Music Video Pick List

In protest against Black Friday, I stayed home today and did nothing much beyond passing gas. I did use the time to compile a ranking of my favorite music videos, which I'm happy to share. Enjoy.

1. Ode to My Family, by the Cranberries. 1994. Thankful and mournful at the same time -- and God knows the Irish have a lot to mourn -- this is almost a perfect Thanksgiving video, and so tops my list. It also happens to be one of my favorite songs of all time.

2. Strawberry Swing, by Coldplay. 2008. Possibly my favorite animated video, it captures a magic that's hard to describe. From the band's best album, Viva la Vida.

3. Little Feet (Live, the Hunt Memorial Library), by Old Abram Brown. 2010. I don't know why this feels so Thanksgiving, but it does, and I place it as high as #3 since this indie band isn't known half as well as it deserves to be. Great acoustics at the Hunt Library building in my home town.

4. Skeletons, by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. 2009. I can't think of a more stunningly beautiful depiction of the morbid. I don't want a funeral when I die, but if people throw me some kind of party, I'd like this video played at the event, please.

5. Sledgehammer, by Peter Gabriel. 1986. If you remember '80s videos as being horrendously embarrassing, you're right, and that's all the more reason why this one retains the honor of being the most played MTV video in the history of the station. Peter Gabriel was ahead of his time in every way, and Sledgehammer is pure classic.

6. Where the Streets Have No Name (Live, Slane Castle), by U2. 2001. When I think of songs that have "evolved", this one comes first to mind. The live performances are always better than the studio, and always very different. Slane Castle rules them all.

7. No Light, No Light, by Florence + the Machine. 2011. It was a tough pick between this one and Spectrum -- both of Florence's videos are simply mind-blowing.

8. Closer to the Heart (with Bubbles), by Rush. 2007. This '70s classic was played as part of a fund-raiser for the Solomon Islands tsunami devastation, with Bubbles (from the vulgar hilarious Candian comedy Trailer Park Boys) playing guitar with the band members. Drummer Neal Peart hasn't lost his touch.

9. No More I Love You’s, by Annie Lennox. 1995. Graceful, creepy, and arresting in the way only Annie Lennox can be. A longtime favorite.

10. What Makes You Beautiful, by One Direction. 2011. Well, how can you possibly argue with this one? I mean, just listen to these neo-Beatles... these darling boys... and you'll fall in love... right?