My Favorite Songs, pt. 5: South - Wild Cards

We all have them. Guilty pleasures, secret indulgences, Spin Doctors on repeat on your iPod (that joke will be lost on most). I am no different, there are some songs that I may not claim to be my favorite, but I secretly love.

That's what this division is for; those songs that you always turn up at a party and pretend someone else did.

Of course, there aren't that many spaces, and some of the songs that narrowly missed spots in other brackets will be getting consideration in this too so somethings may not be like others.

Here we go...

1. Love Song - Sarah Bareilles

v.

8. California - Rufus Wainwright

Alright we're starting off hot. "Love Song" has an outrageous number of plays on my iTunes compared to some of these others and I'll be damned if I didn't learn that piano part. Unfortunately as a side-effect from the airtime burn of the song it really has little endearing qualities left in it to me, and thus makes it hard to see through to the next round. "California" is a similarly poppy number from the ever talented Rufus Wainwright. A little spoiler alert here, this one may be over before it begins.

4. Rich Girl - Hall and Oates

v.

5. All You Wanted - Michelle Branch

Another set of songs that I just can't resist. Hall and Oates is a testament to my nerdy side and Michelle Branch further exemplifies my soft spot for talented female pop artists. This is going to be a really tough match-up, it may require several guilty listens to make a decision.

3. Wouldn't It Be Nice - Beach Boys

v.

6. Anonanimal - Andrew Bird

Neither of these two are really guilty pleasures because I am not ashamed of my adoration for either group of performers. "Wouldn't It Be Nice" just missed on the Classics list, because it is a song that I have enjoyed almost my whole life thanks in large part to my dad. "Anonanimal" is a song that just missed the Current list. It is probably my favorite song of the year thus far because of its beautiful layered violin and guitar harmonies. This might give him an edge though. Right now I can't even pick a favorite (despite ranking) in this match-up.

2. Stay Where You Are - Ambulance LTD

v.

7. Good Man - Josh Ritter

Ambulance really helped me get in to indie music in the same way Sufjan Stevens did, and this song is a magnificent piece of work. "Good Man" is probably my favorite by Josh Ritter, who is one of my more recent obsessions. Both of these songs just missed other lists and are seeing their chance in this auxiliary bracket. This is yet another close match-up regardless of standing.

COMING SOON: First Round Results!!!

Stay Tuned!