Sometimes you’re in the mood to listen to a particular song that you normally love, and sometimes… you’re not.

That being said, there are still some songs that you ALWAYS love hearing no matter what your mood, rush hour conditions, moon phases, what have you…

Here are some of those songs that fit that bill for me. No judging, I won’t judge YOU for the music you love, but if you force me to listen to Asia like that guy I went with on a one-and-done date in college on 1991, yeah I may judge you a little like I judged him lol!

You may ask why I don’t keep these songs on a special playlist so I can listen to them all the time. That’s because they’d lose their “allure” if I did that. It seems more special somehow when they come on randomly.

Without further ado:

1 Dry the Rain, The Beta Band

I heard this song for the first time while watching the movie High Fidelity. The above photo is from Grosse Pointe Blank. But this actor was also in High Fidelity – you know that one where Cusack was the star,  yet newcomer Jack Black stole the show? Yeah, that movie! The Jack Black scene where he chastises a customer for wanting to buy a Stevie Wonder record for his daughter – and Jack Black asks incredulously, “Do you even KNOW your daughter?” Yes it was snarky, but so funny in a way that only a true Gen-X person can appreciate!

That song never feels unwelcome to me and always seems to lift my mood. And I always crank it up around the three minute mark (nice guitar things happen here).

2 Every 1s a Winner, Hot Chocolate

This is another song that I heard for the first time while watching a movie. That movie was Detroit Rock City. It’s played in the scene where Edward Furlong’s character, in a bid to get money for Kiss tickets, attempts a strip tease at a male strip joint. This isn’t the song playing during his dance, but it is played during the scene.

The song captivated me from its opening bass lines. It’s not nearly as popular or as well known as that “other” Hot Chocolate song “You Sexy Thing,” which is also a great song. I just like this one so much better. The groove, the sexy lyrics, the guitar and bass riffs with just a touch of a disco vibe in what is mostly a funk tune? Yeah, it has everything for me, even a positive message. Everyone is a winner after all, aren’t they?

3 Space Lord, Monster Magnet

I must like dark bass grooves or something 🤔

I’ve loved this song since I first heard it on the radio sometime in the late 1990s. I can’t quite explain it properly, but there is almost an “orgasmic” vibe to the song. Get that mind out of the gutter! 😂 I just mean that it builds up…and explodes, in this case, it explodes when he belts out the line “I built my throne a million miles away…”

Now I want Monster Magnet to give whomever makes a Lobo movie the permission to use this as the opening song. It’s just so…Lobo!

Lobo is the charming gent in the picture above…

Seriously why do we have so many damn Aquaman movies and not one single Lobo movie yet?

4 Stayin’ Alive, The Bee Gees

I just love this song even if I don’t know what Barry Gibb is saying the whole time. I don’t even mind the falsetto I just like that guitar riff. And the nostalgia I associate with this song (hey I grew up with disco, some of it is actually good). Hey I asked you not to judge me!

Speaking of staying alive, as of this blog posting (July 17, 2025), Barry Gibb, now 78, the oldest of the Gibb brothers, still lives. He’s outlived brothers Robin, Maurice and baby brother Andy. Andy’s biggest  talent besides being a pinup boy for 1970s teens who liked how he looked in those extra tight trousers was…

Andy Gibb’s enduring talent was being able to almost simultaneously to both burn out – and fade away – as a pop star. He was very hot when he was hot (actress Victoria Principal thought so), but after his untimely death in his 30s (from a damaged heart brought on by, presumably drug abuse), he quickly faded away into obscurity.

He had some hit singles on his own, including Shadow Dancing, Love is Thicker Than Water (which I adored as a kid) and I Just Want to be Your Everything. But let’s get back to big brother Barry, shall we?

Barry Gibb is actually a very talented songwriter, and like Prince and Bruce Springsteen, has written many hit songs for other performers, including Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers (yeah, that duet) Frankie Valli, Barbra Streisand, Destiny’s Child, Samantha Sang and (duh) also the Bee Gees.

I’ll list the Barry Gibb written song “Grease” as an honorable mention here. How interesting that a guy who usually sang in falsetto (Gibb) wrote the song for a singer (Frankie Valli) who also normally sang in falsetto – but does not in this song! Not bad for a “Jersey Boy!”

5 Head Over Heels, Tears for Fears

(also the Go-Gos more about them in a bit)

My trivia buddy and friend Kim is totally going to hate me for this entry! She cannot stand this band! Fair enough, we’re all welcome to our opinions, aren’t we?

It’s just a pure nostalgia ride for me. It takes me back to my happy times as a dorky eighth grader with braces who ate unhealthy amounts of candy – and nearly perfected throwing individual Tart ‘n Tiny candies into my mouth. Also I was in a youth bowling league (yes really). This was on just one of a few cassette albums I owned and listened to at the time. It’s also just fun to sing in a belt-it-out fashion. I’ll never make Kim understand this, but that’s OK! 😂 I like what I like!

I also don’t tend to skip the Tears for Fears song “Mad World,” either, though I can take or leave “Everybody Wants to Rule the World (groan so overplayed).”

6 You’re So Vain, Carly Simon

I just love singing along to this song. I honestly don’t care who it’s about (even though Warren Beatty is supposedly who it’s about).

7 Pretty much anything by the Go-Gos!

Head over Heels is especially great in that it has a bass solo and a piano solo! Those gals may have been coked up into oblivion when they recorded these songs, but boy did they make great music!

8 Wild World, Cat Stevens

Most Cat Stevens songs are ones that I skip while driving, but this one never gets skipped! Baby I love this song…

9 Dangerous, Depeche Mode

Though this song didn’t the final cut of the 1990 hit album “Violator,” it found listeners as a “B-side.” Older music lovers will know what this means. I only found out about this nearly forgotten song a few years ago.  I like to think of it as the third part of their S&M song trilogy, the first two of which were Master and Servant and Strangelove.

Yes, there are some dark 50 Shades of Grey-esque themes in this song. behold:

“Dangerous
The way you leave me wanting more
Dangerous
That’s what I want you for
Dangerous
When I am in your arms
Dangerous
Know I will come to harm…”

Even the bass beat is kind of similar to Strangelove.

While we’re on the topic of racy songs… here’s the last one on my list:

10 Closer, Nine Inch Nails

This song is just so dark, sexy and… filthy. With all of the subtlety you can expect from any song written by Tent Reznor (yes this was total sarcasm BTW). A related song of theirs I also don’t usually (though sometimes I do) shuffle is the nin cover of Queen’s song “Get Down, Make Love.” There is even a remix version with some very…realistic female sounds where she sounds like she’s climaxing. “Rocket Queen” by Guns ‘n Roses, eat your heart out! Yeah that song supposedly has sex noises in it too (real dick swinging move on Axl’s part, he banged a fellow band member’s girlfriend and recorded it).

Well? What are you waiting for? Listen to “Rocket Queen!”

And with that, it’s a good time to end this pointless blog! 😂