All-Time Favorite Albums

Recently, while I was sitting on an airplane for 11+ hours, I started making a mental list of my all-time favorite albums. Because there's not much else to do on an 11-hour flight.

So I thought I'd finish my list and put it in writing. Here they are, in no particular order... Steph's Top Ten Favorite Albums of All-Time:

Jennifer Knapp - Kansas

Ok, so I said they're not in order, but this one probably really is my #1. After this they aren't in order. I love this album and there's no way I could ever count the number of times I have belted it out in my car beginning to end.

10,000 Maniacs - Unplugged

Going old school here... not sure what it is about this one that I love so much. I think it's just that it's Natalie Merchant + Unplugged. And who doesn't love These Are the Days?

Bebo Norman - Between the Dreaming and the Coming True

A long-time Bebo fan, this is easily my favorite of his work. I love the piano, and the strings, and especially the song I Will Lift My Eyes.

Third Day - Third Day

This reminds me of good times in high school. Maybe that's why I love it so much. It's classic Third Day. I can't listen to it without thinking of the time I met Mac Powell and said, "Hi. You're left handed. And you play the guitar. I'm left handed. And I want to play the guitar." Yikes. Not my finest moment.

Bon Jovi - Cross Road

Easy. This has all my favorite Bon Jovi songs.

Steven Curtis Chapman - Beauty Will Rise

I think this is the most recent release on my list. I love the honesty, pain and hope that are so eloquently expressed in these 12 songs. The title track is my favorite.

Jars of Clay - Jars of Clay

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to go to a small Jars of Clay show where they sang this album, beginning to end. The crowd's enthusiasm leads me to believe that I'm not the only one who has this on her top ten list.

Alanis Morrissette - Jagged Little Pill

I've never been a huge fan of the phrase "coming of age," but I think it's a good descriptor for this album. It's another one I can sing beginning to end, and it reminds me of my 1996 purple Ford Probe, the JHS yearbook staff, and good times in general. You Oughta Know has to be one of the best angry girl songs ever. And if that's not enough, there's that hidden song about being a stalker...

Nouveaux - And This Is How I Feel

I'd love to see a Nouveaux "where are they now." I couldn't even find a Wikipedia page for them. Maybe Tomorrow has long been a favorite song of mine. But it's just not the same unless preceded by the 11-second track Nice.

Robbie Seay Band - Give Yourself Away

I listen to this a lot when I'm on an airplane. I'm not sure why. I guess it's just the perfect kind of mellow for traveling.

If there were honorable mentions, they would go to Mark Schultz's Broken and Beautiful, Nichole Nordeman's This Mystery, Blessid Union of Souls's Home, Five Iron Frenzy's Upbeats and Beatdowns and Kendall Payne's Grown.

So there you have it. What's your favorite?

Wise Words

I read this over on Bowen's Heart today and thought it was worth sharing:

"I don’t think there is any good answer for what to say to someone after they’ve experienced a tragic loss. I think the answer lies in what you’ve said, and how you loved, leading up to these moments, before tragedy comes.

None of us know when tragedy will come.

Love and speak now as you would wish to love and speak in the midst of loss. When that time comes, your past will speak through your presence, and being there will be enough."

~Matt Hammitt