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Songs and podcasts, measured with the same eight questions as a film. The number is on the cover.
Start hereThe Bible in a YearA house can put this on at the table. The reading is the point, not the host.79Podcasts
A show is a guest in the house. Read the number before it becomes a habit.
79The Bible in a YearFr. Mike Schmitz. The whole Bible, read in order, with a short comment.
76The Read-Aloud RevivalSarah Mackenzie. A mother on reading books out loud to children.
65Song ExploderHrishikesh Hirway. A musician takes one song apart and shows the work.
63This American LifeIra Glass. Reported stories from ordinary weeks, cut to hold you.
59How I Built ThisGuy Raz. Founders tell the story of a company, including the part that almost failed.
58RadiolabLulu Miller and Latif Nasser. Science and wonder, cut like music.
56Stuff You Should KnowJosh Clark and Chuck Bryant. Two men explain one subject, and they say when they are guessing.
50The DailyThe New York Times. Twenty minutes on the news the paper wants in your morning.
46SerialSarah Koenig. A real case, told week by week, as a story you are in.
43The Joe Rogan ExperienceJoe Rogan. A very long conversation. The guest, and the hour, decide what it is.
28Crime JunkieAshley Flowers. True crime, told fast, for people who want another.
21Call Her DaddyAlex Cooper. Sex, status, and advice, sold as a friend's voice.Songs to keep
Seventy and above. Craft, and something a house can use.
85A Change Is Gonna ComeSam Cooke. A man who has been turned away, and will not call that the end.
83Amazing GraceAretha Franklin. The hymn, sung in a church, by a voice that knows why it is needed.
81A Love SupremeJohn Coltrane. A thank-you, played because the words were not enough.
81Coat of Many ColorsDolly Parton. A coat her mother sewed from rags, and a child who understood it.
80What's Going OnMarvin Gaye. A man asking his country, and his brother, to stop.
79Ode to JoyLudwig van Beethoven, Herbert von Karajan. A crowd, asked to sing as if joy were a duty.
78Redemption SongBob Marley. A free man telling other people to free their own minds.
78Bridge Over Troubled WaterSimon and Garfunkel. A friend who says he will take the weight.
78Coal Miner's DaughterLoretta Lynn. A cabin, a shift, and a girl who will not be ashamed of it.
78Where Were YouAlan Jackson. A man who will not turn the day into a slogan.
76RespectAretha Franklin. A woman telling a man what the house will no longer do without.
76Man in BlackJohnny Cash. He wears the dark for the people the country is not looking at.
75What a Wonderful WorldLouis Armstrong. An old man naming what is still worth seeing.
75In My LifeThe Beatles. Friends, some of them gone, and one person loved more than the places.
75Forever and Ever, AmenRandy Travis. A vow with no mood in it.
75You've Got a FriendJames Taylor. A promise to show up, with no winter too dark to void it.Hear it awake
Between forty-five and seventy. Know what the pretty tune is doing.
69Livin' on a PrayerBon Jovi. A couple, short on money, who do not quit each other.
69Good Good FatherChris Tomlin. A song that says who the children belong to.
69Jesus, Take the WheelCarrie Underwood. A mother in a skid, who stops pretending she can hold it.
69The DanceGarth Brooks. He would take the pain again, because the love was real.
69God Only KnowsThe Beach Boys. What he would be if she were gone. He does not want to find out.
69I Hope You DanceLee Ann Womack. A mother, sending a child into a life she cannot steer.
69HallelujahLeonard Cohen. A broken praise, from a man who has lost the argument and still sings.
69WaterfallsTLC. A warning against the chase that kills.
69Always on My MindWillie Nelson. A man who did not say it when it would have mattered.
69Both Sides, NowJoni Mitchell. Clouds, love, and life, looked at from the far side.
69Who Am ICasting Crowns. A man who refuses to answer the question with his own résumé.
69Harvest MoonNeil Young. A long love, asked to dance in the kitchen light.
68Beautiful DayU2. After the loss, the day is still good.
68Here Comes the SunThe Beatles. A long winter, and then the light.
68At LastEtta James. A woman who waited, and the wait is over.
68One LoveBob Marley and the Wailers. A call to get together and feel all right, and he means the neighbors.Leave these
Under forty-five. Take them off the speaker the children can reach.
44Blinding LightsThe Weeknd. A night that will not end.
4424K MagicBruno Mars. A party about money, played with real musicians.
44God's PlanDrake. A man who says the outcome was not his to design.
44Every Breath You TakeThe Police. A watch, sung in the voice of a love song.
44ImagineJohn Lennon. A soft voice asking the world to give up the things that hold it.44Friends in Low PlacesGarth Brooks. A man who was not invited, and goes where he is.
44Go Your Own WayFleetwood Mac. A man telling her to leave, who cannot stand that she is leaving.
43Enter SandmanMetallica. A lullaby that lets the monster in.
43On the Road AgainWillie Nelson. The highway, sung as the job and the pleasure.
43WonderwallOasis. A person who is told they are the rescue, and the song never asks if they agreed.
4099 ProblemsJay-Z. A man against a critic, a cop, and anybody in the way.
40Smells Like Teen SpiritNirvana. A generation, bored, and loud about it.
40IronicAlanis Morissette. A list of bad timing, sung as if the universe were aiming.
39bad guyBillie Eilish. A child plays at being the threat.
39Say SoDoja Cat. A flirt that wants to be asked out loud.39Before He CheatsCarrie Underwood. Betrayal, answered with a wrecked car.Annie will sing these
Public-domain songs. No label. No fee. She speaks the verse.