OMS's Celebrity Playlist

So from time to time, some of our fives of readers have asked, "Old Man Snap, aside from your boyish good lucks and charm, what is the secret to your success?"

The answer is simple, really. Good tune-age. For that reason, OMS is pleased to let you into his life a bit by giving you his celebrity playlist, found on the iTunes sometime in 2008:

1. Behind the Lines, Genesis. There's just something about the opening synthesizer that gives OMS some goosebumps. It may be the perfect song to lead off an album.

2. The Humpty Dance, Digital Underground. Sex Packets may be one of OMS's favorite albums of all time. Between Do Whatcha Like and the Dance, it's some fun, happy stuff. "First I limp to the side like my legs was broken, shakin' and twitchin' kinda like I was smokin'. Crazy whack funky. People say you look like MC Hammer on crack, Humpty." Li'l known fact: yes, that's Pac dancing in the background all goofy-like.

3. Rollin', Big and Rich. Another goosebumps song. "Just want to hear everybody sing, at the top of your lungs 'til the windows break." Word.

4. Oh My Sweet Carolina, Ryan Adams. God bless Emmy Lou.

5. On the Side of the Road, Lucinda Williams. As we seque into alt-country, this is a pretty, and true, song. That sums up Lucinda, yessir.

6. Behind These Hazel Eyes, Kelly Clarkson. Guilty pleasure number one, really. Homegirl can really belt. And the video? Grrrrllllllll.

7. Dry Your Eyes, Neil Diamond and The Band. From The Last Waltz, Diamond opens with a pretty sweet line: "I'm only gonna do one song, but I'm gonna do it good." Slows down the playlist momentum garnered by Clarkson, but deal.

8. The Best of You, Foo Fighters. Back to speeding things up. In the fall, OMS walked down his town's sidestreet to catch an Eagles game. As he walked, the town fair was in full motherf*ckin' effizect. As was a local garage band, playing this song for the town fair. *Nobody* was watching this young band cover the Foos, except for OMS, of course. This is a great song to crank when it's quiet and no one is listening. Angst. *Sigh*.

9. End of the Day, Yonder Mountain String Band. A dear friend of OMS's recommends the Yonder whenever he finds himself left in a hole. He's right. Bluegrass brings the happy.

10. Big Eyed Fish, DMB. OMS likes him some Lillywhite version. That whole never-released, officially, album is dark. And good. This song is both as well.

11. Crystal, Fleetwood Mac. "Do you always trust your first initial feeling?" This song inevitably ends up on most mixes procured by OMS.

12. Love My Way, Psychedelic Furs. He *loves* this song.

13. I Get Around, 2Pac. "Fingertips on your hips as I get a tight grip." Pac was such the poet. RIP.

14. Don't Think Twice (It's Alright), Dylan. Speaking of poets. Capturing a break-up? There it is.

15. Babylon, David Gray (acoustic). Perhaps OMS's favorite song ever, up there with Boston's More Than a Feeling and DMB's #41.

16. What Sarah Said, Death Cab. Because it kept coming on last night after Babylon.

17. Overkill, Men At Work. OMS's all-time favorite song when he was 8. "Day after day, they appear. Night after night, my heartbeat shows the fear. Ghosts appear and fade away. Come back another day." Vague, but true.

18. When You Say Nothing At All, Alison Krauss. Close your eyes and listen. There. Much better.