Shake it like a polaroid picture.

The single greatest workout song in the world, bar none, is The Red Hot Chili Peppers' cover of Stevie Wonder's Higher Ground.  I feel like I'm on comfortable terrain here, since this is entirely subjective, but really, listen to it sometime.  It will get you through that last 10 minutes when you are totally depleted

Other things are okay - Shakira, though not a presence on my home play list, can make the cross trainer a little more bearable.  Sometimes.  Black Eyed Peas - except for that repulsively catchy hump song -  Outcast (When I heard Hey Ya for the first time I thought - gym song!  I concede that may not ahve been the effect they were looking for.).  A few other things almost work .  Funky Ceili.  I used to like  Sinead O'Conner circa Lion and the Cobra.

Cheap Trick's I Want You to Want Me is a classic, ever present on the gym-scarred flash MP3 player. 

But I really never have had a mix that truly satisfied me.  I'll make one, and after a while I'll know it was a failure because I'll keep skipping past everything that annoys me after three listens and end up listening to Higher Ground, some Jamiroquai, Cheap Trick and, oddly enough, that Fox song (John, John, the gray goose is gone and the fox is on the town o, town o) from  Nickel Creek. 

I never said I was normal.

But I can be much more committed to cardio if I have a good sustained 40-60 minute well of music lined up - tried and true, reliable, butt-reducing songs.  Which are, sadly, not usually things I am drawn to on my own non-sweating time - music in my life leans heavily to articulate, clever lyrics and emotional pain.  (Leonard Cohen, Damien Rice, Jess Buckley, Vienna Tang, Rachel Yamagata, Martin Sexton are what is currently floating around the front of my car.  I mean, I have the Shrek II soundtrack in there as well, I'm not claiming any cultural high ground here, but most of it isn't exactly stuff you can dance to.)

And for this purpose nothing is better than Higher Ground.  But even I can't listen to it 12 times through and call it a work out.

It's a conundrum.

But I have had an inspiration.  MamaCate blogged about Pandora the other day.  And I thought - if they read the musicality of your selection - which they call, charmingly, its music genome - and suggest similar things, maybe that would work.  So I'm off to try it.

But in case it is a failure, y'all want to cough up your favorite work out songs?  Save me from having the musical well run dry while I still have 20 minutes left to go.  My ass needs all the help it can get.

Comments

[farm-witch]

It always seems to take me a week to post my comment - sorry bout that. I hope your ass has not suffered. I like to sweat to 'Deanna' (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds) Throw some ass-wiggling music in between but, PLEASE end it with GunsNRoses version of "Knocking on Heaven's Door" because anybody who wiggles like that and can moan like a cat is someone I'd hang out with.

[Patti]

Oh, Moby, Block Rockin'Beats.

[CatR]

I love Pandora, the genome is a great idea. There's also last fm which is similar but the links between songs are created by listeners, rather than a small select group of "genomists". Strict Machine by Goldfrapp has a good beat and is pretty sexy. Aphex Twin for crunchiness and bleeps.

[Catherine]

Springsteen - Glory Days and Dancing In The Dark
Montgomery Gentry - Gone (yes, it's country, get over it)
Garth Brooks - Friends in Low Places
Cher - If I Could Turn Back Time (oh, the irony....)

[Marcia]

Judge Judy-Wake up and Smell the Coffee, Beauty fades, Intelligence is Forever and Do I Look Like I Was Born Yesterday?

(I have deeply rooted hypervigilance issues and can't/won't wear headphones while working out, walking, running, *ucking, whatever. But I love my cable TV.)

[Margaret]

Toots & the Maytals - Funky Kingston!

[Lucy]

At the risk of dating myself terribly, I would suggest Jump by the Pointer Sisters. I had a friend who maintained that it was the only thing that got her though her vacuuming.

[Jeanne]

My idea of exercise is to read a book as fast as possible. But if I do need some mopping-the-kitchen-floor inspiration (and who doesn't?) Madness or the Go-Go's are usually my CD of choice.

[Patti]

Oh, Cranberries, Dreams. :)

[claudia]

Here is my current favorite playlist for the trainer -- I put it on shuffle:

The Offspring -- Session
The Hives -- Outsmarted
The Bridge Gang -- London Sky Tonight
The Pixies -- Debaser
The Whoreshoes -- Ashville
Hole -- Violet
Green Day -- Nice Guys Finish Last
The Offspring -- Want You Bad
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah -- Tidal Wave
Dropkick Murphys -- Pipebomb on Landsdowne
The White Stripes -- Seven Nation Army
The White Stripes -- Fell in Love with a Girl
The Black Eyed Peas -- Hey Mama
Flogging Molly -- Drunken Lullabies
Amazing Crowns -- Gretschy
Louis XIV -- God Killed the Queen
The White Stripes -- Blue Orchid
Hot Hot Heat -- Goodnight, Goodnight
M.I.A. -- Galang
Bloc Party -- Banquet
The Hives -- Supply and Demand
Green Day -- Walking Contradiction

[S.Kate]

Horribly '80's, but "Danger Zone" from Top Gun soundtrack.

[Elena]

I don't work out if I can help it, but when I used to do a lot of walking on an indoor track, I found the best album to be "Appetite for Destruction" by Guns-n-Roses.
I also find Wilson Pickett to be quite motivating.

[meredith]

Robert Palmer "Bad Case of Loving You"
PLAY IT REALLY LOUD
works every time...

[adelaide]

If you really must know -- I listen to podcasts of NPR programs -- Leonard Lopate and Brian Lehrer. But, but. . . I LOVE Damien Rice.

[jpt]

Celia Cruz was put on this planet to keep the rest of us shaking our butts. Plus, she just makes you happy.

[Kay]

Annie Lennox Walking on Broken Glass. From the first cello note of the intro you bounce.

Also, and talk about dating yourself, in aerobics I used to feel revived by It's Raining Men. Sorry. Can't lie about these vital things. xox Kay

[bibliotecaria]

Footloose and several more of Kenny Loggins fast beat songs are ones I can't stay still to.

Good dancing folk music is always an excellent choice.

[Cassandra]

I don't really workout, but "Come On, Eileen" by Dexy's Midnight Runners will always get me dancing.

The only workout-type thing I do is bellydance - and a good drum solo will get me going until I drop. Heck, even a not-so-good drum solo - it's all about the beat! (my recommendation - Hossam Ramzy's Sabla Tolo. I have vol 2, but I bet vol 1 is great also).

[Scout]

I highly doubt you'd want to download my music! I run and most of my songs come from here:

http://xmradio.com/programming/20on20_vote.jsp

lol

[SpindleRose]

Thanks everyone for the tips. I think I need another iPod--one for the gym and one for flying. My standby from my discman days was the Pretty in Pink soundtrack.

[k]

I agree with "Fighter". Almost anything my daughter (17) listens to (it's all pop, but it's got a good beat). On the treadmill? Sade. Visualize that stomach, and let your hips go.

[Thorny]

Wow, I'm amazed at how much our musical tastes overlap! How awesome!

Okay, so I never work out, but if I did, these would be on my playlist:

"Play with Me" by Extreme
"I Can't Break Away" by Big Pig
both from the Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure Soundtrack

I'm a big fan of soundtracks, so the Empire Records soundtrack is also one I'd probably try to mine for good workout music - I'm thinking "Sugarhigh" would probably be good, and maybe some of the others as well.

[Patti]

Talking Heads, Burning Down the House, Life During Wartime - lots of stuff off Stop Making Sense. Prince, 1999. YES, Parliament/Funkadelic!

[melanie]

I have a total brain block going on since you mentioned Stevie Wonder and all I can think of is Master Blaster. But that one is a good one.

[cari]

PS: You want I should make ya a cd? I'd be happy to.