Big Apple Music Scene

Guilty Pleasure’s: 10 songs to listen to…when you’re alone.

by Mike on November 19th, 2007

Ah…Guilty Pleasures.

Everyone has those songs that they secretly dig. You wail them when you’re driving on the highway, but quickly skip to the next track when you’re in the city driving with the windows down.

Here are the Guilty Pleasures of the writers at Big Apple Music Scene.

(Yes, we know that some of these artists are not from New York)

Tom Cochran - Life is a Highway

This song owned a good solid year of my life growing up…right around the time when I started going to field parties with 6 beers wrapped in socks in a back pack so they wouldn’t break. You’d get to the party and your beer would be in tact, but it would also be warm and bordering hot…”Man, the song is so true…life is a highway.”

Life is a highway
I wanna ride it all night long
If you’re going my way
I wanna drive it all night long

Everything about the video is a guilty pleasure. The hair, the jacket, the playing harmonica in the middle of the road.

Wheatus - Teenage Dirtbag

Proudly, Long Island New York produced the supergroup…Wheatus. Surprisingly, this single reached #2 in the UK and #1 in Australia. I used to think the singer was a girl when I belted out the chorus. Sorry man.

Wilson Phillips - Hold On

Oh the sweet sounds of Carnie Wilson, Wendy Wilson and Chynna Phillips. When this comes on I do a mean version - singing all three parts. See Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle.

Pat Benatar - Hit Me with your Best Shot

It’s a good thing Pat married her New York high school sweetheart Dennis Benatar, because Patricia Mae Andrzejewski doesn’t have the same ring to it. I was at a wedding and this track came on. I was a couple cocktails in and started playing air guitar….serious air guitar. Mid way through the song I opened my eyes to see many family and friends staring at me. Guilty Pleasure revealed. Blast!

Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone

Yup. You got it. This is a driving on the highway…at midnight song. The song comes on, you check the rearview mirror to see if there are any cars around, you make sure your cell phone hasn’t accidentally called one of your friends…and then you crank it. It’s amazing how far off pitch you can actually get.

T.A.T.U. - All The Things She Said

Catchy tune…and no it has nothing to do with the fact that the two members of T.A.T.U. are allegedly Russian lesbians.

That was proven false anyway, but I really don’t know much else about them…they have an album scheduled to be released late 2007 called Upravleniye Otbrosami (translates to Waste Management) how do I even know that?

I’m letting on more than I should.

The Cardigans - Love Fool

Remember this song? It was featured in Leo and Claire Dane’s Romeo + Juliet. This song pops into my head way more than it should. It’s that high pitch “say that you love me” that stays in your head for decades…aarrggghhhh.

The Bay City Rollers - Saturday Night

This Scottish pop/rock band of the 70’s with their youthful, clean-cut image, distinct styling featuring tartan-trimmed outfits, and cheery, sing-along pop hits made were a worse person…yet better.

Barry Manilow - Mandy

Barry Manilow is Brooklyn New York’s biggest guilty pleasure….period.

The guy is compelling. His endless resume of popular and incredibly catchy tunes speak for themselves. His life has been a whirlwind - from rumors of him being engaged to porn star Robin Byrd (Debbie Does Dallas) to living next to the Regan’s and often sunbathing nude.

He has written numerous TV jingles that you’d recognize…State Farm, Band Aid - which are guilty pleasures in themselves.

But this song and this lyric…Mandy…”Oh Mandy, when you kissed me and stopped me from shaking”

Magical. (Did I say that out loud?)

Rod Stewart - Maggie May

Don’t know if I should be embarrassed about this one or not, but I dig Rod Stewart.

This is a song I’m proud to say that I sing and dance to in my living room while not wearing a shirt after spiking my weird mullet. No wait, admitting that was embarrassing. Guilty pleasure….check.

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