Tag / The Big Bopper

by admin

iTunes Top 200 Artists: #161-170

Music.  It is a powerful thing that brings people together, creates memories, and evokes emotions.  It is the universal language that speaks to the soul.  It forms the soundtrack of our lives.

It has now been five years since we last counted down the Top 200 artists in my iTunes library, featuring the songs I have listened to the most since 2007.  It is time to do so again, seeing which performers still resonate and if any newer ones have joined the fray.  So, without further ado, here are my most listened to artists, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2026.

We continue today with our next batch of ten artists, covering the genres of pop and rock, with an actor and a stadium organist for good measure.  We have a single group making their debut on the list this week.

#170: The Rembrandts
iTunes stats: 67 plays
Previous ranking: #186

Formed in 1989, the band combines the totals from their first single, which hit the Billboard Hot 100 in 1990, with various forms of the Friends theme song to rise up the chart, increasing their plays by nearly 43% over these past five years.

#166: Blur
iTunes stats: 68 plays
Previous ranking: #161

The English foursome, formed in London in 1988 and a key contributor to the Britpop genre in the 1990s, added only fourteen new listens over the past five years.

#166: Republica
iTunes stats: 68 plays
Previous ranking: #164

The technopop punk rock band from the UK added fifteen new plays, an increase of over 28% over the past five years.

#166: Tag Team
iTunes stats: 68 plays
Previous ranking: #154

Thank to their inclusion on my Cubs victory playlist, the one hit wonders from Denver, Colorado, who I have seen perform at half time of a Bulls game and before a White Sox game, increased their listens by thirteen.

#166: Dean Martin
iTunes stats: 68 plays
Previous ranking: #176

The Rat Pack member, who passed away in 1995, picked up 18 new plays over the past five years.

#165: Belinda Carlisle
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by admin

Top 200 Albums: #101 – 107

We last counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library four years ago. Since that time, the world has literally changed, and my commute has decreased from 1+ hours each way to 25 steps. So, despite the decrease in potential listening time, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through the morning of January 1, 2022.

We wrap up the first half of the countdown today with the next batch of ten albums that I have listened to the most over the last 15 years, breaking the triple digit total play plateau with three compilations, and music from the 60s, 80s, 90s, and beyond.

#107: Elvis Presley – 2nd To None
iTunes stats: 110 plays
Previous Ranking: 103

The second collection of Elvis’ top hits, released in 2003, saw a 59% increase to the five songs out of 30 that are in my collection.

#107: Various Artists – On The Edge
iTunes stats: 110 plays
Previous Ranking: 129

This compilation, featuring 80s alternative hits from the likes of The Smiths, Love & Rockets, and Michael Penn, used five different tunes to generate 52 new plays over the past four years.

#107: Various Artists – Rock N’ Roll Era: 1958
iTunes stats: 101 plays
Previous Ranking: 109

A 69% increase in plays over the past four years for this edition of the Time Life series, featuring songs by The Big Bopper, The Monotones, and Little Richard, among others.

#107: Various Artists – Billboard Top Rock & Roll Hits: 1970
iTunes stats: 110 plays
Previous Ranking: 127

This compilation of the biggest hits of 1970 by bands that would allow themselves to be on such a compilation, like Ides of March or the Partridge Family, added 51 new plays to the seven tunes in my collection.

#106: Various Artists – WSCR 670 The Score
iTunes stats: 111 plays
Previous Ranking: N/A

Typically, I exclude this collection of sports highlights from the 2008 White Sox, but, to be honest, I forgot until I was far enough along for it to screw up my pacing, so here you go.

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by admin

Top 200 Albums – #109 – 120

itunes_imageNearly 4 years ago, we first counted down the Top 200 albums in my iTunes library. Since that time, I’ve successfully managed to migrate my music collection to a new PC with the stats intact. So, I figured it was time to take another look, based on number of plays from late 2007 through January 1, 2018.

We continue things with the next batch of 10 albums that rank between #109 and 120, including 4 studio recordings, 4 compilations, and 2 different collections from the Fab Four.

#120: Bell Biv DeVoe – Poison
iTunes stats: 61 plays
Previous Ranking: 92

The debut album from the former members of New Edition needed only 2 songs to make up this total.

#118: Def Leppard – Adrenalize
iTunes stats: 62 plays
Previous Ranking: 141

A big jump for the first Def Leppard album following the death of guitarist Steve Clark, which uses 5 songs to make up its total.

#118: The Beatles – Past Masters, Vol. 1
iTunes stats: 62 plays
Previous Ranking: 70

5 tracks from the remastered version of the album make up this total.

#117: Various Artists – Austin Powers
iTunes stats: 63 plays
Previous Ranking: 87

The soundtrack to the original Austin Powers film, featuring the work of artists like Strawberry Alarm Clock and Divinyls, makes this list thanks to 4 songs.

#115: Various Artists – Now That’s What I Call Music! Vol. 2
iTunes stats: 64 plays
Previous Ranking: 127

The second edition of this long running compilation series makes the list thanks to singles from Jay Z and Britney Spears, among others.

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by admin

Top 200 Albums – #131 – 138

itunes_imageMy latest desktop computer arrived in late 2007, at which point I transitioned all of my music off of my laptop. 2 iPods, 3 iPhones, and an iPad later, that computer is still my main repository of music, with iTunes updating its stats every time I listen to something.

Having already gone through cassette tapes and CDs, and digital music, it’s time to roll everything up with the Top 200 albums whose songs I’ve listened to as of September 2014, according to iTunes. Today we continue climbing up the list and look at the 4 albums tied for 135th with 31 listens and the 4 albums tied for 131st with 32 listens.

#131: Pearl Jam – Vitalogy
iTunes stats: 32 plays
The 3rd studio album from the Seattle grunge band, and the last that I purchased, uses the totals from 4 different tracks.

#131: Various Artists – Rock N’ Roll Era: 1958
iTunes stats: 32 plays
This edition of the Time Life series, featuring songs by The Big Bopper, The Monotones, and Little Richard, had 7 songs make up its total.

#131: Various Artists – Pulp Fiction OST
iTunes stats: 32 plays
The soundtrack to Quentin Tarantino’s magnum opus, featuring tracks by Urge Overkill and Dusty Springfield, had 6 songs and/or movie clips make up its total.

#131: Various Artists – Bones (Original Television Soundtrack)
iTunes stats: 32 plays
Only one tune, the original version of the theme song, contributes to the total for this soundtrack album for the long running Fox show.

#135: Weezer – Weezer (Green Album)
iTunes stats: 31 plays
After a long layoff, Weezer returned in the early 2000s with their third album, which had 2 songs make up this total.

#135: Guns N’ Roses – Use Your Illusion I
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by admin

Goodbye, iPhone 4S – Music Edition

A little more than a week ago, I upgraded my phone from the iPhone 4S to the newly released iPhone 5S.  The biggest difference, aside from a slightly bigger screen, is the jump from 3G (or 4G, if you believe AT&T’s hype) to LTE.  I had the 4S for a little under 2 years, and in that time, we traveled the world together (well, at least going back to the UK) and have listened to a lot of podcasts and music. Here is every song (all 2079 of them) I’ve listened to on the phone, with some (ok, very little) bonus commentary.  Godspeed.

 

Let’s Go-Go-Go White Sox Captain Stubby and the Buccaneers 33
He’s a Pirate Klaus Badelt Pirates of the Caribbean (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture) 32
Take Me Out To The Ballgame Harry Caray 31
Thunderstruck AC/DC The Razors Edge 31
Gordon Beckham Intro 29
Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye Steam Billboard’s Top Rock ‘n’ Roll Hits: 1969 29
Don’t Stop Believin’ Journey Journey’s Greatest Hits 27
sox05_montage 27
We Are The Champions Queen Queen: Greatest Hits I & II 27
Your Love The Outfield Play Deep 27
2008 White Sox Central Division Champs Montage Chris Tannehill WSCR 670 The Score 25
Take Me Out To The Ballgame Nancy Faust 25
Harvester Of Sorrow Metallica …And Justice For All 20

You would hope that these numbers would have been higher, but this past season’s miserable performance by the White Sox has put the songs on their playlist out of mind more often than not.

Cannonball The Breeders The First 1000 Years- Rock 19
Man Or Muppet Jason Segel The Muppets 15
It’s Time For Our Song Miss Piggy The Muppets 14
Get Out There And Help Those Guys Jason Segel The Muppets 13
Main Title LOST Soundtrack LOST Soundtrack 13
Are You A Man Or A Muppet? Amy Adams The Muppets 12
How Charming, A Finale Uncle Deadly The Muppets 12
I’m On A Boat (ft. T-Pain) The Lonely Island Incredibad 12
Down At The Ole Barbershop Kermit The Muppets 11
Me and Drugs David Cross Bigger and Blackerer 11
The Antichrist Howard Stern Private Parts: The Album 11
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by admin

Goodbye, iPhone 3G – Music Edition

As I wait for tomorrow’s delivery of my new iPhone 4S, it is time to say goodbye to the 3G that has been my trusty companion for nearly the past 3 1/2 years.  We’ve traveled the world together (well, at least Canada and the UK) and have listened to a lot of music.  Here is every song (all 1597 of them) I’ve listened to on the phone, with some (ok, very little) bonus commentary!

He’s a Pirate Klaus Badelt Pirates of the Caribbean (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture) 100
Gordon Beckham Intro 91
Let’s Go-Go-Go White Sox Captain Stubby and the Buccaneers 87
Thunderstruck AC/DC The Razors Edge 84
Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye Steam Billboard’s Top Rock ‘n’ Roll Hits: 1969 83
sox05_montage 75
We Are The Champions Queen Queen: Greatest Hits I & II 73
Boom P.O.D. Satellite 70
Don’t Stop Believin’ Journey Journey’s Greatest Hits 69
2008 White Sox Central Division Champs Montage Chris Tannehill WSCR 670 The Score 65

No surprise that the top 10 are all part of (or were part of) my White Sox victory playlist.  This gets played on the way home from every White Sox winner, plus the occassional ride to a game.  Continue reading →

by jim

Retro Playlist – December 2007

I recently came across my old, second generation iPod.  40 gigs of tiny, black and white screened goodness.

Here are the songs I listened to on it, from December 2007.

American Nice Mexican Cheerleader Kings And Kings’ Hoots 12/8/2007 10:32 AM
Mary, Mary Run-D.M.C. Ultimate Run DMC 12/8/2007 10:35 AM
Boom P.O.D. 12/8/2007 10:38 AM
The Girl I Knew Somewhere The Monkees The Monkees Greatest Hits 12/8/2007 10:42 AM
Good Better Than Ezra Deluxe 12/8/2007 10:45 AM
When I Grow Up Garbage Version 2.0 12/8/2007 10:49 AM
Dare Stan Bush The Transformers: The Movie 12/8/2007 10:53 AM
Then He Kissed Me The Crystals 12/8/2007 10:55 AM
The Kids Ruined Rock Mexican Cheerleader Mexican Cheerleader 12/8/2007 10:59 AM
Magical Mystery Tour The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour 12/8/2007 11:02 AM
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