Ohio is apparently not as inspirational as Amsterdam, at least when it comes to song-writers. I had so much fun coming up with the Greatest Amsterdam Songs of All Time a couple of weeks ago that I figured I should try the same thing for Ohio... but I found that it's not as easy to come up with ten songs (much less a Top Ten). Even so, I've done my best. I'm curious to hear if there might be any other ideas about this listing, but here are my suggestions for the Greatest Ohio Songs of All Time:

10. Ohio, by Jane Lynch and Carol Burnett

I discovered this via the television musical series, "Glee" (which is set in Lima, Ohio). I honestly don't know if the song has ever had any life outside of the show (I had certainly never heard of it before), but it's kind of fun in its own way.

9. The Buckeye Battle Cry, by the Ohio State University Marching Band

The one area of music with an abundance of Ohio-inspired material is marching band music -- undoubtedly because of the celebrated Ohio State University Marching Band ("The Best Damn Band in the Land," according to legendary football coach Woody Hayes). I limited myself to two selections from the OSUMB for my Top Ten listing. Though I'm guessing most Ohioans might be inclined to place this song higher on the list, I put it here because its appeal is considerably less universal for those who don't have personal associations with the Ohio State University, or a personal affinity for marching band music in general.

8.Cuyahoga, by R.E.M.

This song by R.E.M is a nod to the controversial history of this region once home to various Native American tribes but eventually overrun by the Industrial Revolution in the 19th and 20th Centuries. Cuyahoga is the Mowhawk (Native American) word for the "Crooked River," upon which the city of Cleveland was eventually established. The river gained notoreity in the 1960s when it became so polluted that it actually caught fire and helped in part to launch the American environmental movement. There's also a cover of this song by the Decemberists.

7.Youngstown, by Bruce Springstein

This is a sad song about a sad man in a sad Northeast Ohio steel town. It doesn't paint Ohio in a very favorable light. Still, in its own way, the song is an ode to the working class people in this part of the world.

6. Carry Me Ohio, by Sun Kil Moon

This is another sad song (there's a theme here, isn't there?) -- but for once it's not because the song is set in Ohio. It's sad because it's about a lost love. It comes in at #6 on my list because it's beautifully written and beautifully performed (even though this vocal style is not my favorite).

5.I Want to Go Back to Ohio State, by the Ohio State University Marching Band

As mentioned in my notes for #9, it's hard to separate Ohio music from the Ohio State University. Even those Ohioans who never go to college, or end up going to different colleges, identify strongly with the largest university in the state because of its athletics programs (Ohio State sports are really more like a religion than a recreational activity). I came to know this song through my little brother's involvement with the OSU Marching Band and Men's Glee Club, and it came to be a favorite. I find this song to be particularly fun and frivilous and can identify with its sentiments -- even though I never went to school there.

4. Cleveland Rocks, by the Presidents of the United States of America

This song was popularized by the late-90s television comedy, "The Drew Carey Show" (featured in the YouTube clip above). It's a working class celebration of the Northeast Ohio metropolis, and it's been widely embraced as something of an anthem for people from this area.

3. To Ohio, by the Low Anthem

Musically-speaking, I think this might be the most beautiful song on the list -- and if I'd have had it in my music collection for longer than three days, it might even be my #1 (but I put it here at #3 because it hasn't yet stood the test of time for me, personally). I don't know much of the story behind the lyrics, but I love the sense of motion and the harmonies that go along with this song.

2. Ohio, by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young

This one is actually about Kent, Ohio (the city where I'm going to be living)! It recounts the events of May 4, 1970, when 4 university students were killed by members of the Ohio National Guard, who had come into Kent upon the orders of the University president, the town mayor, and the governor of Ohio. It became an anthem of the student protest movement of the early-1970s. There's a strangely militaristic sense to this song by a folksy band of peaceniks who were protesting against the United States involvement in Vietnam -- but that makes it all the more interesting! Musically, it's not the greatest song ever by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young -- nor is it my personal favorite. However, it is historically significant, relatively popular, and specifically about Kent; so it comes in at #2 on my list.

1. Ohio, by Over the Rhine

Apparently, there are no good videos of this song -- but nevermind; the song itself is sensational. Sentimental and sweet, without being sappy or sickening. And it's done by one of my favorite Ohio-based bands. Definitely my #1.

Yesterday I posted my Top Ten Amsterdam songs of all time. Based on some feedback from other Amsterdammers, I've adjusted my list slightly and added YouTube clips of the songs wherever possible. These are my new and improved suggestions for the Greatest Amsterdam Songs of All Time:

10. Bicycle Race, by Queen

Not actually about Amsterdam... But definitely about bicycles -- and that's Amsterdam enough for me! It's also just a fun song.

9. Ik Kan Blijven Kijken, by Peter Beense

The video is awful... but the song is great.

8. Life in the City, by Danny Stimac

[NO VIDEO CURRENTLY AVAILABLE]

I still remember meeting Danny Stimac in the old attic that our church rented in the early days of establishing our ministry in the Netherlands. I remember him as a delightful person and a gifted musician. His ode to Amsterdam brings back a lot of warm memories of my earlier days in the city.

7. The Gray Skyline, by Benjamin Winter

A love song -- more for a person than for the city itself -- but still the context is unmistakable.

6. Amsterdam, by Cold Play

The song doesn't actually mention Amsterdam at all, except in the title -- but it is Cold Play... and the sound of the song is pretty cool. Worth a mention, at any rate.

5. Tulpen uit Amsterdam, by Herman Emmink

Kind of cliché, maybe a bit like "La Vie en Rose" for Paris. I don't know if this song means as much for locals as it does for tourists... But still, it has that kind of instant association that can't be overlooked in a Top Ten listing like this one.

4. Amsterdam, by Leslie Phillips

[NO VIDEO CURRENTLY AVAILABLE]

I like the haunting, lilting guitar riff that characterizes this ode to Amsterdam... but I also like the fact that this song was written by a very close personal friend of mine. It wins the prize for Amsterdam songs that have not (yet) been picked up by the mainstream.

3. Walking in Amsterdam, by PFR

This is one of my personal favorites, particularly in light of its perspective from a foreigner who spent some time in the city but eventually moved on ("I believe I could see my life clearer / walking in Amsterdam / There's an ocean between who I am and who I was / walking in Amsterdam / Now I run / Every one of my days have become / A pursuit of all I was there / Can I get it back? Can I get it back?"). It's not as classic or as widely known as some of the other songs about Amsterdam, but it makes my top three at any rate.

2. Amsterdam, by Jacques Brel

Sung by one of the greatest chanteurs of all time, accompanied by accordian and piano, Brel's performs a beautiful ballad to Amsterdam. To be completely honest, I don't  understand all the words to this song (it's sung in French) -- but I still get chills up and down my spine when I hear the end of the song, when his final refrain is drowned out by the sound of his audience standing to their feet in appreciation for his performance.

1. Aan de Amsterdamse Grachten, by Tante Leen

This is the anthem. It's played each August at the conclusion of the glorious Prinsengracht Concert. The audience at the open-air music festival sings and sways along to the music, and I can hardly think of a more fitting tribute to the city. Roughly translated, the lyrics say, "I've left my heart alongside the canals of Amsterdam," and "No one could wish for anything better than to be an Amsterdammer." And to be honest, I think these are my sentiments exactly.

What are the greatest Amsterdam songs of all time? Here are my suggestions for the Top Ten:

How does one place a sound that seems somewhere between a New York coffee-house open-podium, a New Orleans jazz lounge, and some Country-Western bar out in rural Wyoming? Triangulating the coordinates on a map, it makes sense that the result is the Cincinnati-based musical stylings of Over the Rhine. But really, one has to hear their music to appreciate it.

My lovely wife just got me their Christmas album, "Snow Angels," and I've been enjoying it immensely ever since my first listen. Somehow Over the Rhine manages to maintain their unique indy-jazz-country sound -- and still find a way to give it a subtle peppermint flavor for Christmas. Most of the songs on the album are original (Sorry: no frivolous renditions of "Frosty the Snowman"), but they fit with the holiday season because of their lyrics and their instrumentation, which carry a reminder of the Charlie Brown Christmas Special.

One thing that I especially appreciate about Over the Rhine is their lyrical content, both on "Snow Angels" and on their other projects. From everything I've heard, I gather that the husband-and-wife core of the band are sincere followers of Jesus -- which definitely does come out in their music -- but they're also not afraid to write about wine and sex and scenery. It's a refreshing take on Christian spirituality.

And of course, Over the Rhine is great because they're from Ohio: the seat of all satisfaction. :-) Nevermind the fact that I was introduced to their music by people from Texas, Missouri, Colorado, and Holland -- Over the Rhine's essential Ohioness has got to count for something special, doesn't it? In any event, I enjoy their music -- and especially their Christmas album.

My brother, Jay, recently posted some of his favorite songs of sadness, and I found the opportunity the opportunity to reflect on my own personal playlist strangely enjoyable. Then this morning, I was bicycling into the city and listening to music on my headphones, I was actually moved to tears (in a good way) by one of the songs. So I thought it might be fun to share more of the "Songs that Make Me Cry," paying homage to the powerful emotional influence that music can have on us. Here are five of my personal favorites:

"Waters of Babylon," by Don McLean

This is the ultimate song of lament: words of the ancient Hebrew Scriptures set to a haunting, circular tune by 1970s folk song-writer Don McLean. The words themselves don't make so much sense in a contemporary context -- but even so, somehow they reflect the character of a people who were deeply acquainted with sorrow and suffering. If you read the stories behind the lyrics (see Psalm 137 and the Old Testament history of the Babylonian Exile), then you can appreciate the sorrow even further. But in any event, McLean's "Waters of Babylon" is one of the most sad, and most beautiful songs that I know.

"Aubrey," by Bread

The 1970s musicians, Bread, were masters of sad songs. I could just as easily have mentioned their songs, "Diary" or "Dismal Day," but this one resonates with me particularly strongly because of its association with the miscarriage that Marci and I experienced in November of 2003. We never really named the child that we lost, but if we would have done so, I think the name would have been Aubrey. That autumn was a really sad season for us: because of the miscarriage, but also because of other factors. Whenever I hear this song, I am transported back to the emotions from that season of life.

"The Art Teacher," by Rufus Wainwright

I love story-songs, and I think this story about a high school girl who falls in love with her art teacher is an especially beautiful story-song. It speaks to issues of expectations, regrets, ideals, and unrequited love. The song is especially meaningful to me because it was given to me by my brother, Jay, who just so happens to be an art teacher himself -- but even without that connection, it would be a powerful song in its own right.

"Blessed Be the Name," by Matt Redman

I have to say that I actually prefer the Chris Smith version of this song (though I don't know of any recording for such a version), but I'll give the props to Matt Redman since he wrote the song. This song also has a strong connection with a particularly challenging season of my life -- the summer of 2003 -- when I had to really put my faith to the test and see if I could genuinely bless the name of the Lord, even in the midst of difficulty. Almost every time this song is sung in a church worship gathering, I feel myself getting choked up... in a good way.

"Barcelona," by Queen

I honestly have no real idea why this song hits me the way it does. I actually feel kind of silly when this song brings out the tears in me, and I can't fully explain the reasons why... But it does. This is the song that I heard on my headphones this morning, and I had a good cry over it. I just love the chorus, when the band bursts into the word, "Barcelona." There's such power and emotion in that section for me. My earliest recollection of the song is from the 1992 Olympics, so maybe the tears have something to do with that experience or that time period in my life; but I genuinely can't explain it logically. It just makes my list because it's one of those "Songs that Make Me Cry."

What about you? What are some of your favorite sad songs -- or perhaps I should ask in terms of emotionally-overwhelming songs? What are some songs that make you cry? Perhaps with some friends' recommendations, I can add to my playlist.