Top 10 Songs To Do Your Taxes By

Were you jaming out to music while doing your taxes?  To ease the burden, I think listening to music eases the burden.

1. "Taxman" - The Beatles

If you drive a car, I’ll tax the street;
If you try to sit, I’ll tax your seat;
If you get too cold, I’ll tax the heat;
If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet.

"Taxman" was one of three songs on the Beatles’ Revolver album that were written by George Harrison. Although most of us can’t relate to what inspired the song – the tax burden on people who earn too much money – we can relate to the underlying theme.

2. "Movin' Out" - Billy Joel

You can pay Uncle Sam with overtime
Is that all you get for your money?

Don't have a heart attack-ack-ack, but Billy Joel actually wrote "Movin’ Out" not to protest paying taxes, but to express disdain for the conventional definitions of success and achievement.

3. "I'd Rather Be Rich" - Chicago

I'd rather be rich, the truth of cash is tragic,
The system's a bitch, but money works like magic

While Billy Joel decried success, Chicago seemed to embrace it with "I'd Rather Be Rich." Robert Lamm’s lyrics espoused the theory that everything’s okay if you have enough money.

4. "Money Money Money" - ABBA

I work all night, I work all day, to pay the bills I have to pay
Ain't it sad
And still there never seems to be a single penny left for me
That's too bad

At the time ABBA recorded "Money Money Money" in 1976, they had plenty plenty plenty of it. The song, however, deals with what it’s like to be poor “in a rich man’s world.”

5. "Money" - Pink Floyd

Money, it’s a gas.
Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash.

Pink Floyd’s "Money" may not rate high on your financial planner's Top 10, but it’s great for getting psyched to file your tax return.

6. "Low Budget" - The Kinks

I’m on a low budget
I’m not cheap, you understand
I’m just a cut price person in a low budget land
Excuse my shoes they don’t quite fit
They’re a special offer and they hurt me a bit
Even my trousers are giving me pain
They were reduced in a sale so I shouldn’t complain

Given the number of songs they recorded on the subject, one gets the idea that money was something of an obsession for the Kinks. "Low Budget" is about the difficulty of living within one’s means.

7. "Sunny Afternoon" - The Kinks

The tax man’s taken all my dough,
And left me in my stately home,
Lazing on a sunny afternoon.
And I can’t sail my yacht,
He’s taken everything I’ve got,
All I’ve got’s this sunny afternoon.

In the same vein as The Beatles’ "Taxman," the Kinks’ "Sunny Afternoon" deals with the money woes of the rich and famous.

8. "Success Story" - The Who

Away for the weekend
I've gotta play some one-night stands
Six for the tax man, and one for the band

John Entwistle’s "Success Story" took a jab at the Who’s success, and how it took the fun out of playing music.

9. "Lap of Luxury" - Jethro Tull

The money won't last forever.
Rent man called twice today.
I hope some day you'll find me
In the lap of luxury.

The eternal quest for more than we have is the theme of Jethro Tull’s "Lap of Luxury."

10. "Carnival World" - Jimmy Buffett

But talk is cheap
It takes money to buy your freedom
And the tax man's knockin' on your door

Leave it to Jimmy Buffett to take a cynical view of the power of money. In "Carnival World" money is the root of everything BUT evil.