What are your favorite tunes to play?

[Bassic83]

Converse to my other thread, what are your favorite tunes to play?

Ones that make an otherwise banal gig worth it?

Ones that lift your spirits, make you feel like everything will work out fine? Tunes that make you glad you can play?

I love playing "What Is Hip" by TOP, for instance...or "Work To Do" by AWB. Something that has a really deep groove and allows for interplay with the drummer usually makes me smile...

So what say you?

[Munjibunga]

I like Back on the Chain Gang by the Pretenders ... the lyrics haunt me.

[Ray-man]

Most songs written by Neil Young. Extremely simple instrumentation, yet very meaningful lyrics. Bass lays back and provides the foundation and the guitars (at least the good ones) drive it home. They're among the easier to sing while playing.

[seanm]

Currently I am enjoying playing "Before they make me run", the Supersuckers version. Great song. Now if I could just get the band to play it .....

[DaftCat]

Stone Temple Pilots - Trippin On A Hole In A Paper Heart
Spin Doctors - Cleopatra's Cat
Sublime - Santeria

[Aaron Saunders]

I love playing Fly Me To The Moon. I've got a standards gig with a quintet and it doesn't matter if my amp's not working, if the sax player isn't there, practice is just garbage, etc., a few choruses of Fly Me To The Moon always brightens my (and everyone else in the quintet) spirits tremendously. The changes are easy beyond belief to navigate, even while soloing. Fantastic.

On BG, there's a tune I wrote a few months ago that is uber-therapy for me. Any time I'm feeling especially bad, I can play it for a while (anywhere from 30 seconds to 20 minutes, depending on how into it I get) and I always feel better afterwards.

[gottawalk]

The entire album by Gentle Giant called "Missing Piece".

[machine gewehr]

Black Sabbath-Paranoid sets me and the band on fire.we play it really FAST.
Metallica-Fade to Black goes through my heart every time we play.

[seanm]

Originally Posted by machine gewehr

Black Sabbath-Paranoid sets me and the band on fire.we play it really FAST.

That is a great song. Everybody seems to do Iron Man, but I prefer Paranoid

[Bottom Feeder]

Originally Posted by gottawalk

The entire album by Gentle Giant called "Missing Piece".

Nice! Gotta love that one! especially "Winning"

[Alvaro Martín Gómez A.]

Lots of songs. Here are some I recall right now:

- "La Villa Strangiato", "Tom Sawyer", "Bastille Day", "Anthem", "The Spirit Of Radio", "Limelight", "The Analog Kid" and "2112" (Overture/Temples) - Rush. (also "YYZ", but , not to mention I don't have Geddy's awesome tone)

- "Cupid's Dead" - Extreme.

- "Back In Black" - AC/DC. Is there an award for the most powerful yet simple song ever written? This one is the undisputable winner, along with Van Halen's "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love". "You Shook Me All Night Long" is another AC/DC gem.

- "What Is Hip?" -Tower Of Power.

- "So Lonely" - The Police.

- "The Rhyme Of The Ancient Mariner", "Revelations", "Aces High", "Wrathchild" and "The Trooper" - Iron Maiden.

- "Sweating Bullets" - Megadeth.

- "Rosanna" - Toto.

- "Young Lust", "Comfortably Numb" (this one while singing) and "One Of These Days" - Pink Floyd.

- "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" - Rod Stewart.

- "Mr. Cab Driver" and "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" -Lenny Kravitz.

- "Goin' Blind" - Kiss. I like to sing and play this one. BTW, some of you may laugh at this, but I really enjoy playing Kiss' "Cold Gin". That simple but effective bassline (as recorded in the original studio version) fits the song perfectly and it's very groovy to me!

- "Hey Joe" - Jimi Hendrix.

- "Black Dog", "Whole Lotta Love" and the live version of "Celebration Day" - Led Zeppelin.

- "My Sharona" - The Knack.

- "Le Freak" - Chic.

- "Catholic Girls" - Frank Zappa. Also like to play the challenging bit he used to play live as a bridge between "Echidna's Arf (Of You)" and "Don't You Ever Wash That Thing?".

- The "Barney Miller" theme.

- Have you heard the intro theme played by Jethro Tull during their 70's tours that segues into "No Lullaby" ("Bursting Out" album)? That's a great short piece to play.

- "American Life" - Primus. I'm working on singing and playing this.

- About solo stuff: Some solo pieces by Stu Hamm (think of his typical ones minus "Moonlight Sonata") and Jaco's "Portrait Of Tracy". Also Van Halen's "Cathedral".

- Many Salsa and Merengue tunes that maybe most of you don't know.

More to come (I'm sure. Sorry for the long post!).

[QORC]

7 Nation Army - the bass is really the key instrument in the whole song, not just the beginning. Plus it's a cool-sounding bassline, even if it's reptitious and easy.

Rio (Duran Duran) - same thing as above. The bass is like the lead instrument in this song

Tom Sawyer - ditto with above.

Interstate Love Song (Stone Temple Pilots). I just like playing it. It's fun.

[Jace The Bass]

What's goin on - Marvin gaye

[Bassic83]

Another couple faves that I have played in the past-

Chinese Way, Level 42

Everybody Wants to Rule the World, Tears for Fears

Through the Fire, Chaka Khan

September, EWF

All are great grooves, and all have a way of making me feel good.

[MJ5150]

Wish You Were Here - Incubus
Moondance - Van Morrison
Mudshovel - Staind
Cumbersome - Seven Mary Three
Beat The World - Pressure 4-5

-Mike

[Mike N]

Anybody Listening? - Queensryche

[lump]

Originally Posted by QORC

Interstate Love Song (Stone Temple Pilots). I just like playing it. It's fun.

Ditto. I really wanna add "Trippin on a Hole" to our set list too. Robert DeLeo is very underrated.

She - Green Day. I play it finger-style but I tear that sucker up.
Doesn't Remind Me - Audioslave
One Way Out - Allman Bros.
Keep Your Hands To Yourself - Georgia Satellites

[gottawalk]

Originally Posted by Bottom Feeder

Nice! Gotta love that one! especially "Winning"

Oh, yeah! "For Anybody" kicks A$$!!!
Also try out their "Civilian" album. Great straight-ahead Rock and Roll! Almost ANYTHING by Gentle Giant. Very challenging!

[theshadow2001]

Bullet with butterfly wings by the pumpkins

The other one is called "brewing up a strom" by an Irish band called the stunning we play it loud and rocky its great I really enjoy playing that one. Plus its about the only decent Irish rock song

[Gorcbass]

Originally Posted by theshadow2001

Plus its about the only decent Irish rock song

What about Thin Lizzy and Rory Gallagher.
Take it back. Take it back I say.