The Weight / The Band

I picked up my bag, I went lookin' for a place to hide;
When I saw Carmen and the Devil walkin' side by side.
I said, "Hey, Carmen, come on, let's go downtown."
She said, "I gotta go, but m'friend can stick around.

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The Weight, written by Robbie Robertson, performed by The Band, 1968

Songs that makes you feel gooooood. A perfect song to include in any travel playlist, The Weight describes one man's adventures in a small town in Pennsylvania. A man who cannot direct him to a hotel, Carmen and the Devil, dying Luke and his young bride, and Chester and the dog he is willing to trade for a room all have awkward conversations with the man.

Featured in Easy Rider, this song would forever set the tone for every motorcycle video ever.

Shilo / Neil Diamond

Shilo, when I was young
I used to call your name
When no one else would come,
Shilo, you always came
And we'd play

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Shilo, written and performed by Neil Diamond, 1967-1968

Imaginary friends. Shilo was always there for the man in this song, always a thought away. No one could take Shilo from him, not even the narrator of the song. I hear this song as though Shilo was a dog, a family pet that was always there to play. The dog never yelled, it never spoke harshly, and it never expected more than a bowl of food and a stick flying in the air. A human friend with the mind of a dog. Truthfully, it is more of a cat as my family did not have dogs growing up.

This is the original recording of the song, I believe, not the rerecording. I prefer this version because it feels more introspective and Diamond's voice seems more emotional.

Wichita Lineman / Glen Campbell

And I Need You More Than Want You
And I Want You For All Time
And The Wichita Lineman Is Still On The Line

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Wichita Lineman, written by Jimmy Webb, recorded by Glen Campbell in 1968.

A lonely telephone company worker, or 'lineman,' feels the pain of his long days away and yearns for his absent lover to return. Phrases such as "singin' in the wire" and "hear you through the whine" reference the interference and whine heard during land-line telephone conversations. This elicits an idea of why the lineman's lover is gone, as there might have been a communication problem between the two lovers and the "whine" of their differences got the best of them. The organ accompaniment is what really makes this song beautiful, in my opinion.
On my iPod's "Top 100 Most Played Songs" smart playlist, I've apparently listen to this song almost twice as many times as the song in second place, The Dance by Garth Brooks. How this is possible, I may never know.