I'm a huge fan of oldies music, although I have a different definition of “oldies” than most people. Like, I refused to count 80s music as oldies, because it's not old enough yet. According to me. Anyway, my definition typically includes music from the 1970s and earlier, with special focus on the 50s and 60s. But rather going into a long(er), drawn-out explanation, just check out these 9 awesome oldies songs I love!
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“Blue Moon,” by the Marcels
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Price: $0.89 at amazon.com
Many of the songs on this list are songs my dad and I used to listen to, on weekends when my mom worked and we were home alone hanging out with each other. He had the most awesome collection of oldies records ever, and would put them on for hours. This was one of my favorite songs then, and it still is – it's one of the sweetest love songs I've ever heard.
“God Only Knows,” by the Beach Boys
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Price: $0.99 at amazon.com
I love the Beach Boys. Pinning down a favorite song by them is hard – but it ultimately comes down to this one. It's not a religious song at all, it's a love song, and it's surprisingly beautiful, coming from a band that most people mistakenly assume is all about surfer hits.
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“My Girl,” by the Temptations
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Price: $0.99 at amazon.com
This song is really important to me. My dad used to serenade me with it during our weekend record parties. He taught me to dance to this song, for my first dance. He played it for me over and over when my first boyfriend broke my heart in the sixth grade. Ideally, we'll also be dancing to it at my wedding.
“the Devil Went down to Georgia,” by the Charlie Daniels Band
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Some songs are just so iconic, you can't help but love them. This is that song for me. Coming from the South myself, I've heard the legend the song alludes to forever, and it never gets any less intriguing. This song makes it even more so.
“My Boyfriend's Back,” by the Angels
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Price: $0.99 at amazon.com
All right. All right. When I was in the fourth grade, I lip-synched and danced to this song with two cute little mean girls in my class, for our school talent show. We wore poodle skirts and red lipstick and scarves around our necks. We won second place – came in after the redheaded white kid who did a strangely dead-on Steve Urkel impression.
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“California Dreamin',” by the Mamas and the Papas
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Price: $0.99 at amazon.com
All right, number two. In the first place, this song is haunting and gorgeous. In the second place, okay. Fine. I had to sing part of this as a solo in my elementary school's Spring Concert when I was in the sixth grade. What? I was awesome. And I've had a soft spot for it ever since.
“Bridge over Troubled Waters,” by Simon and Garfunkel
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Price: $1.29 at amazon.com
My parents both love Simon and Garfunkel, so I grew up hearing their greatest hits. There are a lot of great ones, no doubt, and Paul Simon is just the greatest little hobbit singer. Art is good as well, but I've always prefer Paul Simon. Anyway, this is my favorite song by them because it always makes me feel better when the waters are troubled.
“Romeo and Juliet,” by Dire Straits
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I'll give, I think this was made in 1980, but I don't even care. This is just fun. Dire Straits in general is a fun band with fun songs. This one makes my favorite list because I love Romeo and Juliet, first of all, and second of all, that line, “Hey Romeo, you nearly gave me a heart attack,” always makes me laugh out loud.
“Duke of Earl,” by Gene Chandler
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Price: $0.99 at amazon.com
This is yet another of the songs I fell in love with while listening to records with my dad on rainy weekend afternoons. I love Gene Chandler's voice, and the fact that this is a more upbeat, kind of esoteric love song. Plus, really, it's just cool.
So there you have it! These are some of my top favorite oldies songs. Before anyone rightly gets up in arms because there are no Beatles tunes on here, don't worry – I thought they deserved something all their own. In the meantime, what are your favorite songs, from any different decade?
Top Photo Credit: Cris
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