Richard Simmons gave me some of his CranEnergy!

So this morning, I am walking thru Union Station, minding my own business, having just purchased my April monthly ticket and a ticket for the Big Adventure on Thursday (more on this later!) ... when I notice a crowd gathering in the Great Hall. I am nothing if not inquisitive, so I went over to check it out, and there he was. Richard Simmons, in his personal flesh. He was handing out bottles of CranEnergy and then he did a little dance. He was bartering with some of the ladies - a bottle of the juice for a "big old kiss!" and he seemed very nice. And yes, he was wearing his short shorts. I took some pix with my phone, but they aren't really great... I had to take them so y'all wouldn't think I was April fooling a day early... How can it be a bad day?

get on yer boots, bitches!

Houston, we have U2 tickets! I'm so excited! I've never been to Soldier Field before for anything... Am starting the countdown to September 12 RIGHT NOW!

my head hurts...

And it's not even 8:30... See if any of you good people can 'splain any of these mysteries to me:

1. Who watched Idol last night? I tuned in for the second (better) half. But can anyone tell me why, after they showed the clip of Danny talking to Smokey Robinson, and the Smoke telling the dude that his interpretation of "Get Ready" would be greatly enriched by singing "You're all right!" and "You're outta sight!" They practiced it together. Danny seemed to think it would be great. Who would doubt Smokey? But on the show, after they went through all that, he very deliberately did not sing those lines during his performance, but the backup singers did. What gives, Gokey?

2. In what world does it make sense to cast Sean Penn as one of the 3 Stooges?? Or Benicio del Toro for that matter. Aren't the Stooges supposed to be funny?? I don't see Sean Penn doing funny. But maybe he will surprise people. Not actually me, because I don't really like the Stooges anyway, and you won't be able to pay me money to sit through a Farrelly brothers movie pretty much ever.

does anyone have an extra $1000?

Steppenwolf's Gala (with a ticket price of $1,000)is coming up, and the auction sounds amazing...plus, hello? The Lt. Dan Band!

AUCTION ACTION: Steppenwolf's annual gala usually features lots of nifty prizes -- including quality time with the company's ensemble -- and this year's no exception. Guests at the April 18 fete at the theater can bid on an L.A. weekend with Gary Cole on the set of ''Entourage,'' a stylish spa treatment weekend in New York with Joan Allen, dinner with playwright Tracy Letts and the cast of his Tony-winning ''August: Osage County'' (including Deanna Dunagan, Fran Guinan, Mariann Mayberry, Amy Morton, Sally Murphy, Rondi Reed and Rick Snyder) at Art Smith's Table Fifty-Two, and a Rick Bayless feast prepared in his home with Steppenwolf co-founders Terry Kinney, Jeff Perry and Gary Sinise -- plus the theater's artistic director Martha Lavey.

bret's angry dance

So I left "dance" off my list of stuff to cheer/perk myself up when I am feeling blue. Or, like in Bret's case, to let off steam when I'm really flippin' ticked off. By the way, things are looking up today, and so I also must offer these words of advice (to myself, really, but anyone can listen in): sing a new song, chicken tikka.

all of us at once!

This goes out to all my friends in "the district" (and I don't mean Washington DC). You know who you are...

it is definitely one of those days...

So I don't know about you guys, but when I am having one of those days when I feel like I shouldn't have bothered getting out of bed, I do some of the following to perk myself up/make myself feel better:

1. Shop
2. Eat/drink comfort food/beverages
3. Play some of my favorite tunes really really really really loud on a loop. Sometimes I sing along because sad songs really DO say so much.

I'm a hot mess today, for reasons I would prefer to not describe. Mucho anxiety prevented me from getting much sleep, so here we are. I am at work right now, so shopping isn't terribly appropriate. I am having a hot earl grey vanilla creme tea latte from Argo (who, by the way, never responded to my rhapsodic email message about their delicious tea lattes. Whatev.) AND this morning, I really need some Patti - so I've been playing Loops on a Loop, as it were... from my favorite performance, I think ever. If I ever heard her actually sing this at a concert or soemthing, I think I'd be able to die happy.

going down the gym...

So. I would use this space to recap Idol last night - Grand Ol' Opry night, with musical mentor Randy Travis. However, I only caught the last half hour (with the triumphant return of Anoop Dawg! Yesss!) because I was At The Gym. I know that most people do this on a regular basis. I even used to do it on a fairly regular basis - although I went to "Club Fitness" at the Morton Grove Community Center. It's a little room with about 4 treadmills, some stairmasters and ellipticals and when I would do my thing (about once a week) I would find myself in the company of the typical residents of our little Village (read, I was the youngest person in the room, and also usually the only girl.) I stopped going a while ago, I don't even remember when. Maybe in the fall? I don't know. I walk every day, from Union Station down here to the office, and I run around like a nutcase when I am here anyway, so I figured you know? This is enough.

But my friends are members at Lifetime (a behemoth facility right off the expressway in Niles, kinda near Old Orchard) and asked me to come on one of their free passes. So I went. And dumplings, it was HUGE. Like a big, intimidating Fortress of Health. It has a restaurant, and two swimming pools, a salon, and an entire upper floor full of machines of all kinds. There's also gyms to do stuff in (basketball or whatever) a weight room, places to stretch and be massaged, day care... It was weird though because the parking lot was PACKED but when we got inside, I was like "where is everybody" because it didn't feel crowded at all. Usually I am a little self-conscious about working out in front of all these crazy buff fitness freaks, but it was a really unstressful environment.

However, I had not been on a piece of equipment for many many months and I was afraid of killing myself. Oh, and my typical workout, minus strecthing, was never longer than 25 or so minutes. My friends told me, cheerfully, that they usually spend a whole hour working out. I have a sort of love/hate thing with fitness regimes. I always HATED gym class, because I was never any good at anything, and I stuck out like a sore, uncoordinated thumb because I could never play basketball/volleyball/baseball - I mean, take your pick, I sort of stunk at all of them. And having to do this daily and being graded on it? Always bothered me. But now it's cool because I don't have to play any of those stupid sadistic games if I don't want to. I can get on my elliptical machine and nobody will be there grading me or laughing at me, whatever. Although, I did get giggled at a little when I fell off the treadmill. I've never used one before and you know... but I got the hang of it and - I felt great when I was finished! Wheeeee! So thanks, girls, for bringing me. I may return to my old pals at the park district and see if I can get a routine going before I venture into membership at an actual Fitness Establishment...

happy st. patrick's day!

Raise yer glasses, bring yer wellies (or is it get on your boots?) and sing along with Gaelic Storm... I'm not Irish, but you can kiss me anyway!

still doing my part for the economy...

Look, people, you gotta meet me halfway here, I'm doing all this work for the economy on my own... where's your consumer confidence? I am afraid that my problem here is severalfold. When I am not feeling well, I go comfort shopping. Worried? Sick? Anxious? All can be cured by the power of retail therapy. It's a lot less fattening than comfort food... even though I will occasionally buy comfort food. And we're budgeting this week, so what better way to feel better than to buy something pretty? Also, when I am bored, I shop. Just for something to do. It's kind of fun to go to Old Orchard on a nice day and wander around... And then, our desperate friends at the Anchor Stores of life decide to do stuff like the Carson's Goodwill Sale. 20% off coupons for as many articles of old clothing that you can carry. I went there yesterday and got some stuff with my coupons. There is still a pair of sandals in my mind that I am desperately trying to convince myself that I don't need. But, oh, they were so pretty.

My other problem? I am very, very, very suggestible. And my new In Style showed up this week. It's the color issue, and now I'm looking in the closet thinking "Why do you have so much BLACK?" Then there was an article about beauty products, and it mentioned a particular color (Mademoiselle by Essie) and I happen to own that color and I went and put it on my nails. I had to change my polish anyway, and it is a really nice, basic color...

In Style also featured the most gorgeous London Fog coat. I think I need to explain here that I have a thing for coats - jackets, blazers, sweaters. They can be businesswear or outerwear or whatever, I just love them. And I really love trench coats. They are so polished and classic, and I have been looking for the perfect one for ages. I just got done ordering it online... But hey, I was also constructive this week - I did some cleaning in my closet too, and I found some stuff that I had forgotten about (don't you love when that happens? It's like Christmas.) and some coats that I don't remember buying at all, that I know were mine but i have no recollection of wearing. Plus, they are HUGE on me. Have I shrunken??

on a rainbow high...

Can you believe I've never seen Evita? I have a weird sort of connection with the show, I can remember, when I was younger, singing my own lyrics to Don't Cry for Me Argentina, and pretending I was on the balcony of the Casa Rosada. How I knew the song is totally beyond me. Maybe some family member played it or something? And of course, when the movie came out, I went a bunch of times. Totally obsessed with it I was. I remember I was so mad when some chick in my spanish class said it was just like a big music video for Madonna. And now I must publicly apologize. Madonna can't act for shite. So I am sorry Lambrini, wherever you are, you totally called it. When I was in LA a few years ago to see Mahagonny, I was chilling out in my hotel room and the movie happened to be on. I was in awe of my former self for thinking it was so great. Why did I see it so many times? I asked the tv. But strangely, I also couldn't turn it off, I was so fascinated by it. In a weird way. Sidebar here - I also remember squabbling with another Spanish class classmate - who claimed that there's a line in Rainbow High where Eva declares that she's "half croatian" because hello? There isn't.

Yesterday I read a great review by Hedy Weiss (go to suntimes.com and find it, the link thingie hates me today) of a new production of Evita playing in Rogers Park. I really really really really want to go. It will be nowhere near the original, but what can you do? I was only 2 in 1980.

the king of pop...

Last night on Idol: Michael Jackson night, baby! I am not actually a huge fan of Mr. Jackson's music, it is, as Randy (the lost Jackson brother) might say "aiiight," but it's not my cup of tea, dawg. Anyway. My favorites from last night were Allison and Adam. I was all set to cheer for Megan but then she sang Rockin' Robin (and I wasn't paying enough attention to understand how/why that is appropriate to the category. Anyone? Wanna enlighten me?)

Ryan Seacrest coyly alluded to some kind of rule shift that will change the way the results shows are done. Simon said that it included the judges, and I started wondering if they were going to do a Dancing with the Stars style result - the audience vote combined with a final "vote" from the judges. Can you imagine Simon with a little numbered paddle? He'd probably be beating Paula with it. And I bet nobody would care about that. She is so strange sometimes, honestly. It makes more sense to let the judges have a final say anyway - some of them have a stake in whoever wins, and they don't want to produce any (more) dud records. And it might also help avoid the repeat of a Taylor Hicks situation. And I did hear that there would be (gasp!) a double elimination tonight! Did I not call that??

My predictions? Dull as dishwater Jasmine and Anoop-dawg.

UPDATE: Well, I was half right - Jasmine and Jorge were sent packing last night, leaving Anoop (dawg) to sing another day. The new "twist" for the show is now the judges are allowed to "save" a contestant who is given their walking papers by the audience. They all have to agree, and if they save someone one week, the following week, 2 get eliminated. Hmmmm. Interesting. They opted not to save either one last night, probably going to save their saves until later on...

In ANTM news, there was much crying over cut hair during the makeovers, a fake cover girl wall mart wall (are there really no Wallmarts in NYC?) telenovela Jessica was sent home, after not bringing enough "fierce" to her photos. As the poor thing was packing her bags, she sniffed "I've never been told I was anything less than pretty" Oh, yeah, sucks to be you, all right.

the tears of a clown...

Intermission came and went. The sickly couple next to us left so we got to move over - and finally: a clear view! Unobstructed by Mr. Giant Head and his clingy girlfriend! Thank you lord! The moving head saga also irritated the neighbor to my left, on the aisle - she also got up and switched seats at intermission. And did I mention before the trio a few rows down? The ones who busted out their box of Dots (classy!) and were sitting with hands behind their heads (oh, yeah, that won't obstruct anyone's view at all). What's wrong with people sometimes?

OK, enough about that. The good news here is now I had a clear view and so I could stop being so gosh darned cranky, and maybe actually enjoy Pagliacci. And I did! Here's the story on this one: Nedda and Canio are married and are in a traveling circus kind of thing. Nedda (the lovely lovely Ana Maria Martinez. I have seen her sing in concert with Bocelli and also with Domingo, and I am so glad she's finally getting roles!) is having a secret fling with hunky Silvio and they promise to run away together. She is observed by Tonio, a handicapped clown, who has a crush on her, but whom she has meanly rejected. He swears revenge. Sound familiar? He tips off Canio, who has a bit of a temper. They catch Nedda and Silvio in an embrace, but Silvio runs away before they can identify him - Canio demands that she tell him her lovair's name, but she refuses. Canio is still in a bit of a huff, but is convinced to go on with the show. Tonio tells him that the lovairs plan to run off that night, and that they can catch them later. As he puts on his makeup, he sings the famous Vesti La Giubba (tears!). Their circus show has a little skit where Colombina (Nedda) is having a little fling with Arlecchino, behind the back of her husband Pagliacco (Canio). Life is imitating art, and this time Canio is tired of playing the clown. In the middle of the show, and no longer in character, he demands that Nedda tell him the name of her lovair. She refuses. In a fit of rage, he stabs her. She cries out for Silvio, who runs to her, and Canio stabs him, too. There is shock, confusion. Tonio appears before the audience and announces "The comedy is over."

I liked this one MUCH better than Cav. It was more engaging and I wasn't sitting there mocking the characters like I was with Cav (as in Santuzza, baby, why don't you just forget Turiddu? He's an asshat. Just go to a different village, pretend your husband died or something, and get on with your life! GEEZ! And also why the heck didn't Lola just WAIT for him to get out of the army in the first place? Then she could have married him and none of this would have happened....) So it was all in all a good night. Even though I got home WAY past my bedtime (I really am an old lady)....

last night at lyric...

Last night was the double bill of Cavelleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci, both of which I had seen before. First off was Mascagni's Cavelleria Rusticana. Basically, Santuzza (sung here by Guang Yang) is looking for her lovair, Turiddu, who is in lovel with an old flame, Lola. The two of them were an item before he had to go off to war (or something) and she got tired of waiting and married Alfio instead. So poor Turiddu had to take comfort in the arms of Santuzza, his baby mamma. But they aren't married and so poor Santa has gotten excommunicated for being such a slut, and Turiddu is still sneaking around with Lola. Santuzza begs him to come back to her, accuses him of an affair with Lola and he just won't listen to her. He runs off and then, conveniently, Alfio shows up. Santuzza is pissed, and hurt, so she blabs to Alfio that Turiddu and his wife are doing the deed. Alfio is a little slow on the uptake ("Santuzza," he sings, "What are you saying?" "Your wife is a ho," she answers. "Do you want me to paint you a picture?" etc.) but eventually he gets it and pledges revenge. Santuzza is instantly sorry she said anything, but it's too late. She prays for... I don't know, something, but Alfio has challenged Turiddo to a duel. He says goodbye to his mamma (played by Judith Christin - who I swore I must have made up - she fell off the planet after I saw her in Lyric's Sweeney Todd in 2003.) "I'm going for a walk," he tells her "And I might not come back." (I swear, this is a direct quote from the supertitles. His poor mother must have been like "Turiddu! You are so high drama!") and then he has a change of heart and asks her to look after Santuzza "The poor girl who loved me." Yeah, right, since when? Rustic chivalry indeed. Whatever, anyway, he goes off to his duel, and Alfio has a bunch of henchmen and Turiddo basically never has a chance. The End.

I wasn't wild about this one (the more time I spend making snarky comments in my head about the characters, the less I am actually engaged in the production. And I don't think it helped that I was surrounded by the noisiest bunch of people that you'd ever want to sit near in the theater. Some woman behind me was like snorffling or something, all kinds of crazy heavy breathing. I was like what on earth is wrong with you? Who breathes like that?? It sounded like my little cat Finnie was sitting behind me and snoring, that's actually what it sounded like. Then, there was some woman hacking up a lung a few seats away (hey, Bill Mason, I wasn't aware you'd seated me in your typhoid section.) while they were singing. She'd coughed for maybe 5 minutes before it occured to her to drink some water. I don't know about you, but when I'm sick I don't suddenly go, "Hey, you know what we should do?? Let's go to the opera! I can spread around my germs and no one will be able to hear! It'll be great!"

Oh, and THEN, there was the rather large headed gentleman in front of me. I think it was a first date with his girlfriend or something, because they were VERY touchy feely. I think there was a large head in front of him as well, because he kept moving around. First he and his girlfriend would put their heads together and then have a little kiss. Then he'd move. Then he'd go all the way to the right side. Then he'd lean forward. Heads back together. Looking straight ahead. To the right, to the left, kiss, kiss, etc. I wanted to scream. I quite liked it when his head was to either side, because then I had a full view of the stage. When he was sitting normally, I couldn't see the entire left side. And then I felt bad about leaning to one side, because I didn't want to obstruct the heavy breather behind me. What a mess!!!!

U2 on the Horizon...

Wooo! They're coming, according to The New York Times and I believe everything I read in The New York Times...

"On June 30, U2 will play Barcelona, the first stop on a world tour that the band will take to promote its most recent album, “No Line on the Horizon,” Billboard reported. The band will tour Europe through Aug. 22 and then come to North America on Sept. 12 to play Soldier Field in Chicago. The official tour announcement is expected to be posted at the band’s Web site, U2.com, on Monday."

Tonight: Cav/Pag at Lyric

Tonight I'm off to Lyric for an operatic double header - Cavelleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci. I have seen them both before, and I am looking forward to both of them tonight.




Wouldn't it have been great to hear Luciano really sing this? Thank god for Youtube...

saturday bagstravaganza!

What did I tell you about Chicago weather? From gorgeous, coatless Friday afternoon lunch at the Bean to the weekend: chilly, rainy and damp. Nevertheless, Heidi and I braved the elements yesterday morning to a sample sale at Lill Studio. If you are unfamiliar with this company (can't get my linky thing to work this morning, but their site is http://www.1154lill.com/) it is a design studio that allows you to design handbags. I had first heard about them from an Alford colleague who had been given one of bags as a bridesmaid's gift. They have certain bag style templates and then a roomful of pretty fabrics that you can choose from to create an original bag. My first thought after my colleague told me this was (naturally): MUST...TELL...HEIDI! I mean, come on. A place in the city where you get to make bags? Hell to the yes, I knew we'd need to go there. And we did, and the rest is history. As lovely as this all is though, these gorgeous bags are quite pricey, since once you choose the fabric, and the lining, etc etc it is sent off somewhere and hand sewn. As a result of this, I only have one of these bags. It's sort of an investment...



Heidi emailed me a few weeks ago to let me know there was going to be a sample sale on the 7th and did I want to go? A word on these sales - we attempted to go last September and were thwarted by a torrential downpour of rain that flooded our basements. I was alone in the house at the time and up to my ankles in water. Could not leave the house under such conditions, and so no cheap bags for us. Naturally, when I got this invitation I jumped at it. And, strangely enough, it is raining cats & dogs again this weekend. Is it mother nature's way of saying "Save your money and quit buying bags?" But I can't believe that she would say something like that, because if she saw these bags, she'd want one for herself, I am sure. But anyway. The samples at this sale were 50% off and sometimes more.



So. We were off by 7:00 (on a saturday morning, no less. This, my friends, is dedication.) and made our way to the Lill warehouse. It was on the west side, in a sort of spooky looking industrial back alley... but inside... it was a wonderland. Several aisles with racks filled with bags of all shapes and sizes. We'd gotten there just in the nick of time, right after we arrived it started really filling up. We started slowly, fingering luscious fabrics, drooling and going well, I'm not sure... but then we learned. From that point on, anything we saw that attracted our attention we grabbed. Grab it now or it will be gone later. Soon my arms were loaded down with stuff. I could barely make my way through the aisles without knocking down (or being knocked down) other girls with their arms also full of bags. We found a corner and started going through the stuff. The no's were scooped up by sales staff and returned to the floor. As we made our decisions, there was still a part of each of us that were curious to see what else was being returned to the floor by women in their own corners of the room who were doing the same thing we were. So one of us stayed with the loot while the other one made an additional sweep or two amongst the racks. After much, much, much, much, much deliberation and totalling, we decided to get in line. And it started again. The line was long, see, and there wasn't much else to do but stare at the racks to see if there was anything else we might have missed. Once or twice one of us left the line, brought back another lovely, admired it, debated its merits, color, wearability, etc and then more often than not, returned it to the rack. It wasn't just us doing this, either, pretty much everyone in line was doing the same thing.


Anyway, it was really lots of fun. I bought two gifts (one that was supposed to be for Mother's Day, but I just couldn't wait and so I gave it to my mom yesterday), a bag for work and a few other things. What the hell, right? I will have fabulous bags AND I did a small part for a Chicago business.

days like this remind me why i {heart} chicago

Dear Chicago,
You are such a flirt, teasing us on this 6th of March with clear blue skies, warm i-can-go-out without a coat on kind of weather. In March!! I spent a lovely lunch hour in Millennium Park, watching people ice skating in shirt sleeves. It was one of those enjoy it while it lasts kind of days, because tomorrow is going to be crap… These photos, taken on my unsophisticated little cell phone, hardly do you justice...

xanadu's closing...

The Sun Times reports that Xanadu is closing on March 29 - see below for the notice. Bummer...

The muse of the box office clearly refused to cooperate.

“Xanadu,” the Chicago edition of the campy little 90-minute musical by Douglas Carter Beane, Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, will close March 29 at the Drury Lane Theater Water Tower Place.

The show, which enjoyed a long run Off Broadway, is based on the 1980 film about a dim-witted Venice Beach multimedia artist and the beautiful Australian-accented ancient Greek muse who goads him on to success. It began previews here Jan. 16, opened Jan. 28, and was expected to draw both local and downtown tourist crowds until summer.

All is not lost, however. The entire production, including actors and sets, will travel to Japan in May for a month-long engagement in Tokyo, before beginning a national tour of the United States in Fall 2009. The show’s producers are Robert Ahrens, Dan Vickery, Mickey Liddell, b. swibel, Tara Smith and Latitude Link

idol chatter....

Oh, American Idol. Just when I thought I was out, you pulled me back in. I watched some of the auditions (like you do, you know) and then (gasp!) I watched Hollywood week. The drama! I kept wondering things like "what's that bat-shit crazy Tatiana going to do next? Laugh like a lunatic? Cry?" and "what's that nathaniel kid WEARING tonight and what's with the headbands, boy?" and "if i hear 'i hope you dance' one more time..." It's good stuff, I am telling you. New judge, new attitude, and we don't get to hear Paula blithering on about nothing all the time. Once again, I am becoming fluent in Randy-speak, dawg.

And yesterday? The wild card round? Pure entertainment and they had a surprise for us - 13 finalists instead of 12! Did you see that one coming? Maybe one week we will have a *shocking* double elimination too? Who knows? I am all sucked in and why fight it? I tried, in the past to stop watching, when the show's shlockiness (is that even a word?) just became irritating, but I ended up following what happened online anyway. I knew all about Sanjaya's hair even though I'd never heard him sing a note.

AND Top Model started this week, too. Tyra's getting a little too over the top for me this season (give that woman a talk show and she's becoming all preachy and taking up issues and causes. do troubled kids and teens really look to models to be their role models?) but I think I will stick with it for a while, anyway. I don't have any favorites yet, but I do have nicknames for almost all of the girls already...

songs i can't live without

THE RULES: Once you have been tagged, you are supposed to write down the top 25 songs you cannot live without. The ones you can listen to over and over and never get tired of. They don't have to be in any particular order. These are the songs that make you laugh, cry, think of an old friend, whatever the reason. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If you were tagged, it's because I'd like to see what you'd put in your list. To do this, go to "notes" under tabs on your profile page, paste these instructions in the body of the note, type your 25 songs, tag 25 people, then click publish.

Kari tagged me via Facebook to do this one, and I will put it here too. I'm supposed to tag 25 other people (I don't know if I even KNOW 25 people!) so here's your invitation, a blanket TAG for anyone who wants to play. I'm responding several days later than the original tag because it's taken me this long to come up with a list...

So here they are in no particular order:

1.Song to the Moon - from Dvorak's Rusalka, sung of course by Renee Fleming
2. Playbill - Patti LuPone
3. Time to Say Goodbye - Andrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman
4. Clocks - Coldplay
5. Imagine - John Lennon
6. Penny Lane - The Beatles
7. All for You - Sister Hazel
8. I'll Be - Edwin McCain
9. Being Alive - Patti LuPone
10. I had a Dream About You - Betty Buckley
11. My Stupid Mouth - ONLY the version sung by Audra McDonald NOT John Mayer. It may be his song, but I cannot stand his voice...
12. Miss Sarajevo - U2 as Passengers with Luciano Pavarotti
13.Mambo Italiano - Rosemary Clooney
14. Super Trouper - ABBA
15. City of Blinding Lights - U2
16. All the Wasted Time - Renee Fleming
17. Crocodile Rock - Elton John
18. Parla mi d'amore, Mariu - Luciano Pavarotti
19. Over the Rainbow - Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
20. Putting it Together - Mandy Patinkin
21. There's a fine, fine line - Avenue Q
22. Drops of Jupiter - Train
23. Beggarman - Gaelic Storm
24. Good Riddance (Time of your Life) - Green Day
25. What a Wonderful World - Louis Armstrong