore’s Night | Ghost of A Rose |
| Book of Days | Enya | Paint The Sky With Diamonds |
| Heartbeat | Buddy Holly & The Crickets | From The Original Master Tapes |
| Sunrise | Norah Jones | Feels Like Home |
| Song For A Winter’s Night | Gordon Lightfoot | Songbook |
| The Land of Make-Believe | The Moody Blues | Seventh Sojourn |
| It’s Up To You | Moody Bluegrass | Moody Bluegrass: A Nashville Tribute to The Moody Blues |
| A Living Prayer | Alison Krauss & Union Station | Lonely Runs Both Ways |
| Tomorrow is A Long Time | Nickel Creek | Why Should The Fire Die? |
| Tonight I Just Need My Guitar | Jimmy Buffett | Far Side of The World |
| When You Say Nothing At All | Alison Krauss & Union Station | Live |
| Trouble in These Fields | Nanci Griffith | From A Distance: The Best of Nanci Griffith |
| You’ve Got A Friend in Me | Randy Newman & Lyle Lovett | (Single) |
| Both Sides Now | Hayley Westenra | Odyssey |
| True Companion | Marc Cohn | Marc Cohn |
| Who Are You Now | Justin Hayward & John Lodge | Blue Jays |
| You Are Loved (Don’t Give Up) | Josh Groban | Awake |
| Say It Isn’t So | The Outfield | Play Deep |
| If Wishes Were Changes | Nanci Griffith | From A Distance: The Best of Nanci Griffith |
| Nights in White Satin (Live Tom Jones Show, 1968) | The Moody Blues | Live At The BBC 1967-1970 |
| God Knows When | Radney Foster | Are You Ready For The Big Show? |
| In Your Eyes (Live) | Nancy Wilson | Live at McCabes Guitar Shop |
| 100 Years | Five For Fighting | The Battle For Everything |
| Carpet of The Sun | Renaissance | Tales of 1001 Nights, Vol. 1 |
| Scenes From an Italian Restaurant | Billy Joel | Greatest Hits Vol 1 & 2 |
| Time After Time | Cyndi Lauper | She’s So Unusual |
| Many the Miles (Live) | Sara Bareilles | Live Session (iTunes Exclusive) - EP |
| Spirit of ‘76 | The Alarm | Strength (Remastered) |
| The Tower | Vienna Teng | Waking Hour |
| From A Distance | Nanci Griffith | From A Distance: The Best of Nanci Griffith |
| I Will Rise Up/Ain’t No More Cane | Lyle Lovett & His Large Band | It’s Not Big It’s Large |
| Heroes & Thieves | Vanessa Carlton | Heroes & Thieves |
| Never Comes The Day (BBC Live In Concert 17/12/69) | The Moody Blues | Live At The BBC 1967-1970 |
UPDATED: August 02, 2009