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I really like songs that capture a sense of the time and place in which they were written songs that define an era if you like, or songs that can evoke personal memories of where you were at in your life when the song was released, and just seemed to sum it all up nicely.
A list of personal favourites would include:

The Times they are a Changin - Bob Dylan
Born in the USA - Springsteen

Fortunate Son-Creedence Clearwater Revival
Without You- Nillson
The River- Springsteen
Do they know its Christmas - Band Aid
Imagine - John Lennon
Hey Jude - The Beatles
Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin
The First Time ever I saw Your Face - Roberta Flack (I think)
Sarah - Thin Lizzy
Dearg Doom - Horslips

And does anyone out there remember Gilbert O'Sullivan, he had one song called Nothing Rhymed, which included the following wonderful lines:

"When I'm drinking my Bonaparte Shandy
eating more than enough apple pie,
will I glance at my screen and see real human beings
starve to death right in front of my eyes"

I remember listening to that song at Christmas when I was just after eating a huge feast and sitting back with a drink in my hand, enjoying good company, famine was at its height in many parts of Africa, and those lines really hit home.

I would surmise then that the best songs are the ones that for whatever reason strike a real chord with the listener on a personal level, the choices will therefore be personal and not necessarily chosen on the basis of exceptional musical or lyrical merit.

Learn more about this author, JimmyK.
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