Sunday, January 13, 2019

TOM GILL'S 750 OR SO FAVOURITE SONGS

Since January 1, 2016 on social media I have been listing my favourite songs, one almost every day.  The full list I came up with had about 750 songs on it.  I like music of many different kinds.  Here is the full list of songs in alphabetical order.

1999- Prince
57 Channels And Nothin On- Bruce Springsteen
A Different Drum- Peter Gabriel
A Girl In Trouble Is A Temporary Thing- Romeo Void
A Lover’s Holiday- Change
A Man For All Seasons- Al Stewart
A Pirate Looks At Forty- Jimmy Buffett
A Soapbox Opera- Supertramp
Abraham, Martin and John- Dion
Accident on 3rd Street- Al Stewart
Across The Great Divide- Nanci Griffith
Africa- Toto
Afrika Suite- Manfred Mann’s Earth Band
Against the Wind- Bob Seger
Alabama Getaway- Grateful Dead
All Good Things- Jackson Browne
All of Me- Willie Nelson
All Summer Long- Kid Rock
All The Roadrunning- Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris
Almost Lucy- Al Stewart
Alone- Bee Gees
Alright Guy- Todd Snider
Also Sprach Zarathustra- Deodato
Amarillo by Morning (bilingual version)- John Arthur Martinez
Amazed- Lonestar                               
An Extraordinary Life- Asia
Angry Bird- Al Stewart
Another Brick In The Wall- Pink Floyd
Another One Bites The Dust- Queen
Another Saturday Night- Jimmy Buffett
Answering Machine- Rupert Holmes
Antarctica- Al Stewart
Arc Of A Diver- Steve Winwood
Are You Jimmy Ray?- Jimmy Ray
As Falls Wichita, So Falls Wichita Falls- Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays
Ashes to Ashes- David Bowie
Asimbonanga- Savuka
Atlantic City- The Band
Atomic- Blondie
Baby Likes To Rock It- Tractors
Baby Step Back – Gordon Lightfoot
Back To Life- Soul II Soul
Back To The Chain Gang- Pretenders
Badges Posters Stickers T-Shirts- Dire Straits
Ballad of Gilligan’s Island- Sherwood Schwartz and George Wyle
Barricades of Heaven- Jackson Browne
Battle of New Orleans- Johnny Horton
Beachcombing- Mark Knopfler & Emmylou Harris
Beautiful Loser- Bob Seger
Beer For My Horses- Toby Keith
Beeswing- Richard Thompson
Before the Deluge- Jackson Browne
Beside The Yellow Line- Tom Gill
Best I Can- Chris Perez
Beth- KISS
Beverly Hillbillies (UHF Video) - Weird Al Yankovic
Beyond The End- Jimmy Buffett
Big Blue Ball- Big Blue Ball
Big Generator- Yes
Big Time- Peter Gabriel
Black and White- Jackson Browne
Blaze of Glory- Alarm
Blow Away- George Harrison
Blown By The Wind- Alan Parsons
Boat Drinks- Jimmy Buffett
Boom Like That- Mark Knopfler
Boom! It Was Over- Robert Ellis Orrall
Born In The U.S.A.- Bruce Springsteen
Brand New Day- Sting
Breathe- Faith Hill 
Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On- Jimmy Buffett
Brilliant Disguise- Bruce Springsteen
Bring Back The Magic- Jimmy Buffett
Bring On The Night- Sting
Brother Up In Heaven – Alan Parsons
Brothers In Arms- Mark Knopfler
Bruises- Train and Ashley Monroe
Burned Like A Rocket- Bily Joe Royal
Bytor and the Snow Dog- Rush
California Stars- Billy Bragg / Wilco / Woody Guthrie / Bob Seger
Candle In The Wind- Elton John
Cannibals- Mark Knopfler
Cannonball- Supertramp
Change The World- Eric Clapton       
Changes In Attitudes, Changes in Latitiudes Jimmy Buffett
Changes- Yes
Chasing What's Already Gone-Mary Chapin Carpenter
Cherokee Boogie- BR5-49
Cherry Bomb -John Mellencamp
Children of the Sun- Billy Thorpe
Chimes of Freedom- Bob Dylan
Chocolate Cake- Crowded House
Choices- George Jones
Class of ’58- Al Stewart
Clementine- Neil Young
Clones- Alice Cooper
Closer to Fine- Indigo Girls
Coco Rayado- Ruben Vela
Coconut Telegraph- Jimmy Buffett
Colour Of The Sun- Jimmy Buffett
Come Monday- Jimmy Buffett
Comfortably Numb- Pink Floyd
Communique- Dire Straits
Conspiracy Radio- Shawn Hogan
Constant Craving- k.d. Lang
Cool Change- Little River Band
Copperhead Road- Steve Earle
Corazon Espinado- Santana
Crackerbox Palace- George Harrison
Creep- Radiohead
Crime of the Century- Supertramp
Cruel, Crazy, Beautiful World- Savuka
Cups/When I’m Gone- Carter Family / Anna Kendrick
Da Da Da- Trio
Dallas- Flatlanders
Damned If I Do- Alan Parsons Project
Darkness On The Edge Of Town- Bruce Springsteen
Days Are Numbers- Alan Parsons Project
De Bolon Pin Pon- Flaco Jimenez
Dead Flowers- Rolling Stones
Dead Giveaway- Shalamar
December African Rain- Juluka
Deep Inside My Heart- Randy Meisner and Kim Carnes
Dela- Savuka
Demolition Man- Manfred Mann’s Earth Band
Der Kommissar / Deep In The Dark/ Ronnie Jones/ After The Fire
Desert Rose- Sting
Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes- Paul Simon
Digging In The Dirt- Peter Gabriel
Do They Know It’s Christmas- Band Aid
Don’t Answer Me- Alan Parsons Project
Don’t Fall Apart On Me Tonight- Bob Dylan
Don’t Forget About Me- Nanci Griffith
Don’t Forget Me- Al Stewart
Don’t Throw Stones- The Sports
Don’t Turn Around- Albert Hammond, et al.
Done With Bonaparte- Mark Knopfler
Doubting Thomas- Nickel Creek
Down Under- Men At Work
Dreamer- Supertramp
Dreamland Express- John Denver
Drop The Pilot- Joan Armatrading
Dry Lightning- Bruce Springsteen
Dust In The Wind- Kansas
Easier Said Than Done / 3 Ships album- Jon Anderson
El Mercado de Testaccio- Inti Illimani
El Nino- Dave Nachmanoff
El Paso City- Marty Robbins
El Paso- Marty Robbins
Electric Avenue- Eddy Grant
Electric Los Angeles Sunset- Al Stewart
Elevation- U2
Emotional Allegiance- Savuka
Emotionally Yours- Bob Dylan
End Of The Innocence- Bruce Hornsby/Don Henley
Enter Sandman- Metallica w/ SF Symphony
Even Better Than The Real Thing- U2
Even In The Quietest Moments- Supertramp
Every Breaking Wave- U2
Every Breath You Take- Police
Every Day Is A Winding Road- Sheryl Crow
Every Trick In The Book- Phil Manzanera
Everybody Have Fun- Wang Chung
Everybody Knows- Leonard Cohen
Everyday I Write The Book- Elvis Costello
Everything Is Broken- Bob Dylan
Everything That Glitters- Dan Seals
Exit Through You- Big Blue Ball
Eye In The Sky- Alan Parsons Project
Eyes of Nostradamus- Manfred Mann’s Earth Band
Faaap de Oiad- Tool
Family Man- Hall and Oates (Mike Oldfield)
Feel Like- Al Stewart
Feelin’ Kind of Lonely Tonight- Shelby Lynne
Feliz Navidad- Billy Joe Shaver
Fields of Gold- Sting
Fight the Power- Public Enemy
Find Your Way Back- Jefferson Starship
Fins- Jimmy Buffett
First We Take Manhattan- Leonard Cohen
Five Hundred Miles- Hedy West
Flaco Jimenez- Said and Done- Flaco Jimenex
Flood- Jars of Clay
Floridays- Jimmy Buffett
Flowers On The Wall- Eric Heatherly’s version
Fly Like An Eagle- Steve Miller Band
Fly- Sugar Ray     
Fool’s Overture- Supertramp
For America- Jackson Browne
Forever Young- Bob Dylan
Forget Me Nots / Men In Black- Patrice Rushen/Will Smith
Fortress Around Your Heart- Sting
Fountain of Sorrow- Jackson Browne
Freedom Now- Tracy Chapman
Freudiana- Eric Woolfson
Friends In The Distance- Poco
From A Distance- Julie Gol
Fruitcakes- Jimmy Buffett
Fur Elise- Beethoven
Gallo Del Cielo- Joe Ely
Games Without Frontiers- Peter Gabriel
Genie On A Table Top- Al Stewart
George of the Jungle theme- Stan Worth, Sheldon Allman
Georgy Porgy- Toto feat. Cheryl Lynn
Get Back On The Train- Phish
Get Lucky- Little River Band
Ghost Riders In The Sky-  Stan Jones
Ghostbusters- Ray Parker Jr.
Gillis Mountain- Rankin Family
Give A Little Bit- Supertramp
Give Me One Reason- Tracy Chapman
Giyani- Johnny Clegg
Going Home- Mark Knopfler
Good To Be Me- Kid Rock and Uncle Kracker
Graceland- Paul Simon
Gracias A La Vida- Mercedes Sosa
Great Heart- Savuka
Gulf Coast Highway- Nanci Griffith
Handle With Care- Travelling Wilburys
Hands of Time- Groove Armada
Happily Ever After (Now And Then)- Jimmy Buffett
Hasta Que Yo COnoci- Mana (Juan Gabriel)
Hawaiian War Chant- Prince Leleiohoku
Hazard- Richard Marx
He Drinks Tequila And She Talks Dirty In Spanish- Sammy Kershaw and Lorrie Morgan
He Went To Paris- Jimmy Buffett
Heavy Cloud No Rain- Sting
Here Comes The Rain Again- Eurythmics
Hey Ya- Outkast
Hey You- Pink Floyd
Hey! Bartender! There’s A Bear In My Beer- Tom Gill
Hide In Your Shell- Supertramp
Highwayman- Highwaymen
History Repeating- Propellerheads
Hold On Hold Out- Jackson Browne
Hold On- Triumph
Hold Out- Jackson Browne
Holiday Road- Lindsay Buckingham
Holly Jolly Christmas- Burl Ives
Hollywood- Kasey Chambers
House of Clocks- Al Stewart
How I Feel Tonight- Birtles and Goble
Howling Wind- Alarm (5 years ago freeze)
Human Rainbow- Savuka   AUG 31
Human Wheels­-John Mellencamp
I Ain’t Even Done With The Night-John Mellencamp
I Am A Man of Constant Sorrow- Soggy Bottom Boys
I Am A Patriot- Jackson Browne
I Am The Bullgod- Kid Rock
I and I- Bob Dylan
I Call Your Name- Savuka
I Can Never Be What You Want Me To Be- Savuka
I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)- Hall and Oates
I Do The Rock- Tim Curry
I Don’t Want To Talk About Love- Nanci Griffith
I Dream Alone- Little River Band
I Fall To Pieces- Patsy Cline
I Feel So Good- Richard Thompson
I Grieve- Peter Gabriel
I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues- Elton John
I Had The Time Of My Life- Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes
I Hope You Dance- Lee Ann Womack
(I Just) Died In Your Arms Tonight- Cutting Crew
I Know You’re Out There Somewhere- Moody Blues
I Like To Walk- The Simpsons
I Love You But- Judy Fjell
I Misunderstood- Richard Thompson
I Need A Lover-John Mellencamp
I Predict- Sparks
I Ran (So Far Away)- A Flock of Seagulls
I Robot- Alan Parsons Project
I Still Believe- The Call
I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For- U2
I Walk The Line Revisited- Rodney Crowell
I Want To Know What Love Is- Foreigner
I Wish I Were Blind- Bruce Springsteen
I would Do Anything for Love But I Won’t Do That- Meat Loaf
I/G/Y- Donald Fagen
I’ll Be Missing You- Puff Daddy, Sting, Faith Evans and 112 et al.
I’m Alive- Jackson Browne
I’m Alive- Kasey Chambers
I’m Not Running Anymore-John Mellencamp
I’m So Happy I Can’t Stop Crying- Sting
If I Could Change Your Mind- Alan Parsons Project
If I Could Just Get It On Paper- Jimmy Buffett
If I Had A Boat- Lyle Lovett
If I Had A Rocket Launcher- Bruce Cockburn
If I Needed You- Emmylou Harris and Don Williams
If I Should Fall Behind- Bruce Springsteen
If It Doesn’t Come Naturally Leave It- Al Stewart
If The Phone Doesn’t Ring It’s Me- Jimmy Buffett
If You Want To Find Love- Kenny Rogers
Imaginary Lover- Atlanta Rhythm Section
Impi- Johnny Clegg
In The Lap Of The Gods- Alan Parsons Project
In The Shape of a Heart- Jackson Browne
In Your Eyes- Peter Gabriel
Indian Summer- Al Stewart
Industrial Disease- Dire Straits
Inevitable Consequence of Progress- Juluka
Into The Groove- Madonna
It Can Happen- Yes
It Could Happen To You- Blue Rodeo
It Don’t Come Easy- Ringo Starr
It Never Rains In Southern California- Albert Hammond and Al Stewart
It’s A Long Way There- Little River Band
It’s All Coming Back To Me Now- Celine Dion
It’s An Illusion- Savuka
It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere- Jimmy Buffett
It’s Just Another Morning Here- Nanci Griffith
It’s My Job- Jimmy Buffett
It’s Raining Again- Supertramp
Jackie Brown-John Mellencamp
Jingle Bells- traditional
Joutilas- YUP
Just Enough Rope- Rick Trevino
Just Like The Weather- Suzy Bogguss
Just Say Yeah- Jackson Browne
Just The Two Of Us- Grover Washington Jr. feat. Bill Withers
Just The Way You Are- Billy Joel
Just When I Needed You Most- Randy Vanwarmer
Keep Your Distance- Richard Thompson
Kings of the World- Mississippi
La Sagrada Familia- Alan Parsons Project
Land Of Hopes And Dreams- Bruce Springsteen
Landslide- Fleetwood Mac
Las Cosas Simples De La Vida- Nino
Last Days Of The Century- Al Stewart
Last Mango In Paris- Jimmy Buffett
Laughing into 1939- Al Stewart
Lead Me On- Maxine Nightingale
Lemon Tree- Will Holt (Trini Lopez)
Lessons in Love- Level 42
Let’s Go Crazy- Prince
Levelland- James McMurtry
Lies- Thompson Twins
Life During Wartime- Talking Heads
Life In Dark Water- Al Stewart
Life Short Call Now- Bruce Cockburn
Lift Me Up- Yes
Light At The End Of The Tunnel- B.B. Watson
Light of Day- Little River Band
Lights of Taormina- Mark Knopfler
Like A Prayer- Madonna
Little Green Apples- Bobby Russell
Little Lies- Fleetwood Mac
Little Red Corvette- Prince
Little Victories- Darden Smith
Lives In The Balance- Jackson Browne
Living In The Plastic Age- Buggles
Livingston’s Gone To Texas- Jimmy Buffett
Lluvia Al Corazon- Mana
London Calling- Clash
Lone Palm- Jimmy Buffett
Loneliest Place On The Map- Al Stewart
Lonesome Loser- Little River Band
Long Island Sound- James McMurtry
Looking East- Jackson Browne
Lord Is it Mine- Supertramp
Lord, I Hope This Day Is Good- Don Williams
Lost In Love- Air Supply
Love Can Find A Way- Yes
Love Is A Bridge- Little River Band
Love is Dangerous- Fleetwood Mac
Love Is Like A Rock- Donnie Iris
Love Plus One- Haircut One Hundred
Love’s Theme- Love Unlimited Orchestra
Lovely Day- Bill Withers
Loving Arms- Darden Smith
Lubbock Tornado- Terry Allen
Lucky Man- Emerson Lake And Palmer
Lyin’ Eyes- Eagles
Making Love Out Of Nothing At All- Jim Steinman (Air Supply, Bonnie Tyler)
Man In The Mirror- Michael Jackson
Man On Your Mind- Little River Band
Manic Monday- Bangles
Marching to Pretoria- Traditional
Margaritaville- Jimmy Buffett
Maria- Blondie
Maria- Willie Nelson with Rob Thomas
Maybe Tomorrow- Nanci Griffith
Meet Me In Montana – Dan Seals
Meet The Flintstones- Hoyt Curtin, Joseph Barbera and William Hanna
Mendocino County Line- Bernie Taupin (Willie Nelson & Lee Ann Womack)
Message In A Bottle- Police
Mi Verdad- Mana and Shakira
Mineral Wells- Amanda Shires
Miss You So Badly- Jimmy Buffett
Missing You- John Waite (Tina Turner, Brooks & Dunn, Flavio Cesar, Cameo, Stephen Colbert and Congressman Jason Chafetz, Alison Krauss, Melanie, Evoke, Rod Stewart, Orianthi, David Wilcox)
Molokai Slide- Ehukai
Mondo Sinistro- Al Stewart
Money For Nothing- Dire Straits
Moonlight Feels Right- Starbuck
More Than This- Roxy Music
Morning Dance- Spiro Gyra
Murmansk Run/ Ellis Island- Al Stewart
Must Be Santa- Bob Dylan
My Head Hurts, My Feet Stink and I Don’t Love Jesus- Jimmy Buffett
My Oklahoma Home- Bruce Springsteen
My Personal Revenge- Jackson Browne
My Problem Is You- Jackson Browne
My Toot Toot- Rockin’ Sidney
NBA on CBS Theme- CBS Sports
Nearly Forgot My Broken Heart- Chris Cornell
Never Be The Same- Christopher Cross
New Kid In Town- Eagles
New Morning Sun- Blue Rodeo
New Year’s Day- U2
Night Inside of Me- Jackson Browne
Night Train To Munich- Al Stewart
Nightshift- Commodores
Nikita- Elton John
No Leaf Clover- Metallica
No One Is To Blame- Howard Jones
No Surrender- Bruce Springsteen
Nobody Knows- Tony Rich
Norwegian Wood- Beatles
Nostradamus- Al Stewart
Not Pretty Enough- Kasey Chambers
Not What I Expected- Dave Nachmanoff
Nothing At All- Heart
Nothing Left To Lose- Alan Parsons Project
Notorious Cherry Bombs- It’s Hard To Kiss the Lips at Night…
November Rain- Guns ‘n’ Roses
Nuevo Amanacer- Mana
Oh Life (There Must Be More)- Alan Parsons
Old Admirals- Al Stewart
Old And Wise- Alan Parsons Project
Oldest Surfer On The Beach- Jimmy Buffett
On A Slow Boat To China- Jimmy Buffett
On The Border- Al Stewart  
On The Road- Lee Roy Parnell
Once Upon A Time In The West- Dire Straits
One Human, One Vote- Savuka
One More Song- Randy Meisner
One Particular Harbour- Jimmy Buffett
One Slip- Pink Floyd
One Stage Before- Al Stewart
One Step Up- Bruce Springsteen
Only Time- Enya
Original Sin- INXS
Our Lips are Sealed- Fun Boy Three
Owner of a Lonely Heart- Yes
Pacing The Cage- Bruce Cockburn
Paint By Numbers- Al Stewart
Pancho and Lefty- Townes Van Zandt / Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard/ others
Paper Moon- Nat King Cole
Peaceful World- John Mellencamp
People of the South Wind- Kansas
Photograph- Ringo Starr
Picture- Kid Rock
Piece of Work- Jimmy Buffett
Pink and Black Song- Terry Allen
Pink Houses-John Mellencamp
Planet Claire- B52s
Playing With Lightning- Shot In The Dark
Please Remember Me- Tim McGraw
Polly Wolly Doodle- Dan Emmett
Popeye The Sailor Man- Sammy Lerner
Precious Life- Lichtmond feat. Alan Parsons and SubClones
Pressure Off- Duran Duran
Pride In The Name of Love- U2
Prime Time- Alan Parsons Project
Punish The Monkey- Mark Knopfler
Purple Rain- Prince
Rain Barrel- Al Stewart
Rain In The Summertime- Alarm
Rain On The Scarecrow-John Mellencamp
Ram Goat Liver- Pluto Shervington
Ramblin’ Rose- Nat King Cole
Rancho Grande- Jorge Negrete
Rapper’s Delight- Sugar Hill Hang
Rapture- Blondie
Raspberry Beret- Prince
Red Toupee- Al Stewart
Refugee- Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Return to Tunguska- Alan Parsons
Rhinestone Cowboy- Glen Campbell
Rhythm of Love- Yes
Ride- Liz Phair
Ring of Fire- Johnny Cash
Rise- Herb Alpert
Road To Hell- Chris Rea
Rock And Roll Dreams Come Through- Jim Steinman
Roll The Bones- Rush
Roxanne 97- Sting with Pras
Rumours of War- Al Stewart
Run Away- Sun Stroke Project
Run Like The Wind- Thrasher Shiver
Runaway Train- Soil Asylum
Running Man- Al Stewart
Running on Empty- Jackson Browne
Sailing to Philadelphia- Mark Knopfler and James Taylor
Sampan- Al Stewart
San Jacinto- Peter Gabriel
Sand and Water- Beth Nielsen Chapman
Sara- Fleetwood Mac
Save Me San Francisco- Train
Scatterlings of Africa- Juluka
Screw You, We’re from Texas- Ray Wylie Hubbard
Secret World- Peter Gavriel
Seine City- Little River Band
Seminole Wind- Jon Anderson
Sentimental Journey- Doris Day
Seven Bridges Road- Eagles
Seven Spanish Angels- Willie Nelson and Ray Charles
Shadow Of A Lonely Man- Alan Parsons Project
Shaking The Tree- Peter Gabriel
Shame On The Moon- Rodney Crowell / Bob Seger
Shanghai Breezes- John Denver
Shaving Cream- Fabulous Five
She Blinded Me With Science- Thomas Dolby
She Finally Spoke Spanish To Me- Joe Ely
She Never Spoke Spanish To Me- Joe Ely
Sheila Won’t Be Coming Home- Dave Nachmanoff feat. Al Stewart
Shelter- Lone Justice
Shock The Monkey- Peter Gabriel
Shoot High Aim Low- Yes
Shoten Theme- Hachidai Nakamura
Shotgun Down The Avalanche- Shawn Colvin
Signal To Noise- Peter Gabriel
Silence and I- Alan Parsons Project
Singh Is King- Snoop Dogg and Akshay Kumar with RDB
Sirius- Alan Parsons Project
Six Months In A Leaky Boat- Split Enz
Sixty Eight Guns- Alarm
Sledgehammer- Peter Gabriel
Sleeping With The Television On- Billy Joel
Slow Train Coming- Bob Dylan
Small Paradise-John Mellencamp
Smiling Islands- Robbie Patton
Smoke From A Distant Fire- Sanford Townsend Band
Smooth- Santana
Snake Eyes- Alan Parsons Project
So Far Away- Dire Straits
Soho Needless to Say- Al Stewart
Solid Rock- Mark Knopfler
Solsbury Hill- Peter Gabriel
Some Days are Diamonds- John Arthur Martinez
Some Velvet Morning- Lee Hazelwood/Nancy Sinatra
Some White People Can Dance- Greg “Fingers” Taylor
Somebody’s Watching Me- Rockwell
Someday Soon- Suzy Bogguss
Someday- Sugar Ray
Someone’s Taken Our History- Graham Goble
Somewhere in England 1815- Al Stewart
Somewhere Over China- Jimmy Buffett
Somewhere Over The Rainbow- Bruddah Iz
Sooner or Later- Alan Parsons Project
Sorrow- Pink Floyd
South Of Santa Fe- Brooks and Dunn
Southern Cross- Crosby, Stills and Nash
Souvenirs- Jimmy Buffett
Soy De San Luis- Texas Tornados
Space Oddity- David Bowie
Space Race- MiSex
Speed of the Sound of Loneliness- Nanci Griffith
Spooky- Atlanta Rhythm Section
Standing On Higher Ground- Alan Parsons Project
State of Independence- John Anderson
Steady On- Shawn Colvin
Steam- Peter Gabriel
Steppin’- Shaka
Stepping In A Slide Zone- Moody Blues
Stereotomy- Alan Parsons project
Stones in the Road- Mary Chapin Carpenter, Joan Baez
Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around- Stevie Nicks and Tom Petty
Strange Girl- Al Stewart
Strange Times- Moody Blues
Street Dance- Break Machine
Streets of Philadelphia- Bruce Springsteen
Sultans of Swing- Dire Straits
Sunday Bloody Sunday- U2
Sure Know Something- KISS
Switchin’ to Glide- Kings
Symphony #1- Edvard Grieg
Synchronicity II- Police
Taco With A Pork Chop- Ray Brown
Tainted Love- Soft Cell
Take A Chance With Me- Roxy Music
Take Another Road- Jimmy Buffett
Take Five- Dave Brubeck
Take It Easy- Eagles
Take It Easy On Me- Little River Band
Take It To The Limit- Eagles
Take My Heart Away- Savuka
Take The Long Way Home- Supertramp
Tea In The Sahara- Police
Tearin’ Up My Heart- *NSYNC
Telegraph Road- Dire Straits
Temporary Secretary- Paul McCartney
Tempus Fugit- Yes
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out- Bruce Springsteen
Thank You- Dido
That Girl Could Sing- Jackson Brownw
That’s The Way of the World- Earth Wind and Fire
That’s What Living Means to Me- Jimmy Buffett
The Aircrash Bureau- Gary Numan
The Bug- Dire Straits 
The Captain and the Kid- Jimmy Buffett
The Chain- Fleetwood Mac
The Chase- Giorgio Moroder
The Coldest Winter in Memory- Al Stewart
The Crossing- Johnny Clegg
The Crow On The Cradle- Sydney Carter
The Dark and the Rolling Sea- Al Stewart
The Eagle Will Rise Again- Alan Parsons Project
The Finer Things- Steve Winwood
The Fox- Elton John
The Future’s So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades- Timbuk 3
The Grand Tour- Aaron Neville
The Great Joe Bob- Terry Allen
The Ground Beneath Her Feet- U2
The Hamster Dance- Hampton the Hampster
The Last Resort- Eagles
The Last Worthless Evening- Don Henley
The Ledge- Fleetwood Mac
The Lighthouse’s Tale- Nickel Creek
The Man’s Too Strong- Dire Straits
The Naked Ride Home- Jackson Browne
The News From Spain- Al Stewart
The Next Voice You Hear- Jackson Browne
The One that Got Away- Al Stewart
The Pretender- Jackson Browne
The Raven- Alan Parsons
The Rebel Jesus- Jackson Browne
The Reflex- Duran Duran
The Revolution Will Eat Its Children- Johnny Clegg
The River- Bruce Springsteen
The River- Garth Brooks
The Road Goes On Forever and the Party Never Ends- Robert Earl Keen
The Rumor- Little River Band
The Smurf Song- Pierre Kartner
The Stand- Alarm
The Time Machine- Alan Parsons
The Trawlerman’s Song- Mark Knopfler
The Voice- Moody Blues
The Wall- Willie Nelson
The Way- Fastball
The Weather Is Here Wish You Were Beautiful- Jimmy Buffett
The Winner Takes It All- ABBA
The Writing On The Wall- Poco
They Dance Alone- Sting
Things Have Changed- Bob Dylan
Things that Make You Go Hmm- C&C Music Factory
This Is Not America- David Bowie & Pat Metheny Group
This Is Us- Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris
This Old Man- Traditional (Bob Dylan)
Three Cornered Hat- De Falla
Tight Connection To My Heart- Bob Dylan
Tijuana Taxi- Herb Alpert
Time – Alan Parsons Project
Time For Me To Fly- REO Speedwagon
Time Passages- Al Stewart
Time The Conqueror- Jackson Browne
To Make You Feel My Love- Bob Dylan
Tom’s Diner- Suzanne Vega
Total Eclipse of the Heart- Jim Steinman (Bonnie Tyler)
Train, Train- Blackfoot
Traveling Soldier- Dixie Chicks (Bruce Robison)
Treaty- Yothu Yindi
Trespasser- Al Stewart
Trip Around the Sun- Jimmy Buffett and Martina McBride
Truckload of Art- Terry Allen
Trying to Reason with Hurricane Season- Jimmy Buffett °
Tu Tranquilo- Kiko Veneno
Turn Of A Friendly Card- Alan Parsons Project
Turning It Into Water- Al Stewart
Tusk- Fleetwood Mac
Tweeter and the Monkey Man- Traveling Wilburys
Twilight Zone- Golden Earring
Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey- Paul McCartney
Under A Wine-Stained Moon- Al Stewart
Under African Skies- Paul Simon
Under My Thumb- Rolling Stones
Under Pressure- David Bowie & Queen
Union of the Snake- Duran Duran
Unwell- Matchbox 20
Up Against The Wall Redneck Mother- Ray Wylie Hubbard
Uptown Funk- Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars
Used To Could- Mark Knopfler
Valentina Way- Al Stewart
Video Killed The Radio Star- Buggles
Viva La Vida- Coldplay
Volcano- Jimmy Buffett
Wag The Dog- Mark Knopfler
Wagon Wheel- Bob Dylan (Darius Rucker, Keith Secor)
Waitin’ On A Sunny Day- Bruce Springsteen
Wakafrika- Manu Dibango
Walk of Life- Dire Straits
Walk On- U2
Walk the Dinosaur- Was (Not Was)
Walking in Memphis- Marc Cohn
Walking On The Sun- Smash Mouth
Wall of Death- Richard Thompson and Linda Thompson
Walls Came Down- The Call
Waltzing Matilda- Slim Dusty
Warsaw 1943 (I Never Betrayed The Revolution)"- Johnny Clegg and Savuka
Wasn’t That A Party- Irish Rovers
Wasted On The Way- Crosby Stills and Nash
Watching the Wheels- John Lennon
Wayward Wind- Tex Ritter
We Can Fly- Yes
We Shall Be Free- Garth Brooks
We’re Still Here- Douglas Spotted Eagle
Western Days- Tom Gill
What Have I Done To Deserve This- Pet Shop Boys and Dusty Springfield
What It Is- Mark Knopfler
Whatever way The Wind Blows- Kelly Willis
When Love Comes To Town- B.B. King and U2
When The Coast Is Clear- Jimmy Buffett
When The Night Comes Falling From The Sky- Bob Dylan
When The System Has Fallen – Savuka
When We Both Say Goodbye- Elton John & Catherine Britt
When You Need A Train It Never Comes- Amanda Shires
Where Are They Now- Al Stewart
Where Have All The Flowers Gone- Pete Seeger
Where The Streets Have No Name- U2
Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning- Alan Jackson
Wherever I Go- Mark Knopfler with Ruth Moody
White Dawn- Alan Parsons
White Flag- Dido
Who Knows Where The Time Goes- Richard Thompson
Why Aye Man- Mark Knopfler
Why Don’t We Get Drunk- Jimmy Buffett
Wide Open Spaces- Susan Gibson (Dixie Chicks)
Wildest Dreams- Moody Blues
Will the Circle Be Unbroken- Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Winding Me Up- Alan Parsons Project
Windy Days, Dusty Skies- Carr/Munde
Wine From The Water- Alan Parsons
Winter Wonderland- Eurythmics
Woke Up This Morning- Alabama 3
Wrack My Brain- Ringo Starr
Year of the Cat- Al Stewart
Yellow Submarine- Beatles
Yo! Bum Rush The Show- Public Enemy
You Can Call Me Al- Paul Simon
You Can’t Always Get What You Want- Rolling Stones
You Don’t Even Know Me- Al Stewart
You Lie Down With Dogs- Alan Parsons Project
You Never Can Tell- Emmylou Harris
You Oughta Know- Alanis Morrissette
You Were Meant For Me- Jewel
Young Man’s Town- Vince Gill
Your Latest Trick- Dire Straits
Your Life Is Now-John Mellencamp


Thursday, December 6, 2018

THE FIRE NEXT TIME


The Fire Next Time: some thoughts on the recent wildfires in California, lessons learned and implications for infrastructure, disaster resilience, and land management.
-Opinion by Tom Gill

My research as a professor at UTEP doesn’t usually focus on smoke and flames, but something else in the sky: dust, and the hazards and disasters it has provoked, such as the Dust Bowl.  But as someone who spent decades living on the outskirts of San Francisco and Sacramento within range of (and often seeing the ominous smoke clouds from) wildfires, and seeing the smoky sunset over El Paso on the eleventh of November,  the massive and destructive blazes in California have been on my mind.

The sunset over El Paso and UTEP (near the center) on the evening of November 11th was a beautiful side effect of a horrible event: it was caused by smoke, injected high into the atmosphere by wildfires in Southern California and carried more than 1000 kilometers downwind to the Borderland.   Photo from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Ranger Peak Webcam.

Persons in California and other vulnerable states may now need to prepare for brownouts- the electricity being turned off deliberately by the power company during dry, windy weather conditions- as a preventative measure to avoid wildfire disasters of the kind that have been seen there this year.  The evidence is accumulating that electrical line sparks or other infrastructure malfunctions may have started the killer Camp fire that destroyed the town of Paradise north of Sacramento, as well as several of the huge and tragic fires in California’s Wine Country last year. San Diego's electrical utility has already been shutting down power in some areas when extreme fire danger conditions exist for the past several years, and the two top electrical providers in California (Pacific Gas & Electric aka PG&E, and Southern California Edison) have made it an option starting this year.  PG&E’s stock plunged when investors realized the company could be liable for the fire.
But when PG&E actually preventatively shut down power for the first time in early November shortly before the Camp fire broke out, news and social media reports indicate there was a strong pushback from people who had their power cut far away from where the actual wind and danger was, in areas with light winds and without the dry brush, apparently because of the way the grid is put together and the inability to deliberately shut off small enough sections of it.  Businesses with perishable products that could spoil, as well as persons with health conditions that required powered ventilators, monitors or other life-saving devices, understandably complained when their power was cut. It is reminiscent of the criticism that the National Weather Service received when they could only issue severe weather warnings for entire counties or large areas, including areas that were not threatened by the adverse conditions- and the flak weather forecasters in El Paso have received, for example, when they predicted an ice storm that didn't materialize. A recent article in the San Jose Mercury News (1) hints that this pushback from when PG&E did shut off the power as a precaution, may have dissuaded them from doing that exact thing again- exactly where and when the Camp fire apocalypse got started.  Will there be a race to find the technologies to better shut down vulnerable areas of the grid while leaving others powered up?
And could shutting down electrical transmission or distribution lines actually impede fire prevention and response?  As a colleague pointed out to me, a brownout could have the effect of stopping the communication of vital warnings of wildfire hazard or updates on the spread of an actual fire to residents in the (potential) path of the flames, and cut power to first responders, shelter and evacuation facilities, medical centers, and other portions of the infrastructure critical to disaster preparation and response.
It's not just the electrical grid that residents of blaze-prone areas have to worry about during fire season. Having lived much of my life in California wildfire country, even something as seemingly minor as a fenderbender accident or car or motorcycle having a flat tire on a rural road, or someone pulling over to the side of the road to text or take a drowsy-driver nap, or a passing train, could and has sparked huge wildfires, including some in the last year or two. A century ago, the deadliest fire in USA history (which the Camp fire has been compared to) was caused by sparks emitted from a locomotive travelling through a parched forest in Minnesota.  Californians are already accustomed to bans on campfires, etc. under vulnerable conditions. Will highways crossing dry grasslands be shut down next? And don't forget the fires caused by chainsaws,by gunshots and other use of firearms (a man set off a 47,000 acre wildfire in Arizona with a baby-gender-reveal shooting/explosive stunt this summer!)
At the same time, power and energy companies in California (especially) and elsewhere are speeding up their hiring of scientists, disaster-resiliency experts, and infrastructure engineers to help plan for and advise on these issues.
Poor forest management practices, climate change, spread of invasive species, and other environmental issues clearly all play a role in the growing wildfire hazard in the West.  But in my opinion, the single biggest challenge is posed by the explosive growth of something called the “WUI”- the Wildland-Urban Interface.  Simply stated, more and more persons want to live in or at the edge of the woods, and are willing to pay a premium price for land and development in such areas.  This raises the risk, much in the same way that  others are willing to pay the premium to live on or next to the beach- even if that increases their exposure to hurricanes and tsunamis.  Fire safety officials' biggest nightmares include defending WUI neighbourhoods from wildfires, and there are no easy defences for such zones.  Regulations state that brush must be cleared and trees cut down within a certain distance of dwellings and structures in the WUI, but they are often ignored, and even if the requirements are followed, recent fire history shows they often do not prevent entire towns from being engulfed in flames.  As a fellow scientist now working for an electric utility reminds me, trees and branches falling into power lines have caused many recent wildfires, and that’s why they are always trying to maintain the areas around the lines- but people don’t want their trees trimmed.  “It’s no win,” she said.  Another scientist working in land management pointed out to me that the fire risk to WUI zones can be reduced by practicing controlled burns, but doing so in an inhabited area rightly risks complaints from residents and regulators that the resulting smoke is unsightly, unhealthy (especially for those with respiratory conditions), and may constitute a violation of clean-air standards. 
Even areas that have been burned and managed are still at risk: I’ve seen reports that much of the area just burned in and around Paradise had experienced a brush-clearing fire less than a decade ago and then had been salvage-logged, as is the best practice for land management of such situations.  But the blaze spread rapidly through land covered by parched grasses, aided by strong winds, throwing embers far in front of the burning grass into Paradise, blazing across the ground and low-lying flammables (including homes, businesses, and cars)- while leaving many of the town’s tall, old pine trees alive and standing, as natural fires do there in the Sierra Nevada’s Ponderosa pine ecosystem.  It’s impossible to stop the wind, or grass from growing. 
And then, after the fire, sooner or later, will come the rain- raising the spectre of the subsequent disaster, fire-assisted floods, as pointed out in a recent article in the Sacramento Bee(2) : not only do wildfires remove ground cover which allows infiltration of water into the soil and reduces runoff, but they can “bake” the surface of the land, making it a hydrophobic barrier to flowing water, causing flash floods, often laden with debris and ash, when fire-scarred areas receive precipitation.  Those who may have been spared from the fire, and many who live far downslope or downstream from burned zones, are put at great risk from the following floods.

Here in El Paso, the Chihuahuan Desert landscape puts most of our neighbourhoods at very low risk of wildfire damage.  But other areas of Texas, including communities in the grasslands of the Panhandle around Amarillo, in wooded areas near Austin and the Hill Country, and elsewhere, are clearly vulnerable.  And many places in nearby New Mexico, especially favoured getaway sites for El Pasoans such as those around Ruidoso and Silver City, are textbook examples of wildland-urban interface fire risk.    Will there be enough lessons learned from the recent fires in California to reduce the hazard there, here in our backyard, and elsewhere?

 (1) San Jose Mercury News, Nov. 17, 2018: “Why didn’t PG&E shut down power in advance of the Camp fire?  Here’s the data.” https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/11/17/why-didnt-pge-shut-down-power-in-advance-of-deadly-camp-fire-heres-the-data/

(2) Sacramento Bee, October 25: “‘Fire-floods’ are the new threat in California disasters. Where will they strike next?”  https://www.sacbee.com/%E2%80%A6/c%E2%80%A6/big-valley/article219881260.html

Recommended Readings (non-scientific):
Egan, Timothy, 2009. The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire That Saved America. (non-fiction).  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt,  ISBN 0-618-96841-5
McPhee, John, 1989.  The Control of Nature (non-fiction).  Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, ISBN 0-374-12890-1
Shepherd, Marshall, 2018. How Urbanization Makes Wildfires and Hurricanes Worse. https://www.forbes.com/sites/marshallshepherd/2018/11/21/how-urbanization-makes-wildfires-and-hurricanes-worse/#636fa8ac18b3
Stewart, George R., 1948.  Fire. (a novel).   Reprinted 1984 by Bison Books, ISBN 0-803-29138-8

Tuesday, November 6, 2018

A Story About Himalayan Caterpillar Fungus


Here's my story about Himalayan caterpillar fungus.

Yes, that's a thing. I had never heard about Himalayan caterpillar fungus until this afternoon. Turns out it's an interesting tale  about the global economy, global trade and climate change. I read the headline at a science news site, "Himalayan caterpillar fungus may meet its demise due to climate change." And I my immediate thought was, "that's got to be a good thing, an unexpected benefit of climate change, because Himalayan caterpillar fungus sounds like some sort of disease that could threaten an ecosystem or something."   But it's a lot more complex than that.

Apparently, due to the rapid economic growth of China, more and more Chinese people are becoming wealthy enough to afford Himalayan caterpillar fungus. Why would someone want to buy Himalayan caterpillar fungus, you ask? Apparently, it is one of the most sought after traditional medicines- it's used as a cancer treatment and for other health problems.  It has become so trendy that it's driven a caterpillar fungus boom, and in Beijing it sells for three times the price of gold.

This has in turn driven a homegrown caterpillar fungus gathering industry in the Himalayan countries, with countless people now making their living from collecting and selling caterpillar fungus. It has gotten to the point that caterpillar fungus is one of the most valuable export products of the Himalayan nation of Bhutan!

But there is a threat on the horizon: as the climate warms, caterpillar fungus is becoming more scarce, because the fungus tends to prefer areas at the edges of permafrost- which is melting and retreating up the slopes of the Himalayas, so the caterpillar fungus industry and economy is under threat from climate change. And the Bhutanese caterpillar fungus harvesters may have their livelihood threatened, and soon, just like rhino horns, the people who want it in China won't be able to get it any more.

If you happen to have some Himalayan caterpillar fungus,  probably best to not eat it or drink it as a tea, unless perhaps you get cancer. It may be the most valuable treasure you own, thanks to climate change.

And now you know the rest of the story.

This is the scientific study:
The demise of caterpillar fungus in the Himalayan region due to climate change and overharvesting

Sunday, November 4, 2018

Eulogy for a giant gone too soon: In memoriam, Eldridge Moores

The news broke early this past week, and rippled through the geology world like a great seismic tremor, that Eldridge Moores had passed away tragically and unexpectedly.  Eldridge was Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Geology at UC Davis (my alma mater), long time department chair, and for many years the editor of Geology (one of the top journals in the field) and other publications of the Geological Society of America, an organization which he had served as its President.  His research as a graduate student and young scientist had cinched the final knots in the theory of plate tectonics, one of the great scientific revolutions of the past century.  He was a true Renaissance man, humanitarian, and promoter of environmental conservation as well: his advocacy clearly helped lead to the preservation of California's new Berryessa- Snow Mountain National Monument, a beautiful landscape we both loved with a passion, and a sacred place for me. 




If it hadn’t been for the mentoring I received from Dr. Moores, I would not have followed the path of my career.  In the early 1980s, I was a UC Davis undergraduate student  majoring in something else, but didn’t have the passion for it that I did for Geology: I thought I was just dabbling in geology by enrolling in a few classes for fun and to fill out my schedule.  After taking a more advanced course from Eldridge and getting a top grade, we had a serious conversation.  In those days, I was much more seriously disabled than I am now, and got around campus in a wheelchair: the thought of a “handicapped kid” going into geology back then seemed ludicrous.  But Eldridge encouraged me to pursue the subject more deeply, indicating that the geoscience world ought to look beyond my weak and crooked limbs to my mental abilities, and he’d see to it if necessary with personal recommendations.  If it weren't for those discussions we had more than 35 years ago, I'd probably be a bored and unfulfilled engineer somewhere in Silicon Valley right now.

When UC Davis later started an interdisciplinary Earth Science and Resources graduate program (something we would now know as "earth system science"), Moores encouraged me to apply, wisely musing that the emergence the concept of looking at the Earth as an interconnected system could transform the geosciences much as plate tectonics did, and pointing out that my background in other fields along with geology in this case was not wasted time but an asset.  As usual, his counsel was spot on.  Later, he became a member of my Ph.D. comprehensive examination committee in that program. Eldridge was there to consistently give me sage advice over the decades, and I looked forward to seeing him most every year at scientific meetings and exchanging occasional emails and some social media messages.

I have several particular memories of him.
One week back about 1990 it was announced that Eldridge would give the regular Geology Department Friday lunchtime seminar, but the title/topic was strangely TBA and seemed to be a tightly guarded secret. My friends and I expected him to reveal some new insight into plate tectonics. Instead, Eldridge came out with his cello- which he took everywhere, even on many geological field trips- and played a 45 minute solo recital! I'd never seen him so obviously nervous and literally sweating copiously- but never did I see him so proud at an accomplishment. 




Another Friday he announced he would bring in a friend to discuss his latest work.  It turned out to be Pulitzer Prize-winning writer John McPhee, who gave a reading from a draft version of his travels with Eldridge in what wound up being the acclaimed book "Assembling California."  I remember us being fairly tough crowd and we gave McPhee a lot of constructive criticism, which certainly made the book better.



Eldridge truly understood that the natural world had "a beauty beyond the cold logic of the laboratory."  He was not the stereotypical just-the-data nerd of a scientist, but truly appreciated the grandeur of the Earth.  He later edited a coffee-table book of dramatic photos of geological formations, titled The Art of Geology.  As the son of a landscape painter whose art first drew me to love geology in my boyhood, I was particularly touched by this common... ground with him, though I never had the chance to tell him so. An art professor friend and I have already been planning to together teach a class on this very topic next year- jointly offered between my institution's Art and Geological Sciences departments- and I'm going to dedicate it to Eldridge.



Eldridge once told me a story of when he was on a trip somewhere.  As the plane touched ground it was the roughest landing he had ever experienced; he had decided to complain to the pilot on the way out of the aircraft- until he looked out the window and saw things moving and the airport terminal physically shaking and dislodging some bits.  He had landed at the exact moment of a major earthquake!  I like to think it was the Earth itself trembling at renewed contact with a man who unlocked the secrets of its depths.  

May his memory never be forgotten.